Do Denilson and Diaby have a future at Arsenal?

The two central midfielders have been threatening to break through at the Arsenal for a number of seasons now, but neither has become a regular player for the side. Denilson joined Arsenal in the Summer of 2006 and is now 23, whilst Abou Diaby joined at the beginning of 2006 and is now 24. Denilson has captained Brazil up to the under 19 level but is still to make his debut for the national side despite being called up to the squad back in March 2007. Diaby is a regular for the French national side and has made 12 appearances since 2007. Despite the duo making many appearances for the Arsenal they have never been in Arsene's first choice XI and have mainly played due to injuries to key players. Jack Wilshere has also leaped above them in the pecking order this season and Denilson especially has struggled to get a game due to the emergence of Wilshere.

 Denilson has been at the club for a while now and has started 120 games in all competitions. He has never been out for long periods due to injury and made his most appearances in the 2008-2009 season when Flamini and Gilberto Silva had both left the Arsenal midfield. He impressed throughout the season and started 36 out of 38 Premier League games. However the season after Arsene switched to a 4-2-3-1 formation and Denilson has suffered as a result. Denilson works best in a two man midfield and doesn't have the physical side to his game that Alex Song has which is required to play the defensive role. As a result he only started 19 games in the league last season and has only started 6 this season. Denilson is clearly a talented player but sometimes appears to lack the effort that is needed at the top level. He doesn't appear to have a role in the side apart from a back-up midfielder and has been strongly criticised by the fans for his recent poor performances. Many fans would say Aaron Ramsey is also a better player than Denilson and when we have no injuries I believe Denilson would struggle to make the Arsenal bench regularly. I can see the Brazilian moving on in the Summer due to the lack of a regular place in the side and there are players coming through such as Lansbury who will need to play in the future. A player like Denilson is more suited to a Spanish or Italian style of football and I believe he will continue to have a successful career in one of these two countries. We should be able to get around £8 Million for the Brazilian which would represent a huge profit, which would obviously please Mr.Wenger.

 Abou Diaby has also been at the club for a number of seasons now and has started 117 games in all competitions since arriving. He is a different type of player to Denilson and contributes to the side both in defence and attack. However he is in a similar position to Denilson in that he hasn't tied down a starting place in the side but this is mainly down to the terrible luck Abou has had with injuries over the last couple of seasons. The most starts he has made in the league was 26 last season and he has only made 9 so far this season. To me Abou appears to be a better player than Denilson and I'm sure if it wasn't for bad luck with injuries Abou would be a regular starter for the Gunners. He does fit into Arsenal's 4-2-3-1 system and can play in any of the central midfield roles to good effect. I am a big fan of Diaby being played as the attacking midfielder and he adds a real physical presence to the Arsenal side. He links up well with the main striker but we have a certain Cesc Fabregas who also likes to play in this position. Diaby is clearly never going to play ahead of Fabregas but I do see a future for him at the Arsenal. He is a very versatile player who always looks to be putting in his best for the side unlike Denilson. I can't ever see Abou Diaby becoming a first choice player but he adds a valuable option to the side and Arsene Wenger should hang on to the talented Frenchman. Many Arsenal fans regularly criticise Diaby but I believe he really adds something to the side and  I don't think he receives enough praise for some of his performances in an Arsenal shirt and I'm sure Diaby well develop into the player we all thought he would become when he first played for the Arsenal.

Why Arsenal should sign Scott Parker in the Summer

The future for Arsenal?

 Scott Parker has been brilliant this season for West Ham and has been an inspirational leader for the Hammers. Scott Parker also featured at the weekend for England and put in an impressive performance. He was playing alongside a certain Jack Wilshere and the duo appeared to be made to play with each other and I feel the two of them could compliment each others games for the Arsenal in the future.

 There are many qualities that Scott Parker would bring to the Arsenal side. He is a complete midfielder with huge experience and would be the natural leader the team appears to lack at times. He works hard all the time and when you have the likes of Arshavin in your side you need players like Scott Parker. He is also quite defensively minded whereas the majority of Arsenal's midfielders aren't which would be another valuable aspect of his play for Arsenal.

I can see maybe both Denilson and Diaby leaving Arsenal in the Summer and they will need replacing. Henry Lansbury will be returning from Norwich where he has been outstanding this summer and Aaron Ramsey will also be back to his best by next season. If Arsenal signed Parker we would have maybe the best midfield in the league, Song,Wilshere,Fabregas,Parker,Nasri,Ramsey and Lansbury. This would also be a good mix of experience and youth and if Fabregas did go home in the Summer things wouldn't be so bad after all.

Is Scott Parker the leader Arsenal lack?

 I believe there is a strong chance of Wenger signing the Englishman in the summer. After all West Ham are well and truly in a relegation battle and however much Parker loves West Ham I'm sure he'd rather play in the Premiership. Parker would also be available for under £10 million, which could also tempt Wenger into a deal for the midfield player. Signing Parker would also add to the English players at Arsenal, of which there are now more and more each season. Walcott and Wilshere are both regulars, and Kieran Gibbs and Henry Lansbury are both future England players. Throw into the mix Scott Parker and nobody could complain that Arsenal don't have English players anymore.

Should Jack Wilshere play for the England Under 21's in the Summer?

England are playing in the Under-21 European Championships in the Summer and The FA looks set to be on a collision course with Arsene Wenger over whether young Jack Wilshere should feature in the tournament. Both the FA and Jack Wilshere are keen on the idea however in contrast Wenger believes Jack should rest for the Summer due to his young age and that he shouldn't play for the under 21's when he is now a regular in the full England side.  

 Wilshere is only 19 and has only just become a regular in the Arsenal side this season. He will therefore be completing his first season and he is going to need a rest in the summer to be ready for the next season. He has done amazingly well so far this season to stay injury free and Arsenal need more players like the young Englishman. It is clear as to why Stuart Pearce wants the Arsenal star in his team. This is because Jack is far far above the under 21 level and would be a potential tournament winning player for England.

 Jack himself also wants to play at the tournament, as would any youngster who has the chance of winning an international tournament for his country. However it would after all only be an under 21 competition and surely Jack should wait and help lead the full side to glory in Euro 2012 instead. He is already a regular in the full England side and will be a very important player by next Summer.

 Therefore I believe it is in Arsenal's and Jack's best interests for him not to play at the Under-21 tournament this Summer. After all he is only 19 and can't play football constantly from August 2010 to August 2012. He needs a break this Summer to prolong his career and to avoid picking up injuries due to playing too much football. He has the footballing world at his feet and he should wait until Euro 2012 before trying to lead his country to glory. 

Why Marouane Chamakh will be a very important player for the rest of the season

Can he return to his best?

 Marouane Chamakh came over from the French league in the summer and made an instant impact at the Arsenal. Due to injuries he had to lead the line for pretty much the first half of the season and did brilliantly in Robin Van Persie's absence. He appeared to be the missing link for Arsenal, and was in many fans opinions a good version of Nicklas Bendtner. He was scoring and making goals for fun but since the turn of the year his form has dropped dramatically and due to Van Persie being fully fit he has been on the bench for most of our vital games. I do however believe that he will be an important player for the rest of the season. In some games Wenger is likely to adopt a 4-4-2 formation where he would play alongside Van Persie and there is also no chance of Van Persie playing every single game, therefore leaving Chamakh to lead the attack.

