Juventus should suspend trio of players for breaking COVID rules

Juventus have yet another issue on their hands. Center back Leonardo Bonucci has already tested positive for COVID-19 and so had fellow central defender Merih Demiral. And now we have a trio of rule-breakers on our hands, who decided a party was more important than keeping the public safe. They chose to put themselves before everyone else, including their teammates.

Center midfielder Weston McKennie reportedly had a party at his villa in Turin, and teammates Paulo Dybala and Arthur Melo were a part of it. There were a total of 10 people at this party.

Juventus have already fined the trio for partaking, and Goal.com’s Romeo Agresti reports that the club is considering additional disciplinary action for these players. They could be suspended for Saturday’s derby against Torino.

The Bianconeri should 100 percent suspend them. It is profoundly disappointing to see the decision McKennie, Arthur, and Dybala made to have this party during the pandemic. It is very selfish. Whereas so many people do not get to socialize during the pandemic and are still doing their parts to keep everyone safe, these footballers who make millions and get to have some degree of socialization amongst each other decided to do this.

Paulo Dybala’s role is especially disappointing

It is especially disappointing to see Dybala, who has aimed to be a future captain and centerpiece for Juventus, involved. You’d expect so much better from an experienced player who is supposed to bleed Black and White for the club. So much for his comeback against Torino, then.

All three of them need to face repercussions. We cannot move on unless they are suspended, and the team understands that the club and the people of Turin come first. This party was totally unnecessary, and the optics are even worse once you consider all the players who are testing positive for COVID-19 right now.

Juventini can only hope more positive tests are not on their way, because there could be an outbreak on the horizon. And how embarrassing would it be for Juve to have done this before facing Napoli on Wednesday, which is a fixture that already needed to be moved once – and not because the Napoli players were any less diligent.

Shame on McKennie, Arthur, and Dybala. We expect more from them as examples and building blocks for the team. Everyone wearing the Black and White kit must be held to a high standard by Juventini, and these men failed to meet that standard. A one-game suspension, even for the derby, should be on the way. They cannot be trusted to play in the derby after setting such a poor example to everyone.