December 16, (THEWILL) –Â Tottenham has offered to play their postponed Europa League match against Rennes in France this week as they continue their search for a date to play the match.
As THEWILL reported, a number of COVID-19 positive cases at the club led Spurs to pull out of the game even though they did not meet UEFA’s conditions for postponement, resulting in a verbal spat with Rennes. According to UEFA’s requirements, a club will have only 13 available players, one goalie to be eligible for postponing a tie.
Spurs have been given until the end of the calendar year to find a date to play the match, failing which they will be obliged to forfeit, leaving them behind Rennes and Vitesse in the competition.
Spurs manager Antonio Conte acknowledged that they sought to fit the game into their demanding English Premier League schedule, even pushing back Thursday’s match against Leicester to face Rennes, but their request was denied.
“We don’t find a good solution between UEFA and the Premier League, why does Tottenham have to pay for this?” Conte said
“It’s not fair we have to pay for a situation that isn’t our fault. I understand if we did something wrong but in this way, for the club, the players, the staff, it’s very difficult to understand what is happening.”
Spurs even offered to fly to Rennes, France, this week, but the Premier League’s refusal to postpone the Leicester game means they will not be able to do so.
Spurs’ itinerary is unfortunately crammed until 2022, with Conte’s side playing every weekend and midweek slot until January, when they would have missed UEFA’s deadline.
According to reports, the EPL attempted to accommodate the Rennes match but was compelled to prioritise their own dates, many of which are already in jeopardy due to the significant surge in COVID-19 cases.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
