Finally, finally, FINALLY, the decision makers and powers that be at the Premier League and EFL have come to their senses, postponing all domestic football until April 3 because of the coronavirus outbreak.
With confirmed COVID-19 cases rapidly rising in the country - including positive diagnosis
Arsenal
Postponed fixtures: Brighton (Away), Southampton (Away), Sheffield United (Away - FA Cup)
The Premier League had initially announced that there would be no disruption to the league's schedule, but that all changed when Arsenal announced a positive diagnosis for head coach Mikel Arteta.
Consequently, the entire first-team squad, coaching staff and other club personnel have gone into self-isolation. Games against Brighton and Southampton are off for now, as is the FA Cup quarter-final against Sheffield United.
Aston Villa
The good news for Villa fans is that the club are yet to indicate any need for self isolation. Crunch games against Chelsea and Newcastle are affected in the short-term, but may give Dean Smith some time to get his troops together - if training isn't suspended that is - and figure out a way to beat the drop.
In the meantime, the club have decided to donate 850 staff packed lunches and hot food that would have been served at Villa Park to support homeless charities, which is a lovely touch.
Bournemouth
Postponed fixtures: Crystal Palace (Home), Wolves (Away)
There's not such good news down the south coast, with Bournemouth confirming that
Brighton
Postponed fixtures: Arsenal (Home), Leicester (Away)
Staying down south, we hop over to Brighton - who, at the time of writing, are yet to announce any significant issues.
The Seagulls have closed their academy and talent centres as a precaution, but there's no indication that any associate of the club has the virus at this stage. A mouthwatering clash with Arsenal at the Amex is the first of their postponed games, as is their trip to high-flying Leicester.
Burnley
Postponed fixtures: Man City (Away), Watford (Home)
All is currently well at Turf Moor, too, with the only information coming out of the club confirming that games against Manchester City and Watford will need to be rescheduled.
Chelsea
Postponed fixtures: Aston Villa (Away), Bayern Munich (Away - Champions League), Manchester City (Home), Leicester (Away - FA Cup)
Over in west London, winger Callum Hudson-Odoi became the first top-flight player to test positive for COVID-19, though he thankfully has revealed that he's on the mend.
Self-isolation protocols are in place at the club, and a deep clean at the club's training ground in Cobham has been completed. Games against Aston Villa and Manchester City in the Premier League are off, as is the Blues' clash with Leicester in the FA Cup, and their Champions League tie with Bayern Munich.
Crystal Palace
Postponed fixtures: Bournemouth (Away), Liverpool (Away)
Crystal Palace are yet to announce any issues, but had already taken the precaution of cancelling Roy Hodgson's pre-match press conference prior to the Premier League's announcement.
Away days at Bournemouth and Liverpool are affected, with the Eagles telling fans to hold onto their tickets for now and await further information.
Everton
Postponed fixtures: Liverpool (Home), Norwich (Away)
Early on Friday morning, Everton announced that
Leicester
Postponed fixtures: Watford (Away), Chelsea (Home - FA Cup), Brighton (Home)
Up until lunchtime on Thursday March 12, English football had remained relatively unscathed. That was until Brendan Rodgers confirmed in his news conference to the media that three of his players had displayed symptoms of coronavirus.
They were immediately isolated from the remainder of the squad, yet the Premier League - until very late on in the evening - were still prepared to allow their game with Watford to go ahead. Startling really.
Now, that game, along with an FA Cup tie with Chelsea and home Premier League game with Brighton, are shelved.
Liverpool
Postponed fixtures: Everton (Away), Crystal Palace (Home)
If you're a Liverpool fan, you must be going through the absolute ringer as uncertainty rages on over the season's future.
The Reds have got the Premier League all wrapped up - pretty much - but will now have to wait to play Everton or Crystal Palace, if they play them at all.
Still, no reported problems at the club, which is the most important thing.
Manchester City
Postponed fixtures: Burnley (Home), Real Madrid (Home - Champions League), Chelsea (Away), Newcastle (Away - FA Cup)
Manchester City are among the sides to have the most disruption, with their fixture list already piling up after the postponement of their Premier League game with Arsenal.
