Captain Troy Deeney doesn’t want to put “more danger” on his baby, who has had breathing difficulties, and has raised concerns about the increased risk to black , Asian and ethnic minority (BAME) players.
“We’re due back in this week, I’ve said I’m not going in,” Deeney, 31, said.
Watford is not due to train on Tuesday and Deeney ‘s stance is understood to have no problem with the club.
Manager Nigel Pearson expressed his own concerns about the situation in a weekend interview with the Times and said he would not insist on the players reporting for training.
Talking on the Talk YouTube series with Eddie Hearn and Tony Bellew, Deeney added:
“It only takes one person to get infected within the group and I don’t want to be bringing that home.
“My son is only five months old, he had breathing difficulties, so I don’t want to come home to put him in more danger.”
Although contact between players is not yet permitted, United’s squad will reconvene for a first session since the restrictions on coronavirus have been eased for elite sport.
Small group meetings will begin, but participants will stick to the laws of social space, arriving at home in training gear and showering rather than in communal changing rooms.
“The rules have to be really strict but we’re obviously all going to stick to them just to make sure things run as smoothly and safely as possible,” Luke Shaw said.
“I think we’re all determined to do things properly because we’re all looking forward to getting back on a proper pitch! Running down at the park is okay, but obviously it isn’t ideal.
“We have to do our work, keep fit and it’ll be nice to be around different people and see the boys again for a bit longer. It’s a massive step forward to get on the same training pitch as each other.”
Luke Shaw assured the official website of United that it will not just be the players who love returning to work, describing how “you could see how happy the coaches were” in a community call.
Pastor Frankline Ndifor was also a presidential nominee at the presidential election in the world in 2018, laid hands and prayed for the recovery of several Coronavirus patients who appeared at the premises of his Kingship International Ministry Church.
According to Dr Gaelle Nnanga, the Pastor Frankline Ndifor died less than 10 minutes after receiving treatment, though he began showing symptoms for less than a week before treatment.
Shortly after Pastor Frankline Ndifor died, his supporters blocked entrance to his home in the capital city of Douala for eight hours, as police had to be deployed so as to allow his body to be buried.
Pastor Frankline Ndifor supporters said the shepherd was with God on a spiritual trip and he could not be buried. They allegedly sung and prayed all weekend for his resurrection.
However after security operatives gained entrance into the late Pastor Frankline Ndifor’s apartment, his corpse was retrieved and buried in front of his residence by officials of Cameroon’s COVID-19 response team.
One of the late Pastor’s followers, Rigobert Che said;
“This is a pastor that has been laying hands [on the sick] and claiming that he cures COVID-19.
“If you, the person that claims that you are curing COVID-19, you are dead, what about the fellow people that were affected by the COVID-19? Now that he is dead, I do not know how the people that he was laying hands on will be healed.”
Health authorities are also telling all those who have come in touch with the minister to return to hospitals for COVID-19 testing.
President Muhammadu Buhari accepted the selection of Kashim Ibrahim-Imam as Chairman, Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Trust Fund for Tertiary Education (TETFUND).
This was confirmed yesterday in a letter signed by the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu.
The letter noted that Ibrahim-Imam’s appointment takes effect from May 14, 2020 and runs for four years, after which it would be reviewed.
“I write to convey to you the approval of His Execellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, of your appointment as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) in Abuja with effect from May 14, 2020,” the letter read.
“The appointment is first-instance for a tenure of four years and may be renewed upon satisfactory performance for a further term of four years.
“The conditions of service and remunerations of this appointment are guided by the Public Service Rules and Extant Circulars. Please, accept my congratulations and sincere wishes for a successful tenure,” it said.
Ibrahim-Imam was the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Borno State in the 2003 and 2007 polls.
In several times he lost to All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) Ali Modu Sheriff.
19 more company workers in the Ibadan South-West local government area tested Coronavirus positive, days after 38 corporate staff tested Coronavirus positive.
Governor Seyi Makinde, who made the confirmation in a statement released on Monday 18 May after midnight, said they kept off releasing the company’s name to enable the emergency operations center to collect information and conclude their investigation.
The new cases carry the cumulative number of cases of Coronavirus to 137 in the state of Oyo.
“The COVID-19 confirmation tests for nineteen suspected cases came back POSITIVE. All nineteen of these cases are from the same organisation referred to in the updates of May 16 and 17, 2020. So, the total number of confirmed cases in Oyo State is 137.
