ALEX CROOK PREVIEW: Champions League Final

Star Sports ambassador ALEX CROOK looks ahead to the Champions League final between Arsenal and PSG this weekend…

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Having lifted the Premier League trophy for the first time in 22 years last weekend, Arsenal’s players stand on the brink of football immortality, writes ALEX CROOK.

For me Arsenal are England’s third biggest club behind Manchester United and Liverpool, which makes the fact they have never been crowned champions of Europe a touch perplexing.

In fact you have to go all the way back to their 1994 European Cup Winners’ Cup triumph over Parma for the last time the Gunners tasted any continental success.

That can change in beautiful Budapest on Saturday evening when Mikel Arteta’s men take on reigning champions PSG in a Champions League final of contrasting styles.

While Luis Enrique’s great entertainers have thrilled their way to a second successive final, Arsenal’s route has been much more pragmatic.

The Gunners’ mean defence has conceded just six goals in 14 games en route to their first final since losing to Barcelona way back in 2006.

The big question is can that brilliant back-line come out on top against PSG’s goal-laden attack in what I would dub the ultimate beauty against the beast battle?

The only time PSG have failed to score in this season’s Champions League was in their 0-0 draw with Athletic Bilbao back in December, when they were still finding their feet in the League phase.

The French champions have scored in each of their last 27 matches in all competitions and if this becomes a shootout it is hard to see past the holders.

The worse the spectacle the more chance Arsenal have of completing a clean sweep for English sides in the three major European competitions following the success of Aston Villa and Crystal Palace.

Arteta’s side have already made history by becoming the first team to go 14 Champions League games unbeaten in a single campaign.

While their detractors will point to the fact Arsenal found themselves on the easier side of the draw in the knockout rounds, they did beat Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid in the League phase before also dumping out Atleti in the semis.

They come into the battle in Budapest having won their last five games while PSG ended their domestic season with a 2-1 defeat to local rivals Paris FC.

The wonderful Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was taken off with more than half an hour to play in that game to give him extra rest for this weekend.

The silky Georgian has banged in a few winners for this column over the course of the season and is my pick to win the Ballon d’Or.

Arsenal have issued at right back with Ben White out with a knee injury and Jurrien Timber having not played for ten weeks.

Timber could be available, but it is asking a lot after so long out to pit him against Kvaratskhelia, who is 7/1 with starsports.bet to score the first goal.

In each of the last seven finals the victors have kept clean sheets and I was impressed with how Luis Enrique’s side defended in the second leg of their semi-final at Bayern Munich.

My build-a-bet is PSG to win, both teams to score, no, and Kvaratskhelia to score at any time at 8.5/1 with starsports.bet.

The fact it will not suit Arsenal for this to be a chance fest makes under 2.5 goals in the 90 minutes at just shy of even-money with starsports.bet appealing.

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