Cesc to Chelsea makes me sad

Cesc Fabregas' move to Chelsea saddens me, but it's probably for the best.

It will make me sad to see a world class player who really grew up at Arsenal playing for one of our rivals, but midfield isn't an area of the team that is a priority for strengthening at the moment. Don't get me wrong, I think Fabregas could've improved our team, he is genuinely world class after all, but signing him would have meant either leaving out Ozil or Ramsey, or playing players out of position.

Sure, we could accommodate Cesc. We could play him on the wing, up front, or in the defensive midfield position, but would he be happy with that? He may be happy to help out the team by playing out of position occasionally, but longer term, players like to play in their favoured position. Besides, it wouldn't really be getting the best out of a large investment.

Another alternative would be to drop Ramsey or Ozil (who one could argue are as good as Cesc), but would either of those be happy with that? I don't think so. And what about players like the Ox and Wilshere, who will struggle to get into the team anyway when everyone is fit. Would they be happy to be pushed further down the pecking order to accommodate Cesc? You may be able to get away with benching world class talent if you are Chelsea or Man City, who can pay ridiculous wages and are perceived by players (perhaps correctly) as having a better chance of winning the league than Arsenal, but world class players don't sit on the bench at Arsenal; you just wouldn't get away with it.

Another alternative would be to play Ozil or Ramsey out wide, but Ramsey has already proved that he is better in a central position and I would be worried about our lack of pace in the wide positions if Ozil played on the wing. Besides, would he be happy with that, long term? And what then of Walcott, Cazorla, Ox and Podolski? Where would they fit in? Not to mention Joel Campbell, who's currently pulling up trees in England's World Cup group for Costa Rica.

Then there is also the matter of Cesc betraying Arsenal by forcing a move to Barcelona, with all that Barca DNA stuff and Spanish team mates forcing him to wear a Barca shirt and begging him to join. There was even a rumour that he refused to play in pre-season friendlies, though we don't know for sure that that's true. Some fans might forgive him for that, others may not.

So, yes, it is sad to see Cesc go to Chelsea, but it's probably best to save our money for the positions we do need to strengthen. World class strikers don't come cheap and we also need a right back and a back up keeper at least. Another backup centre back would also be nice and, if we have any money left, another defensive midfielder – after all, Arteta and Flamini are very good, but I believe it is possible to improve on them, and they aren't getting any younger.

That said, if we don't strengthen those positions, I will be most non-gruntled.

Photo courtesy mcaparrotta

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Cesc to Chelsea makes me sad

Barcelona v Arsenal - video highlights and some thoughts

I'm still gutted about last night's match. If you have the stomach for it, you can view the highlights above.

Technically, the referee was probably right to send off van Persie, but really he needs to show some common sense. The fact that two different Barca players grabbed two different Arsenal players around the throat prior to this with no action being taken against them (van Persie being one of the Arsenal players involved) puts things into perspective.

Now, to add insult to injury, Arsene Wenger and Samir Nasri have been charged with improper conduct after making remarks to the referee. Although this comes as no surprise, it does seem that it's okay for referees to be incompetent but not okay for players or managers to voice their opinions on this. Frankly, I'm surprised that van Persie didn't get charged as well after calling the referee a joke on live TV. Perhaps UEFA just haven't got around to it yet?

I have heard plenty of people (including the pundits on Sky) saying that Barca were the better team and therefore deserved to win, but the truth is that they barely had a shot at goal before van Persie got sent off.

How many times have Arsenal been the better team but failed to win due to a combination of bad luck, bad refereeing decisions, good defending and good keeping? What have the pundits' reactions been to this? They've said that Arsenal play pretty football but lack backbone. Total hypocrisy!

Anyway, we have to make sure we regroup now and try to get something out of the FA Cup match against ManUre and then go on and win the league. It won't be easy though, especially if Szczesny is injured long term.

