The car-hire employee at Kharkiv Airport’s somewhat desolate arrivals hall on Tuesday lunchtime said confidently: “You can drive anywhere in Ukraine... except Donetsk or Crimea - please don’t drive to Crimea.”

The city was less than 24 hours from coming under martial law, as tensions between Ukraine and Russia escalated once again in the wake of another dispute over the region Vladimir Putin annexed in 2014.

Arsenal were due to land in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city, on Wednesday afternoon, before making a two-hour coach journey - initially along pothole-riddled back roads - winding west, before joining the MO3 highway to Poltava for tonight’s Europa League tie against Vorskla.

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Uefa were adamant as late as Tuesday morning the game would go ahead in Poltava, given it is situated about 500 miles from Crimea and the host city was not under martial law.

Several of Arsenal’s support staff, including members of their security team and the first-team chef, were already there, finalising preparations for the squad’s arrival before heading into town in sub-zero conditions in search of an evening meal.

Minutes later, news broke that Uefa had switched the game to the nation’s capital, Kiev. Although both Vorskla and Arsenal had been regularly ­consulted during the week, Uefa’s decision took them both by surprise.

The Gunners scrambled to find accommodation in Kiev and alter their flight arrangements, while Vorskla complained about the loss of a home fixture, arguing about both the sporting and financial cost. The rumblings of discontent prompted further discussions, which forced Uefa to release a statement 24 hours before kick-off in which they still could not confirm whether the match was going ahead.

What a complete and utter farce.

Spare a thought for those Arsenal fans who had made the trip ahead of time to Poltava.

The roads here are fraught with risk. One colleague was involved in a car accident simply turning into his hotel car park, triggering a two-hour ­consultation with local police in which it appeared the Russian driver — who admitted fault — attempted to explain why he did not have the correct ­insurance to Ukrainian law enforcement officers, who spoke no English. Google Translate is a priceless asset for travellers these days.

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The four-hour car journey from Poltava to Kiev — fractionally less on the train, which runs at bizarre and infrequent times — is a soulless ­experience.

The MO3, Ukraine’s main artery between Kiev and Kharkiv, via Poltava, is in the midst of a major repair programme which has not got much further than the insertion of several contraflow points, often at very short notice. In one rare area where work was actually taking place, orange-clad men furiously shovelled crushed rock into the uneven surface while cars continued to run over it.

The road quality varies alarmingly, framed on either side by bleak fields, barren trees dusted in snow and frozen lakes, some scarred by scuffs and marks as locals walk, unperturbed, right over them. Lone figures wait at wind-swept Soviet-style bus stops for transportation that feels like it will never arrive.

This was a trip to test the resolve of the most ardent fan even before Uefa’s intervention. They are two ­different situations, but it does not reflect well on football generally that if, in the same month the Premier League can find a £5million parting gift for their millionaire former chief executive Richard Scudamore, there is no immediate compensation for supporters considerably inconvenienced by events way beyond their control. Arsenal deserve credit in this regard for pro-actively engaging in dialogue with many of the 800 fans who bought tickets.

The Olympic Stadium in Kiev may have a pedigree in hosting major sporting events — including last ­season’s Champions League Final and several matches during Euro 2012 — but its sudden deployment took stadium staff by surprise.

Uefa did not even have an office at the venue, working out of a temporary room as they hastily organised ­Arsenal’s pre-match press conference, the sponsorship branding backdrop, still being erected 20 ­minutes after the interviews were due to start.

No matter, Arsenal were an hour-and-a-half late in any case, their plane suffering from what the club described as “technical difficulties”. It never rains, etc — it’s too cold (-7C last night, if you’re asking).

Uefa managed to brand the stadium in Europa League colours for television, the pitch protected from another freezing Ukrainian winter’s evening — albeit one slightly less unforgiving in Kiev than Poltava — with covers and heaters to give those who are able to attend the best possible spectacle.

Vorskla raised issues over how the match would be ticketed correctly in a new venue, while Gunners head coach Unai Emery was forced into abandoning his preference for training at the stadium hosting the game by staging a session at London Colney prior to flying.

Upon his arrival, Emery insisted Arsenal had to “respect” Uefa’s ­decision, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan admitted Vorskla are now at a “big disadvantage” in having to play the match at a neutral venue.

The communication during this whole process has been dreadful with Uefa at the core of the problem. ­Ultimately, the sensible window for moving the game had passed. Poltava is not under martial law and had ­Arsenal’s request to fly directly to the town’s military airbase been approved, they could have entered and exited the country without any need to go to Kharkiv at all.

The necessity of avoiding eastern Ukraine was obvious to all. Even the car-hire employee knew it.