 There are many qualities Marouane brings to the Arsenal side but the main one has to be his physical presence. This is something Van Persie doesn't have and Chamakh would be the perfect player to play at places like Stoke where we will need to play a more physical style of football. He is a great header of the ball, and in all honesty the only one in our side that can score good headed goals regularly.

 It is clear he isn't in great form at the moment but he has been starting to show signs of improvement in recent weeks. If we are going to win the league we need to him to play like he did at the start of the season and I'm sure he is capable of getting back to his best in the coming weeks. If he does it gives Arsene another valuable asset in attack and one that is very different from our other attackers which could be crucial at this stage of the season.

Will Johan Djourou and Wojciech Szczesny return in time to save Arsenal's season?

The Duo could save our season.

Johan Djourou and Wojciech Szczesny have been in great form this season and had both been very important up until they recentely got injured.  They are both very confident players who bring some much needed 'steel' to our 'shaky' defence. Wojciech Szczesny picked up his injury against Barcelona at the Nou Camp and it was originally feared he would miss the rest of the season. He injured his finger but he is now in contention to play again this season around the time of the crucial visit of United to the Emirates. Johan Djourou picked up a shoulder injury during the defeat at Old Trafford and he was also supposedly out for the season. However he also looks set to be back in training within a month which would be another huge boost to our title chances.

 Firstly there are many qualities that the young Polish keeper Wojciech Szczesny brings to the Arsenal side. He is an extremely confident player. He isn't however like Bendtner who Wojciech described as 'arrogant' whilst describing himself as 'confident'. He believes in his own ability and has reason to do so unlike Bendtner. He is also a commanding goalkeeper and the Arsenal defence clearly have more confidence in him than Manuel Almunia... Throughout this season he has established himself firmly as Arsenal's number one and until he was injured the goalkeeping problem had been solved. Recentely Almunia has taken over and it is clear to everyone how that has had a terrible impact on our season. If Szczesny returns soon I'm sure he would take over the gloves from either Almunia or Lehmann and he would help the side to win the Premier League.

Johan Djourou is another player who no one would have expected to have been as important as he is at the beginning of the season. Along with Szczesny he wasn't a first team regular but over the course of the season they've both become first choice players for the Arsenal. He has formed a great partnership with the Frenchman Laurent Koscielny and the side looks far better with Djourou playing instead of Sebastien Squillaci. He is a strong and imposing defender who has great aerial ability. He is great defending from set pieces and we clearly needed him at the weekend when West Brom scored easily from a corner. I'm sure Djourou and Szczesny would of dealt with the West Brom corner and if they had been playing we would have won the match.

 Therefore if the duo do return in time it will be a huge boost for the side's title chances and I believe we need them back as soon as possible. Cesc,Theo and Alex are also all expected to be fit for the side's next match against Blackburn and this will also be a huge boost for the squad. If we have all five of these players fit and firing for the final part of the season I'm sure we will be able to win the Premier League and end the trophy drought at the Arsenal.

Can Arsenal afford to let Gael Clichy leave in the summer?

In recent months Gael Clichy has been persistently linked with a move away from the Emirates Stadium. He has been our first choice left back since Cashley Cole signed for Chelski and has been a consistent performer. However last season wasn't his best and he hasn't been excellent this season. There are many rumors that he isn't going to extend his contract and that Wenger is willing to let him go in the summer rather than leaving for free at the end of next season. I believe Wenger should do everything he can to keep the Frenchman at the club. He is reliable and after all he is still only 25. You would therefore expect his best years to be ahead of him and I'm not sure if Kieran Gibbs is ready to be a first team regular just yet.

 Gael has made 224 starts for the Arsenal and is the only member of the Invincibles who has stayed at the club since the magnificent achievement. Therefore he is Arsenal through and through and is an important member of the squad. Even though he hasn't been excellent recentely there aren't many better left backs in Europe than Clichy. I'm sure Wenger will try to extend Clichy's contract but the Frenchman may decide to stay for next season and then leave on a free. There is nothing Wenger could do about this apart from a huge wage rise, but this isn't Wenger's policy and I'm sure Gael won't be offered any more than the likes of Vermaelen and Sagna. If Gael did decide to leave he would most likely go to an Italian or Spanish side and I simply can't see him signing for Tottenham as some newspapers have been suggesting recentely. He has been at the club too long to go to our arch rivals and there is no way Wenger would sell him to Spurs.

 Therefore if he does leave young Kieran Gibbs would probably be promoted by Wenger to be our first choice left back. At the moment I'm not sure if he is good enough but by the start of the 2012/13 season I'm confident he would be at the required level to start regularly for the Arsenal. The start of next season would be too soon, and that's why I believe we shouldn't sell Clichy, just for the sake of not getting anything for him the season after if he left on a free. Realistically we wouldn't get more than £7 Million for Clichy at the moment and therefore we should try and keep hold of him so Gibbs isn't promoted too early in his career. There also aren't many players we could sign to replace Clichy that would be significantly better than Gibbs. Hopefully Clichy will agree a contract extension but if not we have a ready made replacement in Kieran Gibbs.

West Brom 2-2 Arsenal Player Ratings

 Arsenal grabbed a vital point at the Hawthorns after being two goals down. We nearly clinched all three points at the end but it wasn't to be and as a result we dropped two points in the title race.

 Manuel Almunia 2/10
This pathetic excuse of a footballer has cost us around 9 points this season and was truly terrible on Saturday. Made an awful decision to race off his goal line and hopefully Jens Lehmann will take over for the remaining 9 games of our season. If Almunia plays even a couple of these games we will not win the league.

Bacary Sagna 6.5/10
A fairly average performance from the right back. Didn't make any mistakes but didn't create enough going forward for the Arsenal.

Sebastien Squillaci 6/10
Better than expected but should of dealt with the corner from which West Brom scored their first goal. Isn't at all at blame for the second goal as he had dealt with it but then Almunia appeared and ruined Arsenal's day.

Laurent Koscielny 6/10
 An ok performance from the Frenchman, should have dealt with the corner better as well as Squillaci.

Gael Clichy 7.5/10
A good game for the left back,defended well and also contributed well going forward.

Denilson 4/10
Very poor from the Brazilian, couldn't do anything more than the 2 yard passes we see so often from him. In all honesty he isn't suited to the holding role but should be playing better than he has been recentely.

Jack Wilshere 7.5/10
A good game for the young Englishman. Ran the midfield and also played well when in a midfield two with Nasri.

Aaron Ramsey 6/10
Was never going to be easy for the Welshman but should of marked his man better on the corner. Also missed an easy chance to score.

Samir Nasri 7/10
 An energetic display from the winger,would of been better in the central position though.

Robin Van Persie 7.5/10
 Worked hard throughout the match and was rewarded with the equaliser.

Andrey Arshavin 8/10
 Started off the comeback with a superbly taken goal.

Substitutes
Marouane Chamakh 7.5/10
Came on for Denilson and made the difference. Also looked promising when paired with Robin Van Persie.

Nicklas Bendtner 7/10
Wasn't on for long but set up Van Persie's equaliser.

Man Of The Match: Andrey Arshavin
Played well throughout but gets the award just for his superb goal which fired up the rest of the side to level the match.

West Brom 2-2 Arsenal, Two Points Lost At The Hawthorns

A vital equaliser from Van Persie.

