Archive for the ‘Champions League’ Category

The draw for the Champions League has been made and we’ve got Udinese – probably the second hardest in the draw. They’re a good side and we’ve got the away leg tie sandwiched between Liverpool (home) and United (away)…

The official site reported:

Arsenal will face Udinese in this season’s Champions League Play-Off Round.

The draw took place in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday and saw the Gunners first out of the hat, meaning they will host the first leg at Emirates Stadium.

The matches will be played either side of the second weekend of the Premier League campaign – the first leg is scheduled for August 16 with the second leg on August 24.

Games to be played as under:

Arsenal v Udinese Calcio
Tuesday, August 16
Kick Off: 19.45 (UK time)
Emirates Stadium

Udinese Calcio v Arsenal
Wednesday, August 24
Kick Off: 19:45 (UK time)
Stadio Friuli

Time to discuss!!

Bonjour Mes Amis…

Today is Champions League draw day, and within the next half of the day, we should find out who we have been drawn against in the qualifying round of the Champions League. I’ve been asked a lot of questions in the last few days about the draw and the background of the competition and how the seeding works etc – so I’ll try my best to answer them now!

Why do Arsenal have to qualify for the Champions League?

As we finished fourth last season, we have to play a qualifying match in order to gain entrance to the Champions League “proper”. If we win, we will qualify for the group stage of the competition; if we lose, we will be eliminated from the competition.

When will the ties be played?

The play off round will be a two legged affair. The first leg will be scheduled for either August the 16th or August the 17th with the second leg on a week later, on either August the 23rd or August the 24th. There is no home and away seedings, so we could be at home for the first leg or we could be away.

Who can we face?

There are 20 teams in this round – split into two pots – those who won their league “champions”, predominantly from smaller countries and those who have not won their league, but qualified through their finishing position. We are in the “non-champions” side.

Out of the 10 teams left, 5 are seeded and 5 are not seeded. We, along with 4 other teams are seeded.

We will be drawn against one of the following five teams:

• Rubin Kazan
• Udinese
• Odense
• Twente
• FC Zürich

These 5 teams have won their previous qualifying round and are not seeded.

Who else is in our side of the draw?

Along side us, Benefica, Bayern Munich, Lyon and Villareal will make us the other five teams. We cannot play against any of them as they are all seeded. The draws are quite exciting this year and all of the sides who are seeded will be favourites to win their matches.

Who would we prefer to avoid?

Rubin Kazan stand out as a tie we’d like to avoid. Sandwiched between Newcastle, Liverpool and United, the trip to Rubin Kazan would be very taxing – it’s about 4000 miles there and back! In addition, they’re actually quite a decent side – if I am correct, they’ve held their own, especially with their shock win against Barcelona in October 2009 followed up two weeks later by a 0-0 draw.

Who would be our ideal choice?

My choice would be Odense as they are very much the smallest of the teams in the draw – although they shot to fame when they beat Real Madrid in 1995. In reality, they are the 3rd best club in Denmark, and have a small 14,000 seater stadium. Ideal distance and without a doubt, we should be able to be them convincingly.

When and where is the draw?

The draw will be held later today, circa 1300 BST and will be held in Nyon – the draw will be available to watch live on Sky Sports, the BBC and UEFA.com.

Hopefully that’s answered all the questions! I am looking forward to knowing who we have…!

Before I leave you, in other news, Kyle Bartley has rejoined Rangers for a year loan, sparking speculation that we’re on the verge of signing a new centre back – and secondly, young Cescito was back in training yesterday in front of 1000′s of members at member’s day, alongside Arsene, Ivan and Silent Stan – perhaps the owner has come to sort out the Cesc situation once and for all…

Adios for now, I’ll be back around midday!

Morning All…

Yesterday was an exciting day for all Gooners as the members of the AST got a chance to meet with and voice questions to the Arsenal CEO Ivam Gazidis. Having flown in from Luxembourg just hours early, it was touch and go – but I made it and I have to say, it was an interesting evening of questions…

There were twenty questions in total, asked over roughly an hour and a half… let’s rattle away with the questions and answers and a bit of opinion thrown in! Here’s the bullet point list of the meeting – mainly from my tweets throughout the evening…

