Cagliari forward Joao Pedro suspended for doping
Serie A matches postponed by Astori’s death rescheduled for April
Six of the seven Serie A matches that were postponed because of Fiorentina captain Davide Astori's death have been rescheduled for the first week of April.
The Italian league says the matches will be played on April 3 and 4.
However, a date has yet to be confirmed for the derby between AC Milan and Inter Milan because the Rossoneri could still be involved in the Europa League.
The 31-year-old Astori was found dead in his hotel room on Sunday after a suspected cardiac arrest before Fiorentina was set to play at Udinese.
That match will be played on April 3, the same day Atalanta hosts Sampdoria and Genoa hosts Cagliari.
On the following day, it's: Benevento vs. Hellas Verona; Chievo Verona vs. Sassuolo; and Torino vs. Crotone.
Cagliari forward Joao Pedro has been suspended indefinitely after testing positive for a banned substance, becoming the second Serie A player this season to be banned for failing a doping test.
Italy's national anti-doping organization announced the decision on Friday — Joao Pedro's 26th birthday — after the banned diuretic hydrochlorothiazide was found in his system following Cagliari drawing with Sassuolo 0-0 on Feb. 11.
Joao Pedro signed a new contract at the start of the season but has had a mixed campaign and was suspended for four matches for simulation and stamping on an opponent during a match against Fiorentina at the end of December.
In January, Benevento captain Fabio Lucioni was banned one year for doping after the steroid clostebol was found in a sample taken after his side lost to Torino 1-0 in September. Benevento team physician Walter Giorgione was banned for four years for administering the steroid to Lucioni in a spray.
Lazio defender Stefan de Vrij called to anti-doping hearing
Lazio defender Stefan de Vrij has been summoned to an anti-doping hearing on Friday. Lazio says it is a "bureaucratic issue."
Spokesman Arturo Diaconale told radio station RMC Sport that after Lazio beat Hellas Verona 2-0 on Feb. 19, de Vrij "did the test twice with two different kits, (and) he probably didn't sign the documents at the end of the two tests."
De Vrij has been at Lazio since 2014 and is set to leave the club at the end of the season as a free agent after contract negotiations broke down last month.
Manchester United, Liverpool, and Inter Milan are among the clubs reportedly interested in the 26-year-old de Vrij, who has played more than 30 times for the Netherlands.