3 hours ago
3
Mikel Arteta has urged the Premier League to reschedule Arsenal's fixture against Everton following further complications with the club's packed calendar. The Gunners' Carabao Cup quarter-final tie with Crystal Palace has been shifted to December 23, just two days after their league encounter with Everton on the Sunday.
Speaking before his side's Champions League fixture against Slavia Prague, yet another midweek commitment in a relentless run of six consecutive weeks featuring midweek games, Arteta addressed the mounting pressure. "Yeah, that's a situation that we've been dealing with for a few weeks," Arteta said.
"Trying to have the right freshness, the right cohesion within the team. The team has been competing really well in all different competitions. Tomorrow, we know that we have a really tough match here.
"They haven't been beaten here at home all season. It's a team that they're used to playing together. They have a very clear philosophy. They create a massive atmosphere as well. So we know there's going to be a really tough match."
Whilst praising his European adversaries, the Arsenal manager's patience appears to have worn thin regarding those responsible for arranging the club's demanding festive schedule. When questioned about the League Cup quarter-final announcement, the Spaniard offered a forthright and candid response
"Yeah, well, hopefully then they will leave our Premier League match because to play to this date doesn't make any sense, obviously," he said. "So we will now decide the date. I'm sure they will change the Premier League date as well."
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Whether the Premier League will reschedule the fixture at the Hill Dickenson Stadium remains uncertain, but Arteta declined to confirm when asked if a formal request to postpone the game had been submitted, despite a clear preference for the match to take place on December 16.
"I leave that to the club," Arteta responded. "I think we're very clear what was the best thing, the most logical date to play. They bring a different date, so I'm sure we'll have to adapt to that."
Arteta's comments come after Liverpool boss Arne Slot was heavily criticized for his decision to make wholesale changes to his squad in the previous round of the Carabao Cup against Crystal Palace.
The Dutchman made 10 changes to his side for the round-of-16 tie last week, while choosing not to name a single senior player on his bench, with the Reds falling to a 3-0 defeat.
Despite the backlash over his decision, Slot insisted he had to make the changes, citing his side's own packed schedule, and the mounting injuries at Anfield.
“I could have brought them into a situation where they had to go into a week like this with a game tonight, only two days’ rest, play the next one, only two days’ rest, play Real Madrid and then a few days more for Man City," Slot said.
“Everybody can have their opinion on it but with the squad we are having maybe 15, 16 first-team players available, this is the choice I made.”
* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can read the original story in football.london by clicking here.
English (US) ·