Arsenal Woes As Nasri Glows

When Samir Nasri put pen to paper on his four year deal at Manchester City he declared that he had signed for 'the club of the future' and on the evidence of Sunday's Premier League games there can be no argument with such a bold statement.

Hours after Nasri's Manchester City displayed yet another statement of intent, rattling five goals past a beleaguered Tottenham the club he left were felled by City's biggest rivals, the end result not the shock, but the 8-2 scoreline emphatic in it's definition of a hapless Arsenal. The rise of Manchester City from Premier League also-rans to Champions League contenders running antiparallel to the fall of Arsenal.

Following a run of eight top two finishes six seasons ago Arsenal have become stagnant, the fans frustrated, a description of the mood around the Emirates Nasri himself claimed as one of the factors surrounding his departure from North London. That frustration, however, doesn't seem to extend to manager Arsene Wenger, painfully resolute in his frugal stance, until, that was, the below par start to the season, alongside the loss of two of the clubs most influential playmakers, forced the Frenchman's hand into parting with cash.

South Korean international Park Chu-Young is the target of Wenger's admiration, rumoured to have been purchased for a fee of £3-5Million, his record of 25 goals in 91 appearances for Monaco not especially resounding. Wenger is still in the market for at least two more players, a centre back and a central midfielder labelled as prime targets in order to push back up the table.

The central defender identified by the Arsenal boss was Gary Cahill and yet even in his attempt to purchase a player, so impressive in his fledgling career that many have labelled him the future of England's defence, Wenger has been the subject of ridicule. The reported bid of £7Million lodged with Bolton for Cahill's services scoffed at as worse than derisory by Trotters manager Owen Coyle, fans across the country chuckling into their newspapers all the while.

Alan Hansen once proclaimed that 'you can't win anything with kids', that quote was in reference to Manchester United's youthful squad and was proven wrong once Sir Alex Ferguson's boys won the title that season. If he were to make such an insinuation against Arsenal then there could be no argument, a defence lacking in any experience and a whole lot of quality going down 8-2 to Manchester United.

Emmanuel Frimpong and Carl Jenkinson, two of the younger players who have started for the Gunners this season, have both been sent off, as has Gervinho. Thomas Vermaelen is out injured again, Jack Wilshere has joined him on the treatment table while Bacary Sagna missed out through illness. The loss of Nasri coupled with the money spinning sale of Cesc Fabregas left Arsenal having to field reserve team player Francis Coquelin at the heart of the midfield. The players on the bench could amount just 61 league appearances between them, 57 of those coming from two of the seven. With just three days to go until the door to the transfer market slams shut Wenger has work to do, and fast.

And what of the ship-jumping Nasri?

On the same day he was to make his debut in Man City's title chasing side. Joining up with a squad brim full of attacking talent the like of David Silva and Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko and Yaya Toure, there was enough reason to believe that Nasri would have to earn his stripes before breaking into Roberto Mancini's starting eleven. Neither he or his manager were having any of it.

The former Marseille winger set up two goals for Edin Dzeko and assisted one for Sergio Aguero for good measure, putting in the hard yards and playing a heavy part in a dominant team performance against a competent Tottenham side, all that despite only meeting up with his new team mates on Thursday.

It may be a case of confidence-breeds-confidence for Nasri. If it weren't for the freak result at Old Trafford City would currently be sat atop the Premier League, netting twelve goals and conceding just three in divisional action, and the squad that will be surrounding Nasri contain a selection of players who know what it is like to win. Having seemingly forgotten how to claim victory with Arsenal at the tail end of last season, the 24 year old looks as though he will slot straight into Mancini's philosophy and ethic. Winning is a habit, City appear hooked already.

After spending three seasons at an Arsenal side that threatened so much but failed to deliver it looks as though Nasri has found a club to match his ambitions. If Sunday's game is anything to go by the flashes of talent shown in the first half last of season may come to fruition in a team that, on current evidence, looks set to challenge the dominance of Manchester United at the top of the Premier League. History really could be in the making.

Arsenal And Academy Set For Eastern Adventures

The UEFA Women's Champions League draw, held in Nyon, Switzerland, has thrown up two journeys into Eastern Europe for England's representatives in the continental showpiece for the women's game.

Unseeded Bristol Academy were the first of the pair to be drawn out of the bowl by UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino, only to be made to wait just a little longer as Arsenal were initially pulled out for the tie. The competition rules, however, prevent two clubs from the same country facing each other in the round of 32, meaning that Arsenal were placed into the next bracket.

Soon, though, there was to be an opponent picked for the West Country side, qualifiers for the competition after finishing runners up to Arsenal in the 2011 Women's FA Cup final, and it was to produce a daunting trip for the continental first timers. FC Energiya Voronezh, second place finishers in the 2010 Russian Premier League, were the seeded rivals drawn to face Academy, a trip of just under 1,800 miles for the vixens to face.

