It’s been said that English clubs haven’t been quite up to the mark in Europe for a long time. While the Spanish, Italian and even German teams have had dominant phases in the biggest club competitions in the world, Premier League clubs haven’t had their usual presence over the last decade.
For a surprising change though, this season, both big European finals will be competed by 4 English teams – three from London and one from Merseyside.
While both trophies are guaranteed to end up in England, the destination itself will be decided in the coming week. In what promises to be a thrilling finale to what has been a truly memorable Europa League campaign, Chelsea will face off against London rivals Arsenal in Baku.
Both teams will be going all out to try and make their European journey a success.
While the Gunners do need it more than the Blues from a European standpoint, Chelsea will be quite eager to give Maurizio Sarri a trophy in his first season in charge. The tactics that both managers utilise will be crucial in this fixture.
While Unai Emery could set up with a strong midfield and utilise the pacy combination play of his two mercurial strikers, Chelsea will depend on their wingers and full-backs to offer creativity down the flanks.
Any game of football can be won or lost in the midfield but when it comes to a London derby, it’s only about who the better team on the day is.
Here are the 3 key battles to watch out for:
Chelsea’s Belgian magician has the ability to bring any team to it’s knees using his rapid feet and impeccable dribbling.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles is young a full-back, who’s come into the side only due to the long-term injury to Hector Bellerin. Whether or not the youngster is able to read the sharp movement of Hazard could decide the outcome of this fixture.
The Brazilian full-back has now passed the 30-year barrier and he’s been known to have a lack of pace. Pierre Emerick Aubameyang is the sheer definition of the word pace and has the ability to run rings around Luiz on his day.
While Arsenal will certainly try to target Chelsea’s left side, Luiz will have to be at his best to keep Aubameyang at bay for the full 90 minutes.
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The Italian midfield creator was brought in by Sarri for an exclusive job and in the manager’s opinion, he’s done it well so far. He dictates the Blues’ movement with short passing and sudden changes of direction.
Lucas Torreira is an absolute bundle of energy in the middle of the mark and pressuring Jorginho into losing the ball will have to be one of his defensive priorities.