Tue, 21-Oct-2025

Three more Barca players test positive for Covid-19

Ousmane Dembele, Samuel Umtiti, Gavi

BARCELONA: Barcelona forward Ousmane Dembele, defender Samuel Umtiti and midfielder Gavi have tested positive for Covid-19, the Spanish club said Wednesday, bringing to six the number of infected first team players. “The players are in good health and self-isolating at home. The Club has reported the cases to the relevant authorities”, it said in a … Read more

Jordi Alba tests positive for Covid

Jordi Alba

PARIS: Barcelona’s Spanish international left-back Jordi Alba has tested positive for Covid, the club confirmed on Tuesday. “Jordi Alba has tested positive for COVID-19, ruling him out of Tuesday afternoon’s training session,” the La Liga club said in a statement. Read More: Villa boss Gerrard tests positive for Covid-19 “The player is in good health … Read more

Villa boss Gerrard tests positive for Covid-19

Steven Gerrard

LONDON: Aston Villa head coach Steven Gerrard will miss the club’s next two Premier League games after testing positive for Covid-19, the club announced on Saturday. “Aston Villa can confirm Head Coach Steven Gerrard will be unable to attend our next two Premier League matches with Chelsea and Leeds United as he will be isolating … Read more

Palace forced to miss Vieira as Premier League plays on despite Covid surge

Patrick Vieira

LONDON: Crystal Palace’s bid to have their Boxing Day trip to Tottenham postponed due to a coronavirus outbreak has been turned down by the Premier League despite manager Patrick Vieira testing positive. Three games scheduled for the traditional round of matches on December 26 have already been called off due to squads decimated by Covid-19 … Read more

Rangnick suggests scrapping League Cup to ease fixture congestion

Ralf Rangnick

LONDON: Manchester United interim manager Ralf Rangnick has suggested abolishing the League Cup in a bid to ease fixture congestion in English football. The schedule, traditionally at its busiest over the Christmas and New Year period, has come under severe strain from the impact of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, with several Premier League … Read more

Burnley-Everton joins list of Premier League games postponed by Covid-19

Everton vs Burnley

LONDON: Burnley’s match at home to Everton on December 26 has become the latest Premier League fixture to be postponed due to a coronavirus outbreak, it was announced Friday. Covid-19 cases within the Everton camp had seen the Merseysiders request a postponement on Thursday. But that initial plea was rejected despite Everton manager Rafael Benitez … Read more

Rangnick reveals Man Utd close to full strength after Covid outbreak

Ralf Rangnick

MANCHESTER: Manchester United manager Ralf Rangnick has almost a full squad to choose from for Monday’s Premier League clash at Newcastle after a Covid-19 outbreak saw their last two matches postponed. Only the injured Paul Pogba is unavailable to the interim manager for the Red Devils first game in 16 days. United’s games against Brentford … Read more

Liverpool-Leeds among two more Premier League games postponed

Premier League

LONDON: Liverpool’s clash with Leeds and Watford’s trip to Wolves, scheduled for December 26, became the latest Premier League games to be postponed due to coronavirus outbreaks on Thursday. A total of 12 matches have now been called off in the past two weeks as Britain battles record numbers of positive Covid cases due to … Read more

Juve take advantage of Atalanta slip, Salernitana in Covid cancellation

Federico Bernardeschi

MILAN: Juventus took advantage of Atalanta’s goalless draw at Genoa with a 2-0 win over Cagliari which inched them closer to Serie A’s Champions League places, as Salernitana’s trip to Udinese became the season’s first coronavirus-related casualty. Moise Kean’s header five minutes before the break and Federico Bernardeschi’s precision finish after a break-away late on … Read more

Liverpool skipper Henderson voices player welfare concern

Jordan Henderson

LONDON: Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson fears player welfare is too low down the list of football’s priorities as the English game continues to grapple with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Premier League announced on Monday its intention to continue with the scheduled matches over the traditionally busy Christmas and New Year period, despite … Read more

Gerrard says Villa player ‘reluctant to get out of car’ due to Covid fears

Steven Gerrard

LONDON: Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard said fear of Covid-19 is so heightened that one of his players was reluctant to get out of his car. An outbreak at Villa saw their match against Burnley last Saturday postponed at short notice, with Gerrard warning Wednesday that it will be a “nightmare” if the Midlands club … Read more

Two PSG players test positive for Covid-19 ahead of Lorient visit

Paris Saint-Germain

PARIS: Two Paris Saint-Germain players have tested positive for Covid-19 and a third is in isolation, the club said Wednesday a few hours before a Ligue 1 match at Lorient. They are one of several Ligue 1 clubs to reveal positive tests, though not at the same level as England, where a raft of matches … Read more

Covid cases threaten Salernitana’s Serie A game at Udinese

Harry Kane

ROME: Salernitana cast doubt on Tuesday’s Serie A game at Udinese when they announced Covid-19 cases had prevented their squad leaving as planned for northeastern Italy. The Salerno club said they had heeded the advice of local health officials and had informed the Italian league. Read More: Police arrest three Parisian fans for cup violence … Read more

Bordeaux lose three more players for Lille visit

Stian Gregersen

BORDEAUX: Bordeaux said Tuesday that three more players had returned positive cases of Covid-19 taking the total to five who will be out Wednesday against Lille in Ligue 1. Norwegian defender Stian Gregersen, Malian midfielder Issouf Sissokho and striker Sekou Mara tested positive, coach Vladimir Petkovic said. They joined Remi Oudin and Dilane Bakwa who … Read more