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Fans have taken to Twitter to express their outrage at the fact that the first leg of Arsenal's Carabao Cup semi-final against Liverpool has been postponed.
Jurgen Klopp's side have had an outbreak among the first-team and staff which has lead to three first-team players testing positive for COVID-19. The Reds also have three players representing their respective countries at the African Cup of Nations and a multitude of injuries.
This led the club to appeal for a postponement of the first leg of the semi-finals which was supposed to take place on Thursday night. The EFL have since accepted their appeal and released a statement on Wednesday which read:
"The first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final between Arsenal and Liverpool scheduled for Thursday 6 January 2022 has been postponed following a formal request by Liverpool due to a severe outbreak of COVID infections amongst their management and playing staff."
The statement added:
"The EFL has been in regular dialogue with the Club over the past 48 hours in an attempt to understand whether the tie could proceed but significant developments over this period have resulted in the Club reporting an ever-increasing number of COVID cases."
It was also revealed that the EFL accepted the Reds' request after "determining, albeit reluctantly, that a postponement was the only option." The club will now look to avoid further risk of infection amongst its squad and staff. The statement added that Klopp's side were "ensuring public health was protected by not travelling from Liverpool to London."
Arsenal fans have been incensed at the EFL's decision to accept Liverpool's appeal. The Gunners themselves have four players who will be taking part in the African Cup of Nations.
Many fans have taken to Twitter to voice their frustration with the EFL's decision to postpone the fixture. They brought up the fact that multiple other clubs have been forced to play their games despite having players missing due to COVID-19 as well.
Here are some of the best reactions to the EFL's decision to postpone the first leg of Arsenal's semi-final clash against Liverpool:
Anfield to now host first leg of Liverpool-Arsenal
The EFL's statement concluded:
"As a result of the postponement the order of the ties has now changed with the first of the two-legs to take place at Anfield on 13 January 2022 at 7.45pm. The rearranged game (now the 2nd leg) is scheduled to be played at the Emirates on 20 January 2022 at 7.45pm."
Meanwhile, the first leg of the other semifinal between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur took place last night. The Blues ran our 2-0 winners at Stamford Bridge.
