Arsenal are expecting to leave Armenian midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan at home for the Europa League final against Chelsea in Baku on May 29 for fear that his presence would be a security risk and distraction for the rest of the squad and staff, The Times reports.
Arsenal has shown concern there weren’t “acceptable guarantees” from UEFA that Mkhitaryan would be safe to travel to the country due to the Nagorno-Karabak conflict.
The Azerbaijan Foreign Ministry gave the team and Mkhitaryan assurances last week. The ministry spokeswoman, Leyla Abdullayeva told The Associated Press that “many major sports events have been hosted in Azerbaijan, and Armenian athletes have taken part in them. Sports and politics are separate.”
UEFA said Friday that it had received assurances from Azerbaijan’s soccer governing body, but didn’t mention a government commitment.
Mikhitaryan played in 11 of the 14 games in the competition and has played the most minutes of any midfielder on the team.
