Blimey...its not just randomly shyte..they actually put some thought into it first! LOL!

[Link]

How is the 2017/18 Premier League fixture list compiled?

"You can't satisfy everyone."

That is the response of Atos analyst Glenn Thompson, who is in charge of compiling the 2017/18 Premier League fixture list.

Countless managers and fans down the years have cried foul regarding the supposed difficulty of their schedules, while conveniently forgetting that every team has to play the other 19 twice over any given season.

Thompson says the balance right is a painstaking process, telling the Premier League's official website: "It's a compromise across all clubs; you can't do anything to favour any one club.

"There are 2,036 matches, across the Premier League and Football League over a nine-month period, and the ideal solution is to ensure that those matches can all be played when scheduled."

Premier League will consider Saturday night and Sunday morning games

Thompson's work begins at the start of every year when he receives the playing dates from the Premier League.

Fifa international dates are first taken into account, then European club competitions, then FA competitions.

This is, of course, the time of year people start to talk confidently about 'sequencing'.

Thompson says: "That's the methodology we use which is all about breaking the season down into a number of constituent parts, which are called sets.

"We break it down into five sets, which are reversed in the second half of the season."

There are certain rules to sequencing: there should be a split of three home games and two away in any five fixtures, or the other way around, while more than two home or away games in a row are to avoided where possible.

Premier League champions Chelsea boast fearsome opening-day record

Thompson also says clubs should ideally not start or end the season with two home or away matches in a row, though the London 2017 Athletics World Championships at London Stadium mean West Ham will begin the campaign with a run away from their home ground.

Other requests can play a part, with a requirement from the Metropolitan Police not to play high-profile matches in the 2012/13 season until after 8 September due to the Olympics and Paralympics.

As for rival clubs from the same area, Thompson says most clubs have a 'partner' team which ensures both cannot play at home on the same day - but "when you get into London it gets a bit more complex and less obvious."

Thompson says Premier League clubs are then sent a form in March with three questions:

Are there any dates you wish not to be at home?
(local police are also consulted)

Which club do you want to pair with?

Are there any teams you do not wish to play at
home on Boxing Day?

Then the computer comes in to play: "It is a matter of placing each of the clubs in a pairing grid, which basically defines the dates they will be at home.

"For every date in the season, the fixture computer knows who is at home and who is away and then it will mix them up randomly to determine which matches will take place on which date."

Thompson says that if any issues or problems are encountered, then the whole process starts again to produce a different set of fixtures until they are right.

As moving one game could result in up to 40 other matches being switched, Thompson says travel is taken into account - especially to avoid "pinch points" on the rail network, and for Boxing Day and New Year's Day games.

The Voice of Reason In An Otherwise Mediocre World

Fascinating article, thanks for the link.

It would be interesting to compare last year's fixtures with this year's in light of some of the closing points of the article.

Cynic or realist? It's a fine line!

As in ATOS Healthcare??

I'll be surprised if the fixture list even passes the medical.