One more chance for a second consolation goes begging for Arsenal, as both Lacazette and Aubameyang make a mess of what should have been a simple finish into an empty net.
89'
D. Zappacosta enters the game and replaces E. Hazard.
That’s it for Hazard. His sensational performance comes to a close, and he receives an ovation from the travelling Chelsea support as he makes way for Zappacosta. If that is indeed his goodbye, then he has left on a wonderful note.
87'
Somewhat remarkably, doubt still remains as to whether Sarri – who is heading for the first trophy of his managerial career – will even be at Stamford Bridge next season, with Chelsea reportedly open to moving the Italian on, despite the Blues having reached two finals, qualifying for the Champions League via the Premier League and, of course, winning this competition, barring an incredible turnaround.
82'
SAVE! Brilliant by Kepa, who rushes off his line to deny Laazette. It may not have counted anyway, with the linesman eventually raising his flag, sparring Aubameyang’s blushes, as he had failed to convert the rebound.
77'
J. Willock enters the game and replaces M. Özil.
A disappointing performance from Ozil comes to an end, and you have to wonder if there is a place for him at Arsenal moving forward under Emery. The German has been extremely poor, and youngster Willock will now get just over 10 minutes to impress.
76'
R. Barkley enters the game and replaces M. Kovačić.
A second Chelsea change sees Barkley come on. He has replaced Kovacic, who may well have played his final Chelsea game, given that he is only on loan from Madrid.
72'
E. Hazard has scored a goal for Chelsea! Assist by O. Giroud.
HAZARD MAKES IT 4-1! That didn’t last long! Giroud turns provider this time, lifting a brilliant pass into space in the area, with Hazard on hand to tuck home his 21st goal of the season. If he is leaving, he is certainly going out in style!
Giroud has been superb in this second half, and now has added a wonderfully worked assist to his earlier goal.
71'
Willian enters the game and replaces Pedro.
We have seen some remarkable comebacks involving Premier League clubs in European competition this term. Could we be set for another amazing turnaround? The odds are still stacked against Arsenal, but with 20 minutes remaining, that stunning goal has at least given them hope.
A first Chelsea change sees Willian replace Pedro.
69'
A. Iwobi has scored a goal for Arsenal!
WHAT A GOAL! IWOBI MAKES IT 3-1! Well, out of nothing, could Arsenal be back in this? Iwobi makes an immediate impact, slamming in a brilliant half-volley from the edge of the area after Chelsea failed to clear from a free-kick. Kepa had no chance!
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68'
A. Christensen gets yellow.
Christensen becomes the second Chelsea player to go into the book, having scythed down Iwobi, who has injected a bit of pace and urgency into Arsenal's attack.
67'
A. Iwobi enters the game and replaces L. Torreira.
Torreira, too, is off, and looks to be in tears as he sits down on the bench. Iwobi is on in place of the Uruguayan.
Hazard has scored 20 goals in all competitions this season for Chelsea, his best return for the club, surpassing his previous best of 19 in 2014-15
66'
M. Guendouzi enters the game and replaces Nacho Monreal.
Emery is making two changes. The first sees Monreal make way for Guendouzi, which would suggest a change in shape.
65'
Penalty goal scored by E. Hazard for Chelsea!
HAZARD MAKES NO MISTAKE It’s 3-0 now, and the Europa League trophy is heading back to Stamford Bridge! Hazard stayed as cool as ever, sending Cech the wrong way and slotting home down the middle.
60'
Pedro has scored a goal for Chelsea! Assist by E. Hazard.
Most other players would probably have blasted a low cross into the area if they had been in the position that Hazard found himself in there, or driven to the byline. But the Belgian knew that Pedro had the space, and he delivered a perfectly weighted pass into his team-mate. That could well be his final assist for Chelsea, if reports of an imminent transfer away are to be believed. Unless, of course, there is more to come from Sarri's side...
GOAL! PEDRO MAKES IT 2-0! Could that just be game over for Arsenal!? Maitland-Niles’ poor pass is pounced on by the Blues, with Kovacic spinning the ball in behind to Hazard, who opens up his body before sending a perfect pass into Pedro, and he makes no mistake with a pinpoint first-time finish.
