Foden and Greenwood excluded from England camp for violating anti-Corona rules

England's Phil Foden and Mason Greenwood have returned home after being excluded from the team camp on Monday, for violating isolation rules while in Iceland.


The English Football Association opened an investigation into an incident involving Fodin (20 years) and Greenwood (18 years), after they participated in their first match with the national team during the victory over Iceland 1-0 in the activities of the European Nations League.


England coach Gareth Southgate said in a press conference: "Unfortunately, this morning, it came to my attention that two players had violated the rules of fighting the emerging corona virus."


He added: "So we decided quickly that both players will not be with the rest of the team and will not be able to train, given the procedures that we have to follow now, they will have to return to England separately."


The England national team arrived in Copenhagen, where it will face the Danish national team tomorrow, Tuesday, in the second round of the European Nations League.


"They apologized, but everything happened quickly and we have to find the truth," Southgate said.


Greenwood was called up to the England team for the first time after his amazing performance with Manchester United and scoring 17 goals last season, where he described joining his country as a "dream turned into reality."


A Manchester United spokesman said they were "disappointed by Mason Greenwood's actions in this situation."


The elimination of the duo adds to the difficulties for Southgate with regard to the list in which he will play against Denmark in 24 hours.


Southgate had already had to summon seven new faces for the first time due to injuries, then he disqualified defender Harry Maguire, who had recently appeared in Greek court for an assault, before he appealed his conviction.

Manchester City defender Kelly Walker is absent due to suspension after his dismissal against Iceland, and in the absence of Foden, Southgate has only five players in midfield.


"This job (coaching the England national team) is different from any other job," Southgate said.


"All training positions are difficult and this job is at another level, in terms of what you have to deal with and what may await you," he added.


 "The players who have been with us for a long time are aware of the things that could happen," he added.


Southgate admitted that the team was not aware that Foden and Greenwood had left the England national team residence, adding, "Nothing has happened in the places we occupy in the hotel."


He noted, "When people cross this line while they are with us, we are dealing appropriately, but we cannot act on matters that happen when they are not with us."


He continued, "We are still getting to the depths of all information because I learned about this matter only two hours before the training, so I am still dealing with the details. The obvious thing is that there has been a violation of the anti-Coronavirus guidelines."


When asked Southgate whether this incident would have a negative impact on the recall of players in the future for the England national team, the coach said, "They were naive and we acted appropriately."


"I take into account their young age, but certainly the whole world is dealing with the pandemic and there is a responsibility for all ages to do their duty," he explained.


He concluded by saying, "I am a father of young people and I realize that they can make mistakes. We do not justify it in this incident and we must evaluate all matters as we move forward."

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