Arsenal and Crystal Palace Fixtures Rescheduled Ahead of Carabao Cup Quarter-Final After Successful Appeals

Arsenal and Crystal Palace have both successfully appealed to reschedule their Premier League fixtures in December to accommodate their Carabao Cup quarter-final clash.

The two London clubs are set to meet in the quarter-final at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, 23 December, but had both been originally scheduled to play Premier League fixtures at 2 p.m. on Sunday, 21 December.

Following their appeals, Arsenal will now face Everton at Hill Dickinson Stadium at 8 p.m. on Saturday, 20 December, while Leeds United will host Crystal Palace at the same time. Both matches will be broadcast live on Sky Sports.

Fixture Congestion and Scheduling Adjustments

The Carabao Cup tie had initially been pencilled in for Tuesday, 16 December, a date that would have forced Palace to play four matches in just eight days across three competitions.

To ease the strain, the fixture was moved to 23 December, allowing Palace additional recovery time following their final Conference League group-stage match on Thursday, 18 December.

Arsenal have also confirmed they will provide subsidised coach travel for supporters making the trip to Everton.

In a club statement, the Gunners said:

“The welfare of our players, supporters, and staff is our priority, and we fully understand this change of date may cause challenges for those travelling to Liverpool. Therefore, we are organising additional supporters’ coaches for this match. All travel will be subsidised, priced at £10 for a return journey to Everton.”

Palace’s Fixture Pile-Up and Glasner’s Criticism

Palace and Arsenal had initially been due to face each other on 16 December, but that fixture was postponed because of Palace’s involvement in the UEFA Conference League.

The rescheduling, however, still leaves Oliver Glasner’s side facing a demanding schedule, with just 48 hours separating their Conference League clash against Finnish side KuPS and their league encounter with Leeds.

Speaking last week, Glasner was highly critical of the overall scheduling process, accusing UEFA of prioritising commercial interests over player welfare.

“It’s not about the welfare of the players. It’s not about talking together and finding what’s best. Everyone is just looking to maximise money,” he said.
“It was already clear this week before Christmas that Conference League fixtures would be played. So why schedule the Carabao Cup quarter-final then? It makes no sense.”

Glasner went on to call for better coordination between governing bodies:

“There’s a hierarchy in football — UEFA games, Premier League games, and then FA or EFL fixtures. If UEFA have scheduled matches, you can’t simply add a quarter-final in the same window.
“Mistakes like this can be part of development, and I think both the EFL and Premier League will learn from it. Hopefully next season, they’ll have a proper solution before the fixtures are finalised.”