The Arsenal number one Bernd Leno has sent a clear message to his manager Unai Emery that he wants to play in the Europa League final.
There is currently a raging debate going on whether it should be Petr Cech or Leno between the sticks against Chelsea on Wednesday evening with most fans preferring the German, however, the sense is that Emery will plump for Cech.
The reason the fans, including myself, want Leno in goal is two-fold, one, he is the better keeper and two, Cech joining Chelsea after the final.
We have already covered this here and anyone looking on Social media cannot have failed to realise that Arsenal fans unanimously prefer Leno over Cech. For his part, Leno has made his position abundantly clear
‘I have great respect for Petr, and we get along very well,’ the Arsenal No.1 told Kicker.
‘He deserves all credit, and I treat him well, but it’s clear that I’m an athlete, I want to always play, especially in a final.
‘To win the Europa League would be the first big title for me. We all want to hear the [Champions League] anthem again.
‘The Thursday-Sunday rhythm is also not so good because you always suffer in the league. If we lose the final, our season, which was actually good, would be disappointing.’
Leno is right to state his feelings publicly, the Europa League final is not just about silverware, it is about a bigger transfer budget, it is about Champions League football, it is about attracting the best talent to the Emirates next season and Emery cannot be allowed to go with Cech without the fans and Leno making their views known.
Will Emery listen? who knows, probably not but at least Leno has said his piece and it is now down to the manager whether he listens or not.