Cristiano Ronaldo Is 'Fine, Sunbathing,' Juventus Teammate Says

Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini said that teammate Cristiano Ronaldo, who tested positive for coronavirus, is doing just fine.

The Portugal football federation announced on Tuesday that Juventus star and Portugal national team captain Ronaldo had contracted COVID-19. Chiellini, who got the chance to speak with Ronaldo after news of his diagnosis broke, shed light on the current condition of the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.

According to the Juve defender, Ronaldo has been using his isolation period to relax.

"He's fine and was sunbathing, he'll be back when he's ready," Chiellini told reporters during a press conference, Yahoo Sports reported.

Ronaldo has been ruled out of Portugal's UEFA Nations League match against Sweden on Wednesday following his positive coronavirus test. He is also expected to miss Juve’s Serie A match against Crotone on Saturday and Portugal's UEFA Matchday 1 game against Dynamo Kyiv on Oct. 21.

Ronaldo is required to self-isolate for 10 days and record a negative test before he can resume playing, The Athletic reported.

Despite Ronaldo being out of the picture for possibly a couple of games, Chiellini said they still need to move forward for the sake of the sport and its fans.

"We footballers know we take risks, and we are ready to take them, trying to minimize them as much as possible with all the necessary precautions," the defender explained. "We must move forward because we know that football is important economically, and for the social value. In the coming weeks there will be other closures, and I believe football is important to people."

He emphasized that being able to finish the Serie A season is more important than defending their title.

"The real victory is to finish the season, the result is secondary," he added. "We cannot stop. We are not worried, but clearly we often talk about it among ourselves with the awareness of what lies ahead."

Ronaldo’s national team side coach, Fernando Santos, also recently addressed his star forward’s UEFA Nations League status. As per Santos, Portugal can still compete even without Ronaldo, though he also admitted that his absence will be felt.

"Any player who is absent due to COVID-19 is a big loss, and Ronaldo's absence is probably even greater [than anyone else's]," the coach said. "But I have absolute confidence in those players who are going to play."

"The plan is the same," he affirmed. "But the dynamics are different. Cristiano has his own characteristics. No team is better without the best player in the world. But this team has already shown that they have the ability to respond as a collective [unit]. I have full confidence in my players."