• First question regarding Nasri & Clichy’s contract situation – who is responsible?
• Ivan says Arsene assesses technical ability – Ivan says contract decisions involve whole management team… (board and Arsene)
• Ivan says that Arsenal will not break the bank to keep players such as Nasri and Clichy
• Second question regarding Arsene’s future – Ivan says club are 100% behind Arsene
• Arsenal ahead of the game in general but other clubs have caught up…
• Third question: last 4 transfer windows, have not been very good – should AW be so much related to the money side of things?
• Third question ask whether AW needs help such as David Dein’s previous roles? Ivan says no….
• 4th question: Do we spend money if we have it?
• Ivan: “Every transfer is carefully considered, wages, lengths, fees etc.”
• 5th question: fans feel disrespected by players, players don’t clap the away supporters – do Arsenal understand this?
• Ivan: Yes, the game sees a bigger disconnect between fans and players – The club is unique…
• Silver members have had a 50% increase – is this fair?
• 7th question about standing sections, AW has previously suggested that he supports it, will Arsenal consider it?
• Ivan says Arsenal open to standing sections. Key considerations around safety. May be cost prohibitive.
• 8th question: Will Kroenke take money out of the club? Have loans been taken out to buy AFC? will dividends be issued?
• Ivan: No dividends will be taken, confirmations that Kroenke has not taken a loan to buy club
• Continuation of 8th q: Will AFC be “self sustaining” forever?
• Ivan says self sustainability very important at the moment… But future could change…
• 10th question: Why do we publish false attendance? Ivan says all clubs do, and that is an industry standard…
• Ivan says waiting list is very long. A very low rate on non renewals. #astmeet doesn’t quite match fans view.
• Gazidis – every empty seat in the stadium represents a small tragedy – but cannot change attendance figures
• Have to publish ‘sold’ attendance levels otherwise fans would be upset at not getting tickets to a game that only had 55,000 ppl attending
• Ivan has answered every question so far… But I have heard everything before from Arsene and the rest
• Question 12: why is the current team so unmotivated and why don’t they “turn up” for some games?
• Ivan says there have been moments where players have an issue with “heart n desire” but more related to experience…
• Q13: What is the transfer fund? And what does the fund cover? Who covers wages for on loan players?
• Ivan says budget covers wages and fees, although not to look at the two as separated, budget is flexible?
• Ivan says we have NOT spent their budgets in previous windows. Money is available and surplus could be too…
• Q14: Who is Arsene accountable to? Ivan says Arsene is accountable to fans (disgruntled fans murmur)
• Q14: Arsene seems to have a different view of economics and Arsenal seem to be a training camp for world football, Nasri could be an example
• Relative efficiency of spending – Ivan’s line, used several times this evening
• Q15: does AW need help?
• Ivan says club behind AW, but Arsene not stubborn, constantly challenged and open to it…
• Q16: AST has been given endorsement by government and Gazidis – does Kroenke support the AST too?
• Kroenke has supported and will support AST and ga share and similar organisations…
• Q17: Are there plans for after Arsene?
• Ivan says can’t answer as media attention and spin would be too great…
• Q18: Our defence has not been good last season…. Would so done like Tony Adams be a good recruit?
• Ivan says Arsenal are working on how to resolve defensive issues…
• Q19: Will Arsenal try and payoff stadium debt early? Ivan says break out fees too high. Loan payback sustainable.
• Q20: Have we spoken to players? Are we close? Ivan says yes and maybe. Is positive about future of Arsenal.

To summise…

It was a good evening of discussions and questions – to be honest, I didn’t hear anything new from Gazidis that I didn’t already know – but a lot of what I thought I knew was confirmed by the CEO. The issues with Nasri have come down to money and the board are adamant to keep to a budget and won’t be held to ransom. Gazidis confirmed that there will be a lot of summer activity, but how much we don’t know. He said there were a lot of targets.

I managed to speak to Ivan directly after the question and answer session and spoke to him about season ticket affordability and club policies on sharing tickets. The feedback from him was generally positive and confirmed that the club are seeking new and improved ways of ensuring people can come to games, get bums on seats.

Well, that’s a wrap for the moment, I have to admit tiredness has the better of me… there will be more tomorrow, hopefully with a bit more opinion on it!

Adios for now…

Howdie Folks…

I have finally arrived back in the UK after my trip to Barcelona and by now you all know how disappointed I must feel. The same as you all feel… I have had some time to relax, reflect and think more pragmatically about the result and the performance…

So where did it all go wrong?

Starting Line Up

There was an ongoing debate prior to the game to whether Diaby or Denilson should start, and for Arsene, Diaby won that decision – there was always a risk with a player like Diaby, who has been out through injury and suspension for most of the season. A player who is so rusty will not be on his own game as much as he should be and in addition, Diaby isn’t a defensive midfielder – so effectively the decision to play him meant that we played with no defensive midfielders. As a result of this, Nasri and Rosicky had to tuck in more, preventing them from attacking.

