Spain: Professional footballer hangs up his boots and runs pharmacy amid COVID-19 outbreak

W/S Exterior of pharmacy, La Coruna
W/S Professional football player Toni Dovale walking
W/S Dovale walking to pharmacy
W/S Dovale entering pharmacy
W/S Dovale putting on his white coat
M/S Dovale putting on gloves
M/S Dovale putting on mask
M/S Poster in window of pharmacy (Spanish): "We have gloves and gel"
M/S Dovale working at pharmacy
M/S Dovale along with partner attending client
M/S Dovale working at pharmacy
M/S Dovale working at pharmacy
C/U Dovale wearing mask
W/S Dovale attending customer in pharmacy
C/U Dovale using computer mouse with gloves
M/S Dovale disinfecting his hands
M/S Dovale working at pharmacy
W/S Pharmacy facade
SOT, Toni Dovale, Professional football player: "Well it was a really strange situation for everybody, I just finished my season in Thailand, last December, so I came back to Spain to spend the holidays with my family. And now I was packing my baggage on my way back to Asia to keep playing there but this situation with the COVID crashed and I just got stopped here in Spain; we cannot go to Asia now because European citizens cannot cross the borders. Also the Spanish government stated the alarm situation."
M/S Illuminated sign and pharmacy sign
SOT, Toni Dovale, Professional football player: "Football stopped all around the world, so I just - luckily I have a pharmacy degree so I took the decision to help the people as you know the situation in Spain is really tough. People die and hospitals are collapsing. So I think it's time for me to help my people and hopefully we can get back to our lives, normal lives soon and can go back to football as usual and I hope we can get our lives back soon.
W/S Pharmacy facade
SOT, Toni Dovale, Professional football player: "The situation happened, changed, really quickly and I just think it was the right moment for me to help the people. As I said before luckily because of my pharmacy degree I can do that, and I feel sad because of the situation of my country but I also feel proud right now of being able to help to my people."
M/S Dovale working as seen through window
SOT, Toni Dovale, Professional football player: "I am football player for ten years, professional football player from ten years ago, football is my passion, I love it, it's the only thing that I have been doing for all my life and my hope is to get back to our normal life, and in my case come back to play football as soon as possible."
M/S Pharmacy sign
SOT, Toni Dovale, Professional football player: "Well I think society appreciates help from sports players, from entrepreneurs, or from big companies, we do really appreciate that but I think this is a big problem, a pandemic, and it cannot be solved because of charity or because of the donation of certain people. We appreciate but I think we need a strong answer from our governments, from the organisations, from the system.
W/S Facade of pharmacy, La Coruna
SCRIPT
Like many of his colleagues, Spanish professional footballer, Toni Dovale, was forced to hang up his boots for the time being due to the coronavirus outbreak, but unlike his fellow professionals, he has not been following video training routines.
Dovale decided to practice the pharmacy degree he had earned four years ago and take care of people during this period of quarantine in a pharmacy in La Coruna, Galicia.
Footage filmed on Tuesday show the footballer, who currently plays for Royal Thai Navy F.C., in the southeast Asian country's Thai League 2, arriving to a pharmacy in the Galician city.
Then, Dovale dresses in a white coat, mask, gloves and is dedicated to serving customers who arrive at the business, one of the few that can continue to operate in the midst of the total quarantine decreed by the Spanish authorities.
"Football stopped all around the world, so I just - luckily I have a pharmacy degree so I took the decision to help the people as you know the situation in Spain is really tough," Dovale said.
Following the outbreak of the coronavirus, the authorities in Thailand and Spain decreed a series of restrictions on the movement of people, and then activity in the national leagues was suspended. Returning to his club became impossible for Dovale.
"The situation happened, changed, really quickly and I just think it was the right moment for me to help the people," said Dovale.
Dovale added that while he was obviously saddened by the current situation, he felt "proud right now of being able to help to my people."
Spain has recorded 849 deaths of patients infected with COVID-19 in the last 24 hours. The total number of deaths is 8,189. In addition, there are 94,417 positive cases, 5,607 patients admitted to intensive care units and 19,259 patients cured and discharged.