Even though Mikel Arteta named a solid side for the Europa League match against PSV Eindhoven, Arsenal’s great run of success came to a crashing stop with a 2-0 loss.
Luuk de Jong, a former Newcastle and Barcelona striker, entered the game at halftime and, after beating Rob Holding.
Arteta had fielded a quality team with the hopes of securing a point and securing top place in Group A, and hence a spot in the Round of 16 in March. However, their ball movement was slow and they were unable to capitalise on their possession domination.
And they were punished for their lack of clinical play in the final third as De Jong dismantled the game in eight minutes. De Jong scored after setting up Veerman’s first-time shot and after Aaron Ramsdale failed to clear a corner.
Arteta substituted several of his top players, including Bukayo Saka, Thomas Partey, and Gabriel Jesus, but PSV held on to go to the knockout round.
Next week, Arsenal will visit FC Zurich with a win securing first place and avoiding a playoff round in February.
Arteta would have preferred to play a second-string team in this encounter, which occurs three days before a trip to Chelsea, but he may now be forced to alter his plans.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored in his comeback to Manchester United’s 3-0 Europa League victory over Sheriff.
Ronaldo was frustrated for the most of the encounter as Sheriff fought off their much larger opponents with a resolute defensive display, only to be overcome by Diogo Dalot’s header right before halftime.
In the 65th minute, replacement Marcus Rashford made it 2-0 after fellow substitute Luke Shaw set him up with an exquisite cross for a thunderous header.
Ronaldo was visibly frustrated after having a close-range effort blocked, missing a golden chance in the second half, and having a goal called out for offside, which resulted in him kicking the ball into the crowd after retrieving it from the goal.
However, he eventually found the back of the net in the 81st minute when he pounced on the rebound after Sheriff’s goalkeeper stopped his header and blasted it home. It was his 701st club goal in his career.
United is now undefeated in seven games in all competitions, their greatest streak of the year.
The Red Devils have also qualified for the elimination round.
Next week, they will go to Real Sociedad, where a two-goal victory would give them the group’s top place over the Spanish club. The group winners go directly to the round of 16, while the runners-up face a team that was relegated from the Champions League.
The 1-0 victory against Braga preserved alive Union Berlin’s chances of advancing to the knockout round of the second-tier European tournament.
West Ham preserved its perfect record in the Conference League with a 1-0 victory against Silkeborg, while Fiorentina booked a place in the round of 16 with a 2-1 victory over Istanbul Basaksehir.
In their first encounter after coach Unai Emery’s announcement that he was leaving to lead Aston Villa of the Premier League, Villarreal lost their first points in Europe this season.
Sagiv Jehezkel tied the match for Hapoel Beer-Sheva in the 79th minute, despite the fact that they had already qualified for the round of 16 as group champions.
Cologne’s journey to Slovacko in Group D has been rescheduled for Friday after being delayed by a half-hour owing to dense fog in the Czech Republic.
The match lasted just seven minutes when the referee called it off due to the absence of a goal.