Despite the alarming rise in Omicron cases, the Premier League match between Tottenham and Liverpool continued as planned in London, England, UK, December 20, 2021. /CFP
On a day when it emerged that a record 90 new COVID-19 cases had been recorded among players and staff in the latest round of testing, the Premier League decided at an emergency meeting to press on with the season, rejecting the idea of cancelling a round of fixtures over the festive period.
Matches have been postponed with increasing regularity in recent weeks as the Omicron variant of the coronavirus sweeps across the UK, but the league maintained that the show must go on after representatives from 20 top clubs met with league officials on Monday to weigh up a response to the worsening COVID-19 crisis.
According to multiple British media outlets, the majority of clubs favored carrying on playing where it is safe to do so during the discussion, while only a few including Liverpool and Arsenal preferred a temporary halt to the season. No clubs wanted to stop playing entirely while the outbreak gripped.
Wolves' Marcal (R) and Chelsea's Mason Mount clash during their Premier League match at the Molineux Stadium, Wolverhampton, England, UK, December 19, 2021. /CFP
A statement from the Premier League read, "It is the league's collective intention to continue the current fixture schedule where safely possible."
"We will continue to work with clubs, authorities and other agencies to monitor the COVID-19 case rate and be prepared to respond accordingly, yet for now the view remains that we can continue to deliver games safely where clubs have sufficient healthy personnel in place, on and off the pitch."
While any postponement or cancellation would come at a huge economic cost for the league, several managers have suggested football should take a step back and see the bigger picture.
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel said, "We were put in a huge risk of health and safety to the players, not just because of COVID-19 but also physically. I'm not sure if I'll catch COVID. Hopefully, I will not catch it."
"From a medical point of view, I'm very worried because we have had four consecutive days of positive tests in the squad," he added. "How will this stop if we carry on and pretend it's not happening? This is my opinion and it's the medical opinion but it's not the opinion of the Premier League, so we have to play."
An Aston Villa fan poses for pictures outside the stadium as the game is postponed due to COVID-19 at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, UK, December 18, 2021. /CFP
The stance was echoed by Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp. "It's impossible to play in this situation, we don't have the players," he said after Sunday's draw at Spurs. "We have to think we will get an extra case or two. We cannot just push it all through."
The impact of the decision to plow on will only be revealed in the coming weeks, and the situation remains a fluid one. And as latest data shows that 16 percent of top-flight players are still unvaccinated, Premier League clubs have discussed ways to drive up vaccination rates in their squads.
The detailed plans are not announced but Sky Sports revealed that proposals include unvaccinated players traveling separately to games, facing an additional check to get into stadiums and having meals away from vaccinated teammates.
Meanwhile, all Premier League clubs have been told to update the league every day on the availability of their players so as to minimize the number of last-minute postponements. It is understood that clubs must fulfill their games if they have 13 fit outfield players and a goalkeeper.