Unai Emery has insisted that Arsenal must direct their attention towards the Europa League after their chances of finishing in the top four were dealt a near-fatal blow with a 1-1 draw against Brighton.
Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang put Arsenal ahead from the penalty spot after just eight minutes, but the Gunners failed to make the most of their advantage and were forced to settle for a point when Glenn Murray levelled the tie for the hosts with a penalty of his own.
The draw means that Arsenal would have to overcome a three-point and eight-goal deficit to finish ahead of Tottenham on the final day of the season.
Emery was keen to forget about the result and looked ahead to the Europa League semi-final second leg clash against Valencia, saying (as quoted by the Daily Star): “The Premier League is our first target and we didn’t get the position we wanted. We tried today for this victory.
"We worked but we didn’t get the result to take the race to next week and now our way is to be strong in our focus for Thursday in Valencia.
"This is not the moment to speak about next season. We need to be strong and stay together for Thursday. It will be a big challenge in big competition and we can do something important. We are really disappointed.
“But I think it’s going to switch off for Thursday and we are going to be strong in our mentality as we prepare."
Emery also had a line on Danny Welbeck, as it was revealed that the striker will be leaving the club when his contract expires at the end of the season.
He adde“I spoke to the club with this situation and the decision is he is going to leave."
Source :
90min
