Arsenal to play Benfica in Rome, discussions being held over second leg venue

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Arsenal’s Europa League clash with Benfica is set to be moved to Rome due to Covid-19 travel restrictions.

This is according to a report in the Evening Standard, which states that the Gunners and Benfica will not be able to play either of their games in the UK or Portugal at the moment due to rules in place in both countries.

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The report adds that discussions are being held over a venue for the second leg as well, though it remains to be seen what options are currently the most realistic.

This comes as Liverpool and Manchester City have also seen venues for their games changed as we enter a particularly challenging period of the coronavirus pandemic.

Some will no doubt question if this much travelling for football should really be going on at all at the moment, with last season’s switch to playing a shorter tournament in one country seeming like the best way of dealing with this issue.

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