Omicron: English clubs see postponement requests rejected in effort to keep the season going

Clubs have seen requests for games to be shifted this week rejected as the Premier League looks to keep the show on the road amid the current Covid-19 Omicron chaos.

Meanwhile, fears are growing over whether the Premier League will be able to continue as normal following a return of 42 positive tests last week, the most recorded in a seven-day period since players and staff began being tested for coronavirus.

Manchester United and Tottenham have both recently seen games called off due to outbreaks at the clubs, with their fixtures against Brentford and Brighton, respectively, having to be rescheduled.

However, there have also been cases at a number of other top flight clubs, including Brighton, Aston Villa and Norwich City.

According to Evening Standard, it is unclear which clubs saw requests rejected by the Premier League board, who assess each claim on a case-by-case basis.

The Premier League handbook states that clubs must play their fixtures if managers can call on a squad of 14 players, however, the board who make the decision on postponements will account for other factors, such as whether there is a goalkeeper amongst the 14 available squad members or not.

Furthermore, should an outbreak at a club be deemed uncontrollable, as was the case at Tottenham last week, then a match is likely to be called off regardless of the number of positive cases, while training ground closures which affect the ability of a squad to prepare for games will also be taken into consideration.

The Premier League have ramped up measures to deal with outbreaks at club which now include daily testing of players and staff as they arrive at training grounds.

Tests will be carried out while those arriving are still in their cars while the division and clubs are still pushing as many players to get a booster jab or vaccinated in the first place.

For Diaspora Digital Media Updates click on Whatsapp, or Telegram. For eyewitness accounts/ reports/ articles, write to: citizenreports@diasporadigitalmedia.com. Follow us on X (Fomerly Twitter) or Facebook