Weston McKennie Juventus Porto Champions LeagueGetty

Juventus stars Dybala, McKennie and Arthur suspended for derby clash with Torino after Covid-19 lockdown-breaking party

Juventus have suspended Weston McKennie, Paulo Dybala and Arthur ahead of their derby clash with Torino following reports the players attended a party at the USMNT international's villa, in violation of local Covid-19 protocols.

McKennie was reported to have hosted an event allegedly involving between 10 and 20 individuals in total, with fellow Bianconeri stars Dybala and Arthur also in attendance.

All three players have also been subjected to fines under government rules, with Andrea Pirlo also confirming that they have also been excluded from his squad to face Torino on Saturday.

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What's been said?

The Juve boss told a pre-match press conference: "I'll talk about it right away so then we'll think about the match. The three players involved will not be called up, then they'll go back to work and we'll understand when. 

"I don't want to talk about this anymore, we've already done enough. For the technical part I decided, the club. did the rest.

"These things have always happened, but this is not the right time for what is happening in the world. We are examples."

How did the players react?

Dybala took to social media to apologise for attending the gathering, but insists the players were not having a party.

He posted on an Instagram story: "I was wrong to stay out for dinner. it wasn't a party, but I was wrong anyway and I apologise."

The Argentina international is the only player to publicly address the reports so far.

How did this happen?

The party took place on Wednesday evening at McKennie's villa in Turin, according to regional newspaper La Stampa, with local police alerted to it around 11:30pm local time following reports.

Individuals within the grounds of the property initially refused entry to authorities before relenting, upon which point the involvement of Juve stars McKennie, Dybala and Arthur became apparent.

Further details are still unclear, although all three players were off international duty, having not been selected by their respective nations for games during the March break.

What other repercussions will they face?

Juve have already penalised Dybala, McKennie and Arthur financially and professionally, but it is also possible that their short-term suspensions could carry over into their next two Serie A games against Napoli and Genoa.

That would likely be a major detriment to both the players and squad, with the Bianconeri 10 points behind leaders Inter in Serie A as the business end of the season approaches.

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