Safety first for no-go Mkhitaryan
18:30: Arsenal midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan will play no part in the final.
The Armenia international will not be travelling due to the on-going dispute between his country and Azerbaijan.
Despite assurances from Azerbaijan against any threat of violence, the 30-year-old was not convinced about his safety on the pitch and some Gunners fans have debated on social media whether to boycott the final in protest.
He has featured in 11 of Arsenal’s 14 Europa League ties this season, but missed their group game against Qarabag in Baku in October for the same reason.
Problems getting there and Baku again
18:25: Only one place to start, folks.
UEFA has been criticised for choosing Baku to host a major European final and apologised for the travel chaos experienced by both clubs’ fans, who face a round trip of 5,000 miles.
Arsenal and Chelsea have been allocated only 6,000 tickets each, which represents 17 per cent of the 68,000-capacity Olympic Stadium, due to restrictions over the number of people Baku’s airport can handle.
Despite concerns the stadium might only be two-thirds full, UEFA has defended its decision, saying it would be “utterly unfair to exclude certain venues just based on their decentralised geographical position”.
Evening…
18:20: Two Premier League rivals separated by just six miles in London travel over 2,500 miles to compete in an all-English Europa League final.
Ladies and gentlemen – welcome, to the Great British Baku Off.
Imagine having all day to think about my opening line in this blog and opting for that…
Moving swiftly on, Arsenal and Chelsea meet in Azerbaijan’s capital city to determine who will lift the Europa League trophy and book their spot in next year’s Champions League group stages.
It is the first time two English sides will meet in the tournament’s showpiece since Tottenham beat Wolves over two legs in 1972.
So when I say this is a rare occasion – I really do mean it’s rare. Not arguing with your family at Christmas rare.
Let’s get this thing going! Standby for the team news and line-ups.
CHELSEA vs ARSENAL – TEAM NEWS
N’Golo Kante only has a 50 per cent chance of being fit for Chelsea’s Europa League final clash with Arsenal in Baku.
Chelsea will give France’s World Cup-winning midfielder as long as possible to prove his fitness, with boss Maurizio Sarri admitting his absence would be a “problem”.
Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic and Ross Barkley will start in midfield should Kante fail to recover in time.
Arsenal manager Unai Emery has yet to decide whether retiring Petr Cech will make a farewell appearance against former club Chelsea.
The Czech goalkeeper has started every knockout match en route to the final in Baku, where Henrikh Mkhitaryan decided against travelling due to his country Armenia’s dispute with Azerbaijan.
Aaron Ramsey (hamstring), Hector Bellerin and Rob Holding (both knee) are out, but Danny Welbeck travelled with the squad after sustaining a broken ankle in November.