Manchester City are struggling to sell their allocation for Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final, with fans criticising the scheduling of the Wembley clash with Arsenal.

Pep Guardiola’s club were given around 33,000 tickets for the fixture in the capital.

Arsenal, who have been given a similar allocation, sold out more than a week ago.

However, with just three days to go before the match, Sportsmail understands between 1,500 and 2,000 tickets in the City section remain unsold.

Supporters of the Etihad Stadium club have hit out at the decision to schedule the clash between City and the Gunners on Sunday, rather than the Saturday slot allocated for the other semi-final between London pair Chelsea and Tottenham.

Manchester City are struggling to sell out their 33,000 allocation for the clash with Arsenal

The FA Cup semi-final, which takes place this Sunday, clashes with the London Marathon

It is thought rules preventing City putting the tickets on open sale have also had an impact

The 3pm kick-off, which will be screened on BT Sport, also takes place on the same day as the London Marathon, which has prompted fears of travel delays.

It is thought that rules which prevent City from putting the tickets on open sale have also had an impact.

MATCH DETAILS Manchester City vs Arsenal Kick off: 3pm, Sunday April 23 TV coverage: BT Sport (2.30pm) Wembley capacity: 90,000 Team allocations: 33,000 Advertisement

Tickets are only available to those who have a purchase history from the club.

City fan Andrew Heald, 54, believes the club are not at fault.

‘This is not City’s doing,’ he said. ‘It’s down to those who schedule the fixtures. I am a season card holder and was going to go down with a big group but we have decided against it. I’d booked a hotel for the Saturday night because I presumed, given City are the only team having to travel from the north, that we would be playing on the Saturday.

‘With it being on a Sunday and with the kids in school the next day, it’s just something we can’t do. The semi-finals should not be at Wembley anyway, but this has made it even worse.’

Both City and the FA declined to comment.

City won the Capital One Cup at Wembley last season when they beat Liverpool on penalties

Wembley holds 90,000 supporters, with each team given an allocation of 33,000 tickets

However, the FA’s head of professional game relations, Andy Ambler, recently went into detail on the reasons behind the scheduling of the semi-finals.

Ambler said that while transport and travel for fans are considered, the final decision lies with the broadcasters.

In this instance, the BBC had first pick and opted to choose the Chelsea v Tottenham match and a 5pm Saturday kick-off time.

Leroy Sane (centre) and the City squad train ahead of this weekend's FA Cup semi-final

City have not reached the FA Cup final since 2013 and they have not won the cup since 2011

A BBC spokesperson said: 'All kick off times are agreed in partnership with the FA. The police and the four clubs involved in this weekend’s ties also confirmed they are happy with the times.'

FA Cup semi-finals have been held exclusively at the new Wembley since 2008 which has prompted debate and some clamour for a return to traditional venues away from the capital.

However, the FA’s position is that Wembley’s 90,000-capacity ensures that more fans are enabled to watch their team.