LONDON (AFP) - Arsenal's Armenian midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan will miss the Europa League final against Chelsea in Baku amid fears over his safety.
The 30-year-old's well-being was a concern for Arsenal due to the tense political dispute between Armenia and final hosts Azerbaijan.
The Gunners have decided against Mkhitaryan travelling with the rest of Unai Emery's squad for next Wednesday's game against their London rivals.
"We are very disappointed to announce that Henrikh Mkhitaryan will not be travelling with the squad for our Uefa Europa League final against Chelsea," an Arsenal statement announced on Tuesday.
"We have thoroughly explored all the options for Micki to be part of the squad but after discussing this with Micki and his family we have collectively agreed he will not be in our travelling party."
Azerbaijan's Ambassador to the UK, Mr Tahir Taghizadeh, had insisted Mkhitaryan would be free from any threat of violence, but it was reported the star did not believe he would be safe on the pitch.
"Having considered all the current options, we had to take the tough decision for me not to travel with the squad to the UEL Final against Chelsea," Mkhitaryan tweeted.
Â
"It's the kind of game that doesn't come along very often for us players and I must admit, it hurts me a lot to miss it. I will be cheering my teammates on! Let's bring it home."
Mkhitaryan had featured in 11 games during the Europa League campaign and his absence will be a big blow as Arsenal look for the victory they need to qualify for next season's Champions League.
"We have written to Uefa expressing our deep concerns about this situation," the statement added.
"We're also very sad that a player will miss out on a major European final in circumstances such as this, as it is something that comes along very rarely in a footballer's career.
"Micki has been a key player in our run to the final so this is a big loss for us from a team perspective."
Armenia captain Mkhitaryan skipped the Gunners' Europa League fixture against Qarabag in October because of tensions caused by a dispute over the Nagorny Karabakh region.
Azerbaijan and Armenia have feuded over Nagorny Karabakh since Armenian separatists seized the territory in a war that claimed about 30,000 lives in the early 1990s.
A ceasefire was agreed in 1994 but the two countries remain locked in a bitter dispute with frequent exchanges of fire, and tensions are such that Mkhitaryan also did not travel to Azerbaijan with former club Borussia Dortmund for a Europa League match against Galaba in 2015.
Vow of 'continued success' - theworldnews.net
Former Real Madrid striker Predrag Mijatovic criticised Gareth Bale for lacking leadership qualities and hit out at coach Santiago Solari after the club's La Liga title ambitions were dented by Thursday's 2-2 draw at Villarreal.
Bale nowhere near being a Real Madrid leader - Mijatovic
The playing court is marked by two sidelines and two end lines. All lines must be 2 inches wide and must be created with a light color that is easy to discern from the playing court. An attack line should be placed three meters from the center line. The center line divides the court into two 9 x 9 meter courts.
Basketball Equipment | Eastbay
Spanish girls shine, Football News & Top Stories - The
A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on December 16, 2018, with the headline 'Koscielny returns to plug gap at the back'. Print Edition | Subscribe.
Rob Holding injury: Arsenal defender ruled out for rest of
Mauricio Pochettino says that Hugo Lloris will remain in goal for Pochettino gives backing to under-fire Lloris. 2019-04-02 18:21 which happens in football, it's only to be strong and back
Football > Champions League. VIDEO - Luis Suarez: Barcelona 'looked like schoolboys' Luis Suarez said his team mates defended like children for the fourth goal they conceded in a shock 4-0
'We looked like schoolboys', says Luis Suarez after Barcelona
LONDON (Reuters) - Chelsea have completed the signing of Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain, who will join the club on loan from Juventus until the end of the season, the Premier League club said on Wednesday. Higuain joins Chelsea after his year-long loan spell with AC Milan was cut to less than six months.
Football: Higuain completes Chelsea loan deal from Juventus
Liverpool fans are going to hate it, but Spurs' miracle > the Anfield miracle. Sorry - I hate the word "miracle". SSE (sorry also to my LFC mate Tom who still thinks I'm fishing for some
Beste Galerie von football raddy avramovic could make shock return to singapore as new home united coach - michelewilliamsphotography.com
Dyson revs up hiring for Singapore electric car plant - The
Solskjaer: United don't fear Camp Nou test - Daily Nation
AMSTERDAM, March 23 (Reuters) - The Netherlands will not be lulled into a false sense of security when they face a struggling, new-look Germany in their Euro 2020 qualifier in Amsterdam on Sunday, captain Virgil van Dijk has said. The Dutch beat the Germans 3-0 at home last October and came from
Dutch not favourites against struggling Germany - Van Dijk
Football: Solskjaer makes dream start as Man United thrash Cardiff Solskjaer praises buccaneering Man United players after stylish win to put the seal on an emphatic win. The result and
Solskjaer reacts to 17-year-old's display in Man United's 2-0
W-League players during a match on May 4, 2019. Under a new collective bargaining agreement, the base annual pay for players in the W-League was hiked 33 per cent to match the men's minimum salary
Australian female footballers to earn same base pay as men
Gotze predicts success for diligent Dortmund, Football News
0 comments:
Post a Comment