COVID CHAOS
Jose fuming as Spurs and West Ham stars f lout lockdown rules
THREE Tottenham players are facing heavy fines from their club and possible police action for breaching Covid restrictions as the pandemic continues to disrupt English football.
Sergio Reguilon, Erik Lamela and Giovani Lo Celso will be punished after they and West Ham’s Manuel Lanzini were pictured on social media celebrating Christmas together with their families — appearing to break Tier Four rules that prohibit the mixing of different bubbles.
Both clubs issued statements
condemning their actions and three of the players apologised on social media. The photograph showed the four footballers posing closely together in a group with 11 other adults, including one dressed as Father Christmas, and three babies and toddlers.
Lamela tweeted: ‘I want to apologise for a decision I made over Christmas which I deeply regret. On reflection I understand the seriousness of my actions and the impact it has on others. I am truly thankful to everyone working hard to keep us safe and I feel ashamed knowing I’ve let people down.’
Lo Celso responded to fans’ criticisms by posting: ‘I want to apologise to everyone — I understand the great sacrifices people are making to keep themselves and loved ones safe and the frustration you have expressed towards me is justified.’
Lanzini, posting on Twitter, with four praying emojis, wrote: ‘I want to apologise for a bad mistake I made over Christmas and I take full responsibility for my actions. I know people have made difficult sacrifices to stay safe and I should be setting a better example.’
Spurs manager Jose Mourinho said after his side’s 3-0 win against Leeds he was ‘disappointed’ with his players, particularly as he had left Reguilon a special Christmas dinner at the training ground with the Spaniard meant to be on his own on December 25.
‘It was an amazing gift, a Portuguese piglet,’ said Mourinho. ‘I gave it because I was told he was spending Christmas on his own. He was not alone, as you could see, and we, of course, feel disappointed. We give the players all the education and the conditions. It was a negative surprise for us.’
Last night the Metropolitan Police said they were aware of the photograph on social media apparently showing the footballers at a residential address.
‘We will make contact with both clubs to establish further details,’ confirmed the Met. ‘We remind all Londoners that it is up to all of us to make the right choices in order to slow the spread of the virus.’
Earlier, Tottenham said: ‘ We strongly condemn this image as we know the sacrifices everybody around the country made to stay safe over the festive period. The rules are clear, there are no exceptions. We regularly remind our players and staff about the latest protocols and their responsibilities to adhere and set an example. The matter will be dealt with internally.’
West Ham struck a similar tone about Argentinian Lanzini, saying: ‘ Ma n u e l has been strongly reminded of his responsibilities.’
Lamela and Lo Celso were absent from the Spurs squad yesterday though the club wouldn’t confirm reports they had tested positive. The Argentine pair will be heavily sanctioned alongside Reguilon though Mourinho, whose side face Brentford in the Carabao Cup semifinal on Tuesday, refused to disclose further details.
‘We don’t need to open the door to you and let you know what is going on internally and what are going to be the consequences,’ he said.
Today’s match between Burnley and Fulham became the fourth Premier League fixture to be called off due to Covid. Nine Fulham players and staff are understood to have tested positive with results learned shortly before the squad were due to travel north from their training ground yesterday morning.
Fulham, whose midweek game at Spurs was also postponed, are investigating a report that striker Aleksandar Mitrovic met his fellow Serb, Crystal Palace captain Luka Milivojevic, at a London New Year’s Eve party. A video was posted on Instagram by the Fulham striker’s long-term partner, Kristina Janjic.
A Fulham statement said the club was ‘looking into the matter fully as it takes a breach of the rules extremely seriously,’ adding: ‘The player is aware of the Club’s disappointment and of the standards that are expected of him.’
Palace boss Roy Hodgson said: ‘We condemn it, we certainly apologise for it. I’m certain Luka will as well. He should take responsibility for that. There’s nothing positive I can say on the matter.’
The Football League is to introduce twice-weekly testing for players and staff at clubs in the Championship and Leagues One and Two. Seven EFL games were postponed yesterday for Covid-related reasons.
The rules are clear, there are no exceptions, as we remind all our players