Rio Ferdinand makes daring Arsenal vs PSG prediction for Champions League final | Football

Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand says he expects Arsenal to ’cause absolute carnage’ from set-pieces against Paris Saint-Germain to win this 12 months’s Champions League.

Bukayo Saka scored the decisive goal against Atletico Madrid in last week’s semi-final second leg to send the Gunners through to the club’s second-ever Champions League final in front of a rapturous Emirates crowd.

The north London outfit will likely be seeking to banish the memories of their only previous appearance twenty years ago, when Barcelona got here from behind to beat Arsene Wenger’s men to get their hands on the trophy.

Mikel Arteta’s side undoubtedly find themselves on the cusp of greatness this season, with the Premier League title also of their hands with two matches remaining of the top-flight campaign.

Nevertheless, speaking after Sunday’s dramatic victory over West Ham, Arteta stressed that he and his squad were taking nothing with no consideration either domestically or in Europe, where a frightening clash with the holders PSG awaits.

The Ligue 1 giants overcame Bayern Munich of their semi-final, winning 6-5 on aggregate, establishing themselves as essentially the most potent attacking force in the method – having scored 44 goals across the competition, in comparison with Arsenal’s 29.

But in accordance with Ferdinand, Luis Enrique’s side look ‘uncomfortable’ when defending set-pieces at the opposite end of the pitch, which is where they might come unstuck once they lock horns with Arsenal at Budapest’s Puskas Arena.

‘I said Arsenal would win the league this 12 months and I believe Arsenal will win the league,’ the previous Manchester and England defender said on his Rio Ferdinand Presents YouTube channel.

‘And I now think that Arsenal are going to win the Champions League, guys.

‘You realize why? Let me explain myself. PSG are the higher team, 100 per cent. Straight away, they’ve got the team, they’re the higher footballing team, higher sort of play, they’re the most effective team on the planet to observe and their manager is the most effective right away at this point.

‘But they give the impression of being uncomfortable at set-pieces. Even Bayern Munich, who aren’t great at set-pieces, they made them look uncomfortable and I’ve seen it repeatedly this season.’

Ferdinand, who won the Champions League with United in 2008, added: ‘Arsenal play a number of football and a number of it’s driven to set-pieces. And I believe Arsenal fans would agree with that.

‘They’re the most effective team within the Premier League at set-pieces and in the event that they get set-pieces and free-kicks and corners, they will cause absolute carnage against that small PSG team.

‘Physically, at set-pieces, PSG can’t compete with Arsenal and if Arsenal get any form of possession and any form of free-kicks across the box, and even the halfway line, they’re going to cause damage.’

On the suggestion that Champions League referees have been hotter than Premier League officials on wrestling and holding contained in the box, Ferdinand replied: ‘Yeah, but Bayern didn’t should be aggressive.

‘You simply should make good runs and so they’ve got athletic, big players, Arsenal, who know the way to get on the tip of things.

‘I just think they’re going to cause problems and I believe within the stadium you’ll feel an air and an energy of uncertainty from PSG.

‘PSG are absolutely certain and assured in every facet of their game bar set-pieces. And that’s where Arsenal are strong.

‘It leads me to consider that there’s hope for Arsenal. Like I said, I’ll reiterate, as a football team and the way in which they play, there’s not a comparison for me right away, at this moment in time.

‘But there’s more to football than simply sort of play and set-pieces should be considered hugely and I believe Arsenal are an enormous threat to this PSG team.’

Within the aftermath of Sunday’s thriller on the London Stadium, Ian Wright suggested Arteta’s Arsenal would go down as the best team within the club’s history should they win the double this season.

‘In fact, you could have to agree,’ Ferdinand said when asked about Wright’s remarks.

‘In the event that they win the Premier League and the Champions League, no Arsenal’s team has ever done that… in the identical season as well.

‘Manchester United have done it twice, Manchester City have done it, Liverpool did in within the Seventies. My team did it, we won the Premier League and Champions League.

‘A number of teams win one or the opposite but yeah, they’ll should go down as the most effective Arsenal team, 100 per cent, I don’t think that’s even debatable.’

In terms of Arsenal’s Champions League’s hopes, Ferdinand’s long-time team-mate Gary Neville will not be quite so confident.

The ex-United and England right-back conceded that Arteta’s squad would enter a ‘different stratosphere’ in the event that they did come out on top in Hungary on May 30.

‘The Arsenal players ought to be in dreamland now, they ought to be unstoppable, nothing should find a way to stop them now,’ Neville said on his Sky Sports podcast.

‘Within the Champions League final they should take into consideration their defensive ability and strength and think how they’ll over 90 minutes beat a team who are higher than them.

‘Because PSG are higher than them, you can’t get away from that. PSG are a greater team than Arsenal right now and they’ve demonstrated that during the last two seasons.

‘For Mikel Arteta it’s a probability to go to a different level because winning the Champions League could be incredible.

Winning the Premier League for the primary time in 22 years is big but getting the Champions League as well could be incredible.

‘It looks like the proper moment for Arsenal to win the Premier League, it doesn’t quite feel like the proper moment for them to win the Champions League.

‘It looks like the moment PSG for win it back-to-back and for Luis Enrique to place himself up there with the God-like managers who’ve done this.

‘It feels more like that than Arsenal winning the double nevertheless it doesn’t really matter, it could still be a sensational season for Arsenal.

‘And in the event that they do win the double, that puts them into a unique stratosphere.’

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