Premier League clubs prepare for suspension over coronavirus outbreak - MW

Premier League clubs are preparing for a suspended football season after Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday evening and his Saturday game against Brighton was postponed.

Arsenal confirm their first line-up and the coaches will now be isolated and they will not be able to play certain things on the scheduled dates. Meanwhile, after declaring that the weekend's best games will take place as scheduled, the Premier League called an emergency meeting with the club on Friday to discuss upcoming matches. this season.

A club executive told the Guardian that he expects the season to be suspended for several weeks in light of news from Arteta, and has not ruled out the possibility that the entire season will be canceled.

Manchester City defender Benjamin Mendy was reported to have been isolated on Thursday after a family member fell ill, and three Leicester players also took Covid-19 tests after feeling the symptoms.

Like everything, the Premier League is the only major major league in Europe not to close or close because of the coronavirus. The main games in Spain, Italy, Portugal, the Netherlands, Ireland and the United States have all been suspended during an epidemic, while the German Bundesliga and France LL 1 are hosting matches. behind a closed door.

The Scottish Premier League schedule is likely to be postponed after this weekend's Old Old Firm clash between the Rangers and Celtic, following Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon's announcement that gatherings of more than 500 people will be banned from Monday.

Earlier, English football was asked to continue as usual after government health experts confirmed that they still have a very low probability of being infected in large numbers by Covid-19. people in the stadium. However, news from Arteta quickly made these tips complacent.

The magnitude of the problem in world sports due to the rapid spread of the virus is again illustrated as follows in 24 hours of rapid movement:

• The governing body of European football, Uefa, is about to postpone the European Championship in 2020, the final will be held in Wembley, until 2021. UEFA officials will discuss the future of the tournament next week.

• The Real Madrid League Champions League match against Manchester City next Tuesday was delayed after a Madrid basketball player, who had the same training base, tested positive for the virus.

• This weekend, the opening season of the Australian Formula GP in Melbourne was suspended after an employee of the McLaren team tested positive for Covid-19.

• President Trump has asked that the Tokyo Olympics in July be postponed for a year.

• Men Ton tennis has been closed for six weeks and the prestigious Miami Open and Monte Carlo tournaments have been canceled.

• The Pro-14 rugby league for the clubs of Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Italy and South Africa has been suspended until further notice.

• Irish Racing has declared that it will be held in camera until March 27.

• In the United States, all major basketball, baseball, hockey and soccer tournaments are suspended, with the NCAA basketball tournament March March Madness being canceled.

This summer’s European Championship is expected to be the most complex ever, as 12 stadiums in 12 different countries have been used, starting in Rome on June 12 and ending. July 12 with the final at Wembley. But the spread of the coronavirus now makes its future questionable. Delaying Euro 2020 could free up space in the European leagues calendar to end their seasons this summer.

The Euro 2021 tournament for women in England must not start before July 11, so a plan under discussion is that the men's competition will take place sooner. A final decision will be made when Uefa meets with representatives from clubs, tournaments and Fifpro Union players on Tuesday.

Insiders also told the Guardian that everything would be on the table at the meeting - including drastic plans to turn the rest of this season into a relationship with the Champions League and Europa. League in single leg matches held in neutral locations.

The Uefa confirmed that the talks were further in the context of the ongoing development of the spread of Covid-19 across Europe and the analysis of changes from the World Health Organization.

The International Olympic Committee has insisted that they remain completely calm before the Olympic Games in Japan in July despite Trump's calls about the postponement until 2021.

In a brief meeting at the White House, Trump said: I like more than I like to have empty stadiums everywhere, he said. If you cancel it, do so a year later. It is a better alternative instead of crowds.

But the IOC said it was still fully in line with our Japanese host to commit to hosting the Olympic Games safely this year.

In cricket, the British tour of Sri Lanka continues. But an ECB spokesperson said it was a highly developed situation and that the situation was changing rapidly, sometimes several times a day.

MW