Police bosses have hit back in the fixture row over Arsenal ’s clash with Chelsea being changed at the last minute.
The Premier League insisted that the Metropolitan Police asked for the London derby to be switched from Saturday, April 29, because of the 5.30pm kick-off time for Sky. It was done this week with little over two weeks’ notice and has now been put back to the following Tuesday, May 2, with the game played at 8pm.
Arsenal and Chelsea fans were furious with the decision and insisted it was not enough notice and hundreds of fans will be out of pocket having booked travel and accommodation. But the Police have now sent a further statement to Mirror Football having had widespread criticism from the clubs, fans and Premier League.
However, the police have refuted accusations that they did a last minute U-turn on the kick-off time and insisted that they warned the Premier League and the clubs on February 2 that the 5.30pm time was not suitable.
It puts forward their case and they also insist that the game can still be played on April 29 - but the kick-off time would have to be changed and the other parties have refused. They insist that the reason they wanted it changed from April 29 was the 5.30pm kick-off time as that brought a bigger policing risk as it is a London derby.
The Metropolitan Police statement said: “The Met works closely with partners to ensure the safety and security of those attending football matches in London.
“On 2nd February, within 24 hours of being informed of the proposed scheduling of this match, the Met raised an issue with Arsenal Football Club and the Premier League regarding the proposed 17:30hrs kick off for the Arsenal V Chelsea football match on Saturday 29th April, on the basis that the later weekend kick off time presents a higher risk of crime, anti-social behaviour and disorder.
“To mitigate these risks, the Met asked for the match to take place at an earlier time on the same day (Saturday 29th April), and our position on this has not changed.
“An Emergency Safety Advisory Group meeting with key partners on 6th February failed to resolve the issue, and following a further meeting on 31st March the suggested earlier kick off time was declined by Arsenal and the Premier League, who instead decided to reschedule the fixture to the alternative time and date of 20:00hrs on Tuesday 2nd May.”
The Met’s statement would appear to be them putting the fixture scheduling row firmly back in the Premier League’s court.
Fans have been outraged in recent times over last minute fixture changes which leaves them out of pocket because of TV scheduling.
It is understood that moving it to an earlier slot would have impacted another another game and potentially inconvenienced four sets of fans.
It has also been suggested while the police initially voiced concerns over the timing, they did not say they would refuse to staff it.
