Manchester City make classy vow to pay casual workers and donate food after fixture postponements

Manchester City have said they will pay any casual workers who were scheduled to be on shift during their postponed men's and women's fixtures this weekend.

On Friday, the Premier League announced that all weekend fixtures, including Nottingham Forest’s trip to Leeds on Monday, would be postponed as a mark of respect for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, who passed away peacefully at Balmoral on Thursday afternoon.

Pep Guardiola’s side were due to face Tottenham Hotspur at the Etihad on Saturday evening while the women’s team, managed by Gareth Taylor, were set to begin their WSL season against Arsenal at the Academy Stadium on Sunday.

And while the postponements were largely expected following the death of the UK’s longest-serving monarch, City have confirmed that anyone on a zero-hours contract who was set to work at either game will be paid in full for their shift.

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The Premier League champions also added that, in order to waste as little of the food that would otherwise have been served at the games, any perishable items will be distributed to organisations in Manchester.

The club also confirmed that tickets for either match will remain valid for whenever the games are rearranged, although refunds can also be requested.

No dates have been set for the rearranged games and it is also possible that fixtures scheduled to be played next weekend, on the 17th and 18th of September, may also be in doubt.

The Telegraph's Ben Rumsby reported that there are 'major concerns' about games going ahead due to the fact that the Queen's funeral is expected to take place on the 19th in London, and could mean police have to be redeployed, leading to a lack of policing available for games.

Manchester City men’s team are currently second in the Premier League, just a point behind leaders Arsenal.

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Guardiola’s team began their Champions League campaign in ruthless fashion on Tuesday night, sweeping aside Sevilla 4-0 in Spain courtesy of goals from Phil Foden, Ruben Diaz and a brace from in-form striker Erling Haaland.

City’s next game is a mouth-watering Champions League clash with Haaland's former team, Borussia Dortmund, at the Etihad on Wednesday evening.