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LONDON: The Premier League said on Tuesday (December 29) that 18 people had tested positive for COVID-19 in the latest round of testing conducted between December 21 and 27 on 1,479 players and staff.
This is the highest number of cases recorded in a week this season.
Since the new season began, 131 people in the English top flight have tested positive for COVID-19 in 17 rounds of testing.
The league did not name the people who tested positive or their clubs, but said they will isolate themselves for 10 days.
Manchester City reported numerous positive cases on their team on Monday, days after forward Gabriel Jesus and defender Kyle Walker tested positive, forcing the league to postpone their match at Everton.
City’s training ground was also closed as a precaution, and their next match at Chelsea on Sunday is in doubt, with Chelsea manager Frank Lampard saying the match will not continue if it is not safe for both teams.
The postponement was the second this season after an outbreak at Newcastle United forced the league to suspend their match at Aston Villa earlier this month.
Arsenal also said that their Brazilian defender Gabriel had tested positive for COVID-19 and would not be available for his next two games.
The UK has recorded more than 2.3 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and more than 71,000 deaths. Countries around the world closed their borders to Great Britain last week due to fears over a highly infectious new strain of coronavirus.
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