Europa League 2017-2018

[freeglennhelder2]

£15.50 for lower tier tickets? That's less than the price of 2 drinks at a pretentious London cocktail bar....hmmm

Nah. Ill pass

 

[field442]

How are people expecting us to lineup in this? I can't see him playing Bellerin or Kolasinac so his choice of wing backs will be interesting. I think Holding/Per/Chambers will play in defense. Elneny and Wilshere will play in midfield and Walcott/Giroud/Iwobi will be the front 3.

 

[{reed}]

I would go back to 4-2-3-1 for the EL, we have too many strikers and not many other backup options.

My predictions for Koln:
Giroud
Sanchez-Iwobi
?-Wilshere-Elneny-AMN
Holding-Mert-Chambers
Ospina

 

[tap-in]

Wenger has already said he will play the fringe players and youth players. We have to be careful though, this completion could be the only way back into CL next season, we have to win our EL games but still keep our key players fresh for PL, especially when the next game is Chelsea.

 

[Rex Stone]

Wenger has already said he will play the fringe players and youth players. We have to be careful though, this completion could be the only way back into CL next season, we have to win our EL games but still keep our key players fresh for PL, especially when the next game is Chelsea.

Exactly, top 4 will be a bloodbath this year, this could be a real chance at getting into the CL via a backdoor.

 

[Tir Na Nog]

We'll ease through the group, our depth is very good. Hopefully by the last 16/quarter final stage we'll start playing closer to our strongest team. But for the moment we should prioritise the Chelsea game.

 

[YeahBee]

Wenger has already said he will play the fringe players and youth players. We have to be careful though, this completion could be the only way back into CL next season, we have to win our EL games but still keep our key players fresh for PL, especially when the next game is Chelsea.

We already know the embarrasment of not winning the league
(and nobody expects us to win this year)

We cannot NOT win the EL, play the strongest team possible in all games until we are groupwinners

This early in the season we don't have to rest yet, they are frekkin professional athletes and must be up for it.

rotate naturally throughout the season, not wholesale rotation just because we have chelsea or another top club later

 

[field442]

We already know the embarrasment of not winning the league
(and nobody expects us to win this year)

We cannot NOT win the EL, play the strongest team possible in all games until we are groupwinners

This early in the season we don't have to rest yet, they are frekkin professional athletes and must be up for it.

rotate naturally throughout the season, not wholesale rotation just because we have chelsea or another top club later

Disagree. You just can't expect to play the first team late Thursday night and then expect a decent performance at Sunday lunch time when Chelsea have two days extra to prepare for it.

If we get battered by Chelsea and the players look shattered after 60 minutes 90% of fans will be moaning that they played against Köln when the fringe players could've gone there and got a result.

 

[YeahBee]

Disagree. You just can't expect to play the first team late Thursday night and then expect a decent performance at Sunday lunch time when Chelsea have two days extra to prepare for it.

If we get battered by Chelsea and the players look shattered after 60 minutes 90% of fans will be moaning that they played against Köln when the fringe players could've gone there and got a result.

i don't like the odds of "could" against Köln

they finished fifth in the Bundesliga ffs they are no pushover

 

[The_Playmaker]

I feel like I am going to hate the lineup on Thursday. No start for Wilshere and Nelson would be pointless watching from my point of view.

 

[Tywin]

The Europa League is the biggest trophy we can win this season certainly bigger than the FA Cup or League Cup. Wenger having never won a european trophy could do with winning this one and it has the added bonus of a CL spot. The ugly part of the Europa League is the fixtures schedule where you are forced to rotate. Hopefully the fringe players are able to get us through to the later stages.

 

[say yes]

Backup XI for the group stages.

Progressively stronger team as we hit the knockouts.

 

[BobP]

The players who should be up for selection consideration are:

Ospina
Chambers
Holding
Mertesacker
Wilshere
Giroud
Debuchy
Walcott
Iwobi
Reine-Adelaide
Elneny
Coquelin
Maitland-Niles
Nelson
Willock
Nketiah
Macey

We could lineup like this:

Ospina
Chambers-Mertesacker-Holding
Debuchy-Coquelin-Elneny-AMN
Walcott-Iwobi
Giroud

Bench:
Nelson, Willock, Nketiah, Reine-Adelaide, Wilshere, Macey.

 

[tap-in]

We already know the embarrasment of not winning the league
(and nobody expects us to win this year)

We cannot NOT win the EL, play the strongest team possible in all games until we are groupwinners

This early in the season we don't have to rest yet, they are frekkin professional athletes and must be up for it.

rotate naturally throughout the season, not wholesale rotation just because we have chelsea or another top club later

I was only stating what Wenger has already said. Also note that I said we have to be careful playing fringe players and youth players. The fact is, the EL is our best chance to get CL football next season but we can rest key players and still win EL group games. You don't need a sledgehammer to open a hazelnut.

 

[razörist]

Would be so Arsenal to **** the bed in the first game and piss us all off.

But I'm looking forward to it, should be a couple fun games.

 

[Polar Bear]

If we lose and Wenger plays some of the players mentioned in here, everyone will be going hysterical.

Hopefully the best 11 will start this game.

 

[Arsenal1508]

-----------Ospina---------
Chambers---Per----Holding
AMN----Wilshere---El Nenny---Walcott
Nelson-----Giroud------Iwobi

 

[skip spence]

If we lose and Wenger plays some of the players mentioned in here, everyone will be going hysterical.

Hopefully the best 11 will start this game.

What would make me hysterical is starting key players in the European Loser's Cup only to tire them out or injure them ahead of the Chelsea game on Sunday, or any half-touch PL game really. If our reserves drop points at home to Cologne, so be it.

The only good thing about this **** cup is the chance to give the kids and fringe players competitive games. The likes of Ospina, Wilshere, Iwobi, Walcott, Elneny, Nelson, Giroud, Holding, Chambers, Per, ANM, even fcuking Debuchy, should be more than enough to waltz through to the knock-out stages and beyond. If we get to the semis or thereabouts it may be time to put out a full strength team.

CL qualification should be achieved by league position and can't believe missing that mark once in what 20 years, and by the slimmest margin, has made so many here that despondent!?

EL is not our level, we're not ****ing Sevilla.

 

[Arsenal1508]

If we lose and Wenger plays some of the players mentioned in here, everyone will be going hysterical.

Hopefully the best 11 will start this game.

The best 11 is not good enough...see Liverpool result. We should be mixing up the lineup to find hungry players.

 

[skip spence]

Besides, the only draw for me to watch these games would be to see the likes of Wilshere, Nelson, Nkeita and tbqh, Theo Walcott.