Premier League Deny City’s Fixture Request — Guardiola Faces Gruelling Run-In
The Premier League have delivered a significant blow to Manchester City’s title hopes by rejecting their request to rearrange the order of two crucial end-of-season fixtures — a decision that could have major implications in the race for the championship.
City had asked the Premier League if they could face Bournemouth away on Tuesday, May 12 and then host Crystal Palace the following week, which would have afforded them an extra day’s recovery ahead of the FA Cup Final. However, the league stood firm. Premier League policy dictates that the fixture originally scheduled earlier in the calendar must be played first when more than one match has to be rearranged — and in this case, that means the Crystal Palace game takes priority.
As a result, Guardiola’s men are set to play their last four games of the campaign in just 12 days — Crystal Palace at home on May 13, followed by the FA Cup Final on May 16, then Bournemouth away on May 19, before concluding the Premier League season against Aston Villa at the Etihad on May 24.
The Bournemouth fixture could not be moved to Wednesday, May 20, as that is the date of the Europa League final — which will feature either Aston Villa or Nottingham Forest — and UEFA were unwilling to have a Premier League game scheduled on the same night an English club contests a European final.
The context behind the fixture pile-up is important. City’s run to the FA Cup Final forced the postponement of their trip to Bournemouth, which had originally been scheduled the day after the final, while the Crystal Palace fixture had already been pushed back due to the Eagles’ deep run in the Conference League semi-finals, which limited available midweek dates.
Arsenal, who sit three points clear at the top with City holding a game in hand, will hope to benefit from their rivals’ congested schedule — though Mikel Arteta’s side are also managing a two-legged Champions League semi-final against Atlético Madrid over the next two midweeks.
The title race is going to the wire — and every fixture, every recovery day, and every decision counts.