Huge Manchester United v Leeds United policing operation issue compounds Premier League error

A statement from Manchester United confirmed, on Monday evening, that after discussions with the authorities the decision was taken to call off Sunday's Old Trafford clash.

"Following extensive conversations with the Premier League, Greater Manchester Police and Trafford Council, the decision has been made to postpone Manchester United's Premier League fixture against Leeds United, scheduled to take place at Old Trafford at 14:00 BST on Sunday 18 September," said a spokesperson.

"This is due to Greater Manchester Police supporting forces across the United Kingdom at locations and events of high significance following the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II."

Anyone with any experience or knowledge of the fixture can wrap their head around why this game, and not others, was one of the two that had to fall.

Last year West Yorkshire Police put into place a mammoth operation in the city and around LS11 to keep order when Manchester United came to Elland Road, with a reported 900 officers on duty.

The result of that stifling presence was an absence of what WYP called 'significant disorder' and no reported injuries to fans of either club.

Even still there were a small number of incidents for police to deal with in the city centre, a group of 70 ticketless visiting fans escorted away from Elland Road, missiles thrown onto the pitch from home and away sections and nine arrests made.

When Leeds went to Manchester it was a story with some similarities. Social media footage showed clashes in the city centre and six arrests were made, five of which were in relation to public order offences.

Chief Superintendent Stuart Ellison, Gold Commander for the public order operation, said at the time: "There were many challenges around today's operation, and our officers were working extended hours to help ensure that events passed safely and without significant disruption for the wider public going about their weekend activity."

So with such vast numbers of officers required elsewhere this weekend and on Monday, when Queen Elizabeth II will be laid to rest, a game that necessitates a major policing operation was always going to be in jeopardy.

Football, now and again, has to know its place.

But what it means for Leeds United is a 29-day period between their last game at Brentford and their next one, at home to Aston Villa on October 2.

It means not one, but two games to be shoehorned into the rest of a season that has already had to stretch to accommodate a November and December World Cup.

It means the Premier League's decision to call off Monday night's game against Nottingham Forest, as part of football's total weekend cessation, has now been cast in an even more unfortunate light.

The argument has already been made by so many, including this publication, that football should have played a leading role in bringing people together to mark the life and service of Her Majesty The Queen.

But even if games had to stop on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, a new week began on Monday and regardless of whether or not Leeds' fixture was part of the affected round of fixtures, it could and should have been allowed to go ahead.

It could not even be argued that all of the games had to go, in the name of sporting integrity, because Brighton had already been granted dispensation to dispense with their September 17 clash with Crystal Palace due to the rail strikes. This weekend, seven of the 10 planned matches will be allowed to go ahead, at least easing the fixture congestion worries of some teams. But not Leeds.

By acting in such haste and failing to spot an opportunity last weekend, the Premier League have tied themselves and a small number of their clubs in knots.

Squeezing the Forest and Manchester United games in will be difficult and for any players fortunate enough to enjoy World Cup involvement, particularly towards its latter stages, the strain will become very real in the second half of the top flight campaign.

It will also be difficult to keep those not involved in September's international games mentally and physically fresh.

Yet this is the bed that the Premier League has made and Leeds must now lie in it.