Aston Villa officials have made clear the club’s unhappiness with the Premier League for agreeing to bring forward Tottenham’s trip to Villa Park by 48 hours in order to help them prepare for a Europa League final they have not reached yet.
Spurs were originally scheduled to play Villa on 18 May but the encounter will now take place on 16 May after a rescheduling request based on the club’s European commitments was accepted by the League. The Europa League final takes place in Bilbao on 21 May. Spurs lead Norwegian side Bodø/Glimt 3-1 after the first leg of their semi-final last Thursday and are perhaps right to feel confident about progressing to what would be their first major European final in six years before Thursday’s return at the Aspmyra Stadion, located in the Arctic Circle.
Damian Vidagany, Villa’s director of football operations, said the club had reluctantly accepted the scheduling change and hoped the “clear prejudice” against Villa in this decision would be remembered should they need assistance with fixture scheduling due to European football next season. “Fixture changed and honestly, not happy,” Vidagany wrote in a social media post. “We really pushed – everyone in the club at different levels – with solid and fair grounds to protect our fans and keep the Spurs match on Sunday [18 May].
“Hopefully in the future all of them [the Premier League and the Football Association] would remind the clear prejudice in this case to Villa fans and will be consistent and equally supportive if we need changes to help us in Europe. We didn’t feel this support last season or this one. European football is not only demanding for English clubs on the verge of the finals”. Earlier this season, Villa had a rearranged Premier League fixture against Liverpool shoehorned into a midweek that they thought would be free after avoiding a playoff round in the Champions League.
Vidagany went on to say that considering the alternatives were to bring the game forward even earlier, to 14 or 15 May, playing on 16 May was the least damaging outcome for Villa. Efforts to bring the match forward to 17 May were thwarted because of a clash with the FA Cup final.
Villa’s director of football, Monchi, echoed Vidagany’s sentiments in his own social media post. “The change of the fixture of Tottenham is not what we wanted. We were not entitled to keep it and we got the least damaging alternative,” he wrote. “Our fans didn’t deserve but we tried hard to keep the match to protect the most important for us: YOU and OUR TEAM. We need you on Friday [16 May]. Always Up the Villa!”
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Manchester United also face Chelsea in the Premier League on 16 May, meaning – as things stand – both potential Europa League finalists will have the same amount of recovery time. United lead Athletic Bilbao 3-0 going into the second leg of their semi-final at Old Trafford on Thursday.
