Dec 10
Match Preview: FC Porto v Arsenal (UEFA Champions League)
Arsenal welcome back William Gallas and Abou Diaby for the Champions League trip to Porto – but will rest captain Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri, as we told you yesterday afternoon.
As the Gunners have already qualified – and with one eye on Saturday’s Barclays Premier League clash at Middlesbrough – full-backs Bacary Sagna and Gael Clichy, strikers Emmanuel Adebayor and Robin van Persie and centre-half Kolo Toure are also staying in London.
Youngsters Aaron Ramsey, Kieran Gibbs, Gavin Hoyte, Mark Randall, Fran Merida, Jack Wilshere and Jay Simpson all make the travelling squad, which also includes midfielder Emmanuel Eboue – who was jeered off in Saturday’s home game against Wigan.
Porto boss Jesualdo Ferreira maintains there will be “no vendetta” when Arsenal come to Estadio do Dragao to decide who finishes top of Champions League Group G.
The Gunners romped to a 4-0 victory over the Portuguese side at Emirates Stadium in September – a result which actually flattered the visitors such was the dominance of Wenger’s men.
Nevertheless, following away wins over both Dynamo Kiev and Fenerbahce, Porto – who won the Champions League in 2003/2004 under Jose Mourinho – have, like Arsenal, now already made sure of their place in the last 16.
Porto have never lost to an English side at home in Europe and Ferreira maintains, with the pressure off, nothing other than three points will be at stake.
“There will be no vendetta against Arsenal. Porto will be just playing with great responsibility,” Ferreira said.
“It is very important to progress in this competition. It is what every player and coach wants. The game will be just to decide who is first or second, nothing else. Both teams will come here relaxed because they are already qualified, and so it should be a great game to watch. It is in our philosophy to win every game and we will play to do that.”
Predicted Starting XI
Almunia
Djourou – Gallas – Silvestre – Gibbs
Eboue – Denilson – Song – Ramsey
Diaby
Bendtner
Match Prediction: FC Porto 0-1 Arsenal
Gooner Talk will provide live coverage of this Premier League clash on GoonerTalkTV. Post-match highlights will be avaliable at midnight for those of you who were unable to watch the game.
Leave your views and predictions of this afternoon’s game in the comments section below.
arsene confirmed eboue would be at right back, so my starting lot would be
Almunia
Eboue Djourou Gallas Gibbs
Denilson Song Diaby Ramsey
Vela Bendtner
Almunia
Eboue-Djourou-Gallas-Gibbs
Denilson-Ramsey-Song-Diaby
Bendtner-Vela
Playing ramsey anywhere but the middle would be a mistake. Without cesc we need some creativity in the middle and no one but ramsey can provide that in this rag tag squad.
Surely it should only consist of non-regulars, because the likes of Denilson-Song-Diaby will not give a **** about this game. Put Wilshere, Vela, Ramsey in, they are the future, so we should be easing them in as fast as possible.
Im pretty sure that VEla will start ^^
eboue is at right back! hooray!
amusing that wasnt it
Chris, you forgot to predict Arsenal would lose again : p
Ah well that was fucking disastrous… Wenger needs to do some serious rethinking. These lacklustre performances are no flash in the pan incidents. Our depth of squad is undoubtedly wafer-thin. A couple of people get injured and we’re royally crushed.
Everyone seemed extraordinarily sluggish tonight though. Porto were beating them for everything. And don’t ask me why Ramsey was playing out on the wing again. Everyone can see he’s out of his depth and drifts back in… i could go on about all the other problems but… pfft…
pathetic, Cant beleive Wenger played Ramsay on the wing, we had no width in the team, we had 4 central midfielders again. Is it not obvious that it wont work as the players all drift in and make the midfield congestd. Also Champions league is our best hope for a trophy so why risk going second in the group to make it harder for ourselves. We need o create a wining team and Wenger is doing the team harm by playing our youth team against good oppositions. January window opening soon so sure we can get a few 15 yr old french kids in again!!!!!!!!!!!
I found it absolutely hilarious he had Silvestre as left full back. I’d never seen him so far up the pitch except for set-pieces. I think last night was an act of insanity on Wenger’s part.
Vela was lost out on the left. I’d sooner have him front and centre than Bentdner. Nicklas is the personification of Arsenal’s lousy start to the season — he can be a gamechanger in both respects. I’ve always found people unjustifiably harsh on the guy as he has saved our asses on many an occasion from a disappointing loss/draw, but I just had to look at a performance like last night to understand completely the negative press too at times. The few times he got the ball he didn’t do anything with it except lob it into empty space or in front of the oppositions feet. Complete lack of concentration.
And Gallas seemed intent on avoiding any kind of contact when defending. And that horrific backpass to Almunia in the first half where Almunia had to make the block and Denilson had to put the ball out for a corner – i had to hold myself back saying to give him a break, but, he didn’t improve very much from there at all. Awful display once again. He doesn’t give a flying f*ck.
I would have been much happier with just the young squad SOLELY out there to be honest.
And then there’s the issue of the captain’s armband — does anyone else not agree it’s lost on a goalkeeper. How on earth is he meant to rally the troops from the 6 yard box eh? Its completely and entirely defeatist!