London: The English Premier League season will resume on June 17 with Aston Villa taking on Sheffield United and Manchester City locking horns with Arsenal in the big game, as per a BBC report.
All four teams have a game in hand and these two fixtures were still to be played when the league stopped.
A full fixture list would be played on the weekend of June 19-21, the report further stated. Premier League teams had on Wednesday given their approval to begin contact training as England move a step forward in resuming its top-tier football league. All football in the country has been suspended since March due to coronavirus pandemic.The players returned to individual and small group training last week as officials continue to target mid-June as a possible return date for resumption of matches.
Meanwhile, the English Premier League has announced that four more people have been diagnosed with COVID-19 after the third round of testing, raising the total number to 12 across the league.
The four cases have come from three clubs, with the league not announcing the names of those who tested positive for COVID-19. “The Premier League can today confirm that on Monday 25 May and Tuesday 26 May, 1008 players and club staff were tested for COVID-19. Of these, four have tested positive from three clubs,” a league statement said on Wednesday. “Players or club staff who have tested positive will now self-isolate for a period of seven days.” Previously, between May 19-22, 996 players and club staff were tested for COVID-19, of which two tested positive from two clubs.
Some 748 players and club staff were tested for COVID-19 on May 17-18, with six testing positive from three clubs, the statement read.Premier League further said that for the fourth round of testing, the number of tests available to each club would be increased from 50 to 60. Earlier on Wednesday, the 20 clubs voted unanimously to resume contact training. It means that “squads are now able to train as a group and engage in tackling while minimizing any unnecessary close contact”. The English Premier League clubs have been allowed to start small-group, non-contact training from last Tuesday after all elite football games in England were suspended on March 13 due to the coronavirus outbreak which has claimed more than 3.5 lakh lives so far across the world. On the other hand, former Liverpool footballer John Barnes referred to the section of people asking for Premier League season to be called off as ridiculous and stated his former side deserves to be crowned champions following a great season.
Liverpool were within touching distance of winning their first top-flight title in 30 years before coronavirus pandemic abruptly halted all football in the country. Barnes, who won two top-division titles and two FA Cups with Liverpool, believes Premier League can follow in the footsteps of their counterparts in Germany where Bundesliga is up and running. (Agencies)
