All articles by: Jools Jordan-Probert

Olympique Lyonnais vs Ajax – Match Preview

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Olympique Lyonnais vs Ajax – Match Preview – Match Preview

Europa League, Semi Final 2nd Leg, Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Lyon 8.05pm

 

Lyon are looking for an historic 2nd leg comeback against Ajax to obtain a place in the prestigious Europa League final in Stockholm.

Story of the first leg
Ajax are on the brink of a first European final in 21 years – in Amsterdam they established a commanding 4-1 lead to take to France with clinical attacking prowess.
On-loan Chelsea forward Bertrand Traore stole the show; heading in Hakim Ziyech’s free kick and tapping in another great cross from the Moroccan either side of half time with youngster Kasper Dolberg and forward Amin Younes also scoring between each of the Burkina Faso star’s strikes. Mathieu Valbuena netted a well-placed consolation to give the French side a slight glimmer of hope.

The winner of this tie will face the victor of Manchester United v Celta Vigo in the other semi-final; the Premier League side seem favourites after a strong showing in a 1-0 defeat of Celta in Spain. Lyon are aiming to become the first French team to win the Europa League/UEFA Cup but as mentioned above, face an incredibly arduous task to do so. Ajax playing United seems likely at present and would prove an extremely strong showing of European pedigree; highlighting the Europa League’s ascending reputation.

Also the winner of this match will be the ‘home’ team in the final in Sweden on 24th May.

Players to Watch
After his dynamic showing in the first leg; Bertrand Traore is the name on most viewer’s lips for this tie. His strong output of 13 goals and 6 assists in 36 appearances will be giving parent club Chelsea’s boss Antonio Conte something to think about. 4 goals and 4 assists in 9 matches in the Europa League partnered with his direct ball carrying and electric pace see Traore as a constant threat for opposition defences and Ajax will have to execute a new plan to stop his influence this time around.

Bertrand Traore scored twice in the 1st leg home win

Bertrand Traore scored twice in the 1st leg home win Photo Credit: soccernews.nl

Maxime Gonalons is imperative to all things positive for Lyon; the defensive midfielder has been with the club since 2000 and has proved vital in the heart of midfield in destroying opposition attacks and intuitively putting his team back on the front foot with his effective distribution. Not primarily a creative influence; Gonalons still has an assist in the Europa League this season and boasts a strong pass success percentage of 86.9% in 5 appearances. Strong in the tackle and an excellent reader of the game, the anchor-man will be key to repelling Ajax’s offence.

Maxime Gonalons will be key to stopping Ajax taking control of the tie

Maxime Gonalons will be key to stopping Ajax taking control of the tie Photo Credit:

Team News
Star striker Alexandre Lacazette lacked the fitness to make an impact in the first leg, and Lyon could be without their talisman again in the search for a remarkable comeback as he remains a doubt. Memphis Depay hasn’t featured and won’t this season for the French side due to his ineligibility after featuring for Manchester United. Lyon are also without defender Yapou Yanga-Mbwia, the influential midfielder Corentin Tolisso and youngster Mouctar Diakhaby.

Ajax on the other-hand are relatively injury free; defenders Nick Viergever and Joel Veltman were suspended in the first leg but are set to return – leaving Daley Sinkgraven as the only doubt for the huge clash.

The betting man would back Ajax here – a performance from the Dutchmen anywhere near to the gulf in class displayed in the first leg will see the famous side through.
However, Lyon have won all three of their home knockout games this season – scoring 13 goals in the process giving an average of 4.33 goals per game.
Ajax’s exciting young team playing an offensive Lyon side that needs to score at least 3 goals promises attacking intent and surely goals.

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  • Skybet Price Boost – Davy Klaassen to score and Ajax to win in 90 mins – 15/2
  • Skybet Price Boost – Bertrand Traore to score from outside the penalty area – 16/1
  • Skybet Scorecast Boost – Nabil Fekir to score first and Lyon to win 3-1 – 50/1
  • Skybet Scorecast Boost (Double Chance) – Kasper Dolberg to score first and either Ajax to win 1-0 or Ajax to win 2-0 – 55/1
  • Skybet RequestAbet Up to 10/1 – Lyon to score 2+ goals and 9+ Lyon corners – 11/4
  • Skybet RequestAbet Up to 10/1 – A penalty awarded and a player sent off – 9/1
  • Skybet RequestAbet 11/1 to 28/1 – Each team to take 3+ corners in each half – 14/1
  • Skybet RequestAbet 33/1 to 66/1 – Over 4.5 goals, 15+ match corners and 70+ match booking pts – 50/1
  • Skybet Anytime Goalscorer – Corentin Tolisso – 13/8
  • Skybet Both Players to Score – Gnaly Maxwell Cornet and Kasper Dolberg both to score – 13/2

Southampton vs Arsenal – Match Preview

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Southampton v Arsenal Match Preview

FA Premier League, St Mary’s Stadium, Southampton 7.45pm

An enticing clash awaits at St Mary’s Stadium as FA Cup Finalists Arsenal must win against EFL Cup runners-up Southampton to continue their pursuit of Champions League football.

