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Here is John Brewin’s match report from the Emirates.
Kieran Tierney: “We wanted to get the game done by 60, 70 minutes but we didn’t do that. They put pressure on us but we dealt with it well.
“We just had to show fight and hunger because Zurich game here with that. We knew it was going to be tough with the way we play.
“I am just going to keep working hard, the manager knows I will give 100% from the start or the bench.
Most of the security staff seem to be drawn to the away end. I am not sure anyone has left yet.
Fortress.
9 - Arsenal have won all nine of their home games in all competitions this season, their best winning run from the start of a campaign since 2009-10 (first 11). Stronghold.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) November 3, 2022
The Zurich players go over to the away end to give them a rightful round of applause for their efforts to ensure their team kept going throughout.
Full time: Arsenal 1-0 FC Zurich
Tierney’s strike ensures Arsenal finish top of the group and avoid a playoff with a Champions League dropout. They certainly did not have it all their own way against Zurich who put plenty of pressure on in the late stages but the Gunners held on.
90+4 mins: A Cedric cross is almost perfect for Nketiah inside the area but it is a little too high and skims the top of his head before drifting out of play.
Down the other end … Arsenal give the ball away and it is worked to Marchesano on the right from where he fizzes in a cross which Ramsdale does well to collect.
90+2 mins: Tierney is the latest to require treatment after being caught on the ankle. He gets back to his feet and looks set to continue.
90 mins: Okita lifts in a dangerous cross but it defeats all those in yellow.
Five minutes added on.
88 mins: Cedric is replacing Tomiyasu, who will be worried about the World Cup. He looks a touch worried as he wanders round the outside of the pitch.
86 mins: Nelson volleys clear a Zurich corner as the Swiss continue to put pressure on Arsenal. Another cross comes into the box soon after but Tierney reads the danger and heads away.
Tomiyasu is down with a muscular issue, I think.
84 mins: Nelson sprints down the flank to catch a header. He gets to the ball first but is taken down by Katic, who just about gets a toe on the ball to give away a corner only.
82 mins: Krasniqi is also coming on for Zurich. They are giving it everything they have.
80 mins: Vyunnyk cuts in from the right and flashes a rising shot just wide from 20 yards. What an introduction from the Ukrainian.
78 mins: Hornschuh and Vyunnyk are on for Zurich.
Guerrero screams in pain after Saka catches him with a high boot.
76 mins: Holding lumps one into the channel for Nketiah to chase but the goalkeeper reads the danger and clears.
74 mins: Tomiyasu and Odegaard are on for Vieira and White.
PSV are winning 2-0 in Norway against Bodo/Glimt, so Arsenal cannot afford to concede an equaliser.
72 mins: White lays the ball into Saka’s path inside the box but his touch is heavy and it goes out of play.
70 mins: Nelson has a good moan after the referee claims Boranijasevic’s challenge is not illegal despite the fact the Zurich defender failed to touch the ball.
68 mins: NO GOAL! The away end roars as Guerrero fires in a rebound after Ramsdale pushes Marchesano’s shot into his path but the assistant rightly points out that three Zurich players are offside.
66 mins: Nketiah chases a loose backpass but Brecher gets there a split second before the striker to clear.
64 mins: Saka’s first involvement sees him get to the byline on the right and pinging a cross into the box which flicks off a head before hitting Nketiah in the chest and being collected by the goalkeeper.
62 mins: Conde is cautioned for a later challenge on Lokonga.
Saka and Partey are readying themselves to come on.
60 mins: Zurich enjoyed a decent spell of possession until a loose pass is collected by Ramsdale.
58 mins: Jesus slips a pass through to Nketiah but Zurich get back into numbers and crowd the Arsenal forward out inside the box to end the threat.
Updated
56 mins: The flags are still being flown vigorously in the away end. There will be limbs everywhere if they equalise.
53 mins: Tierney has his shirt literally ripped off his back and requires a new one. He currently looks like he’s been attacked by tiger.
“I enjoyed the same slow-motion shot that Charles Antaki described so beautifully,” Matt Dony says. “But I fear he missed the most heartbreaking part. In the background, the goalkeeper’s dead-eyed acceptance of what was happening in front of him. No anger. No disappointment as such. Just forlorn resignation. Werner Herzog has never caught a shot so bleak.”
