Arsenal continue their quest for a trophy this season as they enter their round of 32 clash against Benfica on Thursday. Let’s cover the team news heading into this important match. (For the Arsenal Starting XI Prediction go here)
The North London club scored a morale boosting win over Leeds United this past weekend, which will put them in a positive frame of mind. They will have another tough challenge as they take on the team from Portugal.
There is some good news and some bad news regarding the squad right now. Full back Kieran Tierney is back in training and there is a chance that he will be ready for Thursday, which would obviously strengthen the team.
The bad news is that Thomas Partey will not be available for this match as he is still out injured.
The silver lining is that there’s still hope the midfielder will return for the second leg and that would definitely be a real boost. Arteta’s men are playing much better this calendar year than they did during the latter half of last year. But there are still question marks that remain over the team and their ability to remain consistent.
They will want to make a positive start to their Europa League knock-out stage campaign against Benfica, but it will not be easy against a team that has a vibrant set of attackers.
What will be important for the Gunners will be to get some goals early, because away goals are worth their weight in gold in a competition such as this.
And with players such as Bukayo Saka and Nicolas Pepe, the Emirates club should be confident of their chances. If the front four can get on the ball regularly, they will start creating chances, and sooner or later, a goal is bound to come.
Arsenal also need to focus on taking their chances when they get them as this something that has come back to haunt them. Whatever has happened so far this season, they must put it behind them and only look at what they can still achieve this season.
There is a good chance for them to win silverware in the Europa League and the journey towards that end continues on Thursday.