Palace manager Patrick Vieira to miss Spurs game after testing positive for Covid-19

Boxing Day match to go ahead despite cases in Crystal Palace squad

Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira has tested positive for coronavirus. EPA

Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira will not be at Sunday's match at Tottenham Hotspur after testing positive for Covid-19.

"We can confirm that Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira is self-isolating after returning a positive test for Covid-19, and will be absent from the touchline for today's match against Spurs," Palace said in a statement. Assistant manager Osian Roberts will take charge of the team.

The news came after Crystal Palace failed in their attempt to get the Boxing Day's fixture called off due to a number of positive cases in their camp.

Vieira had revealed that there were a "couple of cases" in the side, but the increase over the following 48 hours was not deemed enough to see the game cancelled.

The Premier League had announced last week that matches will be played if a team has 13 fit outfield players and a goalkeeper.

Both clubs announced the game will go ahead as scheduled. The game at Tottenham is one of six Premier League fixtures on the Boxing Day programme.

Three matches were postponed due to coronavirus infections across squads: Burnley v Everton, Liverpool v Leeds and Wolverhampton v Watford.

The Premier League has called off 13 matches because of coronavirus issues in two weeks, with players having to isolate after testing positive or if they are unvaccinated and a close contact of a Covid-19 case.

Tottenham v West Ham ratings

TOTTENHAM RATINGS: Hugo Lloris 8 – A captain’s performance with his crucial interventions securing his side the victory. Getty

Davinson Sanchez 7 – Solid defensive performance. Not truly tested. PA

Eric Dier 6 – A misplaced pass led to West Ham’s equaliser, and he looked nervous against Bowen throughout the first half. Recovered in the second half to effectively marshal his defence. Getty

Ben Davies 6 – Played his part in a strong defensive second-half performance. AP

Matt Doherty 6 – The wing-back was solid and put in a disciplined performance. Getty

Oliver Skipp 8 – Battled away in the midfield. His vital defensive touch in the first half denied Soucek a West Ham equaliser. AP

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg 8 – Controlled the midfield all game with a desire to defend and attack. He provided the forward run and weighted assist for Spurs’ first goal. EPA

Sergio Reguilon 6 – Had a quieter night on the left-hand side despite being up against the inexperienced Ashby. Getty

Steven Bergwijn 8 – An impressive performance characterised by confident ball carrying and effortless passing. Scored Tottenham’s first with a well-taken finish and then assisted the second before being taken off at the hour mark. AFP

Lucas Moura 9 – Was a constant threat with line0breaking passes and excellent movement, which saw him score the winning goal. EPA

Harry Kane 7 – A quiet night for his standards but his passing helped sustain Spurs’ attacking play. EPA

SUBS: Heung-Min Son (Steven Bergwijn, 60) 7 – A bright substitute performance, but a poor first touch squandered an opportunity to take the game away from West Ham. EPA

Harry Winks (Lucas Moura, 61) 7 – Brought on to nullify the mounting West Ham pressure. Getty

Dele Alli (Oliver Skipp, 77) N/A – No opportunities in attack but tracked back to help his defenders in the final stages of the game. EPA

Japhet Tanganga (Matt Doherty, 83) N/A – Little time to make any impact. Getty

WEST HAM RATINGS: Alphonse Areola 6 – Was sharp in the early stages of the game but was at fault in conceding the second, which slipped underneath him. Reuters

Harrison Ashby 6 – The young wing-back was brought in to replace Coufal and, despite a promising first half, he struggled to make an impact in the second, and was replaced. AFP

Ben Johnson 6 – The academy graduate looked slightly rusty after returning from an injury sustained earlier this month. Some loose passing in attack, but an overall solid defensive performance. Getty

Craig Dawson 7 – Made early interceptions to deny the dangerous Bergwijn but was caught out of position for the opening Spurs goal. AP

Arthur Masuaku 6 – Constantly tested by Moura as Spurs proved dangerous on the counter. Had greater attacking opportunities in the second half but failed to deliver a decisive final ball. Getty

Issa Diop 6 – Good distribution from defence but can be faulted for poor positional play in the vital second goal. AP

Declan Rice 8 – A lively performance all game. Combative in defence and creative in attack. As captain, he rallied West Ham in search of a second-half equaliser. Reuters

Tomas Soucek 7 – Put in a strong performance in both attack and defence. Unlucky to be denied by several times by Lloris. AP

Manuel Lanzini 6 – Looked bright in the early stages of the game but poor defending contributed to his side conceding the second goal. Getty

Nikola Vlasic 6 – Had a quiet night but has an assist to his name from an attempted shot that was retrieved by Bowen. Getty

Jarrod Bowen 8 – The in-form forward was a constant threat to the Spurs defence. A clever control, turn and finish saw him equalise for the Hammers. AFP

SUBS: Pablo Fornals (Manuel Lanzini, 68) 5 – Made little much impact on the game in the 22-minute cameo. AP

Said Benrahma (Nikola Vlasic, 68) 7 – Lively and busy off the bench. He came close to the equaliser with a well-taken volley that went just wide. Andriy Yarmolenko (Harrison Ashby, 80) N/A – His first contribution to the game saw him cleverly feed Benrahma and his deflected shot almost equalised for West Ham in the final seconds. Reuters