Cesc and RvP were both included in the starting line-up and both were not 100% – it was clear to see. Cesc, for me, and something he admitted afterwards wasn’t at the races and also got himself injured earlier on, without coming off – something that is very much more detrimental to your team than staying on. And Rosicky – one of the worst players of the season so far – somehow got the nod ahead of the likes of Eboue and Arshavin. Barcelona hate pace, so instead of playing a pacey player, we decided to play our slowest and most out of form midfielder.

Szcznesy

Sagna – Djourou – Koscielny – Clichy

Rosicky – Wilshere – Cesc – Diaby – Nasri

Van Persie

The starting line up – back 5 and striker but midfield should have been a lot different:

Wilshere – Denilson

Eboue – Cesc – Nasri

Van Persie

Tactics

The starting line up was wrong, and if Eboue had started, we would have a different option, pace. The one thing that Barcelona hate is pace, and the one player they fear is Messi. In fact, the reason that we suffer so much at the hands of Barce, is that they have inherent pace within each player. Something that means that they can move much quicker. By playing Diaby, as mentioned earlier, we had a hole just in front of the two centre backs, whereas Denilson would have filled that hole.

Our main tactic of “tiring” Barcelona and then hitting them hard in the second half was probably not something we really should have adopted. To come out of the whole game without stringing three passes together and without having a single shot on or off target is very embarrassing. Arsene had been speaking all week about not parking the bus and then he goes and parks a double decker. Yes, Barce were good, but having unfit players as well as rusty players in your midfield means you can’t compete – Denilson and Eboue would have meant we would have cut up more chances for them and added pace into the mix.

Decisions

Now, that was shocking wasn’t it? To see that no Barcelona players were booked, whilst every tackle we made was. How on earth those decisions can be just, I do not know.

Arsene summed up the decisions better than I can…

Two kinds of people can be unhappy; those who love Arsenal and those who love football can be frustrated with the referee’s decisions. When he made the decision it was a very promising game, very interesting. That’s the regret. We lost against a very good Barcelona side, congratulations to them and good luck for the future. We have many regrets tonight because we didn’t expect to lose the game like that. I feel sorry for people who watched the game tonight.

Van Persie was absolutely livid and rightly so – and now both Arsene and Nasri have been charged with improper conduct following their comments. What on earth is happening to the game? It’s ridiculous…

Time to wind this up for now – myself and fellow Gooner Bob have made a lot of notes, but it’s way past my jetlagness and I’m going to publish and sleep… more analysis tomorrow…

Until then!

Morning All…

You read it right, Arsenal 2 – 1 Barcelona. And what a game…! For the neutral, it was a great game between two teams who play football the right way. For us, it was a nervous game, a heart in the mouth game and what a game!

The whole area was buzzing pre-match and the usual lot were everywhere, a massive turnout in the Tollington and a pint or two later a walk down to the stadium. All fans in good spirit and when I went to my seat, I was greeted by a nice red flag and another 55,000 flags were on the seats of all… As the players came out, the noise was resounding, and the flags were amazing.

Beautiful, wasn’t it?

Ahead of the game, there was a massive boost for all, some say it was a risk, but Samir Nasri was named in the starting XI. No-one thought he’d be fit, let alone start.

The starting line up was:

Szcznesy

Eboue – Djourou – Koscielny – Clichy

Wilshere – Song

Walcott – Cesc – Nasri

Van Persie

With a bench of Almunia, Gibbs, Squillaci, Denilson, Arshavin, Bendtner and Rosicky

For the first time in a while, against a big team, there was an air of confidence around the fans and the players – and we started the game with a swagger. And we created chances with the best one dropping to Van Persie who really should have hit the target. But it wasn’t too long until Barcelona got in it and started to control the game from midfield. With Villa and Messi dropping deep, their midfield was overloading our midfield and their left and right backs found a lot of width and we started to get exposed – Clichy and Eboue often allowing Alves and Maxwell in – and when Barcelona eventually went 1-0, it came down the left when Clichy played Villa onside and a Messi pass put the Spanish striker through.

The first half ended 1-0 to the visitors, and although we didn’t play that badly – the authority of Barcelona did shine through – their game seemed better than ours – positionally, and distributively. We seemed to allow them to pass and then close them down when they had the ball – for us, they did the opposite – they closed down the options and then closed down the player with the ball. It was tough.

