Last month, Premier League clubs decided to not release players travelling to red-list countries during this international break, with stars facing a 10-day quarantine upon their return to the United Kingdom.
This season, there is no more elite athlete exemption and any players returning from red-list countries would be likely to miss at least two games for their clubs if they featured for their nations, particularly South American players.
Edinson Cavani and Fred are among the players from Manchester United to be affected by the decision, with the former now opening up on not being able to help his nation qualify for World Cup in 2022.
“We are exposed to decisions that are made in the organizations of some tournaments and leagues and any of the two decisions (travelling or not) would be bad for us,” Cavani told the Uruguayan soccer association’s online TV channel, according to the Associated Press.
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“We don’t get rich playing for our national teams. We have a commitment with ourselves and a moral commitment to defend our country. We get rich by wearing the shirt of our national teams.”
After a curious immediate reaction to the Premier League statement, Cavani ended up staying in Manchester for this month’s set of international fixtures and will be at Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s disposal for next week’s encounter with Newcastle.
