Barcelona players return for coronavirus tests, individual training

FC Barcelona’s first team returned to the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper on Wednesday morning (May 6) to undergo coronavirus testing, ahead of individual training sessions in the coming days.

La Liga gave the go-ahead for the tests after Barca’s facilities were inspected on Tuesday.

Full medicals were carried out to guarantee the players’ health but tests for the coronavirus were at the forefront.

It is almost two months since the Barca squad last graced the Ciutat Esportiva center. The club suspended activities of all its sporting outfits, including the men’s football first team, following the outbreak of the pandemic.

The decision to return was made given the healthcare situation and according to the recommendations of the club’s medical staff, as confirmed by a short thread on its social media accounts after a meeting was held by the team with club president Josep Bartomeu, Dr. Jaume Padrós, the president of the Barcelona Medical Association and head of occupational healthcare at the Club, and Dr. Antoni Trilla, the Head of Epidemiology at Hospital Clínic.

Players had been sticking to a personalized workout plan from their homes, supervised by the team’s trainers but with Spain coming out of lockdown in four gradual phases, they were expected to show up for work again. The Ciutat Esportiva had been prepared to receive them since the start of the week.

The center was due to receive an official visit from a La Liga representative, who was to give the green light for activities to resume.

This followed a “general cleaning and disinfection operation” as reported by SPORT’s Albert Masnou, in the rooms and on all the furniture of the Cuitat’s sports facilities; a process that was to be carried out a minimum of twice a day.

Protection materials for players including masks, gloves and disinfectant solutions were also being made available, throughout.