UEFA Nations League: Why England vs Iceland might not hold

England’s UEFA Nations League fixture against Iceland could be in danger of being forfeited as a result of the UK’s current ban on all travel from Denmark, where the Icelandic team is due to play a few days before arriving in London.

England might be unable to carry on with their UEFA Nations League fixture against Iceland, who is due in Denmark before arriving in London a few days later. This is due to the United Kingdom’s current ban on all incoming travels from Denmark.

The UK government imposed rules preventing any non-UK citizens from arriving the country from Denmark due to a mutated form of the coronavirus found on mink farms around Denmark, which has raised major concerns if it spreads to human.

There are no exceptions as even UK citizens must also go into quarantine upon arrival from the Scandinavian country.

The Three Lions don’t have to worry about going to Denmark anytime soon as they have already played their fixtures vs Denmark home and away, claiming a single point from a possible six, but the concern is from Iceland’s fixture list.

Iceland vs Denmark will be played in Copenhagen on 15 November, and is expected to go ahead as planned. However, whether or not Iceland will travel to London three days later to play England as scheduled remains unknown.

If the UK government’s current rules on travel from Denmark remain in place, England might have to forfeit the game as chances of a postponement are highly unlikely due to the ongoing season’s already congested fixture schedule.

The game against Iceland would likely be the difference between Gareth Southgate’s men securing qualification to next summer’s Nations League finals or not, but the risk of public health makes the matter rather trivial for the English team.

Elite athletes were previously exempt from the rules of travel and quarantining, but with more coronavirus cases reported around Europe, there has been a turnaround. Whether or not the Icelandic players would be allowed to enter the UK via a different country, on the back of playing against Denmark in Denmark. If they are, then the point of banning travel would’ve been defeated.

The only other viable option appears to be for the game to be played at a neutral venue outside the UK. But that also begs the question of whether or not the England players would be allowed back in the country without having to observe the mandatory 14-days self-isolation period.

If they aren’t, then Premier League clubs would be affected when the domestic season continues.

Denmark will face Sweden to be hosted in Brondby before battling Iceland in Copenhagen, and then Belgium away from home. But it has been reported that UK-based Danish Internationals will be excused from the squad.

Seven English based players were named in the Denmark squad for this month’s games – Kasper Schmeichel (Leicester), Andreas Christensen (Chelsea), Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (Tottenham), Jannik Vestergaard (Southampton), Jonas Lossl (Everton), Henrik Dalsgaard, and Mathias Jensen (both Brentford) – but none are expected to make the trip to their homeland.

However, it is thought that the UK-based players could be allowed to travel to Belgium to join the Danish camp for their Nations League clash and not be obligated to self-isolate upon returning to the UK. That would be despite being in contact with teammates who have travelled from Denmark. The squad would be highly looked after and protected anyway, which then begs the question of why elite athlete exemptions were abandoned.

Denmark have sent invitations to nine additional players to cover for the absence of their UK-based counterparts.

In foresight, Liverpool’s Champions League clash with Danish champions Midtjylland on December 9th will also be a concern.

It is trivial to determine what the situation will be like given that the game is still about a month away, but if the current rules of no exemption persist, then Liverpool would not be allowed to play in Denmark and return to the UK without observing the mandatory quarantine rules.

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