This was an obligation Arsenal had no choice but to fulfil and, with the outcome of scant consequence, they joined PSV Eindhoven in serving up a presentable enough spectacle.
Nobody could have expected anything edgier although one wonders exactly what it would have taken for Mikel Arteta to give Ethan Nwaneri, Reuell Walters or Lino Sousa a dose of big‑game experience. The three youngsters in his travelling party remained on the bench throughout and any of them would surely have gained more from a runout than, say, the 89th‑minute substitute Gabriel Jesus.
