The Premier League
confirmed on Tuesday that 18 players and staff tested positive for COVID-19,
the highest tally so far after the weekly testing process began, AFP reported.

“The Premier
League can today confirm that between Monday 21 December and Sunday 27
December, 1,479 players and club staff were tested for Covid-19,” AFP
quoted the League as saying in a statement.

The match between
Manchester City and Everton was postponed on Monday after several players
tested positive for the coronavirus in the City squad.

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Sheffield United, on
the other hand, despite having a few positive cases as recorded by the club,
are set to play their away match against Burnley later this week.

“Sheffield
United can confirm the club recorded a number of positive coronavirus tests
after the latest round of testing,” the club was quoted as saying in a
statement, further informing that individuals who have tested positive will be
entering a period of self-isolation as per directives by the Premier League and
the government.

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City had already announced
the COVID-19 positive status for Gabriel Jesus and Kyle Walker as well as two
other staff members on Christmas day 2020, prior to the latest noted cases on
Monday.

The City-Everton
match postponement was the second game to have been obstructed by the pandemic,
after Aston Villa’s fixture against Newcastle was postponed post-outbreak in Newcastle’s
training ground.