Posts Tagged ‘Arsenal’

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Arsenal update: Mixed news about Jovetic, Strootman mulling over a move

By Stefano on March 25th, 2013
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Tomorrow night Arsenal and England fans will get a chance to see how Fiorentina striker, Stevan Jovetic, will cope with Premiership defenders as his Montenegrin team faces England in a World Cup qualifying game.

The player, who is apparently Arsenal’s number one striking target, has also been making positive noises about a move from Serie A to the Premiership.

In response to a question about how he is being stalked by a number of English clubs Jovetic reoplied

“It sure is nice when you are interesting big clubs like Arsenal and Manchester City.

“It feels good because the English game currently has probably the strongest league in the world.

“I’m very comfortable in Italy but the Premier League is at the top of the football world – and perhaps the best.

“We will see what happens in the future.”

So that’s cause for optimism, for Arsene Wenger. However the The Express warns that if Arsenal want to land their man they will need to stump up more money that they have ever spent on a player. The paper suggests that Juventus and both Milan clubs are keen on the player and the bidding may start at £25 million and head northwards.

Meanwhile Caught Offside has an update on a player who has been linked with Arsenal for some time. Kevin Strootman of PSV, a defensively minded midfielder who also has a habit of scoring, has said that he is mulling over a transfer.

He said

“Every transfer window there are clubs interested. But a club must speak to me first.”



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Arsenal update: Vela to return? PSG to move for Wenger?

By Stefano on March 22nd, 2013
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Carlos Vela was undoubtedly one of the biggest disappointments of the Wenger era. A hugely talented player with bags of potential, he just never seemed to fit in at Arsenal and Gunners fans only witnessed the real Vela in short bursts.

So that makes it all the more intriguing that several papers are speculating that Arsene Wenger is about to activate a buy back clause in the player’s contract and ship him back from Real Sociedad.

Apparently the buy back clause is a mere £4 million – so it wouldn’t make too much of a dent in the club’s £70 million kitty.

Vela is playing well too. So far this season he has scored 12 times in 26 appearances for the club and been pivotal in Sociedad’s campaign this year which sees them in fourth place in La Liga with Champions League football next year a real possibility.

As for whether the player wants to return – Vela has been giving out mixed messages. In February he said that he wouldn’t rule out coming back to London, but also said that he most wanted to stay in Spain.

£4 million for a player in this type of form is a real bargain. So could he be Arsenal’s Michu?

I really can’t see this happening. Even if he does return – and it could be almost against his will – will he replicate that form in the Premeirhsip? I am not sure he will. Maybe Remy, who was linked yesterday is a better cut-price striker deal.

Meanwhile TalkSport are running with a story that PSG are set to try and nab Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.

The cash rich Parisians know that Wenger has just 13 months left on his current deal and that he has stated that he won’t leave Arsenal until the end of that time.

However PSG are rumoured to be looking to replace Carlo Ancelotti. So is Arsene going home? Well a lot depends on where Arsene thinks home is these days? The manager has been in London for over fifteen years and before that managed in Monaco (who at the time were one of PSG’s biggest rivals) as well as Japan. I am not sure that Paris is ‘home’ for Wenger anyhow.

The manager has stated that he wants his last job in football to be boss of the French national side, and I don’t think the PSG job is going to detract him from pursuing that and finishing with a trophy next year at Arsenal.

Besides is Ancelotti really on his way? With PSG now top of the French league and in the last eight of the Champions League he seems to be keeping his side of the bargain.



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Football

Remy? Samba? Are Arsenal sizing up a raid on QPR in the summer

By Stefano on March 21st, 2013
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So will QPR escape relegation this season? My heart says yes, but my head thinks they might be heading for the drop.

And if Rangers return to The Championship there might be some significant plundering for Premiership managers on the hunt for a bargain or two, and Arsene Wenger is likely to be first in the queue.

QPR have three players that he has chased with in the past and they could significantly strengthen the Arsenal squad for not an especially huge outlay. And they would probably all sign for The Gunners even if they don’t have Champions League football next season.

