Graham Potter may have to wait for his first Premier League game in charge of Chelsea as continuing police concerns throw their fixture against Liverpool on Sunday into doubt.
The Blues were scheduled to play against Fulham just two days after Potter was announced as the new boss at Stamford Bridge but saw that match cancelled alongside the rest of the Premier League matches and other football in the country as Britain paid its respects to Queen Elizabeth II following her death on Thursday, September 8.
With a Champions League match still scheduled between now and Sunday - the date of the game against Liverpool - Potter will still be expecting to have managed his first game by the end of the week. Whether he will have overseen a league game is still uncertain, though.
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It is reported via Alistair Magowan that UEFA are satisfied with the security available for Chelsea's Champions League tie against RB Salzburg on Wednesday. This comes amid millions of people expected to travel to London in preparation for The Queen's funeral on Monday, September 19, as well as people going to the capital to pay their respects.
The EFL has announced that midweek matches in the Championship, League One and League Two will all take place, with three London based matches in the second division taking place on Tuesday. This leaves Chelsea's match on Wednesday as the sole game in the capital, increasing the likelihood of it taking place. The same cannot be said for Sunday's match against Liverpool.
With the funeral happening just one day later and police forces being stretched across the country to help enforce security in London, the game is in serious doubt. Mike Keegan of the Daily Mail reports 'that it isn't looking good.'
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sports had told football.london on Saturday that: "Our guidance will stay the same. There's no obligation to cancel as far as the government is concerned. But it's ultimately up to the Premier League and EFL to make those decisions."
Meanwhile, the Met Police also stated to football.london on Saturday that: "Whether matches go ahead is a matter for the football authorities. If fixtures do take place, the Met will work with the relevant partners and ensure that appropriate policing plans are in place."
One idea raised was of certain fixtures having the venue switched to allow London based teams an away trip instead, but this would cause further complications for Chelsea and Liverpool as Everton are already hosting West Ham that day.
Clubs are also worried with the logistical issues that will be faced in travel and accommodation for both teams and supporters, who have planned the event well in advance. It would also mean reallocating tickets to away grounds with less than one week of notice too.
On top of this, there are also worries that TV companies have a restriction on the number of TV trucks available to them due to the coverage of The Queen's death and funeral preparations, therefore reducing availability for sporting events set to be broadcast.
If even one of the next two matches is cancelled then Chelsea will have a serious scheduling issue as well with an already packed fixture list that has little room for any replayed games until the week beginning January 16 next year.
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