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Barcelona v Arsenal - video highlights and some thoughts

Barcelona v Arsenal - match preview and line-up

Arsenal line-up:

Subs: Almunia, Squillaci, Eboue, Denilson, Arshavin, Bendtner, Chamakh

After a disappointing result on Saturday (albeit with the aid of some pretty crappy officiating by the referee and linesmen) it is important that Arsenal come back with a good performance against Barca tonight.

It wasn't so much the incorrect offside decision and the not-given penalty against Sunderland that annoyed me as they were both difficult decisions. It was all the other poor decisions that annoyed me most, like the one where Nasri was fouled and referee gave a free-kick to Sunderland and booked Samir, or the so-called 'foul throw'. The ref seemed to have a knack of giving poor decisions in Sunderland's favour at just the right time to break up our momentum. How much longer do we have to keep getting punished by referees for Fabregas allegedly calling one of them a chat? Anyway, I'm over it now, so let's move on. [Deep breath]

The big surprise is that Rosicky starts tonight instead of Arshavin. I guess a tough match (in more ways than one) against Sunderland.

It's great that Fabregas is back - it could be the difference between victory and defeat. It's a shame about Song though. However, I would take Diaby over Denilson as his replacement every time. I'm not one of these people who boos or slags off our own players and Denilson is a decent squad player but Diaby is just so much better than him in my opinion, if he's fully match sharp (which, unfortunately, he rarely seems to be). I'll be a lot more confident if I see his rather than Denilson's name announced on the team sheet. And for those who don't rate Diaby, remember how you used to criticise Song so vociferously? How about now?

The other big question mark over tonight's team was who would play up front, and it's brilliant news that van Persie will start. It will give everyone a big boost and, although both Chamakh and Bendtner are decent players, having RvP up front could make all the difference in a tough match like this.

I think that Arsene Wenger was right in saying that unless van Persie is at least 99.5% fit, he should not be risked. Even if we loose to Barcelona tonight we are still in the hunt for the Premier League and the FA Cup, so it's important that van Persie is able to take part in as many of those as possible. And even if we beat Barca we still have a few tough matches to win before we lift the Champions League trophy, so we shouldn't put all our eggs in one metaphorical trophy basket.

This is one of those big matches that can go either way and it's a fool who tries to predict the outcome, but we are in with a chance after winning the first leg at Ashburton Grove. What's important though is that we put in a good performance even if we are defeated, for the benefit of team morale and confidence. I'm concerned that if we loose this match heavily it might affect our whole season, though I'm not expecting that to happen.

On a final note, I would like to send this message to Barcelona: Barca DNA stands for Barcelona-Do-Not-Approach. So stop tapping up our captain. W***ers!

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Barcelona v Arsenal - match preview and line-up

Arsenal v Barcelona - Beating Barca at their own game

(Picture courtesy Ronnie)

It's a good day to be an Arsenal blogger today. It's a good day to be an Arsenal fan today.

Apparently there was some kind of football match or something yesterday evening. I think I must have fallen asleep at half-time when we were 1-0 down. I had this weird dream that we came back to win 2-1, beating Barca at their own game.

I said yesterday that we needed a win at home because it would be difficult to get one in the away leg and that's exactly what we got. Most of the match reports I've read say that Barcelona mullered us in the first half (even Arsenal.com's match report is fairly negative), but I thought that up until Barca scored it was a fairly even match. After that of course Barca took over, but through a combination of good luck, good defending and poor finishing by the self-styled 'best team in the world', it remained 1-0 at the interval.

In the second half Arsenal were much better and you could see as the match went on that Barca were getting tired, both physically and mentally. Arsene Wenger took a risk by bringing on the attack-minded Arshavin in place of Song, but with Wilshere, Fabregas, Nasri, Arshavin, Bendtner and van Persie all running at them Barcelona's tired legs couldn't cope, and it was substitute Arshavin who scored the winner.

Now we can go to the Nou Camp only needing a draw. If we go there playing for a draw, we'll get beaten, but I can't really see that happening.

Before we play Barca again on Tuesday 8 March it's Leyton Orient away in the FA Cup on Sunday, followed by Stoke at home in the league on Wednesday 23 February, the League Cup final against Birmingham on Sunday 27 February and Sunderland at home in the league on Sat 5 March.

