Barca -v- Arsenal, Champions League Q/Final 2nd Leg

Kirnsy

Is iniesta in or out lads for certain?

This will either be glorious or painful.

'This is Sparta' moments will be needed to make it the former:)

tony1kenobi

Iniesta is in the Barca squad.

Kirnsy

tony1kenobi wrote: »

Iniesta is in the Barca squad.

Fuck.

I had said earlier in this thread that id love to see him v arsenal but that was only if w3e had Rvp Fab and Arsh. Cheers God

tony1kenobi

Kirnsy wrote: »

Fuck.

I had said earlier in this thread that id love to see him v arsenal but that was only if w3e had Rvp Fab and Arsh. Cheers God

Bendtner had nothing to do with it.He was busy with Easter.

Gillington

That doesnt make for good reading alright.According to wikipedia Fabregas went with Eto'o Puyol and Iniesta to "visit" the club which is weird

Kirnsy

tony1kenobi wrote: »

Bendtner had nothing to do with it.He was busy with Easter.

if he could ressurect arsenal that would be impressive....so far not so good, looks like we're going to be crucified really....

L'prof

Galvasean wrote: »

No Song guess that means.

---

Sagna--Campbell--Vermaelen--Clichy

---

Denilson

---

Diaby

Walcott

---

Nasri

---

Eboué

---

Bendtner

FYP

tony1kenobi

Kirnsy wrote: »

if he could ressurect arsenal that would be impressive....so far not so good, looks like we're going to be crucified really....

I think we'll either be destroyed or we'll destroy them....hopefully the latter with Theo and Nas going apesh*t...........can't see a nil nil anyway.

Frisbee

My feelings of expectation for this game are hugely diminished as opposed to this time last Wednesday.

Ush1

eZe^ wrote: »

It's crazy man, in like 12 hours things have become twice as worse for ye, and twice as good for us. It'd be an absolute shame if the tie was sh*t because of injuries.

Ah c'mon, Messi running at Campbell is guaranteed entertainment!

Frisbee

Ush1 wrote: »

Ah c'mon, Messi running at Campbell is guaranteed entertainment! sending off

Redzer7

Really don't feel comfortable without Song What a player.

Ush1

Frisbee wrote: »

I really like Campbell but Messi is just mental.

I have this vision of Clichy and Campbell doubling up on him and Campbell being so late with a lunge that Messis gone and he hacks down Clichy by mistake, but then I remembered Verm is the left sided CB. Ah well...

gandalf

Look after last Wednesdays display Arsenal should be out of this tie totally. We aren't. There is no pressure on us, judging from this thread no one expects us to progress and every one not only expects Barcelona to win, they expect them to win handsomely and with style.

If we can survive the first 15 minutes without Barca scoring then I think its going to be a very interesting evening indeed. 90 minutes, all square (I have a feeling away goals are not going to be deciding this tie) there is everything to play for still with all the pressure and expectation on Barcelona.

Nothing to lose for Wengers boys this evening and everything to gain.

Frisbee

deadtiger wrote: »

Nothing to lose for Wengers boys this evening and everything to gain.

That's about the only bonus I can think of.

No-one expects us to win so the pressure is off which we can hopefully use to our advantage.

Spiritoftheseventies

Think Arsenal have a half decent chance here.

Ush1

Frisbee wrote: »

That's about the only bonus I can think of.

No-one expects us to win so the pressure is off which we can hopefully use to our advantage.

Yep, Arsenal just have to go at Barca.

If Marquez starts for Barca, I'd give Arsenal a 90% chance of scoring. If Toure starts at CB, that chance is alot less.

Pepe LeFrits

Jesus, that injury list is ****ing ridiculous.

I didn't hold out much hope beforehand, but that's just... ffs.

Frisbee

Pepe LeFrits wrote: »

Jesus, that injury list is ****ing ridiculous.

I didn't hold out much hope beforehand, but that's just... ffs.

We still have God though, that's what's most important.

gimmick

Being the eternal pessimist that I am, I can see Barca fecking this up something massive.

But, If Barca play like against Bilbao the other night, there will be no problems.

Arsenal will score tonight definitely.

Frisbee

If I were to have a guess at the line up’s I’d say:

---

Almunia

---

Sagna

---

Campbell

---

Vermaelen

---

Clichy

---

Nasri

---

Denilson----Diaby

---

Walcott

---

Bendtner

---

Eboue

-V-

---

Henry

---

---

Pedro

---

Messi

---

---

Keita

---

Busquets

---

Xavi

---

Abidal

---

Milito

---

Marquez

---

Alves

---

Valdes

---

If Iniesta is fit I’d expect him to replace Keita. Bojan /Henry for the first XI could be either really. Bojan will probably get the nod.
If Rosicky is fit I’d expect him to replace Eboue or Walcott. Campbell is still a fitness worry so it could well be Silvestlol at CB but I’d imagine it will be Campbell.

