On Thursday, it was announced that the Premier League will resume on June 17, with two fixtures being lined up on the day, while the rest will be played during the weekend. And following the announcement, fans as well as the players took to social media to express their delight.
No matches have been played since Leicester’s 4-0 win over Aston Villa on March 9, with Liverpool just two wins away from securing the title. As per the schedule, the first two matches would be Aston Villa v Sheffield United and Manchester City v Arsenal. These two games were postponed due to the Carabao Cup final earlier in the year.
The following fixtures will be played on the weekend of June 19-21, and while there is no official word as of now, these are fixtures that were scheduled before the pandemic.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea
Bournemouth vs Crystal Palace
Brighton vs Arsenal
Everton vs Liverpool
Manchester City vs Burnley
Newcastle vs Sheffield United
Norwich vs Southampton
Tottenham vs Manchester Utd
Watford vs Leicester
West Ham vs Wolves
As things stand, Liverpool have a whopping 25-point lead over second-placed Manchester City.
If City lose to Arsenal on June 17, Liverpool will have the opportunity to be crowned new champions if they beat Everton at Goodison Park a few days later. Meanwhile, the other half of the league table sees the likes of Norwich City, Aston Villa and Bournemouth occupying the bottom three spots.
With the drama finally returning, this is how the players and the fans have been reacting:
Football is back soon
Harry Kane (@HKane), May 28, 2020
June 17th
Raheem Sterling (@sterling7), May 28, 2020
WE. GO. AGAIN. We’ll miss having you with us at the stadiums, but we’ll do everything we can to make you proud ❤️ #PremierLeague #YNWA #Liverpoolfc
Gini Wijnaldum (@GWijnaldum), May 28, 2020
It’s coming back, it’s coming back, it’s coming, football’s coming back. June 17
Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker), May 28, 2020
JUNE 17.
Jim Beglin (@jimbeglin), May 28, 2020
And the #EPL is back. #June17
Favour (@Eze96416985), May 28, 2020
Diego will be all of us on June 17
Marvin LFC (@lfcmarvin), May 28, 2020
Feature image courtesy: AFP / Chris J. Ratcliffe