The video that could blow up the Bundesliga's return: Ex-Chelsea striker Salomon Kalou films Hertha Berlin stars flouting strict coronavirus hygiene rules and mocking testing as he complains about pay cuts... while 10 players test positive

It is the video which some say might spell the end of the Bundesliga season.

The German league had hoped to restart later this month. After proposing a detailed plan involving stringent hygiene regulations, clubs were waiting for the green light from Angela Merkel and fellow politicians later this week.

Yet an ill-fated Facebook live from former Chelsea star Salomon Kalou might yet see the Bundesliga's plan crash and burn before it even gets off the ground.

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Hertha Berlin's Salomon Kalou could be in hot water after appearing to defy hygiene rules

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The former Chelsea striker went live on Facebook in a video that shocked the Bundesliga

Kalou, now at Hertha Berlin, broadcast the clip on Monday afternoon, to widespread shock in Germany.

In the video, the veteran Ivorian striker is seen flouting some of the Bundesliga's hygiene measures, fist-bumping and clapping hands with team mates, as well as barging in on another player's coronavirus test.

He and fellow Hertha players also appear to be openly complaining about pay cuts brought on by the virus crisis, with Kalou waving what he says is his pay cheque at the camera and saying: 'They took 11 per cent... Why are they f***ing with us?'

In another section of the since-deleted video, Kalou walks into the office of Hertha's athletics coach Henrik Kuchno, shaking his hand and talking to him for a matter of seconds.

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In the Facebook live video, Kalou fist-bumping and clapping hands with his Hertha team mates

He also barges in on defender Jordan Torunarigha while the latter is undergoing what appears to be a coronavirus test, with a team doctor swabbing the inside of his mouth.

'Sala, please. Sala, delete that, please,' the doctor says when he realises Kalou is filming. The former Chelsea man leaves the room, saying he is 'only joking'.

In a statement on their website, Hertha condemned the video and said that it showed that the 'regular notices about hygiene and social distancing rules need to be more intensive'.

They added that the discussion about wage reduction was due to a 'mistake', and that the players had not objected to the pay cut in principle.

'Salomon Kalou has not only done significant damage to Hertha Berlin, he has also given the impression that individual players are not taking the coronavirus seriously in the middle of a societal discussion about restarting the season,' said sporting director Michael Preetz.

The video came after the German Football League (DFL) announced that there were 10 positive tests for the coronavirus among 36 clubs in the Bundesliga and second division.

The DFL says that 1,724 tests for COVID-19 were carried out over two rounds among players and staff.

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He also appears to barge in on Jordan Torunarigha while having a reported coronavirus test

Cologne reported three positive cases last week, while second-division Stuttgart had reported one 'inconclusive result' from an unidentified person.

Kalou's explosive video also comes as the DFL awaits official approval for its plan to restart games behind closed doors later this month.

With official approval contingent on clubs keeping to a comprehensive set of testing and social distancing measures, the clips could torpedo hopes of a restart.

Since training resumed on April 6, most Bundesliga teams have been working in small groups with players changing individually and under orders to observe strict social distancing rules.

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The doctor asks Kalou to leave but the former Chelsea striker walks away saying he was joking

And last weekend, the head of the league's medical task force Tim Meyer said that players would need to show 'extreme discipline on and off the field' if the concept to restart games was to work.

Kalou's video shows that, at least at one club, numerous players are not showing that discipline and the current regulations are not being kept to entirely.

'The images of Salomon Kalou in the Hertha Berlin dressing room are absolutely unacceptable,' tweeted the DFL on Monday. 'There can be no tolerance of this - especially given the players and clubs who are keeping to the measures because they recognise the seriousness of the situation.'

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Captain and senior team member Vedad Ibisevic (right) is heard moaning about wage cuts

The plan to resume games also relies heavily on regular testing for all players, which has been criticised by medical professionals and others as a waste of resources.

The video will hardly fuel public sympathy for the footballers, especially given the discussion about wage cuts.

Captain and senior team member Vedad Ibisevic is heard moaning about an 11 percent cut to his wages, while another player off camera seems to say he has received a 15 percent reduction.

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Clubs had been waiting for Angela Merkel's government to say the Bundesliga could resume

'If they do every player, they're gonna earn a lot of money...they're crazy bro, I don't understand why they do that...I'm gonna ask him: are they f*****g with us?' Ibisevic appears to say.

Hertha announced that their players would take a wage cut back in March, without stipulating how much, and the dressing room discussion appears to be based on the fact that the players did not expect such a large reduction in pay.

'Today's video will unleash more discussion about how safe the Bundesliga is with respect to the growing virus, because it shows that at least some players are not sensitive to the dangers,' wrote 11 Freunde magazine.

Kicker weekly described it meanwhile as 'water to the mill' of those who are critical of plans to restart the football.

Hertha are yet to comment on the video.

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The news comes amid the DFL's announcement of 10 news cases including Cologne's three