Manchester United game off as Premier League is hit by record 42 Covid cases

• Tuesday's game at Brentford postponed due to Covid outbreak
• Weekly total reaches new high with Villa and Brighton affected

The carefully crafted sense of stability around English football began to crumble on Monday night after a record number of positive Covid-19 tests, with Manchester United's Tuesday game at Brentford called off and the possibility of more postponements to come.

Forty-two Premier League players and officials tested positive for the virus in the seven days that ended on Sunday, a record for a single week since testing began and more than three times the 12 of the previous week.