Aston Villa players react disappointed after the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Aston Villa at Etihad stadium in Manchester, England, Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)
Aston Villa’s Amadou Onana celebrates after the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Fulham at Villa Park, Birmingham, England, Saturday, May 3, 2025. (Nick Potts/PA via AP)
Aston Villa’s head coach Unai Emery reacts during the English FA Cup semifinal soccer match between Crystal Palace and Aston Villa at the Wembley stadium in London, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Dave Shopland)
Aston Villa officials unhappy with Premier League fixture change, citing ‘prejudice’
Aston Villa officials have expressed their unhappiness with the Premier League for bringing forward a match against Tottenham by two days to help Spurs maximize preparation time for a potential appearance in the Europa League final.
Aston Villa players react disappointed after the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Aston Villa at Etihad stadium in Manchester, England, Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)
Aston Villa officials have expressed their unhappiness with the Premier League for bringing forward a match against Tottenham by two days to help Spurs maximize preparation time for a potential appearance in the Europa League final.
The match was due to be played on Sunday, May 18, but will now take place on Friday, May 16 鈥 five days before the title match in the Europa League in Bilbao, Spain.
from the first leg of the semifinals, with the return match on Thursday in Norway.
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The fixture rearrangement gives Villa 鈥 a team chasing Champions League qualification 鈥 two fewer days to prepare for Tottenham, which might also choose to play a stronger lineup now there is more time to recover for a possible European final.
It also will affect travel and logistical arrangements for some Villa fans.
Monchi, president of football operations at Villa, to say the change in match date 鈥渋s not what we wanted鈥 and represented 鈥渢he least damaging alternative.鈥
鈥淥ur fans didn鈥檛 deserve (it),鈥 he wrote on the social network site, 鈥渂ut we tried hard to keep the match to protect the most important for us: YOU and OUR TEAM.鈥
Damian Vidagany, Villa director of football operations, went further in , saying there was a 鈥渃lear prejudice鈥 toward Villa fans and bemoaning the fact that his club 鈥渄idn鈥檛 feel this support鈥 over its last two European campaigns 鈥 in the Europa Conference League last season and the Champions League this season.
鈥淓uropean football is not only demanding for English clubs just on the verge of the finals,鈥 Vidagany wrote.
Villa is in seventh place in the Premier League and in a battle with five other teams to secure the remaining four Champions League qualification spots on offer. Liverpool, the already crowned champion, has already qualified.
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While it is commonplace in other countries, there has been no precedent for the Premier League moving games to benefit clubs playing in Europe.
Manchester United is also in the Europa League semifinals and holds a 3-0 lead over Athletic Bilbao from the first leg in Spain last week.
United will be playing a Premier League game on Friday, May 16, too 鈥 against Chelsea. So United and Tottenham would have the same amount of preparation time should they both reach the Europa League final.
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