Ten positive in latest Premier League COVID-19 tests
The Premier League said on Monday that 10 people had returned positive results in its latest round of COVID-19 tests conducted on players and staff last week, the highest number of cases in a single round since the new season began this month.
The league said the individuals who had tested positive for the virus would now self-isolate for 10 days.
"The Premier League can today confirm that between Monday 21 September and Sunday 27 September, 1,595 players and club staff were tested for COVID-19. Of these, there were 10 new positive tests," the Premier League said in a statement here.
A total of 20 people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus in four rounds of testing since the new campaign began on Sept. 12.
Last week, West Ham United manager David Moyes and players Issa Diop and Josh Cullen tested positive for the virus.
Grimsby call off two more fixtures after positive COVID-19 case
Grimsby Town's next two fixtures have been postponed as players and staff self-isolate after a recent positive COVID-19 test, the English Football League Two (fourth-tier) club said.
Grimsby were due to host Bradford City in a League Two match on Saturday followed by a trip on Tuesday to Hull City for an EFL Trophy fixture.
Grimsby's game at Cheltenham Town last Saturday was postponed after a first-team player tested positive for COVID-19.
New dates for the games will be announced later, the north-east Lincolnshire club said.
The English Football League in a statement said it would investigate the circumstances surrounding the postponements.
Genoa say 14 team members and staff have tested positive for COVID
Fourteen team members and staff of Serie A side Genoa have now tested positive for COVID-19, the club said in a statement on Monday.
Genoa had reported at the weekend that their Denmark midfielder Lasse Schone and goalkeeper Mattia Perin had contracted the virus.
"Genoa CFC announce that after today’s tests, the number of COVID-19 positive employees has risen to 14 team members and staff," the club said on their website http://www.genoacfc.it.
"The club has activated all the procedures according to the protocol and informed the authorities. The club will provide updates as the situation evolves."
Genoa did not name the players affected.
Genoa lost 6-0 at Napoli on Sunday and are due to play Torino at home next Saturday.
Separately, city rivals Sampdoria announced that AS Monaco's Spanish-born Senegal winger Keita Balde, who was undergoing medical tests on Monday prior to a loan deal, had returned a 'weak positive' test.
"He is now in isolation and has not had any contact with the team," the Italian club said.
Merkel government wants tighter rules for parties to suppress virus
Angela Merkel’s government wants to restrict the size of parties to suppress the spread of the coronavirus in Germany, a draft resolution seen by Reuters ahead of a meeting between the chancellor and state premiers on Tuesday showed.
Germany has fared better than many other European countries so far during the pandemic, but Merkel told leaders of her party on Monday that the infection rate could hit 19,200 per day if the current trend continues, a party source said.
Merkel told the party leaders “drastic measures” must be taken in heavily affected regions, broadcaster RTL reported.
Under a “hot spot strategy”, the government wants to tighten restrictions to limit parties to 25 people in private and 50 in public places in areas where the infection rate hits 35 per 100,000 over a seven day rolling period, the draft showed.
Temporary bans on serving alcohol would also be enforced.
If the seven-day infection rate hits 50 per 100,000, celebrations in private spaces would be restricted to 10 people and those in public spaces to 25, the draft resolution showed.
Mass-selling newspaper Bild reported that the plans were running into resistance from some of the state premiers, who must still agree to them.
Infections have been rising in Germany for weeks. The case load has leapt by more than 2,000 on some recent days.
A person with knowledge of Merkel’s meeting with party leaders on Monday said the chancellor had based the 19,200 number on projections and was referring to the period up to Christmas.
