Valencia vs Atalanta and Getafe vs Inter to be played behind closed doors due to coronavirus fears Valencia | Getafe Spanish Minister of Health's recommendation

The Champions League match between Valencia vs Atalanta on March 10 and the Europa League clash between Getafe and Inter on March 19 will be played behind closed doors due to coronavirus fears, Spanish authorities have stated.

This comes from the Spanish Minister of Health, Salvador Illa, who wants to avoid the spread of the coronavirus.

"This is a measure that is consistent with what the competent authorities have dictated to the authorities of those countries," Illa said in Madrid on Tuesday.

Spain is not the first country to take such measures to stop coronavirus from spreading, as France have banned having 5,000 or more people in one space since last Saturday.

The French Minister of Health, Olivier Veran, announced that the cancellation of mass open-air events will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

In Italy, the European country that has been hit the most by the coronavirus, a total of 1,800 people have contracted the disease while 52 have died.

There are limited areas in the Lombardy region where some 50,000 people remain isolated, although for sporting purposes the most shocking thing was the postponement of Inter vs Juventus and four other Serie A matches until May 13. In addition, the EuroLeague match between Olimpia Milano and Real Madrid is still behind held this Tuesday, but behind closed doors and without fans.

Switzerland, meanwhile, have declared that all events with more than one thousand attendees will be banned until March 15, which has seen the top two football divisions in the country come to a standstill until at least March 23 in a bit to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.