Europa League Final – The Final Preview?
May 28th, 2019 by 'holic
It’s a first on Goonerholic, a European Final preview. I’ll try and keep it relatively brief as I am also incorporating the ABW live preview from this evening and they offer pretty comprehensive coverage.
The team news is that Dany Welbeck is fit to return and will be on the bench at least. Sadly Hector Bellerin, Rob Holding, and Aaron Ramsey, all of whom would surely have started, are still ruled out by injury. Of course we will also be without Henrikh Mkhitaryan for reasons entirely unrelated to football. How I wish both clubs would have got together and discussed boycotting the venue. They didn’t. We move on.
The main topic of discussion about our starting line-up is who should be in goal. A reminder for those who have forgotten, Petr Cech was our first choice goalkeeper at the start of this season and only lost the gloves because of an injury. Bernd Leno has come in and not played badly so has retained the job in the Premier League. Cech remains our cup tie ‘keeper and I would start him in this Final regardless of Chelsea leaking ‘news’, yet to be confirmed, that he is returning to them in some capacity. He will want to bow out as a player with one last European winners medal, you can be sure.
There are other reasons for him starting. In his 21 appearances this season he has conceded 1.05 goals per game. Leno’s number is worse at 1.25. He has conceded on average a goal every 84 minutes to Leno’s 71. Both have kept 8 clean sheets this season despite the fact that Leno has played 15 extra games. Errors leading to goals have been zero for Cech, 5 for Leno. Still think we should go with our best goalkeeper? Me too.
Beyond him it would be a surprise to see any change to the 3-4-1-2 formation that got us through the latter stages of the competition. That means Sokratis Papastathopoulos, Laurent Koscielny and Nacho Monreal at the back. Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Sead Kolasinac flanking Granit Xhaka and Lucas Torreira in midfield, and probably Mesut Ozil sitting in behind Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette.
The only likely deviation to that could be Alex Iwobi for Ozil, a switch that Arsene Wenger favoured against these opponents in his last couple of seasons when the Nigerian was give a special man to man marking job. It’s not clear that Emery shares that view right now.
Chelsea have problems too, with Rudiger, Loftus-Cheek and Hudson-Odoi definitely out, and Kante reportedly out, then being fitness tested, then out again, then due a fitness test again, all of which suggests he’ll start! Sadly attempts to alert the Azerbaijani’s to Hazard’s Armenian heritage by Arsenal supporters have failed, and he will pose the biggest threat after Olivier Giroud, who has signed a new contract to remain at the bus stop in Fulham.
The ‘holic pound
I’m too nervous to think about this in all honesty. It is very possible that this game could go to extra-time which would scupper most bets, but please Lord not penalties too. That would be unbearable. If Aaron Ramsey were starting I would bet my pension on us, but he isn’t. The bookies are usually a good guide. Chelsea are favourites to win in 90 minutes at a best of 7/5 compared to our 11/5. The draw at 12/5 appeals. Interestingly the favourite correct score prediction is 1-1 at 6/1.
I’m thinking I have to back us, but maybe not heavily! 2-1 to the Arsenal looks the value bet at 21/2 so that gets my 50 pence. Good luck me.
The ABW Live Preview Show
That’s all folks, as a certain cartoon pig signed off back in the day. Have a good one. Come back tomorrow night for a report on a remarkable victory, or understand I may not write anything ever again if that doesn’t happen.
Have a great one, ‘holics, especially those of you who made it to Baku by plains, trains, and automobiles.
121 Responses to “Europa League Final – The Final Preview?”
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-r59qwheUiw
The most nervous preview I’ve read from you Holic! It’s a massive game but I’ve fancied us against Sarri since this final became possible/ likely several rounds ago.
The loss of Ramsey is huge . He murdered Jorginho in January and we created lots against them. Can Ozil rise to the occasion? If you remember he played well against Chelsea at Wembley in 2017 and is serving two top-class strikers.
This will be the first European final I have missed since 1994 in Copenhagen when a business commitment sent me to Dublin. That’s a great place to celebrate a European victory let me tell you! Maybe it’s an omen too. I think we will win 2-0 on a great night for the club.
Evening TTG, your memories of Copenhagen will not be as rosy as mine then. What a week that was in 94.
I too couldn’t justify going to this. I am away for a holiday in a month for a similar figure.
I hope your 2-0 comes in. It will put less strain on my ticker. I’m already, as you noticed, very nervous. Champions League football is crucial for our club right now, purely from a financial viewpoint perhaps, but also because English clubs (and not the best) appear to have a hold over Europe right now.
Everything crossed Hazard doesn’t want to get injured before his move to Madrid. Whack him early Granit! Kante, fail your fitness test.
