Tottenham to face Fulham on Wednesday with Aston Villa game postponed

Tottenham will now face Fulham in a rearranged Premier League fixture on Wednesday, with Spurs' game against Aston Villa postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak among the Villans' squad.

Villa fielded a makeshift team of youngsters against Liverpool in the FA Cup on Friday night, but rules in England's top flight differ and they are now unable to fulfil the fixture due to the number of first-team players ruled out.

A Premier League statement revealed: "The match between Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur, due to be played at Villa Park on Wednesday 13 January, has been rescheduled following a decision by the Premier League Board.

"Following Villa's request to rearrange the fixture, and due to the number of players and staff who have either tested positive for COVID-19 or have been placed in isolation by the club, the Premier League had no other option than to reschedule the match.

"With the health of players and staff the priority, the League continues to work with Villa on measures to ensure their League season resumes safely and at the earliest opportunity.

"The Premier League wishes those with COVID-19 a full and swift recovery and will rearrange Villa's match against Spurs as soon as possible.

"As a result of this rescheduling, Spurs will now play their home match against Fulham in its place, on Wednesday 13 January at 20:15 GMT, live on Amazon Prime Video in the UK. The fixture was previously postponed on 30 December.

"With Fulham playing on Wednesday 13 January, their home fixture against Chelsea will be moved from Friday 15 January to Saturday 16 January at 17:30 GMT, and will remain live on Sky Sports in the UK. 

"Everton's match at Villa will be rescheduled from Saturday 16 January 17:30 GMT to Sunday 17 January 12:00 GMT, and will remain live on Sky Sports in the UK."

The fixture between Tottenham and the Cottagers was due to be played on 30 December but was pushed back due to coronavirus issues in Scott Parker's squad. That game needed a new date and is now scheduled for Wednesday.

Fulham are understood to be unhappy with the short notice of the rearrangement, having played 120 minutes in the FA Cup at the weekend in their extra-time 2-0 victory over Queens Park Rangers.

Parker was not aware of any potential rescheduling and could have fielded a different team against QPR had he been informed sooner.

The R rate in the United Kingdom has grown in recent months, with Newcastle manager Steve Bruce calling it 'morally wrong' to continue playing, and a record 40 positive COVID-19 tests were announced by the Premier League in the last two rounds of testing between 28 December and 3 January.

Villa boss Dean Smith and his squad have been isolating and their training centre has been closed due to the number of positive cases recorded at the club last week.

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