Bengaluru, November 4: Mikel Arteta's Arsenal will not have to face Juventus or Barcelona in their next UEFA Europa League round after topping Group A as Kieran Tierney's excellent strike was enough to see Arsenal a 1-0 home victory over Zurich while Manchester United failed to seal the top spot despite an away win at Real Sociedad.

Mikel Arteta's side disappointed in their last European outing with a 0-2 loss at PSV but responded with a much-improved performance to ensure they bypassed the competition's knockout-round play-offs.

Tierney scored what proved to be the winner with a thumping first-half effort at Emirates Stadium, where Adria Guerrero saw a second-half equaliser disallowed in an otherwise dominant Arsenal showing.

Arsenal will avoid the likes of Barcelona and Juventus in Monday's draw after topping the group, in which PSV came second, while Bo Henriksen's side were eliminated from Europe after finishing bottom.

Zurich were without a win in five away matches against English sides in Europe but started in encouraging fashion with Lindrit Kamberi blasting a presentable opening off target.

Arsenal struck first after 17 minutes, though, as Tierney latched onto a loose ball to fire a left-footed half-volley from outside the area into the bottom-right corner.

Premier League leaders Arsenal have made their north London home ground somewhat of a fortress in domestic outings, and the same can be said for their performances in Europe.

The Gunners have lost just one of their last 20 group games at home in major European competition, winning six such matches in a row, as their blistering start to the season continued.

While tougher tasks will follow at Chelsea on Sunday and in the latter stages of the Europa League's knockout rounds, Arteta's side continue to impress both domestically and on the continent.

Arsenal head to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea in a crunch Premier League clash, while Zurich visit Lugano in the Swiss Super League on Sunday.

Manchester United second

Meanwhile, Alejandro Garnacho's strike to give Manchester United a 1-0 victory over Real Sociedad was in vain as the Spanish side retained Group E's top spot.

A win by two or more goals would have seen United through as group winners by virtue of a superior head-to-head record, and Garnacho's early finish sparked hopes of Erik ten Hag's side achieving just that.

But a resolute defensive display from La Real saw them do enough to prevent United getting a second, despite coming under increasing pressure late on.

Ten Hag's men advance but will be forced into a two-legged play-off with one of the teams knocked out of the Champions League, a list that includes Barcelona and Juventus.

La Real started brighter but United grew into the game and took the lead after 17 minutes, Garnacho latching onto Cristiano Ronaldo's throughball and holding off a defender before rifling home from a tight angle.

David de Gea made a stunning double save to preserve United's lead before the break, tipping Andoni Gorosabel's long-range strike wide at full stretch before somehow blocking Pablo Marin's shot from the rebound over.

United still required another goal, but La Real threatened at the other end 16 minutes from time, with substitute Ander Guevara forcing a smart save from De Gea with his low drive.

(With OPTA inputs)