Bayern Munich to return to training on Monday ‘in small groups’ | Football

Bayern Munich players will return to training on Monday for the first time since the Bundesliga campaign was suspended. The German top flight has been on hold since 13 March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The German Football League recommended clubs should not train until Sunday 5 April and Bayern, the Bundesliga leaders, will welcome back players in small groups from Monday.

A club statement read: “The FC Bayern Munich first team will return to training in small groups from Monday, 6 April. This will be done in coordination with government policy and the relevant authorities. It goes without saying that all hygiene regulations will be strictly observed.

“Training will take place with no members of the public present. In order to further slow the spread of the coronavirus, FC Bayern asks fans to continue to follow the instructions of the authorities and therefore please do not come to the FC Bayern training ground.”

Elsewhere in Europe, the Serie A season could be extended to September or October, the head of the Italian FA (FIGC) said on Sunday, warning that there could be an “avalanche of litigation” if it was not settled on the field.

Serie A has been suspended since 9 March because of the coronavirus pandemic which has claimed almost a quarter of the global death total. Several club presidents have suggested that the season should be called off.

“The only serious way to handle a serious emergency of this kind is to complete the 2019-2020 season competitions this year,” the FIGC president, Gabriele Gravina, told the state broadcaster RAI’s Domenica Sportiva programme. “We are working on a whole series of possible solutions to manage the situation in the best possible way.

“Could it finish in September or October? That is one hypothesis. It’s a way to avoid jeopardising not only the 2019-20 season but also the 2020-21 season.”

Gravina explained that if the current season was abandoned, Italian football could suffer “an avalanche of litigation to which we would be subjected by all those who could be considered damaged in their rights and interests”.