Quiz question 'Ils ont besoin que nous ________ avant le début de la cérémonie.'

Question

Ils ont besoin que nous ________ avant le début de la cérémonie.They need us to arrive before the beginning of the ceremony.(HINT: Conjugate arriver in Le Subjonctif Passé)
Why does this question require le subjonctif passé, rather than merely the present subjunctive?Couldn't I just use this?Ils ont besoin que nous arrivions avant le début de la cérémonie

Instead:Ils ont besoin que nous soyons arrivés avant le début de la cérémonie ? But doesn't this translate as "They need us to have arrived before the beginning of the ceremony"?

Chris Wirt · Accepted Answer

The subjonctif passé makes clear that the party needs to have arrived before the start of the ceremony. Whenever you want to emphasize the sequence of events, i.e., that one needs to have completed before the other one starts, you use the subjonctif passé.

Cécile Janty-Davies · Answer

Just to add to what Chris said that I totally agree with, I think this is a problem with how in English compound tenses are often avoided flouting the rules of 'concordance des temps' because they sound a bit weird. This is often the case with the use of the pluperfect.

ROBERT INESTROZA · Answer

Just another reason I hate this language.

The english translation is not correct and is a trick question. Why was it not written as "They need us to have arrived before the beginning of the ceremony"?