Arsenal and Crystal Palace have had their Premier League matches on the weekend before Christmas moved forward a day because of their Carabao Cup quarter-final on December 23.
Both clubs were originally scheduled to travel on December 21 – Arsenal to Everton and Palace to Leeds – but with the cup tie 48 hours later those top-flight fixtures will now be played on Saturday December 20 at 8pm, live on Sky Sports.
Arsenal and Palace meet in their Carabao Cup quarter-final on December 23. That tie is being played on a different midweek from the other quarter-finals, which are during the week commencing December 15, because Palace are involved in the UEFA Conference League on Thursday December 18.
The initial schedule would have seen Palace play three times in five days and Arsenal play twice in 48 hours. After complaints from Mikel Arteta and Oliver Glasner about the lack of recovery time and player welfare concerns, the Premier League agreed to move the two league fixtures.
A Premier League statement said: “Player welfare is a priority for the Premier League, and we have therefore granted requests from Arsenal and Crystal Palace to move their respective fixtures. This comes after the scheduling of matches from other competitions around Premier League fixtures without adequate player recovery time. This is also further evidence of the impact the expanded UEFA competitions have on the domestic fixture calendar. The League would like to thank Leeds United and Everton for their co-operation in accommodating these changes.”
Palace will still play twice in three days, however: they host KuPS in the Conference League on Thursday December 18 and then travel to Leeds on December 20. That European fixture is part of the final round of Conference League matches, which are all scheduled to kick off at the same time. Palace boss Oliver Glasner had asked UEFA to move that game to Wednesday, when there is no Champions League or Europa League midweek, but Sky Sports News understands UEFA rejected the request.
What are Arsenal and Palace’s festive fixtures now?
Arsenal
December 13: Wolves (H), Premier League, kick-off 8pm, live on Sky Sports
December 20: Everton (A), Premier League, kick-off 8pm, live on Sky Sports
December 23: Crystal Palace (H), Carabao Cup quarter-final, kick-off 8pm, live on Sky Sports
December 27: Brighton (H), Premier League, kick-off 3pm
December 30: Aston Villa (H), Premier League, kick-off 8.15pm, live on Sky Sports
January 3: Bournemouth (A), Premier League, kick-off 5.30pm, live on Sky Sports
January 8: Liverpool (H), Premier League, kick-off 8pm, live on Sky Sports
Crystal Palace
December 14: Man City (H), Premier League, kick-off 2pm, live on Sky Sports
December 18: KuPS (H), UEFA Conference League, kick-off 8pm
December 20: Leeds (A), Premier League, kick-off 8pm, live on Sky Sports
December 23: Arsenal (A), Carabao Cup quarter-final, kick-off 8pm, live on Sky Sports
December 28: Tottenham (H), Premier League, kick-off 4.30pm, live on Sky Sports
January 1: Fulham (H), Premier League, kick-off 5.30pm, live on Sky Sports
January 4: Newcastle (A), Premier League, kick-off 3pm
January 7: Aston Villa (H), Premier League, kick-off 7.30pm, live on Sky Sports