Premier League football was put on hold last weekend following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, with top-flight officials deciding to postpone all 10 scheduled fixtures as a mark of respect for Britain’s longest-serving monarch.
Despite being given the green light by the Government to play on, the Premier League joined their EFL and FA counterparts in cancelling the weekend’s fixtures altogether, meaning there was a total shutdown in English football from the summit down to grassroots level.
But it is the country’s top division which faces the toughest task in rearranging their postponed fixtures. During an already-congested season which includes a winter World Cup in Qatar, Premier League chiefs must now find an appropriate time to play their proposed matches for game-week seven.
Premier League football was put on hold last weekend following the death of Queen Elizabeth
English top-flight chiefs now face a tough challenge in rearranging the 10 cancelled games
The biggest problem with doing so, however, is there are no midweek slots available for the remainder of 2022. And to make matters even more complicated, the second half of the campaign will be even more jam-packed due to Carabao Cup, FA Cup and European fixtures.
There may also be another round of games to reschedule, as this weekend’s next 10 matches too are under threat due to fears over police numbers with the Queen’s funeral set to take place on Monday 19 September.
So how can the Premier League solve its latest conundrum? Sportsmail has taken a closer look at their potential solutions.
There are only three available midweek slots between now and the end of the season
Which games need to be rearranged?
All 10 games from the seventh round of Premier League fixtures were not played at the weekend, meaning they will need to be contested at a later date in the season.
Should a lack of policing numbers derail this weekend’s matches too, the top flight will be left scrambling to fit two more game-weeks into a hectic season.
On the day before the Queen’s funeral, Brentford vs Arsenal, Man United vs Leeds and Everton vs West Ham are currently due to take place at 2pm, before Chelsea host Liverpool at 4:30pm.
The Premier League is believed to be assessing potential solutions for the London-based matches, which include moving Chelsea vs Liverpool from Stamford Bridge to Anfield. Sportsmail understands that fixture is in major doubt to go ahead in west London the day before the Queen’s funeral takes place.
It could be brought forward to Saturday evening, although Arsenal would not be able to play on this day given their Europa League involvement on Thursday.
Will European matches go ahead?
Despite the problems surrounding their league clash with Liverpool, Chelsea’s Champions League encounter with Red Bull Salzburg is set to be played as scheduled at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night.
The day beforehand, Tottenham are due to go away to Sporting Lisbon and Liverpool are hosting Ajax, before Rangers and Manchester City also play at home on Wednesday – while Celtic make the trip to Shakhtar Donetsk. Rangers’ meeting with Napoli was delayed 24 hours due to stretched policing resources, with the Queen’s coffin set to be flown south on Tuesday.
In the Europa League, Man United are due to go away to Sheriff on Thursday night, however Arsenal’s home outing against PSV Eindhoven is in doubt as the Queen’s coffin is expected to move through London on that day.
West Ham and Hearts are also in Europa Conference League action on the same night.
When could postponed Premier League fixtures take place?
As things stand, Premier League officials have no dates free for the rest of 2022 to play their delayed round of matches.
From next Monday domestic football is put on hold for the latest international break, and every midweek between then and the World Cup in November is already being used for European ties, league fixtures and the Carabao Cup.
Following the Qatar showpiece, English football returns on the week of December 20 with the fourth round of the Carabao Cup, before three rounds of Premier League games take place over the Christmas period.
In 2023 there are only three vacant midweek slots the Premier League could turn to before the season’s end on May 28, yet these dates have been left so for a reason.
Teams involved in the Carabao Cup final on February 26, plus the FA Cup quarter-finals and semi-finals in March and April, will need to move their league fixtures scheduled for those dates.
It could also become even more complicated should a team go far in European competition as well as domestic tournaments, leaving the Premier League with even fewer dates to rearrange their multiple fixtures.
Can games be moved to European, Carabao Cup or FA Cup midweeks?
Clubs who progress to the Champions League knockout stages have two extra spare midweeks during the round of 16, which is held in February and March. It is the same story for Europa League and Europa Conference League group winners. This could offer one potential solution for the Premier League to turn to.
They could also look to stage some matches on the same night as European fixtures, although there is a Memorandum Of Understanding between domestic leagues and UEFA to prevent these clashes from happening.
The Premier League was fined £1.1m for doing so in 2013, and while this has been relaxed in recent years it is still advised to avoid a clash if possible.
Nevertheless, if they have few other options the English top flight can use European midweeks to play their postponed games, but that might not be of use for the seven teams involved: Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Man City, Man United, Tottenham and West Ham.
Another potential issue would be for clubs who finish third in their Champions League group, second or third in their Europa League group, or second in their Europa Conference League group, as they will then have to play two knockout ties in February before a possible pair of last-16 ties in March.
What’s the solution?
The Premier League will be hoping to make use of their three vacant midweek slots, which could be possible if teams avoid European knockout ties in February.
In the worst-case scenario, they could also scrap third and fourth-round replays in the FA Cup, which was necessary in each of the last two seasons due to Covid-19 postponements. Doing so would free up two extra midweek slots.
Carabao Cup semi-finals could be made one-legged affairs, too, to open up another midweek.
Whatever their thinking, the Premier League cannot extend the 2022-23 season to accommodate their postponed fixtures, as the FA Cup final (June 3) and Champions League final (June 10) are taking place before an international break for Euro 2024 qualifiers.
Meanwhile, both the EFL and Scottish FA have confirmed fixtures will resume this week, with all eyes now on the Premier League ahead of their weekend matches.
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