Beaten in Lens (2-1) at the beginning of October, Arsenal, vice-champion of England, challenges Sergio Ramos’ Sevilla FC on Tuesday (9 p.m.), determined to annoy another European great during the third day of the Champions League after their draw (1-1) against Real Madrid in La Liga.
This perilous trip to the Sanchez Pizjuan stadium can already be decisive for the Gunners, who are making their return to C1 after 6 years of absence and are aiming for first place in group B, currently occupied by Lens (4 points). Mikel Arteta’s men, runners-up to Manchester City in the Premier League, remain in a drawn draw on the lawn of their rival Chelsea (2-2) on Saturday despite further defensive wanderings, while the Blues led 2-0 in the 75th minute. minute.
On paper, Arsenal are favorites against the Sevillians, disappointing 13th in the Spanish championship, and who have just fired their coach José Luiz Mendilibar after 5 defeats, 5 draws and only 2 victories in all competitions. But the seven-time winners of the Europa League have resources and the habit of sublimating themselves during European evenings, like the final of the European Super Cup lost to City on penalties last August.
Coach with a volcanic temperament, former Uruguay coach Diego Alonso, who replaced Mendilibar, gave this weekend against Real (1-1) a glimpse of what his team could look like on Tuesday: compact, generous and combative. “The players did what I asked of them, which was to be courageous and stand up to the opposition. I am proud of what they did, even if there are things to improve,” declared the South American coach after the match.
“There is still a long way to go, but we must rely on this conviction that we are capable of performing like today, of fighting without fear and without complexes” he added at the conference of press. The camera in the locker room before the match allowed us to hear part of the Uruguayan’s talk, calling on his players to fight “like in the neighborhood, where when it hits and there is blood, some flee and others go there without thinking.”
For this, Diego Alonso, who will discover the C1 on Tuesday, has at his disposal what is best in this area: the former captain of Real Madrid Sergio Ramos, 37 years old, back in Seville after his time at PSG . The Spanish central defender, who won everything with Real between 2005 and 2021, including the Champions League four times, has become the pillar of the Andalusian team, alongside his compatriot Jesus Navas and former Barcelona player Ivan Rakitic, also winner of the C1 in 2015.
With this high-level experience, an element which is still sorely lacking among the young Gunners, Sevilla will try to respond to the polished collective play of the Londoners with the combativeness of the Argentines Lucas Ocampos and Marcos Acuna and its attacking duo formed by the Moroccan Youssef En- Nesyri and the Belgian Dodi Lukebakio. The Andalusian team will also count on the support of their home crowd to try to achieve a result that would keep their hopes of qualifying for the round of 16 alive.
Otherwise, it will probably focus on 3rd place in the group to be transferred to the Europa League, where everything has succeeded since the mid-2010s.
Array Champions League Arsenal FC Sevilla
2023-10-24 08:50:46
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