Serie A take strong Covid-19 vaccination stance that Premier League could follow

Serie A have adopted a new Covid vaccination stance after rules were passed by the Italian government.

As of January 10 players in Italy will have to be vaccinated, with a negative Covid test no longer sufficing when it comes to entering stadiums.

Professional athletes had been exempt from certain rules, but a tightening of the laws will mean footballers have to follow the guidance, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport.

The spread of the latest Omicron variant has forced authorities around the world to tighten their restrictions and players will have to accept the jab.

Fortunately for Serie A, according to the figures they reported, 98 per cent of players have been vaccinated.

Several of them now require their booster jabs however.

Their uptake is far greater than those in the Premier League, who had just 68 per cent of players vaccinated in October.

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That has risen 77 per cent this month, but remains below some of Europe's other leagues.

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has been a major advocate of players getting the jab, claiming the Reds will not sign unvaccinated players.

The German stated that, morally, everyone should have to get the jab.

"From a moral point of view it should be mandatory for each person I think but that's not from a legal point of view, if that makes sense," Klopp said recently.

"It's a question of persuading. If I do something that helps the people around me then for me that's mandatory - but obviously some people see that differently.

"I'm 54 years old and I am really a big believer that you can convince people about the right things to do but I'm not sure in this specific case.

"England is a much better place vaccination-wise than Germany is for example.

"And it is unbelievable how aggressive the anti-vax scene is and how clear they are with all the things, they obviously know better than the rest of us, it is really tricky."

Manchester United boss Ralf Rangnick has echoed Klopp's thoughts, claiming the Red Devils too will take vaccination status into account when it comes to transfers.

"I think it could be a consideration and I fully understand what Jurgen said," he said.

"This is an issue the clubs seriously have to think about.

"If you sign a player knowing from the very first day that he has not been vaccinated, you have to be aware he might not be available.

"Not only for 10 days, but this could happen regularly in Covid times."