Six Tottenham stars test positive for Covid as Antonio Conte’s camp rocked by outbreak

In pictures: Tottenham v Norwich

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Antonio Conte’s Tottenham camp have been rocked by an outbreak of COVID-19 with multiple players and staff understood to have returned a positive test. The blow has threatened to halt the positive progress Spurs have made in recent weeks under the Italian in the wake of the disastrous 2-1 defeat on the road at Slovenian minnows NS Mura in the Europa Conference League.

Since then, Tottenham have recorded back-to-back home wins in the Premier League against Brentford and Norwich respectively to build on the 2-1 victory over Leeds in late November – Conte’s first at the helm since replacing Nuno Espirito Santo.

It means the former Chelsea and Inter Milan boss has now taken 10 points from a possible 12 on his return to England and the top-four is now firmly in their sights after a rocky start to the campaign.

Yet as per reports, Tottenham are now being forced to contend with an outbreak of COVID-19 following the latest round of Premier League testing.

The Mirror and The Times say Spurs are responsible for six of the Premier League’s 12 new cases that were confirmed on Monday, while two staff members are also believed to have tested positive.

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A Premier League statement read: “The Premier League can today confirm that between Monday 29 November and Sunday 5 December, across two rounds of testing, 3,154 players and club staff were tested for COVID-19.

“Of these, there were twelve new positive tests. The Premier League is providing this aggregated information for the purposes of competition integrity and transparency.

“No specific details as to clubs or individuals will be provided by the League and results will be made public on a weekly basis.”

Tottenham are back in action on Thursday when they host Rennes on match day six in the Conference League – a game they must win to secure qualification to the knockout stages.

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Beyond that, Spurs travel south to face Brighton in the Premier League on Sunday before a midweek trip to Leicester next Thursday.

As first reported by Football London, the club are expected to carry out further PCR tests on Tuesday to gain some clarity on the positive cases within their camp.

Earlier in the season, two unnamed players missed the 3-1 win at Newcastle due to false positives.

The duo tested positive upon return from international duty but further testing later revealed both of the stars were actually in the clear, despite missing the match.

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Tottenham want to avoid any potential repeats of that, particularly with the games coming thick and fast over the festive period.

Spurs’ European match in two days time looks almost certain to go ahead, even if the worst possible scenario is realised, due to UEFA rules.

Official regulations state matches will only be postponed if “less than 13 players registered on the A list or no registered goalkeeper are available.”

The identities of the positive cases have not yet been confirmed and are unlikely to do so until Tottenham determine the full extent of the outbreak.

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