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      England fans handed boost as Covid restrictions are eased ahead of 2022 World Cup in Qatar

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      ENGLAND fans travelling to Qatar for the World Cup will no longer have to do a Covid test to enter the country.Visitors previously needed negative results on a PCR or rapid antigen test as well as being able to provide the correct health documentations to be allowed in.
      Qatar have scrapped Covid restrictions ahead of the World CupCredit: PA
      But with the World Cup on the horizon Qatar have relaxed measures in relation to Covid and none of this is now necessary.
      This hands all fans, players and staff travelling to the competition a major boost.
      The change in restrictions comes into force from today – just 19 days before the tournament begins.
      An estimated 1.5million fans are predicted to be visiting Qatar in November and December.
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      Ten thousand England fans and a further 5,000 Welsh supporters are making the journey, according to reports.
      Qatar was previously strict on who could enter the country amid the pandemic.
      Tourists did have to pre-register on the government’s Ehteraz health application before touching down in Doha.
      They had to also submit documents to get their stats on the app to turn green.
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      But now nobody even has to present a Covid vaccination certificate giving those travelling to the World Cup one less thing to worry about.
      England fans could still face a tough time in Qatar with alcohol only being served in certain areas, while those going who are part of the LGBTQ community were given a shocking warning from the UK government.
      Fans have also been warned to stay clear of camels over killer bug fears.
      If the Three Lions make the final then it could cost each person at least £5,000 per person to follow Gareth Southgate’s men all the way. More

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      World Cup fans warned to steer clear of camels in Qatar over killer bug fears

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      FOOTIE fans banned from drinking, kissing, betting and vaping at the World Cup have now been told to steer clear of camels. There are fears thousands flocking to Qatar could be struck down by a killer bug which is deadlier than Covid.
      Camel flu, or MERS-CoV, is thought to have spread from bats to the desert dromedaries in neighbouring Saudi Arabia and can be transmitted to humans.Credit: Louis Wood
      Harry Kane will be leading the Three Lions out in the World Cup in NovemberCredit: Getty
      There are fears that thousands of fans flocking to Qatar could be struck down by the killer bugCredit: Louis Wood
      Camel flu, or MERS-CoV, is thought to have spread from bats to the desert dromedaries in neighbouring Saudi Arabia and can be transmitted to humans.
      Unlike Covid-19 there is no vaccine or treatment and fans following England and Wales have been warned to heed UK government advice.
      The Sun spotted a herd of camels near the England team’s Souq Al Wakra Hotel base outside Qatar’s capital Doha last week.
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      And just weeks ago our man Oliver Harvey took a trip on one of the ships of the desert to show what fans could enjoy between games.
      Yesterday, tourist companies were still advertising camel rides and safari trips.
      Fans heading to the strict Muslim nation will have to abide by bans on provocative clothing, kissing, hugging or drinking in public, men speaking to women they do not know and rude gestures.
      Homosexuals face jail and luggage will be screened for drugs, booze and porn.
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      Prof Paul Hunter, of the University of East Anglia, said: “Fans should steer clear of camels in Qatar.
      “That’s the common sense advice to reduce the risk of contracting the virus.
      “It’s a nasty bug, much deadlier than Covid-19 with a very high mortality rate, and there is currently no effective vaccine.”
      Government guidance says human-to-human spread has been limited inside hospitals and care homes but suggests camel contact is risky.
      World Health Organisation chiefs warned in August that about 80 per cent of cases were as a result of contact with infected camels or infected people in hospital.
      The bug, full name Middle East respiratory syndrome, has infected more than 2,000 people and killed at least 850 since it was first identified in Saudi in 2012.
      Experts fear it could soon spread from the Arabian peninsula to Africa through infected camels, which only exhibit mild symptoms.
      Two cases have been reported this year in Qatar, including a camel owner, 85, who later died in Doha.
      A farmer, 50, who drank camel milk has also died.
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      Qatar officials declined to comment and the FA did not respond to requests.
      Meanwhile, Covid controls including tests and proof of vaccination have been lifted.
      Thousands of England fans will travel to Qatar next month
      The Sun has previously reported on the perils of drinking alcohol in the strict Muslim nationCredit: Louis Wood
      The Sun’s chief feature writer Oliver Harvey has previously written about what fans will be able to expect if they travel to Qatar – where homosexuals are jailed and luggage will be screened for drugs, booze and pornCredit: Louis Wood More

