The Premier League are suspending the season for the next few weeks, according to an announcement this morning.

Mikel Arteta, Manager of Arsenal reacts during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and West Ham United at Emirates Stadium on March 07, 2020 in London, United Kingdom.
LONDON, ENGLAND – MARCH 07: Mikel Arteta, Manager of Arsenal reacts during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and West Ham United at Emirates Stadium on March 07, 2020, in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

As per the announcement, the Premier League is off for the next few weeks, at least. The current return date is 4th April, with games off until the 3rd. Given the current estimates about the spread of the virus, it could well end up being longer.

This comes after the English Football League made the decision to suspend all games until at least April 4th this morning, for the same reason.

Things really kicked off with coronavirus in the last 24 hours. Leicester City announced a few players were getting tested after showing symptoms, Arsenal confirmed Mikel Arteta had tested positive, whilst Chelsea added that Callum Hudson-Odoi had too.

Then Everton, Watford and Bournemouth also added some players and staff members were self-isolating after showing symptoms. In just a day, suddenly six different clubs had issues with the virus.

It’s no surprise to see the league shut down as a result. Really, the extent of the spread shows how slowly they’ve acted on the virus. Much as we all want games to go ahead, player and staff safety should have been the priority.