Despite Arsenal’s 2-1 win against Steau Bucharest last night, Arsenal still had to settle for second place in their group. Strikes from Diaby and Bendtner secured the win, yet the Gunners are now up to the possibility of fronting up against either AC Milan, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan or Porto – a very difficult task no matter who they are drawn up against.
Arsene Wenger said:
“We finish with 13 points which is good but not good enough to win the group. That promises us a very interesting match in the last 16. It’s a good opportunity for us. Two years ago we played Juventus and won. Last year we played PSV Eindhoven and lost.”
Also, UEFA will decide on whether to touchline ban Wenger for another game after the 3-1 loss to Sevilla.
Wenger said in response:
“I don’t think they have enough to extend the ban. We will be at home first in the next round so I would like to be down on the pitch.
“But it was not a big problem. I could speak to the players in the hotel before the game. For the changes I could still communicate but I didn’t go into the dressing room. How did I communicate? That is a good question!”
After last night’s Champions League win, Wenger felt there were a lot of positives – specifically noting the return of striker Robin van Persie.
He said:
“Robin is ready physically. He looked sharp. His eye was there, his pass was there. He needs to regain confidence to go into challenges. But on the footballing side it looked as though he had never been out.
“We have some other players who are injured like Fabregas, Hleb and Flamini. We have to assess the situation on the next three or four days. I might take a risk on one or two, but to do it with three or four would be risky.”
Arsene is confident, so should the fans be confident, too? Should the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea feel discomforted by such a positive outlook? Should Champions League rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid feel the same way? You tell us.