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. |
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? |
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.
No comments:
Post a Comment