Arsenal fought back from two goals down against West Brom to gain a valuable point in the title race. Even though this could be seen as a vital point, in all honesty it is two points dropped due to awful defensive errors especially from Almunia. Aaron Ramsey made his first start of the season alongside Denilson and Wilshere in midfield and Squillaci partnered Koscielny at the back. We conceded one goal from a corner about 3 minutes into the match and then went two goals down shortly after half time. We looked like we were set to lose the game which would have been a huge blow for our title chances. However Arshavin scored a superb goal in the 70th minute and then Van Persie scored a vital equaliser in the 78th minute. Arsenal continued to fight for the equaliser but it wasn't to be and the match finished at 2-2.

 The match began terribly for the Arsenal with West Brom scoring with ease from an early corner. The match was barely in it's third minute as Reid scored an easy header from the middle of the penalty box. It was truly awful marking and defending as he had all the time in the world to score. Ramsey of all people was supposedly marking him but why on earth did Squillaci or Koscielny take control of the situation. Ramsey was never going to beat him in the air, and one of the two centre back's should of dealt with a corner that was straight into the middle of the penalty area. You'd also expect the goalkeeper to try and deal with it but he just stood on his goal line letting the ball fly past him. There isn't one player you can blame for this as it is just poor organisation in general, but I do believe Djourou and Szczesny would of dealt with the corner with relative ease. We continued to dominate possession for the rest of the half but failed to create many chances. Our best chance came from a Van Persie header which hit the bar leaving Ramsey with an easy chance to score but he shot straight at the West Brom keeper. We didn't really create enough chances and  Denilson was especially awful throughout the first half and in all honesty we would of been better with just the 10 men.

What an IDIOT!

 Much to the relief of the Arsenal faithful Denilson didn't appear after half time as Marouane Chamakh had came on in his place, a very attacking move from Wenger but a much needed attacking move. This changed Arsenal's style of play to a traditional 4-4-2 and left Wilshere and Nasri in the two central midfield positions. Ramsey moved out to the right hand side and Chamakh joined Robin Van Persie up front. We looked a better side without Denilson and were creating more chances but then disaster struck in the 58th minute as Odemwingie scored one of the easiest goals of his career. A long ball was launched towards Odemwingie Squillaci had taken control of the situation, but then Manuel Almunia arrived on the scene well outside of his penalty box. He then got in Squillaci's way and Odemwingie had all the goal to aim at and scored easily. This must rank as one of Almunia's worst mistakes and I have no idea what on earth he thought he was doing. He clearly has no common sense and I believe this will be the last costly mistake he makes playing for Arsenal as he should never wear the shirt again. He is a complete liability and hopefully Wenger has finally realised this and Lehmann will take over for the remaining 9 games of the season. The team looked well and truly out of the match at this stage but Andrey Arshavin scored a magical goal to get Arsenal back into the game. He played a one two with Chamakh and scored superbly once he got into the penalty area. Arsenal continued to pile the pressure on the West Brom defence and scored a second not long after. Nicklas Bendtner won a knock down in the box and Van Persie scored his 19th goal in 19 Premier league starts. We continued to fight for the winner but we didn't create another good chance and the match finished at 2-2.

 It is clear we lost two points yesterday and that it is a blow to our title chances. However the team showed fighting spirit to come back from two goals down and to draw the match. I really thought we had lost the game after going two down but was left at the end feeling that we should of clinched the victory. It will prove to be a valuable point and what we have to remember is that the league is still in Arsenal's hands. We have nine games remaining and if we win all nine we will win the Premier League. I don't believe we can win all nine but United will drop points as well and therefore the league is still within Arsenal's grasp. I've forgiven Almunia in the past but yesterday was well and truly the last straw and I hope it is the last straw for Wenger as well who should bring back crazy Jens to win us the title.

West Brom VS Arsenal Match Preview

Arsenal travel to West Brom tomorrow afternoon in a crucial Premier League fixture. It is a match we need to win to stay in the title race but once again the Arsenal injury list is growing by the day with Abou Diaby the latest player to be ruled out of the fixture. Also missing is our first choice keeper Wojciech Szczesny our best 2 centre back's Djourou and Vermaelen, our 2 best centre midfielders Song and Fabregas, and our best winger Theo Walcott. Therefore tomorrows starting XI will be a very weakened side but we should still have a good enough starting XI to defeat relegation candidates West Bromwich Albion. This is the starting XI I believe Wenger should pick for tomorrow's game.

Goalkeeper
Jens Lehmann has recently re-signed for the side but I believe tomorrow's match will be to soon for the invincible goalkeeper. Therefore Manuel Almunia will start in goal but hopefully Lehmann will take hold of the gloves soon.

Right Back
Bacary Sagna will start at right back keeping Eboue on the bench.

Centre Back's
Arsenal have no choice but to partner Sebastien Squillaci with Laurent Koscielny at the heart of our defence. So far this season they've been awful when playing together but will need to form a partnership if we are to win this game and the title later on.

Left Back
Gael Clichy will replace Kieran Gibbs for this important fixture.

Defensive Midfield
Denilson will start in the defensive role in Song and Diaby's absence.  


Central Midfield
Jack Wilshere will start in again in the heart of our midfield. He has been outstanding this season and hopefully he can continue this.

Attacking Midfield
I believe Aaron Ramsey should be picked for his first start since his injury last season. He is fully fit now and I believe he brings far more to the side than Tomas Rosicky.

Right Wing
Samir Nasri will start on the right for the Arsenal tomorrow.

Centre Forward
Robin Van Persie will lead the line for the Arsenal and will hopefully continue in the sparkling form he has been in recentely.

Left Wing
Andrey Arshavin will be on the left hand side of Arsenal's three man attack against West Brom

Despite this being a weakened Arsenal side I still believe we have enough to win and I'm predicting a 3-1 victory for the Gunners.

Would resigning crazy Jens be a good thing for the Arsenal?

Arsenal have recentely suffered a goalkeeping crisis, leaving us with Manuel Almunia as our only goalkeeper. Surprisingly Jens Lehmann looks set to complete a deal in the near future to rejoin Arsenal as a back-up goalkeeper for Manuel Almunia. I believe this will be a good signing for the Arsenal as he is quality player and is far better than anyone who we could get in on an emergency loan. To get a quality keeper at this stage of the season would be impossible and therefore Lehmann is Arsenal's best option.

 Jens will bring some seriously needed experience and leadership to the side that could hopefully help us claim the Premier League title. He is the sort of character that will say it like it is and some of the players need a character like this in the side. For example Andrey Arshavin who looks very lazy at times, Jens will tell him as he simply doesn't care what the players think of him. He may no longer be the goalkeeper he once was but he can't of lost much of his talent. After all he was part of the invincibles side and I'm sure if he did play he would be as good as or better than Manuel Almunia. As he is a goalkeeper his fitness won't be a major issue but I'm sure he has stayed fairly fit since retiring last summer.

 Therefore I hope the singing of Crazy Jens goes through in the near future. He could be exactly what the side needs to take them over the finish line and win the Premier League. Also I would love to see Jens play for Arsenal at White Hart Lane one more time and I believe Arsene should pick Jens for the big games against Tottenham, Stoke and Manchester United.

