Off until April 20th

The break from league competition has been going on for nearly a month now. At first, Lech’s players have been given individual training programs that were adjusted to home conditions. Then the squad was allowed to go for a run or a cycle in the forest or park whilst following all safety recommendations. However, a few days ago fitness coach Karol Kikut explained that it was time to reduce the intensity of individual training sessions (full article available HERE>>>) and let the players rest.

This situation resembles the annual winter break during which the players go on holidays at the beginning of December and then they are asked to slowly get back into form with tailored exercises and workouts before they return to group training sessions.

“Together with the other coaches, we have decided to give the players a bit of rest during the Easter week before they will return to personal training sessions. Until 20^th April, the squad will be regenerating,” said Dariusz Żuraw, Lech’s coach. “We don’t know yet the plan for the first week after holidays. However, we are hoping that we will be able to organise small group sessions just like in Bundesliga,” added the coach.

During holidays, Lech’s players are allowed to go abroad. It’s an especially common choice among foreigners. Mickey van der Hart, Bohdan Burko, and Christian Gytkjaer have all decided to join their families for the Easter period. The rest of the squad stayed in Poznan. “The 3 of them are also obliged to return to Poznań on April 20^th and, in accordance with the current regulations, they will undergo 2-week quarantine. We have planned everything meticulously and we are ready to return to normal schedule whenever the time comes,” reassured Żuraw.

When will Lech reappear on the league pitches? The chairman of Ekstraklasa S.A. spoke to Interia.pl recently and discussed the league’s future. “We have already prepared a draft schedule of matches in the context of the scenario that the league will resume at the end of May. If that date moves by one or two weeks, we will still be able to play the remaining 11 rounds. So, to sum up, if we can get the league back up and running in May or at the beginning of June, the season will continue as planned,” explained Ekstraklasa’s chairman.

Of course, the teams will need to prepare their players before the competition resumes. Karol Kikut believes that 3 to 4 weeks will be sufficient to improve the players’ fitness levels so that they can finish the season.