From an Arsenal POV there’s plenty of negatives to look at:

No Cesc.
No Gallas.
No Song.
No RVP (although we’re used to that at this stage)
Already given away two away goals.
Barca are pretty awesome at the Nou Camp so it’s going to take something very special from the team to not end up on the end of a drubbing, especially after last weeks display for the first 60 minutes.

Positives:
No Pique or Puyol.

And to be honest that’s about it.

The fact that it’s going to be Milito and Marquez at CB is definitely something we can exploit. Marquez has been a disaster when’s he’s played this year. Milito has integrated back into the squad very well after being out for so long through injury but the fact that they don’t have a huge amount of experience and understanding playing together is a bonus. They’re not the fastest CB pairing either so Eboue/Walcott on the wings could take big advantage of that. Plus neither are the biggest of CB’s, so if it comes down to it we can always use ‘Plan Bendtner’.

I haven’t included Shava being injured in the negatives as to be honest I don’t feel he’s that big a loss at the moment. He’s showed glimpses of his brilliance but to be honest his head doesn’t look in it at the moment, he tends to wander through games contributing very little and his moments of magic are becoming less and less frequent. We can’t afford any passengers in this game and at least Eboue will run his socks off.

I’m hoping Rosicky will be fit to start and if he is he should go on the RW. Eboue would be great to have out on that LW and he’ll occupy Alves all game. Rosicky being fit to start would be a huge bonus as it would allow us to spring Theo on a still not 100% match fit Abidal for the last 20 when he’s going to be reaching bollixed and Theo can use his pace against him. Abidal is fast, but a tiring Abidal won’t be able to keep up with a fresh Walcott. As per usual Walcott’s end quality has to be much better than it generally is but if he can get in the positions it will come.

Nasri is going to have to bring his A-Game tonight. He usually plays well when played in his preferred role in the centre as he demonstrated well against Porto at Home and when he came on against Wolves at the weekend. He’s a very tricky player and has the ability to make space for himself and make something happen but he’ll need help from Diaby and Denilson.
Denilson is never going to be as good in the Anchorman (LOUD NOISES!) role as Song but he’s a tidy player who can win the ball back for his team and his distribution is usually excellent. His eye for the odd long range goal would be very useful tonight but I’d be worried about his decision making. Against Wolves on Saturday we broke and had a 4-on-1, Denilson left his position to race forward and make it a 5-on-1, wolves then broke it down and had a chance at the other end. Considering we just went 1-0 with a minute or two to go he really shouldn’t have gone forward there, it’s exactly the kind of thing he can’t do against Barca.
Diaby was absolutely muck at The Grove, we really need a big performance from him tonight. Much better than the first leg anyway where it seemed every time he got the ball he was being hounded by invisible midgets he fell over that much. I expect he’ll be asked to sit slightly deeper than usual to give Denilson a dig out and provide the back 4 with a little extra cover after the loss of Song. This will free Nasri up even more to have a free role.

Given the fact that Ibra isn’t fit and it will be Henry/Bojan starting is going to cause more problems for Campbell than Ibra would have. Obviously Ibra has the ability to saunter rings around Campbell but he’d be better equipped to deal with him than someone with pace coming at him as Bojan/Henry will.

Nicklas Christ Superstar – Just keep doing what you’re doing.

If Henry could score an accidental OG or two that would be fantastic too.

Gonna say 4-2 Barca. We’ll take the lead early, have a lot of pressure, not take our chances and end up being routed with a late Eboue consolation goal.

Pepe LeFrits

A front three of Walcott, Bendtner and Eboue. In Camp Nou.

Walcott.
Bendtner.
Eboue.

In Camp Nou.

gimmick

No way should Henry start for Barca tonight. I know the alternative is have 3 midgets, but they are all in form, while Henry is hoplessly out of form. Plus, I wiould genuinely question his heart against Arsenal.

SDTimeout

I think we will go 2-0 up myself and the wave of barca will come.

Little stay on sky today barca never won in the nou camp against english oppo . 4 draw and a loss at the hands of risse and bellamy. So i'm assuming god can bring that to 2 losses.

SDTimeout

Pepe LeFrits wrote: »

A front three of Walcott, Bendtner and Eboue. In Camp Nou.

Walcott.
Bendtner.
Eboue.

In Camp Nou.

We are really cursing the fact we've let JET go on loan to doncaster now!:pac:

Frisbee

Pepe LeFrits wrote: »

A front three of Walcott, Bendtner and Eboue. In Camp Nou.

