The Real Madrid squad are already inside Valdebebas, with the players arriving in stages to undergo the novel coronavirus pandemic testing as one of the conditions that must be met before the club restarts training.
Karim Benzema was the first to arrive at just after 9:00am CET, although he left a few moments later.
Nacho Fernandez, Rodrygo Goes, James Rodriguez, Gareth Bale, Marcelo and Dani Carvajal were next to arrive to undergo testing.
LaLiga Santander is in charge of managing all the protocols that clubs have to fulfil before competition returns and these medical tests are mandatory for both the players and coaching staff, as well as the employees who come into contact with the players on a daily basis.
Eden Hazard and Ferland Mendy arrived after 10:00am CET, whilst Zinedine Zidane’s closest coaching staff members were the earliest arrivals early in the morning, with they too having to undergo testing.
The tests will not only see if Real Madrid players and staff are carrying the virus currently, but also whether or not they have had the virus at any point.
Los Merengues were one of the first clubs to go into quarantine after Trey Thompkins tested positive on March 12, although throughout the extended confinement period in Spain, no players have shown symptoms of the virus.
As per regulations set out by the Spanish government, players will be allowed to return to work alone at their club’s training facility.
Rules indicate that there must be no more than six players on one pitch at a single time and even then, they must be spread out from each other significantly.
Fitness coach Gregory Dupont has been organising workouts for the squad to do at home via videoconferencing calls during the period of lockdown.
After 10:30am CET, Mariano Diaz, Federico Valverde and Thibaut Courtois arrived to be tested and the results are expected within the next 48 hours as LaLiga Santander clubs hope to return to training by Friday or Saturday.
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