West Ham United has confirmed on Tuesday (September 22, 2020) that their manager David Moyes along with two other players – Issa Diop and Josh Cullen have tested positive for COVID-19.
The news broke out hours before the club’s Carabao Cup third-round tie against Hull City which they comfortably won 5-1 at the London Stadium under Assistant Manager Alan Irvine’s charge.
@F_Andersoon x @HallerSeb pic.twitter.com/6l5otujn6D
— West Ham United (@WestHam) September 23, 2020
The manager and both players had reportedly immediately left the stadium and returned home after the test results came out.
“All three, who are asymptomatic, will now follow Public Health England and Premier League guidelines and protocols,” said the club in an official statement.
“The Club’s measures and protocols around COVID-19 remain stringent,” club added.
Meanwhile, West Ham United Head of Medical Richard Collinge has explained the swift and decisive response to the positive COVID-19 tests.
“A pre-planned and meticulous process was immediately put into action, with both players withdrawn from the starting line-up to face Hull City and, along with the manager, from the main group before being assessed in a designated isolation room and then sent home, all in line with UK Public Health and Premier League protocols,” said West Ham United.
“It’s obviously a challenging time for all of us with increasing numbers of COVID-19 cases within the general population,” said Head of Medical Richard Collinge.
He expressed, “As a club, we are obviously working hard with the strategies and protocols that we have in place. On Tuesday night we had the unusual situation, just before the team went out to warm-up when we received the news that we had three positive tests within the camp.”
“The immediate priority was to make sure those three individuals were safe – we have an isolation room here at the stadium where we were able to assess them medically and then, at the right moment in time, asked to leave the stadium to self-isolate at home.”
“All three went home and, in line with Premier League rules and regulations, were re-tested immediately and we await their results within 24 hours.”
“We will also re-test the entire playing squad and staff at our Rush Green training facility, to ensure that everyone is fit and healthy and that we protect them and their families.”
“You never want this to happen, of course, but we were ready for it and were able to move quickly to deal with the situation,” he added.
Source: Zee News