Manchester United 2-0 Arsenal Player Ratings

Arsenal put in a good display against United on Saturday but it wasn't enough to keep us in the competition. Once again Wilshere and Nasri were superb but none of the players were clinical in front of goal, and as a result we are now only left in the Premier League.

Manuel Almunia 6/10
An average performance from the Spaniard. Made a couple of mistakes but also made some brilliant saves.

Bacary Sagna 6/10
A fairly good game for the Frenchman but wasn't at his best.

Johan Djourou 6.5/10
A solid game for the Swiss International but he has unfortunately picked up an injury which could keep him out for the rest of the season.

Laurent Koscielny 6.5/10
 A solid game for the French center back

Kieran Gibbs 6/10
Not the Englishman's best game but didn't make many mistakes and is after all very young.

Denilson 6.5/10
Looks better when paired with Jack Wilshere and will need to continue to play well whilst Alex Song is injured.

Jack Wilshere 7.5/10
Dominated the midfield in the early stages and once again a very impressive performance for the Englishman.

Abou Diaby 7/10
Played well at the beginning but faded out of the game in the second half.

Samir Nasri 8/10
A great game from the Frenchman, attacked with intent and was unlucky not to get many scoring chances.

Robin Van Persie 6.5/10
Struggled to have a big influence on the game.

Andrey Arshavin 6/10
Looked good going forward but was once again far too lazy when tracking back.

Man Of The Match: Samir Nasri
Arsenal's best player by far. He has been all season and long may his sparkling form continue.

Manchester United 2-0 Arsenal

Arsenal were knocked out of a third competition in less than two weeks at Old Trafford yesterday. It was a closely fought match and it was the best Arsenal have played at Old Trafford for years. However it still wasn't enough to clinch a draw or even a win due to an excellent display by Edwin Van Der Sar in the United goal. Arsenal dominated possession and created many chances but we were awful in the final third of the pitch and simply couldn't score. United sat back for the majority of the game and hit Arsenal on the counter attack, this strategy worked perfectly for United and they scored two goals at very important stages of the game.

 The game began with Arsenal having most of the ball and taking advantage of having the extra man in midfield. Abou Diaby played in Cesc's advanced midfield position and had plenty of the ball and linked up well with Van Persie. Gibbs had also came in for Clichy at left back as the youngster needs games to continue to progress as a footballer. Rafael had the first good chance of the match and really should have put United in the lead. However not long later in the 27th minute his twin brother managed to score after a cross from Rafael. Arsenal had another couple of chances towards the end of the first half but failed to score after Van Der Sar made some brilliant saves especially from Samir Nasri and Robin Van Persie.

 The second half began with Antonio Valencia making his return from injury for Man United. Rooney moved out to the left hand side and Man United now matched Arsenals 5 man midfield. Van Der Sar saved brilliantly from Koscielny twice and Arsenal really should of equalised at this stage of the match. However Rooney scored a second for United shortly after, giving Arsenal a near impossible task to reach the semi final at Wembley Stadium. Arsenal had no choice but to go for it and Chamakh, Rosicky and Ramsey were all brought on to try and take the match to a replay at the Emirates. This gave United more space and they nearly scored a third but Almunia made a superb save to stop United from increasing their lead. More importantly however Johan Djourou suffered a horrible injury in a collision with Bacary Sagna. The match was stopped for about 8 minutes as Johan received medical treatment and oxygen while on the pitch. He was clearly in pain and it has turned out he has dislocated his shoulder and will miss the rest of the season. This is a huge blow to our title chances as we haven't lost a Premiership match where Johan has played all 90 minutes.

 All in all it was a disappointing day for Arsenal but at least the side played well and it was a vast improvement over Tuesday night where we were destroyed by Barcelona. We are now just left in the Premier League and will have to be at our best to lift the trophy. We only have the one competition to concentrate on unlike United  and we won't be playing more than the one game a week. This should give the squad more time to recover but our injury list is still one of the biggest in the league and we need players such as Song and Vermaelen to recover as quickly as possible.

Manchester United VS Arsenal Preview

Arsenal are taking on Manchester United at Old Trafford this evening with a Wembley Semi-Final at stake. Neither team are on a good run of form after Arsenal were knocked out of the Carling Cup and Champions League and United have lost their last two league games in a row. Arsenal's squad is now well and truly injury stricken with Szczesny and Fabregas both picking up injuries at the Nou Camp. This is the starting XI I believe Wenger will pick for todays Quarter Final at Old Trafford.

Goalkeeper
 Manuel Almunia will have to come in for the injured Wocjech Szczesny. He isn't exactly a fans favourite but he now has the chance to guide the team to winning trophies such as the FA Cup and the Premiership.

Right Back
 Bacary Sagna will continue at right back and will hopefully have a better game than he did against Barcelona.

Centre Back
 Laurent Koscielny will partner Johan Djourou at the heart of Arsenal's defence. Despite conceding 3 at the Nou Camp they played well and I believe they will have another good game against United today.

Left Back
Gael Clichy will continue at Left Back. He played fairly well against Barcelona but will need to improve today.

Defensive Midfielder
Denilson will start in place of Abou Diaby. Diaby was poor on Tuesday and Denilson is a more defensive minded player.

Central Midfielder
Jack Wilshere will continue in midfield for the Arsenal. He has been superb this season and he will show this again at Old Trafford.

Attacking Midfield 
Samir Nasri will start in the central role against United. He has been magnificent this season and he will have to show this again in the absence of Cesc Fabregas.

Right Wing
Nicklas Bendtner will start on the right hand side for Arsenal. He missed the golden opportunity at the Nou Camp and will hopefully make amends this evening.

Centre Forward
Robin Van Persie, will start up front for the Arsenal. He has the potential to win us the game and will hopefully have a better game than on Tuesday.

Left Wing
Andrey Arshavin will start on the left hand side replacing Tomas Rosicky who was very poor on Tuesday.

 This will be a tough game for both sides and I believe it will finish 1-1 and the tie will then be decided at the Emirates Stadium, controversially on a Friday evening.

Barcelona 3-1 Arsenal Player Ratings

Arsenal were defeated by the superb Barcelona at the Nou Camp on Tuesday evening. Barcelona deserved the victory and they got it with ease, some of the Arsenal players were brilliant despite the 3-1 defeat especially Wilshere and Nasri.

Wojciech Szczesny 7/10
Kept a clean sheet but was then forced off due to injury. The injury looks like it could be long term and as a result Arsene is looking to bring in a goalkeeper on an emergency loan as Almunia is all we have left at the moment.

Bacary Sagna 6/10
 The right back didn't have a great game but was solid in defence and dealt with the threat of Pedro well.

Johan Djourou 7.5/10
 Commanding at the back for the Arsenal. If it wasn't for his good performance Barcelona would have scored far more than the three they did.

Laurent Koscielny 7.5/10
 Despite giving away the penalty he also had a really good game. Along with Djourou he stopped the score line from being an embarrassment.

Gael Clichy 6/10
 Defended well but was caught out of position on many occasions by Dani Alves. Ended up playing more as a centre back due to Barcelona's style of play.

Abou Diaby 6/10
Struggled to have any influence on the game and was dominated by the likes of Xavi and Iniesta.

Jack Wilshere 8/10
Another superb performance from the young Englishman. Despite playing at the Nou Camp he was still superb and he once again showed a strong combative side to his game.

