Arsenal’s coach Unai Emery has named two youngsters, Arthur Okonkwo and Eddie Nketiah in the Arsenal travelling squad ahead of Thursday night’s Europa League decider away to Napoli.
A goal by Aaron Ramsey and an own goal by Kalidou Koulibaly ensured that the Gunners won the first leg of their quarter-final tie 2-0 to seize the advantage over the tie before a tricky test in Italy.
Arsenal are determined to win back a place in the Champions League for next season and must either finish in the top four in the Premier League or bring home the Europa League trophy.
In order to boost his chances of doing exactly that, Emery has named a strong travelling party for the second leg in Naples, with veteran full-back Stephan Lichtsteiner the only notable absentee beyond injuries.
Barcelona winger Denis Suarez is one such player who has missed out due to a fitness problem while midfielder Lucas Torreira has overcome fears that he could miss out due to a knock – and his tenacity in the middle of the park could prove invaluable.
Academy products Nketiah and Okonkwo are unlikely to start, and while the former could feature on the bench, the latter is more likely to sit out the match as a goalkeeper with Bernd Leno and Petr Cech ahead of him.
Key players Alexandre Lacazette, Granit Xhaka, Mesut Ozil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, plus Ramsey, have all been included in the squad, alongside Laurent Koscielny, Matteo Guendouzi, Nacho Monreal, Sead Kolasinac and Sokratis Papastathopoulos.
After a solid performance on Monday night against Watford, Shkodran Mustafi could also be in line to play some part in the fixture.
However, history may be on their side. Napoli have failed to progress in European competitions on the last eight occasions in which they have lost the opening match in a knockout tie.
Carlo Ancelotti would have to go back to 1999 and a UEFA Cup quarter-final clash with Juventus to find hope of a comeback in the record books for his side.
On that occasion, the home support of the Naples crowd inside the Stadio San Paolo saw their team through to a 3-0 win to move into the semi-finals of the competition that was eventually relaunched as the Europa League.
Emery is the most successful manager in the history of the trophy’s new format, and the joint record-holder across both eras.
His record of three victories, all with Sevilla between 2014 and 2016, is matched only by Giovanni Trapattoni. If he is able to lead Arsenal to glory this season, he will become the outright leader for wins in both the UEFA Cup and Europa League periods.
Unfortunately, his team this season have hardly impressed away from home, and they will need to make sure they stay focused and do a professional job away in Naples – or risk allowing Napoli back into the tie to see their own hopes dashed.
The full travelling squad list can be found below.
Aaron Ramsey
Ainsley Maitland-Niles
Alex Iwobi
Alexandre Lacazette
Arthur Okonkwo
Bernd Leno
Carl Jenkinson
Eddie Nketiah
Granit Xhaka
Henrikh Mkhitaryan
Laurent Koscielny
Lucas Torreira
Matteo Guendouzi
Mesut Ozil
Mohamed Elneny
Nacho Monreal
Petr Cech
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Sead Kolasinac
Shkodran Mustafi