This archive report was first published on 7 November 2019.
November 7, 2019
Arsenal's struggles in the Premier League have been well-documented, but their form in the Europa League has also been underwhelming. On Wednesday, they drew 1-1 with Vitoria Guimaraes, a result that will do little to ease the pressure on manager Unai Emery.
Emery made eight changes from the side that started Saturday's 1-1 draw at home to Wolves, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang not even included on the substitutes bench. The decision to leave out their new captain was seen as a surprise, especially given the importance of the match.
However, it was a much-changed Vitoria side that came closest to scoring in the first half, with Pepe smashing a long-range shot off the underside of the bar. Arsenal had barely created anything of note, but seemed set to get out of jail when Mustafi nodded home Nicolas Pepe's free-kick to give the visitors the lead.
"Everyone wants to show a lot and give everything but sometimes when you are overly motivated, it's difficult to play your game," said Mustafi, who has been restricted to appearances in the Europa League and League Cup this season.
But Vitoria secured their first point in the group thanks to Bruno Duarte's acrobatic stoppage-time equaliser. The hosts had thrown caution to the wind in the closing stages and were rewarded in the first minute of injury time, with former Tottenham winger Marcus Edwards the creator.
"In this competition our objective is to be first in the group. We are going to play the next two matches to make sure we're in that position," said a defiant Emery.