“The details of the company in Ibadan South-West local government area, where 38 COVID-19 cases have, so far, been confirmed in the last two days, will be unveiled tomorrow.
“We have held back from revealing the name of the company so as to allow the emergency operations centre gather intelligence and complete their investigation.
“So, they will be done by tomorrow and we will be able to give you that information so that any person who has visited the company recently will be able to present themselves for testing.’
“On the management of COVID-19 cases, we will continue to allow all confirmed COVID-19 cases who are able to self-isolate at home to do so, in order not to overwhelm the capacity of our isolation centres,” he said.
“This also ensures that the isolation centres are available for those who need hospitalisation. However, we will keep tracking those self-isolating using technology to prevent community spread.”
Premier League clubs voted for Tuesday’s return to training in a much-needed support for soccer to restart following weeks of coronavirus negotiations.
That was revealed on Monday morning after a video conference call between all 20 clubs where it was decided that returning to action was secure for players.
Players at a number of Premier League clubs have been training individually.
But they will now be allowed to work together in groups of five from Tuesday as long as social distancing rules are strictly adhered to.
Officials in the Premier League requires at least 14 affirmative votes to move on on the return to training step three, in which all team interaction is forbidden.
Ball, sticks, corner flags, goalposts, playing surfaces and other gear must be disinfected during through exercise.
Players will be tested for coronavirus twice a week and they will be required complete a temperature check and fill in a questionnaire before each session.
According to the Premier League in a statement: “Premier League Shareholders today voted unanimously to return to small-group training from tomorrow afternoon, the first step towards restarting the Premier League, when safe to do so.
“Step One of the Return to Training Protocol enables squads to train while maintaining social distancing. Contact training is not yet permitted.
“This first stage has been agreed in consultation with players, managers, Premier League club doctors, independent experts and the Government.
“Strict medical protocols of the highest standard will ensure everyone returns to training in the safest environment possible.
“The health and wellbeing of all participants is a priority of the Premier League, and a step-by – step process is the safe return to training.
“Full consultation with players, managers, clubs, the PFA and LMA will now continue to be developed as protocols for full contact training.”
Other rules in phase one include players not travelling with anyone to or from training, while the use of public transport and team vehicles is banned.
Stars have been given a condensed version of a 40-page document which lays out the new safety protocols for training sessions, which will be a maximum of 75 minutes each.
On Monday a number of clubs will test players and staff for the disease with a view to returning to training on either Wednesday or Thursday.
Clubs have told their players their results should be available 24 hours after their tests.
A return to training was discussed by clubs, managers, players and officials from the Professional Footballers’ Association and League Managers’ Association last week.
Every player who returns to training will need to provide written confirmation that they have received and agree to their club’s Covid-19 operational policy.
Each club must also appoint a dedicated ‘Covid-19 officer’ who is not a member of their medical staff to oversee player and staff safety during the return to training and when the campaign restarts.
The Premier League aims to start games in the second half of June, but they are able to prolong the season for completion until the end of August.
Nigeria has reported 338 new coronavirus cases taking the country’s overall number of confirmed infections to 5,959. On Sunday the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control confirmed this.
Newsmen say six patients in Nigeria have died from coronavirus-related complications over the last 24 hours.
Data obtained from the NCDC’s website showed that there are no fewer than 4,183 active cases of COVID-19 in Nigeria.
The centre said, “On the 17th of May 2020, 338 new confirmed cases and 6 deaths were recorded in Nigeria.
“No new state has reported a case in the last 24 hours.
“To date, 5959 cases have been reported, 1594 cases have been discharged, and 182 deaths in 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory have been registered.
“The 338 new cases are reported from 18 states- Lagos(177), Kano(64), FCT(21), Rivers(16), Plateau(14), Oyo(11), Katsina(9), Jigawa(4), Kaduna(4), Abia(3), Bauchi(3), Borno(3),Gombe(2), Akwa Ibom(2), Delta(2), Ondo(1), Kebbi(1), Sokoto(1).”
A further breakdown of the data revealed that on Sunday 122 COVID-19 patients were recovered and discharged throughout the region.
It also revealed that 26 per cent of sick citizens in Nigeria have healed from the virus while 3 per cent have died.