Wolves request postponement of Europa League game as Marinakis contracts coronavirus
Olympiacos owner Evangelos Marinakis has contracted the coronavirus, with Wolverhampton Wanderers now asking to postpone the UEFA Europa League encounter scheduled for Thursday.
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Marinakis, the fiery 52-year-old Olympiacos supremo, announced via his social media platforms that he has fallen ill with the coronavirus which is continuing to rapidly spread across the globe after it initially started in China:
3,959 Likes, 368 Comments - Evangelos Marinakis (@evangelos.marinakis) on Instagram: "#Marinakis #HealthStatement #Message"
In response, Nottingham Forest - also owned by Marinakis - released this following statement:
“Nottingham Forest can confirm that owner Evangelos Marinakis has tested positive for the coronavirus.
“Mr Marinakis was diagnosed after showing the first symptoms on his return to Greece yesterday afternoon. During his short stay in Nottingham last week he did not show any symptoms of the virus.
“The club are seeking advice from medical professionals and the relevant governing bodies to ensure the correct measures are taken.
“Until this time the club will be making no further comment.”
Wolves, due to play against Olympiacos in the first leg of the Last 16 of the Europa League on Thursday evening in Piraeus, have subsequently requested UEFA to postpone the match. It had already been confirmed that the Karaiskakis Stadium would be empty for the game after the Ministry of Health ordered for all sporting events to be held behind closed doors for the next two weeks.
UEFA is yet to release an official statement concerning the possibility of postponing the game in Greece.
All Olympiacos players and staff have now been taken to hospital in order to undergo tests for coronavirus. Several matches across the continent have either been postponed or ordered to be played inside empty stadiums with the spread of the virus having spiralled completely out of control.
The second leg of the Europa League battle between Olympiacos and Wolves is due to be played in Wolverhampton, England next week. The UK has also been badly hit by the outbreak.
