By:Uzalendo news
- Atletico Madrid face RB Leipzig in the Champions League last-eight on Thursday
- But Atletico revealed on Sunday that two players have tested positive for COVID-19
- The two players have now been named as Angel Correa and Sime Vrsaljko
- The LaLiga side were due to fly to Lisbon for the match on Monday evening
- 25 Atletico players and the coaching staff will now to go Portugal on Tuesday
- Clubs may be thrown out of Europe next season if they cannot fulfil travel plans
Atletico Madrid have revealed that no other players have contracted coronavirus apart from the two players they announced on Sunday, which have been confirmed as Angel Correa and Sime Vrsaljko.
The Spanish club took another round of coronavirus tests after both Correa and Vrsaljko both contracted the virus and the negative results mean the squad are set to travel to Lisbon on Tuesday ahead of their Champions League last-eight tie with RB Leipzig.
Diego Simeone’s squad were due to fly to the Portuguese capital at around 8pm local time on Monday night, but the coronavirus scare means their plans have been delayed by a day.
A club statement also explained that the families of Correa and Vrsaljko were tested, with their tests coming back negative as well.
The La Liga club said both players are asymptomatic but will be isolating at home until it is safe to return.
Meanwhile, 21 Atletico players plus academy youngsters Alex Dos Santos, Manu Sánchez, Riquelme and Toni Moya will join Simeone and his coaching staff in travelling to Portugal.
Atletico will need to have another test on Wednesday and the results have to be in six hours before the start of the match.
In order for clash against RB Leipzig to go ahead, Atletico must have 13 players, including a first-team goalkeeper, fit and able to play the match.
If there are 13 players who test negative but there is no recognized goalkeeper available, then UEFA could call for the game to be rescheduled, which puts the Champions League semi-final on August 18 in serious doubt.
The loss of striker Correa is a significant blow to Atletico’s chances of progressing to the latter stages, who now have fewer attacking options ahead of the last-eight tie against RB Leipzig.
The Argentinian striker has netted seven times for Simeone’s squad this season, but the club have the likes of Diego Costa, Joao Felix and Alvaro Morata to call upon.
Defender Vrsaljko was training away Simeone’s squad due to injury anyway but now will definitely not feature against the Bundesliga side.
Atletico’s preparations are further damaged by the fact that their final training session before travelling to Lisbon was cancelled due to health fears.
