Chelsea player tests positive for coronavirus

Aston Villa are set — well, as set as this Aston Villa squad can be — to travel to London to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. However, Blues manager Frank Lampard has called off his pre-match press conference this morning because one of his players has tested positive for coronavirus.

Unlike leagues around the world, the Premier League has yet to suspend operations for a time while nations attempt to wrangle with the pandemic. The league is even refusing to hold matches behind closed doors, in spite of the fact that the number of cases in the UK is rapidly increasing.

That being said, the Premier League is set to hold an emergency meeting mid-morning today to discuss whether the matches this weekend will go ahead. That’s probably more to do with the fact that Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has confirmed he has the virus, and Arsenal vs Brighton has already been postponed.

The reason for suspending/postponing/canceling matters little, really. It’s beyond time for the league to send a message that players are better off not coming into contact with one another, and fans are far better off staying at home.