Kalou Faces Sanction for Breaking Social Distance Rule

Hertha Berlin has suspended former Chelsea Ivorian forward Solomon Kalou for breaking social distance rule. The player was seen filming himself flouting social distancing rules on his return to training. With the Bundesliga sides looking to resume group training soonest he has been suspended and he might just not be in the opening game.

Solomon Kalou appeared to make light of the coronavirus pandemic live on social media as the Bundesliga attempts to return to action later this month. He was seen interrupting a team-mate’s test while screening it live on Facebook, his action was branded “absolutely unacceptable” by the German league.

This action contradicts his earlier statement which he made recently to BBC Sports, where he said it will be awkward returning to play top-level football because the game is a contact sport. Following his action his club has released a statement which states his errors and the penalty involved.

A Hertha statement read: “Salomon Kalou was tempted by his negative test results to greet the other players in the dressing room, sometimes with a handshake, contrary to the clear announcements made by health authorities.” Kalou gave the impression that he is not aware of the extent of the danger of the ongoing pandemic.

“With this video taken inside the team’s dressing room, Kalou broke clear internal rules and displayed a behavior, which is neither appropriate for this current situation, nor reflective of the code of conduct of Hertha BSC.”

“The club has therefore made the decision to suspend the player in question from training and matches with immediate effect,” the statement read.

Also, General manager Michael Preetz said: “With his video, Salomon Kalou has not only done a great deal of damage to Hertha BSC, but also created the impression that individual players are not taking the issue of coronavirus seriously, in a time of great discussion on the resumption of football and the role of the professional game.”

However, the Kalou has apologized for his misconduct through the clubs website, the 34-year-old said: “I’m sorry if I gave the impression that I’m not taking coronavirus seriously. I want to apologize for this. “The reality is the exact opposite, because I’m really worried about the people of Africa because health systems aren’t as good there as they are in Germany.

“I didn’t really think it through, and was excited that my tests came back negative. I would also like to apologize to all those who appeared in the video who didn’t know that I was broadcasting live and whom I didn’t want to bring into this situation.”