VILLA: COVID WON’T HALT CITY MATCH

ASTON VILLA insist their game at Manchester City next week will go ahead despite the Covid crisis hitting up to 35 people at the club.

Villa’s Premier League home match with Everton on Sunday was postponed yesterday after 14 positive tests last week.

But the number of personnel affected is as many as 35 due to close contact rules.

It includes most of the first team squad, coaches and several medical staff, who have all been told to self-isolate for 10 days in line with Public Health England guidelines.

Villa’s training ground remains closed, with first team players and staff not due to return until Sunday when their isolation period ends.

They will also have to test negative for the virus before resuming training.

The crisis left the Premier League with little choice but to agree to Villa’s request to postpone Sunday’s game, despite having already moved it back from Saturday.

It was the second successive top-flight home clash Villa have been forced to call off after CEO Christian Purslow said they were suffering from a “very nasty out-of-control outbreak”.

Their clash with Tottenham, scheduled for Wednesday this week, was also postponed and Spurs played Fulham instead.

Villa were forced to field a youth team against Liverpool in the FA Cup in a 4-1 home defeat last Friday.

No first-team players were available as their starting XI comprised of seven U-23 players and four U-18s.

It followed Villa confirming that nine players and five staff had tested positive last week and were self-isolating.

Villa manager Dean Smith, whose side are eighth in a promising season, has a lot of challenges, but also has three games in hand on some teams.

One of those games in hand, at home to Newcastle, was postponed from December 4 after the Magpies’ own coronavirus outbreak, and has now been rescheduled for tomorrow week.

A statement said: “The Premier League, in consultation with its clubs, has enhanced its Covid-19 protocols, in addition to reimplementing a twiceweekly testing programme as the health of players and staff remains the priority.

“The protocols, which strengthen key elements of the existing guidance, came into immediate effect last week.”