The Gunners are buoyant after excellent victories against Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-final and overcoming Manchester United in the Premier League – ending a season record of 25 undefeated games for The Red Devils in the process.

Many fans have been calling for the head of Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger due to perceived underperformances by the North-London club in recent times and the Frenchman’s side face an uphill struggle to sneak into a Champions League place this campaign.

The task ahead is clear – sitting 7 points behind Liverpool with two games in hand and 6 points behind City with one game in hand; failure to continue the momentum of late by defeating Southampton will all but quash Arsenal’s hopes of elite European football next term.

Southampton themselves have had a strong season and are once again consolidating a top half finish despite battling the loss of star players and a manager – Sadio Mane and captain Jose Fonte have departed to Liverpool and West Ham respectively alongside the now-Everton manager Ronald Koeman.

Claude Puel has done a stellar job in steadying the ship and lead the Saints to their first cup final since 2002/03 as they were narrowly defeated by Manchester United 3-2 at Wembley whilst additionally challenging to break into the division’s top 8.

Laurent Koscielny will have a late fitness check ahead of tonight's game

Laurent Koscielny will have a late fitness check ahead of tonight’s game

Team News
The main story from Arsenal’s camp is that star defender Laurent Koscielny is battling to find fitness for the match. A late decision on the French international’s calf knock will be made to determine if he will feature.
Shkodran Mustafi and Santi Cazorla will remain unavailable but Granit Xhaka and Lucaz Perez are set to come back into contention.

Charlie Austin could return to the squad tonight

Charlie Austin could return to the squad tonight Photo Credit: skysports.com

In-demand centre-back Virgil van Dijk and back-up goalkeeper Alex McCarthy are both still unfit to play but there could be a possible return for striker Charlie Austin; who featured in the u23s on Friday. Matt Target was also involved in that match and is set to fight for a place.

Summary 
This promises to be an intriguing match-up as both teams have history – be it recent or late – that lends themselves to struggle in this encounter:

Southampton have failed to score in 3 of their last 4 home matches, and only registered a meagre 10 shots on target across their last 5 games in the Premier League in total. Manolo Gabbiadini was purchased to rectify the problem created in attack while Charlie Austin has been injured but after a strong start of 4 goals in his first 3 appearances the Italian has failed to score in his last 5 games.

Conversely; Arsenal have failed to win in their last 5 league visits to Southampton – the Saints are attempting to complete 3 consecutive home league victories over the Gunners for the first time since 1985.

Add to that Arsenal’s horrendous recent away record of losing 5 of the last 6 away Premier League games and it becomes even more difficult to decide a winner here.

Recent history between the two teams also causes further ambiguity in picking a favourite, Arsenal’s last fixture at St Mary’s resulted in a resounding 5-0 demolishing in favour of Wenger’s side in the 4th round of the FA Cup this season. The last time The Gunners visited in the league, however, was a different story – Southampton emerging victorious in a brilliant 4-0 win.

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  • Skybet RequestAbet 11/1 to 28/1 – Gabbiadini to score, Southampton to win, over 2.5 goals and 20+ booking pts each team – 20/1
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  • Skybet RequestAbet 33/1 to 66/1 – Gabbiadini to score, Southampton to win and Xhaka & Romeu to be carded – 33/1
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  • Skybet RequestAbet 80/1 and Above – Gabbiadini & Redmond to score and Soares & Ward-Prowse to be carded – 150/1
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Arsenal vs Manchester United – Match Preview

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Arsenal v Manchester United – Match Preview
FA Premier League, Emirates Stadium, London 4pm

Manchester United travel to The Emirates as the climax of the season brings two historic rivals competing to earn a place in The Champions League.

To put it bluntly – this is a must-win for Arsenal. After Sunday’s 2-0 defeat to arch-rivals Tottenham The Gunners have lost 5 of their last 6 away matches and find themselves in a desperate league situation. 6th place, 6 points away from Manchester City in fourth means it is likely the frailties of Arsene Wenger’s team will be punished and consequently Arsenal will miss out on Europe’s elite competition for the first time during the Frenchman’s reign.

Arsenal’s season has both been shockingly poor yet simultaneously predictable. Naivety away from home in defeats to teams like West Brom and Crystal Palace alongside the customary Champions League last 16 at the hands of Bayern Munich has put even more pressure on manager Arsene Wenger as fan protests intensify and the desire for change grows stronger.

