Arsenal players remain on course to return to training next Tuesday following their period of self-isolation enforced by the coronavirus pandemic.
Head coach Mikel Arteta tested positive for COVID-19 last week, prompting the trip to Brighton to be postponed and playing a part in the Premier League opting to cancel all fixtures until April 3, at the earliest.
In line with government advice, all Arsenal players and backroom staff were forced into a 14-day self-isolation period due to working in such close proximity to Arteta.
That ends on Tuesday and, as things stand, the club’s London Colney training base will reopen and training will resume ahead of the planned home game against Norwich on April 4.
Arteta is understood to be feeling better and in good spirits having had a positive result for coronavirus last Thursday.
Chelsea have opened the Millennium Hotel at Stamford Bridge to NHS staff to help the medical response to the crisis.
Blues owner Roman Abramovich has pledged to cover the costs of accommodation for an initial two-month period, with the west London club prepared to give over the whole hotel if required.
The club said the accommodation would help “maintain the health and well-being of these crucial personnel at this critical time” and will extend the initiative if necessary.
Meanwhile, Callum Hudson-Odoi is making “great progress” in his recovery from coronavirus, according to Chelsea boss Frank Lampard.
Chelsea Football Club is joining the medical response to the coronavirus outbreak in London with the news the National Health Service (NHS) has accepted the Club’s offer to make the Millennium Hotel at Stamford Bridge available for NHS staff… https://t.co/eENBcxRXXX — Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) March 18, 2020
The England winger tested positive for COVID-19 last week and Chelsea closed their Cobham training centre on Thursday night.
Chelsea have now partially reopened their Surrey training base, but club staff who had close contact with Hudson-Odoi will continue to self-isolate according to government guidelines.
“I’m happy to say that, in Callum’s case, he has made great progress and almost feels his usual self, which is obviously the news we all want to hear,” said Lampard.
Crystal Palace have made assurances to staff that anyone affected by COVID-19 will still receive full pay instead of statutory sick pay.
Chairman Steve Parish has also declared that matchday staff who have lost work due to the suspension of the Premier League will not be left out of pocket.
COVID-19 update: A message from the Chairman, @CEO4TAG. — Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) March 16, 2020
Palace’s training ground in New Beckenham is on a one-week lockdown as a precautionary measure, with players staying at home where they are following personalised training plans.
John Obi Mikel has had his Trabzonspor contract terminated by mutual consent after using Instagram to protest against matches in Turkey being played despite the coronavirus pandemic.
Mikel’s post received support from Radamel Falcao, who plays for Turkish club Galatasaray. Falcao replied: “You are right John. The life is more important than football.”
European captain Padraig Harrington expects this year’s Ryder Cup to go ahead as planned.
“September is a long way off so there’s no change to the situation at all at this stage,” the three-time major winner told The Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show on Today FM.
Eddie Hearn is confident Billy Joe Saunders’ blockbuster showdown against Mexican superstar Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez will take place provided the pandemic does not eat into boxing’s summer schedule.
Rugby league players may agree to defer part of their wages in an effort to prevent clubs from suffering financial ruin during the enforced shutdown, says trade union organiser Garreth Carvell.
The International Olympic Committee has told athletes “no solution will be ideal” after a number of competitors raised concerns over plans to press ahead with Tokyo 2020.
Great Britain’s heptathlon world champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson was among those to speak out on Tuesday, questioning advice from the IOC asking them to prepare “as best they can” for the Games.
Johnson-Thompson pointed out the difficulties she and other athletes were facing and wrote in a social media post: “I feel under pressure to train and keep the same routine which is impossible.”
But the IOC said: “This is an exceptional situation which requires exceptional solutions.”
The Artistic Gymnastics All-Around World Cup event scheduled to take place in Tokyo next month – an Olympic Test event – has been cancelled.
The Leeds round of the World Triathlon Series, due to take place on June 6 and 7, has been postponed.
World series races in Abu Dhabi and Bermuda have already been called off, with all triathlon activities called off until the end of April, although the race in Yokohama scheduled for May 16-17 is currently still on the calendar.
Great Britain’s ice hockey matches against Hungary next month have been cancelled.
Britain were due to play two games against Hungary, in Coventry on Tuesday, April 21 and in Nottingham on Wednesday, April 22, but both have fallen to Covid-19.
