THE English Football League has accused Uefa of an “unwillingness to co-operate” after it says the European governing body’s stance forced them to rearrange three domestic fixtures.

Everton and Wolves were scheduled to play their Carabao Cup third-round tie on September 9 before Liverpool and Atletico Madrid’s Champions League clash was announced on Saturday for the same day.

As a result, that contest and two others — Liverpool and Tottenham in the League Cup and Wolves v Portsmouth in the Championship — have been rescheduled.

An EFL statement read: “On Saturday, Uefa announced that it had scheduled Liverpool v Atletico Madrid for the same date, despite it being clear that Everton and Liverpool cannot play home fixtures on the same evening.

“The EFL met with Uefa officials on Monday morning to explore available options, however in those discussions it was made clear that they were unwilling to consider rescheduling the Liverpool v Atletico Madrid fixture due to the impact on supporters travelling from overseas.

“Disappointingly, the league has therefore been forced to make changes.

“Over recent seasons the League has made a number of changes to accommodate the expansion of Uefa Club competitions — a decision which was made without adequate consultation with domestic leagues.

“These changes have included splitting Carabao Cup round three ties across two weeks, and implementing draw conditions for round three which prevent scheduling conflicts for clubs playing in the Uefa Champions League and Uefa Europa League.

“This makes Uefa’s unwillingness to co-operate all the more frustrating, not least for the supporters of the five impacted clubs, and we sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused.”

Everton v Wolves is now set for Wednesday, September 16; Liverpool v Tottenham, originally slated for September 16, is now a day earlier and Wolves v Portsmouth, also initially due to be played on September 16, will take place on October 20.

Uefa has been contacted for comment.