Having been shunted straight into the next fixture Arsenal were drawn alongside opponents from Belarus by the name of FC Bobruchanka. Based in the Belarussian town of Babruysk Bobruchanka were champions of their domestic Premier League in 2010, thus entering the Champions League at the qualifying stage where they travelled to Croatia for their round robin group. The team finished second in that group, beating Northern Ireland's Newtownabbey and NSA Sofia of Bulgaria and losing to eventual winners Osijek, but were one of two runners up to take a place in the next stage.

The other side to make it into the first knockout phase via the runners up spot were Peamount United of Ireland, coming second behind Spaniards Rayo Vallecano. It will be their debut in the first round proper and they will be taking a Parisian trip as they face PSG who placed second in the Division 1 Féminine earlier this year.

The champions from the north of the border in 2010 were the all-conquering Glasgow City, winners of the last four Scottish Premier League crowns and currently top this term. Making their debut outside of the qualifiers City will face two legs against a team with similar domestic dominance, Valur Reykjavik of Iceland, 10 times champions of their country and 13 time cup winners.

In the other ties holders Lyon will play Olimpia Cluj of Romania while finalists from the 2010/11 competition Turbine Potsdam will face off with Thór/KA of Iceland. 1. FFC Frankfurt, the most successful club in the tournaments history, were drawn against Norwegian side Stabæk.

If Bristol Academy get past Energiya they could play either FC Twente or Rossiyanka while Arsenal would be paired with the winner of Vantaa and Rayo Vallecano in the next stage.

First legs will be played on the 28th/29th of September with the second legs a week later on the 5th/6th of October. Round of 16 ties will be played over the first two weeks of November.

The full draws are as follows:

Round of 32
CFF Olimpia Cluj (ROU) v Olympique Lyonnais (FRA)
Peamount United (IRL) v Paris Saint-Germain FC (FRA)
CSHVSM (KAZ) v SV Neulengbach (AUT)
Apollon Limassol LFC (CYP) v AC Sparta Praha (CZE)
PK-35 Vantaa (FIN) v Rayo Vallecano de Madrid (ESP)
UPC Tavagnacco (ITA) v WFC Malmö (SWE)
WFC Osijek (CRO) v Göteborg FC (SWE)
Glasgow City FC (SCO) v Valur Reykjavík (ISL)
BSC Young Boys (SUI) v Fortuna Hjørring (DEN)
Thór/KA (ISL) v 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam (GER)
ASA Tel-Aviv FC (ISR) v ASD Torres CF (ITA)
FC Twente (NED) v FC Rossiyanka (RUS)
Bristol Academy WFC (ENG) v FC Energiya Voronezh (RUS)
FC Bobruchanka (BLR) v Arsenal LFC (ENG)
Standard Fémina de Liège (BEL) v Brøndby IF (DEN)
Stabæk Football (NOR) v 1. FFC Frankfurt (GER)
 
Round of 16
Stabæk/Frankfurt v Peamount/PSG
Olimpia Cluj/Lyon v Apollon/Sparta
CSHVSM/Neulengbach v Tavagnacco/Malmö
Young Boys/Fortuna v Osijek/Göteborg
Bristol/Energiya v Twente/Rossiyanka
Vantaa/Rayo v Bobruchanka/Arsenal
Thór/Potsdam v Glasgow/Valur
Standard/Brøndby v Tel-Aviv/Torres

FA Cup Final Gives The Women's Game A Showcase

The Ricoh Arena was the venue for this years showpiece event in the women's footballing calender as the stadium played magnificent hosts to a 2-0 triump for Arsenal Ladies over their Bristol Academy counterparts.

Over 13,000 fans filled the sky blue seats of Coventry City's stadium on a day that saw the sun peer over the clouds just in time for the last few minutes to tick by as Arsenal regained the trophy that they had given up 12 months ago.

Much of the noise in the ground came from the South Stand where a group of young, enthusiastic and vocal fans voiced their support for Bristol Academy, faces painted blue all the while, and not even the two first half Gunners strikes could dampen their fanaticism.

A tuneful pre-match build up started with X-Factor finalist Paije Richardson giving the crowd a rendition of 'I'm A Believer' and continued on in a similar vein, eventually ending with the crowd standing for the national anthem, the fan next to me taking great pride in belting out the lyrics.

The game kicked off with Academy winning an early corner, but that was about as good as it got for the West Country side as the Gunners kicked themselves into life. They were given a helping hand by some wasteful passing and control from Bristol but their own movement and slick distribution of the ball wreaked havoc upon their opponents back line, Vixen's full backs Grace McCatty and Alex Culvin being given a torrid time by the pace of Arsenal wingers Rachel Yankey and Ellen White.

