Brighton & Hove Albion
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Brighton’s chief executive and deputy chairman Paul Barber welcomes Premier League call to play on #BHAFC

December 22, 2021
Albion have welcomed a decision to play on over Christmas – and backed fans to play their part. Premier League clubs voted NOT to postpone any of the forthcoming fixtures, despite rising concerns over Covid and the workload being placed on players. Postponement and reduced capacities were both discussed when the 20 clubs meet via Zoom yesterday. But it remains business as usual for now – with the situation remaining under review. Albion chief executive and deputy chairman Paul Barber said player welfare was paramount as discussions took place. He said: “It’s a difficult balancing act. There are lots of Covid cases across the Premier League but, at the same time, we have fixture congestion already building up. “The danger of postponing games when we don’t need to is the fixture congestion goes later into the season, which could be even worsen. “In terms of player welfare, balancing what’s right at this moment with what could be right in the future was one of the difficult parts of the debate. “I’m happy we have decided the right thing, which is to carry on playing while we can, look after our players and staff as best we can and try to minimise the disruption to supporters as well.” A return to football behind closed doors was discussed – and has now happened in Wales. But Barber backed fans to protect themselves and others with their behaviour when at games and travelling to and from venues. He told TalkSPORT: “I think everyone was slightly fearful of that because cases are rising and we have seen what has happened in Wales. “I think the difference between this situation and what we were facing last time when we were behind closed doors is vaccinations have really taken hold. Lots of people have been vaccinated. PREMIUM: Why Albion know Dan looks like the man for Newcastle “People are much more aware of the virus. “They are careful when they are travelling to and from the games. “They are careful when they are in the stadiums. “It’s difficult to enforce mask-wearing in the stadium bowl but we are encouraging it. “Hopefully people will be respectful of each other and keep each other safe so we can keep stadiums full. “That’s really important. Lots of livelihoods depend on matches going ahead with fans in the stadium and that’s what players want as well.”
Thomas Frank
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Thomas Frank reveals Brentford are Covid-free as they close in on Brighton trip #BRENTFORDFC

December 22, 2021
Brentford have reported their squad is now Covid-free, five days from their trip to the Amex. Their recent league games versus Manchester United and Southampton were both called off due to Covid in the camp and boss Thomas Frank says the break has paid off. He said: “It helped us massively to break the circuit of transmission of the virus. “So from six or seven cases on Thursday, to Saturday we only had one, zero on Monday and zero today. So we are definitely in a fine place.” Frank says he was not surprised that the decision was taken to carry on playing, despite the rise in cases. He added: “No, because what I suggested was just one round, to break that circuit, clean the training ground, limit the contact between players and staff. BRIGHTON HAPPY TO PLAY ON IN PREMIER LEAGUE “I think we all want to carry on the with football.” Star striker Ivan Toney is set to return to the Brentford squad for the Carabao Cup quarter-final visit of Chelsea tomorrow.
Richard Masters Premier League
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Premier League teams agree to continue fixtures amid Covid concerns #PL

December 21, 2021
PREM Clubs today agreed to fulfil their upcoming fixtures, after discussing potential postponements to matchweeks. All 20 Premier League sides attended the meeting, althought no vote was held, despite some calls from managers to postpone matches. It had been believed that gameweek 20, starting on 28 December, would be postponed. Saints are due to host Tottenham Hotspur on 28 December, with the game to be shown live on Amazon Prime. The Premier League's deal with Amazon was believed to be a sticking point for any potential postponements. In a statement, the Premier League said: "It was confirmed at a Premier League club meeting today that while recognising a number of clubs are experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks and challenges, it is the League’s collective intention to continue the current fixture schedule where safely possible. "The health and wellbeing of all concerned remains our priority and the League will continue to monitor and reflect public health guidance, always proceeding with caution. "A range of issues were discussed at this afternoon’s meeting, including the adaption of the Premier League COVID-19 postponement process in response to the impact of the Omicron variant." Clubs are now being advised if they have 13 fit players, plus a goalkeeper, they will have to play games. Previously the Premier League had been operating on a case-by-case basis. The League also confirmed that 92 per cent of players and club staff have received at least one vaccination dose, with 84 per cent of players on the 'vaccination journey'. The FA have scrapped replays in the next two rounds of the FA Cup in a bid to reduce fixtures. This now means that when Saints visit Swansea in the third round, the match will be decided on the day - meaning we could see extra time and even penalties.
Sean Dyche Burnley
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Sean Dyche focused on Aston Villa but still awaits Hornets postponement answer #BURNLEYFC

