Barcelona positive Covid-19 tests: club places ball in LaLiga's court

In the wake of claims in the Catalan media that five Barcelona players and two members of the coaching staff tested positive for having carried the coronavirus, the club has placed the ball in LaLiga’s court. If there were positive tests, say Barça, this is information that must come from the league.

The seven cases are said to have been detected in the tests carried out on players and staff before Quique Setién’s squad returned to training at Barça’s Sant Joan Despí base in May, with the results showing that the affected individuals, none of whom had suffered any symptoms, had previously had the virus.

Barcelona told by LaLiga they had no coronavirus cases

Barcelona say they were told by LaLiga that the governing body would take charge of the management of information relating to the tests, and would report any positives. The assumption within the club is that, having seen that the individuals had recovered from the virus and were in good physical shape, LaLiga did not deem it necessary to disclose the news. Indeed, Barça were told they had no cases.

Tests carried out by medical staff sent by LaLiga

Barça add that the tests were not conducted by club doctors, with LaLiga sending medical staff who gathered the samples and sent them off for analysis. The results were then sent directly to the president of LaLiga, Javier Tebas, who evidently did not consider the information important enough to pass it on.

The club are remaining relaxed about the situation, as everyone in their group is now negative and Setién has the entirety of his squad available for the resumption of LaLiga. The Blaugrana, who lead the table by two points, are due to restart their league campaign against Real Mallorca on 13 June.

Nevertheless, the club’s medical team is monitoring the situation closely, as a player’s return to full fitness could be affected by having had the coronavirus.