Borussia Mönchengladbach Player Tests Positive for Coronavirus Days Before Bundesliga Decision

Bundesliga side Borussia Mönchengladbach have become the fourth German team to be directly effected by the coronavirus outbreak in a matter of days, with a player and physio reportedly contracting the illness.

The league is expected to make a decision later this week over a proposed return on May 15, but with players starting to return to training, new cases of the coronavirus have been found at Gladbach's local rivals Köln, as well as Dynamo Dresden and Erzgebirge Aue who are based on the other side of the country.

The identity of the individuals is not known, but the regional daily Rheinische Post has reported a player and physio at Borussia Mönchengladbach have tested positive for coronavirus.

These new cases has increased the number of players or staff in Germany's top two divisions who have tested positive to 13.

The imminent return of the Bundesliga, which chancellor Angela Merkel is expected to announce later this week, has recently come under heavy scrutiny due to two specific incidents.

The outbreak within Köln's squad has had a direct impact on their midfielder Birger Verstraete, as the Belgian's partner is considered to be among the 'at risk' category due to underlying health conditions, which he confirmed during an interview in with VTM.

The other came in Germany's capital at Hertha BSC, after Salomon Kalou filmed himself in their dressing room shaking other players' hands - ignoring the protocols which had been brought in to help prevent the spread of the virus.

As a result, ex-Chelsea forward Kalou has been suspended by the club and he's unlikely to ever play for the club again as he's in the last few weeks of his contract, while many now expected Verstraete will also leave Köln at the end of the season.