December 18, 2021
Burnley are awaiting an explanation from the Premier League for why their clash with Watford was postponed at late notice on Wednesday. The match at Turf Moor was called off less than three hours before it was due to start because of coronavirus cases in the Watford camp, with Burnley not receiving any indication that it might happen until an hour prior to the decision being announced. It was the second late postponement the club has had in less than three weeks after the meeting with Tottenham last month was called off due to heavy snowfall. Boss Sean Dyche said: “We didn’t find out until 4.40pm. We hadn’t heard anything from Watford Football Club about the possible situation. And then it came to light that they had Covid cases and the game had to be cancelled. It was very late that’s for sure.” Burnley will now turn their attention to a scheduled clash with Aston Villa tomorrow – although the midlanders have also had cases in their camp. Dyche said: “It’s not a big drama, it’s happened, it’s dealt with, the next one comes around very quickly. I’m sure the Premier League will report to us about why it was called off because we haven’t got any of the detail yet but we move forward, it’s as simple as that. What’s done is done. “It’s about getting an awareness of what is going to make a game called off and what’s not going to make a game be called off.” Burnley have several current Covid cases themselves, although Dyche revealed only one is a player and they are confident he was isolated quickly enough not to have an impact on the rest of the squad. This will be Dyche’s first experience of taking on a team managed by Steven Gerrard, and Villa are in good form, with four wins from their last six games. The Burnley boss said of Gerrard’s impact: “Seemingly they’ve had a change of shape with what they called many years ago the Christmas tree. “He’s brought energy. You know what it’s like, a new manager goes in, whoever that manager is, and it has an effect of some description. He’s certainly had that. “I don’t know him so I wouldn’t know what his beliefs in the game are, the way he’s thinking about the game. He obviously had a thirst for it, went through some of the situations with the younger teams at Liverpool and then he’s gone up to Rangers and done a good job there. “He knows the Premier League, that’s another obvious thing, and it’s how he adapts to the challenge of managing in the Premier League. “He’s not naive, he knows it’s more than a good start in management, you need a longer period to prove yourself, but he’s started very well. I don’t think anyone’s that surprised by that. The challenge of football is how long you can keep doing it for at what level.” Burnley remain in the bottom three but have lost only one of their last six games, although four of those have been draws. They are likely to again be without forwards Maxwel Cornet and Ashley Barnes, midfielder Dale Stephens and defender Connor Roberts.
Old Trafford Manchester
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Brighton issues refund statement for fans after Manchester United match postponement #MUFC #BHAFC

December 17, 2021
ALBION's match against Manchester United has been postponed due to the Covid-19 outbreak at the club. Manchester United were forced to postpone their match against Brentford on Tuesday due to the outbreak. Since then it has been that the situation at the club has worsened as more positive cases have been found at the club. Albion said on their website: "Those supporters who had purchased tickets will be automatically refunded. Refunds will take up to five working days to process. "Once the match is rescheduled, and new ticket details confirmed, all those who purchased tickets for the original date will get a priority booking window. "  Manchester United manager Ralf Rangnick Albion are also managing Covid-19 cases at the club as Graham Potter confirmed there were "three or four" cases in the squad. This saw a depleted Albion squad take on Wolves in a 1-0 defeat in the Premier League last night. Potter did confirm that there was a request to have that match postponed but it was rejected by the Premier League. The Premier League says it intends to “continue its current fixture schedule where safely possible” despite announcing that postponing the  Manchester United and Albion match.
Graham Potter Brighton
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Brighton boss questions possible inconsistencies over Covid-19 postponements #BHAFC

