Arsenal 0-0 Red Star Belgrade AS IT HAPPENED: Gunners qualify for knockout stages

ARSENAL secured qualification to the knockout stages of the Europa League, but couldn’t find a way through a resilient Red Star Belgrade at the Emirates. See how the action unfolded with Express Sport.

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlightsGETTY

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlights

Arsenal 0-0 Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Express Sport brought you the latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlights

THAT’S ALL FOLKS

Thanks for joining me tonight. I’ll be back again on Saturday to bring you LIVE coverage of all the Premier League action. I should be mightily hangover as it’s my birthday tomorrow. I look forward to that hitting me like a sledge hammer…

ARSENAL 0-0 RED STAR BELGRADE

FT: Nothing doing folks. Arsenal have drawn 0-0 at home to Red Star Belgrade. Some decent individual performances from Nelson, Macey and Wilshere, but nothing really clicked for the North London side.

There’s a few groans around the stadium, but Arsene Wenger’s side are through to the last-32 with two games to spare.

Mission accomplished.

93: These Red Star fans are absolutely loving this. Great result at the Emirates for them.

92: Koln have beaten BATE Borisov 5-2, so providing Arsenal don’t concede - they’ve made it through to the knockout stages.

FOUR MINUTES ADDED TIME

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlightsGETTY

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlights

89: Was that the chance? Theo Walcott delivers a corner but Rob Holding sends it wide.

88: Second change for Red Star as Racic replaces Srnic. There’s panic around the stadium as Wilshere goes down under a heavy challenge, but luckily he’s back on his feet.

85: Around five minutes remaining. Isn’t this about the time Olivier Giroud pulls a rabbit out of the hat with some insane finish? *Sticks £2 on him to score*

84: Another chances goes begging for Boakye. 0/2 so far. The striker continues playing with Debuchy down injured but slices it high and wide.

81: Painful for Theo. Elneny and Giroud combine to thread it over the top for Walcott, who completely misses his volley.

79: Not a bad header from Walcott. Jack Wilshere, who’s been pulling all the strings in midfield, fizzes a cross for Theo to nod wide of the post. Tough ask to have scored from there.

76: Eddie Nketiah’s not really been involved. He’s operating down the wing but I think he would benefit playing through the middle.

73: Rob Holding booked. I missed it initially but replays show the centre-back led with his arm and caught Srnic in the face.

70: Home fans singing "Eddie! Eddie! Eddie!" They want Nketiah on, and Arsene Wenger obliges. The young talent replaces Willock for the final 20 minutes.

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlightsGETTY

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlights

69: Wish I was watching the Koln vs BATE match. It’s now 3-2 to the Bundesliga side. FIVE goals?! Think we’d be lucky to see ONE here.

Outstanding! Jack Wilshere's goalbound effort is somehow hooked off the line by Le Tallec. Maitland-Niles served it on a plate for the England international, but perhaps his lifted shot didn’t have enough pace.

66: Can Eddie Nketiah come on now please? He was electric against Norwich in the Carabao Cup the other night.

63: Theo Walcott is furious with Willock for taking on a shot instead of passing. He’s just given him the death stare folks. OMG…

60: Koln have equalised against BATE Borisov, it’s 2-2. That means Arsenal have qualified for the last-32 if things stay the same.

57: Reiss Nelson is another reason that supporters are feeling encouraged. He’s bombing up and down the left flank relentlessly. WOuldn’t surprise me if he was involved in the breakthrough.

54: Chance! Theo Walcott plays an early bending cross to Giroud, but Savic gets his body in the way. The crowd liked it. They’re a decibel or two louder now.

51: Macey is forced into action after a decent effort from Srnic. Kanga was the architect after deciding to play it short instead of shooting.

48: Olivier Giroud looks to break the monotony with a shot from distance. Over. Arsenal on the front-foot but not really penetrating.

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlightsGETTY

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlights

ARSENAL 0-0 RED STAR BELGRADE

45: We’re back underway folks. No changes at the break for either side. More urgency needed from Arsene Wenger’s side to get the crowd going.

TWITTER ROUND-UP

Greaves: Another dull, slow and poor first half. For the 478th Arsenal game in a row. Wakey, wakey boys!

Remi: Walcott is beyond atrocious. I honestly don’t know how/why he still plays for us.

Stefan: Theo has overtaken Ramsey as arsenals biggest scrub on the wage bill, how is he still being paid to play football?

ARSENAL 0-0 RED STAR BELGRADE

HT: And there’s the half-time whistle. The stand-out moment has been Vujadin Savic's header, which was acrobatically saved by Matt Macey.

Not Arsenal’s finest display, but certainly enough to suggest they can maintain their 100% record if they improve after the break.

46: Richmond Boakye is clean through… missed! 

The striker has netted 14 goals this season, and is rumoured to be scouted by Chelsea, but I don’t see how with finishing like that.

Boakye races through but fires high and wide with only Matt Macey to beat.

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlightsGETTY

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlights

THREE MINUTES ADDED TIME

44: Red Star having the better of the final stages of this first half. Vladan Milojevic said his side showed Arsenal too much respect in their reverse fixture. No sign of that here.

