As many as nine first-team players and staff at Man United have tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Telegraph.
News broke on Thursday evening that Man United’s pre-season clash with Preston North End had been cancelled. The club themselves confirmed it was as a result of a small COVID-19 breakout in the camp.
Arsenal and Chelsea have both suffered comparable disruption this pre-season to date, so the news was not anything to be considerably concerned about from a Man United perspective.
While that is still the case, the Telegraph do now report that nine Man United players and staff have tested positive, which is a larger outbreak than was initially suggested.
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Those who have the virus will be forced into self-isolation, while the rest of the squad will likely be tested frequently in order to ensure that they have not contracted it too.
It’s not a disaster – this is merely the nature of the modern world – but it’s hardly ideal preparation for the new season as far as manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is confirmed.