Arsenal manager Arteta tests positive for COVID-19

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday, the club confirmed.

As a result, the London Colney training center has been closed, and club personnel who had recent close contact with the Spaniard will self-isolate. That includes the entirety of the first-team squad and coaching staff, along with a "smaller number" of people from the club's academy, which has also been temporarily closed as a precautionary measure.

The news comes less than an hour after the Premier League said its weekend fixture list was going ahead as planned. Immediately after Arteta's diagnosis was made public, the league appeared to reverse course, saying an emergency meeting would be held Friday morning regarding future fixtures.

Arsenal's match against Brighton & Hove Albion, which was slated to be played on Saturday, has been postponed.

"This is really disappointing but I took the test after feeling poorly," the 37-year-old Arteta said. "I will be at work as soon as I'm allowed."

Arsenal's most recent Premier League match, originally scheduled for March 11 against Manchester City, had to be called off as players were quarantined after coming into contact with Olympiacos owner Evangelos Marinakis, who tested positive for the coronavirus.

"The health of our people and the wider public is our priority and that is where our focus is. Our thoughts are with Mikel who is disappointed but in good spirits," managing director Vinai Venkatesham said.

"We are in active dialogue with all the relevant people to manage this situation appropriately, and we look forward to getting back to training and playing as soon as medical advice allows."

Arteta is the most prominent member of the English football community to contract the virus. Two players in Italy, Daniele Rugani and Manolo Gabbiadini, have also tested positive.