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Premier League postponements: When can fixtures be rearranged? Will FA Cup reintroduce replays?

Fourteen Premier League matches have been postponed in recent weeks, most of which were called off after the death of Queen Elizabeth II; the World Cup in Qatar this winter means there are very few opportunities for fixtures to be rearranged; the FA Cup is also set to reintroduce replays

By Rob Dorsett

Wednesday 14 September 2022 19:25, UK

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Sky Sports News senior reporter Rob Dorsett looks at the fixture congestion that may occur with the FA Cup planning to reintroduce replays

With 14 Premier League matches needing to be rearranged and the winter World Cup causing unprecedented changes to the fixture calendar, Sky Sports News looks at when the games could eventually be played.

Will postponed Premier League games be played soon?

Sky Sports News has analysed the football calendar for this season in light of postponed matches following the death of Queen Elizabeth II and it's clear there are precious few opportunities for them to be rearranged.

All Premier League and EFL teams missed one full round of matches as a mark of respect.

Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United, Leeds, Brighton and Crystal Palace all have two Premier League matches to catch up with after they saw further postponements enforced.

Luis Diaz and Reece James battle for the ball during the FA Cup final between Chelsea and Liverpool
Image: Chelsea's home game against Liverpool is one of 14 Premier League fixtures that need rearranging

The key question now is: when can all those matches be played? Not in 2022 is the immediate answer.

There is no available midweek slot between now and the start of the World Cup. Premier League and Championship matches will pause on Sunday November 13, which allows six midweeks before then.

All are already full, with four rounds of European fixtures, one full set of Premier League matches and the Carabao Cup third round.

Also See:

What about playing the matches in 2023?

Moving into 2023, there are only three vacant midweeks in the five months before the season ends on Sunday May 28 and none of those are available until April at the earliest.

Fixture Congestion - 2023 midweek dates for January to March
Image: Fixture Congestion - 2023 midweek dates for January to March
Fixture Congestion - 2023 midweek dates for April and May
Image: Fixture Congestion - 2023 midweek dates for April and May

Currently, the only vacant midweeks in the football calendar are Tuesday/Wednesday April 3/4, Tuesday/Wednesday May 2/3 and Tuesday/Wednesday May 23/24.

But those dates are reserved for clubs involved in the latter stages of the Carabao Cup and FA Cup who have to move their league matches from the usual weekend schedule.

What if teams with multiple games to rearrange reach the latter stages of the cups?

Jurgen Klopp Liverpool Chelsea FA Cup final
Image: Liverpool won both the FA Cup and Carabao Cup last season but them reaching the latter stages again this term could cause further fixture problems

Typically, the latter stages of cup competitions have been dominated by the biggest clubs. Last season's FA Cup semi-finals involved four clubs (Man City, Liverpool, Chelsea and Crystal Palace) who have two Premier League matches to rearrange this season.

Were that semi-final line up to happen again, there would be real problems for football's authorities.

That's why the midweeks set aside for FA Cup replays have again come into sharp focus. FA Cup third-round replays are scheduled for Tuesday/Wednesday January 17/18 and Tuesday/Wednesday February 7/8.

Will FA Cup replays be scrapped?

Chesterfield's Akwasi Asante (centre) celebrates scoring at Stamford Bridge
Image: Non-league side Chesterfield took on Chelsea in the FA Cup last season - the kind of fixture that provides valuable revenue for lower-league clubs

The FA are understood to still be planning to reintroduce replays for the FA Cup third and fourth rounds later this season despite the extreme pressure on this season's fixture schedule.

Replays have been scrapped for the last two seasons in the aftermath of the Covid pandemic but their planned reintroduction this season leaves football's calendar with real issues of congestion.

Media reports elsewhere had suggested FA Cup replays would again be scrapped this season but Sky Sports News has been told there are no plans to do so.

It's understood the Premier League has so far made no request to the FA for the replays to be cancelled and the governing body is committed to trying to keep them in place.

Lower-division clubs see cup replays as a huge bonus because they offer the chance of big revenues if those clubs can first manage a draw against one of the elite teams.

As things stand, both the FA and Premier League are working to keep those replay plans in place.

But any more Premier League postponements - brought about by poor winter weather, for example - would inevitably mean those plans being looked at afresh.

Which Premier League matches need rearranging?

  • Bournemouth vs Brighton
  • Arsenal vs Everton
  • Crystal Palace vs Manchester United
  • Fulham vs Chelsea
  • Leeds vs Nottingham Forest
  • Leicester vs Aston Villa
  • Liverpool vs Wolves
  • Manchester City vs Tottenham
  • Southampton vs Brentford
  • West Ham vs Newcastle
  • Brighton vs Crystal Palace
  • Chelsea vs Liverpool
  • Manchester United vs Leeds
  • Arsenal vs Manchester City

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