Serie A is on alert after the Covid cases in the national team, which have so far involved at least six people from the Azzurri staff and the Juventus defender Leonardo Bonucci.
Ahead of the pre-Easter league round, which will see all teams on the pitch, the 13 clubs that provided one or more players to the 30 players lined up for Italy's three-legged 2022 World Cup qualifiers have subjected their players to a series of swab tests, isolating them from the group while awaiting the decisions of their respective local health authorities. So far, none have tested positive, but while awaiting the results of the molecular tests, Sassuolo has made a bold decision, prudently deciding not to play its internationals, Ferrari and Locatelli, against Roma.
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The others are waiting, hoping that between now and Saturday there will be no nasty surprises that would induce the ASL to intervene and perhaps, in the worst case scenario, to decide on home isolation for an entire team group, canceling other matches and complicating an already stressed calendar. The decisions of the sports justice system on the Juventus-Napoli, Lazio-Torino and Inter-Sassuolo cases have clearly put the choices in the hands of the health authorities, to whom everyone must adhere. In short, there is great concern for the unexpected outcome of a winning campaign by the national team, which has also rekindled the desire, as well as the hopes, of reopening the stadiums, or at least the Olimpico, in view of the European Championship in June.
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After the moderately optimistic statements of the undersecretaries of Sport, Valentina Vezzali, and Health, Andrea Costa, today the regional health councilor of Lazio, Alessio D'Amato, suggested using the "one ticket, one swab and distancing system" for the opening match of the tournament, Italy-Turkey on June 11, but the governor, Nicola Zingaretti, immediately clarified that "the government and the CTS decide on public access. In theory we are ready, but these are not regional choices". Aside from the stadium issue, which is always of great interest to clubs, now everyone's anxiety about a possible cluster is dominating. "It's an alarm situation, there's no doubt about it: now everyone must carry out daily swabs and respect the rules we have in the protocol", explained Gianni Nanni, Bologna doctor and head of the medical staff of the Serie A teams. "We at Bologna have Soriano as an Azzurri player and we must monitor him - he added -. It is clear that all clubs will have to evaluate very carefully who has been in contact with these positives in the Azzurri group". From Napoli (with Insigne, Di Lorenzo and Meret), to Fiorentina (Biraghi and Castrovilli), from Inter (Bastoni, Barella and Sensi) to Milan with Donnarumma, from Lazio (Immobile and Acerbi) to Roma (Spinazzola, Mancini, Pellegrini, El Sharaawy, and also Dzeko under observation for the positivity of the Bosnian CR), so far the results have been reassuring, but a negative test today does not guarantee that it will be so in the coming days. The Giallorossi, in precautionary isolation, received the green light from the ASL this evening and will be able to train regularly and leave for Reggio Emilia.
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