Arsenal fan petition to move Europa League final and boycott Baku reaches 13,000… double amount of supporters who will be at match

ARSENAL fans' petition to get the Europa League final moved to Wembley has reached 13,000 signatures - double the number of fans who will travel to Azerbaijan for the game.

Uefa have faced increased backlash over its decision to award the event to Baku following Henrikh Mkhitaryan's withdrawal from the Gunners squad for the match due to safety concerns.

The Armenia midfielder decided to stay at home over fears he could be targeted because of the long conflict between his country and Azerbaijan.

In addition, logistical issues prevent fans of both Chelsea and Arsenal from going to the game, with 6,000 tickets already sent back to Uefa.

The Gunners faithful decided to take the matter into their own hands, launching a petition yesterday to get the Europa final moved to London.

They claim that Uefa's decision to award the final to Baku "is one that unabashedly priorities profit over the sanctity of the beautiful game and the safety of its players."

They also call for "taking a stand in solidarity with the fans of Arsenal and Chelsea, Mkhitaryan, and the game of football itself".

And 13,000 people have already signed it - twice as many as the number of fans travelling to Azerbaijan for the eagerly-anticipated encounter.

Both London clubs were allocated 6,000 tickets each for the final, but Arsenal and Chelsea have managed to sell just 3,500 and 2,000 of them respectively.

However, 23,000 tickets in total have reportedly been purchased - with the remaining batch set to go on general sale.

Arsenal even took to phoning fans in a desperate bid to sell their remaining Europa League final seats.

'TOO LATE'

Meanwhile, social media users have shown support for the initiative and hit out at Uefa - although insist the petition's goal is unrealistic.

One wrote: "It's a disgrace that a final is played anywhere that a player can't play because of threat to his life!!

"It's a no-brainer, the two clubs should boycott the game for this reason!!"

Another added: "Even as a Spurs fan I can sympathise with these two. Ludicrous decision by Uefa."

While a third said: "Too late for that. Every club knew where the final was beforehand. Why the hype now."

And another wrote: "Arsenal should really do the right thing and protest the championship and not play the game! It would show unity and support for Mkhitaryan."