Arsenal 0 Red Star Belgrade 0 match report: Jack Wilshere impresses again as Gunners qualify for Europa League last 32
Arsene Wenger's side reach the knockout stages with two games to spare but young side labours against Serbian outfit
EDGY Arsenal followed Spurs into the Euro knock-outs but there was a distinct lack of glory, glory in North London last night.
Arsene Wenger’s shadow squad did the bare minimum to qualify for the final 32 of the Europa League.
But it was bloody hard going for the poor old punters who were forced to suffer 90 minutes of total tedium.
In stark contrast to the last Europa League match at the Emirates, when the stadium was overrun by 20,000 Cologne fans, only the away section was fully occupied last night.
But it’s a good job that someone can still get excited about this competition because it clearly remains little more than an irritant for all but the most diehard Gooners.
Even the prospect of securing Group H qualification could not enthuse the red half of North London so soon after Tottenham’s magnificent Champions League victory over Real Madrid.
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Arsenal 0 Red Star Belgrade 0 Five things we learnt... including why Theo Walcott has run out of chances
For as much as Wenger tried to dress this up as “a big match” in the build-up, there can be no getting away from the fact that this was very much a case of after the Lord Mayor’s Show for Arsenal.
The Emirates might be little more than ten miles from Spurs’ temporary Wembley home, but in terms of European occasion it is light years away right now.
And it probably doesn’t help when every one of the players involved last night knows they have no chance of starting Sunday’s crucial Premier League visit to runaway leaders Manchester City.
Even Jack Wilshere, so impressive in the earlier away victories in Borisov and Belgrade, was struggling to get himself going for this one.
Maybe it was down to the disappointment of being omitted from the latest England squad and the knowledge that he is not going to figure in Gareth Southgate’s plans until he is playing regular Premier League football again.
Not that he was the only Arsenal player making hard work of it against the Serbian Super League leaders.
Olivier Giroud could have fired them into an early lead but saw his first-time shot blocked by the outstretched leg of keeper Milan Borjan.
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Francis Coquelin was spoiled for choice when he burst into the Red Star box after 31 minutes, but with Wilshere free to one side of him and Theo Walcott available on the other, the Frenchman failed to take either option and the chance went begging.
Giroud was foiled again by Borjan after being forced wide by Joe Willock’s heavy pass but it was the visitors who finished the first-half stronger.
Matt Macey, who only made his debut in last week’s Carabao Cup win against Norwich, needed every centimetre of his giant frame to tip Vujadin Savic’s 36th minute header against the bar.
And the rookie keeper should have had no chance when the dangerous Richmond Boakye was allowed a free run at goal before shooting wastefully wide just before the break.
Wilshere had two penalty appeals rejected on the hour when he went down under Savic’s challenge before the big defender appeared to handle in the area seconds later.
And he was denied his first Arsenal goal in two and half years when his 65th minute flick was acrobatically cleared of the line by Damien Le Tallec.
Arsenal 0 Red Star Belgrade 0 Five things we learnt... including why Theo Walcott has run out of chances
In the end it was all made academic by Borisov’s 5-2 defeat in Cologne which means Arsenal are now safely through to the knockout stages.
But there is still work to be done to secure first place in the group and avoid any of the Champions League drop-outs in the draw for the next round.
Not that too many at the empty Emirates will be bothered.
