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UEFA defends decision to stage Atalanta v Valencia amid coronavirus threat

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has defended the decision to allow Atalanta v Valencia to go ahead as scheduled on February 19 despite the looming threat of coronavirus.

Atalanta secured a stunning 4-1 win in the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie against the Spanish giants in front of 40,000 ecstatic supporters at the Giuseppe Meazza, thanks to a Hans Hateboer brace and goals from Josip Ilicic and Remo Freuler.

The joy of the occasion has faded significantly a month on, however, with the mayor of Bergamo labelling the match a “biological bomb” that could have helped to speed up the spread of Covid-19, which has caused over 10,000 deaths in Italy to date.