Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez is seen on the pitch after Bologna declared that they would not play the match because players and staff have tested positive for Covid-19 REUTERS/Jennifer Lorenzini
ROME: At least four of the 10 Serie A matches scheduled for Thursday won’t be played after local health authorities ordered teams into quarantine amid rising coronavirus cases.
The matches affected so far are: Bologna vs. Inter Milan, Atalanta vs. Torino, Fiorentina vs. Udinese and Salernitana vs. Venezia.
The quarantine orders came from authorities in Bologna, Turin, Udine and Salerno.
Bologna has eight players who have tested positive for COVID-19; Torino has six players positive plus two staff members; Udinese has seven players positive plus two staff members and Salernitana has nine players positive plus two staff members.
Napoli’s match at Juventus is still scheduled to go ahead despite Napoli reporting seven players positive and three staff members - including coach Luciano Spalletti.
In all, more than 70 players in the league are positive.
League officials met late Wednesday and decided that all of the games should still be played. So none of the games have been officially postponed. That means that teams like Inter, Atalanta, Fiorentina and Venezia could still show up for matches that they know won’t be played. Then authorities will likely go through a lengthy legal process to decide on the status of the affected games and if they should be postponed to a later date.
Thursday’s matches mark the return of Serie A after a two-week break. Another full slate of 10 matches is scheduled for Sunday.
Thursday is a national holiday in Italy, the Epiphany.
Stadium capacities have been reduced from 75% to 50% following a government decree aimed at combatting the latest outbreak, and spectators must now wear FFP2 masks.
ENGLAND
Burnley manager Sean Dyche tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss the team's FA Cup game this weekend against Huddersfield, the club said Thursday.
"Sean will now follow the mandatory self-isolation protocols,” the Premier League club said.
Burnley, which hosts the second-division club on Saturday, has played the fewest games in the Premier League after three of its matches were called off because of outbreaks in opponents’ squads.
FRANCE
The French league game between defending champion Lille and Lorient scheduled Saturday was postponed because of a high number of positive coronavirus tests in the Lorient squad.
The league did not specify how many Lorient players have COVID-19 but sports daily L'Equipe's website said it was 12.
A new date for the game has not yet been set.
