Brazilian Sandro can only watch from afar as Covid-19 rages on back home

While normalcy slowly returns to Malaysia after the end of the Covid-19 total lockdown imposed throughout the country, the threat of the coronavirus is still very much real in many parts of the world.

Brazil is one of the countries whose response towards the pandemic has been found wanting, and as of Tuesday, June 30, the South American nation has recorded 1.7 million cases as well as over 58,000 deaths.

The situation understandably has Selangor's Brazilian attacker Sandro da Sliva worried.

"I am in a tough situation because the number of cases has been increasing back home, and I have family there. My elderly father and mother are at risk due to age factors. Due to the time difference, I've been losing sleep out of worry and the need to constantly get in touch with them in order to ensure that they are fine.

"I pray to God that things will get better, especially with the political uncertainties taking place. But more importantly, I want all my relatives to be safe after losing an elderly uncle to Covid-19, as he was already ill before the outbreak.

"A number of my childhood friends who I used to play football with have also passed away due to the virus, and I did not get to say goodbye to them. But that is life, I have to keep going while protecting the loved ones who are still with, me and friends affected by the outbreak back home," revealed the 36-year old player in an interview with the Malaysian Football League (MFL).

At the height of the outbreak in Malaysia, the public were required to stay indoors except to go out to purchase groceries. The Malaysian league was also halted, with foreign players also barred from leaving the country.

Malaysia's response towards the pandemic has largely been praised by the international community, with the country's health department able to limit the total numbers of cases to 8,637 and of deaths to 121, in a country populated by 32 million.