Saturday, December 25, 2021 at 10:35• Jordi Tomasowa

Tim Krul will not be able to play with Norwich City against Arsenal on Boxing Day. The 33-year-old goalkeeper has to miss the Premier League game because he has tested positive for the corona virus, he announced via Twitter. It is the first time that Krul has played a game of . this season the Canaries must miss.

Krul announced on Twitter on Saturday morning that he cannot take action for the time being. “Happy Christmas. I have been tested positive for the corona virus again. Hopefully 2022 will bring more beauty for everyone. Stay safe and healthy,” said the Norwich goalkeeper. Krul is the undisputed base player at the bottom of the Premier League this season. With ten points from seventeen matches, the team of coach Dean Smith shares last place with Newcastle United. Krul has conceded 34 goals in the competition so far.

Norwich will face Arsenal at home on Boxing Day on Sunday. Due to various corona outbreaks, Liverpool-Leeds United, Wolverhampton Wanderers-Watford and Burnley-Everton have already been canceled. The corona virus has been spreading rapidly in the Premier League in the last month and Norwich has not been spared that. The club had to miss Lukas Rupp, Pierre Lees-Melou, Christos Tzolis and Josh Sargent against Aston Villa (0-2 loss) due to a corona infection and urged the organization of the competition to postpone the game. Norwich, however, got zero on the bill and then went down.

Manager Smith made a striking revelation about Billy Gilmour on Friday. The midfielder, who completed the game, had a temperature of 38.4 degrees. Smith has since said he regrets being ‘negligent’ with his player’s well-being. Smith’s revelation about Gilmour is utterly remarkable and deeply objectionable. Exercising with a fever is dangerous and can cause serious damage to the heart muscle or even deadly arrhythmias. In addition, it can slow down the recovery process from the acquired disease. “He was one of the players who shouldn’t have played,” Smith says. “I tried to have the game postponed, but in hindsight I should have tried harder. I think I’ve talked more with my medical staff than anyone else in the past few weeks.”