Tottenham go to Villa Park before Man United face Chelsea in rearranged Premier League fixtures ahead of Europa League final
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Aston Villa's home game against Spurs was rescheduled
Aston Villa's home game against Spurs was rescheduled
(Image: Getty Images)
Aston Villa are gearing up to host Spurs in the Premier League this evening before Manchester United then go to Chelsea.
However, the two matches, which were rescheduled to allow Tottenham and United equal and longer rest time ahead of next Wednesday's Europa League final in Bilbao, go against a promise made by the Football Association regarding the FA Cup final.
Crystal Palace face Manchester City at Wembley on Saturday afternoon, and the FA had previously stated that the final would take place "on an exclusive Saturday" with no top-flight fixtures the night before "to allow focus on the build-up to the showpiece event".
Despite this, Spurs now go to Villa, a fixture move which sparked anger in the hosts' camp, for a 7.30pm kick-off today, followed by Chelsea versus United at 8.15pm. Both games were initially scheduled to take place alongside other Premier League matches on Sunday.
But in a statement confirming changes to this season's FA Cup, the FA announced last year: "The final will now take place on the penultimate weekend of the Premier League season, on an exclusive Saturday with no Premier League fixtures taking place on the same day.
"Additionally, there will be no Premier League games on the Friday night before the final, to allow focus on the build-up to the showpiece event."
Both Spurs and United will be keen to avoid any new injuries this evening, and it's anticipated that both Ange Postecoglou and Ruben Amorim will field a rotated side.
Tottenham skipper Heung-min Son is set to gain match fitness at Villa Park after being sidelined for a month due to a foot injury, but several key players are likely to find themselves on the substitutes' bench as attention shifts to their crucial Bilbao clash, where they vie for not just significant silverware but also a spot in next season's Champions League, says the Mirror.
And asked in his pre-match press conference if he was worried about protecting the integrity of the Champions League race, which involves both Villa and Chelsea, Spurs boss Postecoglou said. "I'm not sure about the integrity.
“There have been times this year when we have had to field weakened teams because of injury. Does that affect integrity?
“So, if people are thinking there is some sort of competitive balance that exists or doesn't exist over the course of a season, I would be very surprised if people were questioning our integrity to try and win a game of football tomorrow.
"I will put a team out that I think will do its best to win a game of football, yes.”
Villa director of football operations, Damian Vidagany, revealed the Lions' anger when the fixture change was confirmed, posting on X: "Fixture changed and honestly, not happy. We really pushed - everyone in the club at different levels - to keep the Spurs match on Sunday."
Villa had initially rejected a Spurs request to reschedule the game, their final home fixture of the season.