Arsenal 3-1 Valencia: 5 Talking Points

Unai Emery carefully planned a huge show at the Emirates as Arsenal look to prevent history from repeating itself. Last season, the Gunners drew 1-1 at home in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final clash against Atletico Madrid. It was a disappointing result for the Gunners because they failed to win the game and even conceded an away goal.

This time around, Emery was sure that he would be different from Arsene Wenger. He did not want his side to face such a scenario, he wanted his side to finish the game with a victory in their hands. His dreams came true.

Despite conceding the first goal, Alexandre Lacazette scored twice to put the home side in front by the end of the first half. In the latter 45 minutes, the Gunners had plenty of chances to increase their lead but failed to capitalize on their chances. Ultimately, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang did just enough in the closing stages of the match to make it 3-1 for Arsenal. The pressure is now on Valencia to try to turn the tie around. Here is a look at five talking points from the game.

#5 Valencia's defensive style

Arsenal v Valencia - UEFA Europa League Semi Final: First Leg

Arsenal are the second team to make Valencia concede three goals this season with Atletico Madrid doing it exactly a week ago. On most occasions, Valencia's defense has conceded just one goal or they kept a clean sheet. At the Emirates, it could have been worse for their backline but Arsenal did not score more than three.

As expected, Arsenal dominated possession. For a long period of time, they failed to find the penetrating pass which could split Valencia's defense. However, when Henrikh Mkhitaryan was brought on for Mesut Ozil, the pair of fresh legs inserted a new found energy on the pitch. Mkhitaryan got things going quicker and Sead Kolasinac created all sorts of trouble in the final third.

It seemed as if Los Che were having problems coping with Arsenal's attacking style as they sat deep and they struggled to break on the counter too. Perhaps, Marcelino had opted to defend in the first leg and go all out to attack in the return leg. However, whatever his tactics were, the visitors clearly had difficulties creating chances for themselves, especially in the second half.

#4 Gabriel's return to Emirates

He might not be the most popular player for Arsenal, but the fans would surely remember him for one thing - his bad relationship with Diego Costa. When the latter was a player for Chelsea, there were many instances where the duo were at loggerheads on the pitch. In one particular match, the defender even received his marching orders.

Prior to the match, the center-back claimed that he deserved more chances at Arsenal. His career with the Gunners was relatively short-lived. Joining from Villarreal in 2015, the Brazilian left in 2017 for Valencia. When he was an Arsenal player, Gabriel was never quite a regular starter for the team. Unless there were injuries, he was normally on the bench.

Now in Spain, the 28-year-old has played the majority of the games, making 41 appearances in all competitions. Gabriel has finally found his place in a team which values his contributions. Arsenal captain, Laurent Koscielny, had called for support for his former team-mate as he made his return to the stadium which he used to play in.

Gabriel is not the only former Arsenal player who now plays for Los Che. Francis Coquelin is the other who also returned as a former player of the club, but he was suspended for the first-leg clash due to the accumulation of yellow cards.

#3 Petr Cech's last home game

Both Aaron Ramsey and Petr Cech will be leaving the club when the season comes to an end. However, with Ramsey out for the rest of the season, he has long played his final home match. On the other hand, Cech had the chance to make it a memorable night for himself and the fans. The veteran keeper was at his best and pulled off a couple of good saves to deny his opponents.

The former Chelsea keeper joined Arsenal in 2015. Wenger had been a long-term admirer of him and decided to sign him when the Blues have decided to stick with Thibaut Courtois as the first-choice keeper. After joining, Cech deputized David Ospina to become the first choice keeper. His arrival also forced Wojciech Szczesny to a loan move to Roma that season. Despite all his heroics at Stamford Bridge, Cech was no longer at his best when he played for the Gunners. Often, his performances have left the fans frustrated.

Last night, the 36-year-old performed decently well as he has done throughout the Europa League campaign. Although he never got to lift the EPL trophy with the North London club, his team remains in contention to lift the Europa League trophy. Helping his side to qualify for UCL competition next season could be Cech's last contribution to the club.

#2 Amazing Lacazette and Aubameyang partnership

Now, for five consecutive seasons, Aubameyang has scored 25 goals or more for his club. Since his arrival at the club, the striker has formed a great partnership with Lacazette. They have a good mutual understanding of each other and contributed significantly this season. Without them, how would Arsenal's season have panned out?

Aubameyang played a role in helping his partner striker score the vital two goals in the first half and it was a night where both of them excelled. In the second half, the former Dortmund man almost found Lacazette in the box once more to net Arsenal's third goal. However, the Frenchman completely missed his header and wasted the chance to seal the result of the match.

Still upbeat about his chances, Aubameyang scored a deserving goal for himself in the final few minutes of the match. As one of the leading scorers in the EPL, the Gabonese has enjoyed a pretty good season with the English club. Fans can expect much more to come out of the duo in the seasons to come. Two most regrettable things for fans would be that both strikers are on the wrong side of their 20s, with Aubameyang turning 30 next month, and that they should have known each other at the Emirates earlier in their careers.

#1 Champions League qualification hopes

Their dreams of returning to the UCL are still alive. Despite losing three consecutive matches in the EPL, their rivals have slipped up too and the battle to finish top four is far from over. Currently, in fifth, Arsenal stand a chance of missing out of the UCL qualification spots this season. Given the Gunners' horrible domestic form now, no one can predict how the last two games would turn out.

However, winning the Europa League is another way of sealing automatic qualification into the prestigious competition. The Gunners are the only English side to win their semi-final clash in European competition this week and chances of them advancing into the finals are high. Of course, they have Emery, who is well-known for his achievements in the Europa League, guiding them along the way.

All that can be said is for these few finals weeks of the season, things are going to get heated up and nobody would know the result until the final whistle of the season is blown. The Gunners have thrown in their best efforts in Emery's first season and done him proud regardless of their achievements.

Edited by Kaushik Das