Cesc Fabregas 5.5/10
 The Captain clearly wasn't fit and struggled throughout to have an impact. He injured his hamstring again in the 15th minute and he should of came off for the sake of the team. He is very important to Arsenal and we need a fully fit Cesc Fabregas if we are going to win the Premier League. Also made a dreadful mistake to set up the first Barcelona goal.

Tomas Rosicky 5/10
I have no idea why Arsene picked the Czech international over Arshavin as he simply offers nothing to the team. Was lazy when tracking back and didn't do anything at all with the ball.

Robin Van Persie 6/10
Didn't look fully fit but I can understand why Wenger risked him. He never deserved to be sent off and I'm glad he said his true feelings in his post match interview.

Samir Nasri 7.5/10
An energetic display from the Frenchman. Was just as important covering for Clichy as he was going forward. Also won us the corner from which we scored.


Substitutes


Manuel Almunia 8/10
Made some outstanding saves to keep the score only at 3, but his attempt to save the penalty was truly pathetic.

Nicklas Bendtner 5/10
So much for being the best player in the world. In stoppage time he was presented with an easy chance to win us the tie and make himself a hero with the fans, but after all this is Bendtner and he missed.

Andrey Arshavin 7.5/10
Looked lively when he came on late in the match, and he really should have started the game.

Man Of The Match: Jack Wilshere
Once again a fearless performance from the youngster showing he belongs at the top level.

Barcelona 3-1 Arsenal

Simply too good for the Arsenal.

Last night Arsenal were defeated 3-1 by Barcelona. To begin with Barcelona were simply the better side and fully deserved the victory and Arsenal didn't deserve to go through to the quarter finals. Barcelona were at the top of their game at the Nou Camp and were completely unplayable. The way they kept possession and pressed Arsenal to win the ball back was incredible and they fully deserve to go on and win the Champions League hopefully beating Tottenham on the way to the final. It is clear to see for everyone that Barcelona were superb, but no matter how good they were it is no excuse for how poor Arsenal were at closing Barcelona down and trying to create chances. We did not have a single attempt on goal and that one stat sums up Arsenal's night perfectly.

 Wenger took a huge gamble by starting both Robin Van Persie and Cesc Fabregas. Neither of our star men were at their best and they both appeared to be unfit. I can fully understand why Wenger started both of these star players as we wouldn't have had a chance without them but they didn't play well at all and hardly touched the ball. Robin Van Persie was however involved in the major talking point of the game when he was on the receiving end of maybe the most stupid sending off I've ever seen. Van Persie described the decision perfectly as 'a joke' and his post match interview is simply a must see. I'm not blaming the poor refereeing for Arsenal losing but I'm pretty sure that Robin Van Persie would of easily scored the chance Bendtner got at the end to send Arsenal through to the quarter finals.

Wilshere getting stuck in.

 The match began poorly for the Arsenal with Barcelona dominating possession and creating an array of chances. Jack Wilshere saved the side early on with a superb interception to keep the tie at 0-0. Then in the 18th minute nightmare struck for Arsenal as Wojciech Szczesny saved a Dani Alves free kick and injured his finger in the process. He immediately knew he was injured and on came the fans favourite Manuel Almunia, who has always been awful against Barcelona. For example the Champions League Final and last year when Messi scored four past him. In all honesty he went on to have a fairly good game which was a huge surprise to me. The first half continued with Barcelona in total control and Arsenal rarely got into Barcelona's half. Then disaster struck in stoppage time as Cesc Fabregas gifted his hometown club with the chance to take the lead. It was a stupid moment for the captain as he tried to back heel the ball to Wilshere on the edge of the box, Iniesta took full advantage weaving through the Arsenal defence, providing Messi with the chance to take the lead. It was a truly world class goal as Iniesta danced through the Arsenal defence and then Messi finished superbly.

'A JOKE'

 The second half began in much the same fashion with Barcelona continuing to dominate the game and close down Arsenal at every opportunity. Then Nasri did brilliantly to win Arsenal a corner which Sergio Busquets superbly scored in his own goal. At this point in the match it was vital that Arsenal scored and were well and truly back in the game despite being made to look like non league players by Barcelona. However shortly afterwards Van Persie received a very soft red card. He was flagged offside but still took his shot, the ref saw this as him kicking the ball away and sent him off. Now Robin claims he didn't hear the whistle, in all honesty he probably did but he had already started to strike the ball when the ref blew the whistle and he simply didn't deserve to be sent off. From here on it all went wrong for the Arsenal, Iniesta set up Xavi to make the score 2-1 and then Koscielny gave away a penalty which Messi scored comfortably. Manuel Almunia didn't make any effort to save the penalty and it was an embarrassing attempt to stop Messi from scoring, he simply just stood in the middle of the goal, letting Messi score easily. Arsenal were now 3-1 down but we still only needed 1 goal to go through on the away goal ruling. Wenger reacted by bringing Bendtner and Arshavin on to try and win the game but nothing was created until the very end of the match. Wilshere played an outstanding pass to Bendtner who was through on goal and he should have scored the winner. But of course this is Bendtner so he obviously messed it up, and let the Arsenal fans down once again. For someone who says he 'is the best player in the world', he should have scored with ease but he fluffed his big chance and will now be even more disliked by the Arsenal fans. I guarantee Van Persie would have scored but he had been stupidly sent off. However if we had scored a late minute winner it would have been very unfair on Barcelona, who over the two legs were the far better side and deserved the victory.

 All in all Arsenal defended superbly despite letting in three goals and can be proud of their performance. Especially the likes of Wilshere and Koscielny who once again proved they are good enough to start for the side every game. I believe Barcelona would have beaten anybody, considering how superbly they played last night and Arsenal shouldn't be too down over the loss. They lost to the best team in the world and in my opinion they are the best team of all time at keeping the ball and pressing the other team to win the ball back.
At the end of the match Wenger told the referee exactly what he thought of him and has been charged as a result. I believe Wenger had a right to have a go at the ref, and in a way it made the loss more bearable seeing Arsene nearly fight the referee at the end. Van Persie's interview was also brilliant, its not often a footballer says exactly what he thinks and I congratulate Robin for being honest on his opinion on the Swiss referee.

Go on Arsene

Arsenal will need to bounce back from this as we are still in two competitions with a great chance of winning both. Firstly we need to defeat United in the Fa Cup, which would leave us as the strongest side in the competition. We are also in a great position in the Premier League and in my opinion the League is Arsenal's to lose. I'm sure the players will bounce back as they will know they were beaten by the world's best, and not a single team in the Premier League comes close to the level of Barcelona.

Why Arsenal can reach the quarter finals tonight

Arsenal face Barcelona this evening in an incredibly exciting game of football. Arsenal hold a 2-1 advantage after a brilliant first leg and are in a great position to progress to the next round. Barcelona do however have the crucial away goal and I believe it is vital that Arsenal score this evening to wipe out the away goal Barcelona have. This would also mean Barcelona would have to score three times to win the tie as a 2-1 victory for the Catalan giants would only take the game to extra time. I believe Arsenal can progress to the next round for a number of reasons,including the vital return of Robin Van Persie and Cesc Fabregas.


