By Betsefy
The next set of Premier League fixtures are reportedly in doubt due to a shortage of TV trucks, which are required for 24/7 coverage of Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral.
The last round of games were postponed as a mark of respect to Her Majesty, who passed away on Thursday.
As it stands, the Premier League will resume on Friday evening, with Aston Villa welcoming Southampton and Nottingham Forest hosting Fulham, with the first game due to be televised by Sky Sports.
On Saturday, the channel is due to broadcast Tottenham Hotspur against Leicester City, while Brentford against Arsenal, and Chelsea against Liverpool, are set to be televised on Sunday.
According to the Daily Mail, many matches are in doubt due to a shortage of TV trucks, with the majority being used to provide live coverage for Sky News in the build-up to The Queen‘s funeral.
© Reuters
There are also two live Championship matches set for Saturday, in addition to Scottish Premiership and Women’s Super League games on the Sunday.
Wolverhampton Wanderers are set to welcome Manchester City on Saturday, while Newcastle United are due to host Bournemouth.
There are also two more games on Sunday which will not be shown live in the UK, with Manchester United welcoming Leeds United and West Ham United travelling to Everton.
The lack of TV trucks is allegedly seen as a ‘complicating factor’ but not the main problem facing the Premier League, with ‘the strain on police resources’ seen as the biggest issue.
As many as 10,000 police offers could be deployed in London ahead of the The Queen’s funeral, which will be held on September 19, putting a number of fixtures in severe doubt.
© Reuters
As it stands, Liverpool’s Champions League clash with Ajax at Anfield on Tuesday evening will go ahead as planned, but Rangers have seen their fixture with Napoli, scheduled for the same night, pushed back to Wednesday.
Chelsea and Man City are also at home in the European Cup on Wednesday against Red Bull Salzburg and Borussia Dortmund respectively, and both matches are going ahead for the moment.
Man United have already confirmed that their Europa League game with Sheriff Tiraspol in Moldova on Thursday will go ahead as planned.
However, there is believed to be severe doubt over Arsenal’s scheduled Europa clash with PSV Eindhoven, which is due to take place at the Emirates Stadium on Thursday.
Celtic will be in action against Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League on Wednesday, meanwhile, and the fixture is set to go ahead as planned.
