Already, the gauntlet has been thrown to us in the Champions’ League by Porto keeper Helton who insists they will beat us over two legs. He said;
“We’ve been watching Arsenal’s last few games closely and they’re not as strong as they’ve been in recent years. That can be to our advantage. The tie is very balanced. We certainly don’t see Arsenal as the favourites. We’ve not had much luck against the English clubs in the last few seasons Now is the moment for to break that run of set-backs and reach the Champions League quarter-finals.”
“We’ll settle with a 1-0 victory in the home leg because we truly believe we will score in The Emirates Stadium when we visit London. Without Emmanuel Adebayor and the injured Robin Van Persie in attack, Arsenal are not as explosive in attack. Arsenal have a good squad but I believe that we will defeat them this season.”
This could only mean one thing; that we’ve got a massive game on our hands as once your opponents refuse to show fear it means they are prepared to take you on. They’ve got an attacking monster in Hulk and a clinical finisher in Falcao so unless we can stop their offensive threat before it takes off, I don’t believe Almunia will stand a chance in one on one situations with either of the two. A consolation might be the fact that due to a lengthy domestic suspension, Hulk may me short of some sharpness which might just edge the offensive battle in our favour.
It is in games like this that the importance of physical players like Bendtner, Diaby and Song come to the fore. On Diaby, the boss was eager to point out reasons why we need him to be fit at all times.
“Diaby for me is the player who is going step-by-step higher and standing really as a strong player. He offers height and a physical presence. It gives us the pair with Alex Song and even when Denilson plays, when Diaby is there we look strong in the challenges and strong in the air as well. When you add Nicklas Bendtner and him, suddenly when you set-up on set pieces, who do we have? We have four or five who really can jump for the headers and it makes a difference. He gives us goals as well – a fantastic contribution. It is great and he scores important goals as well.”
I noticed he didn’t mention Fabregas in the comments rather preferring to say “..and even when Denilson plays”. With all this speculation over the future, the boss will be foolish not to plan for life without Fabregas in his mind either through long term injury or a possible departure to Catalunya. While I think he will stay, I believe that one day we may get an offer we cannot refuse, and whether it is in the summer or two years down the line, its best we are prepared for the worst. It’ll only make us stronger.
Shifting thoughts back to the Porto game, you’ll agree with me that most of the goals we’ve conceded of late have been as a result of poor defensive performances rather than a reflection of the quality of the opposition. This is something Cesc Fabregas has highlighted recently, he said;
“In the past few years, we have been doing very well, but whenever it comes to important moments, maybe we haven’t been up where we need to be. We have always tried to play our football, but the goals we have conceded lately have come from defensive mistakes.”
Essentially on the big stage, we have faltered defensively. Could it be a mental thing where we see that there is a win to be had and we switch off defensively forgetting that not only do you start the attacks from behind, you also start the defending from the front. You should be able to figure that one out if you’ve got half a brain!
Speaking after the win against Liverpool, the boss shared his thoughts on our defensive attributes. He said;
“We know that when you go to Porto you need a solid defensive performance. I was reassured on Wednesday – that was maybe the biggest part of our game against Liverpool. We looked solid defensively for the first time in the last three big games, and that was vital before you go out for a Champions League game. I believe in the first leg our defensive performance will be important because against Manchester United and Chelsea we were 2-0 down after 20 minutes and that is massive in games. So let’s keep our defensive discipline we had against Liverpool and I am sure we can score when we play.”
Well said Arsene! I believe he’ll have more to say on the topic when he speaks to the press tomorrow or Wednesday. There is a hint of caution though as he also talks up the quality of the opposition. He said;
“Porto is a tough draw. They don’t look like a prestigious team but every year they are in there and they can surprise people. They have been playing very well recently.”
In some other news, it has emerged that Liam Brady will be stepping down from his role as Assistant Manager of Ireland in April. He said;
“The decision to end my involvement with Ireland has been taken in light of my continued work as Director of Youth Development at Arsenal. The Ireland role required me to be away a lot of time and although Arsenal made it clear they would have been quite happy for me to continue, I have decided it is not right in the circumstances to remain in position after I complete my contract this April.”
I have my thoughts on why he did but I won’t speculate. I’ll be fine if it was because the thought of having to work with Robbie Keane drove him raving nuts!
I’ll close with news that The Premier League has launched a proposal that the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th teams in the Premiership will have to face post-season play-offs with a place in the Champions League at stake. That’s something I’m staunchly against as it’s really more about the extra money it would generate and less about the football. A spokesman for the FA had this to say;
“The play-offs would mean extra matches, which would be sold to pay-television and so generate more money for all clubs.”
Rubbish! What happens if the fourth team finishes with 79 points and the fifth to 7th could at best gather between 65 and 57 points. Is that fair for them?
Food for thought; we better finish third or better then!
Till next time…Victoria Concordia Crescit!
