The coronavirus is causing chaos to Premier League clubs’ pre-season plans as well as the international football calendar with several stars forced to train at home after returning from holidays in countries requiring quarantine and others contracting the virus.
Paul Pogba withdrew from the France squad after testing positive for Covid-19 on Thursday.
“At the very last minute I’ve made a change in the [squad] list, because Paul Pogba, who was previously on the list, unfortunately for him he carried out a test yesterday which was returned as positive this morning,” France manager Didier Dechamps confirmed.
Manchester United said in a statement: “Everybody at United wishes Paul a speedy recovery ahead of the new season.”
The midfielder will now self-isolate, joining defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who faces a two-week quarantine period due to holidaying in Dubai.
Both players will, therefore, miss the start of Manchester United’s pre-season next Wednesday.
It is proving to be far from an ideal off-season for United after captain Harry Maguire was arrested on the Greek island of Mykonos and found guilty of aggravated assault, resisting arrest and attempted bribery before an appeal by his legal team was accepted.
United and Manchester City will begin the new Premier League campaign a week later than other clubs after competing in Uefa’smini-tournaments to decide the Europa League and Champions League in August.
At Chelsea, meanwhile, where pre-season training has already started, eight players are in quarantine, either with the virus or as a result of returning from restricted countries.
Two of them, Mason Mount and Tammy Abraham, have been included in Gareth Southgate’s England squad for the forthcoming Nations League matches against Iceland and Denmark. Southgate is understood to have been aware of their situation before naming them in his squad.
Mount, Abraham, Christian Pulisic and Fikayo Tomori all visited Mykonos, while Jorginho, Ross Barkley, Emerson and Michy Batshuayi are also quarantining.
Arsenal play Liverpool in the Community Shield tomorrow at Wembley but goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez is a doubt for the match after missing much of the Gunners’ pre-season training due to quarantining.
Martinez travelled to Portugal after the Premier League season concluded despite knowing he would need to quarantine for a fortnight under government guidelines on his return.
Arsenal are said to be relaxed about the situation having given the player permission to travel and knowing goalkeeper Bernd Leno is fit to play in goal on Saturday.
Tottenham midfielder Tanguy Ndombele has also tested positive for coronavirus and was removed from the France squad yesterday along with Pogba. He will now undergo a 14-day quarantine period.
During pre-season, Spurs have already had to make do without striker Harry Kane, their top scorer in the Premier League last season, due to quarantine issues.
Earlier in August, Kane went on holiday to the Bahamas and did not leave the country before it was added to the UK’s quarantine travel list.
He was, nonetheless, included in the England squad and is expected to be ready for the matches. England play Iceland on Saturday, 5 September, and Denmark on Tuesday 8.
Follow i sport on Facebook for the latest Premier League news, interviews and features
More on the Premier League
- When does the Premier League re-start?
- Preece: Kepa has become a problem for Chelsea – but £30m Onana could be the solution
- Storey: Failed takeover could be good news for Newcastle’s long-term future
- Premier League kits ranked: A welcome return to form for Arsenal but that Tottenham kit…
- An apology to Man Utd’s Jesse Lingard
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3b0kvXo
Post a Comment