Tekpetey reacts to Bundesliga return behind closed doors
Fortuna Dusseldorf attacker Bernard Tekpetey is unhappy by the absence of fans on the return of football in Germany.
The Europeans resumed action in their first and second-tier leagues on Saturday following a disruption by the coronavirus pandemic.
As part of strict protocols, matches are to be played behind closed doors for the rest of the season.
“Football is back and I’m really excited, and proud because that is my passion,” Tekpetey told TV3.
“It is something I really want to do all the time and with this coronavirus, we have been home doing nothing and so I’m glad football is back.
“In games, sometimes we players we love to play when our fans are there with us, cheering us together and singing.
“But in this case, we don’t have the fans there and it looks like something is missing because sometimes when the fans are shouting and singing, it gives us some motivation.”
Also, each team will be allowed a maximum substitution of five per game to reduce the stress on players as more matches are due to be played within a relatively shorter period of time.
Tekpetey’s remarks were not any different from earlier comments by compatriot and club mate Kasim Nuhu Adams.
“It is very exciting to play again but one painful thing is that football is always better with fans,” Adams said during a TV3 Instagram Live interview.
“Playing behind closed doors will affect some of us because we have always played in front of our amazing fans.
“We are also battling relegation and we need our fans to cheer us up but we also have to understand the circumstances.”
The German championship is the first among the top five European leagues to make a return.
It ground to a halt in March as part of social distancing measures to curb the spread of Covid-19, with Germany being one of the worst-hit by the coronavirus disease.
The European nation has the eighth-highest number of infections in the world, according to Worldometer, having recorded 175,813 cases and 8,001 deaths.
Globally, over 4,669,975 cases and 310,002 deaths have been registered.