Arsenal’s interest in Christopher Samba is well documented. And I think that he could well be the player the Gunners turn to if, as expected Ashley Williams, arguably the team’s number one target joins his ex-boss at Liverpool. His wages might be an issue, but possibly less of one if as expected Arsenal junk their strict wages policy.

Then today The Daily Express is reporting that French striker Loic Remy has a clause in his contract that will allow him to walk if QPR go down.

The paper says that Remy could be available for as little as £4million. The player has scored three times in his six appearances for Rangers and has a reputation from his days in France for being an energetic and deadly finisher.

Arsenal have a trio of strikers – Park, Bendtner and Chamakh – who will leave in the summer and if Wenger does opt for his number one target Stevan Jovetic, he will still be in the market for an out and out striker. Remu would certainly fit that bill.

Finally there’s Junior Hoilett, a player who has had a chequered career at Rangers but is still young – he is 22 – and Wenger (who has expressed his admiration for the player in the past) may feel that he could do a job for Arsenal.



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Football

Arsenal update: Corchia and Rangel lined up to replace Sagna, Benteke news

By Stefano on March 21st, 2013
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It now seems almost certain that Arsenal right back Bacary Sagna will be leaving the club in the summer window with PSG among the favourites to land the player.

But who will Arsenal line up to replace him? The big decision for Wenger is whether to promote the promising England youngster Carl Jenkinson, or to buy a first choice right back.

Goal.com claims that Wenger is set to buy a right back who can challenge Jenkinson and that Sochaux’s Sebastien Corchia and Swansea’s Angel Rangel are top of the list for now.

Corchia has represented France at Under-21, Under-19, Under-18 and Under-17 level, but ironically is being kept out of the full French team by Sagna. He has had an excellent season and at 22 is slightly older than Jenkinson.

If Wenger wants to plump for experience then 30 year old Rangel would be the better option. He has a contract until 2016.

One Premiership player that has certainly caught the eye this season is Aston Villa’s Christian Benteke. There are ongoing whispers that Benetke is keen to move to the north London club and his form of 22 goals this season in 37 appearances means that he is on many managers shortlists.

Benteke’s Belgian colleague Romelu Lukaku has called for compatriot Christian Benteke to quit Aston Villa at the end of the season.

Lukaku said:

I hope Christian will make a move to a big club so he can improve his game as well.

So would a player with Premiership experience be the answer upfront for Arsenal?



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Football

Worrying stats highlight Arsenal’s poor form when Thomas Vermaelen starts

By Stefano on March 20th, 2013
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vermealen graphic

So Arsenal fans – tell me what you think about Thomas Vermaelen? It seems pretty clear now that Arsenal’s captain is very much Wenger’s third choice centre back behind Mertesacker and Koscielny. And to make matters worse for Vermaelen both players have been talking recently about how they are committed to the club and see their future in London.

Conversely the Belgian defender hasn’t had the best of seasons and his performances have been dogged by poor positional play, wayward passing and misunderstandings with his partners. In spite of this he has apparently caught the eye of the scouts from Barcelona who, if sources are to be believed, have penciled him in as the next player to move from The Emirates to the Nou Camp.

Here then is a quick snapshot of what Arsenal have been like with and without Vermaelen this year courtesy of WhoScored.Com. In some ways it is a slightly skewed view as he has obviously played many more games than he has missed. Nevertheless there is the emergence of a trend that shows that Arsenal’s defences are meaner without the Belgian. And when he has not started Arsenal have not lost a game.

I do wonder if the Mertesacker and Koscielny pairing will be a standard fixture (unless one of them gets injured) until the end of the season. Vermaelen’s dip in form could mean that he becomes the next player to exit The Emirates.



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Football

Arsenal update: Stevan Jovetic’s stats look impressive, Fernando Amorebieta keen to join

By Stefano on March 20th, 2013
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If you have never checked Squawka out you really should. The website is an amazing source of stats on players and its blog houses some wonderfully insightful posts too.

