There are three matches taking place on Sunday – with Liverpool’s trip to top of the bill – yet none are kicking off in the traditional time slots.
Normally, Super Sunday’s games begin with a 2pm kick-off followed by the more prestigious match at 4.30pm, but this weekend things look very different with not one but two evening games.
Sheffield United host at 5.30pm, though the game is not being televised, while host Nottingham Forest at the particularly peculiar time of 6pm.
A mix of policing concerns, transport woes and even a scheduling mix-up have contributed to the unusual-looking line-up of matches, with each game encountering its own issue…
Manchester United vs Liverpool | 3.30pm
Sunday’s action does not get underway until late afternoon, with Jurgen Klopp’s title-chasing Liverpool side heading to Old Trafford in need of three points to re-take top spot in the table.
Manchester United, meanwhile, need to bounce back from their dramatic defeat to Chelsea on Thursday night, when they came back from two goals down only to blow a 3-2 lead deep into stoppage time.
Typically, a marquee match-up between two of the Premier League’s biggest sides with so much on the line would take place in the 4.30pm slot.
But this season, local authorities – mainly the police – have taken issue with the kick-off time and believe that starting the game an hour or even 45 minutes earlier leads to less trouble and issues.
It is the reason why the FA Cup tie between the two teams on March 17 also kicked off at 3.30pm, as did the Manchester derby earlier this year.
Sheffield United vs Chelsea | 5.30pm
Chelsea’s trip to Bramall Lane was originally scheduled for 1.30pm on Sunday, though it was never selected for television – and UK viewers will not be able to watch the game live.
Just three days after the fixtures were released, however, the Premier League announced the match had been pushed back four hours, with the kick-off time selected ‘to allow adequate return travel for visiting supporters.’
The request came from Sheffield United and was the result of a scheduling conflict that had been missed when the fixtures were first agreed.
On Sunday morning, beginning at 9.30am and lasting until 1.45pm, the Sheffield Half Marathon takes place and the route goes right past Bramall Lane with roads and surrounding areas closed off so it would not have been possible for the match to take place at the same time.
Sheffield United were apologetic afterwards and agreed to pay compensation to Chelsea supporters who were left out of pocket by the rearranged fixture time.
Tottenham vs Nottingham Forest | 6pm
Tottenham’s home match against Nottingham Forest – which sees Nuno Espirito Santo return to his old club – was originally scheduled to take place on Monday night at 8pm.
However, due to planned strikes on both the London Underground and national railway network, the Premier League announced at just 10 days’ notice that the game would be brought forward.
It was determined by the local authority’s Safety Advisory Group that it was ‘not possible to stage the match with the required levels of safety for attending fans.’
Last week, however, the tube strikes were called off – though the rail strikes have gone ahead – so the match could have taken place on Monday after all, though it remains in its new 6pm slot and will be shown live on Sky Sports after the Manchester United-Liverpool game.
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