Brazil Argentina World Cup qualifersGetty

FIFA release statement following Brazil vs Argentina World Cup qualifier suspension

FIFA have released an official statement following the suspension of the World Cup qualifying fixture between Brazil and Argentina on Sunday.

The contest at Corinthians Arena was called to an abrupt halt minutes after kick-off when health authorities attempted to reprimand three Argentina players for breaching Covid-19 rules.

The visitors eventually walked off the pitch and roughly an hour after the game was stopped South American football's governing body CONMEBOL confirmed its suspension, and now FIFA have pledged to look into the incident in greater detail.

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What's been said?

"FIFA regrets the scenes preceding the suspension of the match between Brazil and Argentina for the CONMEBOL qualifiers of World Cup 2022 which prevented millions of fans from enjoying a match between two of the most important football nations in the world," their statement reads.

"The first match official reports have been sent to FIFA. This information will be analysed by the competent disciplinary bodies and a decision will be taken in due course."

Which players were involved?

Aston Villa duo Emiliano Buendia and Emi Martinez, and Tottenham pair Giovani lo Celso and Cristian Romero were accused of falsifying documents to travel to Brazil from England prior to the heavyweight international fixture.

Argentina boss Lionel Scaloni took the decision to start Martinez, Lo Celso and Romero anyway, leading to a dramatic intervention from the country's health officials.

The Brazilian government originally recommended mandatory quarantine and deportation for the four accused players, but Scaloni and his squad boarded a plane to head home five hours after the suspension of the game amid the threat of detainment.

What's next?

No date has been set for the match to be replayed as of yet, and it has been suggested that Brazil could be handed a victory by default due to the alleged breach of quarantine procedures from Argentina's players.

For the time being, both nations will now look forward to their next respective World Cup qualifiers on Friday, with Brazil due to play Peru and Argentina scheduled to face Bolivia.

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