Zimpapers Logo

Images of players celebrating inside tightly packed dressing rooms were an unwelcome feature of FA Cup third-round weekend — while crowds of fans gathering outside cup ties drew criticism and caught the attention of government ministers.

On the back of players from all levels of the game apologising for various coronavirus rule breaches, the case for football to continue while the rest of society is locked down is coming under increasing scrutiny.

“Morally, with the situation we have in this country and worldwide, to keep doing what we are doing is a little bit of a strange feeling,” Arsenal boss Mike Arteta said on Monday. “We know what we can bring to society if we are able to do it in safe way.”

BBC sports editor Dan Roan says while elite sport is not yet in the “last-chance saloon”, there are “no guarantees” with “patience wearing thin”.

Over the weekend, the UK passed the milestone of 80 000 coronavirus-related deaths since the start of the pandemic and there is debate about whether England’s lockdown restrictions should be tightened even further.

But some elite sport has been able to continue under strict protocols established in the summer.

With several shock results in this weekend’s FA Cup, players were keen to celebrate, but videos from the dressing rooms with players not socially distancing has led to criticism on social media.

There were also images of fans gathered outside Marine’s stadium in Crosby, Merseyside, before their match against Tottenham on Sunday.

Merseyside Police said the “vast majority of people present were adhering to social-distancing measures and those who were not were advised by officers”.

More than 60 games in England have been called off this season, with Aston Villa’s match against Tottenham on Wednesday the fifth Premier League postponement.

Players from Spurs, Fulham, Crystal Palace, West Ham and Manchester City were recently criticised by their clubs for breaking England’s restrictions over the new year holiday.

Meanwhile, The Premier League says 36 players and club staff have tested positive during the latest rounds of testing for Covid-19.

The league conducted 2,593 tests across two rounds over the past week. Between 4 and 7 January there were 27 new positive tests and nine more were found during testing between 8 and 10 January.

The number is a slight decrease on the 40 positive tests following last week’s rounds of testing. – BBC Sport