“Bottle jobs”, “As confused as their club” - Fans left stunned as Arsenal U18s fixture postponed due to ‘shameful mistake’ 

Arsenal U18s' recent game faced an unexpected hitch, leaving fans bewildered and disappointed, as they took to social media to react. The Gunners' away game against Brighton & Hove Albion was postponed when the team's coach mistakenly arrived in Bournemouth.

Notably, Bournemouth lies an impressive 87 miles – roughly a 1 hour and 45-minute drive – from the intended destination in Lancing. The distance made it impossible to turn around and reach Brighton's Amex Football Center on time.

The match was originally slated for a noon start on Saturday, November 4. The organizers, sensing an initial delay, even tried to reschedule the kick-off to 12:30 p.m. However, as the gravity of the situation became evident, they decided on postponement. With this, the clash will now be rescheduled for another date.

The football community expressed their astonishment on X (formerly Twitter) with one fan writing:

“Bottle jobs these lot are”

Another wrote:

“As confused as their club is”

Here is a selection of their tweets:

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Martin Odegaard sits out as Arsenal take on Newcastle in Premier League clash

Gunners captain Martin Odegaard is absent from the squad against Newcastle United at St. James' Park in the Premier League on Saturday. The Norwegian playmaker made a brief cameo against West Ham United in midweek. He found the back of the net in a Carabao Cup Round of 16 clash where the Gunners lost 3-1.

Following Arsenal's commanding 5-0 triumph over Sheffield United last weekend, Mikel Arteta hinted at Odegaard's minor injury. While a report from Football London pinned it down to a hip issue, the consensus was that the injury did not equate to a major setback.

Arteta explained:

"We rested him the other day and now it is about how long we rest him and how we manage now the minutes and the rhythm he needs to be at his best."

Arteta had an opportunity to field Odegaard against Sheffield United at the Emirates, yet opted against it:

"We had the opportunity to do it, we didn't use him in the end so that was a good offload for him."

Odegaard's 10-minute appearance against West Ham raised hopes, but his exclusion from today's squad against Newcastle brings forth fresh questions.

Tonight's clash is significant for the North Londoners, as a victory for Arsenal means they leapfrog Tottenham and get into second place. However, the balance can easily shift come Monday. If Spurs manage to beat Chelsea, Arsenal will be kicked down to third place again.