FRANKFURT: The world will be watching via television and the internet on Saturday when the German Bundesliga emerges from its coronavirus pandemic lockdown with a full schedule of matches behind closed doors.
One man who should have been in the stadia will also be watching on TV.
He is Augsburg’s newly-appointed head coach Heiko Herrlich who breached quarantine rules by leaving the team hotel to buy toothpaste.
Teams preparing for the German league to restart this weekend have been staying in quarantine.
Herrlich, whose side face Wolfsburg on Saturday, told a news conference on Thursday that he had visited a shop, breaking league rules. He said: “I made a mistake by leaving the hotel. I have no toothpaste and then I went to a supermarket.”
Herrlich, 48, was appointed on 10 March and the home match with Wolfsburg was set to be his first in charge.
He added: “Even though I have followed all hygiene measures both when leaving the hotel and otherwise, I cannot undo this,” he said. “In this situation, I was not able to act as a role model for my team and the public.
“I will therefore be consistent and stand by my mistake. Because of this misconduct, I will not be leading the training [on Friday] and will not be in charge of the team against Wolfsburg on Saturday.”
The club said players and staff are being regularly tested for coronavirus and Herrlich will be able to resume training after two negative test results.
Augsburg are 14th in the Bundesliga, five points above the relegation zone.
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