Real Madrid star Luka Jovic is under fire after breaking quarantine guidelines to visit model girlfriend Sofija Milosevic in Serbia, according to multiple reports.
The 22-year-old Jovic is said to have flown from Spain to Serbia, with permission from the club’s medical personnel, where he reunited with Milosevic, who is pregnant with the couple’s child. Multiple outlets have reported that the couple was spotted celebrating Milosevic’s birthday in Belgrade.
Jovic said Thursday he was “unaware” of travel limitation amid the coronavirus outbreak.
“While in Spain, I tested negative for coronavirus, and I decided to travel to Serbia to help and support our people and be close to my family, in agreement with my club,” Jovic posted to social media, according to ESPN. “When I landed in Serbia, I again tested negative for coronavirus. I am very sorry that some people did their job unprofessionally and did not give me the correct instructions on how to behave in self-isolation.”
He continued, “I apologize to everyone if I have endangered them in some way and I hope that together we can manage to overcome all this.”
Real Madrid was under quarantine after a Real Madrid basketball player, American Trey Thompkins, tested positive for coronavirus.
Jovic has drawn criticism from the top political figures in his home country. President Aleksandar Vucic said the player is under investigation and could face jail time, while prime minister Ana Brnabic seethed that “We have negative examples of football stars who earn millions abroad and when they come back to Serbia, they don’t self-isolate as is obligatory.”
The Serbian government “has ordered mandatory 14-day self-isolation for anyone entering the country and imposed a 28-day quarantine for people arriving from Switzerland, Iran, Romania, Spain, Germany, France, Austria, Slovenia, and Greece,” per the US Embassy in Serbia.
As of Tuesday, there are 303 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Serbia.
Jovic’s father Milan recently addressed the criticism and weighed in on possible jail time.
“If he has to go to prison, let him go. I agree completely with the president and the prime minister, but only if he’s guilty of wrongdoing,” Milan said.
