Chelsea vs Arsenal: Why was the 2021-2022 Premier League match postponed?

This weekend's 2021-22 Premier League Round 24 London derby clash between Chelsea and Arsenal has been postponed until a later date. It was originally scheduled to take place on Saturday, February 12, 2022, but it has been canceled, as officially confirmed.

In November, the Premier League had confirmed that two of the Blues' league matches for February will have to be rescheduled. "The trip to Brighton & Hove Albion on Tuesday, February 8, and the home match with Arsenal on February 12 have been postponed.

"New dates for these fixtures, as well as the Burnley v Tottenham Hotspur match postponed on Sunday because of poor weather, will be announced in due course," said the statement. "New details for both games will be announced in due course," added Thomas Tuchel's side in another statement.

Why was the Chelsea vs Arsenal match postponed?

After beating Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia with a final result of 1-0 in the first Semi-Final of the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup on Wednesday, February 9, Chelsea's clash against Arsenal was officially confirmed as postponed. Thomas Tuchel's players had advanced to the Club World Cup 2021 Final, which will take place on Saturday, February 12, 2022, at 11:30 AM (ET), at the Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates.

Chelsea have been forced to postpone their Premier League London derby match due to the distance between the Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium in UAE and Stamford Bridge in England, which is over 3400 miles away. They will attempt to win another trophy under the former Paris Saint-Germain boss, but first, they will need to overcome the obstacle called Palmeiras.

The Grand Final will be held on the same day as the original game against the Gunners, therefore the EPL game has been rescheduled because the FIFA Club World Cup is an international club tournament. The only way it would not have been postponed was if the Blues failed to defeat Al Hilal, led by Leonardo Jardim, and consequently, the London-based team would have had to come back to England to face their city rivals, Arsenal.