UEFA say Champions League and Europa League games will go ahead next week
After the recent terror attack at the Stade de France during the international friendly between France and Germany and the cancellation of the friendly between Germany and Netherlands last night, UEFA has announced that the matches in the Champions League and Europa League will go ahead as planned, according to The Guardian. The fifth round of the Champions League and Europa League group stages are set to be played between Tuesday and Thursday (24-26 November) next week.
While the Champions League games will be played on 24 and 25 November, the Europa League games will be held on 26 November. Although the situation is tense across Europe, UEFA has decided to go ahead with the matches.
More: One suicide bomber had ticket to France vs Germany game at Stade de France
Paris Saint-Germain will not be playing at home in this round and are scheduled to play Malmo at the Swedbank Stadion on Wednesday in Sweden – Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s hometown and former club. The only other French club in the Champions League is Lyon who play Belgian side Gent at home on Tuesday night.
In the Europa League, Bordeaux are playing away to Liverpool at Anfield. But Marseille play at home as they face Dutch side Groningen as do Monaco who play host to another Belgian side Anderlecht. Meanwhile, Saint Etienne travel to Norway to tae on Rosenborg
UEFA statement
UEFA released an official statement on the matches and the security measures that will be taken on the respective matchdays across all stadiums in Europe.
All matches are scheduled to go ahead as planned.
UEFA has very strict rules regarding safety and security in relation to the organisation of matches and is working closely with the home clubs and local authorities to ensure all necessary measures are implemented to guarantee safety for all involved.
UEFA has not issued directives about travelling fans, it is up to the relevant authorities to decide on such matters.
Champions League fixtures on 24 and 25 November
Tuesday: Zenit St. Petersburg vs Valencia, BATE Borisov vs Bayer Leverkusen, Arsenal vs Dinamo Zagreb, Barcelona vs AS Roma, Bayern Munich vs Olympicaos, Porto vs Dynamo Kyiv, Lyon vs Gent, Tel-Aviv vs Chelsea
Wednesday: Astana vs Benfica, CSKA Moscow vs Wolfsburg, Malmo vs PSG, Borussia M’Gladbach vs Sevilla, Juventus vs Manchester City, Atletico Madrid vs Galatasaray. Manchester Untied vs PSV Eindhoven, Shakhtar vs Real Madrid