Real Madrid Captain, Sergio Ramos has tested positive for COVID-19 ahead of the club’s second-leg clash with Liverpool in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
The new development comes after the Blancos defender missed the first leg of the tie last week due to a calf injury, but Zinedine Zidane’s side were still able to secure an impressive 3-1 victory in his absence.
Madrid will have to make do without Ramos once again at Anfield stadium on Wednesday night as they seek to book their place in the last four, with the Spaniard having been diagnosed with coronavirus after the club’s latest round of medical checks.
The Liga giants confirmed the news in an official statement, which partly reads;
Real Madrid CF announces that our player Sergio Ramos has given a positive result in the last Covid-19 test that has been carried out.
Official Announcement: Sergio Ramos.#RealMadrid
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) April 13, 2021
Ramos has missed Madrid’s last three games through injury, with his last appearance for the club coming in the second leg of their last-16 Champions League meeting with Atalanta on March 16.
The 35-year-old has barely been in contact with his teammates as he continues to recover from a muscle injury he picked up on international duty with Spain.
It was expected that Ramos would miss around a month, with it having been two weeks so far, and it remains to be seen whether his positive test will impact his return time or not.
He will now have to self-isolate for 10 days in accordance with COVID-19 quarantine protocols, and won’t be allowed to return to action until he posts a negative test after that period.
Meanwhile, Ramos is currently not the only player in the squad to have contracted COVID-19, as his partner at the back, Raphael Varane, is also out of the squad due to a positive test.
Mariano Diaz, Eden Hazard, Eder Militao, Casemiro, Luka Jovic and Nacho Fernandez, as well as Zinedine Zidane, are also on the list of players who have already tested positive for the disease.
