Arsenal’s long-standing boss Arsene Wenger recently announced he will be leaving his beloved club at the end of the season.
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The Gunners were held to a 1-1 draw with los Rojiblancos in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final last week despite Atletio having a man sent off in the opening 10 minutes.
“Mavropanos in training has shown top quality”, Wenger said.
I was encouraged by Arsenal’s attacking display against United and I could actually see them scoring twice, but the difference is the defence and if they open up Atletico will outscore them.
“I’ll take it badly”, Simeone said.
Arsenal’s Premier League hopes have been undermined by travel sickness this season, but they have been successful on the road in Europe.
If the Gunners can harness their emotional energy it could provide them with the necessary x-factor to help them defy the odds and book their place in the final.
Atletico have a boost in the fitness of Diego Costa who is touted to make full appearance against Arsenal in the return leg at Wanda Metropolitana. “The stadium must know we need them, we need them to live the game like our coach lives it”, captain Diego Godin said.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan was substituted with a knee injury during Arsenal’s defeat by Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday, but the Armenian midfielder has travelled with the squad and could play, while David Ospina is expected to retain his place in goal.
He added: “They have creative players”. We need a great communion between the team and the people.
“If we can score a goal quickly, it will be hard for them to come back from that but there is no ideal scenario: we have to win and qualify”, said Garcia. The scores are poised at one apiece after the first leg in the Emirates.
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Retiring captain Per Mertesacker, women’s captain Alex Scott and kit man Vic Akers – who has been at the club for more than 30 years and helped form the Arsenal Ladies team in 1987 – will also be given a send-off. If you bring a coach in who knows he’s not buying the players, like Chelsea in some respects, then that’s fine. He is unarguably one of the best custodians in the game at the moment and it would be interesting to see how Lacazette fares against Oblak.
