Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
SFA chief dismisses notion of cup semis as season curtain-raiser
SCOTTISH FA president Rod Petrie has played down the suggestion of using the 2020 Scottish Cup semi-finals and final as a curtain-raiser for next season.
Aberdeen’s Hampden semi-final against Celtic on April 12 and the lastfour tie between Hibernian and Hearts scheduled for the day before were both postponed due to t he coronavirus crisis.
Petrie has assured the four clubs involved that the competition will be played to a finish when it is safe to resume but has dismissed the i dea of using t he matches as a way to start the 2020-21 campaign.
“That would be a great football suggestion but I don’t think it’s practical,” he said.
“We need to give ourselves the time to start up i n a manner which doesn’t put undue pressure on people.”
He added: “The games are days out to l ook forward to. So, with no pressure on time, while we might be able to play them out in a closed-door environment, it is better to wait until we can get as many fans into the ground as possible to add to the colour.”
Aberdeen, meanwhile, have received a boost after Uefa told the SFA that the Europa League spot held by the Scottish Cup winners must be given to the next placed team in the league if it cannot be completed.
That would mean that second-placed Rangers would enter the Europa League at the second qualifying round, while third-placed Motherwell and the Dons, a point behind in fourth, would enter at the first qualifying round.
Uefa wrote to all 55 members outlining their recommendations if cup competitions can’t be completed due to the pandemic.