'Not ideal': Mikel Arteta reacts to Arsenal Premier League fixture change with message to supporters

Mikel Arteta admitted Arsenal 's clash with Burnley being moved to a Monday night is "not ideal" as he said he understood anger from supporters.

Due to Chelsea and Manchester City's involvement in the FA Cup final, their fixtures against Tottenham and Bournemouth respectively have been moved to the following midweek .

That decision has come at short notice, with less than three weeks until the match is played.

There will be fewer fans able to stay behind for Arsenal's lap of honour and supporters from both clubs will have their travel disrupted.

The Arsenal Supporters’ Trust [AST] said it was "disappointed" in the decision and urged "both Arsenal and the Premier League to do more so that scheduling better reflects the needs of match-going supporters" going forward.

The fixture is set to be a crucial one in Arsenal's title race with Burnley and could decide whether that battle goes down to the final day of the season.

Arteta made it clear his preference would have been for the match to be played on the Sunday, but he urged the supporters to still do their part in getting behind his players despite the late change.

Asked about the statement from the AST, Arteta admitted: "I'm not surprised.

"The time and date was set and now it's been changed.

It's not ideal, especially for our supporters, but TV has the right to do this.

"They've done it.

Unfortunately we're going to have have to adapt to that as well and play our game.

"Try to have everybody in that stadium in the same manner with the same energy because obviously we know what is at stake."
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The Gunners also have a Champions League semi-final tie against Atletico Madrid, starting with the first leg in Spain on Wednesday night .

The tie has gone somewhat under the radar with all the scrutiny on Arsenal's Premier League title bid, but Arteta emphasised the enormity of the occasion for the club.

"I don't take it for granted because a very short time ago, this club had seven years without Champions League," Arteta said.

"In that very short period of time, what we have achieved is remarkable.

We know the difficulty of it, we know how much we worked for this.

"Enjoy it, take the opportunity, embrace it, because it's very tough to be here."