Updated
51 mins: Conde is the latest person to clean out Jesus. This time the Brazilian gets a kick on the ankle for outsmarting his opponent with a smart turn.
49 mins: Katic goes into the book for clattering into Jesus on the turn.
47 mins: Vieira whips a free-kick into the box, it bounces off Holding into the path of Jesus whose shot is diverted behind by the goalkeeper.
Second half
Here we go again!
Charles Antaki points out: “The TV director caught a beautifully poignant moment towards the end of that half, when a Zürich defender, facing the wrong way in the penalty box by the byline tried to deal with awkwardly bouncing ball. Foot trap – failed; thigh/midriff trap– failed. Vague semicircular leg movement – completely misses the ball, which trundles slowly out of play. The poor fellow hangs his heads in an image of profound dejection that could stand for the entire human condition.”
During half time, why not read Sid Lowe’s match report from San Sebastian?
Half-time: Arsenal 1-0 FC Zurich
Tierney’s well-struck goal is the difference thus far. Arsenal have been the better team but Zurich have done their best to press and created a few chances of their own, so it is certainly a contest.
45 mins: Nketiah shows some tricky feet and drives a cross into the box, which Selnaes cuts out but then decides to try and do some kick-ups before clearing, only succeeding in sending the ball behind for a corner. Thankfully for the Zurich man it comes to nothing.
Two minutes added on.
44 mins: After some treatment and being an unbloodied fluorescent shirt, Katic is back on the pitch.
42 mins: Now Tierney is launching a long throw into the box. It is headed straight back to him but play is soon stopped due to Katic hitting the deck with a head injury after Gabriel catches his him around the chin.
40 mins: Arsenal have completely dominated at the moment and looking to score a second. Tierney would not mind doubling his tally but his shot from 35 yards heads a long way over the bar.
He does better with his cross soon after, finding Vieira sprinting into the box but his shot is blocked by a Zurich defender.
38 mins: “I think that seeing Elneny back on the field and seemingly no worse for the wear, and Zinchenko on the bench, is superb news for Arsenal.” Kári Tulinius emails. “In recent weeks they’ve looked a bit weary in midfield, and having those two back will go a long way towards solving that.”
Here’s the Tierney goal for those of you in the UK.
Arsenal LEAD! 💥
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) November 3, 2022
Fantastic technique from Kieran Tierney on the half-volley 🙌
Look at what it means to him, look at what it means to the team! 🤗 #UEL pic.twitter.com/C4vPfP0Vd2
36 mins: Holding completely miskicks the ball, allowing Okita to collect it 30 yards from goal, he takes a couple of touches and strikes for goal; the shot is deflected, forcing Ramsdale to readjust and palm the Zurich man’s effort away from danger.
Down the other end … Vieira swings in a corner from right to Nketiah at the near post. He gets a powerful head on the ball, only to see Brecher get his hands behind it.
34 mins: Holding takes Tosin’s feet away on the halfway line to give away a free-kick.
32 mins: Aliti goes into the book for cleaning out Vieira on the right flank. It is a proper lunger and pretty incompetent from the Zurich defender.
The referee also cautions another Zurich player for dissent or something.
31 mins: Nketiah lays the ball into Vieira’s path to take aim from 10 yards but his shot is blocked by Jesus in an offside position!
30 mins: Tierney gets to the byline and pulls the ball back to an onrushing Nelson but he cannot guide it towards goal, and is only able to steer the cross wide.
28 mins: It is another Zurich corner which finds Aliti at the front post but he gets too much on his header and it loops wide.
26 mins: Aliti goes down holding his face like he has been punched by Tyson Fury but it transpires Nelson just put a finger near his chin. Grow up, mate.
24 mins: Tierney lifts a cross to the back post where Vieira is waiting. For some reason the Portuguese midfielder decides to go for a bicycle kick but completely misses it. He is certainly no Ben Mee.
Updated
22 mins: Nketiah picks up a pass 30 yards from goal, gets it out of his feet and fires a vicious shot from the edge of the box which the goalkeeper gets behind. Jesus reaches the rebound but his shot is deflected behind.
20 mins: Despite the goal, there is a constant beat still coming from the away end. I think the Swiss fans will be bouncing all night regardless of the score.
