Valencia vs Arsenal
After crashing out at this stage last year, Arsenal are very much in the driving seat to make the Europa League final this time around. The Gunners take a 3-1 aggregate lead to the second leg against Valencia after strikers Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang did the damage at home.
However, the big question is whether Arsenal can hold on to their two-goal advantage, considering how abject they have been away from home this season.
And after a big win over the weekend, Valencia will have their shooting boots on at home as they look to deal the Gunners more away day woes.
Talking Points
Valencia rediscover scoring touch
Valencia couldn’t have asked for a better build-up to the second leg. They picked up a confidence-boosting 6-2 win away at relegated Huesca over the weekend. Rodrigo Moreno and Santi Mina both bagged braces — Mina also had two assists — as Valencia scored over three goals for the first time all season.
The win finally snapped their three-match losing run. They lost to Atletico away, as well as to Eibar at home in a shock result, before going down to Arsenal in the first leg.
But Valencia have generally been very good at the Mestalla this season. They’d gone an impressive 20 home games unbeaten in all competitions prior to that Eibar defeat. Moreover, only one team (Juventus) has scored more than one goal against Valencia at home all season.
However, the big question mark for Valencia — as it has been all season — is whether they have enough goals in them to overturn that two-goal deficit.
Although, they have scored two or more goals five times in their last seven home games, and a 2-0 scoreline would be enough to see them through on away goals.
Arsenal’s awful away form
Arsenal will most likely not be finishing fourth in the Premier League this season, which puts even more pressure on them to win the Europa League in order to get Champions League football next year.
The Gunners basically blew their chance at fourth by drawing at home against Brighton over the weekend. But an even bigger factor in their inability to secure that Champions League spot has been their awful away record.
They have lost three of their last four away games in the league, the last two of which were comprehensive defeats at the hands of Wolverhampton Wanderers (1-3) and Leicester (0-3). They were also got their lone win against Watford under very fortunate circumstances.
All in all, Arsenal have lost nine of their last 15 away from the Emirates in all competitions, with just four victories. Two of those defeats came in the knockout stage of the Europa League against BATE and Rennes.
However, they did grab a creditable 1-0 away win against Napoli in the quarter-finals, which was one of the more surprising Europa League 2019 results of the season.
And while the Europa League 2019 betting odds on Arsenal escaping Spain with a win aren’t great, they don’t need to win to move on to the final. Thanks to their 3-1 win in the first leg, even a 2-1 defeat will be enough for them to go through.
And as the Napoli tie showed, Unai Emery — a three-time winner of this very competition — is more than capable of setting his side up to pick up a result away from home when necessary.
History
Valencia have a great home record in this competition. They are undefeated in their 11 UEFA Europa League home games. They’ve won their last eight in a row, scoring 22 goals and conceding just three.
Valencia’s overall record against English opposition in Europe is 12 wins, 16 draws, and 10 defeats. However, they’ve won six of nine two-legged ties. They’ve won nine of 18 home matches against the English, with four defeats.
As for the Arsenal, they have won just twice in 15 European games in Spain, with their last victory coming all the way back in 2005/06. They’ve also lost in their last three visits to Spain, which includes their second-leg defeat to Atletico in last year’s Europa League semi-final.
Arsenal have gone through in 17 of the 19 UEFA competition ties where they won in the first leg at home. However, the first time they failed to do so was against Valencia back in 2000/01.
Betting Tip
 |
 |
Valencia vs Arsenal | Under 3.00 Goals @ 1.88 |
| May 10, 03:00 (GMT+8) |
There’s a good chance that there won’t be too many goals in this game. Due to Arsenal’s two-goal advantage, they will more likely be set up to defend that lead as opposed to keep attacking against Valencia’s solid defence.
And despite their recent six-goal explosion, Valencia aren’t the most prolific attacking side around, even at home. It’s not hard to see them struggling to break down an Arsenal side focused on frustrating them in the second leg.
With all those factors in mind, it’s also quite possible that this match ends in a stalemate. SBOBET odds have the draw priced at 3.60, and 1-1 in the correct score market at 6.80.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
 = €20 (Highly confident) |
= €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
|
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
●●●
CHECK OUT OUR BLOG FOR MORE FOOTBALL STORIES & ODDS
Stay updated with everything sports and betting.
Follow us on social Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
