Wolves receive EFL apology after two fixtures moved for second time in three days

Frustrated EFL officials have apologised to Wolves supporters after being forced to reschedule two matches for the second time in three days.

Wolves’ trip to Everton in the Carabao Cup will now take place on Wednesday, September 16, a week later than originally planned, to avoid a clash with Liverpool’s Champions League fixture against Atletico Madrid.

The switch has also impacted the Championship visit of Portsmouth, which has now been moved back from September 16, to Tuesday, October 20.

It is the second time in the space of just a few days the match has been rescheduled, having originally been due to take place on September 9.

The Carabao Cup match at Everton had been moved to that date, in order to avoid a clash with Liverpool’s home tie against Tottenham, scheduled for September 16. Local authorities do not allow the two Merseyside clubs to play at home on the same night. The EFL confirmed the revised fixture list last Friday.

But on Saturday, Uefa threw a spanner in the works when it confirmed Liverpool v Atletico Madrid for September 9.

Despite lobbying Uefa officials to reschedule the European fixture, the EFL claim they were left with no option but to change their own fixture list. The Liverpool v Tottenham Cup match will now take place in October.

In a statement, the EFL expressed frustration at Uefa’s “unwillingness to co-operate”.

It read: “Over recent seasons the League has made a number of changes to accommodate the expansion of UEFA Club competitions – a decision which was made without adequate consultation with domestic leagues.

“These changes have included splitting Carabao Cup round three ties across two weeks, and implementing draw conditions for round three which prevent scheduling conflicts for clubs playing in the Uefa Champions League and Uefa Europa League.

“This makes UEFA’s unwillingness to cooperate all the more frustrating, not least for the supporters of the five impacted clubs, and we sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused.”

Wolves say tickets already purchased for the Portsmouth fixture on either September 9 or 16 will remain valid for the new October date. Refunds can be claimed up to 48 hours before the rearranged date.