December 16, 2021
ALBION boss Graham Potter believes it will be difficult for the Premier League to continue with the current trend of only some games being deemed worthy of postponement due to coronavirus infections among players. Potter revealed Albion were unsuccessful in their request for Wednesday evening’s clash with Wolves – a 1-0 loss – to be rearranged following a Covid-19 and injury crisis at the club. The depleted Seagulls were without a host of influential players for the game, with top scorer Neal Maupay and Pascal Gross the latest men to join the growing list of absentees. Brighton’s scheduled meeting with Tottenham on Sunday was postponed due to a Covid outbreak at the north London club, while Brentford versus Manchester United and Watford’s trip to Burnley were called off in similar circumstances on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively. Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder Alexis Mac Allister “We asked the question because of our situation,” he said of a possible postponement. “You haven’t really got time to be disappointed (with being turned down). It was about preparing the team, preparing for the game.” Speaking of the apparent lack of consistency in decision-making, he continued: “You obviously have to think everyone is doing things in the best intentions. “There will be frustration with that. “It would be better if it was more transparent but at the same time you’re talking about medical information so I don’t know how transparent that can be. “I think the path we’re on, I’m not sure how long we can stay on it for. “We all want football to continue, want life to continue as best as we can but clearly health is the most important thing. “We’ve got some issues ourselves and this week has been a little bit disturbing in terms of how quickly we’ve been affected. “If that carries on then we’ll have to have some serious thought (about action being suspended).” Albion's winless run in the top flight stretched to a club-record 11 games after Romain Saiss’ first-half volley earned the visitors a deserved victory.
Ralph Hasenhuttl
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Ralph Hasenhuttl pleased with COVID status of Southampton players #SAINTSFC

December 14, 2021
RALPH Hasenhuttl has praised Saints keeping their COVID-19 rules “as tough as possible so that we minimise the risk,” after the club completed another round of testing with no blots. News came on Monday that Manchester United have shut their training ground for 24 hours and are in doubt over whether their clash with Brentford will go ahead this week following positive tests among staff and players. Meanwhile, Tottenham Hotspur had their matches with Rennes in Europe and Brighton in the Premier League postponed last weekend following an extreme circumstance of cases. Fans that attend games will now have to produce evidence of a COVID-19 passport, attained via a negative test or complete vaccination courses, after the Government introduced new legislation. Read more And speaking ahead of Saints’ visit to Crystal Palace on Wednesday, the Austrian boss was asked if he had any concerns for his own club as a new Omicron variant continues to spread prompting Government action. Manchester United's trip to Brentford could be in doubt this week (Pic: PA) He responded: “Not really, as I have told them last week the situation in our club is not different to the beginning of the pandemic. “We try to keep our rules as high or as tough as possible so that we minimise the risk. We have still only a certain amount of people coming into the this building, we try to avoid every risk that we can because of the situation we are in at the moment. “We can only control what is in this building, we cannot control what is happening at home with the players,” Hasenhuttl admitted. “But the feeling I have, and this is maybe the reason we are so far coming through this, is that the players are trying to minimise their social contact and everything. Spurs were not in action at the weekend following an outbreak (Pic: PA) “I think this is the reason why we didn’t have this issue, the biggest issue I see is kids bringing it home from school because this is something we can hardly avoid but we are a young team, not so many players with children so maybe this also helps. “Like in the last weeks we have no cases and hopefully this continues.” Nathan Redmond recently missed out on the victory over Aston Villa - Saints' last victory this season - after he tested positive for the virus in the build-up to kick-off.  Hasenhuttl was also asked about the vaccination status of his players, and he added: “Yeah we are not so bad I think. “I don’t know the exact numbers of percentage of people at the club but I think meanwhile nearly everyone is vaccinated.”
Sean Dyche Burnley
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Burnley boss Sean Dyche keen to avoid Covid-disruptions as the club fights relegation #BURNLEYFC

December 11, 2021
SEAN Dyche is keeping his fingers crossed that Covid-19 cases do not disrupt his efforts to guide Burnley to Premier League safety. After seeing Tottenham counterpart Antonio Conte become the latest manager left counting the cost of a coronavirus outbreak at his club, Dyche insisted the health of his players and staff remained the ultimate priority, but admitted the disruption caused by the illness could cause real problems. The Clarets chief, who will send his side into battle with West Ham on Sunday, said: “We’re all trying to live our lives in some kind of normal [way]. I don’t think we can constantly worry about it. “It’s not ideal, I’m sure of that, quite obviously, but I think we’ve just got to adhere to the rules that are advised from the medical situation and hope that it doesn’t happen, hope that it doesn’t have an outbreak or a pod or whatever you wish to use in your group and your team and if so, just it doesn’t affect anyone. “We’ve had one with Dale Stephens recently. It was a one-off, nobody else involved and that’s what you’re hoping for to bring a protective element to what we’re trying to do. “And the bigger picture, of course, is the game schedule as well. It’s no-one’s fault, quite obviously, but it knocks on to the game schedule and games keep getting replaced and stuff like that, so there’s a lot more to it, “Health is the main thing, but then behind that, there’s a lot of planning, there’s a lot of organisation, there’s a lot of things it knocks on to.” Dyche has spent recent weeks reading speculation that soon-to-be-out-of-contract defensive duo James Tarkowski and Ben Mee could be targets for Newcastle as they prepare to wield their new-found riches for the first time. However, he remains relaxed about the situation and even suggested he could be active too with new owners also in place at Turf Moor. Dyche said: “If there are options available, then we’ll certainly be looking at them, which we are doing now. “That’s an ongoing thing from the club and it has been, but it’s probably slightly more open-minded, I would suggest, now in this ownership about what we can do, so we’re certainly looking at options of what we can possibly do.”
Corona Virus
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Brighton issue statement after clash against Tottenham is postponed #BHAFC