The second half was different – we closed them down better, upped our work rate and also closed down their options, which allowed us to recover the ball better – and for me the stand out player of the second half was Jack Wilshere, who went further up the field and seemed to have an extra pair of eyes on him… and his vision and creativity made us tick… and suddenly, a game which looked out of our reach, looked very much like a game where would could take something from…

Arshavin and Bendtner came on for Walcott and Song (the latter walking on a yellow card tightrope, having been booked early on) and they changed the game. The equaliser came via good work from Arshavin who passed the ball back to Clichy who them lofted the ball into Van Persie’s path – who despite wide and at an acute angle, lashed it past the keeper – 1-1……..

And then five minutes later, under serious pressure from Messi, a great interception from Koscielny, a good spot from Bendtner to maintain possession, a first time pass from Wilshere to Cesc, who sprayed the ball out wide to Nasri, who slowed it down and cut it back……… Arshavin slots it home!!!

2-1 to the Arsenal and that’s how it finished – it was electric. What a night… it’s only half the job done, but done well…

Arsene spoke about the game and said:

I am highly delighted because it was a special football match. The game promised a lot and absolutely fulfilled the promises between two exceptional football teams who always try to play. We were not only strong on the physical side but on the mental side, we kept resilient. We took advantage of one special piece of skill from Van Persie and the goal for the second was after some good build-up play. It was a special night. When we suffered, the fans were still very positive.

And he also highlighted the job to do over there:

Tonight’s result gives us a chance to go to Barcelona with belief. We know it will be a very difficult game but we will prepare well. We will be highly focused and we go to win our game. It is a special lift for my team. Our players have shown exceptional strength tonight and togetherness. This will enforce that.

Enjoy the result boys and girls… it certainly was a great European night at the Emirates.

The big day has arrived…

It’s Arsenal vs Barcelona, at the Emirates… our biggest game of the season and we’re on top of our game, so Arsene says and raring to go for this one. I’ve spoken to a lot of fellow Gooners and there is a genuine excitement and buzz around the place… a different buzz, a confident buzz, a “we’re going to beat Barcelona” buzz… the question is, is the team ready for their biggest test of the season… actually, the biggest test of any Arsene Wenger team perhaps?

Straight onto the team news… straight to Arsene’s recent announcement of the squad:

“Samir Nasri is in the squad. But the starting line-up will be decided tomorrow. He’s recovered quicker than expected. I said it will be 21 days but it will be only 17 days. Everybody’s absolutely adamant that he’s completely medically available. It’s down to me to make the decision. I will take no medical risk but it’s good to have him in the squad. Rosicky is available. He’s in the squad. But there’s no Diaby. He has a calf problem. He did it with the French national squad against Brazil.”

So, what do I think about the Samir Nasri situation? Yes, he is back in the squad, but it’s been quite a while since he’s played. If he is 100% fit, he should play – if he is not 100% fit and there is any chance that he will get injured again, then he shouldn’t. The conundrum is that if Arshavin plays, but is not on top of his game, then he is a weak link – but if Nasri plays and gets injured, then we’re shooting ourselves in the foot…

Would I play him from the start? No, I wouldn’t. He shouldn’t – if a player is injured, and returning, he needs to be eased into the team by small outings and 20 minutes at the end of the game – I can’t see any good in risking the player, considering it’s mid season and we have another leg.

My predicted team is therefore…

Szcznesy

Eboue – Djourou – Koscielny – Clichy

Wilshere – Song

Walcott – Cesc – Arshavin

Van Persie

With a bench of Almunia, Gibbs, Squillaci, Denilson, Nasri, Chamakh and Bendtner

This year, I honestly believe that we can do it – I don’t know why!

Maybe because Arsene keeps on saying things like this….

“The only thing I can say is we are in an ideal condition to face them. We cannot complain. We have the belief, the confidence and the players available. We are 90 per cent in February and that was not the case last year. I feel we are in an ideal position to face them. We just want to show how good we are. We want to show the belief we have in our game, in our quality, more than looking at the past. We have practiced. We are determined, focused and we want to win this competition. We know we face the super-favourites of this competition but the only way to do it is to knock them out.

Arsene – he is the eternal optimist!

Let’s see what we’re made of… for those of you fgoing to the game… come down to the Tollington pre-game… I promise I will be there…!

Are you ready? A question that all fans will answer……… “Of course I’m ready”….

But the real question is whether the team is ready. We’ve had many false dawns – defining moments – those pre-match talks where Arsene says “we will show you all and produce something special” and then end up going 2-0 down within the first 10 minutes! But this time, we’re not talking off the pitch… this time we’re talking on the pitch. With the exception of the 4-4 at Newcastle, our form has been pretty good since the turn of the year. Our football has been a joy to watch and it’s all been building up nicely to the tie this week.

