Arsenal Vs Villarreal 0-0: Congratulations, Yellow Submarine To The First Final Of The European Competition

Villarreal players celebrate their qualification for Europa League final (Twitter @EuropaLeague)

JAKARTA - Villarreal passed Arsenal to the Europa League final after maintaining a 2-1 aggregate advantage in the semifinals.

At the Emirates Stadium, London, England, Thursday local time (Friday, western Indonesia time), Villarreal managed to draw Arsenal with a score of 0-0.

Thus, Unai Emery managed to deliver Villarreal to appear in their first European competition final in history, armed with a 2-1 victory in the first leg, as Antara reported according to the official UEFA website.

Arsenal, Emery's former club, ended up being only a stepping stone for the coach who has the most impressive track record in the Europa League, winning three consecutive seasons in 2014-2016 with Sevilla.

Villarreal will face Manchester United, who qualified with an 8-5 aggregate victory over AS Roma, in the final at the Energa Stadium, Gdansk, Poland, on May 26.

A historic moment.

We're in the final! 💛

Vila-real ↔ Gdansk

🔥 SEE YOU IN POLAND! 🔥#UEL#ItsOurTime pic.twitter.com/btd7Nkl6HH

— Villarreal CF English (@Eng_Villarreal) May 6, 2021

Despite having a temporary 2-1 aggregate advantage, Villarreal appeared aggressive from the start of the match and immediately forced goalkeeper Bernd Leno to make a save in the fourth minute to block Samul Chukwueze's shot.

In the 23rd minute, Villarreal has a chance for a good set-piece situation not far from the penalty box. Unfortunately, Dani Parejo, who can usually take advantage of such situations, instead sent a free-kick that was still soaring over the crossbar.

Three minutes later, Arsenal finally managed to create their first dangerous attack when captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang grabbed a wild ball by Alfonso Pedraza, but his volley only grazed the post.

In the 30th minute, Villarreal had a slight loss when Chukwueze was pulled off for Yeremi Pino, after nearly two minutes of lying down looking groaning in pain in the middle of the pitch.

In the 39th minute, Aubameyang fired again on target, but the ball was stopped by goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli.

Entering the second half Arsenal tried to appear more aggressive, unfortunately, Kieran Tierney's clever pass, which Nicolas Pepe tried to solve, still deviated from the target.

In the 53rd minute, it was Villarreal's turn to get a chance, unfortunately, Gerard Moreno's final shot was too weak and close to Leno's reach.

Arsenal continued to try to dismantle the Villarreal defense and in the 71st minute there was a free-kick sent by Bukayo Saka into the penalty box, unfortunately, Rob Holding's header still bounced over the crossbar.

In the 79th minute, the goalpost again thwarted Aubameyang's chance, who tried to bring Arsenal into the lead. This time he tried to put an end to the counter-attack situation with Hector Bellerin's cross but his header hit the post before being swept away by Raul Albiol.

That was Aubameyang's last action in this match because Mikel Arteta decided to send Alexandre Lacazette in order to find fresh energy on the front lines of the Gunners. At the same time, Willian also entered to replace Tierney.

Unfortunately, Arteta's strategy, which later sent striker Edward Nketiah to replace Bellerin, did not produce results and the score lasted 0-0 until the whistle sounded.

#UEL | 0-0 | ⏱️ 90'+5' | FULL-TIME!

WE'RE IN THE @EuropaLeague FINAL! 🎉🎊 pic.twitter.com/i6nbbWydRl

— Villarreal CF English (@Eng_Villarreal) May 6, 2021

While Villarreal reached the final of their first European competition in history, Arsenal is now in danger of not playing in Europe for the first time in 25 years, as their position in the Premier League standings is also less convincing.