December 10, 2021
ALBION’S home match against Tottenham Hotspur has been postponed due to a “significant number” of positive Covid-19 cases among Spurs’ players and staff. The match, which was due to be played this Sunday at 2pm, was requested to be called off by Tottenham and the Premier League Board has taken the decision following guidance from medical advisers, with the “health” of players and staff the priority. This comes after Spurs called off their Europa Conference League match against Rennes, due to be played tonight, because of the number of Covid-19 cases at the club. Eight first team players and five staff had tested positive for Covid-19 in the Spurs camp, according to Sky Sports. The fixture will be rearranged in due course. An Albion spokesman stated: “The postponed fixture will be rescheduled in due course and the Premier League wishes a quick recovery to those with COVID-19. “Any supporter who has purchased a ticket is advised that the ticket will be valid for the rescheduled match date. “This includes supporters who received a ticket through the season ticket sharing system or 1901 ticket transfer or purchased hospitality.  “Season-ticket holders and 1901 club members who have distributed or sold their seats through these systems are advised that their season tickets have been deactivated for this match and, if you wish to attend the rescheduled fixture, you will be able to purchase match tickets once the new fixture date is confirmed.   “Please note match ticket and hospitality refund requests will not be accepted until confirmation of the revised match date. When the new date is known, details will be released to supporters along with the process for match ticket holders wishing to claim refunds. Please note refunds are not available to season ticket holders or 1901 members.” Have you got a story for us? Email [email protected] or contact us here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to keep up with all the latest news. Sign up to our newsletter to get updates sent straight to your inbox. You can also call us on 01273 021 400.
Corona Virus
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Tottenham Hotspur issue apology to Brighton fans after clash is postponed #THFC #BHAFC

December 10, 2021
TOTTENHAM Hotspur have issued an apology to Albion fans after the match between the two teams was postponed. Spurs were forced to postpone their match against Stade Rennais last night in the Europa Conference League due to a Covid-19 outbreak in the club. Manager Antonio Conte confirmed that eight players and five staff members had contracted the virus in his press conference yesterday. The match against Albion was already in doubt but it has now been postponed. Spurs have issued an apology in their statement about the match postponement. A club spokesman said: "We should like to apologise to everyone at Stade Rennais and Brighton and Hove Albion and to both their supporters and ours for any inconvenience caused. "We should also like to thank both clubs for their understanding during these challenging times." Albion's next match in the Premier League will now be on Wednesday evening when they take on Wolves.  
Corona Virus
Posted in2021-2022-Season Daily News

#PLStories- Tottenham Hotspur match against Brighton in doubt #THFC

December 9, 2021
ALBION's match against Tottenham is in doubt after the club called off their Europa Conference League match due to a “number of positive Covid-19 cases at the club”. Tottenham are scheduled to travel to the Amex Stadium for the club's Premier League fixture against Albion on Sunday. This is now in doubt as Spurs' match against Rennes tomorrow night was called off due to a number of covid cases being reported at the club. A spokesman for Spurs said: "We can confirm that our UEFA Europa Conference League Group G home fixture against Stade Rennais will not take place tomorrow after a number of positive COVID-19 cases at the Club. "Discussions are ongoing with UEFA and we shall provide a further update on this fixture in due course. "Additionally, following discussions with the Health Security Agency (formerly Public Health England) and DCMS advisers, the Club has been advised to close the First Team area of its Training Centre at this time, in the interests of the health and safety of players and staff. "All other areas of the Training Centre remain operational." Albion drew their last game in the Premier League against Southampton after Neal Maupay's late equaliser cancelled out Armando Broja's opener. Spurs won their last game in the league against Norwich 3-0.