Faced with the epidemic of Coronavirus which rages in the north of Italy, the match of the Champions League opposing Lyon to Juventus of Turin created the controversy. For Virginie Phulpin, it is important to wonder about the risks surrounding the arrival of Italian supporters at Groupama Stadium.
Olympique Lyonnais welcome Juventus from Turin tomorrow evening in the knockout stages of the Champions League. For Virginie Phulpin, everything is there to make it a match of fear and it would be better to cancel the movement of the supporters.
Virginie Phulpin wonders especially if it is very useful to make people take a risk whatsoever. For the first time in many months, the Lyon team is said to be in step with its supporters. Not reassured. There is sport, of course, with this stammering OL facing a Juventus from Turin who will go largely favorite. But honestly, the players can relax, the stake of the meeting is elsewhere. In the stands. These stands which will welcome without restriction, unless last minute counter-orders, the supporters of Juve. 2,000 Tifosi are expected tomorrow and they will be the center of attention, much more than Cristiano Ronaldo. With a cohort of frightened questions. What if they brought with them the coronavirus that is spreading in Italy? Why don't we apply the precautionary principle and don't cancel their movement? It's weird all the same, there were lots of games canceled this weekend in Calcio, Italian sport is almost in quarantine, and there, we act as if nothing had happened.
Are these questions legitimate or do they only reflect a somewhat prefabricated psychosis? We do not know anything. Doctors and health specialists are there to respond. But the fact is that these questions are present. And Virginie Phulpin does not really understand why we would allow this fear to develop for 2,000 supporters in all. In France, we know how to ban the movement of fans for matters a little more trivial than public health, so if there is a moment when extreme caution can apply, it seems to me now.
No one has much to gain by letting Juve supporters move.
Obviously, the Juventus team from Turin prefers to play in front of its 2,000 supporters so that they can respond to Lyon fans in the stands. But they would be able to understand their absence. And don't worry about this team, they are resourceful even without their fans. Ultimately it would perhaps balance the balance of power on the ground.
And above all, UEFA and football in general have nothing to gain from taking such a risk for 2,000 supporters. A Champions League match is watched like milk on fire. Do you realize the echo that it could have, if the virus landed in force in the Lyon region because of a football match? UEFA cares enough about its image to be careful. For now, the movement of fans of Juve in Lyon is maintained. But, according to Virginie Phulpin, the European football body would be well advised to change that during the day.