Former Chinese Super League veteran coach Stanojevic tests positive for COVID-19

Just a day after former Shanghai Shenhua coach Ilija Petkovic died from complications due to COVID-19, his Serbian compatriot Aleksandar Stanojevic, another well-known name in the Chinese football arena, has tested positive for the deadly virus.

The 46-year-old Stanojevic made his name in China by guiding the Chinese Super League (CSL) side Dalian Aerbin to a stunning fifth-place finish in 2012. He then moved to Beijing Guoan and led the capital club to third place in the league and semi-finals in the Chinese FA Cup in 2013.

After a one-year hiatus which saw him swap Guoan for Israeli Premier League outfit Maccabi Haifa, Stanojevic returned to China in 2015 and took charge of China's second division side Beijing Enterprises Group. He was dismissed at the end of the season following his team's ill-fated attempt to achieve promotion.

However, the Serbian produced another comeback after being appointed as Beijing Renhe coach in 2018. His time at the Chinese capital ended on a slightly sour note, though, as he was relieved of his duties in the summer of 2019 due to Renhe's poor run of results across all competitions.

Stanojevic is the second former CSL coach who fell victim to the coronavirus in recent days. Over the weekend, Shenhua confirmed that their former boss Petkovic has passed away at 74 after contracting the COVID-19 in the Serbian city of Belgrade.

Petkovic, who gained global recognition after taking the reins of Serbia and Montenegro at the 2006 World Cup, spent a memorable single season with Shenhua as he steered the ambitious club to a second-place finish in 2001.

"I was stunned and heartbroken after learning Petkovic's death," Shenhua's sporting director Wu Jingui said on Sunday. Wu, who served as Petkovic's assistant during the Serb's stint at the Hongkou Football Stadium, was understandably emotional as he recalled the good old days with his "close friend."

"I had a very deep bond with Petkovic, which made our working relationship quite enjoyable. The last time I saw him in 2011, he told me that he really missed the days coaching in Shanghai..."

"The virus is the enemy of all humanity, and we have to stand in solidarity to try to defeat it, just like what we do on the football pitch," he added.

The enemy's lethality is beyond doubt. The global coronavirus death toll passed the grim milestone of 500,000 on Sunday, while the number of confirmed cases worldwide crossed 10 million, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

As the COVID-19 pandemic shows no signs of flagging across the world, Petkovic's tragic death and Stanojevic's contraction will inevitably bring Serbia's handling of the virus into sharper focus.

Earlier this month, the local government relaxed lockdown restrictions and shocked the world by allowing fans to jam-pack the sporting events. The policy quickly turned sour. Last week, five Crvena zvezda players were diagnosed with coronavirus after celebrating their Serbian SuperLiga title in front of hundreds of thousands of ecstatic supporters.

The club explained in an official statement that all required precautionary measures have been taken despite the presence of the packed crowd and that there were no other reported cases as for now.

This responsibility-shirking piffle didn't hold water with the public. Yet, unfortunately, further recrimination and division is on the way.