Premier League coronavirus cases: 16 positives in latest testing

The Premier League has confirmed 16 positive coronavirus cases were recorded in the latest week of testing.

It marks a significant drop from the 36 positive cases recorded last week, following a season-high of 40 a fortnight ago with recent outbreaks of the virus affecting Aston Villa, Newcastle, Manchester City and Fulham.

Six Premier League matches have been called off due to coronavirus cases this season, most recently Villa's game at home to Everton on Sunday because of the ongoing Covid-19 issues at Villa Park.

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In a statement, the Premier League said "between Monday 11 January and Sunday 17 January, across two rounds of testing, 3,115 players and club staff were tested for COVID-19. Of these, there were 16 new positive tests."

Players or club staff who have tested positive will self-isolate for a period of 10 days.

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Newcastle's game away at Villa on December 4, Everton vs Manchester City on December 28, Tottenham vs Fulham on December 30, Burnley vs Fulham on January 3 and Spurs' trip to Villa on January 13 were the other games called off.

The Premier League, along with the Football Association and the English Football League, released a joint statement on Thursday reiterating the importance of following newly enhanced Covid-19 measures and have already begun rescheduling fixtures with Spurs playing out their meeting with Fulham in place of the cancelled game against Villa.

Premier League chief executive Richard Masters has also urged players to "change their behaviours" by following the updated on-field protocols, and referees have been told to remind players of the need to maintain social distancing as much as possible during games, particularly when celebrating goals.

Several Premier League bosses, including Pep Guardiola and Frank Lampard, have defended players over goal celebrations, with the Manchester City manager describing hugging team-mates after a goal as an "instinctive" reaction.

Previous Premier League test results

• Round 1: 31 Aug-6 Sep - 1,605 tested, with three testing positive.
• Round 2: 7-13 Sep - 2,131 tested, with four testing positive.
• Round 3: 14-20 Sep - 1,574 tested, with three testing positive.
• Round 4: 21-27 Sep - 1,595 tested, with 10 testing positive.
• Round 5: 28 Sep-4 Oct - 1,587 tested, with nine testing positive.
• Round 6: 5-11 Oct - 1,128 tested, with five testing positive.
• Round 7: 12-18 Oct - 1,575 tested, with eight testing positive.
• Round 8: 19-25 Oct - 1,609 tested, with two testing positive.
• Round 9: 26 Oct-1 Nov - 1,446 tested, with four testing positive.
• Round 10: 2-8 Nov - 1,646 tested, with four testing positive.
• Round 11: 9-15 Nov - 1,207 tested, with 16 testing positive.
• Round 12: 16-22 Nov - 1,530 tested, with eight testing positive.
• Round 13: 23-29 Nov - 1,381 tested, with 10 testing positive.
• Round 14: 30 Nov-6 Dec - 1,483 tested with 14 testing positive.
• Round 15: 7-13 Dec - 1,549 tested with six testing positive.
• Round 16: 14-20 Dec - 1,569 tested with seven testing positive.
• Round 17: 21-27 Dec - 1,479 tested with 18 testing positive.
• Round 18: 28 Dec-3 Jan - 2,295 tests with 40 testing positive.
• Round 19: 4-10 Jan - 2,593 tests with 36 testing positive.
• Round 20: 11-17 Jan - 3,115 tests with 16 testing positive.

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