Big Midweek: Arsenal vs PSG, Man Utd in Bilbao, Postecoglou, Ballon d’Or favourite Raphinha

Another Big Midweek brings another huge Champions League test for Arsenal, a potential last dance for Ange Postecoglou, and a desperate chance for Manchester United to salvage a truly miserable season.

Game to watch: Arsenal vs Paris Saint-Germain
Arsenal had a nice rest over the weekend while PSG recorded their first Ligue 1 defeat of the season on Friday at home to Nice. Mikel Arteta will be hoping to take advantage of his weekend off and Luis Enrique’s side feeling sorry for themselves, while knowing they have the beating of the French giants after brushing them aside in the Champions League back in October.

The Parisiens were without Ousmane Dembele and January signing Khvicha Kvaratskhelia for their 2-0 league phase defeat so there will be no complacency on Arsenal’s part, but there should be a psychological advantage and sometimes the headspace matters more than ability and form.

This Gunners side is just 180 minutes from a Champions League final, and the first leg is going to be absolutely crucial. It was the same against Real Madrid in the quarter-finals, when Arsenal’s 3-0 win at the Emirates ensured Los Blancos were climbing a mountain far too steep to scale. They got the job done with a 2-1 win at the Bernabeu, and they’ll need something similar to handle PSG in their own backyard.

PSG will be just as, if not more, dangerous than Madrid at home and there will be a storm to weather for much of the second leg, so getting to the final in Munich relies on Arteta and his players getting it right in London.

This is a different PSG to the one that has consistently choked in Europe but they did show some of their old tendencies in their quarter-final second-leg defeat at Aston Villa, which will give Arsenal even more hope that they can be easily rattled and overrun all over the pitch.

As against Villa, PSG’s full-backs will have a big role to play and Arsenal wingers Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli need to be on their game defensively just as much as they do in the final third. Enrique’s front three of Dembele, Kvaratskhelia and whomever starts out of Desire Doue and Bradley Barcola can cause any defence problems but having tamed Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo, confidence will be oozing out of the Arsenal back four.

Much of PSG’s European improvement is thanks to their industrious and technically gifted midfield three of Joao Neves, Fabian Ruiz and Vitinha, and their battle with the Gunners midfield will be just as fascinating. It is bloody difficult to call but we feel comfortable predicting a very good game.

READ MORE: PSG ‘appeal’ to UEFA as ‘unfair’ Arsenal put Champions League semi-final in turmoil

Player to watch: Raphinha
Former Leeds United winger Raphinha strengthened his position as Ballon d’Or favourite by helping Barcelona win the Copa del Rey final against Real Madrid on Saturday. His attention now turns to a Champions League semi-final first leg against wily opponents Inter, who have only conceded five goals in this season’s competition and have eight clean sheets from 12 games.

The Italian champions will do extremely well to shut out this rampant Barcelona side, boasting a devastating front three of Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski and Lamine Yamal. Lewandowski is injured for Wednesday’s home leg but there is hope he will return next week in Milan.

Barcelona are enjoying a potentially historic season, having already secured the Spanish Cup and Super Cup. They are also top of La Liga with five games left, smashing in 89 goals, and are the bookies’ favourites to win the Champions League. It’s an incredible turn of events under Hansi Flick, who has emphatically rebuilt his reputation after a disastrous spell managing Germany.

Flick’s attack-minded philosophy has made Barcelona a joy to watch and is bringing the best out of Raphinha. Once the guy Barca might have flogged to balance the books, the Brazilian has casually decided to become the best player on the bloody planet. His form since the start of 2024 has been frightening. With 53 goal involvements in 50 appearances this season, we can’t overstate his influence. There’s no doubt Barca would be good without him – but nowhere near this good; what a turnaround.

If there’s one player capable of deciding this tie on his own, it’s Raphinha. But Flick’s side won’t come up against a better defensive outfit than this Inter side, whose style is a throwback to classic Serie A – shutting out the opposition and punishing them at the other end. Lautaro Martinez will be key for Inter in attack but the big question is how Raphinha will adapt against such a disciplined and dangerous opponent.

Team to watch: Manchester United
It was another limp performance from Manchester United in the Premier League this weekend but as always, the focus was obviously on their Europa League match four days later.

While United were largely rubbish against 10-man Bournemouth on Sunday, there were a few crumbs of positivity to gobble down. They avoided losing to a team that’s turned up at Old Trafford and slapped them 3-0 two years running, Rasmus Hojlund managed to score a goal, and they somehow racked up 25 shots to Bournemouth’s eight. Hojlund’s last-gasp equaliser at the Vitality should give him a much-needed confidence boost but a trip to Bilbao is a daunting one for him and his teammates.

Athletic Club should be in next season’s Champions League, whether that be via a top-five finish in La Liga or winning the Europa League, while United’s only hope of playing in Europe’s premier competition and pocketing a crucial £100million rests on overcoming Bilbao and then Tottenham Hotspur or Bodo/Glimt in the final in…Bilbao.

On paper, United have the better squad. In reality, Bilbao are a very, very good team, especially at the Estadio San Mames. They’ve only lost league games this season to Atletico Madrid (twice), Barcelona, Girona, and Real Madrid. Across all competitions, they’ve only been beaten by two or more goals twice.

United have at least shown flashes of European competence under Ruben Amorim, and they’ll need their strongest performance yet if they want to bring anything meaningful back to Old Trafford for the second leg. This feels like a step too far for a wildly underperforming team but we are not going to write them off completely, especially after that ridiculous win over Lyon.

Manager to watch: Ange Postecoglou
Another chastening Premier League defeat for Tottenham Hotspur leaves Ange Postecoglou’s future looking all the more inevitable, with recent reports claiming he will leave the club even if they win the Europa League.

It’s not like it’s been plain sailing in Europe either, but at least Spurs have found some brief Thursday night therapy. They’ve saved most of their best stuff for under the lights, with the quarter-final win over a solid Eintracht Frankfurt side a rare glimpse of a team that still vaguely resembles a competent football club. It’s a bit embarrassing that Spurs players have apparently decided to pick and choose when they can be bothered to perform, but this is where we are. At this point, they’re not playing for their manager; they’re playing for European clout.

Premier League tools were officially downed a long time ago and overcoming Bodo/Glimt took precedence over avoiding a humping at Liverpool on Sunday, with Postecoglou resting his two best central defenders and giving young Archie Gray some minutes in midfield for once.

He might no longer be managing to save a job that appears beyond saving but Postecoglou is fighting to keep his reputation intact, though it goes without saying that Spurs’ Premier League results, defensive frailties and a dire injury record under the Australian have damaged it quite a bit already.

Winning a major European trophy will keep him in mind for big jobs after leaving Spurs and Postecoglou will always have the excuse of Spurs being a shambles no matter who is in charge. Without the Europa League, it is hard to envision another top Premier League club going in for him or even someone like Leeds United, Wolves or West Ham, who would not thrive playing chaotic and open Angeball.

Bodo/Glimt can not and will not be underestimated by Postecoglou and his players – they are European semi-finalists for a reason and have knocked out Europa Conference League holders Olympiacos and Italian giants Lazio to get this far. The point is that no semi-finalist should be complacent and if Spurs show any sign of that, they will get punished.

Still, Spurs are overwhelming favourites. They’ll know Bodo/Glimt have lost one leg in every knockout round so far and that the Norwegians have twice needed extra time to get through. Thursday night at home is the chance to put this tie to bed – because nobody in their right mind wants to be chasing a result on a freezing cold Norwegian plastic pitch, which is half the reason Bodo/Glimt are even here in the first place.