In the early morning of Friday (28th) in the Europa League Group A, top of the table Arsenal lost 0-2 away to Yanhofen, narrowing the gap between them and their opponents to only 2 points. If Arsenal drop another point in their final game next weekend, they could face being overtaken by Eindhoven, and thus lose their direct qualification to the Round of 16 at the top of the group.
Looking back at last week's match between the two sides, Arsenal edged out their opponents 1-0 at home. However, the trip to Holland was met with a dramatic reversal. In the 55th minute of the match, Yanhofen midfielder Zulhuayavan scored with a powerful shot, and just eight minutes later, Luko Dijon extended the lead to 2-0 with a header from a corner kick.
Despite Arsenal having 70% possession in the game and nearly doubling their opponents with 15 shots on target, they failed to convert their advantage into goals as their shot conversion rate was extremely low.
Currently, Arsenal have two points more than second-placed Yanhofen. As long as they beat bottom-placed Zurich at home in their final match, they will secure top spot in the group and advance directly to the Round of 16. However, if Arsenal lose points and Eindhoven beat Podkirch Lint on the road, Arsenal will slip to second place and have to fight for qualification through the play-offs.
