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aston villa manager Unai Emery Public questioning of the Premier League’s schedule prompted sources close to the league to assert that clubs had previously received a comprehensive explanation.
These comments come as Villa prepare to face arsenal They play their second consecutive Premier League away game in London on Tuesday night, following Saturday’s match against Chelsea.
Emery expressed his confusion on Monday, saying he could not understand why his side would face Arsenal twice in the league before facing Nottingham Forest once. Villa are scheduled to take on Forest in their lunchtime kick-off this Saturday.
To add insult to injury, Aston Villa director of football operations Damian Vidagany claimed to X that the Midlands club had not been given a “clear explanation” about the schedule.
He added: “I asked people in the Premier League and they didn’t tell us. So it’s a mystery.”
However, sources close to the Premier League revealed to the Press Association that Villa did receive a complete explanation on this issue when the 2025-26 season calendar was released.
It is understood that the Premier League’s game arrangement and home and away sequence are formulated in accordance with the schedule preparation rules and approved by club representatives.
Vidagani further questioned why the competition seemed more “convenient” for “certain clubs”, stressing that Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United all played consecutive home games in the 18th and 19th rounds.
According to reports, the Premier League arranges festive games to ensure that if a team plays at home in the Christmas round (match week 18), they will play away in the new year round (match week 20), and vice versa.
While Villa only host Arsenal in the league on December 6, quick turnarounds – where the two clubs meet twice in a short space of time – have happened in previous seasons and were incorporated when it was thought to provide a better overall home and away sequence.
The league has also worked hard to ensure clubs play home and away matches in the FA Cup and that European participants avoid playing away games between sides of continental competitions, although the expansion of European competitions has made this increasingly challenging requirement consistently adhered to.