- The Italian government has decided by decree that all sporting events taking place in Italy will be held behind closed doors until April 3.
- A measure which concerns in particular the round of 16 return of LDC between Juventus and Olympique Lyonnais.
- OL communicated on the subject on Wednesday, indicating that it had not yet had an official confirmation of the closed session, either from Juve or from UEFA.
To great ills, great remedies. European country most affected by the coronavirus epidemic - the symbolic bar of 100 dead has just been crossed -, Italy takes the bull by the horns. The Italian government published a decree on Wednesday stipulating that all the sports events planned on Italian soil will be held behind closed doors until April 3.
A measure that concerns all Serie A matches, which has already been severely disrupted for ten days. Last weekend, five meetings of the Italian championship were thus postponed, including the shock at the top, the "Derby d'Italia" between Juventus Turin and Inter Milan. But this decision also includes the European Cup matches, starting with the Champions League 8th final return match between Juve and Olympique Lyonnais, scheduled for March 17 at Juventus Stadium.
"This information has not been confirmed to us, either by UEFA or by Juventus"
Shortly after the announcement of the government decree, OL reacted officially with a statement published on its site in the evening. “Olympique Lyonnais has taken note of information from Italy concerning the closed match of the return match between Juventus and OL (…). For the moment, this information has not been confirmed to us, either by UEFA or by Juventus. Other solutions are also possible and envisaged, “writes the Rhone club.
Olympique Lyonnais has taken note of information from Italy concerning the closed-door holding of the #JuveOL return match to be held on March 17 and counting for the knockout stages of the Champions League.
More info ⤵ https://t.co/JOi95Hh4WQ
This last sentence echoes in particular a proposal by the Turin club, also studied by UEFA. The idea would be to relocate the match to southern Italy, an area less affected by the coronavirus and which has many Juve supporters. But the prospect of seeing thousands of tifosi bianconeri spreading on the roads, coming from the four corners of the Boot, is not to reassure the Italian government.
An advantage for OL, which would escape the hot atmosphere of Juventus Stadium
The Lyon press release concludes: "Regarding OL supporters who have already purchased their ticket for this meeting, we will come back to them as soon as we know precisely where and under what conditions the match will be played. "
If the closed session is confirmed and made official by UEFA, this would in any case constitute a major advantage for OL (1-0 winner on the outward leg). Les Gones would thus escape the hot atmosphere of the Juventus Stadium, reputed since its inauguration in 2011 - on the site of the former Stadio Delle Alpi - to be one of the hottest stadiums in Italy.
Asked about it in the mixed zone, after the defeat against PSG, Anthony Lopes kicked in, ensuring that the Lyonnais "would play whatever happens". Ditto for Rudi Garcia in the post-match press conference: "For the moment, that is far from my concerns," he said. We'll see in due time. "
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