The German boss has admitted to being frustrated by the decision to call off the 2019-20 campaign, but thinks the crisis has been “weathered well”
Genk head coach Hannes Wolf says “it is a pity” that the Belgian Pro League has been cancelled due to coronavirus, with his side missing out on a place in Europe due to the decision.
The league’s board of directors announced the decision to void the 2019-20 campaign last week, meaning the final fixture of the season will not be played.
An official statement read: “The board of directors unanimously decided that it was not desirable, whatever the scenario envisaged, to continue the competition after June 30.”
Club Brugge will officially be crowned champions on April 15, with discussions over promotion and relegation issues set to continue in the coming days.
Wolf’s side will finish seventh in the top-flight standings, and he is disappointed that such a conclusion has been reached, but acknowledges that the league is a “small problem” in comparison with the Covid-19 pandemic.
“From a sporting point of view, it is a pity because we still wanted to attack the European places,” the Genk boss told Goal.
“In the overall context, this is a very small problem, because the only thing that matters is that we can all say at some point that we have weathered it all well. I wish the best for football, but above all for the many other areas of life affected.”
Wolf added on how Genk have dealt with the coronavirus crisis: “It is difficult because we have to look for the best among many bad solutions. We sent all the players who could go home to their families.
“However, this was not possible for our boys from Ghana, Nigeria, Colombia, Brazil, Australia, Japan and the Ivory Coast. Imagine, a 21-year-old who lives on another continent separately from his family and has to do without social contacts. This is far from easy.
“We are taking care of them as best we can, we have already started individual training again.”
It has been suggested that a number of major European leagues will take the same steps as the Belgian Pro League, as the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise worldwide.
The Premier League, Serie A, Bundesliga and Ligue 1 have all shut down temporarily, while all European competitions have been suspended indefinitely.
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