GOAL! Arsenal 1-0 FC Zurich (Tierney, 17)
The balls comes to Vieira from the right, he pings a shot against a nearby defender, he appeals for handball but before the referee can make a decision Tierney has whacked it into the corner from 20 yards.
Updated
16 mins: “The Champions League may be the premier tournament in Europe but nights like tonight are a reminder that the Europa League has got it all, from A to Z,” Peter Oh knows his way around the Europa League (this is a map gag))
14 mins: Zurich are giving it all they’ve got. They might as well enjoy themselves on the big stage.
Arsenal play a smart corner to Nelson waiting on the edge of the box. He takes aim but completely miscues his kick and it comes to nothing.
12 mins: Katic knocks a corner down into the six-yard box where Conde is waiting in an offside position, not that it matters as he spins and whacks the ball high over the bar from six yards out.
10 mins: In the end, Nketiah takes his gloves off and redoes both laces. He has a complicated method of doing a knot.
8 mins: Zurich have a corner on the right … it is headed away by White at the front post, which is a shame.
Eddie Nketiah’s laces are loose and he realises he cannot tie with his gloves on. Seems like something from Taskmaster. How will he solve his dilemma?
6 mins: Zurich get into the Arsenal box again but another poor cross means the attack comes to nothing thanks to Okita’s mishit from the right.
4 mins: Arsenal are pressing high and looking to put Zurich under pressure, as they should considering the difference in the two teams.
2 mins: The away supporters ensure a layer of smoke is sat above the pitch to add to the autumnal feel.
Tosin spins Holding on the halfway and dribbles into the box but his cross is a weak one and is easily intercepted. It’s been an intense start.
Updated
Kick off
Peep! Peep! Peep! Here we go!
The players are out and the away end is just a collection of pyrotechnics now.
Gabriel Jesus starts and captains Arsenal for the first time. He will be looking for a goal having not scored for over a month.
Updated
I did the MBM for the reverse fixture. It was the day the Queen died and everything got a bit weird. Hopefully everything will be more normal tonight.
Manchester United have stuck Harry Maguire upfront at Real Sociedad. Can Mikel Arteta beat that later?
Read former Arsenal midfielder Karen Carney on the excitement of Roberto De Zerbi.
Good to see Reiss Nelson rewarded for his performance at the weekend with a start tonight. Will he earn himself a run of games in the Arsenal team?
Bukayo Sako’s World Cup seemed to be in doubt on Sunday when he was taken off injured against Nottingham Forest. It turns out things were not that bad and he back on the bench already.
Starting lineups
Arsenal: Ramsdale; White, Holding, Gabriel, Tierney; Vieira, Elneny, Lokonga; Nelson, Jesus, Nketiah
Subs: Hein, Hillson, Cedric, Tomiyasu, Saliba, Zinchenko, Partey, Smith, Odegaard, Saka, Marquinhos, Martinelli
Zurich: Brecher, Boranijasevic, Kamberi, Katic, Aliti, Conde, Selnaes, Guerrero, Aiyegun, Okita, Rohner
Subs: Kostadinovic, Omeragic, Krasniqi, Santini, Marchesano, Hornschuh, Vyunnyk, Hodza, Mets, Sauter
Hello
Arsenal have already secured qualification for the knockout stages but they will be desperate to win tonight to avoid any risk of a playoff against a Champions League dropout.
Beating FC Zurich will guarantee top spot, and a bye to the round of 16, but if PSV fail to pick up maximum points against Bodo Glimt, it would also ensure Arsenal end the group in first.
The Gunners won the reverse fixture earlier in the competition 2-1. It was a relatively tight affair considering the chasm in quality and budgets available. Since that match in September, Zurich have changed their manager after a poor start to the Swiss league, which they sit bottom of with a rather underwhelming nine points from 14 matches.
Their new manager is Bo Henrikson, who I am sure we all remember had a three-year spell with Kidderminster Harriers after being snapped up by fellow Dane Jan Molby, whose glasses I picked up at the weekend after dropped them on the Old Trafford press lounge floor (this is the content you need). Henrikson’s managerial credentials are more illustrious than his playing career. He spent six years at Horsens before moving onto Midtjylland, a role he left after a year.
Will he be able to outsmart Mikel Arteta? Let’s find out.
Kick-off: 8pm GMT