Now, Benjamin Mendy is self-isolating after a family member displayed symptoms of coronavirus, and the club's games with Burnley, Chelsea and Newcastle - as well as
Manchester is not the place to be...
Manchester United
Postponed fixtures: Tottenham (Away), LASK (Home - Europa League), Sheffield United (Home), Norwich (Away - FA Cup)
...That said, if you're looking for good form and a team very much on a high, look no further than Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Manchester United.
Unfortunately, that momentum will now be ground to a halt - games against Tottenham, Sheffield United, Norwich in the FA Cup and LASK in the Europa League - are postponed.
However, no issues to report as yet - which, again, is the one thing that matters.
Newcastle
Postponed fixtures: Sheffield United (Home), Aston Villa (Home), Manchester City (Home - FA Cup)
No issues on Tyneside either, with Newcastle's Steve Bruce confirming to the media that everything is okay as it stands.
What's not so fine is that a run of three home games - against Sheffield United, Aston Villa and Manchester City in the FA Cup - are now on the backburner.
Norwich
Postponed fixtures: Southampton (Home), Everton (Home), Manchester United (Home - FA Cup)
Like Newcastle, no sign of coronavirus trouble and also three consecutive home games in all competitions that have been canned.
Southampton, Everton and Manchester United in the FA Cup are the affected trio of fixtures, with the Canaries assuring fans that tickets, hospitality packages and matchday experiences for the Saints and United games will remain valid.
No mention of the Everton game, though.
Sheffield United
Fortunately, there's nothing doing at Sheffield United, either, with the club's website just relaying the information passed on by the Premier League.
Premier League games with Newcastle and Manchester United must wait, as well as the Blades' home FA Cup quarter-final tie with Arsenal. The only bad news is that Enda Stevens - who has signed a new three-year deal - is set for a spell on the sidelines.....then again, he may be back by the time play resumes.
Southampton
Postponed fixtures: Norwich (Away), Arsenal (Home)
One of the teams to have just two games postponed so far is Southampton, who are spared a trip to east Anglia to face Norwich.
The Saints' home game with Arsenal will also take place at a later date, with further information on ticketing and travel bookings to be updated on the club's website at a later date.
Tottenham
Postponed fixtures: Manchester United (Home), West Ham (Home)
So the Premier League clubs all convened at a meeting with the league's governing body to decide next steps, and two clubs decided they wanted to scrap it all.
One was West Ham, the other was Tottenham.
West Ham and Tottenham want the Premier League season completely cancelled and rendered null and void. Is the right thing for the wrong reason still the right thing? #Covid19
— Ewan MacKenna (@EwanMacKenna) March 13, 2020
That probably isn't going to happen - unless it absolutely has to - but what will happen is games with Manchester United and the Hammers will be pushed back. No confirmed cases here, either.
Watford
Postponed fixtures: Leicester (Home), Burnley (Away)
Another side who have expressed concern over the welfare of their players are Watford and head coach Nigel Pearson.
The Hornets boss admitted that training had been cancelled after several members of his squad reported feeling unwell, going on to add that the '
West Ham
Postponed fixtures: Wolves (Home), Tottenham (Away)
There have also been problems in east London, with West Ham confirming they've self-isolated a number of people who came into contact with Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta last weekend.
There are no names attributed to the club's statement, but precautions are very much the order of the day has the sporting world essentially heads into lockdown. Clashes against Wolves and Tottenham will need to be re-arranged for a side who, as we noted before, wanted the entire season to be cancelled and results nullified.
I wonder why.
Wolves
Postponed fixtures: West Ham (Away), Olympiacos (Home - Europa League), Bournemouth (Home)
Wolves' 1-1 draw with Olympiacos in the Europa League will be their last fixture for the next three weeks, at least, with games against West Ham and Bournemouth now off.
Nuno's side are yet to report any problems in their camp, and will hope that remains the case after travelling to Greece to play a side whose owner, Evangelos Marinakis - who also owns Nottingham Forest - was one of the first footballing figures to be diagnosed as positive for coronavirus.
For more information on which leagues, fixtures and clubs have been affected and the latest news regarding the coronavirus in football, see 90min's live blog for the latest updates.
Source : 90min