April 9 – In the latest public relations gaffe to hit English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur during the Covid-19 outbreak, manager Jose Mourinho has been forced to semi-apologise after being pictured flouting government restrictions by leading a training session in park woodland not far from the club’s training ground.
Mourinho said he “accepts my actions were not in line with government protocol and we must only have contact with members of our own household” after newspaper pictures showed him training with record signing Tanguy Ndombele even though they kept to social distancing guidelines.
“It is vital we all play our part and follow government advice in order to support our heroes in the NHS and save lives,” added Mourinho.
Two other Spurs players were filmed running together through the same park.
The images prompted the mayor of London Sadiq Khan to intervene by telling the BBC: “My concern is, people particularly children who might support Spurs or follow football, may see these images, pick up a paper, watch the internet and think, well if it’s OK for them, why isn’t it OK for me?”
“I don’t think it is necessary to be training in close proximity with another player who may be carrying the virus. And what you’re doing is inadvertently, unintentionally, potentially spreading the virus – you shouldn’t be doing that.”
Tottenham are reported to have spoken to Mourinho and said in a statement they had also approached the players concerned.
“All of our players have been reminded to respect social distancing when exercising outdoors. We shall continue to reinforce this message,” a spokesman was quoted as saying.
The latest incident comes just days after Spurs attracted widespread criticism for their decision to furlough around 550 non-playing staff, taking advantage of public money while the players’ salaries remain untouched. Even Tottenham’s official supporters’ group has gone public by begging the club to reverse their move.
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