'It's important' - Garnacho highlights Man United lesson ahead of Chelsea's tie vs Arsenal
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Alejandro Garnacho insists Arsenal are not unbeatable at home, as proved by Manchester United recently, ahead of Chelsea's Carabao Cup semi-final second-leg clash on Tuesday night.
Arsenal hold a one-goal lead heading into the derby after the 3-2 first-leg win at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea looked close to being out of the tie completely after being 2-0 down early in the second half, before Garnacho's super-sub display kept the game close with his brace.
Garnacho admitted that while it remains a tough challenge, it is not an impossible task, as he pointed out how his former club, Manchester United, beat Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium nine days ago.
"Everyone knows how hard it is to play there," the Argentina international told Chelsea's matchday programme about the upcoming visit to the Emirates.
"When we lost the first game, I saw a lot of people saying, 'Yeah, but no one won yet at the Emirates.'
"But now I think the view is a little bit different. If, for example, Manchester United can beat them there, we can do it perfectly.
"There is just one goal difference, so if we score one, we are level again with them.
"It’s the closest to a trophy that we are now, and every trophy counts here, so we have to go there with the right mentality, try to win the game.
"If you do that, you are in the final. It’s important."
Aside from the 3-2 defeat to Manchester United in late January, Arsenal have had a few shaky performances at home since January.
They narrowly beat Kazakh side FC Kairat last week and were held to a goalless draw by Liverpool last month.
Additionally, Arsenal will be without their two key players, Bukayo Saka and Mikel Merino, due to injuries.
That said, Chelsea are set to be without attackers Estevao and Jamie Gittens for this match, which means Garnacho will likely be involved in the second leg, either as a starter or an impact substitute.
Gerry Crisandy is a freelance writer who has covered Chelsea for many years. His work has been published on The Chelsea Chronicle and Pride of London. He grew up idolising Michael Ballack and is a firm believer in expected goals.