The Premier League has announced changes to the schedule for the penultimate weekend of the season, with title-chasing Manchester City facing a difficult period of negotiation.
Pep Guardiola is unlikely to be happy with the result (Image: James Gill/Getty Images)
Premier League leaders have ignored Manchester City’s pleas for support for the backlog. City manager Josep Guardiola has three important games in seven days as he chases the domestic treble.
City face Crystal Palace on Wednesday, May 13 at 8pm, before heading to Wembley for the FA Cup final on Saturday, May 16, before heading to Bournemouth three days later for a 7.30pm kick-off.
This means they face two tough title competitions: a direct showdown with Arsenal and the FA Cup final against Chelsea. There are only two sunny days in the build-up to Wembley and just two sunny days before the game against Bournemouth.
This could be a huge blow to their title chances, but the Premier League resisted City’s attempts to swap games against Palace and Bournemouth to create a one-day recovery period.
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The Premier League’s directive states that the first high-profile match should be played first, and it is understood that several clubs have argued that the schedule should not be changed.
Sky has also selected the London derby between Chelsea and Tottenham to kick off at 8.15pm on May 19th. Arsenal’s final home game of the season against Burnley will be played on Monday 18 May, but it is unlikely to please fans.
However, City were frustrated by the result and believe the match against Palace had to be rescheduled from February and they have offered a number of alternative dates.
Premier League fixtures have been updated (Image: Visionhaus/Getty Images)
They also claim that the immediate rescheduling of the match at Burnley for the FA Cup semi-final will put a huge strain on the players and there are concerns about their welfare.
It is also understood that had Liverpool beaten City in the FA Cup quarter-finals, a proposal had already been made to move the match between Palace and West Ham to Sunday the 19th rather than Monday the 20th, and the Prime Minister would have accepted this.
Sky’s other matches for the penultimate weekend are Aston Villa v Liverpool on May 17th at 12.30pm, Manchester United v Nottingham Forest at the same time and Newcastle v West Ham on May 17th at 5.30pm.
The Premier League insists it strives to be fair to all teams to ensure the health of the league.
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