Okay, that’s full-time for today, folks. As it stands, we still have five Premier League games going ahead. Watch this space though; that could change. Thanks for reading.
Saturday
Aston Villa v Burnley (3pm)
Leeds v Arsenal (5.30pm)
Sunday
Wolves v Chelsea (2pm)
Newcastle v Manchester City (2.15pm)
Tottenham v Liverpool (4.30pm)
Allan Saint-Maximum was limping about at Anfield last night before being substituted in the 79th minute and, not surprisingly, he’s a doubt for Newcastle’s home game with Manchester City on Sunday.
The Frenchman has a muscle injury and will likely be replaced by Callum Wilson, who was only on the bench at Anfield.
Left-back Jamal Lewis will be missing after picking up a hamstring injury.
For Manchester City, Joao Cancelo has served a one-match ban so is likely to come back in.
Kyle Walker, who missed Tuesday’s 7-0 thrashing of Leeds, could return, and in-form Bernardo Silva is expected to be fit despite being substituted with a muscular problem.
This game finished Newcastle 3-4 Man City last season. The Magpies last beat City (2-1) in January, 2019.
Updated
Another match preview. Check out the details for Leeds v Arsenal on Sunday.
He’s good that Mo Salah.
A goal or assist in 15 consecutive Premier League games for Mo Salah 👑
— The Anfield Wrap (@TheAnfieldWrap) December 17, 2021
Chelsea ⚽️
Leeds ⚽️
Crystal Palace ⚽️
Brentford ⚽️
Man City ⚽️🎯
Watford ⚽️ 🎯
Man United ⚽️ ⚽️ ⚽️ 🎯
Brighton🎯
West Ham 🎯
Arsenal ⚽️
Southampton 🎯
Everton ⚽️⚽️
Wolves 🎯
Aston Villa ⚽️
Newcastle ⚽️
Wild pic.twitter.com/wwcS5DxI6w
How far can he extend it? Liverpool’s next four PL games:
Dec 19: Tottenham v Liverpool
Dec 26: Liverpool v Leeds
Dec 28: Leicester v Liverpool
Jan 02: Chelsea v Liverpool
Egypt play their opening game in the African Cup of Nations on January 11. Liverpool’s next Premier League game after the trip to Stamford Bridge is home to Brentford on January 15.
Updated
Antonio Conte must surely have his eye on some potential new recruits so can he bring Spurs fans some exciting transfer news?
No. He can’t.
“In this moment we’re not thinking about the transfer window. We’ve had many, many problems to face and try to solve.
“It was very difficult to speak about other topics. For sure, in the next days we’ll try to have a meeting to speak about the situation and see if there’s a way to improve the squad and in which way.
“In this moment, I’m making an evaluation about the whole squad.
“Covid will be a good opportunity for someone to show me they deserve to continue to play for Tottenham.”
As noted earlier, Premier League managers will meet on Monday to discuss the Covid-19 crisis which has (so far) caused five of this weekend’s 10 fixtures to be called off.
Here’s some more detail from the PA:
The Premier League, EFL and the Professional Footballers’ Association have arranged players’ meetings with England’s deputy chief medical officer Jonathan Van-Tam to discuss concerns regarding the vaccine.
It is understood in at least one meeting he was asked about an increased risk of heart inflammation as a result of getting vaccinated.
Van-Tam is believed to have told the players there was a small increased risk from the vaccines, but a far greater risk of heart inflammation from catching Covid.
Sources at the Premier League and the PFA also point out that vaccination rates for footballers are above the average for their age group in wider society.
The EFL announced earlier that one in four of its players currently had no intention of getting even one jab.
By 3pm on Friday, 19 matches across its three divisions had been postponed due to coronavirus infections.
It’s been a tough time for the WSL’s elite in recent weeks and Chelsea’s 4-0 defeat at Wolfsburg on Thursday highlighted some of the underlying problems.
Suzanne Wrack takes a look.
Jürgen Klopp said earlier he didn’t have much clue about which Tottenham players would be in opposition when Liverpool head there this Sunday.
To be honest, it’s still something of riddle.
Sergio Reguilon and Giovani Lo Celso should be available again after injury. That’s the easy bit.
But of the nine players who tested positive for coronavirus, at least two remain in isolation but it’s believed that several of the rest could be involved.