For me, I really believe we have a first XI that oozes class and quality – the rapid rise to the number one jersey for Szcznesy has been well deserved and he has earned his shirt. He’s played well and the main thing is that he does the simple things well – and that’s key. He’s commanding and breathes confidence to the defence – a defence which has been marshalled admirably by Djourou creating an equally impressive partnership with Koscielny.

I think they both have enough nous to snuff our the danger of Messi & Villa and for me, the two key players will be the Songshere megasphere… I mean Alex Song & Jack Wilshere – who are starting to really dominate the midfield nowadays.

Song spoke about Jack and had nothing but praise for him:

“Jack is an unbelievable young player – it’s hard to think that he is just 19 years old because he’s playing like a guy with 200 Premier League appearances. I’m very happy to play alongside him – he always wants to listen and learn, and I’m not surprised to see him in the England team.”

I like my new combo, the Songshere megasphere, it’s got a ring to it…

Song also took time out to talk about the way we should approach the game and said:

“The reference point for us has to be the Chelsea match from December, when we pressed them very high from the first minute and gave them no room.  We need to do that to Barcelona – they have a similar style to us and it should be a pleasure for everyone to watch. I can’t wait. Everyone’s talking about it, not just here – a lot of my friends have been in touch wanting to come over and watch. It’s a very good tie,  I think we took a lot from last year’s matches. Both of us are in good form and if we can keep as many players fit as possible for both legs then we can do something.”

And he’s hit the nail on the spot there – we need to give 120% throughout the game – Inter away, Real Madrid away, Juventus at home, Chelsea at home this season – we gave 120% – we press high up the pitch, we were disciplined, we were focused and took our chances.

With Robin Van Persie in the form of his life – 11 goals in 9 games – we have a serious goal threat. You’ve got to give it to RvP – despite the plethora of injuries, he is really coming back into some form – a massive accolade to the confidence in his own ability and the faith that Arsene has shown in him.

Arsene, of course, is looking forward to this game – with all the Cesc furore, I think the manager is keen to “get one over” Barce and really press home to Cesc that he was right to stay at the Emirates this season. Arsene spoke about the style of play and said:

“I believe, if we manage to get them under pressure, we will create chances. Ideally that is something we can work on before the game. Sometimes you have that extra special focus in these kind of games which makes you more efficient, so hopefully we have that. The question at the Nou Camp you can wonder is will we change the way we play? But here [at Emirates Stadium], we will try to play to our strengths. We will try to attack the other team. If we play in the final third defensively, we will not only be happy, it will not be our game.”

That’s so very true – our strengths are our attack. We need to terrorise their defence – a defence without key man Carlos Puyol. They’ll have a decent player in reserve, but between Van Persie, Theo Walcott and Andrei Arshavin, we can surely get at them – with Cesc pulling the strings just behind the front three, we can really do some damage!

Cesc to score against Barce on Weds? If you’re a betting man, it’s worth a fiver….

I’ll be back tomorrow for a proper pre-match blog, team news and formations, but for now, let’s support Milan as they entertain Sp*rs at the San Siro…

Boy, do I love the Champions League!!

Morning all…

They say there is no such thing as an easy game in football and when it comes to the Arsenal, that phrase couldn’t be more true. On a cold night at the Emirates, with a 60,000 big crowd, it was always going to be a tricky tie.

Ahead of the game, news filtered in that Gibbs was going to fill in for the flu-stricken Clichy and Denilson was going to fill in for Wilshere, whom I believe was not used tactically as the line up contained two strikers in Robin Van Persie and Maroune Chamakh.

The line up was:

Fabianski

Sagna – Squillaci – Koscielny – Gibbs

Denilson – Song

Nasri – Van Persie – Arshavin

Chamakh

On the bench we had Szcznesy, Eboue, Wilshere, Rosicky, Walcott, Vela and Bendtner.

Partizan wanted to get a result here and I was impressed with the way they came out – defensive, but with two players at every opportunity. They started well, and we couldn’t find space and within the first 15 minutes, the crowd were already chanting the classic worry chant… “Come on Arsenal”…

There was pretty much nothing to write home about – Chamakh was having one of his worst games of the season so far, Denilson looked a little clueless and Arshavin was over elaborate.