I wonder if Orient's scouts learnt anything from watching last night's match?

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Arsenal v Barcelona - Beating Barca at their own game

Official: Cesc Fabregas is staying at Arsenal

Cesc Fabregas (Picture courtesy RobTM)

Cesc Fabregas has finally confirmed that he will be staying at Arsenal and won't be joining Barcelona this summer. He is quoted on the Daily Mail website saying:

'I have had many conversations with Arsene Wenger both in person and over the phone over the last few months and although the content of those conversations will remain private, the conclusion is that Barcelona have had two formal offers rejected by Arsenal. I am a professional and I fully understand that it is Arsenal's prerogative not to sell me.'

'I owe a lot to the club, manager and the fans and I will respect their decision and will now concentrate on the new season ahead with Arsenal. I can assure all the fans that now the negotiations have ended I will be 100 per cent focused on playing for Arsenal. I am an Arsenal player and as soon as I step out on to the pitch, that is the only club I will be thinking about. I am looking forward to the start of the season and putting this speculation behind me.'

However, Fabregas did confirm that he had been tempted by a move to Barca:

'I would like to apologise to all the Arsenal fans for not speaking sooner about my future but I have not known what I was going to do until this moment.'

'I cannot deny that joining a club like Barcelona was not an attractive move for me. This was the club where I learned my football, it is my home town where my friends and family are and a club where I have always dreamed of playing. There are not many players in the world who would not want to play for Barcelona.'

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Official: Cesc Fabregas is staying at Arsenal

Six of the best Arsenal news stories from the past few days

• The Online Gooner: Support England? Yer 'avin a laugh - why Arsenal fans refuse to support Ing-er-land

• Vital Arsenal: Made up Stuff - very funny article.

• How did they play for Arsenal? 1: Stefan Malz - all about this Arsenal legend!

• The Gunning Hawk: The final nail in Barcelona’s coffin - Cesc Fabregas is staying with Arsenal

• Untold Arsenal: Arsenal back in the reserve league, after major concessions - we're not in the reserve league next season. Oh wait, we've changed our minds.

• Arsenal Insider: Wenger - Suicide is not an option... - hilarious fake interview with Arsene Wenger that had me fooled for a while.

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Six of the best Arsenal news stories from the past few days

Six of the best Arsenal news stories from the past few days

Cesc Fabregas (Courtesy RobTM)

TeamTalk: Fabregas - I could stay a Gunner

The Online Gooner: The signings will come - Gooners should have a little more patience

Young Guns Blog: Koscielny given permission for Arsenal talks

Young Guns: Arsenal Complete Samuel Galindo Signing

Arsenal Action: I feel Sorry for Eduardo, But Arsenal are doing the right thing

LadyArse: If Arsenal won't take action against Barcelona can the fans?

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Six of the best Arsenal news stories from the past few days

Opening day fixture: Liverpool fans confident of victory over Arsenal

Right: Arsenal vs Liverpool (courtesy wonker)

Arsenal have been drawn away at Anfield on the first day of the new Premier League season. The match is scheduled to take place on Saturday 14 August but may be put back to the following day if it is televised on Sky.

Liverpool fans are typically optimistic about their chances. The official Liverpool FC website has listed selective comments from their fans on Twitter, Facebook and the official Liverpool FC forums.

One fan, who calls himself swagatamb (probably not his real name!) said: "Arsenal, Man City and Man Utd among the first 5 matches! Thrashing them would surely make us forget the previous season!!".

Another, Matthew Spencer, said: "Looking forward to this season actually. With the new kits looking great like a throwback to the 80s and Kenny Dalglish at the helm I think we'll have a great season. Not saying we will win the league but with new investors and a new manager some new players we will be a force again. Let's make Anfield a fortress again! YNWA".

And another Danny 'Boy' Simson said: "We'll 'ave the gunners no probs!".

I'd love it if we shove their Scouse-accented words back down their throats, but more realistically, it is hard to judge how we will do next season until we know who we are going to sign and who might be leaving (you know who I'm referring to).