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      Benjamin Mendy’s trial adjourned until next week after juror tests positive for Covid

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      BENJAMIN Mendy’s trial has been adjourned until next week after a juror tested positive for Covid. The Manchester City footballer and his ‘fixer’ Louis Saha Matturie are charged with offences against multiple women between October 2018 and August last year.
      Benjamin Mendy’s trial has been adjourned until at least next weekCredit: PA
      Judge Steven Everett told Chester Crown Court the trial would now be halted until next Tuesday at the earliest.
      He told the remaining jurors they should avoid meeting other people for five days under current NHS guidance, during a brief hearing on Wednesday morning.
      The trial can then resume if the juror is no longer testing positive for the virus and feeling well enough to attend court.
      Judge Everett told the jury: “We are all hopeful we will carry on, on Tuesday.
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      “That’s what happens in a long trial, these things happen.”
      The trial, now in its 10th week, has heard that Premier League player and French international Mendy, 28, is a “predator” who “turned the pursuit of women for sex into a game”.
      Matturie, 41, is alleged to have had the job of finding young women for sex.
      Mendy denies seven counts of rape, one count of attempted rape and one count of sexual assault against six young women.
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      Matturie, of Eccles, Salford, denies six counts of rape and three counts of sexual assault relating to seven young women.
      Both men say if any sex took place with women or girls it was consensual.
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      Louis Saha Matturie denies six counts of rapeCredit: Andy Kelvin / Kelvinmedia More

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      France World Cup winner Benjamin Pavard bravely opens up on battle with depression during lockdown

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      BAYERN MUNICH and France star Benjamin Pavard has bravely opened up on his battle with depression.The 26-year-old first began to struggle mentally during the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic.
      Benjamin Pavard has bravely opened up on his struggles with depressionCredit: Getty
      Pavard lifted the World Cup with France in 2018Credit: Getty – Contributor
      At the time Pavard was still in his first season at Bayern, and being stuck on his own away from his home country saw him became “not well”.
      The Bundesliga was first halted in late February due to the pandemic, and did not return until May.
      And the 2018 World Cup winner, who won goal of the tournament for his famous strike against Argentina, has detailed his struggles in an interview with French newspaper Le Parisien.
      Pavard revealed that he knew something had to be done when he headed to training without a smile on his face.
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      He said: “It was difficult for everyone, for me too. To be alone, in a country other than mine, I was really not well. In my head, something was wrong.
      “At the beginning, you tell yourself that it’s nothing, that it will pass, but when you see that it persists, that you go to training and that you don’t have a smile on your face, you have to react.”
      Pavard admitted that maintaining contact with family and friends was crucial during the lonely periods of lockdown.
      He added: “I am human like everyone else, and even if I have a super nice house with a weight room, I needed contact with others.
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      If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the Samaritans for free on 116123.
      “I got up, I had no appetite. I tried to keep busy, to cook, to watch series. But Netflix is ​​fine for two minutes… I don’t like the word depressive, but that was the case.”
      Fortunately Pavard’s mental struggles have improved as the world has grown used to living with Covid.
      He concluded: “I came out of all this as a man, it changed me. I was on my own like many football players and I had to surround myself well to raise my head.
      “I managed to bounce back from difficult times.”
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      On the pitch the right-back has continued to be an important player for club and country, despite his mental struggles.
      And he will be hoping to help France to more World Cup glory when the tournament kicks off in Qatar later this year.
      Contact the Samaritans
      If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, contact The Samaritans on 116 123. They are available for free at anytime.
      Or email https://www.samaritans.org/

      Pavard joined Bayern Munich from Stuttgart in 2019Credit: Getty More

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      ‘I had to sack 55 staff, only to find out I was the 56th’ – Raul Sanllehi opens up on Arsenal exit after pandemic hell