We have the ref to thank for awarding what looked like a very soft penalty (I may need to watch the replay again) and Robin Van Persie fired us 1-0 up. In fact, outside of the penalty, we had no shots on target in the first half- very strange for a must win game – but also an accolade to the way they defended.

The first shot on target actually came from a Robin Van Persie freekick outside the box but by then Partizan had equalised with one of their few efforts – heck, it may have been their first shot too – the communication and connection between Squillaci and Koscielny still in need of some improvement!

At this point with 19 minutes to go, it was squeaky bum time – 1-1 here and 0-0 at Shaktar – if either Partizan or Braga scored then we’d be out of the Champions League… Walcott was on for Arshavin and Eboue had already replaced the injured Gibbs… and young Theo put us ahead with a good finish after some pressing from us… The ball ricocheted out to Theo about 6 yards out and the young England international dispatched the ball into the back of the net… Relief was an understatement.

At the same time, news broke around the stadium that Shaktar were 1-0 up and thank God… It started to look like we would qualify… And the sublime Samir Nasri took it upon himself to score a 3rd to put the nerves at rest when some good play from Song got Nasri in and he finished well with his left foot… His twelfth goal of the season!

There was still time for a controversial sending off, when Bacary Sagna was adjudged to have fouled a Partizanian player outside the box and was handed a straight red… I’m not if we can even appeal it. Alex Song slotted in at right back and we saw the game out with 10 men.

Not the best performance by any means, but we won – and we’re through to the next round of the Champions League. It’s going to be a tough one whoever we get as we can only get one of Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich or Schalke. Ouch! That’s a 75% chance of getting one of Barcelona, Real Madrid or Bayern Munich – my money is on Barce, it’s fate!

Arsene commented on our performance…

It was a bit of a low-key game because we didn’t find our pace in the game. We couldn’t find openings in their defence. They defended very well, they were focused on closing us down everywhere. We were just below our normal pace. You have to give them credit, they defended very well and on every single ball they closed us down. I felt our speed of passing was not incisive enough and it was a bit nervous as well.

And singled out Barcelona as favourites… (one of the 4 teams we could meet!)

The potential opponents are there is a 50 per cent chance of travelling to Spain and a 50 per cent chance of travelling to Germany. If you ask me where would you like to go? I don’t know. You [the journalists] might prefer to go to Spain, for us not necessarily.  Let’s be realistic, Barcelona are the super-favourite at the moment but we take what we get and if it is Barcelona it is Barcelona. We have played them already last year and we’ll see.

Top of our league, through to the next round of the Champions League, in the Carling Cup semi finals… I don’t know how we’ve managed to stutter our way to this, but I’ll take it… hopefully we can improve on this and actually win something… I did say “hopefully”…

Til tomorrow mes amigos…

Tonight is a big night for all concerned down at the Emirates – we play Partizan Belgrade in a must win game… Technically, we can still qualify if results go our way – but when do results go our way? For me, there is nothing else required than a win. As I said in yesterday’s blog, the two away defeats were points we should have never have lost… but we are where we are and it’s time to put this one to bed.

Ahead of the game, Arsene has revealed the team news and there was some good news regarding our two midfielders Abou Diaby and Cesc Fabregas – whom are both back practising – which is absolutely brilliant news

“He was out to practise today. In fact he is still out there now. He has a small chance to play on Monday. That means it is a bit under 50 per cent at the moment. Diaby is out practising as well with him. He has a very small chance.”

If Cesc is available and 100% fit then that would be an awesome bonus for Monday’s game. A game that would really catapult us into the title race with both feet… but for tonight’s game, neither Diaby nor Cesc are available – news is that Djourou has a small strain and Koscielny has recovered from concussion to return to the starting line up. We may just see RvP back into the starting line up…

Fabianski

Sagna – Squillaci – Koscielny – Clichy

Wilshere – Song

Nasri – Van Persie – Arshavin

Chamakh

With a bench of Szcznesy, Eboue, Gibbs, Denilson, Rosicky, Bendtner and Vela

It was interesting to see the pre-match press conference with Arshavin by Arsene’s side… he was in full chorus and talked about the position we find ourselves in the Champions League…

“We will get a difficult draw, but Arsenal want to win the Champions League and if you want to win it you have to play the best teams, like Barcelona and Real Madrid. It doesn’t matter if it’s in the last 16, the Quarter-Finals or the Semi-Finals. We’ve lost two games and now only have the chance to finish second, but what can we do? We have to win tomorrow and see what the draw will give us. I think we have no chance of topping the group. I think Shakhtar will be first. It’s disappointing but we always knew Shakhtar and Braga were good teams, especially at home. Unfortunately they showed that against us.”

