COVID-19 Fears: Rivers United’s Clash Against South Africa’s Celtic Postponed

The Nigerian side and their South African counterparts were initially scheduled to meet on Wednesday for the second leg of their continental qualifier

The CAF Confederations Cup first round second leg tie between Rivers United and Bloemfontein Celtic billed for January 6 at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium in Port Harcourt has been put on hold.

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has asked CAF to postpone and possibly relocate the encounter to a neighbouring country.

The NFF said the request followed the refusal of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to step down on some of the Covid-19 protocols, such as the quarantine period for the South African contingent.

In a statement released on the club’s Twitter account, Rivers United noted that “the South African delegation cannot be exempted from the required quarantine and the match cannot take place as scheduled, Wednesday, January 6, 2021”.

The NCDC’s insistence is likely based on the fact that South Africa is the source of a new variant of the coronavirus, which is far more transmissible than the original strain.

The Nigerian football body is working towards having the game postponed with a possible rescheduling of both the date and venue of the match.

There is also the possibility of staging the match in any Nigeria neigbouring country with a little less stringent Covid-19 protocols.

Rivers United won the first leg 2-0 in South Africa a fortnight ago.