The latest player to get the Squawka treatment is Arsenal’s supposed number one target Stevan Jovetic. The site has looked at his stats so far this season and then tried to weigh up where he would play for Arsenal, and is he the right man to lead them to a trophy or two next season.

Of course stats only ever tell apart of the story, but it clearly is a interesting read.

The slightly concerning part for me at at least was that it suggests that Jovetic would operate best as support striker behind the main man – presumably Giroud. Isn’t this where Arsenal get the best value from Cazorla though?

Maybe Wenger has plans to turn Jovetic into a more out and out striker. Anyhow with a return of 12 goals from 24 games he has had a pretty good season so far. The site also says that he has created 48 chances and has a passing accuracy rate of 78% which is a little lower than several Arsenal players.

Here’s the chart that shows where the shots have come from.

jovetic-shots

Also this afternoon the Express is reporting that Fernando Amorebieta of Athletic Bilbao is keen on a move to The Emirates, the tough tackling Venezuelan central defender has been sidelined a little at Bilbao this season and is keen to look for a new challenge.

According to The Express

The Venezuelan’s brother told Spanish paper Marca: “We have had contacts with Anzhi, who are very interested in his services, but given the desire to play in England, that move cannot take place.

“We are in contact with Arsenal.



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Football

Arsenal update: Alexis Sanchez for Thomas Vermaelen swap? Striker Carr on radar

By Stefano on March 20th, 2013
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There’s more buzz about the Alexis Sanchez to Arsenal transfer this morning with several papers suggesting that the Barca winger/striker is one of Arsene Wenger’s top targets for the summer.

Wenger has been helped in his quest by the former sporting director at Udinese, Fabrizio Larini, the club where Sanchze made his name.

Larini thinks that his former protege should join The Gunners because their style of football complements the way that Sanchez plays.

“Sanchez needs to play the ball on the ground, just like Arsenal. That would be his ideal game. I do not know his current situation at the Spanish club. But his fitness problems have definitely limited his performances.The only thing that these teams will have to consider is that he is a player who needs freedom to play his way. In teams that have particularly rigid patterns of play he might have a few problems,” Larini said.

Several papers are also suggesting that one way of bagging Sanchez would be to include him as part of a swap deal for Arsenal centre back Thomas Vermaelen. The Belgian has been out of sorts this season so a new start in Spain might appeal to him.

The Mail also reports that Arsenal are tracking the Dulwich Hamlets striker Daniel Carr. The player, who the paper claims is one of the hottest prospects in non-league football, was apparently on his way to Liverpool but Arsenal are keen to hijack the move.



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Italian website says Arsenal will raid Barca for players. But might Man City cast offs be a better bet

By Stefano on March 19th, 2013
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It is a story that has been bubbling under for a few days now, but a number of sources are now saying that Arsene Wenger is looking at buying a job lot of Barcelona players in the summer.

The latest news source to confirm The Gunners’ growing interest in players from the Catalan club is Italian website Tutto Mercato.

It suggests that Wenger has his eye on winger Alexis Sanchez, defender Martin Montoya and former Gunners midfielder Alex Song.

Song, we know all about. His Barcelona sojourn has been a disaster and the player is keen to get back to the Premierhsip. Arsenal is the obvious port of call, but both Song and Wenger will have to resolve some of the issues that precipitated the player’s move to Spain last summer. I wonder if there are better, more defensively minded holding midfielders to be considered, but I don’t think too many Arsenal fans will be too disappointed to see Alex return.

As for Sanchez, great things were predicted for the Chilean when when he landed at Barca, but they just haven’t materialised. These days he is marginalised as a squad player which is waste of his undoubted talents. With Arshavin out the door in the summer he would be an obvious replacement.

The article also mentions Barca defender Martin Montoya, but it could also have namechecked keeper Valdes and that man Villa.

