The social revolt has been brewing in Colombia for nearly three weeks and the country has turned into violence. Clashes with the police left 42 dead and more than 1,500 injured. Few Colombians have their heads in football, except for the government which would make it a symbol of unity when the Copa America is scheduled from June 11 to July 10.
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At the moment, holding the competition in Medellin, Cali, Bogota and Barranquilla, where the final is to be played on July 10, seems hard to imagine. The conservative Colombian President Ivan Duque nevertheless assured a few days ago that “The Copa will take place […] in both countries (Argentina also hosting matches) ». According to him, the organization of the competition “Would be an important message right now”.
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“It’s not normal to come and play a football match in such an unstable situation”
Marcelo Gallardo, River Plate coach
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However, on Thursday evening, clashes with the police who fired tear gas around the Barranquilla stadium forced the Copa Libertadores meeting to be interrupted five times between the Brazilian team Atletico Mineiro and America. of Cali (3-1). At the end of the first period, the players were even forced to take refuge in the locker room. On Wednesday in Pereira, the match between Atlético Nacional and Nacional (0-0) started an hour late due to incidents outside the hotel where the Uruguayan team were staying.
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In Barranquilla, the one between Atlético Junior and Argentinian club River Plate (1-1) was suspended for a few minutes because of irritating gas. River Plate coach Marcelo Gallardo, ex-Monaco and PSG player, said after the meeting that “It is not normal to come and play a football match in such an unstable situation, in the midst of what the Colombian people are going through”.
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Brazilian football team coordinator Juninho Paulista said on Friday to follow “The daily situation, in dialogue with CONMEBOL”, the body of South American football. Brazil coach Tite has announced his ” worry “ during the group’s announcement for the South American qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup, which will be played the week before the Copa America opener on June 13 in Buenos Aires.
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The radio silence of the Argentine authorities
On Thursday, during a virtual meeting, the CONMEBOL Council only broached the subject of the Copa America indirectly, an internal source told AFP. However, rumors have been insistent in recent days that other countries are ready to replace the Colombian host at a moment’s notice.
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Colombia “Stay decided” and his desire to organize the event “Has never been the subject of any doubt” for the instance, however assured this source. If concern does not seem to transpire from CONMEBOL, Argentinian President Alberto Fernandez was less categorical than his Colombian counterpart.
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“I don’t want to spoil the Copa America party, but I want us to be very reasonable, very careful. Like most countries in South America, Argentina and Colombia report a sharp increase in cases of Covid-19 infection, which is straining the health system ”, he warned at the end of April. Since then, there has been radio silence from the Argentinian authorities on the subject, busy trying to curb the outbreak of infections.
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In Colombia, the infection rate could even increase because of the crowds gathered at the protests. CONMEBOL has bet on the vaccination of the entire professional football world in South America by distributing the 50,000 doses of vaccine offered by the Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac.
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