Arsenal will face Östersunds in the Europa League last-32, after the draw took place on Monday.
The Gunners have never played Östersunds before, so it will be their first match against the Swedish club.
Former in 1996, they were only promoted to the Swedish first tier in 2016, so it’s no surprise the two teams haven’t met in the past.
Östersund were formed (Oct 1996) just one month after Arsene Wenger was appointed Arsenal manager (Sept 1996)! pic.twitter.com/8c7VwZNSPE
— ArsenalFanTV (@ArsenalFanTV) December 11, 2017
Arsenal have never lost to Swedish opposition before, with three wins and a draw so far, so Wenger’s side should certainly feel confident that they can overcome their last-32 opponents.
4 – Arsenal have never lost a European match against Swedish opposition (W3 D1 L0). Meatballs.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 11, 2017
It will also be the first time in 18 years that the Gunners play against a Swedish side, having met AIK in the Champions League group stages in Wenger’s early years with Arsenal.
1 – This will be Arsenal's first meeting with a Swedish side in Europe since they met AIK in the 1999-00 Champions League group stages. Background.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 11, 2017
The Swedish Allsvenskan has just recently reached its conclusion, as they follow a calendar year format. Östersunds finished in fifth place, so winning the Europa League is now the only way they can qualify for European competition next year.
The Swedes finished second in their Europa League group to Athletic Bilbao, although they were level on points and only lost out on top spot thanks to their head-to-head record with the Spanish club.
Meanwhile, Arsenal topped their Europa League group with a game to spare. After wins against FC Köln, BATE Borisov and Red Star Belgrade, they draw against the latter in the return fixture and lost to Koln in Germany.
The Gunners then smashed Borisov 6-0 in the dead-rubber at the end of the group stage, picking one of their strongest teams yet. So, the players should be confident going into the knockout stages, now they know they can play like that.
For now, they’ll get a bit of a break, as the last-32 matches take place on February 15 and 22, 2018.