Following a positive Covid case in the Estonia camp, Arsenal’s Karl Hein has had to pull out of international duty to isolate for 10 days.

The official Estonia football association website has announced that a positive Covid test has changed the composition of their squad at the last minute.

One positive sample among their latest batch of tests means the player involved and all of their close contacts must now isolate for 10 days. This means the vast majority of the original squad, including Karl Hein, can no longer participate in the three matches.

The news is disappointing for Hein on a personal level, as he was carving out his spot as Estonia’s first-choice goalkeeper. He started all of their competitive matches over the last three international breaks.

This also isn’t the first setback for Estonia in the current break. They were previously denied the opportunity to play their first match – against the Czech Republic – in Estonia. Due to Covid restrictions, they’ll play the ‘home’ fixture in Poland instead.

So as they kick off their World Cup qualification campaign, Estonia will field a heavily-rotated team at a neutral venue. Hardly ideal.