The Premier League are reportedly mulling over the possibility of swapping venues in a bid to try and ensure next weekend's fixtures are fulfilled ahead of Queen Elizabeth II's funeral.
Football made the decision to postpone all fixtures this weekend as a mark of respect to The Queen, who sadly passed away on Thursday at the age of 96 at her Balmoral estate. EFL matches are set to resume in midweek while English clubs participating in Europe are also poised to return to action over the coming days.
However, there are concerns that some of next weekend's fixtures could be affected by The Queen's funeral, which will take place on Monday, September 19.
A huge amount of people are expected to descend upon the capital ahead of the state funeral which will put a huge strain on policing - and that could have a knock-on effect on matches due to take place in London before next Monday.
As things stand, Tottenham are set to host Leicester next weekend, Chelsea clash with Liverpool and Brentford are set to meet Arsenal in a London derby; but all could now be under threat.
According to a new report from The Athletic, Premier League clubs are said to be 'hopeful' of next weekend's fixtures going ahead as scheduled without disruptions - although there could be 'disagreements' over where matches are held.
It has been claimed that there have been discussions about reversing fixtures; meaning Tottenham would travel to Leicester and Chelsea would make the trip to Anfield instead of hosting Jurgen Klopp's side at Stamford Bridge.
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However, clubs are unlikely to be thrilled over those plans and may not agree. Furthermore, that would not solve the problem regarding Brentford's meeting with Arsenal as both clubs are based in London. Fixtures outside of the capital are less likely to be disrupted by proceedings for The Queen's funeral.
Any further postponements could mean some Premier League clubs will not play for over three weeks with an international break looming large on the horizon - and it could also lead to major issues later in the season with fixtures already piling up as a result of the World Cup taking place across November and December rather than the summer.
The Metropolitan Police refused to be drawn on whether more postponements would take place across the capital in the coming days when they were asked about the situation
“Whether matches go ahead is a matter for the footballing authorities. If fixtures do take place the Met will work with the relevant partners and ensure that appropriate policing plans are in place.”
* This weekend, the Daily Mirror and Sunday Mirror celebrate the life of Her Majesty the Queen with a commemorative special filled with all the key moments from Britain’s longest reigning monarch. Be sure to pick up your copy of the Daily Mirror and Sunday Mirror to get both pullouts.
