Rennes will welcome an English side to the Roazhon Park for just the second time ever, having beaten Aston Villa 2-1 in the first leg of their Intertoto Cup semi-final.
Now they welcome Arsenal FC Thursday night, a side that has now fallen just outside the top four in the Premier League again. Let’s take a look at who Gunners boss Unai Emery may select for his first team in the road leg of this UEFA Europa League round of 16 tie.
With Alexandre Lacazette suspended, you can expect Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to get the nod, and also perhaps Mesut Ozil because hey, Emery has to play him sometime.
Look for Emery to keep Petr Cech as Euro number one.
Arsenal FC Starting XI Prediction (4-3-3) vs Rennes (UEFA Europa League Round of 16)
Attacking Players: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Mesut Ozil, Alex Iwobi
Midfielders: Lucas Torreira, Matteo Guendouzi, Denis Suarez
Defenders: Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Sokratis, Laurent Koscielny, Nacho Monreal
Goalkeeper: Petr Cech
Arsenal FC at Rennes Europa League Round of 16 Leg 1/2 FYIs
Kickoff: Thursday, March 7, 5:55pm, Stade de la Route de Lorient
Injury Report for both teams: go to this link
Odds via Odds Checker: Arsenal 13/12, Draw 23/10, Rennes 27/10
Odds via Bet365 to win Europa League tournament following round of 16 draw: Chelsea 7/2, Napoli 9/2, Arsenal 9/2, Sevilla 11/2, Inter 10/1, Valencia 9/1, Benfica 16/1, Salzburg 25/1
Prediction: Arsenal 3, Rennes 0
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, regularly appears as a guest pundit on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
He also contributes sociopolitical essays to Chicago Now. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram. The content of his cat’s Instagram account is unquestionably superior to his.