1) Puyol and Pique are both out of tonight's game
    Barcelona's two first choice centre halves are out of tonight's game and this is great news for the Arsenal. They are the best centre back pairing in the world in my opinion, and proved this by winning the World Cup for Spain. It is a huge boost for Arsenal as it means Eric Abidal is likely to be paired with the holding midfielder Sergio Busquets at the back. Neither are experienced centre backs and hopefully Arsenal can take advantage of this.

Pep Guardiola must of missed the first match.

2) Jack Wilshere
Pep Guardiola has been saying in the press that he has many players of Wilshere's ability in his reserve side. This isn't at all true and he is saying this just to get at Arsenal and specifically young Jack himself. In the first leg Jack bossed the midfield and didn't look at all out of place playing against the likes of Xavi and Iniesta. He has been immense this season and has progressed remarkably into a world class footballer. I believe he will impress again tonight and hopefully score the winner to shut Guardiola up. 


3) Arsenal's solid defence
  Arsenal's defence has played well this season under the guidance of the young keeper Wojciech Szczesny. Johan Djourou and Laurent Koscielny have formed an excellent partnership and this season the trio have kept many clean sheets whilst playing together. In the league we have conceded 3 goals less than United who supposedly have the strongest defence and goalkeeper in the league. Laurent Koscielny is suited perfectly to playing against Barcelona due to his incredible anticipation and brilliant tackling technique. After all last year Mikael Silvestre played who has the turning circle of a bus and Lionel Messi was always going to tear him apart, this wont happen with Djourou and Koscielny. 

4) The return of Francesc Fabregas
   To the relief of all Arsenal fans, the highly influential captain has recovered from injury in time to face his hometown club Barcelona. He is an incredible footballer who Barcelona are clearly very keen to buy in the summer. He brings a technical level to Arsenal that nobody else possesses and he has the ability to dominate the midfield and win the tie for Arsenal. He is also as close as Arsenal have to a true leader, and the rest of the team will be very pleased to be led out by the Spaniard this evening at the Nou Camp. 


5) Robin Van Persie...

The flying Dutchman was meant to be out for at least the next four weeks but he has made a miraculous recovery and has traveled with the rest of the squad to Barcelona. He was pictured yesterday in full training with the rest of the side and later on in the day Arsene confirmed he would fly to Barcelona and undergo a late fitness test. Wenger also said he will only play if he is fully fit and he isn't going to risk injuring the fragile forward again. I however believe he will feature at least from the bench as they wouldn't have bothered taking him to Barcelona otherwise. It is worth the risk as Robin is a world beater, and he will be up against a left back and a holding midfielder in defence for Barcelona. It is clearly a great opportunity for our best forward to play against a weakened defence and I would take the risk even if he was only 80% fit. He is hugely influential and is in sparkling form and has the ability to take Arsenal to the quarter finals.


 Arsenal should progress to the next round due to the one goal advantage and the fact that Barcelona have their two first choice centre backs out of the match. However all the Arsenal players will need to be at the top of their games to beat the world's best team, but they will never get a better chance to defeat the Catalan giants. 

Robin Van Persie in the Arsenal squad to face Barcelona

It's true Robin Van Persie is a surprise inclusion in the Arsenal squad to face Barcelona tomorrow evening. This was unthinkable yesterday but even if he is on the bench tomorrow evening it is a huge boost for the team. Maybe it was all part of a Wenger masterplan to fool Barcelona? The official Arsenal website broke the news, and Arsenal's chances now look far better with Van Persie, Fabregas and Wilshere all travelling to Barcelona.

The Flying Dutchman is back.

Is Robin Van Persie about to make a shock return for Arsenal?

Robin Van Persie may be in line for a shock return to the Arsenal squad. Wenger recentely ruled the Dutchman out of action for about four weeks. However pictures of the first team training ahead of the Barcelona game on Arsenal.com, clearly show that Robin Van Persie has returned to training. He appeared to be taking part in a full training session and was clearly training with the rest of the first team squad. Is Wenger about to surprise everyone by unleashing Robin Van Persie against Barcelona tomorrow evening? Surely it is too good to be true but he is definitely going to be returning soon and will not be out for four weeks. We shall find out later tonight when the squad list is announced, whether or not the Dutch striker is travelling to Barcelona. It will be great news if he is even on the bench for the Arsenal but I believe he will return on Saturday to face United as surely Barcelona is too soon?

Barcelona VS Arsenal Match Preview

Arsenal face Barcelona tomorrow evening in what should prove to be a brilliant game of football. In the first leg Arsenal were superb and defeated the Spanish giants 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium. For much of the game Barcelona were on top but Arsenal scored two late goals, to take a 1 goal lead to the Nou Camp. This is a crucial advantage but Barcelona do have a very valuable away goal.


   I believe it is crucial that Arsenal play their normal game and go for the win at the Nou Camp. Despite having the lead, Arsenal of all teams would struggle to defend the lead if they just sat back, especially when you are playing against Barcelona undoubtedly the best attacking side in the world. Arsenal just need to play their natural game and try to score the all important away goal. If we fail to score at the Nou Camp I'm sure Barcelona will win the tie as I simply can't see Arsenal keeping a clean sheet, especially when the midfield enforcer Alex Song is missing due to injury. Alex Song along with Theo Walcott and Robin Van Persie will miss the game due to injury and this is a huge blow to Arsenal's chances. All three are very important players for the side but Arsenal will simply have to cope without them. Abou Diaby will most likely replace Alex Song in the midfield, he is a very similar player and is powerful and quick. This could be key against the likes of Iniesta and Xavi and in the absence of Theo, Diaby could provide some much needed pace for the Arsenal side. It will also be a huge night for Nicklas Bendtner who like last season will spearhead the Arsenal attack as Robin Van Persie is once again injured at a crucial stage of the season. Barcelona also have many players missing including Puyol and Pique, giving Arsenal a great chance against a defensive partnership likely to include Busquets and Abidal. 


  Every single one of the Arsenal players will need to be at their best to defeat Barcelona and reach the quarter final. We are once again the underdogs and Barcelona are the favourites to go through. However there are many results that would put Arsenal through to the next round. Any draw non-scoring or scoring will be enough for the Arsenal and of course a victory would take us to the quarter finals as well. We can also lose the game 2-1 and take Barcelona into extra time and even a 3-2 defeat would take us through on the away goal rule. I believe the 90 minutes will end with Arsenal losing 2-1 and as a result the game will go into extra time and maybe even penalties. You can't predict who would win in this situation and both times would go into extra time with a 50-50 chance of winning. Arsenal will need to be at the top of their game to even take the game into extra time but the players definitely have the ability to get a positive result at the Nou Camp. Samir Nasri and Jack Wilshere for example have been superb this season and we also now have a goalkeeper who we can trust in Wojciech Szczesny. For many of the players this will be one of the biggest games of their careers and we will soon find out if they can step up their game and defeat the world's best ever team on their home turf. Here is the starting XI, Arsene Wenger is most likely to select to face Barcelona in the Nou Camp. 

Goalkeeper
Wojciech Szczesny will continue in goal for the Arsenal. Despite the Carling Cup final he has been immense this season and I'm sure he will cope with the pressure he will be under at the Nou Camp.


Right Back
Bacary Sagna didn't feature in the last leg due to being suspended. He will now however replace Emmanuel Eboue, to the relief of some Arsenal fans. 


