Sporting Lisbon boast two of Europe’s hottest talents in Goncalo Inacio and Manuel Ugarte

• Arsenal face some familiar faces when they play Lisbon on Thursday
• But the Gunners have to be wary of youngsters Goncalo Inacio and Manuel Ugarte
• Both players have been watched by Europe’s elite and can make a real statement

Arsenal’s journey to Sporting Lisbon is a tale of reunions, former rivals and old faces. But the Gunners could pay the price should they read too much into this distracting narrative.

Arsenal childhood star Hector Bellerin will enjoy an emotional hug with some of his old team-mates at the Estadio Jose Alvalade as he tries to outdo his former employer and ex-Tottenham man Marcus Edwards – once compared to Lionel Messi 0 – Will be a threat for sure and wants to continue his climb against the Premier League leaders.

There will even be a former Liverpool alumnus in Sebastian Coates in the arena. But this Europa League clash isn’t about the old: it’s very much about the new.

If you were an Arsenal player who sat at Mikel Arteta’s pre-match briefing for this match, you can be almost certain that he alerted his side to the presence of two talented youngsters – centre-back Goncalo Inacio and midfielder Manuel Urgarte .

These are two of Europe’s most wanted stars and they are both enjoying excellent seasons for Sporting.

Defender Inacio has started all but three of the club’s league games this season and has been a rock in the back line, whilst also being a creative outlet as a ball-playing centre-back with an excellent passing range.

Midfielder Ugarte – a Uruguay international – has been linked with the likes of Barcelona and Tottenham and it’s not hard to see why. He is an aggressive player who resolutely and assertively recovers the ball and makes positive runs forward when in possession.

The duo, both 21, will play a key role in Sporting’s hopes of angering the Premier League side but it’s the battle in midfield that will be most crucial in setting the pace for this clash to unfold. So let’s start by assessing Ugarte and what impact he could have.

Ugarte, who mainly plays in the middle of a four-man midfield set up by Ruben Amorim’s 3-4-3 system, is tasked with disrupting the supply of Arsenal’s creative outlets like Martin Odegaard and upsetting their rhythm.

Thomas Partey has been raved about for his performances this season in helping to propel Arsenal into title contenders, but defensively Ugarte shines brighter than the Ghana international in terms of stats.

Off the ball, Ugarte is relentless, chasing everything in sight. In 18 top division games in Portugal this season he has 12.06 recoveries per 90 minutes, 5.15 interceptions, 18.17 defensive actions and 12.40 defensive duels.

The Premier League and Primeira Liga are very different divisions, but the figures show that Partey managed just 10.84 ball recoveries per 90 minutes, 6.25 defensive duels, 4.59 interceptions and 11.02 defensive actions.

Ugarte has also won 2.27 dribbles per 90 – compared to Partey’s 1.13.

Creatively, Partey’s stats reflect more favorably, making more passes per 90 than Ugarte (59.86 to 51.49) and far more progressive passes (8.34 to Ugarte’s 4.36 per 90). However, Ugarte triumphed when dribbling.

A hallmark of his game is his rapid runs down the center of the field, reflected in his dribbles per 90 (2.83) and successful dribbles (2.10), while Partey has 1.25 overall and 1.07 successful dribbles.

Ugarte also trumps Arsenal’s Granit Xhaka defensively, making more passes per 90, more interceptions, more ball recovery and dribbling.

His fierce and energetic performance was hailed by the Portuguese press, with A Bola praising his performances in the final round as the team beat Midtylland FC 5-1 on aggregate.

The publication said he put in a “relentless” performance in the first leg, saying it “looked like he was made of steel”.

Inacio is said to have been pursued by Liverpool in recent weeks after his dominant and decent performances at the back.

Still a young player and untested in the big leagues, he impressed in the Champions League this season, helping keep Tottenham and Frankfurt clean sheets and contributing to nine other shut-outs in the Primeira Liga – where the team currently is fourth.

His stats are also worth reading and put him in the same company as Arsenal’s two main centre-backs, William Saliba and Gabriel Margalhaes.

Inacio has won 1.83 defensive duels per 90, compared to 1.36 for Saliba and 1.39 for Gabriel. Also, he has 1.43 dribble wins against 90 while Saliba has 0.72 and Gabriel has 0.99.

He’s also won more of his aerial duels per 90 (45.74) than Saliba (43.04), but Gabriel leads the way for that statistic (47.47).

Both Arsenal players also fare better when it comes to interceptions – Inacio has 3.70 per 90, while Saliba has made 3.95 and Gabriel has 4.52 – and recoveries per 90 (Saliba at 11.74, Gabriel at 11 .37, Inacio with 9.92).

Creatively, Inacio’s passing ability stands out with 73.51 passes per 90 compared to 56.90 for Saliba and 52.72 for Gabriel – and 9.87 progressive passes per 90. Saliba has made 6.47 progressive passes per 90 and Gabriel has 7 ,41.

Both stages will be crucial for Inacio and Ugarte to shine and show their worth to the inevitable clubs who will watch as they fare against another big club.

They’ve already proven their quality in the biggest competition of them all in the Champions League – but a clash with the Premier League leaders will arguably be their biggest test yet.

The responsibility lies with Marcus Edwards – who has nine goals and six assists this season – to spur Sporting on, along with top scorer Pedro Goncalves, who has 15 goals and seven assists.

But Sporting are known for producing and developing top young talent and Inacio and Ugarte could make a real mark if Arteta and his players haven’t done their homework on the duo.