Arsenal travel to El Madrigal on Thursday to face Unai Emery’s Villarreal in the first leg of their Europa League semifinal match-up.
With so much at stake for Arsenal, the result of this game could determine if the Gunners play in the UEL final. A bad performance, and a lack of away goals, could put a fork in this season for once and for all.
Villarreal have not had a banner season either. Currently standing 7th in La Lisa, Emery’s side have 12 wins, 13 draws and 8 losses in the Spanish league, They trail league leading Atletico Madrid by 24 points, a Champions League spot by 21 points and a Europa League spot by just 1 point..
With that said, Mikel Arteta has to start his best available line-up for this match. Here’s my predicted starting XI on Thursday in Spain…
[4-2-3-1]
Aubameyang
Smith Rowe, Odegaard, Saka
Ceballos, Partey
Xahka, Mari, Holding, Bellerin
Leno
Predicted final score…
Villarreal 2 – ARSENAL 1
COYG!
Gunner1953
The Gunners defeated Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 on Wednesday to win both matches in this season’s North London Derby. With the win Arsenal moves back into 2nd place on the Premier League table.
According to The Mail, Arsenal, is in advanced talks to sign Real Sociedad Martin Zubimendi at the end of this season for a reported $61.2-million (USD).
Takehiro Tomiyasu has returned to full training with the first team after recovering from a knee injury. 
Martin Odegaard, “We need to be sharper in the key moments to make sure we get the results we’ve worked for. We have to keep going and keep improving. There is no choice for us now.”
Lie