Arsene Wenger praised Carlo Ancelotti, but warned “it’ll be a very difficult task for Napoli to get past Arsenal” in the Europa League. The two clubs will face off in the quarter-finals on April 11 in London and April 18 at the Stadio San Paolo. Wenger also went ahead to claim he will definitely support his former club even though he loves Carlo Ancelotti who is Napoli’s coach.
“I will be an Arsenal supporter on the night of the match with Napoli, just like every other game,” Gunners legend Wenger told Il Mattino newspaper. “I don’t need to give Unai Emery any advice. I love Carlo Ancelotti, one of the greatest Coaches of all time, a real maestro on how to work with teams. “Having said that, Arsenal are a great team and it’ll be a very difficult task for Napoli to get past them into the next round.”
In the other news, Arsenal captain Laurent Koscielny has aimed a subtle dig at former boss Arsene Wenger over the manager’s tactics in big games. Wenger left Arsenal last summer after 22 years in charge, though the Frenchman had struggled in recent seasons. He was replaced by Unai Emery who has Arsenal battling for the Premier League top four again after the Gunners finished sixth last season.
Emery’s Arsenal have been a lot more competitive in matches against their top-four rivals. Indeed, the Emirates outfit have picked up 12 points against fellow teams in the top six – a marked improvement on the six gained last year. And while praising current boss Emery, Koscielny has appeared to take a dig at his former managers tactics and mentality.
“Our record against the other big six teams this season is positive,” he said. “We have won 12 points compared to six last season. “It shows how we are approaching those games differently.
“It is not just about attacking. We are more intelligent, we are more measured in our plans. “We can change tactics halfway through a game, we can set up differently. “The manager is using different formations and it shows his flexibility and the players’ too which is a good thing. “Of course, we still need to do better away from home in the big games but we are on the right path.”
Arsenal are looking for a way into the Champions League having missed out on it this season. They remain in the Europa League, with the winners of that competition earning entry into Europe’s top competition. And Emery has admitted he would rather win the Europa League to qualify than finish in the Premier League top four.
“The Champions League is very important but the Europa League grew up a lot and now is giving every team the possibility to play in the Champions League,” he said. “In the domestic league, like here, we have six teams playing to be in the top four. “Two teams are going out and the Europa League is giving us a big opportunity also to take one way to go to the Champions League.
“And also, it’s one title. I said to the players, I am excited about this competition. “It’s not just because you can get to the Champions League through this competition. “It’s also because it’s one title and I think we can feel the possibility to win one title, doing this way with a difficult moment and playing also against big teams.”