Centre Back's
Johan Djourou will play alongside Laurent Koscielny in the Arsenal defence. They will both be key against the outstanding Barcelona forwards, and if Koscielny is half as good as he was in the first leg, we will be in with a great chance of victory. 

The 4-2-3-1 Arsenal formation.

Left Back
Gael Clichy will continue at left back, and will also need to play superbly to deal with the likes of Lionel Messi.


Defensive Midfield
Abou Diaby will replace Alex Song in the Arsenal midfield. He will be very important in the absence of Song and will hopefully showcase the talent we all know he has but rarely shows. 


Centre Midfield 
Jack Wilshere will continue in the midfield and will need to form a new partnership with Abou Diaby. Along with Koscielny if he plays half as well as he did in the first leg he will be proud of his performance. 


Attacking Midfield 
The Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas has been given a 90% chance of starting by Arsene Wenger. This is a huge relief to the Arsenal faithful as he is simply our best player. Without him we would really struggle and it is great news he will be leading the team out at the Nou Camp. He is crucial to our chances and can hopefully play at his best against his hometown club.


Right Wing
Samir Nasri will start on the right hand side against Barcelona. He played well in the first leg and will be key to our chances tomorrow night.

He scored last year, can he this year?

Centre Forward
Nicklas Bendtner is like Marmite. Some Arsenal fans love him and some simply hate him. He is however more likely to start than Chamakh and will lead the Arsenal attack against Barcelona. It is clear to see he is very talented and this will be the perfect stage for the 'best striker in the world' to showcase this to the world. I have confidence in Bendtner at the moment and I don't think he will let the side down at the Nou Camp. I also believe he won't win us the game and that the more likely match winners are Cesc and Samir. 


Left Wing
Andrey Arshavin the hero from the first leg will be in the starting XI for the second leg and Arsenal fan's will be praying Andrey Arshavin will be at his best like he was when he came off the bench at the Emirates. He will be a key player for the Arsenal and has the capability to win us the game. 

Arsenal 0-0 Sunderland Player Ratings

Arsenal failed to defeat Sunderland at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday afternoon. The majority of the team played well but none of the players, played well enough to provide Arsenal with a much needed victory.

Wojciech Szczesny 8/10
A return to form for the young goalkeeper. He made two vital saves towards the end of the match to stop Arsenal from losing the match.

Bacary Sagna 6.5/10
A solid display from the French full-back.

Laurent Koscielny 7.5/10
Solid in defence but he also contributed going forward for the Gunners.

Johan Djourou 6.5/10
Played well despite picking up a head injury during the match.

Gael Clichy 7/10
Was poor defensively but brilliant when going forward.

Abou Diaby 7/10
A good game for the lanky midfielder. Defended and attacked well.

Denilson 4/10
Poor from the Brazilian. Lacked energy and played many poor passes.

Jack Wilshere 8/10
Another good game from the youngster. Played in a more offensive role and didn't look out of place at all.

Samir Nasri 8/10
A good display from the Frenchman. Was very unlucky not to score on two occasions.

Nicklas Bendtner 6.5/10
Not awful from the Danish Centre Forward but wasn't able to take the chances he was given to win Arsenal the game.

Andrey Arshavin 7.5/10
A bright performance from the little Russian. Should of scored a hat-trick in the second half. On one occasion he shot straight at the keeper, was pushed on another and incorrectly ruled offside on the third.

Man Of The Match: Samir Nasri
Not his best ever display for the Arsenal but still a strong performance,was very unlucky not to score the winner.

Arsenal 0-0 Sunderland

This was an important match in Arsenal's season but they failed to get the win and ended up drawing 0-0 against a Sunderland side they should really be beating at this crucial stage of the season. Arsenal dominated the whole match and had many easy chances to clinch the much needed victory. There were also two referring decisions that clearly went against Arsenal. Andrey Arshavin was pushed in the box and this warranted a penalty. Not much later he scored a legitimate goal that was wrongly called as offside. Wenger was disgusted with these decisions, but his own players should also take the blame as they wasted a variety of easy chances as well. Luckily for the Arsenal it has turned out to be a very valuable point, as United have now lost two games in a row. We are now just 3 points behind with a game in hand, this is a very strong position to be in this late in the season.

Laurent Koscielny and Wojciech Szczesny returned to the starting line up after their Carling Cup final disappointment. In the absence of Fabregas, Wilshere was played further forward and Nasri played from the right hand side. Arsenal started the game fairly well, but most of their attacks came on the counter attack. This was a problem for the Arsenal especially when we were lacking the pace of Theo and the creative influence of Cesc. Nicklas Bendtner was inches away from scoring when Gael Clichy put a good cross into the penalty area. Later on in the 35th minute Samir Nasri nearly scored a superb solo goal as he drifted through the defence into the 6 yard box. It was a difficult finish from a tight angle and even Nasri was going to struggle to score from there.

Chamakh hitting the crossbar. 

The second half began with Arsenal once again dominating possession but struggling to create any chances. As a result of this Wenger replaced the poor Denilson with Chamakh in a very attacking move. The Moroccan nearly made an instant impact when he broke through the Sunderland defence providing Arshavin with a chance he really should have scored. Not long after Andrey Arshavin nearly scored again but as he struck the ball he was pushed by Titus Bramble and as a result his shot went wide. It could have easily been a penalty but in all honesty was a tricky decision for the referee. This is because he was nowhere near the incident and couldn't keep up with play at all. How was he supposed to see if it was a penalty when he was nowhere near the ball at the time? Soon after this Andrey Arshavin was once again the victim of a poor decision. He scored a brilliant goal but it was wrongly ruled offside. The replays showed he was marginally onside, and this just added to Wenger's frustrations.

Bendtner's day summed up.

 All in all this was a disappointing afternoon for the Arsenal but it was still a valuable point especially after United lost to Liverpool today. Arsenal can't just blame the poor referring decisions as they still had chances to win the game themselves. The two decisions were however inexcusable, but Nicklas Bendtner's miss at the end was also inexcusable. We are now only 3 points behind United with a game in hand and are well and truly in the title race. The team must now regroup for an incredibly important game against Barcelona on Tuesday. We are expected to lose the game due to the amount of injuries but Barcelona will also be without their two first choice centre halves.

Arsenal VS Sunderland Match Preview

Arsenal face Sunderland in a crucial Premier League fixture at the Emirates Stadium tomorrow afternoon. It is a great chance for Arsenal to close the gap on Manchester United to a single point. Despite Sunday's disappointment we are in superb form and should be able to defeat Sunderland in a must win fixture tomorrow. Once again the injury curse has hit Arsenal at the crucial end of the season. There are many players who will be missing tomorrow including, Song, Fabregas, Walcott and Van Persie. This is a big blow for the side but hopefully the fringe players will step up like they did on Wednesday against Leyton Orient and pull out the victory to give us an excellent chance to win the Premier League. Aaron Ramsey has also returned to the squad but will most likely play a role from the bench towards the end of the game. This is great news as  he is a very talented footballer and will undoubtedly be better than Denilson has this season.  I am now going to look at the starting XI Wenger should choose for the important match.

Goalkeeper
Wojciech Szczesny will return in goal after being rested for the Orient game. He will need to forget the disappointment of his error on Sunday and continue to play as well as he has been for the rest of the season.

Right Back
Bacary Sagna will return at right back. He has been solid this season and will hopefully continue to do so on Saturday.

