Almost a great opportunity for Nketiah to score on his debut! The youngster plays a nice one-two with Giroud before bursting through the BATE back line, but his run forward is slightly mistimed and the linesman's flag is quickly raised.
90'
The fourth official has indicated that there will be two minutes of added time.
89'
E. Nketiah enters the game and replaces J. Willock.
Arsenal have made another late switch, with Edward Nketiah coming on to take the place of Willock.
88'
More good play by Stasevich over on the left wing sets him up to whip in a cross from just outside of the Arsenal box, but the ball into the penalty area is overhit and sails behind for a goal-kick before it can pick out a team-mate.
87'
M. Ivanić gets yellow.
Arsenal are easily able to deal with the resulting corner and then quickly counter-attack through Giroud. The Frenchman is only able to reach the halfway line, however, as Ivanic cynically trips the Frenchman to the ground with a mistimed challenge.
86'
Stasevich twists and turns over on the left-hand side of the Arsenal penalty area before eventually managing to fizz a pass across the face of goal. It's well hit by the attacking midfielder, but Mustafi is there to deal with the danger at the near post.
85'
D. Baga enters the game and replaces A. Volodko.
Dmitri Baga has come on to replace Alyaksandr Volodko in BATE's third and final alteration of the game.
83'
Almost a chance for Arsenal to make it 5-2! Maitland-Niles cuts inside from the left flank before picking out McGuane with a clever pass over to the right wing. The youngster quickly knocks the ball into the path of Walcott and sets up the forward to shoot, but his cross-cum-shot is poor and flies well wide of the goal.
81'
Giroud spots the goalkeeper slightly off his line and tries to beat him with a cheeky lob from 20 yards out. It's well hit by the striker but can't quite find the back of the net, flying just a yard or so over the top of the crossbar instead.
79'
M. McGuane enters the game and replaces R. Nelson.
Arsenal have made their first change of the night, with Nelson making way for 18-year-old Marcus McGuane.
Minute
Description
78'
Nelson manages to get himself into a good position over on the right flank before picking out Giroud on the other side of the BATE box. The Frenchman quickly shoots, but his rushed effort sails well wide of its intended target.
76'
The pressure being put on Arsenal by the determined hosts has made them struggle with the ball at their feet. Not for the first time tonight, they lose possession and allow BATE to push forward quickly, but a poor first touch from Stasevich gifts possession back to the Gunners.
74'
After dealing with the danger without too many problems, BATE try to hit the visitors on a quick counter-attack. They aren't able to carve out a chance on goal but win themselves a free-kick, and it's one that Ospina can comfortably gather without too many problems.
73'
Good play by Arsenal sees Giroud get into a decent position to cross, but he's unable to pick out a team-mate in front of goal and has to settle for a corner that's comfortably dealt with by the home side.
71'
Big chance for Alyaksandr Volodko! BATE really are enjoying themselves at the moment as they desperately try to find a third goal. This time it's Alyaksandr Volodko who is able to get a shot away from the edge of the box, but his side-footed strike sails wide of the Arsenal goal.
69'
BATE quickly win the ball back from the restart and are able to launch another dangerous cross into the Arsenal penalty area, but this time Ospina charges out to clear the danger with a strong punch away.
67'
M. Gordeychuk has scored a goal for BATE!
GOAL! BATE have scored a second! Good play down the left flank from the home side results in a cross being fired into an excellent area inside the Arsenal box. Holding is unable to deal with the danger, allowing Gordeychuk to easily fire in from close range.
65'
The visitors are unable to make the free-kick count, however, as the cross from Walcott just outside of the BATE penalty area is underhit and fails to beat the first man inside the box.
64'
N. Milunović gets yellow.
Milunovic cynically drags back Walcott as he tries to cut in from the right flank, and he becomes the latest player to receive a yellow card. Arsenal have been presented with a good opportunity to fire the ball into the box from this free-kick.
63'
BATE move the ball around with purpose as they cause a few problems for the Arsenal back line. A thumping strike from Gordeychuk deflects off a blue shirt and back to Rios, who quickly shoots but can't find the far corner of the net with his rocket of a shot.
62'
Giroud charges forward and does well to muscle his way into the home side's penalty area. He looks set to get a shot away, but Alyaksandr Volodko is there to make sure the Frenchman can't with a well-timed tackle.
