CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
Arsenal 2 - 1
A second win for the Gunners in the first round, first leg of the coveted Champions League. They have been very successful at home in the Premiership but have found it difficult to make it through to at least the semi-final stage of the Champions League. They are not short of talents, with Thiery Henry, Pires, Bergkamp and Ljungberg, it is quite a fatal combination to the opponent when all of them are on the field - at least in the Premiership. But when it comes to Champions League, they are just minnows.
I have been an Arsenal supporter for as long as I can remember. Season 2005-2006 is going to be tough for them after losing their inspirational captain Patrick Vieira to Juventus. They really need to buck up and stop unnecessarily dropping valuable points in games they should theoretically win such as the one against West Ham last weekend. When all the players gel together, they play beautiful free-flowing football. But somehow last weekend they found it hard to find the goal-mouth. With both Henry and Pires injured, Wenger could only send in young second-string players as the first-elevens. Fortunately they managed to pull through with a goalless draw. Not so good a result, but good enough considering they were playing an away game.
Hleb is a best buy of the season (actually, he is the only buy). He blends very well with Arsenal’s attacking football and his skill with the ball has won him instant admirers at Highbury. A young player like him, together with Reyes, Quincy, Flamini, Van Persie and Fabregas will ensure Arsenal dominate the Premiership for many years to come. Talking about wishful thinking.
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