Centre Back's
Laurent Koscielny will return from injury to partner Johan Djourou at the back. Despite Sunday the duo have been incredible at the back and long may this continue for the Arsenal.

Left Back
Gael Clichy will return at left back and will no doubt now have an eye for goal after his brilliant effort on Wednesday.

Defensive Midfield
Abou Diaby will fill in for Alex Song in the more defensive midfield role. He is a very talented player and will hopefully showcase this in the next couple of very important games.

Centre Midfield
Jack Wilshere will return to the centre of midfield after a game off on Wednesday. He will still be disappointed because of Sunday but will be able to put this behind him and play as well as he has been this season.

Attacking Midfield
Samir Nasri will start in the Cesc Fabregas role for the Arsenal tomorrow night. He has been superb this season and hopefully this can continue.

Right Wing
Nicklas Bendtner will start on the right-wing for Arsenal. He was brilliant on Wednesday and hopefully can score a couple again.

Centre Forward
Marouane Chamakh will start in the absence of Robin Van Persie. He scored on Wednesday and this should inspire him to play like he did at the start of the season for Arsenal.

Left Wing
Andrey Arshavin will return to Arsenal's left wing tomorrow. He played well against Birmingham and hopefully will produce again.

 This team should defeat Sunderland despite missing some key figures. It is still a strong side and I believe this will show through in a 3-1 victory for the Arsenal.

Arsenal 5-0 Leyton Orient Player Ratings

Arsenal comfortably defeated Orient 5-0 at the Emirates on Wednesday evening. Nicklas Bendtner scored a hat trick along with Chamakh and Clichy picking up a goal each. Hopefully Nicklas Bendtner will be able to continue in this form against Sunderland and Barcelona in two more very important matches.

Manuel Almunia 7/10
 For once the Spaniard had a good game and didn't let the side down like he did when we drew at Leyton Orient.

Emmanuel Eboue 7/10
A good display from the Ivorian right back. Defended well and also got forward on occasions to help the Arsenal forwards.

Sebastien Squillaci 7/10
An improved display from the Frenchman. Appears to have built a strong partnership with Ignasi Miquel.

Ignasi Miquel 7.5/10
A very confident and assured display from the young Spanish Centre Half.

Kieran Gibbs 7/10
The young Englishman had a good game and looks set to be Clichy's long term replacement.

Abou Diaby 7/10
Good to see the Frenchman back. He played well and will be a key player when we face Barcelona as Alex Song looks like he will miss the game due to injury.

Denilson 6.5/10
An average display from the Brazilian. Played some good passes but I believe Abou Diaby makes him look better than he really is.

Tomas Rosicky 7/10
A confident display from the Czech International. One of his best games for a while.

Connor Henderson 7.5/10
The youngster looks to be a good player and certainly made a good impression on his debut.

Nicklas Bendtner 9/10
A brilliant game for the Danish Centre Forward. Took all his goals superbly especially his glorious second goal.

Marouane Chamakh 7.5/10
A return to form for the Moroccan forward. Has needed a goal for a while and hopefully this can give him some much needed confidence.

Man Of The Match: Nicklas Bendtner
May well have been his best game for the Arsenal. Played superbly and fully deserves the man of the match award. Hopefully he can do the same against Barcelona and Sunderland.

Arsenal 5-0 Leyton Orient

Arsenal emphatically defeated Leyton Orient 5-0 at the Emirates Stadium last night to set up a mouthwatering quarter final at Old Trafford. Arsenal needed to bounce back from the disappointment of Sunday and they well and truly did so against Orient. Arsene rotated the side and gave Connor Henderson his Debut,and Ignasi Miquel his home debut. Therefore this wasn't Arsenal's strongest side and it also included reserve Keeper Manuel Almunia. Nicklas Bendtner also started in the absence of Robin Van Persie and was in top form scoring a superb hat-trick to give the fans more confidence in him.

 Arsenal started the game well, dominating possession and Marouane Chamakh scored an early goal, his first in 14 games. It was a well taken goal and will be a huge confidence boost for the Moroccan, and will hopefully inspire Chamakh to play like he did at the beginning of the season for the Arsenal. Connor Henderson was involved in the build up and he looks like to be another typical Wenger player who is very confident on the ball. Tomas Rosicky got the assist and this could also be a confidence boost for the Czech Republic international. Leyton Orient had a couple of good chances to equalize but Almunia made some good saves much to the surprise of the Arsenal faithful. Nicklas Bendtner was looking his typical self until towards the end of the second half. In the 27th minute Kieran Gibbs crossed for Bendtner to score a great header, which is something we simply don't see enough of from the big Dane. Bendtner then scored an excellent second goal, curling the ball into the bottom corner and leaving the Keeper with no chance whatsoever.

 Arsenal continued to look in control at the start of the second half and Kieran Gibbs won the side a penalty in the 62nd minute. Obviously Bendtner took the penalty and scored confidently to secure his second hat-trick for the Gunners. Tomas Rosicky was later substituted after suffering concussion, it was a disappointment as he had been playing well and looked far better than he did on Sunday. Gael Clichy then scored a late goal for the side, with a well placed finish into the bottom corner. This was only the French defender's second goal for the club but he finished it like he'd been scoring goals his whole career.

Chamakh scoring the important opener. 

 All in all this was a good game for the team, and would of reinstalled confidence throughout the side. Especially the fringe players who haven't played well lately, for example Squillaci and Eboue. The whole side played well and we will now face Manchester United in a tough quarter final. In my opinion the main plus point of the game was Nicklas Bendtner scoring a hat trick. It means he is now in good form and this is what we need when Van Persie is injured and we have many important games ahead of us, including a trip to the Nou Camp.

Arsenal Vs Leyton Orient Match Preview

Arsenal face Leyton Orient in a Fa Cup replay at the Emirates Stadium this evening. The side will need to bounce back from the disappointment of Sunday and there will be some players rotated especially with another two important games straight after tonight's must win game.

Goalkeeper
Manuel Almunia will be starting as according to Wenger he needs games. I would pick Szczesny myself as it would be ideal for him to play straight after the disappointment of the cup final, also Almunia is well and truly useless.

Right Back
Emmanuel Eboue will replace Sagna at right back for tonight's game. This will keep Sagna fit for the tough games ahead.

Centre Back's
Wenger has said that Koscielny will miss the game through injury and that he could do with a rest. Therefore Squillaci will partner Djourou at the back against Orient.

Left Back
Kieran Gibbs will probably start at left back giving Gael Clichy a well needed rest.

Defensive Midfield
Alex Song will continue in the defensive midfield role this evening.

Central Midfield
Denilson will start ahead of Wilshere who could do with a rest, he will be on the bench however.

Attacking Midfield
Wenger has said that Diaby will play in the absence of Fabregas, as he didn't want to risk him in the cup final.

Right Wing
Samir Nasri will start on the right wing due to the Walcott injury.

Centre Forward
Van Persie is once again injured and Bendtner will start in his absence. Hopefully he can perform as well as he is capable of and not like he did at the weekend.

Left Wing
Andrey Arshavin will start again on the left for Arsenal. He played well at the weekend and hopefully this can continue for the little Russian.

This is a weakened side but should have the quality to defeat Leyton Orient at the Emirates tonight. It will be tough but the quality should shine through and I'm predicting a 3-1 victory for the Gunners.