Mkhitaryan being forced not to travel to Baku has been compounded by the injury to Ramsey, meaning the gunners lack goals from midfield. I’m expecting Unai Emery to start 5 at the back with two DM’S, effectively trusting the front 3 to win us the game.
We already know Ozil is not the most consistent. If there wasn’t enough pressure on him to deliver in the final, he might realise we lack any options from the bench. That’s why I fear Chelsea might have the edge. We all know Hazard is world class but even if we can deal with him, we have to worry about the likes of Willian, Pedro or in a cruel sense of irony, Giroud. Even the much-maligned Higuaín offers experience of scoring in major finals.
The Blues on the other hand know that our alternatives from the dugout is Iwobi or even Danny Welbeck. Most weeks we can’t trust the Nigerian in terms of his final ball so why would he have the mentality when the stakes are so high? I would prefer Danny Welbeck to come on if we needed a goal. It’s not like we have to worry about his long-term fitness as it’s not our issue so why not see if he can offer something in his final game as a Gunner?
Both clubs have been guilty of not performing in certain fixtures, especially away from home, so this could be decided by the smallest margins, Chelsea having more goals around the team could be the difference tonight.
Dan Smith