Arsenal Women forced to abandon flight after plane engine catches fire prior to take-off
Arsenal Women were forced to abandon their flight back to London from Wolfsburg on Sunday after an engine on their plane caught fire.
The Gunners came back from two goals down to draw the first leg of their UEFA Women's Champions League semi-final thanks to second half goals from Rafaelle Souza and Stina Blackstenius on Sunday.
After the game, the team and coaching staff were due to catch a flight to London on Sunday evening, but were forced off the plane when take-off was aborted following technical issues.
A club statement on the incident reads: “Our aircraft developed a technical issue prior to take-off in Germany on Sunday evening.
“As a result, we remained in Wolfsburg overnight on Sunday before flying back to England on Monday afternoon. We would like to thank the staff onboard the aircraft and on the ground at the airport for their assistance.”
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Arsenal flew back to London on Monday afternoon, with the club stating that no one was hurt due to the incident.
The Gunners will welcome Wolfsburg to the Emirates Stadium for the second leg of the semi-final on Monday 1 May, although they will have to make-do without a number of key players due to injuries.
England captain Leah Willamson was the most recent name to be added to the injured list after suffering a serious knee injury during Arsenal's defeat to Manchester United in the WSL on Wednesday evening.