Semi-final draw: City v Arsenal 3pm Sunday confirmed

Because the 2nd leg of the next round could be played on the Wednesday night beforehand.
So if we are away 2nd leg we wont get back til the Thursday and then 48 hours later were playing in a big game on a big pitch against Arsenal.

Ha ha. As if that would make any difference
 
Because the 2nd leg of the next round could be played on the Wednesday night beforehand.
So if we are away 2nd leg we wont get back til the Thursday and then 48 hours later were playing in a big game on a big pitch against Arsenal.
Equal chance the 2nd leg could be at home on the Tuesday though. If we do progress tonight, I don't think the semi-final date will be confirmed till after the CL draw on Friday.
 
Th
Because the 2nd leg of the next round could be played on the Wednesday night beforehand.
So if we are away 2nd leg we wont get back til the Thursday and then 48 hours later were playing in a big game on a big pitch against Arsenal.
I think it'll be Saturday. London Marathon on Sunday so loads of public transport will be booked up already and people travelling into London from hither and thither. Besides, we can't seriously be complaining about having to play Wednesday/Saturday, can we?
 
Th

I think it'll be Saturday. London Marathon on Sunday so loads of public transport will be booked up already and people travelling into London from hither and thither. Besides, we can't seriously be complaining about having to play Wednesday/Saturday, can we?
But we did last year when we sent the youngsters out against Chelsea.
Arsenal will have a full weeks rest but we could have a big champions league game midweek.
For me it has to be Sunday IF we progress tonight.
 
But we did last year when we sent the youngsters out against Chelsea.
Arsenal will have a full weeks rest but we could have a big champions league game midweek.
For me it has to be Sunday IF we progress tonight.
The CL game was after the cup game last year (and in Kiev). If we progress tonight we will have to get home from Italy, Spain, Germany or Leicester (or we could be in Manchester, obviously), so I'm not especially concerned with an extra day.
 
But we did last year when we sent the youngsters out against Chelsea.
Arsenal will have a full weeks rest but we could have a big champions league game midweek.
For me it has to be Sunday IF we progress tonight.

100% agree that Sunday is optimal for the team.

Minimum for physical recovery is 72 hours. If we get through and are playing the 2nd leg of CL on the Wednesday night (particularly if away) you are eating in to the 72 hours. Add to that the potentially mentally draining impact of a big CL game and it is a recipe for disaster IMO. Also, the extra day of actual preparation for the Arsenal game is invaluable.

We looked knackered against Stoke and that was 3 days after the Sunderland game and they had an extra day and obv not as many games in their legs.
 
I would have thought the big question is which time slot gets biggest viewers 5 on Sat or 4 on Sunday. I would then imagine the Chelsea Spurs game will get that time as I bet they think that gets more viewers and we get the other. Totally irrelevant whether fans can get there or what is best for us re Champs Lge

Apparently the 5.15/5.30 slot on Saturday is popular with the broadcasters because many viewers stay tuned to that channel for the rest of the evening. Too lazy to operate the remote.
 
Apparently the 5.15/5.30 slot on Saturday is popular with the broadcasters because many viewers stay tuned to that channel for the rest of the evening. Too lazy to operate the remote.
And of course it isn't too late for the Asian market or too early for the USA to watch not that the FA would even consider that a factor into the kick off times. And there is no reason why they can't kick off at 3.00pm is there?
 
And of course it isn't too late for the Asian market or too early for the USA to watch not that the FA would even consider that a factor into the kick off times. And there is no reason why they can't kick off at 3.00pm is there?

3pm Saturday blackout - no live games allowed to be broadcast in England on a Saturday between 2.45pm and 5.15pm unless there is no league programme.
 
3pm Saturday blackout - no live games allowed to be broadcast in England on a Saturday between 2.45pm and 5.15pm unless there is no league programme.

So the actual final will be at 3 pm on a Saturday, but wait a minute in 2011 we played at 3 pm on a Saturday whilst a full prem league programme was on???
 
So the actual final will be at 3 pm on a Saturday, but wait a minute in 2011 we played at 3 pm on a Saturday whilst a full prem league programme was on???

The FA Cup final was the only exception but even that isn't broadcast at 3pm on a Saturday these days. In any case, the "blackout" was primarily to protect attendances at games in the lower divisions. When we played Stoke in the 2011 final, it was after the regular Football League season had ended and there were only 4 PL games that day (one was Blackburn v United which was an early kick-off on TV) plus a couple of play-off matches in the lower divisions (which I'm guessing would've been televised anyway)
 
Wembly pitch size is 115 yd (105 m) long by 75 yd (69 m) wide, our pitch is 115 x 74...

UEFA and the FA have attempted to standardise pitch sizes wherever possible at 105m x 68m. It is a requirement for UEFA competitions and FA premier league for the pitch to be this dimension except where it cannot be this large due to physical restrictions (tough shit stoke, ok Chelsea and Liverpool).
Despite websites out there giving different dimensions Wembley is the same, 105m x 68m, because the FA are one of the organisations driving this standardisation.
 

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