The battle of Baku, who will come out on top?
It’s an all English Europa League final on Wednesday that will take place in the handy to reach Baku in Azerbaijan. Who will be making the 58-hour drive back with a smile on their face and who will be wishing they’d watched in on TV at home like the rest of us? Have a read of our preview here:
Silverware on the line for the newbies
Both Maurizio Sarri and Unai Emery will be in a reflective mood about their first season in English football but know it will have all been for nothing if they fail to win the trophy on Wednesday.
Neither side spent in line with a number of their rivals yet will have been disappointed with some of the displays on show during the campaign. Arsenal in particular, who missed out on a top-four finish, have a lot riding on this game.
Emery has a clear idea of how he wants to play and summer recruitment could be crucial but against Chelsea, who themselves face a potential transfer embargo.
The two sides both won their home game against each other earlier in the campaign with Chelsea winning 3-2 at Stamford Bridge and Arsenal taking the game at the Emirates 2-0. This one will be another close run thing as they prepare to make the long trip east.
Key players
The key men for the Gunners are definitely not their defenders. Arsenal have a really poor record at the back this season and desperately need an upgrade in that department in the summer whereas Chelsea are the opposite.
The Blues have lacked a striker and have often tried to fudge it by using Eden Hazard as a false nine which, frankly, is a waste of his talent. If he leaves this summer then those in charge of recruitment will have a massive task on their hands to replace the Belgium international and the transfer embargo will only compound the issue.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been superb for Arsenal, netting 31-goals including eight in the Europa League, as has Alexandre Lacazette and they will be key if Emery’s men are to bag the trophy.
Whether the Gunners have enough to breach a decent Chelsea defence remains to be seen but with the quality available you’d have back them to get on the scoresheet.
Chelsea v Arsenal betting tip
There is no doubt that the big final probably suits Chelsea but Arsenal have the better attacking talents and scored more goals than their opponents in the Premier League. If they had a stronger defence then Champions League football would surely have been obtained. With that in mind backing both teams to score and Arsenal to win at odds of 25/8 is excellent value.
