An as of yet unnamed player for Scottish Premiership side Hearts is self-isolating after showing the symptoms of coronavirus as fans of Rangers and other clubs in Scotland begin to recognise the scale of the global pandemic.
All matches have been postponed until April at the earliest [SPFL] with fears growing behind the infection, which the British government believe could eventually affect 80% of the population.
The Hearts player joins players from Inverness Caledonian Thistle and Stenhousemuir as the first footballers in Scotland said to be self-isolating [BBC Sport].
An Edinburgh Evening News report claims the Hearts player will follow government advice and stay home for a week as they look to overcome the deadly infection.
“After developing a cough, a player followed the new UK Government guidelines and started a seven-day period of self-isolation as a precautionary measure,” said a Hearts spokesperson.
Football down south has been rocked by several high-profile cases of the infection, which include Arsenal manager and former Rangers midfielder Mikel Arteta.
Chelsea’s Calum Hudson-Odoi has also tested positive for COVID-19 whilst Leicester City, Everton and Manchester City have players self-isolating.
You get the feeling that it is only a matter of time before similar happens at Rangers as the country comes to terms with the scale of the virus.
These cases also give an insight into the thinking of PFA Scotland.
The group rebuffed the idea that players could complete the league season behind closed doors [PFA], citing the risk to the health and wellbeing of the nation’s footballers.