All around me sat mates who went to Copenhagen in 94. So I went in 2000 and what an awful day that was – on and off the pitch. I was also in Paris in 95 and 2006. Hopefully I’m a jinx.
I’m in Portugal with some friends next week and we old married men know when not to push it! Having said that if it hadn’t been such a ridiculous venue I would be there. It should be a great occasion but I missed Anfield in 89 and couldn’t get into the Lane in 71 and 2004 and still enjoyed them both .
A good glass of malt will settle the nerves!
Goals and squeaky bums. 3-2.
Evening H.
I get that you are nervous,i doubt a single Gooner wouldn’t be,hoping and praying that we can win our first European trophy in 25 years.
It doesn’t feel the same for me,given we are playing another English Club, more like an away day FA Cup Final if that makes sense.
Given that our 2 previous final wins in Europe were against 2 teams in Anderlecht and Parma,that were seriously good,with some really top line players,that gave us underdog status,which at the time suited us and our two very underrated managers perfectly.
That is not the case this time,as i think the 2 teams are evenly matched in most areas,with the exception of Eden Hazard,who is clearly the best player on either side.
If we give him too much room he will as he has done previously,destroy us.
I have to have faith that Unai’s impressive EL record will continue for at least one more game.
But we will not want to start as poorly as we did in the 2 legs of the semi final against Valencia,who lest we forget,were only a whisker away from an early 2 nil lead in both games.
The players and coaching staff have worked hard to get here,and we certainly had the hardest path to the final,so let’s hope that stands us in good stead in Baku.
There will be goals,but just when and how many is anybody’s guess.
But i would like to think our 2 front men Laca and Auba,can get the job done.
Go the boys in Red.
Up The Arsenal
COYG
That is all.
Thanks Guvnor, the best of luck
to you, me and every other
Gooner on the planet.
They think it’s all Auba, it is now !!
4-2 to The Arsenal
Wish id have know then Cech facts before i bleated on about not playing him
It’s a sure sign of impending death that I’m looking forward to going to the library tomorrow to do a bit of research and have been thinking about that since Sunday.
This game? I’ll take it as it comes, when it comes.
Cech your facts, Danny…
Sorry couldn’t resist.
Off to watch Shoestring. Enjoy bricking it, chaps 🙂
As one who normally gets insanely nervous for games like this, I have to say that I’m feeling incredibly calm about this one.
Yes they have Hazard but we have the dual threat of Auba & Lacca!!
COYR’s!!!!!!!
An interview with Emery in the Telegraph:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2019/05/28/unai-emery-arsenal-lost-fighting-spirit-arsene-wenger-will-follow/
Most interesting tidbit to my mind is how Ramsey was able to override Emery’s preference to rest him for certain games. I thought playing time was so carefully monitored to avoid injury that players were rested when the coach said they needed resting.
Thanks Holic.
I suspect the fact that Leno has played significantly more games this season, often behind a suspect defence, to be a large part of the reason for his lower than Cech stats.
I don’t mind if Cech starts as long as he plays to his strengths – no fancy footwork please.
As for the result, 2-1 sounds right to me and I hope that Giroud doesn’t get on.
UTA.
Excellent preview Guvna. Interesting stats on the keepers which were news to me.
While I would have loved to have been at Copenhagen and even Paris, I have no regret at declining the offer of a ticket and a very expensive arduous journey for this game. I’ll be watching in comfort with an ample supply of fine red wine and Highland Park to keep me warm.
I’m hopeful that all our players will give 100% and play to their full potential thereby ensuring that we bring home the silverware. The prize is huge. We simply must win this match.
Go win, Arsenal.
Not at all nervous, we will win this. We need to score first, Mustafi does not play, Torreira and Xhaka have fantastic games, no silly mistakes and viola 3-1 looks just about right.
Chelsea does not have the Jose sense of inevitability around them, we are two average sides who are looking for individual brilliance to win the game. Arsenal does have the better in-form players and i mean Auba and Lacazette and if Ozil has a good game, we are more likely to win this comfortably. Now hazard you say, of course, if it is Niles or mustafi against him, we need Kos to have the best game he has had recently and all of pray very hard throughout.
Talking of Lolo, this could be his last game for us and irrespective of the result, he has been a fantastic servant to the club.
“If Ozil has a good game.”
I wish you would not discourage me so.
The hope is what kills me, unless it doesn’t.
Interesting stats on the keepers brings up many questions. Are they misleading? How exactly if so? If they are reliable, why has Leno held the top spot, and why is Cech retiring? Unless that Chelsea job we hear about is to return as their top keeper.
cometh the hour
nervouth the man
.
bottomth up everyone
?
.
.
.
Virgin customers – channel 100 – the match is free for all in HD
Channel 532 – free for all in 4K if you’ve got a V6 and suitable telly.
