Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger's plans for their Premier League opener at Newcastle United are in a spin due to a local wedding!
The decision by ESPN to make the game a tea-time kick-off caused Arsenal to switching their Friday night hotel to a Durham location because of the wedding party and the volume of guests at the original hotel, which was only a short coach ride from the ground.
This has left Wenger far from happy, and a source close to the Arsenal camp told the Evening Chronicle: "Arsene loves everything to be perfect when it comes to preparation but this wedding has thrown a real spanner in the works.
"It was caused by the kick-off time being changed meaning a change of venue.
"If it had have been a 3pm kick off, they could have had their pre-match meeting after breakfast and been setting off at lunchtime for the ground.
"But the rooms they were using for pre-match meetings were already set aside for the wedding - and the alternatives wouldn't have guaranteed the concentration needed before the game because of the merriment of the wedding party.
"Having to change the hotel because of a wedding certainly didn't go down well with Arsene and staying in Durham the night before is hardly ideal."
