Coronavirus limits are lifted to allow Arsenal and Chelsea TEN more players in their FA Cup final travelling party… with injured Skodran Mustafi and Billy Gilmour now able to attend Wembley showdown
- Mikel Arteta and Frank Lampard faced leaving players behind for the final
- The FA though have allowed both sides to bring 10 extra non-playing members
- Arsenal were keen for Shkodran Mustafi and Calum Chambers to attend the final
- Chelsea’s Billy Gilmour will miss out on the FA Cup final with a knee injury
Arsenal and Chelsea will be able to include ten more players in their travelling parties for the FA Cup final following a successful joint-request from Mikel Arteta and Frank Lampard.
Managers Arteta and Lampard faced having to leave behind players who have contributed to their seasons and they wanted to be part of their club’s big day out due to the restrictions on numbers allowed inside stadiums.
However, after a conversation between the clubs and request from both earlier this week, the FA agreed to let them bring ten extra non-playing players to Wembley, on top of the usual 20 who will be part of their match day squads.
Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal can bring ten more players as part of their FA Cup travelling parties
Arteta’s joint request with Chelsea boss Frank Lampard means the Blues will also be able to
Both bosses were especially keen to ensure their long-term injury victims could be part of the Saturday’s showpiece occasion having been cruelly denied a chance to play in it.
Arteta will be without the likes of Calum Chambers, Shkodran Mustafi and Gabriel Martinelli.
Similarly, Chelsea’s rising midfield starlet Billy Gilmour will miss out after suffering a season-ending knee injury.
But they will now at least be able to experience cup final day along with a number of their teammates who may be fit but not quite make the cut and respective match day squads.
The news means injured Gunners defender Shkodran Mustafi can now attend the FA Cup final
The FA had based the numbers allowed into Wembley for the semi-finals and finals on the same protocols drawn up by The Premier League for their Project Restart fixtures.
Twenty players and 12 members of coaching and medical staff per team were allowed in the red zone plus ten essential club staff, a figure shared between the two clubs.
The extra players allowed at Saturday’s final will also be allowed in the red zone and, therefore, able to be part of any celebrations for the winning team.
They will all have to provide the usual negative Covid-19 test.
The same applies for Billy Gilmour, who suffered a season-ending knee injury for the Blues
Both managers also wanted to reward as many non-playing staff, such as those who work closely with the squad and directors, as possible by having them at Wembley too.
For Premier League games ten directors, senior executives or non-essential staff per team were allowed in the amber zone.
But that number has also been doubled with both Arsenal and Chelsea allowed to bring up to 20 club officials to the cup final.
