Arsenal's Europa League double clash with Benfica has been moved to two separate neutral venues.
The Emirates football stadium, the home of British premiership team Arsenal, is pictured in north London, on March 19, 2008. A summit between the UK and France will take place at the Emirates stadium next week during a State visit to Britain by the French President Nicolas Sarkozy. AFP PHOTO/LEON NEAL (Photo credit should read Leon Neal/AFP via Getty Images)
Arsenal will face off with Benfica in the Round of 32 of the Europa League. The fixture involves two legs (home and away) in the space of a week.
It has been confirmed by UEFA that both ties will take place at neutral venues due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.
The first leg of the clash which was initially to be played in Lisbon, Portugal at Benfica’s home on 18 February has been moved to the Stadio Olimpico in Rome because of UK’s strict quarantine rules on people returning from Portugal.
The second leg which was supposed to be play in London at Arsenal’s Emirates stadium on 25 February will instead take place in Athens at the Georgios Karaiskakis stadium since Benfica are unable to enter UK.
This means that both fixtures will be played at neutral venues in Italy and Greece next week and none of the teams will have a home advantage.
Viktor Gyokeres scored twice against Sunderland. The first was a clinical sweep from Havertz's pass.…
Ethan Nwaneri is 19 years old. He is the youngest debutant in Premier League history.…
There is a specific cruelty in the timing of Kai Havertz's body betraying him. It…
For a decade, Arsenal were football’s most attractive fixer-upper. Young players arrived because the pathway…
Bukayo Saka has not started a football match in eleven days. For most players, this…
There is a specific sound that haunts every Premier League manager’s Sunday evening. It is…
We use cookies to offer you a better browsing experience, analyze site traffic, personalize content, and serve targeted advertisements. .