An uncharacteristically stat-heavy preview, Holic, but all the more interesting for that. I’m happy to see Petr start and finish his career with a cup win.
I’m not allowing myself to get overly enthused as literally anything (good or bad) can happen with this squad. I need some of the potent brew that Vinay has consumed to pump me up I think.
Watching in the town of my birth and only 50 yards from the Chariot’s of Fire beach. Need Eric Liddell and Harold Abrahams gold medal winning performances from one and all.
Enjoy!
Cheers H.
Evening all.
I’m in Hong Kong. Which means a 3am kick-off. Currently drinking vodka and coconut water (no barbecued pineapple left for the local style mojitos that I’ve been joyfully stuffing down my boat) and watching French open tennis, which is not really holding my attention at all.
I can’t work out if I’m confident or not. A part of me can see a two or three nil win, a controlled performance and a relatively easy day at the office. The other part of me can see Hazard.
This match is HUGE, and I am nervous.
Time for more booze.
COYG
U.S. gooners: appears that Spanish language station Univision, available on many cable carriers, is carrying the match. At least that’s the case in south Florida.
Excellent preview, Holic.
Quite reassuring stats on Cech vs Leno.
The venue for this one is a disgrace. We were already unable to play Mkhitaryan against Carrier Bag in the group stages, due to the political conflict in the area, which is totally unacceptable for an international sporting event.
UEFA should never have allowed the situation to develop to it’s current point, where the same player does not feel safe enough to take part in a European final.
It’s a shame we failed to finish in the top four, cos then we could have told UEFA where to stick their venue.
Anyway, a nice little 2-1 win tonight will do us just fine.
Hopefully, UEFA will have the guts to give someone a medal to pass on to Mkhi.
By the way, if anyone didn’t realise, BT Sport are streaming the match live through YouTube tonight – FREE !!
Sarri is being widely announced as the new Juventus manager on social media. Not a helpful development for them if the team are not fully behind him anyway.
Team news is pretty much as
expected.
So Kante starts, I nailed our starting eleven, now for the ‘holic pound to complete the perfect preview. ??
comcast users, plus anyone that has tnt (i believe) it’s on kdjtd (708 HD), unidh (their “UNIGO” app), and tnthd (737 HD). the first two en espagnol, the latter dynamite.
my stomach is empty and my nerves aboil, COME ON YOU GOONERS…..
Interesting that we have two keepers on the bench. Early sub for Cech in prospect?
Well with 12 subs allowed to be named it’s not exactly meaningful, to have two keepers.
Chelsea have two keepers as well.
Come on you Gunners!!!!
This Guinness says you are gonna do it
fuck me
graeme bastardin souness
is a smug wee smart arse shite
.
GET OFF MY TELLY YA CUNT
scruz, thanks for the comcast info. watching on tnt in sf!
The dancers are wearing
Spud kits 🙁
C’mon Gunners, need your best game tonight.
Come on you Guuunnnnnnererrrssss!
Crossed the Mississippi just to see this game. Now on Guinness #2
Where is the tv camera, the moon?
Nervous as fuck. Managed to avoid build up until 7.55.
COME ON YOU GUNNERS!
A bit slow, cagey and lackluster so far, as finals generally are.
Who the fuck has pulled the handbrake? Come on lads
Dull as fuck, that.
woof. not bad, not great. like to see kola cross better, let’s see that next half. amn looks great, ozil meh, but he can turn it on. motm so far cech.
Looks like a first goal wins it
game. We’re playing ok I think.
Need to get better crosses in.
COYGS!!
cheers, potsticker!
44% possession.
0 shots on target.
Need to start taking control of this game.
Not a great watch. Cagey.
I’d say we shaded it but they had a decent last seven or eight minutes. A bit more composure from kola would have been all we needed to get ahead.
Chelsea rotational fouling on Lacazette. A decent ref would be well aware that a few Chelsea players are one foul off a booking.
Might need a moment of quality or a mistake to separate the teams but I think we look a bit better than them.
The dancing at the start was embarrassing. Uefa are into some weird stuff. Their choice of venue was perverse. Their intro was fetishistic. What next?
gedo the pitch is nowhere near the stands, including on the side where the camera is due to running track
why they picked this venue we can only suspect
All those who were claiming not to be nervous before the game can step up to the barfing bin now.
We have shaded it so far and are missing the final ball. If only Kolasinac can cross early and accurately, we could have a lot of joy down their right hand side. Auba to turn it on in the second half…COYG
Not bad first half but we need to dig deep!
Come on lads! Make us proud!
Damn
Maybe now we step up a gear
ah fuck.
Fuck sake! C’mon Arsenal!!
Spoke too soon bollocks
BELIEVE
We can do this
Too bloody static!
