Does Germany coronavirus latest serve as a warning against rushing Sheffield Wednesday back into action?

The country has been widely credited for their handling of the tragic coronavirus crisis, with one of the lowest death tolls from countries battling the disease – around 6,000 compared to of more than 20,000 in the UK.

Sheffield Wednesday fans hoping for a return to action in the coming weeks had been looking to Germany with hope after clubs were allowed to re-start training on April 7, albeit on a non-contact basis at a distance of two metres or more. Authorities reportedly planned for a May 9 return.

But the relaxation in guidelines that also saw German shops partially reopen is under review after the country’s coronavirus infection rate increased.

Any decision will affect the season of Wednesday-owned youngster Matt Penney, who is on loan from Wednesday at St Pauli under the management of former Owls boss Jos Luhukay.

German authorities will discuss their approach to the latest development on Thursday, though no final decision on the return of football is likely to be announced.

In Italy, officials have set a Serie A return date of June 2 as their national guidelines look set to be relaxed on May 4.

In the UK no resumption date has been set by the EFL, who last week reiterated their desire to finish the season. It is understood that plans to complete the remainder of the Championship campaign behind closed doors within eight weeks were shared with clubs earlier this month.

Speaking of his return to training earlier this month, Owls wing-back Penney told The Sun: “We are training in groups of five. There are three groups of five at the training ground but all at different times. Then there are two groups at the stadium, all at different times.

“It feels so good. It is so much better than standard running around a lake or a park which we were doing before.

“At the moment, the aim is for both the Bundesliga and Bundesliga II to return in May and finish as soon as possible.”