Minister of Health: "I cannot say if football will return before the summer"

The weeks pass and, to this day, it is still unknown for sure when professional football can be resumed in Spain, if it is possible that the competitions of this season may be ended. The Minister of Health, Salvador Illa, has been cautious in this regard and recalled what the priorities should be at the moment.

"I cannot tell you now if professional football is going to be able to restart its activity before the summer. It would be reckless of me," he replied to a journalist in the last few hours, determined to wait to see how the pandemic evolves to analyze, later , how can "different professional activities" be resumed.

"Diagnostic tests have to be made available to the autonomous communities, whatever their type"

Salvador Illa has made it clear, in any case, that in the new normality that is predicted in Spain "things are not going to be like before." "There is an order from the Ministry of Health that is in force for all types of groups, also for professional football. Diagnostic tests of any type must be made available to the autonomous communities," he said, in relation to the massive tests that LaLiga planned to carry out with the players and workers of the respective teams that comprise it.

In this sense, it is difficult for the Alarm State to end in the next 15 days, given that despite the fact that the situation is improving, there are still hundreds of deaths and infections due to coronavirus in recent days. "The horizon of thinking that the state of alarm can end in 15 days seems hasty to me, but we will see how it progresses."

Confinement measures will be relaxed

What does seem feasible is to promote relief measures for the Spanish population, thus making confinement less harsh than it has been in recent weeks. From May 2, for example, you may be allowed to go for a walk or to play sports individually, or with the people with whom you already reside. "If we continue with this trend, we say it with the utmost prudence. Next week, as the president announced yesterday, we will go one step further in the relief measures," he says.

Ultimately, Spanish citizens must remain vigilant and remain confined throughout the next few days, despite the fact that the measures are lowered and are not so strict. The objective is to continue reducing the number of infections and deaths, while increasing the number of recovered patients. If Spain continues along the path it started a few weeks ago, the recovery from the pandemic will be closer and closer ... Although other crises will follow later.