I think we should bring Ozil on.
What?
Oh.
The camera is further away from the pitch than Mkhitaryan??????
And that’s that.
Goodnight all.
Sakes
Fucking weak!
ah fuck II
Kos is nowhere, at fault 2 times
Maitland- Niles fouled before the move for tge second goal. We are in deep trouble
Fuck me.
Another very soft goal to concede.
Operation buy a defence needs to be in full swing within 24 hours.
Press Self Destruct
so this becomes embarrassing.
after it’s 3, bring on eddie, sakho, and willock.
Oh boy!!
Embarrassing now.
We look a rudderless shambles.
Never been disappointed in my life like this before
Some poor bastards travelled three days to get to this
Young Maitland Niles having a bit of a mare in the second half…
Lost the ball for the second goal and then giving away the pen.
Hopefully we will realize the need to buy an actual right back to compete with Hector and let the young man Ainsley play in his more natural midfield position.
iwobiiiiiii
If they can score 3 in 20 minutes – so can we!!
Superb finish from Iwobi there.
Oh that new signing, Iwobi has given us some new life.
Both coach and players guilty tonight
No shit!!
how shit was that.
Collapse indeed
Are we watford?!
🙁
Twat
We are so clueless at the back. I know we lose the ball but it’s still 2 against 3 defenders. Then we instantly go into headless chicken mode and it just looks totally embarrassing.
How can you start so static in the second half without even trying to attack the opposition it’s absolute nightmare and that the coaches fault
liverpool better fucking *paste* scum.
Let’s see if we change our defence next season… Or we’ll be challenging for Europa spots from here onwards..!
Don’t know how I’ll bear one more season of bloody Thursdays ?
Ozil off for Willock.
That’s a gesture from Emery .
I don’t mind losing the game if the players put a fucking shift in but those guys didn’t put a fucking shift in and it’s fucking embarrassing
Been a long time, ‘Holics.
Let’s keep our heads. This hurts, but chins up. Be good to each other.
SMBD.
It’s hard to see how we’ll ever succeed with Unai in charge.
We don’t deserve champions league football with a culture capatilsit asset stripping cunt like Kroenke owning the club.
Ozil will sit out his contract like monkey boy at Real…. And to be fair can you blame Ozil?!… If you pay that much and decide not to build a team around him…!
Let those who abused Cech before the game hang their heads in shame.
He has been great in a debacle
Cech our best player, and next season he is Retiring!
No one else tried. F.cking Ozil strolls on his way out
A better gesture would have been not picking Ozil in the first place. Hopefully that’s the last we’ll see of him in an Arsenal shirt.
Ozil off. Willock on
Those four words probably tell you all you need to know about where we currently are as a club.
Kolasinac can neither attack or defend
sick here. hey lone star!
This could get embarrassing for Cech..!
What a miss that is. Irrelevant but still, that’s cow’s arse with a banjo stuff.
If Mustafi was on we would have had a legitimate reason to be pissed.
Wow we are BAD
Balls up in Baku
Come on Looserpool ?
“it’s like those miserable psalms, they’re sooo depressing.”
Into injury time and still only had 2 shots on target all night.
Looking forward to getting my season ticket renewal e mail in the morning???
So Chelsea felt that up to December, their striker situation was not shaping up well. They went out and shook things up by sending out Morata and bringing in Higuain. Higuain hasn’t really done great but he did score crucial goals that got Chelsea a top four spot.
We on the other hand lost two vital defenders in Hector and Holding and did absolutely nothing about it. We also lost Welbeck but did nothing about it either. That is where the chance to save this season was actually lost. Emery if anything has over achieved with this very limited squad. Tough times ahead with another season in the Europa league.
Feel sorry for the fans that bothered to travel and had to put up with THAT performance, shame
Well if that is what we look like fighting to get into the Champions league then god help us, Ozil unsurprisingly useless again and I know its an unpopular opinion but I still do not rate either Auba or Laca.
This was pathetic but sadly not without precedent as this is exactly how the season ended not even with a whimper but abject apathy.
If I knew this was going to be the way the players are going to conduct themselves towards this so called Europa league final I would rather watch the Polish under 20 game against Senegal!
Oh and how I already miss Aaron Ramsey…. especially in big games.
That could be it for me. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Arthur.
I would rather watch paint dry. At least you might see it make a run.
https://youtu.be/yfjNJ6gmoww
We know which time this one was…!
Oh dear. It is going to be a long summer.
Young Joe Willock showed what might have been with drive and determination.He contributed so much more than Ozil and Xhaka .
He deserved much more first team opportunities above Guendouzi last season. We will analyse this to death but with the execrable Kroenke in charge it is depressed as I have ever been because it’s hard to see us competing at a top level that is getting further and further away