[Sport] Omar Mascarell, Schalke captain: "There are those who take risks, charging much less than us"

[Dr.Drako]

The Canarian midfielder has already spent four seasons in Germany. After his time at Eintracht, he became the great reference for Schalke, of which he is captain. His team faces Dortmund today in the historic Ruhr derby that opens a new era in football.
 

It's not fear. It is respect. Omar Mascarell (Santa Cruz de Tenerife, 1987) is one of those people who do not need to raise their voices to make themselves heard. His speech, always rested, helps to decipher the profession of footballer. It does not hide a certain concern, but assuming that it belongs to a privileged group. And that nobody will force a player to dress short, at least in Germany. Schalke, the team of which he is captain, opens this Saturday the restart of the Bundesliga in Dortmund. And Mascarell, with one eye on a practically ready adductor, only counts the days to dress short too. "I can't wait to play."

What does your family tell you?

I live alone in Gelsenkirchen. My family is in Tenerife. My mother is the most nervous about this situation. He tells me to be careful. But I reply that here, in Germany, everything has been quite controlled so far. Thank God we have facilities that not everyone has, and my parents know that I am safer here than on the island.

Are you convinced that the competition must be resumed now?

Yes. It is also true that it does not depend on us. We are workers who if they send us to play, we have to do it. But I do think that in Germany all footballers want to end the season. We know that many jobs depend on football. It is true that there is a small risk. That will be there. But we are taking steps to make sure everything works out.

Is playing a voluntary act?

Yes, it is voluntary. Totally. The player who does not want to, who is not comfortable and safe or who thinks that the risk is very high, the club will respect his feelings and the footballer will be able to stay at home.
You are not afraid.

No, I have respect. I know it is a difficult situation for everyone. No one thought we would go through this. But I want to play.

Soccer may be different from what was played before the pandemic.

Between now and the end of the season, for sure. We play without the fans, with many sanitary rules to comply with. The team will make the journey to Dortmund on two coaches this Saturday. Three changing rooms will be needed per team: one for the starters, one for the substitutes, another for the coaching staff. In the benches it will be necessary to wear a mask and keep the safety distance. Each one will have their bottle of water, with their name. Everything will be different.

And then there are the rules to apply while playing.

We will not be able to celebrate goals with teammates as we have always done. We have been told that celebrations must be individual. And that we don't hug each other. But in a game a lot of things happen. There are moments of tension. If you go 0-0 and you are at the last minute ... I don't know if the first thing that comes to mind is to keep your distance. You have to follow the rules, but the emotions in a game are very strong.

You can't slap a teammate cheer, but you can make an entrance to an opponent or form a barrier? It doesn't seem consistent.

I agree, but we do not make the rules. There are many details that we do not understand, but we must follow the rules and comply with them as directed. I honestly think that players should act normally. Because this is soccer. Whoever has a mania for spitting may be punished. But, to give an example, the barriers will be as before.

Javier Tebas, president of the League, speaks of a risk of contagion of practically zero during a game [alludes to a study that says that players spend against each other on average no more than 67 seconds during a game].
We talk about football, right? Contact there.

Imagine in 90 minutes how much contact there is between the players. That is there. And there is risk. But that's what tests are for. This Friday morning we did another round, to have the results the same night before the game. It is mandatory because they have to be sure that we all give a negative and that there will be no positive on the field of play. I have already passed five tests since we started training. From now on, there will be two per week.

The footballer is privileged, but now he is the one exposed.

We are privileged even in this situation. It takes a lot to get here. No one has given us anything. There is a lot of effort behind that is not seen. That people must know. Yes, it is true that we are privileged, with a salary that covers our needs very well. Now we have a job to do and we will do it because we love football. There are people who are exposing themselves to this risk by charging far less money than we do. And thanks to them we can better carry our day to day. We are not the most

Edited May 16, 2020 by Dr.Drako
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