The final three rounds of the FA Cup could be played after the Premier League season is wrapped up, with the remaining seven matches staged over eight days, former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher has said.
Eight Premier League teams have made it to the quarter-finals, which were scheduled to be played on March 21-22 before the season was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I would love to see this season's FA Cup rescheduled to resemble the final stages of a World Cup, all the remaining games played after the conclusion of the Premier League," Carragher wrote in his column in the Telegraph https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2020/05/22/plan-save-fa-cup-play-seven-games-eight-days-make-mini-world.
"Quarter-finals could be played on the Friday and Saturday after the last Premier League weekend. Midweek semi-finals could then be immediately followed by the final, the competition concluded in eight days."
Carragher said he was not convinced clubs would agree to play FA Cup games between league matches when the season resumes due to the financial implications of another stoppage.
"The Premier League must finish and to start the competition in the midst of a health scare, only to stop it again, would be a nightmare for everyone," Carragher added.
"It is preferable to prioritise the Premier League games and ensure they are completed as quickly as possible."
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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