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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Alex Pattle

Coronavirus sport news – live: Man City v Arsenal postponed over outbreak fears as Champions League fixtures played behind closed doors

Manchester City were set to host Arsenal in the Premier League on Wednesday night, but the fixture has become the latest sporting event to be affected by the coronavirus outbreak.

A number of Arsenal players are in self-isolation after they met Evangelos Marinakis, the Olympiakos owner, who has contracted Covid-19. Marinakis visited the Emirates when Arsenal hosted Olympiakos in the Europa League on 27 February – 13 days ago – and came into close contact with club personnel.

Arsenal said that, according to medical advice, the risk of those who met Marinakis contracting coronavirus was “extremely low”, but the postponement and self-isolation are a “precautionary measure.” Follow the latest updates below:

Follow our live coverage of the latest updates from the sporting world as the coronavirus continues to impact fixtures across numerous sports.
The biggest news from overnight is the postponement of Arsenal's Premier League fixture against Manchester City.
Arsenal were set to make the trip to Manchester ahead of the tie tonight, but that is no longer the case.
A number of Arsenal players are self-isolating after contact with Olympiacos owner Evangelos Marinakis, who has contracted Covid-19.
You can read more about the situation here:

Government guidelines recommend that those who come into close contact with someone who has the virus must self-isolate at home for 14 days from the time of contact.

So, what does that mean for Arsenal's scheduled Premier League game at Brighton this weekend?

Well, Marinakis visited the Emirates when Arsenal hosted Olympiacos in the Europa League on 27 February - 13 days ago.
 
So the self-isolation period of two weeks affected the Man City game, but will have run out by the time Arsenal travel to Brighton on Saturday.

The Premier League said that there are currently no plans to postpone further fixtures, with a full complement of games scheduled for this weekend.

Also on Tuesday, Spain's top football flight La Liga announced its next two rounds of fixtures will be played behind closed doors due to fears over the coronavirus outbreak.

Meanwhile, France's Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 will not play with fans in attendance until 15 April, and most matches in Germany's Bundesliga this weekend will be under similar restrictions, including the Revierderby between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke.
The president of La Liga side Getafe said his team will not travel to Italy to play Inter Milan in the Europa League on Thursday because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Angel Torres said he does not want to risk his players' health by travelling to an area struggling to contain the spread of the virus. He also said he was concerned the team would not be able to return to Spain because of travel restrictions.

"If we are eliminated because of that, so be it," Torres told Spanish radio station Onda Cero late on Tuesday. "I'm not going to be the one taking any risks. I'm not going to go to a place where I don't want to go."
RB Leipzig, who hosted Tottenham in the Champions League last night, have just announced their Bundesliga home game against Freiburg will be played behind closed doors on Saturday.
Eintracht Frankfurt have also announced their Bundesliga game against Borussia Monchengladbach this weekend will be played without spectators.
More news from Germany as Hannover player Timo Hubers has contracted the virus. He has not been in contact with his team-mates since being infected, the club has said.
A statement from Nottingham Forest:

"Nottingham Forest can confirm that all players, staff and officers have been tested for the coronavirus and all results have come back negative.

"Within hours of receiving the news that owner Evangelos Marinakis had tested positive for the virus, the club took swift action to arrange tests for the entire first-team players, staff and officers that came into contact with the owner last week.

"The club will remain in close dialogue with the relevant governing bodies and football authorities to ensure the correct measures are taken."

England cricket players have been instructed not to sign autographs or pose for selfies with fans during their Test tour of Sri Lanka in a bid to insulate the squad from coronavirus.

The England team have been on the island - which recorded its second confirmed case overnight - for just over a week and have stepped up existing precautions ahead of the first Test in Galle on 19 March.

Between 3,000 and 5,000 supporters, many of them retired, are due to fly to Sri Lanka and they have been warned the usual level of interaction they have come to expect from the players has been affected by medical advice.

Olympiacos players have been given the all-clear after being tested for coronavirus ahead of their Europa League fixture with Premier League side Wolves.
Here is a useful timeline of the impact of coronavirus on world football:
Here is Miguel Delaney on the wider impact coronavirus is having - and will have - on football:
Roma vs Sevilla and Getafe vs Inter Milan in the Europa League have been postponed due to travel restrictions, Uefa has said.
The Fifa Congress has also been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak. A statement from Fifa read:

"Given the wish of FIFA to organise a Congress which all member associations are able to attend, the Bureau of the FIFA Council has decided to reschedule the 70th FIFA Congress from Friday 5 June 2020 to Friday 18 September 2020 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

"In addition, the FIFA Council meeting planned for Friday 20 March 2020 has also been rescheduled to a date yet to be confirmed in June-July 2020 at the Home of FIFA in Zurich or via video conference."

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