Mikel Arteta and Arsenal face nightmare scenario after Premier League announcement

Arsenal have been given a potential nightmare scenario after the latest Premier League fixtures for December were announced

The Premier League's December television fixture schedule has been announced for all matches prior to Christmas. Arsenal have seen four of their games rearranged, moving the kick-off time for broadcast purposes.

The Gunners will face Brentford at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday, December 3. For the third home meeting in a row against the Bees, the match will take place in the evening, which is also often the case for the reverse fixture in West London too, with four of the last five meetings all taking place at 5:30pm or later.

On this occassion, Mikel Arteta's team will kick off at 7:30pm against Keith Andrews' side in north London. Less than three full days later, the Gunners travel to Birmingham to face Aston Villa in a frustratingly timed 12:30pm lunchtime clash. Villa, who will also play in a late kick-off on the previous Wednesday (December 3), have had a tricky start to the season but often pose a challenge to Arsenal on their own patch.

This will come as something of a blow to the Gunners, who will have little preparation and recovery before a drive to the west Midlands. It is perhaps made even worse when looking ahead to a European away trip days later to Belgium, where Arsenal play Club Brugge.

Certainly, the fixture scheduling has given Mikel Arteta's side an early challenge in December, which could come as a blow to their title hopes if they fail to overcome the tests. Meanwhile, the Gunners’ main title rivals, Liverpool, have been granted a late kick-off on Saturday, December 6, as they take on Leeds United after a home clash with Sunderland the previous Wednesday.

Fine margins can be the difference in title races, and Bernardo Silva has already been critical of Manchester City’s own schedule after their draw with Arsenal earlier in the season. The match ended 1-1 thanks to a late equaliser from Gabriel Martinelli.

“I am saying this because we didn’t lose… if we lost, I wouldn’t say this,” he said. “But the reality is, we cannot come to one of the most important games in the season with such a disadvantage in terms of rest. It is not fair to play one of these games like this. It is just not right. It cannot happen.

“I wasn’t feeling in a perfect condition to play, and people who have not played at the highest level don’t know how it feels to play a game like this. You need to be at your best condition. We saw [Abdukodir] Khusanov getting injured [for City and going off at half-time] because these games demand a lot.”

City have the advantage of a Tuesday match away to Fulham on December 2, followed by a four-day break before hosting Sunderland on Saturday at 3pm.