Luis Enrique has heaped praise on Arsenal ahead of the Champions League final, stating that the “Gunners” are the best team in the world without the ball and predicting a fascinating clash between them and Paris Saint-Germain.
PSG and Arsenal will face each other in Budapest on May 30, with the French champions aiming to become the first team other than Real Madrid to successfully defend the Champions League trophy.
PSG eliminated Arsenal in last season’s semifinal, so Luis Enrique knows very well what it takes to defeat Mikel Arteta’s side. However, he still expects an extremely difficult challenge.
“We have experience playing against Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal and we know very well how strong they are with the ball,” Luis Enrique said on Wednesday.
“Without the ball, they are the best team in the world, without any doubt. With the ball, they are capable of scoring many goals, and it is completely natural to see them in the final.”
“It will be a very difficult final with two teams approaching the game in two very different ways. But I believe we are going to witness a great final,” concluded the PSG coach.
PSG’s attacking style this season has also been reflected in the numbers, as they have scored 44 goals in the Champions League — the second-highest tally ever recorded in a single edition of the competition, behind Barcelona, who scored 45 goals during the 1999/00 season.
Meanwhile, Arsenal’s journey to their first European final since the 2005/06 season has been built on an extremely solid defense. In 14 matches in this season’s competition, Arsenal have conceded only six goals while facing 11.74 expected goals against (xGA) and 39 shots on target.
