Europa League title is Arsenal's best Champions League hope
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Here we are in mid-April and Arsenal FC has unfortunately limped to a bit of a disappointing season thus far. However, the club still has plenty to fight for. At the top of the list is taking home a trophy, while also trying to secure a berth in the Champions League for next season.
With that said, could the kill two birds with one stone later this year? They can, as the dream scenario for Mikel Arteta and his stars would be to win the Europa League. Is this possible for the English Premier League squad?
Arsenal will be without Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (flu) & Emile Smith Rowe (ankle) for Sunday’s trip to Sheffield United. Arsenal hope that both players will be available for the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final against Slavia Prague on Thursday. [@David_Ornstein] pic.twitter.com/LMeSSdjHTT
— afcstuff (@afcstuff) April 10, 2021
On Thursday, Arsenal will have a massive second-leg showdown with Slavia Praha in the Europa League quarterfinals. Arsenal and Slavia Praha drew 1-1 in the first led which was held at the Emirates Stadium.
Now, Arsenal will head to Prague to try and punch its ticket to the semifinals. While the team is battling some injury issues, the hope is they can be at full strength later this week.
It goes without saying, but this really is a must-win for Arteta and the Gunners. Fans are growing tired of the team not playing in the Champions League. This is Arsenal FC after all, without question one of the most successful clubs in EPL history.
Arteta has been tasked in trying to turn things around, but 2020-2021 hasn't gone too well for him. In the Premier League table, AFC sits in ninth place with 45 points. It would take just about a miracle for them to finish in the Top 4 of the table.
With that said, the Europa League really feels like their only chance to get back to the Champions League. Imagine if Arsenal and Manchester United end up playing in the final? That would be a tasty matchup. Arsenal already beat United at Old Trafford earlier this season.
Taking down their rivals in the Europa League Final would be amazing as well. First thing's first, Arsenal must take care of business in Prague. We'll see if Arteta's men can get that job done.