Premier League issues statement on neutral venues which affects Manchester United and Man City

The Premier League wants home and away matches but neutral venues could still be required for some games.

The Premier League hopes the number of matches which will be played at neutral venues this season will be ‘low’, chief executive Richard Masters has confirmed.

The top flight is due to resume in June after being postponed in March due to the coronavirus crisis.

The Press Association reported on Friday morning that two Manchester United games and one Manchester City game had been earmarked to take place at neutral venues.

The prospect of neutral venues being used is borne out of the authorities being concerned that supporters may congregate outside these matches, which would present a danger due to the current situation brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.

A statement issued by the Premier League said: "The Premier League's ambition is to complete all of our remaining fixtures this season home and away, where possible. 

"We are working with our clubs to ensure risks are assessed and minimised, while cooperating with the police at a local and national level.

"Discussions with the National Police Chiefs' Council and UK Football Policing Unit have been positive and are continuing.

"We are prepared for all outcomes and have a neutral-venue contingency"

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Speaking to Sky Sports, Premier League chief executive Masters said the preference is for matches to be played home and away as originally planned.

“Obviously it is our preference to play the games as they were originally planned, home and away,” he said.

“We’re in discussions with the authorities, there are some concerns, and we are working through that. I think in the next 7-10 days we will have a clearer picture about whether any of our fixtures are going to have to be played at neutral venues. We hope that the number is going to be low. It is an ongoing discussion.

“The specific matches that we are talking about need to remain a part of those conversations.

“We’re all dealing with this situation, they (the police and relevant authorities) have legitimate concerns, we’re able to represent club views and our own views in those discussions fairly and reasonably, and we think we can help to mitigate some of those issues.”

Asked if it would be fair if some clubs had to play in neutral venues, Masters added: “That’s what we’re discussing. Ultimately, we want the season to be played out on the pitch and we’re discussing a number of mitigating factors across the whole model, trying to keep it as fair as we possibly can do.”

During the same interview, Masters was asked whether there is a date in his mind for this summer's transfer window to open.

“We have had first discussions about it but no conclusions yet," he said. "Obviously, you have a moveable piece with lots of European leagues beginning and ending at different times, so I think there is a judgement call to be made and we will get to that in the next couple of weeks.

“I suspect that isn’t going to be the case, the transfer window will open after the end of the season, it’s just a question of how long it goes on for.”

Masters also confirmed that there are no plans for VAR to be scrapped when the campaign resumes, despite IFAB changing the rules to allow that to happen.

“VAR has its own social distancing issues but we think there is a way of completing the season with VAR so that’s absolutely our intention, to complete the season with VAR in place,” he explained.

“The hub itself could be a problem and if you can’t do the hub, you have to do it remotely and that’s what we are looking at.”

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Another rule change approved by IFAB is temporarily agreeing to increase the amount of substitutes in a match to five, something that has been adopted by the Bundesliga, and discussions on this matter are ongoing.

“The IFAB laws have changed, extra dispensation is possible and the Bundesliga decided to go to five substitutes," Masters said.

“Our clubs will make that decision in the next few weeks on whether they want to or not. There are mixed views out there and we will come to a conclusion in the coming weeks.”