Arsene Wenger has been making the right noises but Barcelona keep getting away with publicly tapping up our captain and so far we have only Maroune Chamakh, though we have been linked with a lot more players.

I'm still optimistic though and I've got my fingers firmly crossed that we will be signing a goalkeeper, a couple of centre-backs soon. A defensive midfielder as back-up to Song would also be welcome because what player who's good enough will be willing to sit on the bench?

• Full Arsenal fixture list from Arsenal.com

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Opening day fixture: Liverpool fans confident of victory over Arsenal

Six of the Best Arsenal News Stories from the Past Few Days

Cesc Fabregas (Courtesy RobTM)

• The Telegraph: Arsenal refuse to speak to Barcelona over possible Cesc Fabregas deal

Arsenal tell Barca they have no intention of selling Fab and that they should f*** off and die.

• Metro: Joe Cole 'to join Arsenal on free transfer after signing three-year deal'

Rumours are building that Joe Cole has signed for Arsenal. We shall see.

• Swiss Ramble: UEFA say fair play to Arsenal - UEFA's new financial rules put under the microscope

An well-balanced article on UEFA's planned financial fair play rules.

• Gunnerholic: Thanks for sweet FA, Capello

Theo Walcott has been used and abused by England.

• Daily Mail: Aaron Ramsey takes positives as rehabilitation from horrific leg break injury comes along nicely

Good news - Aaron Ramsey is on the mend.

• YouTube: Arsenal's future: Wojciech Szczesny - The Wall

Another great video of Arsenal's future no. 1 in action. I get excited every time I see him play. (No, not in that way!)

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Six of the Best Arsenal News Stories from the Past Few Days

Latest on Fabregas - Barcelona still hypocrites

According to the Daily Mirror, Barcelona have finally contacted Arsenal to enquire about the availability of Cesc Fabregas and were immediately told he is not for sale at any price. As yet, they have still not lodged an official bid despite continually tapping him up via the media.

The Daily Mail claim that Barcelona believe the intense media speculation surrounding the proposed switch has hampered proceedings. Err, that would be the 'intense media speculation' that Barcelona themselves have created to unsettle Fabregas would it? Unbelievable!

The latest comes from Barcelona presidential candidate Marc Ingla who is quoted in the Sun as saying: 'Cesc will be a Barcelona player, yes, yes. The money is not as important as his dream because he wants to return to Barcelona and it's a dream for our fans. Of course Barcelona wants to complete a quick deal. I believe that Cesc's time at Arsenal has finished, they have benefited from him and now we hope to reach agreement.'

The money is not important? You what?! Barcelona want to complete the deal quickly? Well, maybe they could start by making an official bid for the player rather than just talking about it. My belief is that Barca simply don't have the money at the moment and they are stalling in the hope that either the player will hand in a transfer written request, forcing Arsenal's hand and potentially lowering the fee, or that they can somehow find the wonga down the back of the settee.

Meanwhile, according to the Mirror Cesc's father has now confirmed that he wants to leave the club to join Barcelona but claims that he does not know which way things will go:

"I tend to think that he has decided. It appears more clearly that he will do it. He has had his time there and given everything. He has been there since he was very young."

 However, more positively, he did also say that:

"I am talking about this but he could still be there next season. Whatever happens, he has great respect for Arsenal."

We know that these days the players hold all the power and that Fabregas having five years left on his contract means little other than allowing Arsenal to hold out for a higher fee. However, if Fabregas doesn't get his wish to move to Barca, I don't expect him to have a strop. Despite Barcelona's overtures, he has refused to burn his bridges with Arsenal by being drawn into handing in a transfer request, perhaps realising that there is a good possibility that the two clubs will not be able to reach an agreement. According to several sources, he said:

"I had a long conversation with Arsene and it was probably the greatest conversation I had with someone in my life. I respect him so much. He told me to concentrate on my football, he told me to concentrate on the World Cup, he told me to leave it in his hands and he will deal with whatever happens in my future. It's not up to me anymore. It's just now about Arsenal and whoever it has to be, and that's it. I don't want to say anything else. I have great respect for Arsene Wenger and Arsenal Football Club and for the Arsenal fans."

