Coronavirus: Parma quarantine two players ahead of return to team training

Parma (Italy), May 17: Two Parma players have begun periods of isolation after testing positive for COVID-19, the club confirmed on Saturday (May 16).

In a statement released on their website, Parma revealed they had tested roughly 60 people at the club, including players and technical staff, ahead of a return to group training on Monday (May 18).

Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte gave the green light earlier on Saturday (May 16) for clubs to resume team training after this weekend, but the duo at Parma will have to continue solitary work after test results came back positive.

The statement read: "At the end of the tests, all the members of the team group tested negative for the two swabs for COVID-19 carried out within 24 hours, except for two players who tested positive for the first swab and negative for the second.

"The players are both in excellent physical and asymptomatic conditions, however, they were placed in immediate isolation and the club will keep them constantly monitored."

Coronavirus: Serie A clubs cleared to start team training

Serie A has been out of action since Sassuolo's 3-0 win over Brescia on March 9 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The league and the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) are yet to agree on medical protocols set by the government for the competition's return.

The health department wants entire teams to be quarantined for 14 days if a player tests positive, while clubs and the league believe such measures would make a restart impractical and favour a scenario where only the individual in question is isolated.

A June 13 resumption has been suggested, with inter-regional movement to remain limited until June 3.