Arsenal, Chelsea in tricky Europa ties
PREMIER League duo Arsenal and Chelsea aim to take another step towards a London derby Europa League final today while Valencia and Benfica are also well placed to reach the last four.
Arsenal defend a 2-0 quarterfinal first leg lead over Napoli in Italy while Chelsea return to the English capital having won 1-0 at Slavia Prague. Valencia host Villarreal leading their Spanish duel 3-1 and Benfica are 4-2 in front heading to Eintracht Frankfurt.
Arsenal could have concerns over their Europa League away form. The Gunners lost at BATE Borisov and Rennes in the two previous rounds before rebounding with home wins.
“We know away we have some difficulties,” striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang said of their road struggles. “We have everything in our hands. We go there and will try to win the game.”
Napoli coach Carlo Ancelotti hopes an aggressive line-up can repair the first leg damage.
“We’ve been through a delicate period,” Ancelotti said after Sunday’s 3-1 win at Serie A backmarkers Chievo. “Now we need to pick ourselves up again and show our value.
“In the away match, Arsenal’s pressure surprised us and we were not able to play the ball out,” the coach said. “Having (Arkadiusz) Milik, (Lorenzo) Insigne and (Dries) Mertens together (up front) is a possibility.”
Chelsea, 2013 tournament winners, left it late in Prague, winning on Marcos Alonso’s 86th-minute header, and manager Maurizio Sarri is expecting more of the same from the Czech side.
“We need to think the second leg will be difficult, too, because these opponents are dangerous away. We need to be careful.”
Next up for Chelsea could be fellow former European champions Benfica, who failed to put the tie to bed in Lisbon.
Evan N’Dicka was sent off early for Eintracht but the Germans managed two away goals in defeat to retain hope of reaching the semifinals. “We’re still alive and have the chance to get to the next round,” said Danny Da Costa. “We have to believe. If we do that, and with the fans behind us, we can produce a great performance.”