Barcelona’s Torres, Pedri test positive
BARCELONA: Barcelona’s new recruit Ferran Torres and his teammate Pedri have both tested positive for Covid-19, the club announced on Monday.
“Pedri and Ferran Torres have tested positive for Covid-19. The players are in good health and are in isolation at their homes,” said Barca in a statement.
Torres only signed from Manchester City last week and was presented with his Barca jersey at a press conference at the Camp Nou just hours before the announcement of his positive test.
Midfielder Pedri, 19, was a key player for Spain as they reached the semifinals of the European Championship and won the Kopa Trophy for the best player aged under 21 at the Ballon d’Or awards in November.
The two new positive tests are the latest blow for the Catalan club which, like many other clubs in La Liga, has been hit hard by Covid.
Coach Xavi Hernandez unsuccessfully asked for Sunday’s match against Mallorca to be postponed after he revealed he was missing 17 players, including 10 because of Covid.
Barca scratched out a 1-0 win, climbing to fifth in the table, 15 points behind leaders Real Madrid.
Meanwhile, Bayern Munich’s Covid crisis grew deeper with Lucas Hernandez and Tanguy Nianzou the latest players to test positive for the coronavirus, the Bundesliga leaders announced on Monday.
Bayern said that “both are well” but that a diagnosis has not yet been received for Leroy Sane, Josip Stanisic and Dayot Upamecano.
The German champions were hit hard at the weekend with news that Manuel Neuer, Kingsley Coman, Corentin Tolisso and Omar Richards had all tested positive and placed in quarantine.