The reason for this action was that, four of the Argentine players, who play in the Premier League, reportedly violated the Brazilian rules designed to contain a Covid outbreak.
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Sunday’s World Cup qualification match between Brazil and Argentina was called off in farcical circumstances. After the game had kicked off, Brazilian health officials rushed onto the field to halt play six minutes. The match was later suspended. The reason – four of the Argentine players, who play in the Premier League, apparently violated the Brazilian regulations on COVID-19.
The federal police and officials from Brazil’s health agency, Anvisa, took to the field to halt play. The Argentine players on the pitch included Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, Tottenham Hotspur’s Giovani Lo Celso and Christian Romero. Aston Villa’s Emiliano Buendia was in the stands. The Brazilian rules state that travellers who have been in the UK, South Africa or India during the previous 14 days cannot enter the country. This rule is relaxed unless they are Brazilian citizens or have permanent residency.
In a statement, Anvisa said it had received reports the four Argentina players had provided “false information” on their pre-flight health declarations. All of them had arrived from Venezuela.
However, for some unclear reasons, Martinez, Romero and Lo Celso started the game. A few minutes after kick-off, the officials marched on to the pitch and there were dramatic scenes. CONMEBOL later confirmed the game had been called off by the referee. The officials would submit a disciplinary report to FIFA.
“Anvisa considers the situation a serious health risk. We have asked local health authorities to determine the immediate quarantine of the players. They are stopped from participating in any activity. The players should be prevented from remaining on Brazilian soil,” Anvisa said in a statement ahead of kick-off.
The Argentina team flew into Brazil a day after beating Venezuela 3-1 in the World Cup Qualifier in Caracas.
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni insisted his side were not informed they could not take the field. “I’ve come here so that our country can find out what’s happened. It makes me very sad. I’m not looking to find any guilty parties. Whether something happened or not, it wasn’t the right time for that intervention. It should’ve been a footballing spectacle for everyone to enjoy the best players in the world. I’d like the Argentine people to understand that as the coach, I have to defend my players,” Scaloni said. “At no point were we notified that they couldn’t play. We wanted to play the game, as did the Brazil players.”
Brazil and Argentina are placed first and second in the South American World Cup Qualifiers table. Both of them have played seven matches so far. Brazil has 21 points whereas Argentina has 15.
These two teams are two of the globe’s soccer powerhouse. Their last meeting was in the final of Copa America 2021. Argentina won 1-0 courtesy of Di Maria’s goal at Brazil. Meanwhile, these two teams have some of the world’s best players. Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Brazil’s Neymar are two of the best. All of which make the prospect of Brazil and Argentina facing off a thriller for fans around the world.
