Newcastle boss Steve Bruce bans players and staff from shaking hands over coronavirus fears

Posted Saturday, February 29, 2020 by Thesun.co.uk

NEWCASTLE boss Steve Bruce has banned players and staff from shaking hands due to coronavirus fears.

The Toon chief is determined to take every precaution to prevent a possible outbreak at the club.

Steve Bruce has banned his players and staff at Newcastle shaking hands to prevent any spread of coronavirus

He said: "The ritual here is we shake hands every day, we have stopped that on the advice of the doctor.

"We have a superb doctor here and he will keep us informed, we are all glued to the TV and let’s hope it doesn’t get any worse in this country.

"In confined areas like we have got, like over Christmas we had a virus that wasn’t cornonavirs, you have to be careful, we are mindful of a bug sweeping through.

"We had four or five, you just have to stay at home. It is always something you are looking at."

Newcastle host Burnley at St James' Park on Saturday.

Brits were warned by Chief Medical Officer for England Prof Chris Whitty they face months of coronavirus chaos with sporting events, gigs and schools on lockdown to stop the spread of the killer bug.

An emergency shutdown could mean this summer's Euros tournament, Premier League games, the FA Cup Final, Grand National and Glastonbury are all under threat.

Even the famous April London Marathon could be called off as organisers say said they are "monitoring" the situation.

Two of the first British people to contract the virus were quarantined in Newcastle after testing positive.

Italy is the worst-affected country in Europe with 17 deaths and 650 cases of coronavirus.

A Spanish journalist who travelled to Milan to cover Valencia's Champions League tie with Atalanta last week is currently being treated.

Inter Milan's crunch Serie A clash with Juventus on Sunday is set to be played behind closed doors as the Italian government ban all sporting events in six regions of the country including the area of Turin where the Allianz Stadium is located.

The Six Nations fixtures between Ireland and Italy in Dublin next weekend have already been postponed while in cycling the UAE Tour was cancelled on Thursday night.

All the riders were kept in their rooms, including four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome, after two competitors were tested positive.

In Formula One, the Chinese GP has already been cancelled but there are now major concerns over the first FOUR races of the new season.