Question:

Villarreal - Arsenal - Champions League S/F Leg 2
El Madrigal
Tuesday, April 25, 2006, 7.45pm
By Richard Clarke in Villarreal
It has been a surprise even to Arsène Wenger that Arsenal’s Champions League campaign has been based on his defence.
They have reached the Champions League Semi-Final by getting a first leg lead and then protecting it. However, despite that record-breaking run of nine clean sheets, the manager knows his side can not afford to rely solely on the backline tonight at Villarreal.
A solitary goal from Kolo Toure won the opening rubber at Highbury last week. It puts the onus on the surprise Spanish side to break out of their compact, energetic formation at El Madrigal, their compact, energetic stadium, this evening in the second leg.
Arsenal will draw on the experience of decisive ties against Real Madrid and Juventus in the earlier rounds. Each time they had a lead going into the game, each time they cleverly balanced their attacking and defending instincts to achieve a goalless draw. Wenger’s wants more of the same tonight.
"Overall our defensive record is a bit of a surprise to me but I'm happy we have it,” he said. “This can be something that keeps the confidence up going into a game like this one.
"We have shown character against Juventus and Real Madrid and we need it again. It will be a more intimidating atmosphere because it is a small stadium and therefore I feel the heat will be higher.
"But we are solid defensively and every inch of confidence you get going into a game like this is important. Our record is something that can help.
“Let's try and score as well. That will be a big blow to them. You cannot go into a game 1-0 up and thinking you can just rely on that.
"I'm convinced Villarreal will play the same system with the 4-4-2. They will certainly be less timid than the first game. They will play a compact game but we have to play to win.
"It will be down to how we organise when we don't have the ball and how much we dare to go forward. We are a good team when we try to go forward.
“What will be important in midfield will be to win the ball back and then transform quickly into going forward that's why I will keep faith with the team who always play away from home.”
That last sentence seems to confirm that Wenger will field the 4-5-1 formation that has served him so well in Europe. The knee injury picked up by Philippe Senderos on Saturday has all but ended his season. Fortunately, Wenger has Sol Campbell fit again after undergoing surgery on the broken nose he suffered at Portsmouth. Gael Clichy has been named in an Arsenal squad for the first time since November and will be on the bench.
The Champions League has long been a holy grail for Arsenal. Of the eight seeds at the the start of the competition they were the only team that had not won the competition let alone never reached the Semi-Finals before.
The last question of a long day of press conferences on Monday enquired whether Wenger would prefer Milan or Barcelona in Paris on May 17.
"I will tell you tomorrow night,” he smiled. “Before that we'll just give 100 per cent in this game. We are not dreamers. We want to be successful and we want to put all our energy into this match and not start to dream about what could happen after."
If Wenger is true to his word then hopefully his answer is only a few hours away.
Courtesy of Arsenal.com

Answer:


Villarreal - Arsenal - Champions League S/F Leg 2
El Madrigal
Tuesday, April 25, 2006, 7.45pm
By Richard Clarke in Villarreal
It has been a surprise even to Arsène Wenger that Arsenal’s Champions League campaign has been based on his defence.
They have reached the Champions League Semi-Final by getting a first leg lead and then protecting it. However, despite that record-breaking run of nine clean sheets, the manager knows his side can not afford to rely solely on the backline tonight at Villarreal.
A solitary goal from Kolo Toure won the opening rubber at Highbury last week. It puts the onus on the surprise Spanish side to break out of their compact, energetic formation at El Madrigal, their compact, energetic stadium, this evening in the second leg.
Arsenal will draw on the experience of decisive ties against Real Madrid and Juventus in the earlier rounds. Each time they had a lead going into the game, each time they cleverly balanced their attacking and defending instincts to achieve a goalless draw. Wenger’s wants more of the same tonight.
"Overall our defensive record is a bit of a surprise to me but I'm happy we have it,” he said. “This can be something that keeps the confidence up going into a game like this one.
"We have shown character against Juventus and Real Madrid and we need it again. It will be a more intimidating atmosphere because it is a small stadium and therefore I feel the heat will be higher.
"But we are solid defensively and every inch of confidence you get going into a game like this is important. Our record is something that can help.
“Let's try and score as well. That will be a big blow to them. You cannot go into a game 1-0 up and thinking you can just rely on that.
"I'm convinced Villarreal will play the same system with the 4-4-2. They will certainly be less timid than the first game. They will play a compact game but we have to play to win.
"It will be down to how we organise when we don't have the ball and how much we dare to go forward. We are a good team when we try to go forward.
“What will be important in midfield will be to win the ball back and then transform quickly into going forward that's why I will keep faith with the team who always play away from home.”
That last sentence seems to confirm that Wenger will field the 4-5-1 formation that has served him so well in Europe. The knee injury picked up by Philippe Senderos on Saturday has all but ended his season. Fortunately, Wenger has Sol Campbell fit again after undergoing surgery on the broken nose he suffered at Portsmouth. Gael Clichy has been named in an Arsenal squad for the first time since November and will be on the bench.
The Champions League has long been a holy grail for Arsenal. Of the eight seeds at the the start of the competition they were the only team that had not won the competition let alone never reached the Semi-Finals before.
The last question of a long day of press conferences on Monday enquired whether Wenger would prefer Milan or Barcelona in Paris on May 17.
"I will tell you tomorrow night,” he smiled. “Before that we'll just give 100 per cent in this game. We are not dreamers. We want to be successful and we want to put all our energy into this match and not start to dream about what could happen after."
If Wenger is true to his word then hopefully his answer is only a few hours away.
Courtesy of Arsenal.com

Answer:


