Europa League Group E 2018/19: Arsenal given favourable draw

This is the second consecutive year that the team have competed in the competition, and fans will expect big things after progressing to the semi-finals last season.

Their new manager, Unai Emery, is somewhat of a specialist in this competition too, after he won the title three years in a row with Sevilla.

The 'Gunners' managed to avoid like sof Milan, Marseille and Real Betis in their group for this year's Europa League competition as they look to improve on their efforts from last season.

Sporting Lisbon will be the stiffest test for the Premier League side, as they possess the likes of former Man Utd winger Nani and ex-Barça defender Jeremy Mathieu among their ranks, however their squad was severely depleted when several players terminated their contracts over the summer after being attacked by fans.

Azarbaijani side Qarabag could also proved a challenge for the men form north London, as they showed by taking two draws from Atletico Madrid last season in the Champions League group stage. However, they were comfortably beaten 10-0 on aggregate by Chelsea in last season's Champions League, which indicates that Arsenal should be able to replicate the form that their Premier League rivals showed against them.

Finally, Emery's men will play Ukraine's FC Vorskla, who finished third in the Ukrainian league last season and have qualified for the group stage of a European competition for the first time in their history this season. While it will undoubtedly be a difficult away trip to the Butovsky Vorskla Stadium, Arsenal will expect to get past the Ukranian outfit.

In summary, Arsenal could have had a much more difficult draw than this, and with the quality of their squad and the experience of their manager in this competition over the years, they will be confident of progressing from Group E.

 

August 31, 2018