Aston Villa see key away fixture against Arsenal moved just weeks before kick-off

Aston Villa have seen one of their Premier League fixtures pushed back due to their progression in the Europa Conference League. Unai Emery's men reached the quarter-finals of the competition thanks to a stunning second leg performance against Ajax last week.

Villa fans are already getting excited given Emery's track record in Europe and the strength of this season's squad, which could secure Champions League qualification through the Premier League. The Villains are currently three points ahead of Tottenham in fifth, but the London side do have a game in hand, meaning the race for a top four spot could go to the wire.

Villa have just nine games remaining in the Premier League, and one of them is against title hopefuls Arsenal in mid-April. Having beaten the Gunners at home, Emery's men will head to the Emirates Stadium looking to do the double next month, but the fixture will now take place on a new date.

Due to Villa taking on Lille in their Conference League first leg on Thursday, April 11, the clash with Arsenal in North London will now take place one day later, on Sunday, April 14. The fixture will kick off at 4.30pm, and it will be shown live on Sky Sports.

That may be bad news for some Villa fans who may have booked travel early in a bid to get ahead of many of the unaffordable prices offered by rail services in the current age. Though, it will be a regular occurrence for as long as Villa are competing in either the Conference League or Europa League, with clubs unable to play on Thursday and then Sunday. Fixtures are moved early for the group stage, but the knockout stages are more of an as-and-when process given it's unclear which teams will progress.