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The Latest: Rangers suspend 2 players for breaking protocol

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Leeds United's Rodrigo, right, heads the ball in front of Aston Villa's Douglas Luiz, during the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Leeds United at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, Friday, Oct. 23, 2020. (Michael Steele/Pool via AP)

The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:

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The managing director of Scottish Premiership leader Rangers says the breaching of virus protocols by players Jordan Jones and George Edmundson is "totally unacceptable.”

The duo have been suspended by the club pending an investigation for attending a private gathering on Sunday "with others outside their household.” They have to self-isolate for 14 days. They were not involved in Rangers' win on Sunday against Kilmarnock.

Stewart Robertson says, "It is totally unacceptable for any of our players to be involved in anything that puts at risk the excellent protocols that have been put in place at Rangers.

"We will not tolerate behaviour that does not follow those standards.”

Jones, who has appeared sparingly for Rangers, has been dropped from Northern Ireland’s squad for the Euro 2020 playoff final against Slovakia in Belfast next week and told by national coach Ian Baraclough to learn from the incident.

Edmundson hasn't appeared for Rangers since September.

The Scottish government has commended Rangers for its "swift and decisive action.”

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A coronavirus outbreak at Ajax has left the club without its two main goalkeepers and preparing to give 20-year Kjell Scherpen his debut in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Ajax traveled to Denmark with just 17 players to face Midtjylland, including Scherpen, who is 2.02 meters (6-foot-7), as the only goalie.

Ajax coach Erik ten Hag says of his selection issues: “It‘s not ideal but you have to deal with it. Every team can get the coronavirus. Now we have it.”

Goalkeepers Andre Onana and Maarten Stekelenburg stayed home on Monday among a group of players including playmaker and captain Dušan Tadić.

Ten Hag says “it’s strange” that some players have played in the Netherlands but “are not allowed to travel in Denmark” according to local rules during the pandemic.

Ajax and Midtjylland are seeking a first win in Group D which is led after two rounds by Liverpool, with Atalanta in second place.

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Spain striker Rodrigo could be in doubt for his team’s upcoming international matches after being forced to isolate from the Leeds squad because he was in contact with a person who has subsequently tested positive for the coronavirus.

Rodrigo was not involved for Leeds in its match against Leicester in the English Premier League on Monday.

It was not immediately clear when Rodrigo would be free to play again.

Spain plays the Netherlands away in a friendly on Nov. 11, followed by Nations League group games against Switzerland and Germany.

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Arizona Cardinals linebacker Devon Kennard says he has tested positive for COVID-19 but feels “completely normal so far.”

Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury said Monday that the team learned of two positive tests for the coronavirus over the weekend but didn’t say who was affected.

The 29-year-old Kennard signed with the Cardinals in the offseason after playing his first six seasons with the New York Giants and Detroit Lions. He has played in five games this season, starting four, and has two sacks.

Kennard wrote on social media Monday: “Thankfully, I feel completely normal so far. Please keep my family & I in your prayers as we navigate this. I look forward to being back on the field w/my teammates as soon as I am cleared & it’s safe to do so.”

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The Cleveland Browns switched their meetings to virtual gatherings on Monday after a player reported COVID-19 symptoms.

The team said in a statement that the unidentified “active” player had not reported to the team’s Berea, Ohio, facility as the team began its bye week. It also said there have been no positive tests “among players, coaches or staff members.”

Cleveland lost 16-6 at home to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday. The Browns host Houston on Nov. 15.

The Browns haven’t had a positive coronavirus test since training camp.

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The Green Bay Packers say one of their players has tested positive for COVID-19.

Team officials say all player meetings on Monday are being conducted virtually. The player who tested positive has self-quarantined.

The Packers didn’t identify the player. This marks the first time a Packers player has tested positive during the season.

Green Bay (5-2) has a short week before playing at San Francisco (4-4) on Thursday night.

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The Houston Texans have had no other positive COVID-19 tests since one positive test forced their facility to close during last week’s bye week.

Interim coach Romeo Crennel said the facility underwent a deep cleaning last week and operations were back to normal Monday. The Texans returned to work to prepare for Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Houston’s facility was closed on Wednesday after a positive test the night before. The Texans placed offensive lineman Max Scharping on the NFL’s COVID-19 reserve list hours after they shut their building.

“We’re trying we’re trying to do the right thing,” Crennel said. “And I think our players are doing the right thing.”

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Coach Kliff Kingsbury says the Arizona Cardinals had two unidentified positive COVID-19 tests over the weekend.

The Cardinals have been on their bye week and play their next game at home on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. Kingsbury said Monday that players had a three-hour window to come in for testing each day during the bye week and the positive results were discovered during the weekend.

“Luckily, the contact tracing was limited and yesterday’s test results were all negative, so we’re just moving forward with that protocol and taking it from there,” Kingsbury said.

The Cardinals are in a battle for the top of the NFC West. They have won three straight and have a 5-2 record entering their game against the Dolphins.

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The Swiss soccer league has postponed two more games because of coronavirus outbreaks at clubs.

Only one of the 10 teams in the league has played its full schedule of six games so far in a season that started two months later than normal.

Switzerland is seeing steep rises in COVID-19 cases with some areas going back into lockdown.

The league says Sion’s game at Lucerne on Wednesday and Servette’s visit to Vaduz in Liechtenstein on Sunday have been postponed. No new dates were announced.

The Swiss league postpones games if a club has at least six players unavailable because of infection or quarantine.

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Bayern Munich says defender Niklas Süle has tested positive for the coronavirus and is in isolation at home.

Bayern says the 25-year-old center back “is doing well.”

The announcement came before Bayern traveled to Salzburg for a Champions League match.

Forward Serge Gnabry missed the opening group game against Atletico Madrid two weeks ago but was later allowed to leave isolation after further negative tests.

Süle has played in nine of Bayern’s 11 games in all competitions this season after missing most of last season with a cruciate ligament injury in his knee.

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Real Madrid says Éder Militão has tested positive for the coronavirus.

The reserve defender is likely to miss the team’s Champions League match against Inter Milan on Tuesday.

Madrid says all other players and staff members linked to the first team tested negative after tests carried out on Sunday.

The rest of the players were training normally.

Madrid is last in Group B after opening with a home loss to Shakhtar Donetsk and a draw at Borussia Mönchengladbach.

Militão has made three appearances this season. He is the second Madrid player to test positive for COVID-19 recently. Forward Mariano Díaz was the other.

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More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports


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