Tottenham Hotspur could be in a big crisis as 6 of the club’s first-team players have tested positive for the dreaded coronavirus. The result of the test came out less than three days before the club’s must-win Europa Conference League match against French Ligue 1 side Rennes.
Reports in the United Kingdom claimed that apart from the 6 players that have tested positive for the virus, 2 members of the coaching crew have also tested positive for the virus.
The report went viral after the Premier League announced on Monday, December 6, 2021, that the league recorded 12 confirmed cases of the virus after two rounds of testing between November 29 and December 5.
The confirmed cases were the highest this season after the round of testing conducted on August 19 and 15 produced 16 positive cases.
The second highest positive cases (7 positive cases) was reported after the November 22 and 28 round of testing.
The Premier League carried out the last round of testing using the lateral flow method of testing. Those whose results came out positive would have to undertake a PCR test to confirm their coronavirus status.
Hence, Tottenham Hotspur would have to wait for up to 24 hours before the club can ascertain the extent of the infection among the players.
If the PCR confirms the result of the lateral flow test, Tottenham Hotspur would be without their 6 first-team players ahead of the Europa Conference League clash against Rennes.
The match is scheduled to kick off at 21:00 on December 9, 2021. Tottenham Hotspur which are currently sitting on the second spot with 7 points in 5 games, four points below first placed Rennes, need to beat the group leaders to stand a chance of qualifying for the next round of the tournament.
After the Europa Conference League match, Tottenham Hotspur will shift their attention to the Premier League. They are scheduled to play Brighton on December 12, Leicester City on December 16, and then Liverpool on December 19.
All things being equal, the 6 players that tested positive for the virus might miss the games mentioned above except Spurs can convince the Premier League and UEFA to postpone the games.
Legally, the Premier League would not postpone a league game unless the club has less than 14 players available for such a game. While UEFA’s rule states that a match can be postponed if a team has fewer than 13 players available, or no registered goalkeeper.
At the time of publishing this report, Tottenham Hotspur were yet to name the players and backroom staff that tested positive for the virus.
🎥 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀: Spurs 3-0 Norwich. pic.twitter.com/WTeNrO97gU
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) December 6, 2021
