The Premier League fixture between Leicester City and Crystal Palace will go ahead despite a localised lockdown being imposed on the city.
Leicester City v Crystal Palace to Go Ahead
A Spike in Cases
The city has seen a spike in cases of COVID-19 in recent days and, as such, the city and other areas of the county of Leicestershire have been placed in lockdown for a further two weeks. Non-essential shops are closed from today, schools will close later this week and residents have been advised to avoid non-essential travel.
This will not affect the game scheduled for this Saturday, though, health secretary Matt Hancock confirmed to Sky News.
Palace boss Roy Hodgson, speaking after his side’s defeat to Burnley last night, said that he would be happy to play the game at a neutral venue if necessary.
He said: “I did hear on the news today there was a potential problem in Leicester.
“I am perfectly happy to let the Premier League take care of that. I am certain they will tell us where and when the game should be played.
“I am certain if they can’t play at Leicester, they will find an alternative venue and we are happy to go up and play against Leicester City wherever the Premier League tells us to play.”
‘The Safest Place to Be’
With all of the restrictions in place that are allowing football to go ahead, Premier League grounds are arguably the safest environments to be in, currently.
This is echoed by Foxes boss Brendan Rodgers who, before the local lockdown was imposed, said: “I think at this moment in time we’re in the safest place to be, in terms of our work. The stadium also, it’s a very safe environment for the games to be in. We’ll just keep walking until we’re told otherwise.”
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