Liverpool are awaiting confirmation of positive PCR tests from trio Virgil Van Dijk, Fabinho and Curtis Jones but it is highly unlikely they will play any part having been left out against Newcastle.
Time for some Bruno Lage. Wolves are eighth in the table and yet have managed just five home goals in eight matches. Anyone else having difficulty grasping whether they’re quite good or bang average?
We may know a bit more when they host Chelsea on Sunday afternoon although perhaps the head-scratching will continue after another 0-0 draw.
First up, Lage has revealed that Fabio Silva and Yerson Mosquera have tested positive for coronavirus. In addition, Hwang Hee-chan is an injury doubt.
Second up, he’s not buying into the idea that this is a good time to take on the wobbling Blues.
“These types of teams don’t have a bad moment,” Lage said. “They have big players and are one of the best teams in the world – they won the last Champions League, have a lot of experience and so does the manager.
“He can replace several players because they have a good squad and they do very well in this system, they dominate this system. They can play 3-4-3 or 3-5-2, they know how to play both ways.
“For us, this is a challenge, this is why when I had this invitation from Wolves (to become boss in the summer) I didn’t think twice.
“These are the kind of things we want to compete, these are the kind of things we want for me and my players to play against. Every week is a massive challenge. It’s an opportunity for us every time.”
The Premier League has come in for criticism over late decisions to call off games and communication has, shall we say, been somewhat chaotic.
Here’s a personal story. Yesterday I called in at Jon Moss’s record shop in Headingley and had a brief chat with him before he said he was setting off to Leicester to ref the Spurs game. I was due at the dentist at midday (loose crown for those interested) and when I emerged at 12.20pm I received a text from a mate saying the Leicester game was off.
The dentist is only five minutes’ walk from Jon’s shop, Vinyl Whistle, so I popped back in just to make sure he’d heard but was told he was loading up his car to set off. “You know it’s off, yeah?” I said when he (thankfully) came back into the shop. Nope. No-one had informed him. Cue some joint scrolling on Twitter to seek confirmation. The media had the story at midday but Leicester and Spurs didn’t tweet the news until 1.30pm. No wonder fans are frustrated. Not much hope if even the refs don’t know their games are being called off.
Updated
Time to walk the dog? On this week’s Football Weekly Extra - Trent’s rocket, Chelsea’s latest slip and the panel ask: should we pause football?
Plus, the three-year prison sentence of Abdullah Ibhais, a tribute to Sergio Agüero and your questions.
The smash and grab in graph form. Looks like Everton could have nicked it at the death.
The story of Chelsea 🆚 Everton, as told by @Oracle 📚 pic.twitter.com/joZb5pTBbb
— Premier League (@premierleague) December 17, 2021
Christian Eriksen leaves Inter by mutual consent
Christian Eriksen, who suffered a cardiac arrest at Euro 2020, has left Internazionale by mutual consent.
Full story here from PA Media:
The 29-year-old enjoyed six-and-a-half seasons at Tottenham before moving to San Siro in January 2020 for a fee in the region of £17million.
Eriksen helped Inter win last season’s Serie A title but the following month his life was turned upside down after suffering a cardiac arrest during Denmark’s Euro 2020 opener against Finland in June.
The attacking midfielder received life-saving treatment on the pitch before being taken to hospital and was fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) device.
Serie A rules would not allow Eriksen to play with an ICD and the Nerazzurri confirmed an agreement has been struck for the Dane to leave.
“FC Internazionale Milano can confirm that an agreement has been reached to terminate Christian Eriksen’s contract by mutual consent,” a club statement read.
“The club and the entire Nerazzurri family wish Christian all the very best for his future.
“Although Inter and Christian are now parting ways, the bond shall never be broken.
“The good times, the goals, the victories, those Scudetto celebrations with fans outside San Siro – all this will remain forever in Nerazzurri history.”
Eriksen has not played since the cardiac arrest and it remains unclear whether he will return to professional football.
The 29-year-old has been training on his own at Odense – where he was a youth team player for OB between 2005 and 2008 – in his homeland as he steps up his recovery.
A spokesperson for the Danish Superliga club told the PA news agency earlier this month: “He is living next to the training area, and he played here as a youth player, and because of that he was more than welcome to use our pitch to train. Christian is not training with our squad, he is just using our pitch.”
