Aubameyang treble sends Arsenal into Europa League final

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

VALENCIA, Spain (Reuters): A hat-trick from and an Alexandre Lacazette strike booked Arsenal’s place in the Europa League final with a 4-2 win at Valencia on Thursday to seal an emphatic 7-3 aggregate victory.

Unai Emery’s side will face Chelsea in Baku on May 29 after their London rivals beat Eintracht Frankfurt on penalties to ensure both European club competitions will feature all-English finals.

Arsenal’s first win on Spanish soil since beating Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in 2006 kept their hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League through Europe’s secondary competition alive.

“We reacted well to going behind and we knew we had to score a minimum of one goal tonight,” Lacazette told BT Sport.

“Auba (Aubameyang) was unbelievable tonight with an incredible hat-trick, so thanks to him.

“We have played badly in the Premier League during the last month and now we have to use this opportunity. We want to play in the Champions League next season and we want the trophy.”

Liverpool will play Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League final in Madrid on June 1.