Arsenal vs Benfica: Europa League venue farce pure insanity

Arsenal will face Benfica in the Europa League round of 32 in two different neutral venues due to various travel restrictions, with the ties set for February 18 and February 25.

The Gunners can’t travel to Estádio da Luz as they would need to quarantine for ten days upon returning to the United Kingdom, while Benfica can’t travel to the UK at all. So, a compromise has been made.

A compromise for who?

Boiling things down, English football club Arsenal will play Portuguese outfit Benfica in Rome’s Stadio Olimpico for As Águias’ ‘home’ leg. Then, English football club Arsenal will ‘host’ Portuguese outfit Benfica in Athens’ at the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium for their ‘home’ leg, some 1,500 miles away.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

• 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
• 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
• Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
• 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
• Mikel Arteta provides Gabriel Martinelli injury update after Everton win

Arsenal playing Benfica in two different neutral venues is plain insane and puts entertainment first over player welfare

It is, categorically, insane. Staggering, in truth.

Sure, the situation is as such that neutral venues must be chosen to host the matches. That can’t be ignored as the current world climate is what it is. However, of all the options available (if others were even considered) this is the worst one.

This is purely for the sake of entertainment, ignoring the well-being of two clubs’ staff and players and done purely to increase TV revenue and get as much footyball on the television as feasibly possible, regardless of the madness of it all.

If both matches have to be at neutral venues, then do it as a one-off leg. Don’t burden an already physically stretched set of footballers with additional travel and safety concerns. Under normal circumstances, the two teams would travel twice between them. Now we have two teams travelling twice each, amid their own hectic schedules. The Gunners, for example, must play in Rome, London, Athens and Leicester in the space of 11 days.

Knowing how arduous and risky this whole process would be, accepting the state of affairs and returning to the knockout tournament style format seen in last year’s European competitions would also have been more logical.

In the case of this fixture, the fact all other sides are playing two games would pose the question of fairness, which is understandable. Why not then find one venue for both fixtures and play them over four days? Communicate with each clubs’ respective leagues and find an amicable solution. Of course not.

On top of all that, the away goals rule will still apply. Having won their group to put themselves in a stronger position for this round, Arsenal may now be faced with Benfica having 30 minutes to snatch and ‘away’ goal if the second leg goes to extra-time. Despite, y’know, neither team being on home soil.

There is nothing that can be done about the matter, granted. With the financial implications of the pandemic, all funding wherever accrued, in this case TV rights, is welcome for both clubs.

Doesn’t make it any less baffling.