Arsenal travel to Crystal Palace on the final day of the Premier League season
Crystal Palace’s 3-1 away Conference League semi-final victory over Shakhtar Donetsk feels somewhat significant for Arsenal.
Given the Premier League title race looks set to go to the wire, small details and margins could define who gets their hands on the trophy at the end of May.
If Palace were to reach Leipzig, that could bode well for Mikel Arteta’s challengers as the Conference League final takes place on May 27, just a few days after the two London sides meet on the final day of the domestic campaign.
In any case, Oliver Glasner would be expected to shuffle his pack and prioritise the chance to win a major European trophy.
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It would be a spectacular end to the Austrian’s tenure, seeing him bow out with three trophies, including the FA Cup and Community Shield, leaving Palace in the Europa League next season.
Their squad depth improved drastically on the back of the January transfer window but still, it would feel needless for them to risk picking up fitness issues and injuries against Arsenal if they are unable to seal European qualification in the Premier League.
Meanwhile, Aston Villa trail Nottingham Forest 1-0 in the Europa League semi-finals following last night’s closely-contested battle at the City Ground.
Chris Wood’s winner from the spot means Villa have it all to do in next week’s second leg at Villa Park.
The Europa League final takes place a week prior to the Conference League final on May 20 before Unai Emery’s men travel to Manchester City on the final day of the campaign.
By then, Villa may have already wrapped up Champions League qualification but Emery is so competitive, it seems unlikely he will take the game at City lightly even if they’re European champions or have nothing left to fight for in terms of cementing a top-five finish.
Nonetheless, Villa bowing out of the Europa League in the semis to Forest would be bad news for Pep Guardiola and Co because they would definitely go full strength on the last day, regardless of the circumstances.
Each position in the final Premier League table is also worth a financial bonus and given Villa have battled PSR regulations, they’ll be seeking to maximise potential cash ahead of the summer transfer window.
Arsenal need Palace to reach the final of the Conference League as it will give the Eagles something to think about on the last day.
Selhurst Park is a notoriously tricky place to go even though Arsenal ran riot in Croydon last season when they ran out 5-1 winners just before Christmas.
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