I guess that Barca still owe Arsenal a fair chunk of cash for the Song and Fabregas transfers and that offloading a few players would be quick and easy business for them. But then again I thought that might be the case with Villa in the winter window too.

As much as all five are great players and would undoubtedly grace any future Arsenal team I wonder if Arsene Wenger would be better off shopping closer to home. Man City are supposedly on the verge of a huge clear out and there are several players that would be ideal for Arsenal. Unlike the Spaniards they have lots of Premiership experience and unlike a lot of the current Arsenal team they are used to winning trophies.

So Micah Richards, Joleon Lescott, Edin Djeko and even old boys Kolo Toure and Sami Nasri are worth looking at, especially if Arsenal don’t make the Champions League cut this season.



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Arsenal update: Chelsea star is shock target, Jovetic update, how bad is Wilshere injury?

By Stefano on March 19th, 2013
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Arsenal’s search for a keeper in the summer continues and the latest name to be linked with a move to The Emirates is a real surprise.

IB Times says that top of the list is Chelsea’s 30 year old stopper, Peter Cech.

The theory runs like this. Chelsea want to replace Cech with a younger keeper and have just the man in Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who is currently on loan at Atletico Madrid.

Cech may then leave in search of regular first team football and may fancy a move across the capital.

To be fair I am not sure that Chelsea would sell Arsenal on of their key players – the only player in recent time to have gone from being a blue to a red was Yossi Benayoun who the Gunners had on loan not long ago.

Also there are plenty of other names on Arsenal’s keeper wants list from Bergovic to Valdes. We’ll have to wait and see.

The Metro says that Arsenal are facing increasing competition in their bid to sign electric Montenegro striker Stevan Jovetic. Wenger is reputed to be willing to pay over £20 million to land the Fiorentina striker, however the player’s form has alerted both Man City and Juventus. Jovetic has scored 12 times in 27 appearances this season.

Interestingly England football fans will, get a chance to see how good the player is as he will start in the Montenegro team that takes on England in the World Cup qualification game next week.

Finally the old rumours about Jack Wilshere injury are back. ESPN are reporting that the club has hit back against those who believe that Wilshere might be out for the rest of the season.

“Nothing has changed in Jack’s recovery, there’s no setback or further damage to his ankle and no concern about any long-term problems.Jack was told to rest and we are still on course for him to resume training and be available for selection for the home game against Reading.”

Then again yesterday we looked at how Santi Cazorla is responding to playing in the middle again and whether playing the two of them together might be a problem.



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Arsenal update: is Cazorla more effective without Wilshere?

By Stefano on March 18th, 2013
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Ok, so it is just a theory, but it seems to be one that more and more Arsenal fans are discussing and that is the possibility that Arsenal aren’t always at their best with both Santi Cazorla and Jack Wilshere in the team.

And trying to accommodate them both might not be in the club’s best interests.

So here’s the theory. Cazorla is a wonderfully versatile player. This season Wenger has played him on the left wing, as a conventional central midfield player and in the hole behind the striker. He has also wandered on to the right wing from time to time.

In theory his versatility makes him a manager’s dream. However Cazorla seems to be at his most comfortable when playing in the middle of the park pushing forward, not stuck out on the wing. And that’s a position that suits Jack Wilshere’s game too.

The difference between the two is that Wilshere is excellent at making runs from deep positions carrying the ball with him past midfielders. With Cazorla, his bursts are shorter, but he is better than the Englishman at wiggling his way into goal scoring situations, and at the moment that is something that is sorely lacking in the Arsenal team.

Against Bayern Cazorla was pushed out left again to accommodate Rosicky and ended up having a quiet game. Against Swansea, with a more central position, he was able to make those trademark runs and get into stronger attacking positions.

What Cazorla is genius at is getting close to the box and then taking on defenders or threading balls through to other attackers. He did it many times in the game against Swansea and looked Arsenal’s best player by far.

Without Wilshere it gave Wenger the option of adding a more defensively minded midfielder to work with Arteta. On Saturday it was Diaby, who to be fair had a poor game. Ramsey has played in this position recently and looked very solid.

