Everton vs Burnley has become the third Premier League boxing day fixture to be postponed after Liverpool vs Leeds and Wolves vs Watford. The Toffees have been hit with a COVID outbreak in their team, and have finally had their pleas accepted.
Rafa Benitez hit out at the Premier League after his team reported a number of coronavirus cases. The names reported include players as well as backroom staff, ahead of their trip to Turf Moor.
What has the Premier League said in case of the Everton vs Burnley game?
The board has confirmed the decision to postpone the game in an official statement.
‘The Premier League Board has this morning regrettably approved Everton’s request to postpone their Boxing Day away fixture at Burnley.
‘Everton were due to travel to Turf Moor to play on Sunday, at 15:00 GMT. The Board reviewed the club’s request today to postpone the match following further injuries to their squad.
‘They concluded that the club will not be able to fulfil their fixture this weekend as a result of an insufficient number of players available to play due to COVD-19 cases and injuries.’
It was detailed that the decision has been made in advance to ‘give clarity to clubs and their fans’.
Burnley are in a difficult position heading into the new year. They have already had three home games postponed against Tottenham, Watford and Everton. They also have a trip to Villa Park postponed for a later date, which congests the fixture schedule up even further.
