Paris (AFP)
The knockout stages of the Champions League Juventus Turin-Lyon and Manchester City-Real Madrid, scheduled for March 17, are postponed due to the "quarantine imposed on the players" of the Italian and Spanish club against the coronavirus pandemic , UEFA announced on Thursday.
"Following the quarantine imposed on Juventus and Real Madrid players, the Champions League matches will not take place as planned," the Union of European Football Associations wrote in its statement.
The body will hold a meeting next Tuesday with the European federations to discuss the consequences of the spread of the coronavirus on football and decide on the continuation of continental competitions.
While the European championships are disrupted in depth by the Covid-19 pandemic, "the discussions will cover all national and European competitions, including Euro-2020", said UEFA.
Major turning point: Daniele Rugani, international defender of Juventus, tested positive at Covid-19 on Wednesday evening. The Italian club announced that it was activating "all the planned isolation procedures".
Likewise, the entire Real Madrid first team has been "quarantined" after the contamination of a player on the club's basketball team.
Previously, from Thursday evening, the round of 16 first leg of the Europa League were planned, with the exception of Seville-AS Rome and Inter Milan-Getafe, whose organization is made impossible by the interruption of air links between the Italy and Spain.
UEFA has also announced the postponement of all youth competitions, male and female, scheduled between 14 March and 14 April in the categories of under 17 and under 19.
© 2020 AFP