Three of Aston Villa’s December fixtures have been changed to fit live television coverage: Everton at Villa Park, Coventry City away and Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The Chelsea game could yet move again, depending on the Carabao Cup.
Everton (h)
15 minutes later on 2 December
Villa open December at home to Everton on Wednesday 2 December. The kick-off moves from 8pm to 8.15pm, and the game will be shown live on Sky Sports.
Coventry City (a)
A day later on 13 December
The trip to Coventry City has been pushed back by a day, from Saturday 12 December at 3pm to Sunday 13 December at 4.30pm. It is a short journey across the Midlands, but a Sunday late afternoon kick-off makes it a longer day than a Saturday afternoon one.
Chelsea (a)
Monday night switch…or is it?
Villa’s final game before Christmas is at Chelsea, originally scheduled for Saturday 19 December at 3pm. It is now live on Sky Sports at 8pm on Monday 21 December.
That date is not 100% fixed though. The club has warned supporters that the game could move back to Saturday 19 December, still with an 8pm kick-off, depending on the Carabao Cup. In short, if either Villa or Chelsea get through to the next round and are then drawn against Brighton, the game goes back to the Saturday. If both clubs avoid Brighton, it stays on the Monday.
Villa’s fourth-round trip to Bournemouth is on Wednesday 28 October.
What it means for supporters
For anyone planning to be at Stamford Bridge, the uncertainty is the real issue. A Monday night in London, with a possible switch back to Saturday hanging over it, is not a fixture to book non-refundable travel for.
It is not the first time a Villa kick-off has come with a condition attached. The Manchester City game in October carried one too, as we covered in Aston Villa’s October fixtures rearranged for TV.
Why the Chelsea date could change again
The Carabao Cup quarter-finals are scheduled for the week beginning 14 December. If Villa win at Bournemouth on 28 October, they will be in that round, and the Chelsea league game falls on the Saturday of the same week.
The Brighton condition comes down to the Seagulls being in the Conference League, with an away game at Panathinaikos on Thursday 17 December. A team playing in Europe on a Thursday would not play a domestic cup tie the night before, so any Brighton Carabao Cup quarter-final is likely to be pushed back to the following week.
That is where the problem for Villa and Chelsea comes in. A cup tie against Brighton around 22 or 23 December would land straight after a Monday 21 December league game, and the Saturday 19 December fallback would give both clubs more breathing space. If neither is drawn against Brighton, the quarter-final stays in the week of 14 December and the Monday kick-off stands.
The quarter-final dates will not be clear obviously until the draw is made.
The question remains, as in previous examples, why Sky Sports and the Premier League think it is a good idea to schedule a fixture with such a question mark hanging over it. It clearly shows how concerned they are about inconveniencing match-going fans. Not very.
Check out the full Aston Villa Fixtures List
UTV.
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