If the clubs can't come to an agreement I think Fabregas will stay for one more year. And who knows, if we win something he may be persuaded to stay beyond that (or quite possibly not!).

At the moment I'd rate the transfer as 50:50. At least if he does leave, Peter Hill-Wood has confirmed that Arsene Wenger will be given all the money from the transfer to spend on players. (Though of course we know that is no guarantee that he will choose to spend it.)

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Latest on Fabregas - Barcelona still hypocrites

Let's Talk About Cesc, Baby - Fabregas is off to Barcelona. (Again.)

Cesc Fabregas (Picture courtesy RobTM)

So Cesc Fabregas is off to Barcelona. (Again.) It may be true, it may a load of cobblers. Who knows? At the moment things look in the balance.

For the time being the story seems to have little more credibility than any of the previous ones. I'm not saying that Fabregas won't leave Arsenal this summer but for the time being I'm going to withhold judgement.

As so often in the past, the story is based on a rumour started by Guillem Balague in Spanish newspaper AS(S). According to Balague's official website, he wrote an 'exclusive' article in AS(S) stating that:

Cesc Fabregas has told Arsene Wenger today that he wishes to leave Arsenal this summer in order to return to FC Barcelona. The Spanish midfielder flew into London for talks with the Arsenal coach today for a meeting that will prove decisive in determining his future. Fabregas recently made clear his desire to play for Barcelona, should he ever leave Arsenal, and emphasised that he would like his future sorted before the World Cup finals in June.

Fabregas has now informed Wenger of his desire to play for Barcelona next season and the Spanish club understands that the Premier League club will demand a fee in the region of £30 - £35 million. If Arsenal were to insist on a fee in excess of that figure, it may prove too high for Barcelona who feel that while a deal could still be done, it would be difficult.

Cesc Fabregas left Barcelona in 2003 to sign for Arsenal when he was 16 years old in a move that angered the Spanish club who felt that the Premier League side had exploited a Spanish employment law that prevented Barcelona from tying him to a professional contract. Consequently, Barcelona feel that Arsenal should be willing to negotiate as they would have little grounds for complaint if Barcelona were to aggresively [sic] bid for the player. 

Sky Sports, as they tend to do, are milking the story for all it's worth and it has been repeated in just about every other news outlet, but so far it is just unsubstantiated rumour and lots of questions currently remain unanswered.

For instance, how does Guillem Balague know the intimate details of a private conversation that allegedly took place between Cesc Fabregas and Arsene Wenger? How can the alleged meeting have taken place at all if Arsene Wenger is apparently currently out of the country on holiday? And how serious are Barca about signing Fabregas given that they have just spent £35 million on David Villa, seem to have several other high-profile targets on their radar and already have Xavi and Iniesta who play in Fabregas' position?

The only quotes we have so far from anyone come from Barcelona Sporting director Txiki Begiristain who, when told that Fabregas had reportedly asked for a transfer, said:

It's great news that he wants to come here and I think that one day Cesc will have to come to Barca. But what matters is Arsenal and what their decision is. They think he is a very important player for them. We have to respect that.

I wish it was as soon as possible. But we have to respect Arsenal's wishes and the contract he has. At times the wishes of players do not come true because they are under contract.

 I guess that pretty much sums up the situation at the moment.

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Let's Talk About Cesc, Baby - Fabregas is off to Barcelona. (Again.)

Watch 'Lowlights' of Barcelona vs. Arsenal

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Watch 'Lowlights' of Barcelona vs. Arsenal

Arsenal vs. Barcelona Match Preview

Lionel Messi (courtesy prettyfriendship)

Watching Arsenal is often stressful but it's never dull, is it? As we approach the season's climax, we have more injuries than Darren Anderton on a bad day, but we're still holding in there.

Against Wolves on Saturday we won ugly again, leaving it until the very last minute of stoppage time before Nicklas Bendtner popped up with the vital goal to make it 1-0 to the Arsenal. At least we can see that this side never gives up.

