Sheffield Wednesday FA Cup tie against Exeter City will go ahead without caretaker manager Neil Thompson as training ground remains closed

They will, however, have their fourth manager of the season in the dugout after caretaker Neil Thompson and his temporary assistants Lee Bullen and Steven Haslam were amongst “a significant number of club personnel” to have been found to have the virus in the latest round of testing.

The Owls had closed their Middlewood Road training ground down earlier in the week in light of an outbreak which has now spread. The gates will therefore remain closed until further notice.

But with pressure on clubs to fulfil their FA Cup fixtures, Saturday's FA Cup tie at St James Park will go ahead, with academy coach Andy Holdsworth, assisted by Daral Pugh, Nicky Weaver and Tony Strudwick.

Clubs unable to field teams in this season's third round face being thrown out of the competition if they cannot get the tie played before the fourth round is due to take place on January's penultimate weekend. Wary, perhaps, of the threat of mounting fixture problems, the FA have announced the fourth and fifth round draws will both take place on Monday evening to aid planning.

Wednesday's Championship rivals Derby County have already said their first-team players, including caretaker manager Wayne Rooney, will miss their tie against Conference North Chorley, but that youth-team players will fulfil the fixture.

On the one hand, going out of the FA Cup would give the Owls and Derby more preparation time for vital Championship matches as they look to avoid relegation, on the other it would deny them the chance of competing for prize money not to be sniffed at in difficult times financially.

Such has been Wednesday's cashflow issues that they were unable to pay their players on time and in full in November, although the wages have since been settled. Wednesday and Derby are level on points after the South Yorkshire side won their New Year's Day game, with the Rams in the relegation zone on goal difference having played a game less than the Owls, one place above it.

Thompson was already the third man to take charge of the team this season, following the sackings of Garry Monk and his successor Tony Pulis. He has so far won both his matches.

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