41: Matt Macey has done a fine job between the sticks tonight. He’s been sharp, alert and made a fantastic save to deny Red Star the opener. Looks like that loan spell with Luton did the 23-year-old a world of good.

39: Koln look to have unravelled in tonight’s other match in Group H. The German side were leading but BATE Borisov are now 2-1 ahead. That leaves them three points behind top-placed Arsenal.

36: Srnic embarks on a run of his own and delivers a cross that Debuchy had to claw away because Boakye was lurking. Well done Matt Macey. Petr Cech’s deputy superbly tips Vujadin Savic's header onto the bar. Looked a certain goal.

33: Coquelin with a lung-busting run through the midfield. Where did that come from?! Anyway, it’s one step forward, two steps back as the Frenchman neither shoots or passes to an Arsenal player.

30: Arsenal have had 61% possession after half-an-hour. Just the one shot on target though. Think I might have to fetch the coffee.

27: There’s another lengthy pause as Donald goes down injured. The medical staff are on to treat him by sticking a bandage over his knee. Sorted.

These injuries are really slowing things down. Everything feels flat.

24: Arsenal look comfortable without being spectacular. A few passes have gone astray and chances at a premium.

21: Koln lead 1-0 against BATE Borisov. As things stand, a draw will take Arsenal into the last 32.

18: Arsenal dominating now. They must have won five corners in the space of five minutes with all of them proving fruitless. BT Sport pundit John Hartson thinks it’s because Jack Wilshere’s delivery is overly floated instead of being whipped. I’m hungry for some reason…

15: Maitland-Niles is proving a real nuisance. Twice he’s left his marker for dead and won corners for Arsenal. Walcott takes the latest but Debuchy can’t connect.

12: Looks like Giroud was playing tricks. He’s absolutely fine as he fires a first-time strike at the goalkeeper after some good work by Maitland-Niles down the left channel.

9: There’s a pause in play as Le Tallec goes down clutching his face. Think he was caught by Alcott’s stud. And now Giroud’s down holding his hamstring.

He’s hobbled to the sidelines and looks like he’ll try and run it off. Quite how he’s going to run off a hamstring injury, I don’t know.

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlightsGETTY

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlights

6: Very impressive display from the visitors in these early stages. They don’t look overawed by the occasion. Arsenal try to gain some control but Walcott lashes a cutback miles over the bar.

3: Cracking start to this match. Both sides playing with a great tempo.

Boakye is released by goalkeeper Borjan with a long punt forward but Arsenal’s stopper Macey anticipates it and clears.

ARSENAL 0-0 RED STAR BELGRADE

1: Evening folks, sorry about the delayed start. I’ve been on duty for Everton’s disastrous 3-0 defeat to Lyon. Needless to say, Britain’s Europa League fate rests on Arsenal’s shoulders. Go well, lads!

ARSENAL vs RED STAR BELGRADE - TEAM NEWS

Arsenal XI: Macey, Debuchy, Elneny, Holding; Nelson, Willock, Coquelin, Maitland-Niles; Walcott, Wilshere; Giroud.

Subs: Jordi Osei-Tutu, Chuba Akpom, Pelenda Joshua Da Silva, Marcus McGuane, Edward Nketiah, Ben Sheaf, Petr Cech.

Belgrade XI: Borjan, Stojkovic, Le Tallec, Savic, Gobeljic, Krsticic, Donald, Srnic, Kanga, Radonjic, Boakye.

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlightsGETTY

Arsenal vs Red Star Belgrade LIVE: Latest Europa League scores, news, goals and highlights

DEBUCHY HAS A FUTURE AT CENTRE-BACK - WENGER

19:00: Arsenal's Mathieu Debuchy could carve out a role for himself at centre-back after the Frenchman impressed as part of a back three on his return from injury, manager Arsene Wenger has said.

The 32-year-old joined Arsenal as a right-back in 2014 but has made just 25 appearances across all competitions after being plagued with injuries.

Debuchy made his first appearance for Arsenal since November 2016 during last month's 1-0 win at Red Star Belgrade in the Europa League and played 120 minutes in last week's League Cup victory over Norwich.

"We are all very pleased for him here because he has gone through some very difficult moments with setbacks," Wenger is quoted as saying in the Evening Standard.

"The fact that he got through 120 minutes the other night is a huge boost for him. He needs to recover now but from now on, he'll be a candidate to fight for the team places again.

"Maybe his future is as a centre-back. He has the attributes because he's very good in the air. You think he couldn't play centre-back because he's not tall, but if you look at the number of balls he wins in the air, it's impressive."

ARSENAL vs RED STAR BELGRADE - PREVIEW

Arsene Wenger will continue with his policy of squad rotation as Arsenal host Red Star Belgrade in the Europa League tonight.

The Gunners boss has made sweeping changes from his Premier League side and the likes of Jack Wilshere, Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud are once again expected to come in.

Shkodran Mustafi (hamstring), Sead Kolasinac (hip), Santi Cazorla (ankle), Danny Welbeck and David Ospina (both groin) will play no part.

Arsenal provisional squad: Cech, Macey, Debuchy, Holding, Dasilva, Mustafi, Bellerin, Nelson, Maitland-Niles, Wilshere, Willock, Elneny, McGuane, Giroud, Walcott, Iwobi, Nketiah.

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