Tonight it's Barcelona. Every man and his dog has come out in praise of Barca after they annihilated us for three quarters if the first leg, and rightly so. However, Barca played probably as well as they are capable of in that match and Arsenal were below-par, but we still came away with a 2-2 draw. So we have every right to hope that if Arsenal can be on their game tonight and Barca are slightly below their best, we can get the result we need. A one goal win will be enough.

Unfortunately, the Arsenal injury fairy has been at work again. The Arsenal squad has been announced and Alex Song isn't in it, while Sol Campbell and Tomas Rosicky are rated as doubtful. I know that Arsene Wenger doesn't usually play Campbell in two consecutive matches but I expect him to play tonight. The thought of Mickel Silvestre being torn a new one by Barcelona fills me with dread, and probably Arsene Wenger as well, so if there is any chance of Sol starting the match then I think he will. Plus, after this match, he has over week to recover before we play sp***s.

Rosicky is more tricky. Arsene Wenger has more options on the wings. There has been quite a lot of speculation about whether Theo Walcott will start, but I think Wenger's preferred option is to have him come off the bench in the second half when Barca are tiring and run rings around them as he did in the first leg. Rosicky's injury makes the decision more difficult. If there is any doubt about his fitness, Arsene may be tempted to start with Theo, but if Tomas is passed fit (and I suspect he will be) then I thinkWenger will start with him on the left and Eboue on the right, which should make us more solid defensively. And we will need that because, despite Barca only needing a draw, I think they will want to impress their home fans, so they will come at us in force early on.

With all the injuries, the midfield three pretty much picks itself. Samir Nasri will come in to replace the revered one, Song will be replaced by Denilson, and Diaby is pretty much a cert despite his poor performance in the first leg. If we are under the cosh, expect Diaby to play a deeper role alongside Denilson, and the two wide players to drop back so that we have more of a 4-4-1-1 with Nasri playing in just behind Bendtner.

The good news is that Barcelona have a few problems of their own. At the back, they will be missing their normal centreback pairing of Carlos Puyol and Gerald Pique who are both suspended, while Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who scored both their goals in the first leg, will miss the match through injury. Like Arsenal, Barcelona have a good squad and should be able to replace the missing players with ones almost as good. Going forward, certainly, I don't think they will miss Ibrahimovic that much. Remember, that a certain Theirry Henry was only on the bench for the first leg and they also have Bojan, who came on for Ibrahimovic after he got injured at the weekend.

If there is hope for Arsenal then it is that Barca will be weaker at the back. Although Puyol and Pique looked very comfortable on the ball in the first leg, there were signs that they can be got at if they are put under pressure, and you wonder how good their replacements will be. The Barca fullbacks also struggled in the first leg when Arsenal started to put them under pressure.

So, can we do it? Undoubtedly. But it will be tough. And we may need a bit of luck to go our way. Whatever happens though, expect it to be stressful but not dull.

Come on you gooners!

Probable team:

Almunia;
Sagna, Campbell, Vermaelen, Clichy;
Nasri, Denilson, Diaby;
Eboue, Bendtner, Rosicky

Arsenal squad in full: 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.

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Arsenal vs. Barcelona Match Preview

Fabregas: Legend Damages Leg End

Cesc Fabregas (Courtesy RobTM)

What kind of a legend is Cesc Fabregas? After 85 minutes of the match against Barcelona on Wednesday he broke his leg, but he played on because Arsenal had already used all three substitutes.

I was calm before the match. The way I saw it, everybody had already written us off and we had nothing to lose. But for 60 minutes Barcelona showed why they are Spanish Champions, European Champions and World Club Champions. They hassled and harried Arsenal, making sure that they couldn't get their passing game going; indeed, couldn't even get near Barca they were that good. They did what Arsenal do to other teams - they passed them off the park. In the first half, Barcelona had 70 percent possession. That's incredible.

