German doctor cautions footballers of risking career-ending damage from virus
The comments come after rigid hygiene guidelines were issued for the restart of the Bundesliga this weekend.
A German sports doctor has cautioned footballers of risking "irreversible" damage to their careers following rigid hygiene guidelines issued for the restart of the Bundesliga this weekend.
With Europe's other top leagues at least a month away from resuming, the German Football League (DFL) has drawn up strict rules for when games restart this Saturday.
Matches will be played behind closed doors, with only a limited number of media and officials allowed to attend.
The key games see second-placed Borussia Dortmund at home to Schalke in Saturday's derby and leaders Bayern Munich, who are four points clear, visiting Union Berlin on Sunday.
Players have been told to limit contact, even on the pitch, and must avoid pre-match handshakes and hugs to celebrate goals.
The DFL says while no plan could ever be "100 percent safe", the guidelines aim to create a playing environment with a low, "medically-justifiable risk".
However, professor Wilhelm Bloch, from the German Sports University in Cologne, warns that contracting the coronavirus has the potential to end a player's career.
"There is a risk that top athletes may lose their level of performance and never regain it," Bloch told AFP in a phone interview.
"Generally, the physical makeup, immune system and cardiovascular system of elite athletes means that the risk to them is low.
"However, we do not know at this time whether even minor infections, or even mild symptoms, do not cause damage, such as minor scarring of the lungs after an inflammation.
"This damage may be irreversible, or may last a very long time before the body repairs it.
"We've already had players infected in Europe and we'll soon know if they recover their full potential."
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