Backlash sees Premier League decide against fixtures on Christmas Eve
THE Premier League will stage no games on Christmas Eve this year after plans for Arsenal to play Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium as a Sky Sports ‘Super Sunday’
4pm kick-off were aborted amid a backlash from supporters.
The match will instead now take place on Friday, December 22 at
7.45pm, with Sky also showing the matches between Everton and Chelsea at 12.30pm on Saturday December 23 and then Leicester City v Manchester United later that day at 7.45pm.
The idea to move to the game to a primetime Friday night slot was revealed on Tuesday, but with Arsenal having been concerned at whether they would have sufficient stewarding on Christmas Eve, both clubs have agreed the switch.
From a sporting perspective, it gives them slightly more recovery time over the festive period although Arsenal will also have a League Cup quarter-final on either the Tuesday or Wednesday before Christmas should they beat Norwich City at home next Tuesday.
Liverpool fans do also still face the difficulty of travelling back to Merseyside late on a Friday night.
As it is, they will be putting the Leicester City v Manchester United game up against prime-time Saturday evening television.
The BT game at 5.30pm on December 23 is Burnley v Tottenham Hotspur. (© Daily Telegraph, London)