Paris (AFP)

Several coaches have expressed their reluctance to release their internationals for the international truce in March, decisive for qualifying for the 2022 World Cup but involving long trips in the midst of a health crisis, prompting Fifa to recall on Friday that it has already relaxed its rules.

"It is a complicated subject, which involves both the Federations, the governments and the Fifa, in the search for an agreement which is fair and equitable for all", indicated the coach of Paris SG Mauricio Pochettino, whose several players are expected in South America, starting with the Brazilian Neymar who is returning from injury.

"We have to find the best solution so that the competitions remain as fair as possible, and so that the players receive equal treatment, regardless of the country where they play," he continued.

"In this period of pandemic, it is a determining element which will have an impact on the results. It is also an important international window, with decisive matches for the qualification for the World Cup-2022", he said declared.

At the end of March, several PSG executives, Neymar and Marquinhos (Brazil), as well as Angel di Maria and Leandro Paredes (Argentina), must cross the Atlantic Ocean again for the rest of the qualifying campaign for the World Cup in Qatar.

- Guardiola: "It makes no sense" -

However, since January 31, French regulations require all travelers coming from a country outside the European area to undertake on the honor to isolate themselves for seven days once they arrive in France.

Without government dispensation, Neymar, Marquinhos or Paredes will not be able to play the shock against Lille, current leader of L1, scheduled for April 4, if they fly to South America before.

"We need a decision so that neither the Federations nor the clubs suffer any deficit from a problem that cannot be solved," Pochettino explained.

In England, Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola and Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp have already warned that they will not release their internationals who may face quarantine on their return, a debate that runs throughout the Premier League.

"I think it doesn't make sense if the players go to the national team and then have to isolate themselves for 10 days when they return," Guardiola said.

“We've worked incredibly hard for seven, eight or nine months and after the international break comes the real part of the season. (If) important players, maybe six, seven, eight or nine can't play for ten days , it makes no sense, "he said.

"They will not leave. It is certain," assured the Spanish coach, unless his players are exempt from quarantine.

"If they can take off, play with the national team and come straight back to training, then they can go," he added.

- Infantino pleads for the selections -

Asked Friday during a press briefing of the International Board, guarantor of the laws of the game, the president of Fifa Gianni Infantino stressed that the body had "already temporarily modified its rules to take into account the pandemic".

Since last August, it allows clubs to keep their internationals if "a quarantine of at least five days is mandatory from the arrival" on the place "where the match of the national team is supposed to be played" of the player, or at the place of the latter's club on his return.

The FIFA boss nevertheless stressed the importance of select football, "the only source of income for the vast majority of countries in the world", even if this is not the case in Europe where clubs dominate.

He therefore called on the players to join their national team "whenever possible, taking all precautions and following the necessary protocols", because it "is important that selection football stays alive" .

Gianni Infantino was also to hold a virtual meeting on Friday with the South American Football Confederation (Conmebol), worried about the absence of the stars and which plans to postpone the meetings at the end of March.

© 2021 AFP