Arsenal were contesting everything in the centre of the park, often getting to all the loose balls first and it was one aerial battle inside the Bristol half that lead to the ball breaking to Kim Little on the edge of the area. She moved forward, jinked inside one defender and slammed the ball past England international goalkeeper Siobhan Chamberlain, and Bristol's hope of putting in a quick reply were hampered when the lead was doubled thirteen minutes later.

Rachel Yankey took a quick throw-in to the feet of full back Niamh Fahey who whipped in a superb cross that found the head of the on-rushing Julie Fleeting to bullet the ball into the back of the net and at that moment, on the first half displays alone, the game looked as good as over. The nerves seemed to have gotten to the Bristol side as they struggled to retain the ball in the centre of the park for any substantial amount of time but the application of the Gunners was top notch, pressing all over the pitch and working hard to win the ball back. A head injury to Academy's instinctive midfielder Jess Fishlock did little to change the flagging morale of her team mates, the Welsh capped player being substituted at half time with what was later confirmed as a concussion.

Her replacement was striker Lillie Billson and the former Arsenal player gave a fine account of herself in the second half, chasing every ball and working both channels but there was still little in the way of end product from the girls in blue. Winger Helen Bleazard almost produced what would have been a superb goal, crashing a free kick back off of Emma Byrne's crossbar and with that rebounded effort went any real hope of an Academy comeback.

Despite the Vixen's spirited second half performance Arsenal continued to press into the later stages and could have had another goal if it weren't for some excellent shot stopping by Chamberlain but all in all they deserved their win, their eleventh in the final of the Women's Cup. The victory will send the Gunners into the WSL mid-season break on a high and they will look to carry that into the second half of the inaugural championship to take the fight to table topping Birmingham.

Bristol Academy meanwhile can look back on a proud day in their clubs history, a first ever FA Cup final, hopefully one of many, and the chance to showcase themselves on national television. Many of the players found themselves in the media spotlight during the games build up and they will certainly not want to drop out of the public eye, though with a Champions League spot being won for reaching the final they will certainly be names to follow during the coming months. They will look to continue their good WSL form and consolidate that into a commendable top half finish.

Though the final attendance of 13,000 wasn't as good as was expected by The FA, it was hoped that the game would see the largest ever attendance for a modern women's game in England, the fans inside the ground were certainly entertained and Sky Sports live coverage will do women's football the world of good. Both 'Arsenal Ladies' and 'Bristol Academy' were trending on Twitter, a testimony to the potential the game has to take off nationwide.

Atmospherically the game is very different to the typical men's affair. There are no verbal barrages aimed in the direction of the referee, the players are not berated every time they take a step out of line and there is no need for segregation. Invariably a few chants were struck up by the fans, mainly the girls supporting Bristol Academy, and there was an overall family friendly feel to the game, the crowd being made up of young children and their parents, the odd die hard supporter of each side and a splattering of inquisitive local fans and with the most expensive ticket on offer being £5 there was excellent value to be had for a game of excellent technical quality.

This summer provides an excellent platform for the women's game in England to take off. The Super League is up and running, England are in this years World Cup, all their games being broadcasted live by the BBC, and a showpiece FA Cup Final that highlighted the quality of the women's game. This is just the beginning.

Academy And Arsenal Set For Coventry Showdown

When Saturday rolls around the players of Bristol Academy will stride out onto the pitch at Coventry City's Ricoh Arena for what will be the biggest game in their clubs history, the FA Women's Cup Final against Arsenal.

The showpiece event in the English women's footballing calender will feature the Vixens for the first time in either their current guise or the clubs former name, Bristol Rovers Ladies FC, though they have come close on numerous occasions beforehand.

In their short history the club have reached the semi final stage four times, losing out in three ties with Arsenal and once to Charlton, though they couldn't have picked a better year to make the final as, with the birth of the new FA Women's Super League, the FA have decided to award their Champions League places for 2011/12 to this years two finalists. Academy will hope that their luck against the Gunners will change this weekend, though they know that their more illustrious opponents will not be overcome by the size of the match as they are not facing anything new.

Arsenal Ladies are the most successful team not only in the FA Cup but also the women's game in England as a whole and have a superb cup pedigree behind them, having collected the trophy on no less than ten occasions, five of those victories coming in the last seven years. They do, however, have one final defeat to their name, that coming in last seasons 3-2 loss to Everton. This will be the sixth season in succession that Arsenal have made the final and they will be looking to fashion another victory to win back what must seem like 'their trophy'.

