Train nightmare at Manchester Piccadilly as Arsenal fans scramble to get to huge Man City clash

In partnership with

Evening Standard

·19. April 2026

Train nightmare at Manchester Piccadilly as Arsenal fans scramble to get to huge Man City clash

Arsenal fans could face issues getting into Manchester for Premier League title showdown

Arsenal fans could be faced with a serious problem on their trip up to Manchester for today’s huge Premier League title showdown with Manchester City.

OneFootball Videos

The Gunners are set to face their rivals at 4.30pm BST at the Etihad Stadium, with Mikel Arteta’s men six points clear of Pep Guardiola’s side at the summit.

However, the travelling Arsenal fans may be forced into adjusting their route from London to Manchester, with train service provider Avanti West Coast announcing on Sunday morning that there was “significant damage to the overhead electric wires”, with Avanti “unable to serve Manchester Piccadilly until 11am today”.

The network has said that “essential repair work” was needed at the station, and that there would be “alterations” to services for Manchester and London Euston routes.

An Avanti statement on X read: “Following significant damage to the overhead electric wires, we are unable to serve Manchester Piccadilly until 11am today (19 April). To allow for Network Rail to complete essential repair work at the station, there will be alterations to services on our Manchester route.

“Our services to London Euston will start from Stockport until 11am. Avanti West Coast tickets will be accepted on connecting services with other operators between Manchester Piccadilly and Stockport.”

Avanti emphasised that passengers should check their journeys before they began their travel.

The delays will also have caused a problem for those running the Manchester Marathon, which was scheduled to start at 8.55am for the elite wheelchair race.

The elite pen’s gun went off at 9am, while the first standard wave followed shortly afterwards.

What does it mean for my journey?

The affected services into Manchester Piccadilly are Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, Northern, TransPennine Express and Transport for Wales.

Avanti West Coast services between Manchester Piccadilly and London Euston are impacted, while CrossCountry trains between Manchester Piccadilly and Birmingham New Street, Reading, Bristol Temple Meads, Bournemouth, Southampton Central and Paignton are also impacted.

Should you choose not to travel, refunds will be made available through the respective operator’s help pages.

Meanwhile, tickets for other networks are being accepted on different routes, such as Bee Network buses, Metrolink, Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, Transport for Wales and TransPennine Express.

All CrossCountry services are running out of and to Stockport till 11am, while Avanti is running rail replacement buses at Stockport and Manchester Piccadilly.