Footie’s coming home!
THE Premier League is set to restart on June 17 with Aston Villa v Sheffield United and Manchester City v Arsenal, subject to government approval.
A full round of fixtures would then be played on the weekend of 19-21 June.
There are 92 matches still to play, and the first to take place will be those the four teams involved have in hand. All matches will take place behind closed doors and will be broadcast live on Sky Sports, BT Sport, BBC Sport or Amazon Prime.
BBC Sport will air four live matches for the first time since the Premier League’s inception in 1992.
Meanwhile, Sky Sports will show 64 matches live and make 25 available free to air.
Safety guidelines are yet to be issued by the government and decisions will remain subject to the continuing fight against the corona virus pandemic.
According to BBC Sport, clubs have agreed to a provisional end date of Saturday, 25 July. It is also understood that finishing the season would require six weekends and three midweek rounds.
Liverpool sit 25 points clear at the top of the table while Bournemouth, Aston Villa and Norwich City are in the relegation places.
The Reds, chasing a first league title in 30 years, could clinch it with victory in their first game back should second-placed Manchester City lose to Arsenal.
“The Premier League and our clubs are proud to have incredibly passionate and loyal supporters,” Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said.”It is important to ensure as many people as possible can watch the matches at home.”
Masters added that the resumption date would not be confirmed “until we have met all the safety requirements needed”.
In terms of European competition, the last 16 second-leg matches in the Champions League and Europa League are set to be played between 6 and 8 August. Manchester City, Chelsea, Manchester United, Rangers and Wolves are all still involved. Uefa will discuss the plans at an executive committee meeting in June before a decision is made.