Manchester City will play their postponed Premier League fixture at home against West Ham United on Wednesday 19 February, meaning both teams face an early end to their winter breaks.
Originally scheduled for last Sunday, the fixture was called off after Storm Ciara brought “extreme and escalating weather conditions”, provoking concern for the safety of spectators and players.
The match will be played 10 days later than planned after a delicate piece of diarising found a solution that was popular, or at least not overwhelmingly unpopular, with both teams.
With kick-off scheduled for 7.30pm there will be questions over the feasibility of travel for some West Ham fans. The London club have offered free coach travel and match tickets will remain valid.
There is also the slightly charged issue of a truncated winter break, something in the news this past month since Jürgen Klopp refused to curtail his or his Liverpool players’ holiday after they were forced into an FA Cup fourth-round replay by League One Shrewsbury.
City and West Ham had been due to have a two-week break after the match last Sunday. The postponement means that will no longer be possible. Paradoxically, however, it does mean that by the time the teams face each other they will have gone 17 and 18 days respectively without a game.
City and West Ham accepted the new date, with City in particular keen to get the match played before they return to their previously determined schedule. In the period between 22 February and 8 March City will play five matches in 16 days, including a Champions League tie against Real Madrid and a Manchester derby. West Ham will play three games during that time, hosting Liverpool five days after the City match.
Sky has announced it will show the game live. This will mean the satellite broadcaster goes head to head with BT Sport, which will be showing the Champions League fixture between Tottenham Hotspur and RB Leipzig.
