Third Brighton player tests positive for virus

A THIRD Brighton player and five La Liga players have tested positive for coronavirus as football continues to grapple with the challenges of a potential return to action.

The latest Brighton positive test emerged ahead of today’s Premier League meeting at which clubs will discuss Project Restart plans to complete the season at neutral venues.

Brighton chief executive Paul Barber said the unnamed player will go into 14-day isolation. The rest of the squad will continue to train at home and in solo sessions at the club training centre.

Two others, whose names have also not been revealed by the club, contracted the virus earlier in the pandemic. They are understood to have since recovered but it’s not clear whether or not they’ve returned to training.

Barber (right) said: “Despite all the measures we’ve all been taking, when the players haven’t been involved in taking any significant training, we’ve still suffered another player testing positive.”

Meanwhile, La Liga has confirmed that five of its players have tested positive for Covid-19. All five unnamed players – across the top two divisions – are asymptomatic and in the final phase of the disease but will now go into quarantine and be unable to return to group training until they have had two negative tests.

The Premier League will have a keen eye on how things pan out in Germany, who are due to restart their top two leagues next weekend. However, that could now be in doubt after Bundesliga 2 side Dynamo Dresden went into a 14-day quarantine after two players tested positive for coronavirus and their match has been postponed.