With Chelsea stretched in midfield, boss Thomas Tuchel says he may have to rush back Mateo Kovacic and N’Golo Kante for Sunday’s match against Wolves at Molineux.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek picked up an injury in the 1-1 draw with Everton on Thursday night while Jorginho has ongoing back problems.
Kovacic hasn’t played since the end of October due to a hamstring strain while Kante has been absent since 23 November due to knee trouble.
Kovacic returned to training on Friday after isolating due to Covid-19, while Kante was on the bench against Everton although didn’t play a part.
“Mateo had his first day in training, today,” said Tuchel.
“If you want to have my very honest opinion, we have again Jorginho a doubt for Sunday, because he’s in pain.
“We have Ruben Loftus Cheek a doubt, because he’s in pain. So do we know that they can travel with us tomorrow? No we don’t.
“I don’t know if it’s possible for them to play on Sunday.
“So maybe we will start with N’Golo And Mateo. Would that be fair? No. Would that be possible? I don’t know, but maybe we have to.
“We need to find a balance now, because we put everything on Jorginho’s shoulders and on his responsibility.
“Maybe we are forced to do the crazy stuff that we wouldn’t normally do. But what’s normal? We miss key players and we find solutions.”
Further forward, Kai Havertz has returned to training after a negative Covid test but Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner are still in coronavirus isolation (as is Callum Hudson-Odoi).
We need some good football news so how about Trent Alexander-Arnold’s “foot like a traction engine” strike against Newcastle from a range of angles. Sorry Magpies fans but, shit, did you see that?
Oh, wow. That is special, @TrentAA! 🚀
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) December 17, 2021
"Shooooot!" 🔊 Enjoy every angle of Trent's stunner, presented by @Sonos 📹 pic.twitter.com/KtqvUOMVN5
It’s now six games called off in League One after Portsmouth v AFC Wimbledon became the latest to go due to Covid-19 cases in the Pompey squad.
“Portsmouth’s League One fixture versus AFC Wimbledon on Saturday, December 18 has been postponed,” a club statement read.
“Portsmouth informed the EFL that it would be unable to fulfil the fixture at the Cherry Red Records Stadium due to a number of positive Covid-19 cases in their squad.”
Despite the uncertainty, Antonio Conte admits his side are ready to play Liverpool on Sunday.
He said: “My thoughts are we are ready to follow the rules and I think it’s the most important thing. If there are the rules, then for sure the rules have to be the same for all the teams.
“For this reason, we are ready to follow the rules and we are ready to play, and we’re ready to do what the others tell us to do.”
Tottenham boss Antonio Conte is the latest manager to address the issue of vaccinations. He wants his players to get vaccinated but admits he cannot force it on anyone at the club.
“Honestly, this is a personal matter the vaccination. I’ve been vaccinated and my family, my daughter and wife, did the same,” he said.
“But for sure, this matter is personal. I’d like that other people do the same but every single person needs to take the best decision for himself.
“I think every single person, every single player or member of staff at Tottenham or other clubs, has to take the decision for himself.
“I took my decision, my family took their decision but I can’t force anyone to take a personal decision.”
Premier League managers set for Monday Covid meeting
Premier League managers are set to meet on Monday to discuss Covid protocols, Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard has revealed.
“On the back of what a lot of managers have said, we want the same thing which is for the the game to continue. There are obviously a lot of concerns and a lot of unanswered questions,” he said.
“That’s the reason why the Premier League, on Monday, have put in place an opportunity for the managers to get together and I’m hoping there will be a lot of clarity which comes off the back of that meeting.
“There’s also an opportunity for the captains to get together and speak and have a debate on what is the best thing to do in the current situation.”
Thanks Luke. Hopefully we don’t lose any more games between now and close of play today.
And that’s my lot for today. I’ll leave you in the capable hands of David Tindall for the rest of this Omicron-tainted weekend football countdown.
Steven Gerrard, the Aston Villa manager, with a fitness update for tomorrow’s match against Burnley at Villa Park: “Ashley Young is 50/50, Keinan Davis, Morgan Sanson and Anwar El Ghazi are out, Leon Bailey, Bertrand Traoré and Marvelous Nakamba are still out.”
