Speaking in his press conference ahead of Juventus’ derby clash against Torino tomorrow evening, Andrea Pirlo confirmed that the players involved in a dinner party which broke Covid-19 restrictions earlier this week would be dropped for the game.
Midfielder Weston McKennie had held a gathering at his house in Turin past Italy’s 10pm curfew time, with Paulo Dybala and Arthur also in attendance. Police eventually intervened after a call from a neighbour, arriving at 11.30pm on the night and handing out fines to those present, according to the local edition of Corriere della Sera.
The decision comes amid a personnel crisis at Juventus, with centre-backs Leonardi Bonucci and Merih Demiral set to miss out after testing positive for Covid-19 while on international duty, while goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon misses out through suspension.
Dybala had issued an apology on Instagram yesterday afternoon, insisting that the gathering was a mere dinner between the players and their partners rather than a party, as it was described by the neigbour who called the authorities.
Both McKennie and the Argentine had been among the Bianconeri players who had tested positive for Covid-19 since the start of the pandemic, both now having recovered.
