Premier League players will have to report to their club training grounds on Christmas Day for PCR testing. This is part of a vastly expanded screening program that aims to protect the festive season from an Omicron shutdown.
New emergency protocols were agreed on Tuesday by the clubs. Players will need to submit to up to nine Covid-19 test each week. There are seven PCR and seven lateral flows.
The clubs all agreed to the new testing protocol, but there were concerns about logistical issues, including the mandatory PCR test the day before every fixture.
Premier League Players will have to undergo PCR testing on Christmas Day as per new protocols
Because of this, teams away from home may need to travel great distances in order to receive test results so that games can proceed.
This could lead to 11-hour delays, such as the Tuesday match between Brentford United and Manchester United. It was called off on Monday at 11.50pm after an late Premier League Board meeting.
Another new initiative is the taking of lateral flow test in all cars by staff members before admission to training ground.
They will be able to take an additional PCR test on the same day as a fixture. This includes Christmas Day.
Although the lateral flow testing on designated players’ days off is voluntary, all clubs strongly encourage it and will record all data.
After announcing 42 positive results in two consecutive testing cycles, the Premier League has acted quickly to address Omicron threats. They predict that there will be more cases.
These changes were made only four days following the increase in weekly testing to up to three weeks last Friday.
Brentford striker Ivan Toney, who was positive for Covid recently, has been removed from the team.
Manchester United received positive results and the game against Brentford on Tuesday was cancelled
As reported by, it is clear that clubs worry about the possibility of mass cancellations. SportsmailTomorrow is Monday.
Numerous clubs in Britain have reported Omicron outbreaks since the discovery of Omicron.
These include Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester City and Manchester United as well as Aston Villa, QPR, West Bromwich Albion and West Bromwich Albion. Norwich City is the only one affected.
Tottenham’s match at Brighton had to be postponed. QPR had Monday’s Championship fixture with Sheffield United cancelled, as well as this Saturday’s game against Swansea, due to an epidemic. United’s visit to Brentford on Tuesday was also delayed.
Premier League will do everything possible to ensure that future matches continue.
They prefer to return to behind closed doors fixtures rather than suspend the season. However, they won’t sanction such a move unless the Government orders them to.
To avoid a shut down, Premier League club members voted unanimity on Tuesday.