Premier League confirm Aston Villa decision after ‘major’ Liverpool development

Aston Villa’s upcoming Premier League clash with Liverpool at Villa Park has been moved forward to Wednesday, February 19 following the Reds’ progression to the Carabao Cup final.

Arne Slot’s side successfully turned around their one-goal deficit against Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-final of the competition, demolishing the north London side by four goals to nil in the second leg at Anfield on Thursday night. It’s a major achievement for the Dutch manager during only his first season in English football.

Villa were due to play host to Liverpool on March 15 but that’s now been moved due to the Reds’ final against Newcastle United being penned in for March 16. It’s rare that fixtures are brought so far forward but the Premier League deemed it necessary with both Villa and Liverpool reaching the latter stages of the UEFA Champions League.

Had the game been rearranged for another time in March, it would’ve made the schedule increasingly complicated and congested next month. Having the match in a couple of weeks’ time reduces the strain on both squads, though it’s of course not ideal for the supporters with an additional awkward midweek kick-off time now planned and at rather short notice, too.

What does the fixture rearrangement mean for Villa?

Rather incredibly, Unai Emery’s side will now only play one Premier League fixture in March – Brentford away eight days into the month. The trip to the Gtech Community Stadium will be sandwiched in between Villa’s home and away legs of the Champions League last 16, against one of Borussia Dortmund, Sporting Lisbon, Atalanta or Club Brugge.

February isn’t exactly the busiest of periods, either, with five matches arranged in the shorter, 28-day month. For context, Villa played seven times in January and on eight occasions in December. Emery may have brought in some much-needed squad depth throughout the January transfer window but it won’t be tested to its limits for a while yet.

How does the new Villa v Liverpool date impact FPL?

Alerting all Fantasy Premier League managers, the new date for Villa’s clash with Liverpool means both clubs will now ‘double’ in gameweek 25 (GW25). That means if you have any players from either side in your team, they will play twice within the same gameweek – in turn providing an extra opportunity to claim those all-important points.

Villa’s double consists of home games against Ipswich Town and now Liverpool. Slot’s side, meanwhile, take on Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield three days before making the trip to Villa Park. Although playing one another isn’t ideal in an FPL sense, it’s difficult to turn down two opportunities for points.

Beating your friends, family, colleagues and bitter rivals in your mini-leagues is quite often the ultimate goal. Getting ahead of the curve should help you to do just that and knowing about this important fixture change could make all the difference.

If you haven’t already got three Liverpool players, it’s well worth investing in maxing out those Reds spots. Meanwhile, if you haven’t got any Villa stars in your team just yet, transferring one or two in could be of great benefit.