59'
For the first time since the restart, Maitland-Niles gets to the byline. His cross is cleared as far as Torreira, whose shot is blocked by Kante. Aubameyang tries to meet the loose ball with an acrobatic attempt, but Christensen got there first, winning a foul for dangerous play.
58'
Emery may have to make a change sooner rather than later, because Arsenal do not seem to be able to get their three attackers involved anywhere near enough. Ozil has just tried to drill a difficult pass into Lacazette’s feet, but the striker could not keep the ball under control.
56'
Pedro gets yellow.
Pedro gets a booking, after complaining that the referee had missed a series of fouls from Arsenal's players.
54'
An awkward slip off the pitch sees Giroud crumble, clutching his groin. The play does not stop, though, as the player was out of play, and Giroud recovers quickly enough to get back to his feet and return Chelsea to their full compliment of players.
53'
That goal has really given Chelsea extra impetus, and they are flooding forward now, with Arsenal unable to get out of their half at the moment.
49'
O. Giroud has scored a goal for Chelsea! Assist by Emerson.
GOAL!! GIROUD MAKES IT 1-0 TO CHELSEA! Well, the Frenchman had gone close against his former club in the first half, but this time there is nothing Cech can do to deny him. Giroud stole a march on Koscielny, diving low to meet Emerson’s cross and direct a brilliant header into the bottom-right corner. His celebration is a subdued one, but that is no doubt his biggest goal of the season so far!
Sarri’s decision to go with Emerson over Alonso has paid off, with the former Roma man having looked sharp going forward today, and that was a superb cross into Giroud.
48'
Giroud wants a free-kick, claiming he was blocked off by Monreal. Arsenal get away with it, though, and Chelsea have to settle for a corner, which is poorly delivered by Hazard.
46'
We're back underway for the second half!
45'
HALF-TIME: CHELSEA 0-0 ARSENAL.
38'
One player who has not been involved enough yet for Arsenal is Ozil, who has had just 16 touches so far, with all of them outside of Chelsea’s defensive third, which is where he can really do damage, especially given the form of both Lacazette and Aubameyang.
32'
There is far too much space in front of Azpilicueta, with Pedro not doing enough to track Kolasinac, who is enjoying the freedom of Arsenal’s left flank at the moment. The ex-Schalke man tries to hammer a strike at goal, but Chelsea’s captain is well placed to divert it wide.
30'
Hazard has really been on the fringes of things so far, and in his attempt to get involved, has to drift wide before looking to cut back inside. He tries to exchange passes with Kovacic, but the Croatia midfielder puts far too much on his return ball, and it trickles out of play.
25'
Arsenal’s system is preventing Chelsea from playing out from the back, though some great work from Pedro – who dropped deep to help out his midfield – sees the Blues finally forge a way through the press. Kante leads the charge down the right before lopping in a cross to his compatriot Giroud, but, under pressure from Sokratis, the striker can’t take the ball under control.
23'
Azpilicueta and Kepa collide heavily in Chelsea’s box, after the defender had to track Lacazette’s run. Both players are back to their feet quickly enough, though, and will not have to receive treatment.
20'
So far, it is Arsenal who have had the upper hand, with Chelsea struggling to get their front three – particularly Hazard – involved. Again, Maitland-Niles gets through down the right, and this time it is Jorginho who has to get across to cut out the cross.
17'
Arsenal’s wing-backs are getting forward well, and this time it is Kolasinac who finds space in a dangerous area. His low cut-back looked set to be heading for Lacazette, but Azpilicueta made a crucial intervention.
15'
Hazard delivers a decent cross, but no Chelsea players can get there. It would not have counted anyway, though, as David Luiz had fouled Torreira.
14'
Emerson gets forward down the left, and drives a smart ball inside to Giroud, who is playing against his former club today. The France forward takes a clever first touch, drawing a clumsy tackle from Sokratis, and now Chelsea have a free-kick around 25 yards out.
10'
Now it’s Hazard’s turn to test Arsenal’s defence, as he weaves his way through a crowd of players before hitting the deck, claiming a foul. Referee Gianluca Rocchi dismisses his appeals, though.
