Wenger: Champions League group stage has lost intrigue

Arsene Wenger isn’t a fan of the opening round of the Champions League.

And it apparently has nothing to do with being forced to watch from home after Arsenal missed out on this year’s edition of the lucrative club competition.

Wenger, whose Arsenal side failed to qualify for the first time in 19 seasons following the north London team’s fifth place finish last term, now claims that the Champions League group stage has lost its lustre and that there’s only a couple of matches worth watching.

“I think that in the group stage, there are not many interesting games,” Wenger told reporters, according to The Telegraph’s Jonathan Liew. “You choose (to watch) only one or two games.

“It’s a routine now, the Champions League, in the group stage. Look at the audiences. It has lost some attraction power.”

Arsenal enjoyed years of success in the opening stage of the competition but struggled in the knockout round, where the Premier League side was infamously eliminated in seven successive seasons, including last year’s embarrassing 10-2 aggregate loss to Bayern Munich.

Despite his criticism, Wenger admitted that he misses the excitement of competing in the tournament but stopped short of drawing comparisons to the second-tier Europa League as his side gets prepared to clash with BATE Borisov on Thursday.

“Honestly, yes,” Wenger responded when asked if he missed the Champions League. “But I must say, I have had nearly 200 games in the Champions League, so I can feel privileged.”

Arsenal will look to secure its second win of the Europa League group stage during a trip to Belarus after winning the opening tie 3-1 over FC Koln.