Juventus have revealed the results of new swab tests for Covid-19 carried out by the club – and they appear to show that Paulo Dybala, who was rumored to have tested positive four times, is still carrying the virus.
Dybala announced he was feeling “much better” and seemed to have recovered from a painful bout of the deadly virus in March, but his name has now been left out of a new round of test results from Juventus that has only given the all-clear to Daniele Rugani and Blaise Matuidi, his teammates who were also diagnosed.
In an official statement on Tuesday afternoon, the club said that swab tests for Covid-19 had been carried out, leading to Matuidi and Rugani being “declared healed.”
No mention was made of Dybala’s result, supporting reports last week that the striker had repeatedly tested positive since he initially announced that he had caught the disease alongside girlfriend Oriana Sabatini on March 21.
It is unclear when the Argentina international, who is known for celebrating goals by pretending to wear a mask, was last tested, although the timing of the update from the Serie A leaders suggests he may have returned another positive result since those reports.
Juventus players have been returning to the club this week ahead of an expected return to training on May 18, including Dybala’s strike partner, Cristiano Ronaldo, who is thought to have entered the regulation two weeks of isolation after flying back on his private jet from Portugal.
Dybala has spent his time relaxing with Sabatini, training alone and playing video games while he has been rebuilding his fitness, including a virtual contest against Formula 1 driver Carlos Sainz in aid of healthcare-related causes.
Singer Sabatini, who turned 24 while the pair were in quarantine together, has not revealed whether she has undertaken any new tests for the virus.
Despite saying the couple were in “perfect condition” after they initially tested positive, Dybala later admitted he had felt considerable effects from Covid-19, telling the club’s official channels: “I’ve had strong symptoms. I was struggling for breath. My muscles ached.”
Scientists investigating the virus remain uncertain over the question of whether sufferers become immune for any period of time once they have recovered.
Almost 30,000 deaths have been confirmed as a result of Covid-19 in Italy, where football was suspended on March 10 as the country experienced one of the worst early outbreaks in Europe.
Writing on Facebook on Sunday, Italian Sports Minister Vincenzo Spadafora said that “we don’t talk about” the resumption of professional football, insisting that his focus was on reopening gyms, dance centers, swimming pools and other public spaces “as soon as possible.”
“I read strange things around [football] but nothing has changed,” he added.
