Arsenal, Clubs, Östersunds FK, Story, UEFA Europa League


Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger will be without the injured Aaron Ramsey and ill Mesut Ozil for Thursday’s Europa League clash with Ostersund.
The pair’s absence is not costly given his side go into the second leg of the last-16 tie against the Swedish minnows at the Emirates Stadium boasting a 3-0 lead from the first leg.
But Ramsey, who trained with his team-mates on Wednesday morning as he bids to overcome a groin injury, is also a doubt for Sunday’s Carabao Cup final with Manchester City.
Wenger, who confirmed David Ospina would play in goal, said of Ramsey: “He’s not in the squad tomorrow.
“He had a good training session but he’s a bit short for tomorrow. We’ll see how his evolution goes now from today until Sunday.
“I don’t rule him out yet, it depends on how well he can improve with the intensity of training until Sunday.”
Ozil played the whole 90 minutes of the opening leg against Ostersund in sub-zero conditions, but will miss out this time around.
“Mesut was sick,” he said.
“Today was his first training session. He was in bed on Monday and Tuesday with sickness. I would certainly have played him but he was sick.
“He will have to work hard and he will not be involved tomorrow.”
Wenger said he should be fit for Sunday’s clash with City, though.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan will start on Thursday as he is ineligible for the cup final, having played for Manchester United earlier in the competition.
Graham Potter admits his Ostersund side need to pull off one of the biggest upsets in history if they are to progress.
Ostersund, a club formed a month after Wenger was appointed Arsenal boss in 1996, were in the fourth tier of Swedish football when Potter took over in 2011.
The former West Brom, Stoke and Southampton defender revolutionised the club and turned them into a top-flight side, culminating in their first piece of silverware when they lifted the Svenska Cupen last season.
That resulted in a scarcely-believable European campaign which took in victories over the likes of Galatasaray, PAOK and Hertha Berlin.
But the adventure looks set to end, though, with Potter conceding Ostersund require an upset of the ages in north London.
“You need one of the biggest football miracles to go through, so we have nothing to lose,” he said.
“The only thing you have is the regret of not giving it everything. It is a wonderful opportunity for the players and myself to have this experience.
“We will be proud of what we have done, no matter what the result is we will leave with our heads held high.
“Seven years ago I left here from Heathrow to go to a fourth division team in Sweden and tomorrow I will leave with 5,000 fans from Ostersund.”



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