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      FORMER Arsenal chief Raul Sanllehi has opened up on his struggles working at Arsenal during the coronavirus pandemic.The former head of football, 56, also admitted that he doesn’t hold it against owners – The Kroenkes.
      Sanllehi was Arsenal’s head of football until 2020 before the pandemic took holdCredit: Getty – Contributor
      The pandemic saw Sanllehi lay off 55 members of staff at Arsenal, before being axed himself.
      Sanllehi, who is now director at Spanish second division side Real Zaragoza, told The Athletic about how “everything fell apart” for him in London.
      He said: “I loved it at Arsenal. You cannot imagine — the people in the club, the history of the club.
      “I really felt I was at the top of the world there. I love the owners, the Kroenkes. But the last 10 months there were horrible. I had to lay off 55 people, without knowing I was the 56th.”
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      “I don’t feel betrayed by the Kroenkes.
      “The Kroenkes had the LA Rams, Denver Nuggets, Colorado Rapids, and all of a sudden, all those teams could not play [due to lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic].
      “You still had to pay the salaries. You did not have guaranteed broadcasting revenues.
      “They entered into panic, but a logical panic, as the world entered into panic. Without Covid, I am sure I would still be there, as my relationship with the Kroenkes was great.
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      “It is funny now, but I remember in December 2019, I had dinner with the four guys: Mikel Arteta, Edu, Huss Fahmy and Per Mertesacker.
      “On the toast, I said, ‘Now, it is on us. Now it is exactly the model I asked for. If it does not work, we have no excuses’.
      “That team for me was a dream team at that time. Then in March, everything just fell apart. It was sad.”
      Sanllehi even claimed he would have NEVER have made Arteta manager of the Gunners.
      The Spaniard reckons the appointment “betrayed the model” in place at the Emirates, and Arteta should have stayed on as head coach.
      After joining in December 2019, Arteta’s role changed from head coach to first-team manager the following September, shortly after Sanllehi left the club.
      He added: “I do not agree when clubs call the first-team coach the manager.
      “First-team coach is first-team coach, that is enough. Nowadays, the workload is overwhelming, and I need him to concentrate on the first team.
      “Anything that distracts you from that is not your responsibility — travel arrangements, the pitch, salary budget, medical department.
      “We will get other people to do that. The first-team coach is short-term oriented — just win tonight’s game.
      Read More on The Sun
      “They have betrayed the model a little bit now. By going back to the manager at the top, that is a mistake, but that is their mistake.
      “I would have not allowed that to happen. But that’s fine, it is working so far for them.”  More

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      Harry Redknapp reveals how he feared for wife Sandra after serious bout of Covid left her barely able to breathe

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      HARRY Redknapp has revealed how he feared for his wife Sandra after a serious attack of Covid left her barely able to breathe.The ex-football manager says Sandra could not talk and had to communicate with people by writing notes as well as having a problem swallowing which he feared could lead to her choking.
      Harry Redknapp has revealed how he feared for his wife Sandra after a serious attack of Covid left her barely able to breatheCredit: The Sun
      Former I’m A Celeb winner, Harry, 75, said: “The symptoms weren’t good, if I’m truthful.
      “You start to think about all kinds of sinister things. It’s been a real worry.
      “Sandra has suffered. Her voice had packed up and she was struggling for breath.
      “Even swallowing food became difficult. She could choke on food easily if we weren’t careful.”
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      The virus attacked pre-existing problems with Sandra’s vocal cords.
      Thankfully, she is on the mend – and national treasure Harry is fighting fit too.
      Former hairdresser Sandra was laid low with Covid in January after a New Year’s Eve visit to a restaurant.
      She said: “I think Covid attacked previous surgery that I’d had on my neck.
      “You don’t realise what your vocal cords do until they’re not working, because it affects breathing as well as talking.
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      “The shortness of breath was very difficult. My voice would vibrate and was very weak.”
      Sandra added she struggled for around seven months as the couple attempted to work on a new book, When Harry Met Sandra, which will be released this week. More