Walcott.
Bendtner.
Eboue.

In Camp Nou.

Well we could always start Merida or Eduardo or Traore...

Merida to score and knock Barca out of the CL in the absence of the other Catalan boy missing the match. That would be nice.

Ush1

SDTimeout wrote: »

I think we will go 2-0 up myself and the wave of barca will come.

Little stay on sky today barca never won in the nou camp against english oppo . 4 draw and a loss at the hands of risse and bellamy. So i'm assuming god can bring that to 2 losses.

Unfortunately Messi plays for Barca though.:D

Ush1

gimmick wrote: »

No way should Henry start for Barca tonight. I know the alternative is have 3 midgets, but they are all in form, while Henry is hoplessly out of form. Plus, I wiould genuinely question his heart against Arsenal.

Agree.

Also, I can't help but think Marquez hasn't been sold as he's just a nice guy and has a good set piece? I'd MUCH rather Toure at CB with Milito. Toure is stronger and has more pace, granted he's carrying a minor knock but I'd defo have him ahead.

gimmick

SDTimeout wrote: »

Little stay on sky today barca never won in the nou camp against english oppo . 4 draw and a loss at the hands of risse and bellamy. So i'm assuming god can bring that to 2 losses.

Meh, and Messi never scored against English opposition before the CL final last year, and Ibra never scored in the knock out stages.

Plus, didn't Barca kick the crap out of Man U in the 90s int he Camp Nou??

Pepe LeFrits

Is Merida in the squad? I can't find it anywhere. Flew out to Greece on Sunday night and have been incommunicado until now.

A couple of days ago I was thinking about this game and I went through the various positions in my head, deciding who I'd play. Once I'd done them all I realised that I'd chosen a front three of Eboue, Bendtner and Walcott and started laughing. Given their form it's not actually that bad, but in terms of reputation it's rather comical.

Song out is a big blow. I think I might actually prefer a front three of Rosicky/Eduardo, Bendtner and Eboue to start off with. Merida and Walcott would be good impact subs to have if we're still in the tie in the 2nd half.

SDTimeout

gimmick wrote: »

Meh, and Messi never scored against English opposition before the CL final last year, and Ibra never scored in the knock out stages.

Plus, didn't Barca kick the crap out of Man U in the 90s int he Camp Nou??

true they did. Selective era from sky sports i assume

greendom

If by some miracle, Arsenal do qualify tonight, it will be Wengers' greatest single achievement.

peabutler

greendom wrote: »

If by some miracle, Arsenal do qualify tonight, it will be Wengers' greatest single achievement.

You can be lucky and win one game, however to go a whole season unbeaten their has to be some ability, 49 games unbeaten is a better achievment.

greendom

peabutler wrote: »

You can be lucky and win one game, however to go a whole season unbeaten their has to be some ability, 49 games unbeaten is a better achievment.

I agree maybe I should have been clearer - when I said single, I meant for a single match

Kev_ps3

Come on the Barca! Hope they thrash em;)

leninbenjamin

Pepe LeFrits wrote: »

Is Merida in the squad? I can't find it anywhere.

Yeah, he is. Here's the squad according to Arsenal.com

Manuel Almunia
Lukasz Fabianski
Nicklas Bendtner
Eduardo
Abou Diaby
Samir Nasri
Denilson
Fran Merida
Theo Walcott
Craig Eastmond
Tomas Rosicky
Armand Traore
Emmanuel Eboue
Gael Clichy
Bacary Sagna
Thomas Vermaelen
Sol Campbell
Mikael Silvestre

Link.

Ush1

Just need Verm to get injured hopping off the bus now and it's the Campbell and Silvestre show!:pac:

Pacifico

We've no chance lol :pac:

Frisbee

leninbenjamin wrote: »

Yeah, he is. Here's the squad according to Arsenal.com

Manuel Almunia
Lukasz Fabianski
Nicklas Bendtner
Eduardo
Abou Diaby
Samir Nasri
Denilson
Fran Merida
Theo Walcott
Craig Eastmond
Tomas Rosicky
Armand Traore
Emmanuel Eboue
Gael Clichy
Bacary Sagna
Thomas Vermaelen
Sol Campbell
Mikael Silvestre

Link.

We could just go with an insanely pacey forward line of:

Traore

---

Walcott

---

Eboue

and see what happens sure.

leninbenjamin

Arsene Wenger wrote:

I've never had so many injuries before such a big game but that is why football is interesting. It is never boring.

Some more quotes here, here and another one of Sid Lowe's pieces here.

koHd

2-2.

Pens.

Almunia.

rainbow kirby

3-1 Barca, Messi to get at least 1. Barca will win, can't see them keeping a clean sheet though.

SlickRic

i would love to see Arsenal do it, just for the incredulous posting that would be going on in here during and afterwards.

but realistically, Barca are probably going to destroy them.

3-1. Bojan x 2, and Pedro. Bendtner consolation.

Ush1

Frisbee wrote: »

We could just go with an insanely pacey forward line of:

Traore

---

Walcott

---

Eboue

and see what happens sure.

Marquez would probably have heart failure...........if Arsenal manage to get that ball that is!:D

Hank Scorpio

Barca to win 4-1 or so

Boggles

koHd wrote: »

2-2.

Pens.

Almunia.

I'm on it.

80/1.

SlickRic

Boggles wrote: »

I'm on it.

80/1.

a hell of a price actually.

we should all be on that.

UnitedIrishman

Going for 3-1 Barcelona. Just can't see Arsenal dealing with Barca at home especially if they start in the same vain as they did at the Emirates. Cesc being out for Arsenal is a massive blow coupled with the 100 other squad members currently injured.

gimmick

I can honestly see Arsenal winning this 1-2

Frisbee

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2010/apr/06/barcelona-arsenal-champions-league

Sunday morning, Sant Just Desvern. Pep Guardiola walks into the dressing room at Barcelona's new training HQ armed, as ever, with information. The coach is mindful, though, not to overwhelm his players with detail. He gets straight to the point. "Everything he does is for a reason, he never says things for the sake of it," Xavi Hernández says. This time is no different: "Theo Walcott," Guardiola tells his players, "runs 100 metres in 10.37 seconds."

And there in a nutshell is the danger that awaits Barcelona, one that appears greater for the suspension of their first-choice centre‑backs, Gerard Piqué and Carles Puyol. Guardiola was tight‑lipped, but Gabi Milito will start and he is likely to be partnered by Rafa Márquez, although shifting Yaya Touré remains a possibility. The way Barcelona play offers the Gunners some hope; an unfamiliar and slower partnership at the heart of their defence increases it.

The argument that Barcelona are weak at the back, however, is false. They have Spain's best defensive record; Arsenal will have to score at Camp Nou, where Barça have conceded only eight league goals this season. Stuttgart and Internazionale could not score there. But Rubin Kazan did. Twice. There is a lesson there.

Parsimony comes through possession. For Guardiola, defending is not about building a wall or launching into heroic challenges – although his players are capable of doing that. It is about keeping the ball. To attack Barça, you have to have the ball; rarely will they let you have it. When they lose the ball, they fight to get it back, asphyxiating the opposition.

Last summer Guardiola spoke at a conference. Forget pass and move – the title was "Recovering Possession". Compromises have been an attacking tactic – in last season's Copa del Rey final, he ordered Piqué to receive on the by-line, making the pitch long, in order to suck Athletic Bilbao forward before moves could be built.

That brings its own risks. If the attack is the first line of defence, the defence is the first line of attack. The back four must build – Barcelona's first three goals against Athletic Bilbao on Saturday were created by full-backs – and the front three must destroy. Lionel Messi has committed as many fouls as Puyol; Pedro and Zlatan Ibrahimovic have committed more.

But Guardiola believes there is nothing more risky than never taking risks. He accepts the risk in the way Barça defend as something of a short-blanket syndrome – you can cover your head or your feet but not both at the same time. His commitment is steadfast. Dani Alves is more attacker than defender and Eric Abidal says, "I prefer defending, but here you have to attack too." That could prove profitable for Walcott's pace.

Barça take risks near to their own goal and their high back line leaves space behind. It does not necessarily take a particularly accurate ball to get men behind, especially if they are quick. And Walcott is "faster than all of our players together", Guardiola says. But he also says: "Football is not just about sprinting; you have to be able to do something with the ball, too."

Barcelona have conceded eight league goals on the break this season. Others have come from straightforward balls into the space, through the middle and the channels beyond the full-backs. The few chances they concede tend to be one‑on‑ones. Walcott's goal last week was not especially unusual in its construction; nor was Bilbao's on Saturday. Against Rubin Kazan, in the only match in which Barcelona have conceded at home in Europe, the score was 2-1 to the Russians. Barcelona had 23 shots to three. The first Kazan goal was an outrageous long‑ranger, the second a breakaway.

Barça's vulnerability is heightened by the presence of Márquez. The Mexican is slow and has started just five league games. His appearance as a substitute was followed almost immediately by goals against Atlético Madrid and Zaragoza, both on the break. Even without a slower centre-back, that is Barça's Achilles' heel.

There is a flaw in plans to exploit it, though. Barcelona were without three of their first‑choice back four in last season's Champions League final in Rome. And once they got hold of the ball and refused to let it go, no one seemed to notice.