Juventus defender Daniele Rugani, the first Italian top-flight soccer player diagnosed with COVID-19, on Monday said that he was “doing well” and hoped his case “served to sensitize everyone” to the illness.
“I’m fine, I reassure everyone. I’ve always been quite well, I haven’t had any serious symptoms. I consider myself lucky,” Rugani told Juventus TV.
The 25-year-old Italy international was diagnosed on Wednesday last week, with the Turin club saying that he was asymptomatic.
Photo: AP
Since then a total of 11 Serie A players have being diagnosed with the illness.
“There was a huge media explosion right away. A lot of people wrote to me and I thank them,” said Rugani, who was self-isolating in a room at the team’s J-Hotel, beside the Italian champions’ training center. “I hope it served to raise awareness, especially those who had not understood the seriousness of this problem.”
“I’m going to get over it, we’re going to get by and I hope we’ll all come out even stronger,” he said. “The quarantine is tough, even more so because you are alone, so I can’t wait to embrace all my loved ones.”
In Spain, La Liga side Valencia said more than a third of their playing and backroom staff have tested positive for COVID-19, but that all the cases were asymptomatic.
The club had reported five cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, with Argentina’s Ezequiel Garay and France’s Eliaquim Mangala both confirming they were among those who had contracted the coronavirus.
“Several further tests for the COVID-19 coronavirus amongst Valencia coaching staff and players have come back positive,” the club said in a statement.
Valencia traveled to Milan, Italy, last month for a UEFA Champions League match against Atalanta BC played at a packed San Siro.
“Despite the strict measures adopted by the club after the Champions League game ... these latest results show the exposure inherent in such matches has caused a positive test rate of about 35 percent,” the statement said. “All cases are asymptomatic and those involved are currently isolated at home, receiving medical assessment and carrying out their scheduled training plan.”
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