Wednesday’s Premier League fixture between Tottenham Hotspur and Fulham has been postponed after the Cottagers reported “a number of positive COVID-19 tests,” according to a report from The Athletic.
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After the Premier League recorded its highest number of COVID-19 cases in the most recent round of testing, there have been calls to have a two-week break ‘circuit-breaker’ pause for games in January due to rising cases across the UK.
Tottenham released a statement just a few hours before the game was due to kick off to confirm the postponement.
“We can confirm that our Premier League home fixture against Fulham, scheduled to take place this evening (Wednesday 30 December), has been postponed. The Premier League informed us of the decision this afternoon, with Fulham having requested the postponement on the grounds of the number of COVID-19 positive cases among their players and staff.
“Everyone at Tottenham Hotspur sends their best wishes to Fulham for a safe and speedy recovery to all those who are affected. Details of a new date for the fixture will be confirmed in due course.”
Tottenham – Fulham is now the third Premier League to be postponed during the 2020-21 season due to a COVID-19 outbreak, as Aston Villa – Newcastle was called off early in December and Everton – Manchester City was postponed on Monday due to an outbreak at City.
Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho posted a video on his Instagram less than four hours before the scheduled kick off for Tottenham – Fulham, with the caption: “Match at 6pm… We still don’t know if we play. Best league in the world.”
As for the Premier League as a whole, more positive cases were confirmed today (18, with at least three clubs reporting cases) than on any other day during the pandemic. As a result, the Premier League is reportedly considering taking a two-week break in an attempt to stem the tide of positive cases.
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Sheffield United also announced multiple positive COVID-19 cases on Monday, as the Premier League has reverted to twice-weekly testing following the uptick in cases in England.
This news comes just after the latest Premier League COVID-19 test results were released, with 18 positives results from 1,479 players and staff tested between December 21-27.
That figure is the highest number of positive results for testing this season, but the rate of 1.22 percent of positive results is slightly lower than the 16 cases found in the 9-15 November testing window, which came out at 1.33 percent in positive results.