60'
A quick BATE throw-in sets up Rios to swing a cross into the Arsenal penalty area over on the right wing. It does well to pick out Signevich, who pulls off a quick header but can't hit the target with his looping effort.
58'
The Arsenal players don't seem too happy with some of the referee's decisions. This time it's Giroud who gets wiped out on the edge of the BATE penalty area, but the referee isn't at all interested in the challenge and tells the striker to get back to his feet.
56'
Nelson accidentally handles the ball just outside of the visitors' box over on the left flank, resulting in a free-kick for BATE in a dangerous area. It's swung in by Signevich and causes problems for Ospina, who sees the cross-cum-shot late but is just about able to palm the ball away from danger.
55'
N. Signevich enters the game and replaces V. Rodionov.
BATE have made their second change of the night, with Rodionov making way for Nikolay Signevich.
54'
Stasevich does well to get himself into a good position deep down the left wing, but he's put under pressure by Mustafi and has to settle for a corner after he's unable to whip a cross into the Arsenal penalty area.
53'
Sloppy play by BATE midway inside their own half of the pitch allows Arsenal to break forward on a quick counter-attack. Wilshere looks set to penetrate the penalty area before going down under a challenge from Dragun, but the referee waves away his pleas for a free-kick and allows play to go on.
51'
Big chance for Arsenal to make it 5-1! Walcott muscles his way into the BATE box and has a great opportunity to increase the visitors' lead, but he's slightly selfish and decides to go it alone instead of teeing up Wilshere, allowing Milunovic to eventually deal with the danger.
49'
Penalty goal scored by O. Giroud for Arsenal!
GOAL! Giroud steps up and calmly slots a low shot into the bottom left-hand corner of the net. That's the Frenchman's 100th goal for Arsenal in his 238th game!
48'
S. Dragun gets yellow.
PENALTY! Nelson is clumsily fouled deep down the right wing, and Arsenal are awarded a free-kick in a promising position. The set-piece is curled into the penalty area over to the far post, where Mustafi is dragged back and wins Arsenal a penalty.PENALTY! Nelson is clumsily fouled deep down the right wing, and Arsenal are awarded a free-kick in a promising position. The set-piece is curled into the penalty area over to the far post, where Mustafi is dragged back and wins Arsenal a penalty.
46'
We're underway once again!
45' +1
BATE try to push forward on one final attacking move before the break as a hopeful lofted pass is fired deep into the Arsenal half of the pitch. No yellow shirts are able to meet it, however, and the visitors can comfortably hold on until the referee brings the first half to an end.
45'
The fourth official has indicated that there will be just one minute of added time.
44'
Holding hits the post! The BATE defenders are all at sea as they fail to deal with another Arsenal corner. The ball pinballs around the box before Holding is eventually able to get a shot away, but he can only fire his scuffed effort onto the woodwork.
43'
Walcott goes inches away from grabbing his hat-trick! A pass into the BATE penalty area from Wilshere deflects into the path of Walcott and sets up the forward to shoot, but Scherbitski is just about able to get a fingertip on the effort to tip it round the far post.
42'
Willock brings down Milunovic over on the left flank, resulting in another free-kick for the home side. The youngster receives a blow in the face from the defender's flailing arm, but the referee isn't interested in Arsene Wenger's protests and allows play to continue.
40'
A slightly reckless sliding challenge from Holding leaves the referee with no choice but to award a free-kick to BATE midway inside the Arsenal half of the pitch. The set-piece is swung in by Stasevich, but Arsenal are just about able to deal with the midfielder's good ball into the box.
38'
Once again, Maitland-Niles impresses over on the left flank before swinging a cross into the heart of the hosts' penalty area. The ball loops towards Giroud and almost finds the Frenchman, but Scherbitski is there to punch it away from danger before it can.
37'
After having to deal with a nervy 10-minute period, Arsenal are starting to get back in control of the game now. They're knocking the ball around patiently in the middle of the pitch, but BATE are still attempting to put them off with slightly more intense pressing.
35'
Clever play by Maitland-Niles sees the youngster storm down the left wing before winning Arsenal a corner. The set-piece initially fails to result in a chance on goal before Giroud manages to get a header away from the middle of the BATE box, but it isn't executed particularly well and Scherbitski is easily able to collect the ball.
33'
Going 3-0 down seems to have shocked BATE into life, and they're now pushing forward with much more purpose than they were at the start of the game. Once again, it's Ivanic who charges forward on a great run before unleashing a low shot, but his effort is well saved by Ospina in the middle of the goal.