After an initially poor start to life in the Super League Bristol have pulled themselves together and are undefeated in their last five league games. A 4-0 thumping away to Birmingham, the side that currently top the table, left the side shaken but a slight improvement in their next game saw them fall by just a single, spectacular strike to Arsenal, Jennifer Beattie driving in a forty yarder that ended up winning April's goal of the month. A late equaliser at home to Liverpool was followed up by another last gasp goal, this time a Loren Dykes winner against Doncaster and the next game against Chelsea should have yielded another three points but for some profligate finishing, the biggest culprit being Helen Bleazard who blazed a penalty high over the bar.

Two further draws followed, a stalemate up at Everton before a thrilling 2-2 draw with Arsenal at the Stoke Gifford Stadium with the home side twice coming from behind to snatch a point, ex-Gunner and captain Corrine Yorston getting the second with no time to spare in front of over 1,000 fans, whetting their appetites for the FA Cup Final.

League favourites Arsenal have had a great start to the new Super League but despite that they will likely be dissappointed not to find themselves at the head of the table. Only five points have been dropped, two in the draw with Bristol and all three against Birmingham, their only domestic defeat of the season. They also made their way through to the Champions League semi finals, eventually falling short over two legs against Lyon. Prior to the last Academy game the Gunners had two good away wins against Lincoln, 2-0, and Doncaster, 3-0. Striker Ellen White has been the key figure in Arsenal's season, scoring eleven goals already this term and will need to kept quiet if Bristol goalkeeper Siobhan Chamberlain is to keep her sheets clean.

The Vixens run to the final started in spectacular style, crashing eight goals past Sheffield Wednesday at the Don Valley Stadium, Helen Bleazard, Jess Fishlock and Ann-Marie Heatherson getting on the scoresheet twice, Loren Dykes and Molly Clark supplying the other two. A fortnight later Bleazard and Fishlock put their scoring boots on again to see off Women's Premier League side Millwall in the quarter-finals and their place in the final was confirmed with a 3-0 win away to Liverpool at Skelmersdale.

Arsenal avenged their defeat in last seasons cup final with a 2-0 win over Everton before being taken to extra time by Premier League Sunderland, eventually coming out on top by three goals to two. They rounded off their trip to the final by thrashing another Premier League side, this time it was Barnet who fell to the Gunners, 5-0 the final score.

Academy boss Mark Sampson spoke to bristolacademywfc.fawsl.com pre-match and believes that the squad he possesses have the mental capabilities to cope with a game of such magnitude, saying:

"Our squad is well balanced with a great blend of experience and youth, we have players who have played in finals before and player’s who will be making their cup final debut. The pressure for us is positive, it brings us together, gives us strength, makes our objectives very clear. The reason players feel pressure is when they feel insecure within the group.

"Insecurity comes from not being clear with what is expected of you, every player in our group knows inside out our game plan and is ready to play their part so for us there is no negative pressure, we only have the pressure that gives you the strength to fight to win.

"...When people ask me about how we motivate the players I feel the answer is simple, you get the right people in the dressing room. How do you motivate players like Annie Heatherson, Jess Fishlock, Grace McCatty and Emma Jones? These are born winners, born competitors. It is impossible to give them any more motivation than they already have, my life is made easy with characters like I have in our dressing room."

Arsenal manager Laura Harvey, who will be making a 'home' appearance as a former Coventry City Ladies player, was interviewed by arsenal.com in her sides build up to the big day and talked about this seasons two games against Academy and what she believes will see her side take the glory.

"In both games, especially the two all draw, we could have had it 4-0 by half time and that is something we've worked on and looked at and to make sure that when we have a team under so much pressure, as we had at Bristol, that we've got to finish them off.

"We know that if we can perform at the levels we have in our ranks then we can beat anybody, we know that, we've just got to make sure we do that and we cut out the silly mistakes, we cut out the sloppy missed chances high up the pitch and anyone we play on our day, when we get everything right, needs to be wary of us."

There will be just one absentee for Bristol in the shape of central midfielder Katie Daley who picked up a knock after the Doncaster Rovers win.

Arsenal will have to make do without the services of their all-time record goalscorer Jayne Ludlow and experienced England international centre back Faye White.

With a crowd of nigh on 30,000 in attendance it is sure to be a day that will define the careers of many of the players out on the pitch and Bristol Academy will no doubt be keen to show their steel, throwing off their underdogs tag as they go.

Images sourced from bristolacademywfc.com,  and coventrytelegraph.net. Mark Sampson quotes taken from bristolacademywfc.com. Laura Harvey quotes taken from her video interview on arsenal.com.

Academy Face Arsenal In Cup Final Preview

Thursday night sees a dress rehearsal of the forthcoming Women's FA Cup final take place as Bristol Academy host Arsenal Ladies at the Stoke Gifford Stadium, though that's not to say that the two teams will be taking it at all easy.

