The Argentine superstar is one of four first-team players of Ligue 1's Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) to have been tested positive for the virus.
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Seven-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi is the latest big-name sports player to test positive for Covid-19. The Argentine superstar is one of four first-team players of Ligue 1’s Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) to have been tested positive for the virus, the French club announced on Sunday. Messi, who flew back to Argentine during the Christmas break, reportedly tested positive there. He will need to test negative before being allowed to join his teammates in Paris. The latest development means he will miss the Coupe de France game against Vannes OC on Monday. The other three players to test positive for Covid-19 are left back Juan Bernat, backup goalie Sergio Rico and 19-year-old midfielder Nathan Bitumazala.
“The 4 players that tested positive for Covid-19 are Leo Messi, Juan Bernat, Sergio Rico and Nathan Bitumazala. They are currently in isolation and are subject to the appropriate health protocol,” PSG said in a statement. The French club also confirmed that Neymar is around three weeks away from returning to training following an injury. “Neymar JR will continue his treatment in Brazil until 9 January with members of the Paris Saint-Germain medical and performance staff. His return to training is still expected to be in about 3 weeks,” the statement further added.
Head coach Mauricio Pochettino is not sure whether the former Barcelona forward – Messi – would feature in their next league match at Lyon on January 9. “Messi has been in regular contact with our medical team, and when he has a negative test, he will travel to France, but we don’t know any more than that. I don’t know if he will be involved against Lyon,” he was quoted as saying by ESPN.
“Until he gets a negative test in Argentina, he will not be able to travel to France. So it is all down to the test in terms of when he can travel. … We will assess when he is ready to play.”
On the eve of the match against Vannes in the Coupe de France round of 32, Pochettino spoke more about the COVID-19 situation. “We’re trying to take all the measures we can to avoid problems, but we’ve been living with this virus for two years, we don’t know how the transmission happens, we need to make sure we’re as careful as we can be and take all the precautions necessary to carry on playing and protect everyone,” he explained, as per their club’s website.
