Cristiano Ronaldo produced a comedy moment prior to his Juventus side taking on Inter Milan in a game which was played in front on an empty stadium due to the coronavirus outbreak in northern Italy.
Instead of being faced with adoring fans being kept back by metal hoardings, Ronaldo was virtually alone after disembarking the Juve team coach.
But with a cheeky grin on his face, the Portuguese star pretended to high five invisible kids on his way down the tunnel towards the changing rooms.
In footage shared on social media, Ronaldo is seen animatedly waving his hand towards where the Juventus fans would normally be standing.
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Inter Milan held their hosts at 0-0 until the interval, but goals from former Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey and Paolo Dybala earned the Bianconeri a precious win in their pursuit of a ninth consecutive Scudetto.
The win moved Maurizio Sarri's side one point ahead of Lazio, while Antonio Conte's Inter are now nine points off the pace with 12 games to go.
Last week, Italy's government said all sport in the country would be played behind closed doors until April 3 due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
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And the country's sports minister has since accused Serie A of being 'irresponsible' for ignoring his calls for football to be suspended because of coronavirus.
Vincenzo Spadafora had earlier said it 'makes no sense' for football to continue after up to 16 million people were placed in quarantine in Italy.
"The world of football feels immune to rules and sacrifices," Spadafora said.
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Speaking to state broadcaster RAI, he added: "Today, games have been played because of an irresponsible act of the Serie A league and its president Paolo dal Pino.
"We are advising Italians to stay at home."
Officials said on Sunday that the number of people to have died from the coronavirus in Italy has reached 366, an increase of 133 in a day.
The total number of infections in the country leapt 25% to 7,375 from 5,883, according to the Civil Protection Agency.
- Aaron Ramsey
- Cristiano Ronaldo
- Serie A
- Juventus FC
- Coronavirus
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