Arsenal head-coach Mikel Arteta says he's now feeling "completely recovered" from his bout of COVID-19 and he's urging the British public to social isolate to help contain the spread of the virus.
The former Spanish midfielder tested positive coronavirus on March 12th, with the Premier League season suspended less than 24-hours later. Arteta's diagnosis came soon after Olympiakos and Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis, who had attended Arsenal's loss to the Greek side in the Europa League, also contracted the virus.
"I am feeling completely recovered," Arteta told the Gunners' official website. "It's true I started having some symptoms when we got the phone call from the club to let us know that we might be exposed to the virus because of the owner of Olympiacos and in that moment. I don't know, I felt something within me, that I had it.
"We had a game the following day against Manchester City, so I made a decision and called the doctor straight away and I asked him to drive home.
"I said, 'Listen, we have a couple of players that have been exposed. There is a massive risk there and as well I am the first one feeling the symptoms, very clear symptoms. So if that is the case, all of the players and the people related to the club who are in contact with me on a daily basis are exposed. So we cannot make that decision, we have to speak to the Premier League, to Manchester City and we have to make the decision pretty quickly.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta during the training session at London Colney.
Arteta is now urging people in the UK to follow their government's advice to stay and home in a bid to help halt the spread of COVID-19:
"Please to everybody, we are a little bit behind other countries, for example Spain, where I know the situation they are living at the moment, and while we are having the opportunity a little bit to minimise the risk, I encourage everybody please to be responsible and stay at home as much as possible.
"That is all we can do from our position, we don’t have the ability to help others in other circumstances, so please at least stay at home and do what is required.
"We have to try to help the NHS as much as possible and we have to give the opportunity to the elderly people who needs this more than anybody else to get the treatment they require. We have to slow the process down and the virus down, so please stay at home."
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