What potentially is an option for Arsenal going forward is to link Cazorla up to a more mobile striker – Jovetic being the current favourite, but it needs to be a striker with pace and great positional sense (which aren’t really Giroud’s strengths). The pair could be deadly for Arsenal next season.

I should add that Arsenal looked fairly strong until Wilshere’s return, although admittedly they had lost a couple of games just before he came back. Also on several occasions this season Wilshere has been the only Arsenal player worthy of wearing the shirt.

The big question remains though – where does Wilshere fit in? He is surely wasted as a defensive midfielder.

If Wenger can work out to get the best of them playing together Arsenal will boast an incredible midfield.

As for the short term I wonder how often we will see Wilshere again this season. So maybe Wenger needs to play Ramsey alongside Arteta (thereby also offering more protection for the defence) with Cazorla pushed right through the middle?

Who knows? Maybe that Champions League position is attainable after all.



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Football

Is the David Villa to Arsenal story dead if Barca offer him a new contract?

By Stefano on March 18th, 2013
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The Daily Mail this morning is running with a story that Barcelona are about to offer Arsenal target David Villa a new contract. The 31 year old was hankering for a move in the transfer window as injuries had pushed him down the Catalan club’s pecking order.

However after some excellent recent performances the club have decided that they want the striker to stay at the Nou Camp and the Mail says that a contract extension – his contract expires in 14 months is on the cards.

So should Arsenal fans be concerned? I don’t think so.

Villa would have been a superb addition to the squad on loan during the winter window and I think his goals would have guaranteed a CL placing for the Gunners. However the team needs some new younger striking blood, and as he is likely to be priced out of Napoli’s Edinson Cavani Arsene Wenger has identified Fiorentina’s 23 year old Stevan Jevetic as a more suitable long term replacement for Robin Van Persie.

I think the door on the Villa transfer for Arsen Wenger shut over a month ago. Besides if Arsenal fail to quality for the Champions League I can’t imagine that Villa would sign anyhow.

Of course the story may have more twists and turns, especially if Vila is dropped again.

But I don’t think Wenger cares too greatly now anyhow.



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Football

Arsenal update: Vorm in, Mertsesacker out…

By Stefano on March 18th, 2013
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Arsenal’s search for a keeper continues and the latest name to be thrown in the ring is the man who they put two past on Saturday.

Arsene Wenger is apparently now keen on Swansea’s Michel Vorm ,who at the very least would be a replacement for Lukasz Fabianski and may even supersede Wojciech Szczesny as the Gunners’ long term number one.

He wouldn’t be that cheap though. The player has three years left on his contract and several other clubs, including Barcelona, are apparently interested too.

Meanwhile German club Wolfsburg have targeted Arsenal’s Per Mertesacker for a summer move. The defender, whose performances have been inconsistent for The Gunners this season, would be reunited at the club with their sporting director Klaus Allofs who previously signed the player for Werder Bremen in 2006.

Allofs said

“Everyone knows what I think of Per. If he is for sale, he will always be of interest. He was the leader at Bremen and I also believe he is the leader in the Germany team. If he is for sale, he will always be of interest.”

There is a strong possibility of a serious shake up of Arsenal centre backs in the summer with Thomas Vermaelen allegedly a target for Barcelona.



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Arsenal update: Wenger names squad for Swansea – more injuries

By Stefano on March 14th, 2013
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Arsene Wenger has just given Arsenal.com the scoop on who is in the squad for the game against Swansea this weekend, and it isn’t great news.

Firstly none of the players already out are going to be back for the crucial tie.

Wenger said

‘Sagna and Podolski will not be back. And Wilshere, as we know, is out as well. So the only one who will come back is Monreal because he was not qualified for the Champions League.’

