FA not expected to move Man City vs Liverpool FA Cup semi-final despite travel chaos

The FA are not expected to move the upcoming FA Cup semi-final between Manchester City and Liverpool, despite there being no trains from the area down to London over that weekend.

Engineering works on the railway over the weekend of April 16 and 17 means there are no direct trains to the capital city and supporters are now facing an eight-hour round trip to attend the game.

Liverpool and City's supporters groups have called for the game to be moved to somewhere closer to both teams, taking to Twitter to voice their frustrations, but currently there are no plans to move the fixture.

“The FA will be liaising closely with both Liverpool FC and Manchester City FC on all match arrangements, including supporters travel for the upcoming Emirates FA Cup semi-final fixture at Wembley Stadium, with further details to be announced in due course," a statement from the FA read.

“We are also continuing to work with both Network Rail and National Express to find a solution so that supporters of both teams are able to travel to and from the fixture with as minimal disruption as possible.”

The FA's inaction has been condemned by Spirit of Shankly, a leading Liverpool fan group.

"For the other semi-final between Chelsea and Crystal Palace, Wembley makes sense. For Liverpool and City it makes no sense," the group said.

"The FA statement on the matter claims they are looking for a solution and twice mentions supporters, yet fails to include us in any ongoing conversation. We are asking both clubs, the FA and Wembley to reconsider where this game is played and, for once, to put the fans at the forefront of their thinking. 

"City and Liverpool are less than 40 miles apart and there are plenty of grounds big enough far closer than Wembley to stage such a prestigious game. 

"We appreciate ties of this magnitude need forward planning, but the issue of how two sets of supporters will be able to travel and watch their teams has been ignored. Network Rail will have had their works scheduled, as is often the case over public holidays, for months. Did the FA in their planning of such a large-scale event not think to check for disruption to travelling fans in advance?"


Source : 90min