Arsenal vs Valencia: Odds, Live Stream, TV Info for Europa League Arsenal welcome Valencia to the Emirates Stadium on Thursday for the first leg of their UEFA Europa League semi-final.
The
Gunners head into the game having lost their last three matches in the
Premier League, and the defeats have left them two points outside the
UEFA Champions League places with two games to play.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH NOW LIVE
Victory in
the UEFA Europa League looks to be their best chance of qualifying for
next season's Champions League, but they will have to get past La Liga
opposition first.
Valencia are in a similar position to Arsenal in
their league campaign. Marcelino's men are sixth, three points off
fourth place, and have tasted defeat in their last two outings.
Date: Thursday, May 2
Time: 8 p.m. BST, 3 p.m. ET
TV Info: BT Sport 2 (UK), UniMas (U.S.)
Live Stream: BT Sport Live (UK), B/R Live (U.S.)
Match Odds (via Oddschecker): Arsenal 10-11, Draw 13-5, Valencia 14-5
Emery
knows exactly what it takes to win the Europa League, as he lifted the
trophy three times during his time in charge of Sevilla.
The
47-year-old says his team have "big ambition and motivation" ahead of
the game against Valencia, per Nick Mashiter at Press Association Sport
(h/t MailOnline).
Arsenal
will need to improve if they are to snap out of their poor form.
However, they can take confidence from their home record in the
competition:
The Gunners won five and drew one of their six group games, and they
have gone on to beat BATE Borisov, Rennes and Napoli in the knockout
stages.
Emery does have some injury problems for Thursday's match.
He will be without Aaron Ramsey because of a hamstring injury, but
Mesut Ozil and Nacho Monreal are expected to be fit, per Phil Spencer and Tashan Deniran-Alleyne at Football.London.
Arsenal's
hopes of progressing may lie with forwards Alexandre Lacazette and
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, although neither player is in prolific form.
Lacazette has one goal in his last six games and just two in the tournament this season, while Aubameyang has two in seven.
Valencia will be without former Arsenal midfielder Francis Coquelin
for the first leg through suspension. However, ex-Gunner Gabriel
Paulista is available to face his old team.
The Brazilian has said he is "sure that we are going to score" against Arsenal in an interview with Spanish television's El Tercer Tiempo programme (h/t Valencia's official website).
Marcelino's
side have shrugged off a slow start to finish the season strongly. Los
Che had been beaten just once in 22 games before suffering defeats to
Atletico Madrid and Eibar in their last two outings.
Captain Dani Parejo will look to take charge at the Emirates and has been in good form:
Valencia also possess a mean defence. Only Atletico have conceded
fewer goals than Los Che in the Spanish top flight this season.
They
are also in their centenary year and will be hopeful of ending the
season on a high by adding to their rich history in European
competition:
Arsenal have lost 10 of 24 away games in all competitions this season
and will want a good result to take to Spain for the return leg.
However,
the Gunners will need to rediscover the sort of form they showed
against to beat Napoli 2-0 in the first leg of the last round if they
are to avoid a semi-final exit for the second year in a row.
