Javier Pastore: It's pretty much impossible to resume where we left off

The midfielder also warned the people in Argentina to not underestimate the ongoing pandemic and take precautions.

Argentina and Roma midfielder Javier Pastore expressed his concern over the current Serie A season and believes it is beyond time to resume the game and finish the season. Pastore spoke to Radio Impacto about the same.

Italy has been the worst affected country in the world from the ravaging Covid-19 pandemic that has laid waste to 4,825 lives since affecting the country. The deadly virus claimed the lives of 793 people on Saturday and many more are expected to tragically lose their lives in the process.

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The virus has also affected many of the players plying their trade in the primary football league in the country, the Serie A, with the Juventus trio of Paulo Dybala, Blaise Matuidi and Daniele Rugani all affected and currently in quarantine. This has resulted in the league being shutdown amidst a national lockdown ordered by the government as it works towards containing the situation.

Despite claims by the Italian Footballers' Association president Damiano Tommasi that the league could resume in May or June, Pastore expressed his doubts over it.

"To be honest, I think it will be impossible to finish the season as we need at least 20-30 days of training to be ready. All the clubs will lose money but I think it's pretty much impossible to resume where we left off. It would mean ending later and later, so having to move the start of the next campaign. But we can't do that because next summer there's the Euros, Copa America etc," said Pastore.

Despite stalling play for the season, the players are currently working to be fit during the difficult times. Pastore mentioned "We wake up in the morning, weigh ourselves and send the staff the necessary details, including the time we spend training and the exercises that we did. We have to try to maintain muscle tone. The club has given each player the necessary gym equipment to train at home."

Having seen the full potency of the pandemic in Italy, Pastore urged his native Argentinians to stay alert and take precautions in the time of this crisis and certainly not underestimate its effect.

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Pastore replied, "There will only be chaos in Argentina because people are going to rush and will be panic-buying and most companies will try to make the most of the situation."

He cautioned, "Don't believe the false stories that come out, the truth is that this is an illness that is not just dangerous for the elderly. We've been dealing with the virus for a month and the problem didn't seem that important at first, but after two weeks, it was chaos. Only supermarkets and pharmacies are there and many checks on the street to ensure people aren't going out."

As of now, Juventus lead Serie A and are a point ahead of second-placed Lazio. The last fixture before the closure was played on March 9 between Sassuolo and Brescia with the home team winning 3-0.

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