Newcastle and Southampton have brought forward their Carabao Cup ties against Bournemouth and Lincoln respectively by a day due to NHS strikes.
Medical services around the country will be taking part in strikes on December 15, 20, 21 and 28.
And this has had an affect on Newcastle’s initial scheduled clash with Bournemouth at St James’ Park and Lincoln’s trip to St Mary’s.
Both were set to take place on Wednesday, December 21, but they will now take place 24 hours earlier on Tuesday, December 20 at 7.45pm.
A statement on the new date from Newcastle read: “Due to the planned action – which affects North East Ambulance Service, the club’s long-standing provider of ambulances, paramedics and match command – the game will now be played a day earlier.
“The planned strike action has significant safety implications on the club’s matchday medical provisions.
“Local authority have informed the club that even if private ambulance service provision was secured for the fixture, medical and safety protocols – including the major incident plan and the spectator safety medical plan – would need to be reviewed and redrafted with any new medical provider and presented to the Safety Advisory Group for approval.
“This process would be unlikely to be completed satisfactorily within the timeframe available.”
“A number of solutions were carefully considered but it was decided that this was the only suitable outcome to maintain the level of safety required for the match to take place.”
Both Newcastle and Southampton have confirmed that any tickets purchased for the match will remain valid for the new fixture date.
Carabao Cup holders Liverpool face Manchester City away on Thursday December 22 in what is the standout tie from the fourth round.
Meanwhile Manchester United host Championship leaders Burnley in what could be a potential banana skin for the Red Devils on Wednesday December 21.
The remaining ties include Wolves vs Gillingham and MK Dons up against Leicester at the King Power Stadium.
Charlton vs Brighton and Blackburn against Nottingham Forest are the two other fourth round matches.
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News Summary:
- Carabao Cup ties at Newcastle and Southampton next week will be played a day earlier than scheduled due to planned strike action by medical services
- Check all news and articles from the latest Football updates.