MADRID: Former Barcelona and Spain star Xavi Hernandez and his wife have donated one million euros ($1.08 million) to the city’s Hospital Clinic to help the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
“Xavi Hernandez and Nuria Cunillera have made a donation of one million euros to the clinic to face up to COVID-19. Thanks a lot for your help and support... All together, we will get there,” the hospital tweeted on Saturday.
“Nuria and I, we support the Hospital Clinic of Barcelona’s fight against the coronavirus. Thanks to the donations they are receiving, the hospital has acquired equipment for patients and health care professionals,” Xavi said in a video posted on his Twitter account.
The former World Cup winner and two-time European champion with Spain is currently in charge of Al-Sadd in Qatar and turned down an approach from Barcelona in January after the club sacked Ernesto Valverde.
Lionel Messi, Pep Guardiola, Rafael Nadal and Pau Gasol are among several Spanish sports stars to have donated or led fundraising campaigns to help combat the deadly virus.
Spain, which is under a near-total lockdown, on Saturday recorded a second successive daily fall in coronavirus-related deaths with 809 fatalities.
The total number of deaths in the country stands at 11,744, second only to Italy.
The number of new Spanish cases also slowed at 7,026, taking the total to 124,736.
Xavi donates 1 mn euros to Barcelona hospital
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Xavi donates 1 mn euros to Barcelona hospital
- Lionel Messi, Pep Guardiola, Rafael Nadal and Pau Gasol are among several Spanish sports stars to have donated or led fundraising campaigns to help combat the deadly virus
- The total number of deaths in Spain stands at 11,744, second only to Italy
Comoros chances at Cup of Nations hit by FIFA decision
- Comoros take on highly fancied hosts Morocco in the tournament’s opening game on Dec. 21
- Comoros have been among the worst affected, according to Cusin
DUBAI: Comoros have had their chances of making an impact in the opening game of the African Cup of Nations severely impacted by FIFA’s surprise decision to delay the release of their players, said coach Stefano Cusin.
Comoros, who are the smallest nation competing, take on highly fancied hosts Morocco in the tournament’s opening game in Rabat on December 21.
However, their expansive preparation plans have had to be canceled after FIFA changed the date that clubs have to release players to the national teams competing at the finals.
Last week, world football’s governing body announced that clubs need only release players on Dec. 15, seven days shy of the regulated 14-day period prior to a continental championship kickoff.
It has thrown plans for pre-tournament camps and friendlies into disarray for many of the 24 competing nations.
Comoros, competing at the finals for a second time and hoping to replicate the giant-killing havoc they caused in the 2021 edition in Cameroon, have been among the worst affected, according to Cusin.
“We planned a training camp in Tunisia with a friendly game against Botswana this coming weekend,” he told Reuters.
“Everything was ready, but now we have had to change everything. It affects us more than other teams because we’re going to play in the opening game.”
Comoros draw all their players from clubs across Europe and the Middle East.
“Releasing players on December 15 means we’ll only get in four or five training sessions before our first game,” Cusin added.
“We are angry about that; it was not correct to tell us just one week before. If we’d known from the beginning, then we could have made a different plan.”
The dates for the upcoming Cup of Nations from December 21-January 18 were set to avoid any conflict with the Champions League and other European club competitions.
