The Gunners could tighten their grip at the top of their Europa League group should they register a win against Qarabag
Arsenal will be aiming to clinch their eighth straight victory when they travel to Qarabag on Thursday for their second Europa League group stage fixture.
The Gunners ran out comfortable winners in their opening continental game against Vorskla where they won 4-2 to send them top of their group ahead of Sporting Lisbon, while the Azerbaijan side face a steep hill if they are to retain their hopes of progressing to the next round.
It will be a crucial fixture for the hosts, who lost their opening match 2-0 and sit bottom of the group with zero points, and they will need to register at least a point against the North London side if they hope to make it to the knockout phases.
| Game | Qarabag vs Arsenal |
| Date | Thursday, October 4 |
| Time | 5:55pm BST / 12:55pm EST |
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial).
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game can be watched live on BT Sport 2 and livestreamed through BT Sport Live.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| BT Sport 2 | BT Sport Live |
Squads & Team News
| Position | Qarabag players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Vagner, Halldorsson |
| Defenders | Medzedev, Huseynov, Rzezniczak, Gurrier, Agolli, Mammadov |
| Midfielders | Qarayev, Diniyev, Zoubir, Ozobic, Delarge, Abdullayev, Michel |
| Forwards | Madatov, Emeghara |
Qarabag coach Gurban Gurbanov has the benefit of an almost fully-fit team to face Arsenal, with only Dani Quintana sidelined from the team due to a ligament injury until December.
They start in a 4-2-3-1 formation, led by Nigerian striker Innocent Emeghara.
Qarabag XI: Vagner; Medvedev, Huseynov, Rzezniczak, Agolli; Qarayev, Michel; Madatov, Ozobic, Zoubir; Emeghara.
| Position | Arsenal players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Leno, Martinez |
| Defenders | Bellerin, Lichtsteiner, Holding, Mustafi, Papastathopoulos, Kolasinac |
| Midfielders | Monreal, Xhaka, Elneny, Torreira, Guendouzi, Smith-Rowe |
| Forwards | Iwobi, Ozil, Welbeck, Lacazette |
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Aaron Ramsey and Petr Cech have all been left behind in London and will not feature against Qarabag. Cech could miss up to the next four weeks due to injury, which will give Bernd Leno the opportunity prove himself ahead of the former Chelsea goalkeeper.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan has not travelled for the fixture due to political tensions between his home country of Armenia and Azerbaijan, where Qarabag are based.
Emile Smith Rowe has been handed a start. The 18-year-old striker came off the bench for 20 minutes in the Gunners’ opening game.
Alexandre Lacazette and Mesut Ozil are both left on the bench.
Arsenal XI: Leno; Sokratis, Holding, Monreal; Lichtsteiner, Guendouzi, Elneny, Kolasinac; Smith Rowe, Welbeck, Iwobi
Betting & Match Odds
Arsenal are priced at odds of winning 9/20 according to bet 365 , while a draw is available at 17/5. A win for Qarabag is up for 8/1.
Match Preview
Despite registering two huge losses against Manchester City and Chelsea in the start of their campaign, new Arsenal manager Unai Emery has managed to steady his ship and bring a winning stability to the side.
The Gunners have registered seven straight wins in all competitions since they lost to Chelsea, with five of those victories coming in the Premier League and the other two coming in the Carabao Cup and Europa League.
Winning the Europa League may be the Gunners’ best bet of qualifying for the Champions League next season, what with the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur still occupying the top-four spots of the Premier League table.
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Emery may be tempted to field a less-experienced side to face Qarabag though it is important that he not remain complacent in his team-picking, though he will already be without key players in Aubameyang and Mkhitaryan.
Danny Welbeck is expected to step up for the Gunners in attack after scoring twice against Bentford in the Carabao Cup last week.
Three points against Qarabag will be crucial for the North London side ahead of the toughest fixtures in their group against Sporting Lisbon.
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