The home side have turned around a difficult start to life in the FA WSL with a four game unbeaten run that has seen them collect all of their six points thus far. The only win of the league season came with a late Loren Dykes goal against Doncaster Rovers Belles, that coming after an even later goal arrived to grab a draw against Liverpool, defender Grace McCatty the source of that strike. Those are the only two goals scored by the Vixens this season as they have found Super League goals hard to come by and it will be no easier against a determined Arsenal defence that has leaked only two goals.

Pre-season league favourites Arsenal are currently sat second in the table, four points behind leaders Birmingham City with a game in hand. Birmingham remain the only team to take points off of Arsenal this term after ex-Gunner Karen Carney netted the winning goal in her sides away win at Borehamwood. If Bristol are to get anything out of the game then they will have to keep tabs on the Gunners top scorer Ellen White. England international striker White has already got on the scoresheet ten times this season in the Super League, FA Cup and Champions League, including six in her last four against Barnet, Birmingham, Lincoln and Doncaster.

The sides have already met once this season, Jennifer Beattie hitting the goal of the month for April in a 1-0 Arsenal win which can be seen in the match highlights package below.



Academy will put their unbeaten home start up against Arsenal's 100% away record in this tasty tie and Bristol boss Mark Sampson is confident that his side can maintain their run, he told bristolacademywfc.fawsl.com:

"We showed Arsenal what we are about in our game earlier in the season and it will be the same come Thursday. They will be looking to assert their style on the game and we will be looking to assert ours so it will be a big battle early on to see who can get the upper hand.

"All over the pitch there are some great match ups and it will be up to us to make sure we get on top of our direct opponent early in the game and show them what we are about. We are confident our style of play will cause them problems and psychologically we are very strong and ready to do what we need to do.

"It is a home game so it is up to us to set the tempo and that is something we certainly intend to do with our pressing and tackling."

The game was changed from a 6:30 kick off to a 7:15 start at the WISE campus in Filton. Adults can purchase their match tickets for £6 while concessions and students can get in for £4. Tickets in the Bristol Academy end of Coventry's Ricoh Arena for the Women's FA Cup final will be available at this game at £5 for adults and £2.50 for concessions.

Picture and Mark Sampson quote sourced from http://www.bristolacademywfc.fawsl.com/. Highlights video taken from http://www.fawsl.com/.

Arsenal V Barcelona Preview

Arguably the world's two most attractive football teams face off with each other tonight in North London as Arsenal prepare to square up to La Liga leaders Barcelona.

Barca are rampant at the top of La Liga, only having their 16 match winning streak ended at the weekend while the Londoner's are well known for their slick brand of football, and with the two clubs standings outside of Europe this should prove to be the most watched tie of the round.

Who's Up For It?

Arsenal have been boosted by the return of Samir Nasri to their squad, the midfielder having spent two weeks out with the hamstring injury he suffered in the 2-1 FA Cup win over Huddersfield. Manager Arsene Wenger will make the decision as to whether the Frenchman will play today.

Tomas Rosicky will return to the squad but Abou Diaby will be missing with a calf injury that he picked up while on international duty with France.

Two Barcelona first team players didn't travel with the squad, namely Carles Puyol and Jeffren Suarez, but B teamer Thiago Alcantara is a member of the party, although he is unlikely to make it into Pep Guardiola's matchday squad.

How Are They Doing?

Both sides have won five of their last six matches, though two of those Arsenal wins came against lower division opponents in cup competitions. The Gunners put the disappointment of letting a four goal lead slip at Newcastle behind them with a 2-0 weekend win over Wolves. In terms of League only form Arsenal are yet to lose since the turn of the year, drawing twice in the aforementioned Newcastle game and a dour stalemate against title rivals Manchester City at the Emirates.

Prior to this weekend Barcelona had won 16 consecutive league matches but a 1-1 draw with lowly Sporting Gijon ended their spectacular run. Their previous five games have, however, yielded 17 goals while overall they have scored an incredible 97 times in just 37 matches in all competitions this season, conceding only 19 in the process. Their results this season have also included an 8-0 rout away at UD Alemria and a thumping 5-0 'El Classico' win over Real Madrid in the following game at the Nou Camp.

How About In The Champions League?

Arsenal had a wobble in their group stage campaign, losing to both Shakhtar Donetsk and Braga before a 3-1 victory over Partizan Belgrade, the same scoreline as it finished in the first game between the two, confirmed their progression. The Gunners did win all of their home games, though, and will be confident at the Emirates.

Their opponents went through the first phase unbeaten with two big wins over Panathinaikos (5-1 at home and 3-0 away). They won their other two home games by two goals to nil but drew twice on the road in Copenhagen and Kazan, both games finishing 1-1.

Who Are The Match Winners?