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      Tyson Fury’s hero cut man – who saved career in Wallin fight – was sent money by Gypsy King during Covid pandemic

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      TYSON FURY sent money to the hero cutman who saved his career during the Otto Wallin fight during the Coronavirus pandemic.Jorge Capetillo was thrust into the spotlight when Fury suffered a horrendous cut above his right eye back in September 2019.
      Tyson Fury suffered a horrendous cut against Otto Wallin that needed 47 stitches in afterwardsCredit: AP:Associated Press
      The Gypsy King has credited cutman Jorge Capetillo for saving his careerCredit: EPA
      From the third round onwards on the way to a unanimous points win, Fury’s eye gushed blood with the ringside doctor even consulted as to whether it was safe for the Gypsy King to carry on.
      But thanks to Capetillo’s work on the horror gash, Fury battled through to secure a hard-fought win – and then had to have 47 stitches.
      The coronavirus lockdown saw Capetillo’s Las Vegas gym close and the Mexican admitted to having “empty pockets”.
      But Fury stepped in to help the man who set him on the path to WBC glory by battering Deontay Wilder to win the belt.
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      He is a great man, so humble. He had the time to ask how I was doing with my family during this crisisJorge CapetilloTyson Fury’s cutman
      Speaking to Sky Sports, Capetillo, who describes the cut as “the worst I’ve ever seen”, said: “He is still very grateful.
      “When he knew we were locked down because of Covid-19 and my gym was closed, he texted me and said: ‘Is there anything I can do to help?’
      “He is still taking care of me. He sent me money.
      “I was supposed to be with Jessie Vargas in New York on March 14 (2020) but the fight was cancelled and I came home with empty pockets.
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      “I was scared, I didn’t know what to do.
      “He knew Jessie’s fight was cancelled. He asked about my family and what he could do.
      “He said: ‘I’ll sort out some money for your family so you can be good’. Such generosity for me and my family.
      “He is a great man, so humble. He had the time to ask how I was doing with my family during this crisis.”
      Capetillo went on to describe how once he “controlled the bleeding” against Wallin he told Fury that “everything will be good”.
      And so it proved as the Wythenshawe-born fighter won comfortably on points, 116–112, 117–111, and 118–110.

      Fury then went on to destroy Wilder in February that year to win the one heavyweight belt he never had before.
      Her further cemented his dominance over the Bronze Bomber with a win in their trilogy fight.
      Currently, Fury is in talks to sign an epic contract to fight Anthony Joshua – although the bout is yet to be confirmed. More

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      Manuel Neuer and Leon Goretzka OUT of Germany Nations League clash against England with Covid

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      MANUEL NEUER and Leon Goretzka are OUT of Germany’s Nations League against England with Covid. Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions host their arch rivals at Wembley on Monday.
      Manuel Neuer is out of Germany’s Nations League against England with CovidCredit: Rex
      Leon Goretzka joins Manuel Neuer is missing the matchesCredit: Reuters
      But Germany have suffered a squad setback following the news of Goretzka, 27, and Neuer’s absence.
      The Bayern Munich duo will also miss Friday’s match at home to Hungary as a result.
      Hoffenheim’s Oliver Baumann, 32, will replace keeper Neuer, 36, and while Dortmund’s Julian Brandt, 26, tested negative, he has also been withdrawn.
      Further call-ups will be announced in due course.
      England have also been hit by injury woe after Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips was forced to pull out due to a shoulder problem.
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      He was replaced by Liverpool’s Jordan Henderson, 32, who has recovered from a knock quicker than anticipated.
      Henderson missed the last three games in all competitions for the Reds after struggling with a hamstring problem.
      His setback initially saw him fail to be named in the latest 28-man squad.
      But after Phillips, 26, was withdrawn, Southgate has turned to ex-Sunderland anchorman Henderson.
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      England play Italy in Milan’s San Siro – a rematch of the European Championship final.
      And England confirmed Henderson’s arrival in a statement.
      The decision was made to call-up Henderson after he came through a number of workout sessions over the weekend.
      Jordan Henderson training for EnglandCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun More