<div><strong>Manchester:</strong> Severe wind and rain affecting the north-west of England saw the Premier League matches at Manchester City and Everton due to take place on Wednesday both postponed.</div>
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<div>Title contenders City were set to face Sunderland at the Etihad Stadium while, in nearby Liverpool, Everton were due to play Crystal Palace at Goodison Park.</div>
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<div>But both matches were called off shortly before they were each due to start at 7:45pm local time (1945GMT) as conditions deteriorated.</div>
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<div>"Manchester City can confirm that this (Wednesday's) evening's fixture versus Sunderland has been postponed due to exceptional and escalating weather conditions," said a club statement.</div>
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<div>"The safety of those in around and travelling to the stadium complex cannot be guaranteed. This decision has been made by the safety officer and Greater Manchester Police.</div>
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<div>"Both managers and the match officials understand and support this decision.</div>
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<div>"A number of issues around the stadium as the wind increased in the hours leading to kick-off made the area unsafe.</div>
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<div>"An unused programme booth blew over and part of a wall was also damaged."</div>
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<div>City manager Manuel Pellegrini added: "The safety of the City and Sunderland supporters is the most important thing and we understand and fully support the reasons behind the game being called off.</div>
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<div>"We were ready to play this game but the well-being of the people coming to the Etihad is paramount. We hope everybody gets home safely, both in Manchester and Sunderland."</div>
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<div>Following leaders Chelsea's 1-1 draw with West Bromwich Albion on Tuesday, City -- three points off top spot -- could have replaced the Blues at the top of the table had they beaten relegation-threatened Sunderland at the Etihad Stadium and other results gone in their favour.</div>
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<div>However, Chelsea could still find themselves dropping down the table if second-placed Arsenal, currently two points adrift, defeat visitors Manchester United in their Wednesday match at the north London club's Emirates Stadium.</div>
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<div>The City-Sunderland match will now have to be re-arranged for later in the season, adding to the fixture congestion already confronting a City side still involved in four competitions.</div>
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<div>It was postponed after Britain's Met Office issued an amber warning for severe winds for Greater Manchester.</div>
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<div>An even higher red alert warning -- the highest possible -- was issued for other parts of the north-west including Merseyside, where Everton, just outside the Champions League places in sixth position, were due to take on a Palace side climbing away from the relegation zone under manager Tony Pulis.</div>
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<div>However, Everton said on their Twitter feed: "Tonight's game has been called off due to building damage which has led to safety concerns."</div>
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<div>Elsewhere in the Premier League, Midlands club Stoke's match against Swansea, due to kick-off at 7.45pm had been delayed 15 minutes until 8.00pm (2000GMT) because of "traffic issues" near the Britannia Stadium.</div>
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<div>However, the game did start at the revised time.</div>
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<div>In London, as well as the Arsenal match, Fulham's game against Liverpool went ahead as scheduled while Wednesday's other top-flight fixture, between north-east side Newcastle and Tottenham Hotspur also kicked-off as planned.</div>

Severe wind and rain affecting the north-west of England saw the Premier League matches at Manchester City and Everton due to take place on Wednesday both postponed

EPL: Manchester City, Everton ties postponed due to bad weather

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EPL: Manchester City, Everton ties postponed due to bad weather

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