32'
BATE almost pull back another goal! The home side win themselves a free-kick over on the left flank, and it's one that's curled into a wonderful position by Stasevich. Stanislau Dragun manages to get his head to the ball in front of goal, but Ospina is there to claw it away at the far post before the linesman's flag is eventually raised.
30'
Arsenal quickly push forward from the restart, with Maitland-Niles sprinting down the left wing before winning a free-kick for the visitors in a promising position. The cross into the box is a good one, but BATE are easily able to deal with the danger.
28'
M. Ivanić has scored a goal for BATE! Assist by A. Rios.
Rios did really well to perfectly pick out Ivanic in front of goal, but Elneny should have done much better. He looked static when trying to deal with the Montenegrin, who was easily able to rise high above the Egyptian.
GOAL! BATE have pulled one back! Alexei Rios charges down the right flank on an excellent run before getting himself into a good position to cross. He whips a lovely ball into the Arsenal penalty area and picks out Ivanic, who easily beats Elneny in the air before sending a bullet header past David Ospina.
27'
Arsenal are in complete control of the game at the moment, and it'll be interesting to see how they approach the game from now on. Will they sit back and hold onto possession, or will they push forward and search for as many goals as possible?
25'
R. Holding has scored a goal for Arsenal! Assist by P. Mertesacker.
GOAL! It's another for Arsenal! The resulting corner is curled into the heart of the box and finds Mertesacker, who rises high and nods the ball down to Rob Holding, setting up the defender to tap the ball into the back of the net from just a few yards out.
Mertesacker did well to rise above his marker before finding Holding, but, once again, BATE were poor defensively. Their marking was all over the place and they left Holding all alone inside the six-yard box.
24'
M. Volodko enters the game and replaces D. Polyakov.
Vital interception by Nemanja Milunovic! A wonderful pass from Wilshere splits the BATE back line and over to Ashley Maitland-Niles over on the left-hand side of the hosts' box. The youngster then quickly tries to tee up Olivier Giroud with a squared pass across the face of goal, but Milunovic is just about able to cut out the danger before the Frenchman can make it 3-0.
23'
BATE have already made their first substitution of the evening, with Maksim Volodko coming on to replace Denis Polyakov.
22'
T. Walcott has scored a goal for Arsenal!
GOAL! Arsenal have doubled their lead! An absolutely terrible attempted clearance from Scherbitski rolls straight into the feet of Walcott, who quickly controls the ball before side-footing a strike into the bottom left-hand corner of the net.
21'
Huge chance for Ivanic! Stasevich showcases great skill as he darts down the left wing and into a pocket of space. His well-placed cross into the middle of the penalty area fails to find Rodionov but bounces out to Ivanic, who quickly shoots and sends his 20-yard strike just wide of the near post.
19'
Walcott looks to be through on goal once again after an attempted BATE attacking move quickly breaks down, but the linesman's flag denies him the opportunity to test Scherbitski.
17'
Wilshere scores, but it's ruled out! The midfielder plays another lovely one-two with Giroud before setting up Walcott over on the right flank. The goalscorer quickly squares the ball and tees up Wilshere to make it 2-0, but the linesman's flag is rightly raised as soon as he makes contact in front of goal.
15'
It's been a tough opening 15 minutes for the home side, who are struggling to get a touch on the ball past the halfway line. They're given a chance to push forward when a thumping clearance picks out Ivanic, but the midfielder's pass over to the right is poor and rolls out for a throw-in.
13'
Arsenal patiently knock the ball around as they continue dominating possession inside the BATE half of the pitch. Mohamed Elneny eventually launches a lofted pass over to the right wing, where Nelson tries to meet it but is beaten to the cross by Igor Stasevich.
11'
Joe Willock is clumsily brought down over on the left wing, resulting in a free-kick for Arsenal in a promising position. It's swung in by Walcott and sails over to the far post, but it's overhit by the goalscorer and flies behind for a goal-kick.
9'
T. Walcott has scored a goal for Arsenal!
GOAL! Perfect start for Arsenal! Once again, Wilshere impresses as he causes problems for the hosts on the edge of the penalty area. He plays a quick one-two with Giroud before bursting into the box and chipping a lovely cross over to Walcott, who has no trouble getting the better of Scherbitski from close range.
