Arsenal and the "home sickness"
(Baonghean.vn) - In the second leg of the Europa League knockout match, Arsenal surprisingly lost to Ostersunds with a score of 1 - 2. Fortunately, this defeat did not affect the ticket to the next round of coach Wenger and his team.
In football, especially in knockout matches, home ground always plays a significant role in the final result of the match. Usually, teams will play better on their own “holy ground” than when playing away at the opponent’s “den”. Yet Arsenal failed to show that.
The 1-2 loss at Emirates Stadium against the small opponent Ostersunds was the 6th consecutive defeat of the "gunners" in the knockout round of European cups (Champions League, Europa League). This is a sad record for Arsenal.
The failure to take advantage of home ground has always caused Arsenal to stop early in the Champions League over the years, even though they have been rated higher than their opponents many times. It seems that every time they enter the knockout round, Emirates Stadium becomes an invisible barrier for the feet of Coach Wenger's students. They were not only defeated by Bayern Munich and Barcelona, but even weaker opponents like Monaco and Ostersunds easily left London with a victory.
 |
| Arsenal players were disappointed after losing 1-2 to Ostersunds. Photo: Internet |
Take the recent match against Ostersunds for example. In the first leg in Sweden, Arsenal did not have to spend much effort to still win a resounding 3-0 victory. It only took 58 minutes, Monreal, Sotiris' own goal and Ozil's goal helped the "gunners" put one foot in the next round.
Seeing Arsenal's superiority in the first leg, no one believed that Wenger's team would have any trouble in the rematch at Emirates Stadium. Simply, Arsenal dominated the visitors Ostersunds in every aspect.
However, things did not go as fans expected. When the first half had just reached the 23rd minute, the Emirates home team had conceded two goals (an own goal by Calum Chambesrt and a goal by Ken Sema). Many Arsenal fans thought of a dark future for the home team. Fortunately, the timely brilliance of defender Kolasinac in the 47th minute helped Arsenal avoid another tragedy.
 |
| Last year was a 1-5 defeat against Bayern Munich in the Champions League knockout round. Photo: Internet |
Although the narrow 1-2 defeat to Ostersunds did not cause Wenger and his team to be eliminated early from the Europa League, it once again confirmed that Arsenal still plays poorly at Emirates in the knockout rounds of European cups.
If the North London team cannot break the "curse" in the upcoming matches, do not expect to win the Europa League title in the 2017-2018 season. Opponents such as Atletico Madrid, AC Milan, Dortmund... have a level far above Ostersunds.
To qualify for the Champions League next season (winning the Europa League this year), coach Wenger needs to find a solution to help Arsenal make the most of their home field advantage. It seems that Arsenal’s “home field madness” is not easy to cure./.