Undoubtedly the biggest name on either team sheet will be that of 2010's Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi. Since a quiet world cup in the summer the Argentine forward has once again been on fire for his club. Last season Messi scored 45 goals in 52 games but this season he looks as though he will tear that record apart having already but away 37 goals in 32 appearances, an absolutely staggering record, and Arsenal fans won't appreciate his 19 assists up to this point in the season.

Arsenal's top scorer Samir Nasri has 14 goals this season, a paltry return compared to Messi's, but will face a race to get fit in time for this first leg of the tie. Not far behind him on 12 goals is Dutch international Robin Van Persie who is currently in superb form. The former Feyenoord striker played three games in August but suffered an ankle injury against Blackburn which ruled him out until November when he made two substitute appearances and finally a start right at the end of the month. Two games later he made his Champions League bow, scoring against Partizan Belgrade and has since scored a further 11 in just over two months.

Have We Met Before?

Tonight the English side will be hoping to break their duck against the Spanish champions, having failed to win in five previous meetings between the two sides.

Most recently the clubs met in the Champions League quarter-finals last term. Two Zlatan Ibrahimovic goals put the Catalans two up at the Emirates Stadium in the first leg before Theo Walcott came off of the bench to pull a goal back for the Gunners and after Carles Puyol was sent off Cesc Fabregas equalised from the penalty spot with five minutes remaining. The second leg started off well for Arsenal, Nicklas Bendtner giving the overall lead in the tie, but that was short lived as Lionel Messi scored just three minutes later and from then on the youngster never looked back, going on to score a total of four goals in the game including an ingenious chip over Manuel Almunia.

The highest profile meeting between the two sides came in the 2006 Champions League final at the Stade de France where Arsenal began by having Jens Lehmann controversialy sent off, the first man to be so in a Champions League final, but it was the Gunners who went in with a half time lead thanks to a Sol Campbell header. The introduction of Henrick Larsson, however, turned the game on it's head as the Swede set up both Samuel Eto,o and Juliano Belletti to give Barca the title.

The first head-to-head between Arsenal and Barca occured in 1999 when Kanu scored a late Arsenal equaliser at the Nou Camp. The return tie in the Champions League group B match up finished 4-2 to Barcelona at Highbury.

Who Said What?

Arsene Wenger believes his side have a strong chance of beating the Catalan's tonight and taking a lead into the second leg, he said:

"We have made our way forward by challenging in the Premier League, we are in all competitions and if you look at the predictions in pre-season, nobody in England predicted we would be today where we are.

"We have made our own way with our own strength and mental belief and there’s a good opportunity tomorrow to show we can be stronger than the predictions, and who doesn’t like that in football?"

He was then asked whether last seasons experience of playing Barcelona has improved his side, to which he responded:

"Certainly, yes, because we came out of the second game with a lot of frustrations because we missed the turning point of the game when we were 1-0 up over there," he went on.

"We are a stronger team now because this team has attitude, focus and every day since I am manager for a long time, I have not seen many teams with such consistent focus every day to improve. The main reason we have improved is because of the attitude of the players."

Pep Guardiola, manager of Barcelona, appreciates the way Arsenal like to play the game, very much as his own side do, telling the press:

"I like watching Arsenal, but I’d rather not be playing against them. We are two teams who want the ball and we both suffer without it. We want possession for as long as possible in order to make as many attacking situations as we can."

"This is going to be a tough game and our ties at this stage in the last two seasons [against Lyon and Stuttgart] were our worst performances in the competition. We have to charge ourselves up for this to be the quickest to get into the swing of things. I hope that the atmosphere and the quality of our opponents will help us to do that."

Follow HJBSports on Twitter for key moment updates and don't forget to check back later for our match report.

Two Penalties Mean A Second Date For Arsenal And Leeds

Championship Leeds United frustrated Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, holding them to a 1-1 draw with both sides scoring second half penalties.

After a goalles first half, dominated by Arsenal who had two attempts cleared off the line, Leeds took the lead after 54 minutes when Max Gradel was tripped in the area, Robert Snodgrass converting from the spot. Arsenal were level, however, when Ben Parker was pulled up for a tug on Theo Walcott, substitute Cesc Fabregas slotting the penalty home.

Arsene Wenger made nine changes to his starting line-up, the only players to survive from Wednesday's draw at Manchester City being Johan Djourou and Alex Song. Cesc Fabregas dropped to the bench while Aaron Ramsey made his first appearance in an Arsenal squad since his horrific double leg break against Stoke in February.

In the Leeds team top scorer Luciano Becchio returned to the starting XI as did Alex Bruce. Sanchez Watt, on loan from the Gunners, recovered from a head injury to play against his parent club.

There was a late change in the shape of the referee, Phil Dowd taking over from Chris Foy, who was unable to attend the game for personal reasons.

The first effort on goal came from Luciano Becchio. After Alex Song misplaced a pass in his own half the Argentine picked the ball up and turned down the chance to play a ball wide to Sanchez Watt, instead screwing his shot well wide of the goal.

