March 20 – Just days after the head of Switzerland’s FA stood up at the UEFA Congress and warned of the dire consequences of Covid-19 on football in his country, Swiss top-flight outfit FC Sion have reportedly terminated the contracts of nine players, including captain Xavier Kouassi, former Swiss international Johan Djourou and ex-Arsenal and Barcelona midfielder Alex Song.
The nine are said to have refused temporary unemployment terms offered by the club, with the country’s Super League postponed until April 30 .
Sion’s president Christian Constantin apparently decided to dismiss the players after they rejected his measures including less training and a wage cut.
Switzerland has registered some 3,800 cases of coronavirus, including 33 deaths, one of the hardest-hit countries per population size. The Swiss league was halted on March 1 after the government banned gatherings of more than 1,000 people.
Sion are currently eighth in the 10-team Swiss Super League and only four points clear of the relegation zone.
Constantin’s entire tenure has been fraught with controversy. A couple of years ago he was banned for slapping a television pundit and has employed around 40 coaches since he took over the troubled club in 2003.
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