Arsenal’s domestic league campaign will continue with an away match against Leeds at 10 pm on January 31 (Hanoi time).
This is a crucial match for Mikel Arteta’s team, according to experts. A victory would allow the London team to continue pressing and maintain an advantage of at least four points over Manchester City and Aston Villa; A defeat would cost them morale and the advantage in the fight.
Arsenal had to cancel their flight and travel more than 300km by bus to get to Leeds for their Premier League matchday 24 match. Photo: EPA
Understanding the importance of this match, coach Mikel Arteta and his staff want to be as well prepared as possible for the away match against the team currently ranked 16th in the league table.
However, “man proposes, God disposes”, and the team was unable to fly as planned and had to travel almost 200 miles by bus to reach Yorkshire.
The reason why Arsenal’s preparations were greatly hampered was the dense fog that appeared in the north of England on January 30.
Daily Mail Sport described how, after their final training session, Arsenal were faced with two options: fly directly to Yorkshire or travel by bus.
After carefully reviewing weather reports, the coaching staff decided to choose the safest, albeit slowest, option to avoid the risk of the flight being delayed or canceled at the last minute.
Leeds-Bradford Airport is located in an open, high altitude area, frequently affected by strong fog and winds, making air access potentially risky.
Therefore, instead of a short flight, Arsenal had to travel a long distance by bus, risking the usual traffic congestion on the M1 line.
Extended travel inevitably affects players’ fitness and comfort to some extent, especially as Arsenal are entering a crucial stage of the season.
The match against Leeds requires a high level of concentration from the visiting team, given their busy schedule in multiple competitions.
Arsenal are not only at a disadvantage in terms of travel, but are also under enormous pressure in the title race.
Their most recent defeat narrowed the gap between them and the chasing group to just four points, after both Man City and Aston Villa won in round 23.
Arsenal’s performance has not been particularly convincing either, after three consecutive Premier League games without a win. They drew against Liverpool and Nottingham Forest and lost 3-2 against Manchester United in their last game.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, coach Mikel Arteta admitted that the defeat to Manchester United left the players with a lot of negative emotions.
“Losing a match certainly leaves a lot of emotions, because our players are extremely competitive and always seek perfection. When they don’t achieve it, many questions arise,” said the Spanish coach. “We always want to improve, to be better in all aspects. We have the confidence and conviction that we are on the right path.”
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