Gerrard goes on to point out that Covid-related absences are putting a strain on players, which is becoming a welfare issue for the overworked individuals who have to plug the gaps:
“If there’s a headline from this conference, I want it to be that player safety and welfare has to be taken into consideration here because this is not just a Covid situation, this is what comes on the back of it.”
“We’re having to use more players for more games and more minutes because we’ve got some players missing with Covid. “That puts more strain and stress on the players individually and you pick up more injuries on the back of that.”
Robin Koch may return to action sooner than expected on Saturday against Arsenal as Leeds’s injury crisis deepens. Marcelo Bielsa will be without eight first-team players as his side bid to bounce back from Tuesday night’s 7-0 defeat at Manchester City.
The Leeds boss said Germany defender Koch, sidelined since the opening-day defeat at Manchester United due to a pelvic issue and then illness, was among his dwindling options. When asked if Koch was ready for Premier League football, Bielsa said: “It’s not an evaluation that we’ve made just yet.
“[Luke] Ayling came back (from injury) to play as a starter after playing 45 minutes with the under-23s. Koch has accumulated training sessions here that are sufficient.”
These are the Championship fixtures going ahead over the weekend, as it stands:
Friday
Barnsley vs West Bromwich Albion (7.45pm)
Saturday
Middlesbrough vs Bournemouth (12.45pm)
Blackburn Rovers vs Birmingham City (3pm)
Blackpool vs Peterborough United (3pm)
Bristol City vs Huddersfield Town (3pm)
Nottingham Forest vs Hull City (3pm)
Monday
Fulham vs Sheffield United (7.45pm)
The Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou insists it is too early to make a call on injured players for Sunday’s Premier Sports Cup final against Hibernian at Hampden Park.
Kyogo Furuhashi, Albian Ajeti, Jota (all hamstring), Giorgos Giakoumakis (knee), James Forrest and Mikey Johnston (both knocks) missed the midweek win at Ross County.
Postecoglou said: “From the other night, everyone got through OK, which is good. In terms of guys in rehab, all progressing. Obviously we still have another day tomorrow but can’t really make a call on any of them being available or unavailable at this stage.
“As I said earlier in the week, it is a day-to-day proposition as to who potentially might be available for Sunday.”
More from Klopp on a lack of information on Sunday’s opponents Tottenham, via Reuters:
“I have no idea what to expect from them ... we will have an analyst meeting with old footage. We have no information. For them it is difficult as well. Who does not want to play for two weeks and then have to play again,” Klopp said. “More transparency would be really helpful ... at Manchester United, I heard a number of players. Is it necessary to know who or how many? Not knowing is quite strange.”
Liverpool's Klopp 'not against stopping the league'
The Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is not against calling a brief halt to the Premier League as Covid-19 cases increase but admits he does not “100%” see the benefit because of the knock-on effect it will have.
Half of this weekend’s programme has been postponed because of outbreaks at clubs but Klopp wants to play Sunday’s game at Tottenham - if they are able to. Liverpool are currently awaiting confirmation of PCR test results for Virgil Van Dijk, Fabinho and Curtis Jones after they missed the win over Newcastle after positive lateral flow tests.
“I’m not against stopping the league. I just don’t see 100 per cent the benefit of it,” he said. “Stopping the league means we stop now for one to two weeks, it means (missing) five to six games. So when do you want to play them? We don’t think we shouldn’t play on Sunday and we would like to play.
“I say that now, if in two hours when the players arrive and we have six, seven, eight more cases then, of course, we cannot play. But in the situation we are in now we can play and we want to play. We have no information about Tottenham. I have no idea if they have trained today.”
Updated
A small tweak to the kick-off time for Newcastle v Manchester City on Sunday: 2pm instead of 2.15pm:
⏰ The kick-off time for #NEWMCI at St. James' Park on Sunday has been changed to 2pm.
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) December 17, 2021
The game was originally scheduled to begin at 2.15pm but has been changed at the request of the broadcaster and agreed by both clubs and the league.
The Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp says the club is awaiting confirmation of the suspected positive Covid-19 tests for Fabinho, Curtis Jones and Virgil van Dijk.
“No, it’s not confirmed yet. Its an ongoing process, let me say it like this, but they are not there. They are fine apart from that,” Klopp said.
