Derek McInnes has warned Scottish football faces the same fate as its European counterparts in its efforts to deal with coronavirus.
Games in Italy, Spain, France, Portugal and Netherlands have already been suspended, with games in the Champions League and Europa League played behind closed doors or postponed.
Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers confirmed yesterday that some players had been exhibiting signs of coronavirus, a day after Arsenal players had self-isolated after coming into contact with Olympiakos owner Evangelos Marinakis, who has the virus.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has advised that from Monday, gatherings of more than 500 people should be banned with 60 confirmed cases in Scotland.
McInnes insists preparations have to be made for games being called off to help prevent the spread of Covid-19.
McInnes, whose side take on Motherwell tonight, said: “The seriousness of the situation is increasing on a daily basis and we have to see how it plays out. There are going to be major implications on people’s lives and that includes football, so it seems inevitable it’s going to affect sporting events.
“But as far as we are concerned the Motherwell game goes ahead as planned and it’s the next fixtures where we don’t know if they’ll go ahead. That’s up to the powers that be as safety is an obvious concern and the situation is changing all the time.
“What you’re seeing across Europe at the minute is obviously a pattern that is going to hit us soon when you see games off in Italy and Spain. It is inevitable it’s going to end up in some club’s dressing room as we can see by the situation at Leicester City.
“It’s important for me and the players to be ready for the match at Fir Park as we can only deal with the next match. That’s why we have been trying not to interact too much with the fans and take precautions at Pittodrie and the training ground.”
Dons players have been using separate entrances from the public at Pittodrie and Cormack Park, while the club’s community trust has been relocated away from the training ground to the stadium.
The Scottish football authorities have asked for talks with the Scottish Government. A statement from SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell and SPFL counterpart Neil Doncaster read: “For the avoidance of doubt, all SPFL games scheduled for this weekend will be proceeding as planned.”
They added: “Once we are in possession of a definitive action plan from the Scottish Government, we will communicate contingency plans as quickly and as accurately as possible to all our stakeholders.”
McInnes, meanwhile, intends to discuss a potential deal with free agent Tommie Hoban in the coming days.