Coronavirus: Tammy Abraham, Ben Chilwell and Jadon Sancho caught partying with 20 people
The England internationals celebrated the Chelsea forward's 23rd birthday, breaking Covid-19 rules which state groups of more than six cannot mix.
Another scandal has rocked the England national team. During the last international break, Mason Greenwood and Phil Foden broke Covid-19 protocol by inviting two Islandic girls to their hotel; now it has emerged that Tammy Abraham, Ben Chilwell and Jadon Sancho have been involved in a similar incident. The three internationals held a party to celebrate Abraham's 23rd birthday. But instead of keeping it a low-key affair, within Covid-19 guidelines, 20 guests were invited to the party, when under new restrictions imposed by the UK government, only groups of a maximum of six people can mix in the same place - one of the measures in place which aims to halt the virus from spreading exponentially during the cold winter months. Making matters worse, Sancho had missed Dortmund's last two games through illness and was excluded from the squad for the most recent game - so this latest news will not go down at all well with his club.
Pictures taken at the party show guests without face masks, or wearing them under their chin. Sancho can be seen dancing and ignoring social distancing rules. The party took place after Chlesea's 4-0 win over Crystal Palace on Wednesday - just 36 hours before England boss Gareth Southgate announced his squad list for this month's international fixtures. "He wasn't aware that a party had been planned. Neither he nor Sancho drink alcohol", a source close to Abraham said, explaining that it was a surprise party which the player had no prior knowledge of.
No punishment
The English FA have studied the photographs which have been circulating on social media and have decided not to take the matter further. Southgate meanwhile, has made no comment. The three players will undergo PCR tests along with the rest of their team mates and remain isolated until Thursday's friendly against Wales at Wembley.
Abraham apology
Birthday boy Tammy Abraham has publicly apologised and explained what happened. "I arrived home to find a small surprise gathering. Though I was totally unaware this was planned, I would like to wholeheartedly apologise for the naivety shown for the organisation and attending of this gathering. All I can do now is learn from it, apologise to everyone and ensure it never happens again".