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LISBON: Portugal and Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo tested positive for coronavirus, the Portuguese soccer federation announced on Tuesday (October 13).
Ronaldo “is asymptomatic” and “will not play Sweden” in Wednesday’s Nations League game, the federation said on its website.
The 35-year-old Ronaldo, who has won the Ballon d’Or five times, played Sunday in Portugal’s Nations League goalless draw against France in Paris.
The federation added that the rest of Portugal’s squad gave “all negatives” after testing on Tuesday morning, as did France’s squad, according to the French Football Federation.
Ronaldo has scored 101 goals for Portugal and it will be a major absence for his team against Sweden as they aim to stay at the top of their group.
That he contracts the disease is also a big blow for Juventus, as the current health protocol for Serie A says that Ronaldo must self-isolate for 10 days and then register a negative test before he can resume play.
That means Ronaldo will miss Juve’s Serie A match at Crotone on Saturday and the opening match of the Italian Champions League group stage at Dynamo Kiev in a week’s time.
It is also a doubt for Juventus following the Champions League clash with Barcelona on October 28, which was scheduled to pit Ronaldo against his former rival Lionel Messi.
The result of the test reopens the controversy over his departure from Turin to the Portuguese training camp, which was, according to local health authorities in the Italian region of Piedmont, a violation of the virus protocol.
Ronaldo and other Juventus stars left to join their national teams despite the team being isolated after two staff members tested positive for the virus.
Roberto Testi, director of the regional health authority, said that local prosecutors had been informed of the unauthorized departure of the players.
HIGHEST PROFILE
Ronaldo, who has also played for Manchester United and Real Madrid, is the highest-profile footballer to have tested positive for COVID-19, which has killed more than a million people since the start of the pandemic earlier this year. year.
Brazilian forward Neymar, his Paris Saint-Germain teammate Kylian Mbappé and AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic have also tested positive for the virus in recent weeks. Premier League champions Liverpool isolated Senegalese forward Sadio Mane and Spanish midfielder Thiago Alcantara after testing positive last week.
Last week, two of Ronaldo’s teammates from Portugal, goalkeeper Anthony Lopes and defender José Fonte, also tested positive, forcing them to drop out of Nations League matches.
The international rift has been marked by a host of players contracting the virus as it continues to spread around the world.
The Republic of Ireland had five players discarded just before their Nations League draw with Wales after a team member tested positive for the virus.
Meanwhile, Ukraine had to recruit 45-year-old assistant coach Oleksandr Shovkovsky for last week’s friendly with France when the virus swept through the team.
Ukraine also lost to Germany on Saturday in the Nations League with 14 players lost to injury or positive for the virus.
The coronavirus has killed more than a million people and infected 37 million people. Many nations that suppressed their first outbreaks are now fighting a second wave.
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