Match Day gets better....at least until just after half time

29th May 2019

I had not come on a marathon trek to Baku be miserable, so I was determined to get out and enjoy the day.

I had never worn an Arsenal shirt to a game, nor indeed worn a football shirt since I was about 9 years old, but I had bought one for the final. Surprisingly I was able to buy a shirt in Barrow in Furness and happily it was less than half price, the week before I left for Baku. I had it personalised at The Emirates stadium before I set off for Baku.

I put on my shiny new shirt on and set off for the Arsenal Fan Zone nearby to check arrangements for the buses to the stadium later on in the day. Steve managed to drag himself out of bed and joined me.

Wearing Arsenal shirts around Baku today got even more attention and thumbs up from the locals. At the fan zone, there was a distinct lack of fans! Plenty of UEFA volunteers were there for meet and greet duties and some drinks stalls were being set up. Steve got interviewed, yet again, by the BBC World Service while I regaled tales of woe about our accommodation to the British Embassy staff who were there. The BBC World Service reporter was from Baku and was personally upset at the scam we had suffered with our accommodation.

The volunteers were all positive and enthusiastic and genuinely looking forward to the day, especially as they had been promised tickets for the game.

It was a hot day and decided not to overdo it, especially as there was still another 10 hours until kick-off! So, we went back down to the Fan Festival, took a stroll along Baku Boulevard and ended up having a kebab for a late lunch again! It was while we were eating lunch that Steve's phone and my phone started pinging and buzzing a lot. Seems our interviews with David Ornstein had just been shown in the BBC1 1 o'clock news back home! I heard from people I had not spoken with in ages!

Messages started flowing up about meeting up with the rest of the group outside the Red Lion Pub (where else!? haha). I went back to the apartment first to drop off my rucksack and pick up my scarf and match ticket! When I arrived at the Red Lion, the street was heaving with buoyant happy Arsenal fans chanting, drinking and laughing.

The local SIM card was being accessed by several of my friends....and it ran out of data. Thankfully there was a phone shop very near by and I loaded the SIM with far more data than I really thought I would need for the rest of the trip. Little did I know then just how important purchasing far too much data would be in just over 48 hours time.....

We were joined by a friend who had flown in from London on an Arsenal Supporters charter flight. It was great to see him and we were glad his inbound flight had not arrived late!! More beer, more chants, more laughs!

Soon enough it was time to head towards the Arsenal Fan Zone get a bus to the stadium.

The organisation of the buses was fantastic, hardly any waiting, clean buses and police escort too! They had cleared sections of the highway so we had a quick run in. The stadium looked amazing as we approached....moving with colour!

The buses let us off quite a long way from the stadium but the walk up to it was good natured and the atmosphere was one of excitement and growing anticipation about the game. We arrived 2 hours before kick off fearing long multiple security checks. In the event the checks were not onerous at all other than a very close inspection of my flag. The head policeman was concerned about the words 'Proudly On Tour' on the flag, but thankfully, he completely missed our rainbow coloured group logo and the 'hidden' meaning of the wording went right over his head. I had a back up plan if my flag was not allowed in which involved a supporters group with good contacts within UEFA who told me in advance that they would guarantee the flag would get into the stadium! In the end I got the flag in on my own.

The stadium from the outside was frankly stunning and inside did not disappoint at first either. Obviously a colossal amount of money had been spent on it and it looked all shiny and new despite being 5 years old. But the disappointment then hit....Although we were very near the front in the lower section we were a long, long way from the actual playing area as the stadium is a multipurpose one with an athletics track around the pitch

Can you see the goal post???

I put up my flag but thought there was little chance of it being seen on the TV!

We enjoyed the build up to the start of the game but the opening ceremony was unceremoniously booed by English Arsenal fans in protest against UEFA's frankly inept handling of this final at the fringes of Europe that was so difficult to get to from the other side of Europe! 

I will not comment about the actual game itself as that will have been widely reported elsewhere. Needless to say , the dream of seeing the team lift the trophy was shattered in 15 short minutes at the start of the second half.