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Football London
Football London
Sport
Alan Smith

Chelsea handed major Club World Cup boost as FIFA make key quarantine decision

Any unvaccinated member of Chelsea's delegation travelling to next month's Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi will be given a quarantine exemption following discussions between FIFA and local authorities.

Since early January any un-jabbed arrival from the United Kingdom must isolate for 10 days after the country was removed from the UAE's green list.

But an agreement has now been struck that will see players and staff who are not fully vaccinated face additional PCR testing instead.

Those who are vaccinated will abide by the existing regulations, a FIFA source told football.london.

Thomas Tuchel could still be without any unvaccinated player for the away leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie with Lille next month.

France has taken a hardline stance and new laws stipulate that anybody without a jab will not be allowed into stadiums.

There will be no exemptions, including for domestic athletes, with president Emmanuel Macron recently declaring he wants to "(swear word) off" those who are refusing to be jabbed.

Last week UEFA indicated that teams must abide by local rules after reports that the game could end up being played on neutral territory.

Tuchel, who has repeatedly been asked for his views on getting players vaccinated, believes he is not in a position to force anyone, citing the need to respect personal choice.

“There can be regulations around this,” he said last month. “You have to live with the consequences. But we cannot force people to get vaccinated.

"I will not change my opinion on that. And I am not the guy to comment on that.

"There are experts in this country, all over Europe. Ask them and ask me please about football.”

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