Former Inter goalkeeper Sebastien Frey discussed the Coronavirus emergency and the lockdown in Italy in an interview in today’s paper edition of the Turin based newspaper Tuttosport.
“Italy is my second home and I have an eye out for Italians, right now it’s like I’m there with them. They have my support.”
He discussed how he is experiencing the Coronavirus emergency in France.
“We’re locked in our house now, like what happened ten days ago in Italy. I also want to tell the French to use their common sense and their heads, and to stay indoors. Unfortunately, I see a lot of people who are underestimating the situation, if we don’t make a sacrifice, everything becomes more complicated. When I saw the images of the military vehicles in Bergamo my heart was crying.”
The former Parma and Fiorentina shot stopper discussed his experience contracting a skin virus last year.
“What happened to me was very strange. I had a fever of 40 for ten days, despite the antibiotics and medication. One morning I woke up and couldn’t move, I went to the emergency room and was in intensive care for eight days. It was hell. They told me it was an autoimmune disease and I came home thinking it was the beginning of the something but it wasn’t. If you were an athlete it’s not easy to understand that you have to start walking again but, thanks to my family, I came out of it. Also, for this reason you have to respect the rules, for the good of all.”
The 40-year-old Frenchman discussed what athletes can do to help in this situation.
“Athletes must set an example. Lots of people are sending messages and creating initiatives to keep people close.”
He spoke about whether he thinks the league can realistically restart in May.
“I don’t know if the league will restart this year, also because we don’t know when we’ll start up again. I too had to inaugurate the summer camps around Italy and France with the goalkeeper academy that I created but I’ve chosen to postpone it until a date yet to be set.”
Finally, Frey highlighted the important work of the doctors and nurses who are fighting the Coronavirus.
“The absolute heroes are the doctors and nurses who put their own health at risk for that of others. They are the champions of today. Every night in France we give a round of applause at 8pm, mine is also for Italy and the whole world.”
Frey spent three years with Inter between 1998 to 2001, although he spent a season on loan at Verona in that time. For Inter, the Frenchman made 47 appearances across all competitions, keeping 14 clean sheets and conceding 62 goals.
The Coronavirus emergency has caused Euro 2020 to be postponed by UEFA, to give more time to domestic leagues so they can finish with regularity.