A DUTIFUL GAME FOR WENGER
Arsene says football can help relations between countries even if tensions run high off the pitch
ARSENE WENGER has claimed football can play a “positive role” in solving the diplomatic crisis ahead of this summer’s World Cup.
Arsenal are the first English team to play in Russia since the Cold War resumed between the two countries and Wenger’s men arrived for their Europa League tie amid heightened security fears.
The spotlight will be on the clash with CSKA Moscow, but less than 300 Gunners fans have travelled even though the club were offered in excess of 3,000 tickets and normally get a much larger following in Europe.
Fewer England supporters are expected to attend the World Cup Finals in Russia – although the crunch group game with Belgium is already oversubscribed – and tensions are running high.
But Arsenal boss Wenger (right) said: “Sport can always play a positive role in life and between countries as well. That is why football is a good opportunity to facilitate relations. I am convinced that tomorrow night will be normal and the World Cup will be perfectly-well organised.
“I have no problem about that. But maybe sport will have a more active role during this period than ever.
“On that front, there will be no problem. We have been well welcomed here. We had no problems to come here. I don’t think that will affect the game.
“But we are not informed what is right and wrong so it is best for us to stay out of that.
“We had many Russian fans in London. There was no problem. Why should it be different here?”
There have been tighter restrictions on visas for fans, even Arsenal’s stars took longer than usual to get through the passport queues and were greeted with around 100 supporters at the airport.
English fans have been warned to expect “antiBritish feeling” from locals, but there was no hint of it around Moscow. Arsenal are expecting around 700 fans at CSKA Moscow, but the majority of them will be Russian-based who know their team has already done the hard part by winning the first leg 4-1. But when asked by a Russian journalist whether his future depended on winning the Europa League, Wenger dodged the question, before adding: “The Europa League is important for us, everyone knows that. “We are at a stage where we focus on it because in the Premier League we have a very slim chance to move further up – so the Europa League is one of the big targets now.” Midfielder Granit Xhaka has not travelled because of flu, with Mohamed Elneny likely to come in. And Wenger admitted he was currently nursing captain Laurent Koscielny through games because of his long-running Achilles problem, but he will start.