The final match of the UEFA Europa League, which was held at the Baku Olympic Stadium yesterday evening between the English football clubs Chelsea and Arsenal, ended with victory for the "blue" ones with a score of 4:1.
Olivier Giroud opened the scoring for Chelsea in the 49th minute with a stooping header. On 60 minutes Pedro swept home Eden Hazard's cross to make it 2-0. Eden Hazard scored another two in what could be his final goals in a Chelsea shirt to complete the triumph, despite Alex Iwobi's consolation.
Due to political gambling of Arsenal's midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan, which were more important to him than defending his club's honor, and his refusal to make a trip to Baku, despite every assurance concerning his safety, Azerbaijani football fans' sympathies were were Chelsea.
A creative producer and the host of Vesti FM, Gia Saralidze, speaking with a correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that the final score was a surprise to many. "After all, five goals is an extremely rare thing for the finals, especially in the game between teams that know each other's play well. On the other hand, all specialists predicted Chelsea to win," he said.
At the same time, the expert expressed the opinion that after Arsene Wenger left Arsenal as manager in the spring of 2018, the team still cannot find its game.
In addition, he drew attention to the fact that Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is gradually losing interest in the football club. There were some proposals, but they didn't agreed on the price. In this sense, the European League raises the club's value," the Vesti FM host stressed.
"If we talk about the game, of course, the first half disappointed everyone. It was very boring, very cautious game, without any special moments. But then there was such a scoring extravaganza in the second half. Probably, football fans were pleased. Although, speaking of the quality of play, I think it was law for such good and famous clubs," he explained.
Speaking about whether hosting the Europa League final will help Baku in organizing the EURO 2020 final tournament matches, Gia Saralidze said that the Azerbaijani capital repeatedly held the largest and most complex in terms of organization sports competitions. "I mean the First European Games, Rhythmic Gymnastics World Cups and World Championships, Formula 1, not to mention international football matches. Therefore, in terms of security, in terms of organization, I don’t see any problems for Azerbaijan and for Baku in particular in hosting such competitions," the expert explained.
At the same time, he noted that those minor complaints voiced by fans, of course, will be taken into account in the future. "There were complaints from the fans that the pitch is very far from the stands at the stadium. But speaking of Baku's ability to hold such competitions, Baku has hosted and, I hope, will continue to host competitions of the highest rank," Gia Saralidze concluded.