6'
If this is to be Hazard’s final Chelsea game, he will be determined to cap it off with silverware, that’s for sure. So far, Arsenal’s tactics seem to be clear when the Belgian has the ball – crowd him out, restrict the space and force him wide. How long that keeps him at bay, though, remains to be seen.
3'
It has been a controlled start by Chelsea, as Sarri’s side look to get on the ball and dictate the tempo as they do in every game. Arsenal stay tight in their shape, though, and after a sustained spell of possession from the Blues, Maitland-Niles nips in and wins the ball on the right, though the Gunners can’t make anything of the counter-attack.
2'
Of course, this could well be a final appearance in a Chelsea shirt for Eden Hazard, who has been heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid. Likewise, Sarri’s stint at the Blues could well be coming to an end, with talk that the head coach is likely to head back to Italy, with Juventus reportedly interested. Indeed, Arsenal goalkeeper Cech has been linked with a return to Chelsea in a technical role, once he hangs up his boots after this game.
1'
KICK-OFF! We are underway in the Europa League final!
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the Europa League final between Chelsea and Arsenal in Baku!
Baku is far from the London homes of both of these sides. Both clubs have raised concerns over the location of this final, with fans finding it extremely difficult to travel to Azerbaijan directly. That being said, it still promises to be an enthralling game!
UEFA's decision to host the final in Baku has been particularly frustrating for Arsenal as, due to ongoing political tensions between Azerbaijan and neighbouring Armenia, the Gunners are without Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who has not travelled due to concerns over his safety.
Like its Champions League equivalent, today's final is an all Premier League encounter. Chelsea finished third, and so are guaranteed a place in the Champions League next season even should they lose. Arsenal - managed by three-time Europa League winner Unai Emery - came fifth in England's top tier, so this is their last chance of securing a spot in Europe's elite club competition for 2019-20.
CHELSEA (4-3-3): Kepa Arrizabalaga; Cesar Azpilicueta, Andreas Christensen, David Luiz, Emerson; N’Golo Kante, Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic; Pedro, Olivier Giroud, Eden Hazard.
CHELSEA SUBS: Willy Caballero, Marcos Alonso, Gary Cahill, Davide Zappacosta, Gonzalo Higuain, Jamie Cumming, George McEachran, Ethan Ampadu, Willian, Ross Barkley.
ARSENAL SUBS: Carl Jenkinson, Eddie Nketiah, Bernd Leno, Alex Iwobi, Mohamed Elneny, Matteo Guendouzi, Stephan Lichtsteiner, Dejan Iliev, Shkodran Mustafi, Bukayo Saka, Danny Welbeck, Joe Willock.
The teams are out onto the pitch, and we are almost ready to go in Baku!
ARSENAL (3-4-1-2): Petr Cech; Sokratis Papastathopoulos, Laurent Koscielny, Nacho Monreal; Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Lucas Torreira, Granit Xhaka, Sead Kolasinac; Mesut Ozil; Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette.
There is certainly plenty of room for improvement from both sides after the interval. Sarri could perhaps urge his side to have a bit more conviction in attack, while Emery will need to find a way to get Ozil, Aubameyang and Lacazette more involved in the final third.
Chelsea have a Champions League campaign to look forward to next term, though whether Sarri will be on hand to guide them through it remains to be seen. Arsenal, meanwhile, will be in the Europa League once again.
Both sides could require something of a rebuild over the off-season. While Chelsea must deal with the ramifications of their transfer ban – unless they can get it lifted – and the potential departure of Hazard, Arsenal have to replace Cech, along with Aaron Ramsey, who was unable to take part today due to injury, and is heading to Juventus for next season. Based on his display, Ozil is not the answer, and neither Lacazette or Aubemayang stepped up to be counted in Baku either.
That’s all we have time for. The Europa League has been won by Chelsea, repeating their success of 2013. One huge game remains in the European calendar for 2018-19, and that comes in Madrid on Saturday, as Tottenham take on Liverpool in what promises to be an enthralling Champions League final.
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