Cristiano Ronaldo Forced To isolate After Teammate Is Tested For Coronavirus

Cristiano Ronaldo, 35, was already in his home country of Portugal when the news broke Wednesday (Mar. 11) that his fellow Juventus player Daniele Rugani, 25, came down with coronavirus. After the Italian soccer team issued a statement that Daniele “tested positive for Coronavirus-COVID-19 and is currently asymptomatic,” Ronaldo had no choice but to self-quarantine himself until given permission to rejoin the defending Serie A champs back in Italy. “Ronaldo has not trained and remains in Madeira pending developments related to the current health emergency,” the team said in a statement, per CNN.

“I urge everyone to respect the rules, because this virus makes no distinction! Let’s do it for ourselves, for our loved ones and for those around us,” he added. Italy is currently bearing the brunt of the pandemic. Over 12,000 people have contracted the disease in the European country.