NEWS UPDATES
Team news: Arsenal are without defender Philippe Senderos, with Sol Campbell coming in to replace him. It will be Campbell's first appearance since breaking his nose against Portsmouth on 12 April.
Bolivian defender Juan Manuel Pena is included in Villarreal's squad after recovering from a knee ligament injury.
Man in the middle: Russian Valentin Ivanov is the man in the middle for the match. Ivanov is a teacher from Moscow who refereed the 2003 Confederations Cup final in France.
Weather news: The sun was shining early on Tuesday in Castellon de la Plana, the nearest town of any size to Villarreal's El Madrigal stadium. The temperature was 13 Deg C as dawn broke with good visibility and very little wind.
Newspaper headlines: Most British newspapers focused on manager Arsene Wenger's decision to start with Sol Campbell.
The Sun has the headline 'King Conk' in reference to Campbell's return after his broken nose, with the further comment 'Sol to keep our noses in front says Arsene'.
The Daily Mail claims that Arsenal are taking a 'Sol gamble', a theme echoed by The Guardian.
The Daily Mirror picks up on comments made by Villarreal coach Manuel Pellegrini, who has accused Wenger of double standards.
Under the headline 'You're a loser Wenger', the story claims Pellegrini is unhappy that Arsenal failed to kick the ball out of touch against his team last week only for Wenger to then criticise Tottenham after a similar situation on Saturday.
The Daily Express leads on a the same theme, claiming that the Villarreal boss has "lit the blue touchpaper" by accusing Wenger of "hypocrisy".
MANAGERS, PLAYERS AND PUNDITS
# Arsenal midfielder Freddie Ljungberg on his injury problems
"I play with a lot of pain but sometimes as a footballer you have to do that.
"It's a lot of pain in the foot when I twist or turn. The foot swells and fills up with blood and we have to 'tap out' after every match.
"It's painful but the pain is not so bad that I cannot play, but of course it's not good.
"I feel pain maybe 10 times during a match but that's pain I am willing to take."
# Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger
"We have shown character against Juventus and Real Madrid and we need it again.
"It will be a more intimidating atmosphere because it is a small stadium and therefore I feel the heat will be higher.
"They will play the same way but will be less timid and Juan Roman Riquelme will be more influential.
"He shows more personality, character and decisiveness at home."
# Villarreal striker Diego Forlan
"There are only 90 minutes to go to the final and we need to give our all.
"Hopefully we can perform much better at home than we did at Highbury.

Read the Forlan interview in full
"We were not happy to lose but have still got a chance - we must be optimistic."
# Villarreal playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme
"If we don't reach the Champions League final no one will remember us.
"We are well aware that in the future only the winners are remembered and we certainly don't want to be forgotten.
"The further you go in this competition the more difficult and beautiful it becomes.
"We know that if we play a good game we have a chance of going to the final."
Courtesy of BBC Sports

Answer:


Next match
EPL: Sunderland vs Arsenal (away match) on May 1.

Answer:


Four missing but Cole set for comeback
Sunderland v Arsenal
Barclays Premiership
Stadium of Light
Mon, May 1, 2006, 5.15pm
By Richard Clarke
Arsenal will be without four of their heroes from Villarreal for the game at Sunderland on Monday afternoon.
Alex Hleb (knee) is doubtful while Gilberto (ankle) and Mathieu Flamini (hamstring) are definitely out. Jose Antonio Reyes will also be missing after having his wisdom teeth out. On the upside, Ashley Cole is likely to be included in the first team squad for only the second time since October 2.
All the newly injured players could be fit for Thursday’s trip to Manchester City. However Philippe Senderos, who injured his knee against Tottenham last Saturday, is expected to be missing for three weeks. Theo Walcott suffered a knee injury himself in the Reserves on Thursday night and will not be involved at the Stadium of Light.
“We have a few injuries,” said Wenger at Friday’s pre-match press conference. “Alexander Hleb is doubtful for Monday, he has a little knee problem. Gilberto will be out certainly with an ankle problem.
“We have Flamini (hamstring), Senderos (knee) and Reyes, with the extraction of his wisdom teeth. But they could be back on Thursday.
“Theo Walcott got injured in the Reserves last night and came off after 10 minutes, but we think it will be a question of days rather than weeks.”
Cole played another 90 minutes in that 3-1 victory at West Ham. Having not had a recognised left back for six months, Wenger now has two. Gael Clichy came on for the injured Flamini at El Madrigal on Tuesday.
“Ashley played last night and came through well," said Wenger. "He had no problem today, and will be available for Monday.
“At the back I do not think there will be lot to change, maybe Ashley can come in I do not know yet but Clichy has done well. Sol Campbell will play at centre back though.”
Courtesy of Arsenal.com

Answer:


Wenger - Henry is rewarded for a clean life
By Richard Clarke
Thierry Henry’s dedicated way of living is the secret to his achievements, according to Arsène Wenger.
Last night the Arsenal striker became the first player in the history of English football to win the FWA Player of the Year award three times. This prestigious prize has been running for 59 years and is voted for by this country’s top football journalists. Arsène Wenger argued that this latest ‘hat-trick’ was just the repayment on a devoted lifestyle.
“It’s a reward not only for an exceptional football player but when you win it for three years it means you have dedicated your life to football,” said the Arsenal manager.
“Many times people get in the newspapers for the wrong headlines. In his case I feel that this is a reward for a very clean life.
“He is a role model for every striker, like Dennis Bergkamp before him. Unfortunately you get more of the headlines when you go out at 3 o'clock in the morning and you are drunk.”
And watch out Premiership defenders, Wenger believes, there could be greater feats to come from the 28-year-old.
“I think the next two years will be his best,” said the Frenchman. “It’s when he has the physical quality and the experience.”
Courtesy of Arsenal.com