Respect social distancing rules – Bundesliga players to be reminded after celebrating goals

Bundesliga - TSG 1899 Hoffenheim v Hertha BSC - PreZero Arena, Sinsheim, Germany - May 16, 2020 Hertha Berlin players celebrate their first goal as Hoffenheim's Stefan Posch reacts, as play resumes behind closed doors following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) [Thomas Kienzle/Pool via REUTERS]

Players in the Bundesliga will be reminded to respect social distancing rules after Hertha Berlin celebrated in the usual fashion in Saturday’s 3-0 win at Hoffenheim, the German league’s International Chief Executive Robert Klein has said.

Teams were ordered to avoid group celebrations as part of the health and safety regulations for the restart of the league over the weekend following the COVID-19 disruption.

Hertha’s Bosnian forward Vedad Ibisevic, who scored one of their goals, said after the win that players were not robots but Klein maintained the rules had to be followed.

“In the hygiene concept the guideline is to celebrate within social distancing rules,” Klein told reporters. “One can imagine at the height of a goal being scored that maybe, sometimes, the players get closer.

“The clubs are working actively with players. They speak to them every day to remind them of what needs to be done to ensure we earn the right to a second matchday and a third and to finish the season.”

Earlier this month, Hertha suspended Ivorian forward Salomon Kalou after he posted a video on social media showing himself and team mates shaking hands and displaying a casual approach to COVID-19 guidelines.

The club had said in a statement that “this was the conduct of a single player” and denied that the squad did not take social distancing and hygiene rules seriously.