The Gunners overcame freezing temperatures and an artificial playing surface to secure a commanding first-leg lead over Ostersunds.
Afterwards Arsène Wenger spoke to the media about his team selection, the pitch and the performances of Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
on the result justifying a strong team selection…
Yes, the risk at the start was that I didn’t know how tough the pitch would be for our players. But overall we have no game over the weekend, so it was an easier decision. The only risk was the injuries. I’m happy we had no problems and the pitch was quite good.