Salvation could once again be in the hands of an FA Cup triumph; as Arsenal overcame Manchester City 2-1 in the semis to reach their 3rd FA Cup final in 4 years. The lucrative 4th place isn’t out of reach either, as The Gunners have a game in hand. Anything other than victory over fellow Champions League chasers Manchester United will all but seal their fate.

As Jose Mourinho has made sure everyone knows; Manchester United come into this match with plenty of injuries during a period of extreme fixture congestion.

Thursday’s 1-0 victory away to Celta Vigo in the Europa League semi-final puts The Red Devils in a strong position to reach the final – win the competition and Mourinho’s men can attain Champions League status without the need to finish 4th.

As a consequence, the Portuguese manager has hinted at wholesale changes to his side’s line-up against Arsenal but still intimates the desire to win. Against long-time adversary Arsene Wenger that is hardly surprising.

United are on an unprecedented unbeaten league run of 25 matches spanning back all the way to October in the 4-0 humiliation at the hands of Antonio Conte’s Chelsea.
Despite this; United have been plagued by a series of draws – an astounding 14 in the league in total – which has hindered their Champions League place hopes and completely decimated any title ambitions. United’s 5th place position a point behind neighbours City suggests that victory is necessary to not allow the blue of Manchester to pull away.

The long-term rivalry between Wenger and Mourinho and the fact that the Frenchman has never beaten his Portuguese counterpart in the Premier League only adds to the importance of this clash.

Team News
Jose Mourinho has strongly hinted that he will rest the players that have featured more prominently during the fixture congestion. This means player such as Marcus Rashford, Eric Bailly, Ander Herrera, Ashley Young and Jesse Lingard are suspect to being rested. However the Portuguese manager confirmed David De Gea will regain his starting position from Romero. Long term injuries have come at the worst time for Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Luke Shaw and Marcos Rojo who are all ruled out. Marouane Fellaini is still completing his three-match domestic ban so will be unavailable as well. The good news is that Chris Smalling came off the bench on Thursday and Phil Jones was in the matchday squad so both are back in contention.

For Arsenal the team news is less extensive; Granit Xhaka will miss out with an ankle injury but Skhodran Mustafi, Lucas Perez and David Ospina could all pass late fitness tests to feature.

Alexis Sanchez key to Arsenal's Champions League hopes

Alexis Sanchez key to Arsenal’s Champions League hopes Photo Credit: skysports.com

Players to Watch
Alexis Sanchez has the capability to single-handedly win matches on his day; proving so in this fixture last year helping a rampant Arsenal take a 3-0 lead within 20 minutes. The Chilean forward currently has 19 goals and is just a single strike away from his best ever tally in a season (which is also 19 for Barcelona in 2013/14) and could become just the 8th player to reach 50 Premier League goals for the Gunners with a brace on Sunday (has 48 at present). He is a dynamic forward who provides a constant threat to the opposition with his movement and ability to shoot from any distance or angle. Enabling Sanchez could be key to victory for Wenger’s men.

Manchester United must do everything to keep the Spanish keeper

Manchester United must do everything to keep the Spanish keeper Photo Credit: skysports.com

David De Gea is the only player in history to win three consecutive Manchester United Player of the Season awards; such as his importance to the team. The Spanish international has been heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid but it is vital United keep him for the long term. Arguably the best shot stopper in the world; De Gea has been the difference on numerous occasions between a Red Devils victory or not and if Arsenal’s attack are in full flow he will need to be at this best for a positive result.

 

Suggested Tips:

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  • Skybet Price Boost – Oliver Giroud to score a header – 13/2
  • Skybet Scorecast Boost – Oliver Giroud to score 1st and Arsenal to win 3-1 – 55/1
  • Skybet Scorecast Boost (Double Chance) – Juan Mata to score first and either Manchester United to win 2-0 or 3-1 – 85/1
  • Skybet @FootyAccums Specials – BTTS, 4+ Corners Each Team and 30+ Arsenal booking points – 15/2
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  • Skybet 80/1 and above Request-A-Bet Specials – Giroud & Rashford to score, Draw and 30+ booking points each team  – 80/1
  • Skybet 80/1 and above Request-A-Bet Specials – Sanchez & Martian to score, 1-1 Draw and Paulista to be carded  – 200/1
  • Skybet 33/1 to 66/1 Request-A-Bet Specials – Sanchez, Rooney, Coquelin & Darmian to be carded – 50/1
  • Skybet 33/1 to 66/1 Request-A-Bet Specials – Sanchez to score first & Jones to be carded first – 66/1