“In this moment, nobody else [is] positive but it’s pretty early still and the players come a bit later, so we will see.” Via the Liverpool website.
Updated
A little more light relief here with The Fiver’s Christmas Awards – by Scott Murray, Barry Glendenning and John Brewin:
Updated
Marcelo Bielsa: 'A manager in adversity has to fight'
All is not well at Leeds, but Marcelo Bielsa has vowed to keep fighting. “Do you think I’m so vain I don’t think I can be sacked?”
Louise Taylor reports:
Updated
“It seemed obvious and a little simplistic to suggest that the position in which Gerrard played would enjoy the greatest improvement under his stewardship, but here we are.”
Martin Laurence assesses Steven Gerrard’s impact since he took over at Aston Villa:
Bradford City have confirmed they have received a bid for the club from an American consortium which plans to fund a takeover using cryptocurrency but deny a sale is imminent.
Let’s keep the spirits up with some non-Covid news from Italy:
Juventus must rediscover their identity for the final two Serie A games of the year, the coach Massimiliano Allegri said on Friday, as the Turin club prepare to conclude a disappointing first half of the season. Allegri’s side had hopes of reclaiming the league crown they surrendered last season, but are seventh after 17 games, 12 points behind the leaders and defending champions Internazionale.
Juve suffered another setback by drawing 1-1 at relegation battlers Venezia last weekend and have often struggled against the teams below them, such as Saturday’s opponents, mid-table Bologna. “We need to find ourselves again in these next two games. In January we have four or five big games,” Allegri said. “We need to get all our players back and do the best we can in the second half of the season. We need to work with confidence.”
Allegri revealed that the top-scorer Paulo Dybala will not be risked after some fatigue, while Federico Chiesa and Danilo are also out and Giorgio Chiellini is doubtful. “We are struggling to finish the chances we create and we are looking to improve that. But you need to do it calmly, these problems must be faced without being alarmed,” he said. “We are aware we are behind in the league table, but we have 21 matches to sort that out.”
Juve host Cagliari next Tuesday before a two-week winter break, but start 2022 with a bang by taking on Napoli, AS Roma and AC Milan in the league in January, when the transfer window re-opens for a month.
“The transfer market won’t resolve what we need to resolve, our finishing. The squad is excellent, but we need to improve in some aspects and be more clinical,” Allegri said.
“We keep our matches open too much and it is normal that there are games, like against Venezia, where you can concede a goal with their first shot on target. This is why you need to be good at taking your chances.” (Reuters)
Matt Lowton believes Burnley are well equipped to handle any fixture congestion later in the season following a second postponement in less than three weeks. After the clash with Tottenham last month fell victim to snow, Wednesday’s meeting with Watford at Turf Moor was called off less than three hours before kick-off because of Covid-19 cases in the Hornets’ camp.
The defender Lowton said: “I prefer the games thick and fast really. That’s what we play football for. The training’s good and it’s obviously needed but the games are what we want to do. You feel the atmosphere and the buzz. We’re a fit side. We have been over the years. We work hard so we’re well equipped if there’s a lot of games.”
Burnley’s players found out about the Watford postponement during their pre-match meal, and Lowton said: “It is very frustrating. We’d done all the work leading up to it, get to the game, you’re ready to play. It was a big game and we knew that. We took a point against a good West Ham. When you’re sat there having your pre-match meal and having little conversations with the boys about what we need to be doing in the game and then you get told it’s off, it’s like a balloon being popped.
“You’re ready to go, you’re buzzing and then there’s nothing to do really. You go home and you watch the games that are on telly thinking, ‘We should be playing now’. The good thing is there’s a game (tomorrow) and we’re ready to go.” (PA)
“It was a massive topic that the club was really unhappy that a lot of very good young players left the club for [clubs such as] Aston Villa and Leeds and never got the chance to play for West Brom. It was one of the main topics and it takes time. It’s clear the expectations are high.”
Ben Fisher speaks to the West Brom manager Valérien Ismaël:
Guardiola returns inconclusive Covid test
Pep Guardiola has returned an inconclusive Covid test so Manchester City’s manager is to have a second test, with his ability to take charge of Sunday’s trip to Newcastle United in the balance.
