Italian Hospital Plays Down Theory That Osimhen Brought COVID to Europe
After newspaper Correiro della Serro reported that Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen brought a new variant of Covid to Italy, the hospital that investigated the issue denied the claim.
Correiro della Serro reported widely on the story yesterday. They argued that the B.1.525 variant of the virus may have been brought to Italy by Napoli striker Victor Osimhen, who unwillingly could have acted as a sort of Patient 0 for the virus. The paper reports that the B.1.525 is a mutation of the Covid-19 virus and had not yet been found in Italy, although it had been reported in countries such as England, Denmark, or Nigeria.
The publication It Mattino then expanded on the story claiming that the striker had been tested and after contracting the virus upon his recent trip to Nigeria. However, the paper also states that Osimhen did not infect anyone with the virus and the the hospital personnel acted responsibly in testing and treating the patient.
An official statement from Hospital Federico II in Naples was later issued and denied that Victor Osimhen was the Patient 0 which the original article referenced.
There are no players of SSC Calcio Napoli involved in this. All health data are always strictly processed in full respect of the protection of privacy.
Upon testing positive for the virus, the forward spent time in isolation before being allowed to retake the test. The negative result he later obtained has allowed the forward to return to Napoli’s squad. He is expected to start the team’s next match.
Ciro Verdoliva, Director of ASL 1 in Naples, visited Gli Azzurri’s training ground ahead of the team’s trip to Spain for their Thursday match against Granada in Round of 32 of the Europa League.
