Arsenal players told to boycott Chelsea Europa League final over Henrikh Mkhitaryan issue
On Wednesday, Arsenal announced they’ve reluctantly decided to leave the former Manchester United man at home for their clash with Chelsea, which takes place in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The Gunners have opted not to include Mkhitaryan in their matchday squad due to the tensions between Mkhitaryan’s native Armenia and Azerbaijan.
The countries have been at odds with one another for several years due to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
The dispute makes it highly difficult for Armenians to travel to and from Azerbaijan, which has prompted Arsenal to leave Mkhitaryan behind.
Piers Morgan, like many other Gunners fans, is fuming with the situation and has urged Arsenal players not to travel to the game, Daily Express reports.
“No,” Morgan wrote in response to Arsenal’s tweet announcing their decision to leave Mkhitaryan behind. “This is ridiculous.
“Tell @UEFA that because of security concerns THEY have caused with this ridiculous choice of venue, NONE of our squad will now be making the trip to Baku. Grow a pair, Arsenal.”
Mkhitaryan is gutted to be out of the final but believes both he and the Arsenal brass made the right call.
He said: “Having considered all the current options, we had to take the tough decision for me not to travel with the squad to the #UEL Final against #Chelsea.
"It‘s the kind of game that doesn’t come along very often for us players and I must admit, it hurts me a lot to miss it.
“I will be cheering my teammates on! Let’s bring it home."