UEL Round of 32 1st Leg: Benfica vs Arsenal | Thursday 18th February |20:00 | BT Sport

[Yousif Arsenal]

People would lose their **** if they seen how Zidane played too. It would be compounded by the fact that he didn't exactly score all that often too, tho did have an knack for scoring in the big moments.

People only care about work-rate and end product now, they don't appreciate the art of football.

Twitter football fans are prime fault

 

[Trofton]

Anyone asking for Elneny to start a game of football unless it’s for your pub team are a joke

 

[Riou]

People would lose their **** if they seen how Zidane played too. It would be compounded by the fact that he didn't exactly score all that often too, tho did have an knack for scoring in the big moments.

People only care about work-rate and end product now, they don't appreciate the art of football.

Stats have ruined football, as you say just enjoy the art.

 

[BigPoppaPump]

Guys like him don’t have a role in the modern game though as they won’t track back all game. You have to be an athlete now.

Baller era is over.

Fullbacks ruined football, every game now is just pass it to full backs and cross. Now midfielders just press and tackle, they use to run games.

 

[GoonerJay24]

Anyone asking for Elneny to start a game of football unless it’s for your pub team are a joke

I don't get the hate for Elneny. Obviously he's not starter material for a big club like ours but he could surely do a job against Benfica and was playing well before he caught the virus.

 

[avenellroad]

Got a feeling Arsenal will try and sell Pepe at the end of the season.

Using that money to buy Ødegaard permanently.

Arteta's lack of trust in Pepe doesn't bode well

 

[Makingtrax]

That team . . . looks like the City game is a throw-a-way in Mikel’s mind.

 

[Trofton]

• Benfica and Arsenal met in the last 16 of the 1991/92 European Cup, with Benfica winning 4-2 on aggregate (1-1 home, 3-1 away); these are the only two meetings between the teams.
• Arsenal have faced five different Portuguese opponents in European competition and beaten them all (Sporting CP, FC Porto, Sporting Braga and Vitória Guimarães) apart from Benfica (D1 L1).
• • Benfica have won the first leg of their last nine UEFA Europa League knockout ties when it's been at home and won 14 of their last 17 first leg matches in the knockout phase overall (L3).
  • In this season's UEFA Europa League, Arsenal's Nicolas Pepe has been involved in 48 open play sequences that have ended with a shot, four more than anyone else.
  • Benfica's Pizzi has been directly involved in more UEFA Europa League goals than any other player this season (6 goals, 2 assists). The last Portuguese player to score more goals in a UEFA European campaign for Benfica was Eusébio in the 1970/71 European Cup Winners' Cup (7).

 

[dashsnow17]

First time we've named an unchanged line-up since September 2018?? I knew it felt a while but that's crazy

 

[GDeep™]

Fullbacks ruined football, every game now is just pass it to full backs and cross. Now midfielders just press and tackle, they use to run games.

Everything goes in circles they say, maybe we’ll go back ballers and away from Robotic athletes.

 

[Dutch D]

No Pepe again?

 

[Trofton]

I don't get the hate for Elneny. Obviously he's not starter material for a big club like ours but he could surely do a job against Benfica and was playing well before he caught the virus.

He can pass backwards and sideways if he goes in for 8 tackles a match he wins 4/5 that’s non league stuff.

 

[DanDare]

Hate football punditry

Don't know why I've put it on. Usually just turn it on at kickoff

 

[bergholt]

People would lose their **** if they seen how Zidane played too. It would be compounded by the fact that he didn't exactly score all that often too, tho did have an knack for scoring in the big moments.

People only care about work-rate and end product now, they don't appreciate the art of football.

Imagine Gascoigne in modern football

 

[kash2]

lets enjoy the match and discover the new Joao Felix that Benefica have in store

 

[BigPoppaPump]

Everything goes in circles they say, maybe we’ll go back ballers and away from Robotic athletes.

Yeah I'll probably stop watching soon, no crowds made me realise how pointless it all is.

 

[kofigunner]

Got a feeling Arsenal will try and sell Pepe at the end of the season.

Using that money to buy Ødegaard permanently.

Arteta's lack of trust in Pepe doesn't bode well

If that’s the case it would behove us to raise his value otherwise we’d be struggling to get even 20m for him. Weird situation. When he plays he often is impactful, but then he gets benched again for a period of time, and has to start over.

 

[hydrofluoric acid]

No Pepe again?

Yes. No Pepe again!

 

[Trofton]

4-4-2 according to BT?

 

[Rimaal]

He's playing our strongest lineup. Don't we have a game against City this weekend? I guess Arteta's resigned to losing that one.