Chris Wilder has backed his Sheffield United players' emotional celebrations during their first Premier League win in 20 matches - amid calls for footballers to stop hugging each other in a bid to stop the spread of coronavirus.
As Covid-19 continues to devastate the UK football has continued, but this week has brought calls from a leading virologist for players to be booked - and in some cases sent off - if they get too close to their team-mates while celebrating.
Billy Sharp scored the only goal of the game for Sheffield United in their victory over Newcastle on Tuesday night, with the players obviously delighted at ending a 186-day winless streak.
And boss Wilder was insistent in his post-match press conference that it was near-impossible to expect players to 'show no emotion' after netting for their side.
'We've talked before about the country looking at us but it is an emotional game on the pitch and on the touchline,' the Sheffield United manager said. 'It is unnatural and unreal [not to celebrate].
'How can they not? They are team-mates and I don't see any way they can just walk back to the halfway line and show no emotion after what they've been through for a long period.'
The lack of social distancing in matches has become a huge issue for football after exuberant celebrations from players and staff in the FA Cup third round, and it is one of the factors fuelling calls for the game to be suspended.
But Dr Julian Tang has called on the sport's governing bodies to take action to reduce the risk of transmitting the new variant of the virus with a simple rule change.
Dr Tang's comments come after Government expressed its 'growing frustration' to the football authorities over repeated offences in terms of on-pitch antics, dressing room celebrations or players breaking social distancing rules in their private life.
'We cannot keep going round this loop of saying it's a problem and it happens again,' a Whitehall source told Sportsmail. 'These things should not be happening.'
Dr Tang, a consultant virologist at Leicester Royal Infirmary and Associate Professor at the University of Leicester, said the way to tackle 'celebratory scrums', which are high risk for transmission, is to educate players and then impose a sanction, if only until most of the population is vaccinated.
'If you have a scrum you have close contact for several seconds and that can transmit the virus.
'You go home and you can spread it among your own bubble that can include elderly friends and family, which could put them in hospital or cause their death.
'So, why take the risk to yourself or your contacts from a single 10 or 20 second scrum. You don't have to do it.
'If it happens once you get a yellow card and if it happens again you are off.
'It is a disincentive for that contact, recognising that it could have much bigger consequences.'
The FA, Premier League and EFL are reminding clubs of their responsibilities with respect to social distancing, including on the field and in the changing rooms.
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