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Topics: Premier League, Juventus, Arsenal, Mikel Arteta, Champions League
Ryan Smart
Topics: Premier League, Juventus, Arsenal, Mikel Arteta, Champions League
Arsenal could be handed a dream Champions League group next season following confirmation of Juventus' 10-point deduction in Serie A.
Juve initially received a 15-point deduction in January after being found guilty of capital gains violations.
The club denied wrongdoing and took the decision to the Italian Olympic Committee, who referred the case to the Italian Football Federation's appeals court.
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Ahead of that appeal taking place, Juve's points deduction was suspended, and they entered Monday's Serie A clash at Empoli in second place in the table.
A win would have secured a place in next season's Champions League. But hours before the fixture, a fresh 10-point deduction was announced by the Federal Court of Appeal.
And after a shocking 4-1 defeat at Empoli, Massimiliano Allegri's side are five points behind AC Milan, who occupy the final Champions League qualification place, with just two games to play.
Juve can appeal the decision made by the FCA - but for now, it appears likely that Juve will not be playing in Europe's top club competition next season.
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And that could give Arsenal a huge boost.
The Gunners will play Champions League football next term for the first time since 2017 after finishing in second place in the Premier League.
But their lack of success in European football in recent years has affected their UEFA coefficient. Arsenal sit 23rd on the current five-year list, behind the likes of Tottenham, Porto and RB Leipzig.
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UEFA splits the 32 teams that qualify for the Champions League into four pots, with the pot a team is in dependent on their coefficient.
If all 22 teams ahead of Arsenal were to qualify, they would be placed in pot three.
However, Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham - all ahead of Arsenal in the coefficient rankings - will not be playing in the Champions League next season. Villarreal, who are in 17th, look unlikely to finish in La Liga's top four.
Meanwhile, Roma and Sevilla are both ahead of Arsenal, but only one can reach the Champions League via winning the Europa League final. Roma's hopes of qualifying via Serie A finishing position look slim.
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The other team in play are Dutch giants Ajax. Johnny Heitinga's side must win their final game of the season and hope PSV lose at AZ Alkmaar to reach the Champions League qualification stage.
If results go Arsenal's way, they could be one of the final teams to secure their place in pot two, with a group of Feyenoord, Red Star Belgrade and Lens - based on lowest coefficients - potentially awaiting them.
Reaching pot two would also eliminate the possibility of drawing Bayern Munich, Manchester United, Inter Milan or Real Madrid - a major boost for Mikel Arteta's side.