The next thing he said was something which was brutally honest… he talked about our defensive frailties… and his contribution towards them – you know? The moments where we think, why isn’t Arshavin tracking back? He should come back and close the player down – at least he acknowledges this…

“We struggle in defence so we have to score more than we concede. It’s very frustrating and we’re trying to improve. Normally I can’t go through our defenders in training, but we don’t just blame our defenders. Sometimes I can’t run [back], and I let defenders cross so the forwards score a goal. So it doesn’t always depend on defenders. As a team we need to improve defensively.”

It’s funny how he just says it like that – but it’s true! He is a very talented footballer, but he needs to remain consistent, and needs to help out defensively where possible. One of the key elements to Barcelona’s 5-0 victory over Madrid last week was the outstanding work-rate that all the players, including Iniesta, Villa and Messi put in. That is one of the key differences – the Barcelona trio never stopped running, they never gave up – where as our tracking of players and pressing of the opposition doesn’t happen like that up top.

Down at the Emirates tonight, it will be a massive game – a must win game and we’ll need the players on song and the fans cheering them on… all I can say is… come on you Arsenal!!!

Morning All…

It wasn’t our greatest game by far yesterday and decisions before the game put us in a little bit of a downer even prior to the players walking onto the pitch, with news that Sagna, Denilson, Song, Arshavin and Chamakh would be rested and Cesc hadn’t recovered in time either. As news broke of each of the absentees, you wondered how seriously Arsene took this game in the first place. The line up was announced, and saw young Eastmond score:

Fabianski

Eboue – Squillaci – Djourou – Clichy

Wilshere – Eastmond

Walcott – Nasri – Rosicky

Bendtner

Our bench consisted of Szcznesy, Sagna, Koscielny, Vela, Lansbury, Chamakh and Emmanuel Thomas… Don’t get me wrong, there was quality in the team selected, but against a Shaktar team ready for revenge, against a team feeling bruised since the defeat at the Emirates. It resembled a little like a Carling Cup team to be honest…

It’s hard to write a match report for the game, there weren’t many Arsenal talking points, except the great goal from Theo Walcott, which really put us in the driving seat. With Shaktar pressing forward, we broke away and an excellent ball from Wilshere into the path of Theo Walcott and the young Englishman wasn’t going to be caught by anyone. He took the ball early, which in the end was the right decision as it was too quick for the keeper and it put us 1-0 ahead…

Shaktar were a little shocked and at that point we could have taken the game to them, but instead we sat back and allowed them to move forward. They are a good team and always posed a threat but the amount of balls we gave away and the lack of urgency we showed was ultimately going to shape the game. Many a time, when a ball was on, we’d misplace the pass – Bendtner being rendered effectively useless by the Shaktar rearguard.

And it wasn’t long before the home team got back into the game, via an own goal by Eastmond. With Denilson, Song, Diaby, Cesc and long term absentee Ramsey all out injured, Eastmond seemed to be the viable option and it was a hard night for him in the Ukraine. A cross came in, flicked on by Chygrynskiy, but headed past the otherwise excellent Fabianski by Eastmond. And it was 2-1 before we knew it, this time through a mistake from Clichy who in any game in which he deemed important would have kick the ball out to touch, but he dilly dallied and Srna nicked the ball and squared to Eduardo for an easy tap in…

The second half brought much more possession, and to be honest, it looked like an “average 4th game in the champions league” after winning the first three. We could have been more attacking, but we were in second gear and maybe it was a bit more of a formality – knowing we have another home game to go, it would always be hard to motivate…

Arsene spoke about the lost urgency and said:

“Congratulations to Donetsk, they played well and won the game. We had a good start but after we lost our urgency and let Donetsk come into the game too much. We lost concentration in the duels and you could see what was coming towards half time. I felt we moved out of the game altogether and moved into the game altogether so it was more of a team problem, a kind of complacency problem more than an individual problem. In the second half we came back into the game and gave a lot so you can’t fault the team. We were a bit unlucky. We have learnt the lesson that at this level you can’t lose focus at any moment and that is why we were punished.”

And that’s basically a good summation on a game that we knew we didn’t have to win.

I’d expect to see Arshavin, Cesc, Song and Sagna back in the starting line up on Sunday, when we take on Newcastle. But for now, I will just remember this game for the Thierryesque goal from Theo and the overall superb play from Jack Wilshere….

