Man City face hectic schedule as April fixtures confirmed amid Arsenal title battle
The Premier League have confirmed some fixture changes for April, with Manchester City’s promotion to the Champions League giving Pep Guardiola’s side a packed calendar
Arsenal’s exit from the Europa League may have given them a competitive advantage over Manchester City in the Premier League title race.
The Gunners were knocked out of the competition by Sporting Lisbon on penalties on Thursday night after the aggregate ended 3-3 on aggregate. Mikel Arteta was disappointed with the result in hindsight, but the potential knock-on effects were immediately apparent on Saturday as the Premier League announced a couple of games for next month.
Results in the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League allowed the Premier League to decide the schedule in April. High-profile bosses have been fitting the pieces into the puzzle – and the results show the grueling nature of City’s month.
Unlike Arsenal, City remain in Europe after devastating RB Leipzig in the Champions League round of 16. Pep Guardiola’s side defeated the German side 7-0 on Wednesday night and went on 8-1 on aggregate with Erling Haaland scoring five goals.
Your reward is a quarter-final game against Guardiola’s former club Bayern Munich. City have never won the Champions League and Guardiola is determined to make amends, but fighting on both fronts will not be easy, even with the club’s impressive squad strength.
City will play eight games over the 30 days in April, with six Premier League games centered around their home and away fixtures against Bayern. Arsenal, on the other hand, can focus solely on the Premier League and maintain a five-point lead over their rivals.
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Arsenal are aiming to win the Premier League for the first time in 19 years, but right after losing to Sporting, Arteta didn’t see the Europa League exit as a blessing in disguise.
“I can’t see it that way today,” he told reporters. “You go through the competition and you win, it’s great. If not, and it affects your plans in the league, that’s another story, but we wanted to see it through.
“We gave it our all and with the effort the guys put in when it wasn’t our best day, individually and collectively, the hunger and desire they showed to win it was incredible. We really wanted it and it didn’t happen. We must put our heads up, search [Crystal] Palace. It is what it is. There are 11 games and the first starts on Sunday.”
Manchester City games in April
Manchester City-Liverpool, April 1, 12.30pm
Southampton-Manchester City, April 8, 5.30pm
Manchester City – Bayern Munich, April 11, 8 p.m
Manchester City-Leicester, April 15, 5.30pm
Bayern Munich-Manchester City, April 19, 8 p.m
Brighton v Manchester City, 23 April, 4.30pm
Manchester City vs Arsenal, April 26, 8pm
Fulham-Manchester City, April 30, 2pm
Arsenal games in April
Arsenal v Leeds United, April 1, 3pm
Liverpool v Arsenal, April 9, 4.30pm
West Ham v Arsenal, April 16, 2pm
Arsenal v Southampton, April 21, 8pm
Manchester City vs Arsenal, April 26, 8pm
Arsenal vs Chelsea, April 29, 5.30pm