Long to miss Southampton clash with West Ham after Covid test

sport
Long To Miss Southampton Clash With West Ham After Covid Test
Shane Long (right) was forced to miss the Republic of Ireland's World Cup qualifier against Portugal last week as he was self-isolating. Photo: PA Wire/PA Images
Share this article

Thomson Reuters

Southampton will be without striker Shane Long for their home Premier League game with West Ham United after he tested positive for Covid-19, manager Ralph Hasenhuettl confirmed on Thursday.

Hasenhuettl, like his fellow top-flight managers, says the international breaks are complicated with players travelling back from far flung destinations.

Advertisement

Throw in the risks posed by the virus and preparations for the return to league action are especially challenging.

"We have a few players who have been travelling a lot. We will have everybody back today except (Shane) Long," the Austrian said.

"He is in self-isolation in the hotel because of a positive Covid test but the rest will arrive today and I will have a look."

Long tested positive last week ahead of the Republic of Ireland's World Cup qualifier against Portugal and was forced to self-isolate.

Advertisement

Red list

Several Premier League clubs could face sanctions if they play their South American players this weekend having not released them to play internationals in "red list" countries.

Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City are among clubs who did not release Brazilian players and Hasenhuettl has sympathy for the clubs.

"It's a problem to send players all over the world. We have a big problem preparing for the weekend because they are coming back on Thursday so we only have one day and a half," he said.

"When you have to quarantine you must definitely block players from going somewhere because otherwise you lose them for a long time like the Brazilian and Argentinian players.

"You can imagine for a club what it means. Players want to play internationals for sure and also want to play for a club."

Read More

Message submitting... Thank you for waiting.

Want us to email you top stories each lunch time?

Download our Apps
© BreakingNews.ie 2024, developed by Square1 and powered by PublisherPlus.com