8'
Theo Walcott hits the post! Jack Wilshere pokes a lovely pass through the BATE back line and into the path of Walcott. The forward runs onto the ball and quickly shoots from inside the box, but his first-time effort ends up hitting the woodwork after beating Denis Scherbitski.
7'
More good play from the home side looks as if it's going to result in a chance on goal for BATE, but Mikhail Gordeychuk ends up drifting into a slightly offside position and the linesman's flag is quickly raised.
5'
BATE push forward on another attempted attack, this time down the left flank through Vitali Rodionov. The striker takes on Per Mertesacker and tries to get the better of the centre-back on the edge of the penalty area, but the German is easily able to deal with the danger without too many problems.
3'
After an even start to the game, it's BATE who push forward on the first attacking move of the evening. Slightly sloppy defending from Arsenal allows Mirko Ivanic to get a shot away from 25 yards out, but it's poorly hit by the Montenegrin and sails well wide of the goal.
1'
We're off! Arsenal get us underway, attacking from left to right.
Good afternoon and welcome to our live text commentary of today’s Europa League group stage game between BATE and Arsenal at the Borisov Arena.
After almost two decades as Champions League regulars, an underwhelming season means Arsenal will have to settle for the Europa League this campaign. It’s a competition that they really should do well in, and they’ll be feeling confident about their chances of winning this evening as they search for their second consecutive victory.
The Gunners’ first appearance in Europe’s second-highest competition since the 1999-00 season got off to a slightly rocky start when they went a goal down against Cologne after just nine minutes, but they showed good grit and determination to fight back and win 3-1. They’ve been in decent form since then, with a well-earned draw away to Chelsea being followed up by victories against Doncaster Rovers and West Bromwich Albion.
As for BATE, they had to come from a goal down to draw against Crvena Zvezda in their opening Europa League clash, and they’ll be looking to cause an upset against their Premier League opponents. They’ve proved themselves to be a tricky side to play against in recent years, with Athletic Bilbao, Roma and Bayern Munich all suffering shock defeats here in Minsk.
The Borisov Arena is a tough place to come to, and BATE aren’t a team that are used to losing. They’ve won 16 of their last 21 league games, with just one of their previous 19 home outings ending in a defeat. They failed to qualify for Europe last year but impressed in the Champions League in 2015, when they managed to beat Roma and finish the group stage just one point behind both the Italian side and Bayer Leverkusen.
There’s just under 15 minutes left to go until kick-off, so let’s have a look at how the two teams will be lining up this this evening…
Arsenal substitutes: Macey, Dasilva, Dragomir, Gilmour, McGuane, Nketiah, Akpom.
Arsenal XI (3-4-2-1): Ospina; Holding, Mertesacker, Mustafi; Nelson, Willock, Elneny, Maitland-Niles; Walcott, Wilshere; Giroud.
BATE substitutes: Yablonski, Berezkin, Veremko, Tuominen, Baga, Maksim Volodko.
Aleksandr Yermakovich has decided to name an unchanged BATE side to the one that started the draw against Crvena Zvezda two weeks ago, while Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has made four changes to the team that featured in their last Europa League outing, with Shkodran Mustafi, Reiss Nelson, Jack Wilshere and debut starter Joe Willock coming into the starting line-up to replace Nacho Monreal, Hector Bellerin, Alex Iwobi and Alexis Sanchez.
The two sides are making their way out onto the pitch, with just a few minutes to go until kick-off.
HALF-TIME: BATE 1-3 ARSENAL
Wenger will be happy with what he's seen so far, as his Arsenal side head into the half-time break with a comfortable lead under their belts. Sloppy defending from BATE allowed the Premier League side to easily find the back of the net three times in just 25 minutes, but the hosts have given themselves a chance of getting back into the game thanks to an excellent goal scored by Ivanic.
The two teams are making their way back out on to the pitch ahead of the start of the second half. Neither side have made any substitutions during the half-time break.
FULL-TIME: BATE 2-4 ARSENAL
Arsenal were made to sweat slightly when BATE pulled back a second goal midway through the second half, but, overall, it was a relatively straight forward evening for the Gunners, who impressed at both ends of the pitch. They easily managed to fire themselves into an early 3-0 lead thanks to some terrible defending from the home side, and from then onwards it was always going to be difficult for BATE to get back in the game.
A second win in as many Europa League games keeps Arsenal top of Group H, two points clear of next opponents Crvena Zvezda. They'll certainly be feeling confident about their chances of beating the Serbian side back on home soil.
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