Footy star breaks lockdown to visit fiancee on her 18th birthday

Russian footballer and Celta Vigo forward Fedor Smolov has become the latest footballer to reportedly break a nation’s coronavirus rules after he flouted Spain’s lockdown to return to his home country to attend his fiancee’s 18th birthday.

The Russian forward returned home on his private jet after AS reported that Celta said Smolov had asked permission to return home for personal reasons but they could not grant it as La Liga did not authorise his request.

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The Guardian reported Smolov “returned to his homeland on a private jet so that he could be with his fiancee on her 18th birthday”.

His fiancee Maria Yumasheva is the daughter of former Russian president Boris Yeltsin.

He is now the second Celta player to break the rules of the state of emergency to fight the coronavirus, Spanish newspaper AS reported.

But the footballer posted to his Instagram to claim he returned home to be “closer to my family” and he had informed Celta each step of the way, according to RT.

Celta did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Smolov’s team mate Pione Sisto left Spain last month during the lockdown to drive back to his native Denmark. Spanish media reported he did not inform Celta of his movements until he had left the country.

Spain is about to enter its fourth week of lockdown which has been extended until April 26 in a bid to restrict the spread of the virus, which has killed over 12,000 people in the country.

Multiple footballers break lockdown laws

Serbia striker Aleksandar Prijovic has become the second national footballer to break the law after he was was arrested on Friday for violating the Balkan nation’s coronavirus laws, police said on Saturday.

“Prijovic was arrested along with several other people and they’ve been summoned to the prosecutor’s office,” national police director Vladimir Rebic told Serbia’s state-run RTS television broadcaster.

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“They violated the curfew as they were having drinks in the restaurant lobby of a Belgrade hotel after the 5 pm deadline and there were more than five people present in total.

“The hotel is also responsible because the measures also prohibit serving food and drinks... except if home delivery is feasible.”

With Reuters