football.london picks a dream Arsenal line-up to take on Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League final
Arsenal take on PSG in the UEFA Champions League final, looking to make history by lifting the trophy for the first time in their history. The game follows the 22-year wait for the Premier League title coming to an end as Mikel Arteta beat Manchester City to the crown.
He now takes on another Spanish manager, having ousted Pep Guardiola. Luis Enrique outsmarted the Gunners during last season’s semi-final as they went on to destroy Inter Milan in last season’s final.
Arteta knows just what is needed and was rather bold in his message after beating Crystal Palace on the final day, saying that they cannot wait to begin penning a new page in the club’s existence, and went as far as to say they cannot wait to lift it.
“We need to do it because we need that energy to flow, and going against that, I think it will be a big mistake,” Arteta said. “We talked about already what we have to do in Budapest, how we’re going to use all the incredible energy that we’re all carrying towards that final, and tomorrow we’re going to start to prepare it.
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“And yeah, we can’t wait to write a new chapter in the history of our club and lift the Champions League.”
In terms of the team, the big question remains over Jurrien Timber and whether he can make it back. In a dream scenario, the hope would be that Arteta can have as many other stars available for such a big game.
Mikel Merino recently returned after months on the sidelines, and now it remains to be seen whether the Dutchman can do the same without having played any minutes since his injury against Everton in mid-March.
Arteta has other big calls to make in the side; Kai Havertz or Viktor Gyokeres is certainly one. The speed in behind of the Swede or the technical ability of the German… He picked Havertz at the Etihad Stadium and he may well lean there again.
The midfield is the last area, and considering Eberechi Eze’s slight dip in form of late, while Martin Odegaard has risen to be critical to the side’s output with his assist at West Ham key, there is a sense that the captain will start the final with the newly-formed partnership.
The last big call is at left-back, where Riccardo Calafiori is battling with Piero Hincapie for a place. Both offer different things, and almost certainly both will get on the field, but the question remains who gets the nod from the outset.
Arsenal dream XI vs PSG – Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Rice, Lewis-Skelly, Odegaard; Saka, Havertz, Trossard