The 50-year-old cancelled his usual pre-game media conference on Friday, due to take place at 12.30pm, while he awaits the follow-up test, thought to be a PCR.
Guardiola has continually stressed the need for safety to be a priority over football. If he does test positive then the assistant manager, Juan Manuel Lillo, could take charge at Newcastle for the 2.15pm kick-off.
The latest is that 17 matches across the Championship, League One and League Two this weekend had been postponed, along with the five Premier League fixtures.
The top-flight matches that are set to go ahead, as it stands, are as follows:
Saturday
Aston Villa v Burnley (3pm)
Leeds v Arsenal (5.30pm)
Sunday
Wolves v Chelsea (2pm)
Newcastle v Manchester City (2.15pm)
Tottenham v Liverpool (4.30pm)
Here’s the Villa v Burnley match preview, courtesy of Graham Searles:
Manchester City’s WSL match against Reading on Sunday has been postponed due to Covid-19 cases in the squad.
Alan Shearer says everyone should get vaccinated.
“If you are eligible, get your booster booked as soon as possible, for the best possible defence against Covid for you and your family.”
It’s been great having fans back in the stadium this season, and we all want it to remain that way
— Premier League (@premierleague) December 17, 2021
The best way to protect ourselves and others is to get vaccinated
If you live in the UK and are aged 18+, you can book online or go to a walk in site without an appointment 💪 pic.twitter.com/JXw7QjNNoW
Updated
Ipswich have appointed Kieran McKenna, the Manchester United first-team coach, as their manager on a three-and-a-half-year contract.
Compare and contrast ...
Italy’s top league, Serie A, says 98% of its players have had two vaccinations for Covid-19, helping the division stay relatively unaffected by the virus, with the number of positive cases among players remaining relatively low.
The situation stands in stark contrast to England, where three midweek games were postponed and half of this weekend’s 10 Premier League fixtures have been called off due to outbreaks as the Omicron variant spreads rapidly across the country.
Serie A said on Friday it had no data about the percentage of players that have received a third dose. The most recent Premier League data on vaccinations, from mid-October, found that 81% of players had received one dose and 68% were double jabbed. On Thursday the EFL said that 25% of the players from its 72 clubs did not intend to get vaccinated.
The Juventus and Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini urged his social media followers to get their booster jab at the start of December. “Let’s all play our part and get vaccinated for ourselves and to protect the most fragile people,* the 37-year-old wrote on Twitter.
Some positive cases have been recorded in Serie A in recent weeks, including the Roma midfielders Bryan Cristante and Gonzalo Villar and Napoli’s Diego Demme and Matteo Politano. Italy’s National Health Institute (ISS) said on Wednesday that the Delta variant was still predominant in the country, with official figures showing the total number of Omicron variant cases standing at 28 as of 15 December. (Reuters)
Updated
Everton are close to signing the Ukraine left-back Vitaliy Mykolenko from Dynamo Kyiv in a €21m (£17.9m) deal that could rise to €23m with add-ons.
Some football took place at Anfield last night, and Eddie Howe wasn’t happy with Mike Dean’s failure to stop the game for a head injury to Isaac Hayden, in the lead-up to Liverpool’s equaliser:
Hartlepool have confirmed their visit to Colchester in Sky Bet League Two has been postponed due to positive Coronavirus cases. A statement on their club website said: “Our EFL League two fixture against Colchester United tomorrow has been postponed.
“The game has been postponed due to a breakout of positive Covid cases within our first team squad. Full information on rescheduling the game will be released in due course.” (PA)
Updated
Jonathan Liew reports on Wolfsburg’s dominant Women’s Champions League win against Chelsea last night:
Football, of course, isn’t the only sport being affected by Omicron. According to the former Ireland international Bernard Jackman on Twitter, the three French clubs who were due to go to the UK for Champions Cup fixtures this weekend have taken the decision not to travel. That’s Clermont, La Rochelle and Bordeaux.
All French teams who were due to travel this weekend for #ChampionsCup Rugby games have now decided not to.
— Bernard Jackman (@bernardjackman) December 17, 2021
Now back to our regular programming ...
Amid the Covid-19 gloom, here are some lovely old black-and-white football photos along with a nostalgic piece by Steve Finan:
England’s reunion with Italy in the Nations League will be played behind closed doors as punishment for the disorder that marred the Euro 2020 final.
