Aston Villa – Newcastle postponed due to Covid-19 outbreak

Newcastle 0-0 Brighton Brighton ensured top-flight survival

Aston Villa‘s match against Newcastle United has been postponed because of a Coronavirus outbreak.

The two teams were set to face each other on Friday. However, several Newcastle players and club staff have tested positive for COVID-19.

The Premier League club have confirmed that the players and the staff will now be self-isolating for several days and they will be tested once again later this week.

The Newcastle training ground is under lockdown and the club is currently working with Public Health England North East and the local health authorities and the Premier League to identify the source of and minimize the chance of transmission.

The fixture will now be played at a later date and the Premier League is yet to confirm the schedule.

This is the first fixture to be postponed after project restart and it will be interesting to see if other clubs start to get affected with similar situations in the coming months.

With fans expected back in the stadium later this week the risk of transmission is likely to increase. It will be interesting to see how the Premier League clubs cope with that.

Meanwhile Aston Villa have wished a speedy recovery to those affected at Newcastle United and they have thanked the Premier League and the opposition for maintaining a transparent communication with the welfare of the players in mind.

Newcastle manager Steve Bruce said: “It is a concern and difficult to manage. We are trying our utmost to make sure we try and stay as safe as we can.

“Of course my concern is not just the welfare of the players, which is vitally important, but my members of staff too. We will do our best but it is difficult at the moment.”