Arsenal midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan has been forced to withdraw from his side’s Europa League tie in Azerbaijan this week, with Armenians still barred from entering the country.
The Gunners are looking to continue their positive run of results away to Qarabag on Thursday night, with a victory likely to put Unai Emery’s men in the driving seat as they look to secure a spot in the competition’s knockout rounds.
However, they’ll have to do it without play-maker Mkhitaryan, as the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict rumbles on.
According to the Independent, the 29-year-old has decided not to travel for safety reasons, with club officials unsure whether or not he’d be granted access if he boarded a flight from London.
With all due respect to their opponents, Arsenal will probably be fine without Mkhitaryan for Thursday’s clash but this decision could have big implications should the Londoners reach the final of the tournament, which is also in Baku.
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Direct link to this article: https://www.armenianclub.com/2018/10/02/sports-mkhitaryan-forced-to-miss-europa-tie-in-baku-as-armenians-are-banned-from-azerbaijan/