Til tomorrow…

Two weeks, we beat Shaktar a whopping 5-1 at the Emirates, with an excellent display of attacking football and an equally intelligent defensive display – but the return trip today will be a completely different kettle of fish. The 5-1 scoreline was quite emphatic and reality was a little harsh on the visitors, who were quite stubborn up until the goals were scored. They will be looking to get some sort of revenge and it will be a test of our resolve. A point out in Shaktar will be enough in terms of progression for our progression – but a win will virtually put us through to the next round.

After our slight win, but dedicated performance against West Ham, there may be a few changes. There were fitness questions around Denilson after three games in a row and a slightly subdued performance against West Ham – with Jack Wilshere returning from suspension, I’d expect him to take his place. News broke earlier this week from the club that Wilshere has signed a new contract to see him tied down to the club for the next 5 years, and Arsene took time out to talk about the future of Jack and the contribution to the team so far… and with Cesc absent from the squad too, how he can play a more advanced role:

“When Fabregas is not there you have to share a little bit the decisive passing, the building up of the game between Nasri, Wilshere or Rosicky for example, so that is the task we have. We have many creative players who can create good passes and that’s what I count on. Wilshere is not scared to take the ball so he will have a part of it to do. It depends what I do. If I play with two more defensive midfield players behind him he can play that role but if I use Jack deeper and for example Nasri or Rosicky in front of them he remains in the same position. I am very much surprised [by Wilshere's development]. I didn’t expect that to happen so quickly. You have to be open-minded in our job and most of the time when it happens like that you are happy.”

Despite the noise from Arsene regarding Jack playing in more attacking role, I am pretty sure he’ll start against Shaktar alongside Alex Song, but may move higher up the pitch in the latter stages of the game if we need to be a little more defensive. With three wins out of three, we can rotate a little, and I’d expect Sagna and Koscielny to be rested. I’d also think Chamakh will be rested too, letting Bendtner have another run out. I’d expect the following line-up:

Fabianski

Eboue – Squillaci – Djourou – Clichy

Wilshere – Song

Walcott – Nasri – Arshavin

Bendtner

With a bench of Szcznesy, Sagna, Koscielny, Denilson, Rosicky, Vela, Chamakh

Update: Denilson, Song, Arshavin & Cesc have all be confirmed out injured, so line up may be:

Fabianski

Eboue – Squillaci – Djourou – Clichy

Wilshere – Eastmond

Walcott – Nasri – Rosicky

Bendtner

With a bench of Szcznesy, Sagna, Koscielny, Emmanuel Thomas, Lansbury, Vela, Chamakh

Regardless of Arshavin’s form, I’m convinced he will start, especially in the Champions League, as he has shown the better side of his play in the Champions League compared to the Premiership. One player who is impressing this season is Theo Walcott and it’s amazing to see his turn around… He has scored 6 goals this seasons from hardly any play, and if he keeps his consistency game in and game out then he will really start raising eyebrows…

Here’s a little extract on the reaction to his goals against Newcastle last Wednesday from the boss:

“Theo can be a prolific goalscorer. Once he is a yard in front of the defender no-one can catch him. He is very, very close to playing that striker role. But when you play with only one up front you like as well a guy who is good in the air as sometimes you kick it longer. Still look at the two goals he scored against Newcastle, they are from a typical striker goes who plays on a counter-attack. But most of the time we face teams with a different problem. We face teams that play very deep like West Ham so there is less space in behind. That is why at the moment I use him on the flanks.”

Theo is used in an attacking trio for Arsenal, but more conventionally in a 4-4-2 for England. The further forward he plays, the more effective he will be in terms of goals and assists (hence his better stats for Arsenal than England), but ultimately, he will be a striker – like he played for the England Under 21s and he could end up being a striker for England before Arsenal…!

Arsene took time out to talk about the comparisons between Theo and Thierry…

“It’s difficult to compare the similarities. Is Thierry a replica of Theo? Is Theo a replica of Thierry? No. But they have in common tremendous pace, they are good finishers and both are intelligent. In England, you are very impatient. Thierry Henry came here at the age of 23 and Theo is 21. Give two more years to Theo and imagine what he will be. Don’t forget that when Thierry Henry came here, he was a winger. When I played him as a central striker, he said to me ‘but I can’t score goals’. However I knew Thierry when he was 14 and at 15 I knew he could score goals when he played central. Then I left Monaco and they moved him to the flank but I knew in my head he could do it. It looks to me now that Theo has a calmness in front of goal. Before he rushed his decision but now he is different.”

Having just re-read my blog for today, I’m quite excited now!!

Come on you reds… let’s end the night in the next round of the Champions League!