That was to be the only shot on goal from the first ten minutes as Arsenal showed the passing ability their squad possesses and it wasn't too long afterwards that they produced the first big goalscoring oppurtunity, Tomas Rosicky playing an inch perfect through ball which Andrey Arshavin raced onto, only to find Casper Schemichel standing tall in the Leeds goal, and put his shot straight at the Leeds stopper.

There was to be a scare at the other end for Arsenal as they lost the ball once again in their own half through Tomas Rosicky and when through on goal Luciano Becchio saw his shot smothered by Wojciech Szczesny.

A bursting run from Nicklas Bendtner saw the forward push the ball out wide to Rosicky who in turn crossed over a teasing ball towards the Dane, only to see it headed out of the area.

The first yellow card of the game was awarded to Leeds defender Ben Parker for clipping the heels of Emmanuel Eboue when the utility man was pushing forward into enemy territory.

Soon after Andrey Arshavin caught a ball perfectly as it bounced up but his strike was straight at Casper Schmeichel who parried the ball away.

An inswinging Arsenal corner saw the ball drop at the feet of Bendtner who scraped a shot away which was cleared off of the line by Jonny Howson. Moments later it was Schmeichel's turn to keep out the Gunners as Denilson drove towards his goal but the 'keeper comfortably kept the ball out of the net. The pressure, however, wasn't over as from the resulting corner Becchio was forced into a goal lince clearance from Sebastien Squillaci's header.

As the half went on Arsenal kept the pressure up and another Arshavin corner found the head of Marouane Chamakh who planted his effort straight at Schmeichel.

A blatant shove in the back of Sanchez Watt saw captain for the day Tomas rosicky become the first Arsenal player to end up the the referees notebook.

There was to be more work for Casper Schmeichel before half time as Nicklas Bendtner forced his way past Ben Parker and Max Gradel before putting his effort straight at his fellow Dane in the Leeds goal.

At half time it was clear who was the better team, the home side well on top in terms of possession and shots on goal but it was Leeds goalkeeper and a pair of off the line clearances that kept the Whites in it.

Seconds into the second half Arsenal, through Alex Song, got in behind the Leeds defence but his cut back couldn't find any of his teammates and was easily cleared out of danger.

Arsenal had started the half well, pressing Leeds and forcing their defence back but the United defence was holding strong and were not easy to break down as first Bendtner and secondly Arshavin found out but the drama was to come at the other end.

After some tight work down the left by Sanchez Watt Denilson felled Max Gradel in the Arsenal area and Robert Snodgrass stepped up to smash the ball through the outstretched left hand of Szczesny to give United the lead in front of their travelling support.

The pressure mounted on Arsene Wenger and not long after the goal he brought on one of his bug guns in the shape of Cesc Fabregas who replaces Alex Song after 58 minutes.

Arsenal got straight back on the front foot and substitute Fabregas poked a ball out wide for Emmanuel Eboue and the Ivorian clipped a ball across the Leeds goal where Andy O'Brien got the lightest of touches with his head, that was, though, enough to keep the ball away from the forehead of Marouane Chamakh.

Leeds were still in it, however, and Bradley Johnson's cross took a deflection which forced Szczesny into pushing the ball over the bar for a corner and from the resulting set piece Luciano Becchio forced the Arsenal goalkeeper into a diving one handed save in order to make sure the game didn't get away from the Londoners.

With just over twenty minutes left in the game Arsenal needed an impetus and Wenger sent on Theo Walcott in the hope that he would be the one to provide it.

Leeds gradually grew into the game and as the pressure intensified around the ground there was more space to be found for the away side and after a foul by Johan Djourou Robert Snodgrass looked to double his tally as he swung a free kick wide of Arsenal's right hand post.

Cesc Fabregas has the ability to change a game and this was recognised by Leeds who seemed to be intent on fouling the influential midfielder, eventually resulting in a yellow card for United captain Jonny Howson.

There was to be one more throw of the dice for Arsenal as the young Mexican Carlos Vela came on in place of Tomas Tosicky.

With ten minutes left Arsenal won a free kick for a foul on Eboue and from it Fabregas swung a ball into the area and found Nicklas Bendtner but he was unable to keep his header from sailing over the bar.

There was slick passing to be seen from Arsenal but it was Leeds game to defend and they did so, not allowing any final balls into dangerous areas and Arsenal were becoming increasingly frustrated.

Leeds almost stole a second goal as Max Gradel ran into the area but his ball, attemptedly squared for Luciano Becchio, could only find the feet of Sebastien Squillaci.

The pace of Theo Walcott is something to be feared and it nearly caught out Leeds as Andrey Arshavin clipped a delightful ball of the top but the winger could only strike his first time volley straight at Schmeicehel.

