Manchester United's friendly against Championship side, Stoke City, was cancelled in the eleventh-hour after one Stoke member of staff tested positive for COVID-19.
Solskjaer's warm-up match cancelled after COVID scare
Originally there was no explanation for the cancellation of the match but according to the Daily Mirror, it was made clear to both sides that a Stoke manager Michael O’Neill had tested positive moments before kick-off. Thankfully for both sides, the match was cancelled without a ball being kicked and United are confident none of their players came into contact with the player who tested positive.
United players tested twice a week
Testing players for the virus will continue to happen twice a week in order to keep them safe. Despite the friendly being called off, United continued with training and held an in-house match.
Matchday mentality 🧠#MUFC pic.twitter.com/9Lo9EgsPRH
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) June 9, 2020
Many Premier League sides have been arranging friendlies in order to get back to their peak match fitness. According to Tim Spiers of The Athletic, Wolverhampton Wanderers lost 2-0 to Nottingham Forest in a friendly at Molineux yesterday.
Situation handled before any problems arose
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side has less than ten days until their 'Project Restart' gets back underway with a tough away trip to Tottenham Hotspur. United got the better of Spurs earlier in the year at Old Trafford when they beat Jose Mourinho's side 2-0 thanks to a double from Marcus Rashford.
United are presented with two must-win games if they are to challenge for a Champions League spot as their second match sees them face European qualification contenders, Sheffield United.