Arsenal Qualify for Europa League Knockout Stage with Draw vs. Red Star Belgrade

Arsenal qualifiedfor the UEFA Europa League knockout stages after running out a bore draw againstRed Star Belgradeat the Emirates Stadium on Thursday evening.Manager Arsene Wenger again made great changes to his side for the European clash, and while his side were far from impressive, one point combined with Cologne's5-2 victory over BATE Borisov was enough to advance.The Gunners will have had one eye on Sunday's trip to face Premier League leaders Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium, with few of Thursday's participants likely to challenge for a starting place.Youngsters Joe Willock, Reiss Nelson and Ainsley Maitland-Niles were all in the starting lineup in Belgrade a fortnight ago and kept their places for the return fixture, as did Jack Wilshere, Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud.A new fixture in the team, however, was goalkeeper Matt Macey, who deputised in place of No. 1 Petr Cech, with usual reserve stopper David Ospina nowhere to be seen.And Macey was put to the test on several occasions in the first half asMailSport's Layth Yousif hailed the 23-year-old's contribution while making his European debut:Wenger's men came into Thursday's meeting at the summit of Group I and five points above both Red Star and BATE Borisov, and their first-half display smacked of a team comfortable in knowing it was close to advancing in the contest.Senior players such as Wilshere and Walcott were being relied upon to provide some calm in possession, but it was Giroud who coaxed the best out of visiting goalkeeper Milan Borjan, as noted by Sportsnet's Brendan Dunlop:The second period was much like the first, the hosts happy to sit back in the knowledge a point would most likely be sufficient to see them through, the visitors wary of pushing up too far lest they sacrifice parity.James Benge of theEvening Standard illustrated the at-times tedious nature of the fixture, similar to the first in many ways, although Giroud wasn't providing the same finishing sparkle this time around:Wilshere continued to showcase glimpses of dazzle from time to time but hardly on a consistent enough basis that his manager might be convinced he deserves his place back in the starting lineup.Opportunities to bag the breakthrough were running dry, and Walcott should have converted when he was found onside one-on-one with the goalkeeper, though he lacked the composure to connect with his volley attempt.Richard Boakye almost fired Red Star into an unlikely lead just seconds later, taking full advantage of what appeared to be an injury to Mathieu Debuchy only to smack his attempt wide.Cologne's comeback win over BATE meant Arsenal's draw was enough to see them through, and while the Gunners have done so with time to spare, they're hardly gaining momentum as Europa League favourites just yet.
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