Gareth Southgate’s men suffered a penalty shootout defeat by the Azzurri in July, when Wembley witnessed chaotic and ugly scenes before, during and after the match.
A number of ticketless supporters forced their way in and UEFA announced in October that the Three Lions would play their next home competition match behind closed doors as punishment.
European football’s governing body has now confirmed that the ban will be served when Italy return to England on June 11 after the Euro 2020 finalists were drawn in the same Nations League group. (PA)
“Hi Luke, Do you think the leagues will make vaccines mandatory?” emails Ruth Purdue. “I am not advocating that ... just looking over to the US and how they are dealing with sports players and vaccinations.”
Thanks for the email Ruth. I reckon it would be impossible from a legal perspective to make vaccines mandatory. But it is certainly concerning to see the numbers, EG 25% of players in the EFL currently being unvaccinated. You can only imagine many of them have fallen for the misinformation and downright nonsense which is circulated about the vaccines.
The Scottish Premiership side St Mirren have been hit by an outbreak of Covid-19. The club have reported several positive results from lateral flow testing and have cancelled training, with those concerned self-isolating while they await the outcome of PCR tests.
St Mirren have no match this weekend but are due to visit Celtic in the league on Wednesday. A statement on the club’s website said: “St Mirren Football Club can confirm that following recent lateral flow testing we have unfortunately received a number of positive COVID-19 cases.
“In line with Government guidelines, those affected have now taken PCR tests and will self-isolate for 10 days. Training has been suspended, but as it stands our upcoming matches will still go ahead. However, we will continue to monitor the situation over the coming days. The health and wellbeing of our players and staff remains our utmost priority. St Mirren Football Club will make no further comment at this time.” (PA)
Have Chelsea lost it? They’ve certainly lost something, including two points against Everton last night after taking the lead through Mason Mount. Jacob Steinberg reports:
If you missed it – here’s Andy Hunter’s report Anfield last night, when Liverpool came from behind to beat Newcastle 3-1:
Here’s our story on those quotes from the Newcastle manager Eddie Howe.
“I don’t think we want half the games played and half not played,” Howe said. “The league really loses something if it becomes disjointed in terms of games played.
It was a strange process writing ‘10 things to look out for this weekend’ this week, given the fluid situation regarding which Premier League matches were on and which weren’t. But here it is – by Nick Ames, Daniel Harris, Niall McVeigh and myself:
Updated
The Newcastle manager, Eddie Howe, agrees with Arteta on the need to maintain fairness:
“I don’t think we want half the games played and half not played,” he said. “The league really loses something if it becomes disjointed in terms of games played. When you start losing players to Covid then the worry is the competition becomes slightly unfair and I don’t think anyone wants to see that.
“A decision needs to be made to ensure integrity is maintained in the competition. I think it is on a knife edge. People want to see a fair league and not disparity in games and players missing. I’m desperate to continue the programme myself but the welfare of the players and supporters has to come first.”
Updated
Arteta calls for Covid-19 clarity from Premier League
The Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has called for more clarity from the Premier League over the growing number of games being postponed because of coronavirus outbreaks at clubs.
The English Football League has also been badly hit by the latest wave of infections across the country, with 14 games affected across its three divisions so far. Arsenal saw their opening game of the new season go ahead at Brentford despite having a number of positive cases in the squad.
Arteta said: “We need more clarity on why those games are not being played and what you need to not have a game played, so you can maintain the fairness of the competition. We have been here on the other side of the table [at the start of the season] where we had all the arguments in the world to not play a football match and we ended up playing it.” (PA)
Updated
Preamble
The worsening Omicron Covid-19 situation in football, and across society, conjures up memories of early 2020 when the pandemic began.
As Fredi Bobic, then Eintracht Frankfurt’s sporting director, wrote of the Bundesliga’s attempts to deal with the initial crisis: “A decision made out of clear conviction in the morning is already useless by the afternoon.”
The world was in a collective state of shock back then, and perhaps the current situation is not as severe, but the number of players and staff at football clubs affected makes the scale of the problem clear. We’ll bring you previews, news and press conferences before the weekend’s action, as usual, as the Premier League resists calls for a full ‘firebreak’ suspension.