Monreal’s return is of course a massive relief because guess who is injured again? After playing very well for much of the game against Bayern, Kieran Gibbs is going to get the weekend off

Wenger said

‘I think he will be out on Saturday. He had a little reaction on his thigh. He is not injured but we have to be cautious with it. He might be out.’

On everyone else Wenger said

‘Apart from that everyone who played [at Bayern] should be OK. There are bumps and bruises after a game of that intensity but that should be it.’

The game against Swansea could define the season for Arsenal. Dropping any points at all could see them start to drift behind Chelsea and Spurs in the race for Champions League places. Arsenal last played at Swansea in the FA Cup earlier this year where they managed to secure a draw. The season before The Swans won 3-2 in a very memorable game.

Interestingly Swansea also have a game against Spurs coming soon.

 



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Could Arsenal profit from the Man City clear out? Dzeko, Barry, Nasri?

By Stefano on March 14th, 2013
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A few weeks back I wrote a story about why Man City’s Sami Nasri should be mulling over a return to the Emirates. I was expecting a huge amount of negativity about the prospect from Arsenal fans, but weirdly enough in the poll that ran with the article a majority of Gooners wanted to forgive and forget and would welcome the player back.

Well according to the Guardian Nasri is one of several high profile players who are on their way out of The Etihad in the summer.

The paper suggests that Carlos Tevez, Gareth Barry, Edin Dzeko and Samir Nasri head a group of 11 whose futures are in doubt.

This is because of the huge pressure on Roberto Mancini to compete with his rivals from across the city. The players simply aren’t deemed good enough any more.

So might Arsenal be in a position to profit from the release of one or more of the players?

I think that it is unlikely that Arsenal will qualify for the Champions League next season. It will be close but I think next season will be all about rebuilding a side that will ensure a top four finish and go on to mount a series Premiership challenge in the 2014-15 season. So the club needs players who will guarantee that the team qualifies for the Champions League next year as well as providing the building blocks for something better.

An awful lot of these players have done just that with City. Sure they may have been attracted by the huge wages, but they helped take city from middle table to Premierhsip winners.

What Arsenal need at the moment is three things. Leaders, winners and players who have excelled in the Premiership. Man City are offering players that have all three of those attributes.

So yes I would welcome Nasri back and Wenger has been a long term admirer of Edin Dzeko too. Kolo Toure, and especially Garth Barry could well be very useful squad players whose bags of experiences could help bring on Ramsey, Wilshere, Jenkinson and the rest of the Gunners’ youngsters.

As much as I would love Arsenal to spend £70 million on marquee signings – they simply won’t be able to compete with their rivals for Jovetic and Falcao. The club need a degree of stability in the Premiership and the Man City cast offs could certainly help them there.



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Arsenal fans – what would be a good result tonight? Can we scrape a win?

By Stefano on March 13th, 2013
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There were a few brief moments a couple of days back when I saw a glimmer of hope. I looked at that Bayern team sheet and thought, well no Ribery, Robben or Schweinsteiger. Several of the players that inflicted so much damage at The Emirates are missing. If only Giroud could oblige us with an early goal, then maybe just maybe.

Sadly that brief flame of optimism was extinguished as soon as it became clear that Jack Wilshere would be sitting by the pool in his Dubai hotel not bursting through the Bavarian defence.

The enormity of the task facing the Gunners tonight has been emphasised by two key points.

1 Bayern Munich have won all three of their home games in the competition this season and scored an impressive 12 goals. they have let in three. Arsenal would need to double that figure were they to progress.

2 Not even Arsene Wenger believes that Arsenal have a prayer. He might have said ‘football is football and that anything is possible’ at his press conference. But choosing to bench so many of his star players Wojciech Szczesny, Per Mertesacker, Santi Cazorla and Theo Walcott suggest that he isn’t banking on it.

So Gunners fans what would be a ‘result’ for Arsenal tonight?

Are you in the ‘anything as long as we don’t hammered’ camp? Or do you think that Arsenal could at least score and maybe even get a draw in the Allianz Arena?

Or is a win a possibility?

Let us know in the poll



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