There was to be more controversy though as first Theo Walcott spun in the area and was tripped up only for the linesman to signal for offside, but that wasn't the end of it and just a minute later Arsenal were awarded a penalty, again for a foul on Walcott as Ben Parker pulls at his arm when through on goal and it was the substitute Cesc Fabregas who stepped up to slot the ball down the centre and level up the tie.

Nicklas Bendtner had not had the best of matches but he had the chance to make amends as a ball over the top landed for him to volley but it veered up at him and ricocheted off of his toes and into the fans behind the goal.

As the game drew to a close Denilson saw a stinging drive from just outide the area superbly fingertipped wide by Casper Schmeichel and Theo Walcott swiped a shot wide from a tight angle but there was to be no more goals as Leeds, who finished with just 37% possession, held on to take their more illustrious opponents back to Elland Road for a replay that should be played on either Tuesday 18th or Wednesday 19th.

Arsenal V Leeds Preview

What would have been a heavyweight clash ten years ago is now just a game with a slim chance of upset in the FA Cup as Leeds United travel to the Emirates Stadium to play Arsenal.

Today it may not be such high quality football from both sides but don't count out Championship Leeds, who caused a massive upset last season as they dumped Manchester United out of the cup thanks to a goal from the now departed Jermaine Beckford. The Whites have gone from strength to strength this season, currently sitting in 5th place, looking to challenge the likes of Cardiff for automatic promotion back to the Premier League.

Their form has dropped off in their last four games, drawing three and losing one to promotion rivals Cardiff, but overall they have claimed nine points from their last six games, they will, however, have to up their game for the trip to Arsenal.

The gunners have been patchy of late, their last game, a dour 0-0 draw at home to Manchester City was preceded by a 3-0 win at Birmingham which in turn came after a disappointing 2-2 draw with Wigan and a 3-1 win over Chelsea. They do sit 3rd in the Premier League, though, and still have four chances of winning silverware this season which would be their first since winning the FA Cup in 2005.

Last seasons FA Cup saw both sides fall in the fourth round, Arsenal losing 3-1 to Stoke and Leeds by the same scoreline in a replay against Tottenham. But it was to be a memorable cup run for Leeds who, after overcoming Oldham and Kettering in rounds one and two, beat Manchester United at Old Trafford, the first time since a 1984 defeat to Harry Redknapp's Bournemouth that a side from a lower division had knocked United out of the cup.

The record between the two sides is even in nearly all forms of matches, the difference though, is in the FA Cup, where Arsenal hold a five wins to two advantage over Leeds. The clubs haven't met since they were both in the Premier League, when, aside from the two league games, they faced off in the FA Cup where Arsenal came out on top, coming from behind to thump Leeds 4-1 at Elland Road. The last Leeds victory over the Londoner's came on the last day of the 2002/03 season when goals from Mark Viduka, Ian Harte and Harry Kewell gave the Yorkshire club a 3-2 win at Highbury.

Arsenal are likely to make changes to their side and rest players including Jack Wilshere, Laurent Koscielny, Samir Nasri, Robin Van Persie and Gael Clichy who will be replaced by England international Kieran Gibbs.

Aaron Ramsey has also been included in the squad for the first time since his horrific double leg break at Stoke last season.

Bacary Sagna is suspended after his red card against Manchester City, a decision that Arsenal have not appealed, meaning the Frenchman will be out for the next three domestic games. It is thought that Emmanuel Eboue will be the man to step into Sagna's place.

Abou Diaby, Manuel Almunia and Thomas Vermaelen will all be missing with injuries.

For Leeds top scorer Luciano Becchio will return in place of Billy Paynter after being rested in the midweek defeat at Cardiff.

Lloyd Sam is out with a thight injury while Andy O'Brien suffered a dead leg against Cardiff. Neil Kilkenny is away with Australia at the Asian Nations Cup.

The most notable addition to the Leeds line-up will be Sanchez Watt, currently on loan at Elland Road from the Gunners, who has been given permission to play against his parent club as long as he recovers from a head injury suffered on Tuesday night.

Leeds manager Simon Grayson has bemoaned the recent run of games his side have played in such a short amount of time over the festive period, he told leedsunited.com:

"We're depleted somewhat by injury as it stands.

"We've had a lot of games in a short space of time, and that has taken its toll. I'm not surprised, given the run we've had, so we'll take things as they come over the next day.

"It was a tough game in midweek in terms of knocks, but we'll see what we have. Every player wants to be involved, and there'll be some who are disappointed, but I have to pick a team with one eye on what we've done and one eye on what's coming up against Scunthorpe the next weekend."

Whatever the result it will be an entertaining match, played out by two teams who try to play their football in the right manner, but, it should be Arsenal who are too strong for Leeds on the day.