Arsenal Addict asked yesterday 'How many of you had given up after 60 minutes?'. Well, I hadn't. When Barca were 1-0 up, I had a kind of premonition of the match ending 2-2. After 60 minutes and at 2-0, I said to myself: 'I'd take a draw at this point.' I know that might sound blindly optimistic, but it almost always looks to me during matches that Arsenal are going to score at any minute. They create so many chances. Even I could score if I was playing up front. Even Tony Cascarino could score. Nah, maybe that's going too far.

Admittedly, for the first 60 minutes Barca had dominated, but I knew that Arsenal are fitter than most teams and always come strong towards the end of matches. Still, when the comeback happened it was incredible and breathtaking. The turning point was Theo Walcott coming on. Barca were terrified of him. When they were faced with him, they looked like frightened rabbits caught in a cars headlights. It didn't take them long to get three players surrounding him every time he got the ball but even then they couldn't totally stop him and by that point it was too late anyway. He had already made several penetrating runs including the fabulous one after 69 minutes where he completely outpaced the fullback and slotted under Valdes for 2-1.

Then, after 85 minutes, an Arsenal legend was made. Francesco Fabregas was pushed over on the edge of the six yard box by Carles Puyol. Penalty to Arsenal and Puyol sent off. As I'm sure you're by now all aware, Fabregas dispatched the spot kick to make it 2-2. But wait, Fabregas was limping and we'd already used all three substitutes..... But he manfully soldiered on for the last 5 minutes plus stoppage time not knowing at that point that he'd broken his leg.

If Fabregas hadn't got injured, I think we may even have gone on to win the game 3-2. In reality, he was a passenger for the last few minutes, but it didn't matter. The fact that he was still there was all that counted. What a player! What a night!

In time, we may count the cost of this match. Arshavin, who went off injured in the first half, is likely to be out for two weeks. Fabregas and Gallas will most likely miss the rest of the season. How will that affect our chances in the Premier League and indeed against Barca in the second leg of their Champions League tie? Who knows? But the first indication we get will be this weekend when Arsenal are at home to Wolves, and Manchester United and Chelsea face each other at old Trafford.

I still think that Arsenal can win the league if they win every match. That's a tough ask but highly do-able. If we can't be Wolves at our place, we don't deserve to win the league and Manure and Chelski can't both win, so come Saturday night we will either be in a better position than we are now or effectively be out of the title race.

I just hope the Barcelona match didn't take too much out of the players.

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Fabregas: Legend Damages Leg End

Exclusive - Interview with Terry Bull

Mr Terry Bull, Yesterday (courtesy K2D2vaca)

I keep hearing that getting Barcelona in the Champions League is a Terry Bull draw for Arsenal. But who is Terry Bull, what does he have to do with the Champions League draw, and does he deserve such a bad reputation?

Maybe Terry Bull is the bloke who pulls his balls out of his bag for UEFA? (Although, technically, UEFA don't have bags, and I'm not sure they've got any balls.) Well, I managed to get an exclusive interview with Bull and asked him if he thought he generally got a bad rep in the press.

"Yes, most certainly", said Bull, "Take the Barcelona vs. Arsenal draw, for example. Everyone knows that you've got to beat the best teams to get to the final, so it doesn't really matter who you get drawn against."

Indeed. In fact, from Arsenal's point-of-view, it may be better to draw Barca at this stage because if we beat them, we'll be on a high and it will give us the confidence to take on the big boys; whereas if we lose, that means we don't have to play so many matches.

I think a full strength Arsenal can beat Barca if luck is on our side. I'm not so sure we can do it without William Gallas. I can envisage Thierry Henry tearing Sol Campbell (or Lionel Messi tearing Michael Silvestre) a new posterior.

According to the official Arsenal website, William Gallas has developed a 'mysterious' calf injury. Meanwhile, in totally unrelated news, Gallas' contract expires at the end of the season. Talks on signing a new one have apparently stalled (with Arsene Wenger's policy of only giving one-year contracts to players over 32 apparently being a major stumbling block) and Gallas is now free to talk to other clubs.

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Exclusive - Interview with Terry Bull