Tonight
I didn't have the courage to touch my blog and write any post for couple of days. As the day drew closer, I came to realize all the more how important tonight's match is. No disrespect to my own team but it's not given that we are playing in the ultimate competition's final. Behind that was failure after failure, so much so that many started to believe that Arsene Wenger's Arsenal will never win Champions League. I am the first to admit that I was one of them. Nothing seemed to be right when we played in Europe, not even when we won the Premiership unbeaten all season. So it's not given that we will be there in the final again next season, or the season after.
It's normal that we, fans, get all excited over the Final. But when our star players, for all their international football and world cup experience (Henry and Gilberto has even played in and won World Cup final), stated that this could be once in a lifetime moment for them, you can tell how much this CL final means to them.
When you are with England, German, France or Brazil squad in World Cup, it's an expectation rather than wishful thinking for you to fight your way to the Final. But when you are playing for Arsenal, it's a dream date with destiny to play in CL final. And to win it would be nothing short of miracle. We are talking about a team that was written off even before the CL competition begin. And we are talking about a team of youngsters who earned their place tonight by defeating Real Madrid, Juventus, and Villareal fair and square. Such a fairy tale.. who would believe it? Even now.. everywhere I go, and I mean EVERYWHERE, people would say that Barca are the one who DESERVE the trophy. Underdogs to the end, eh?
The magnitude of tonight's match is exactly the reason why I found it strange that some people took the trouble to worry about Barca's players crap about Henry's future. I personally can't even be bothered now. I don't think Henry would even bother to read the papers. And no.. Henry is not a person whose decision can be influenced by tonight's result. He, of all people, know very well that whatever the result going to be, this team has shown what they are capable of.
Back to the topic.
I don't feel like talking about the match itself because I think I can't really give any better insight apart from what have been written in other sites. We all know defense is the key. We all know Victor Valdes and the two fullbacks are Barca's weaker link. But most importantly, we all know that this can be a match determined by the brilliance of some of the very best players that will no doubt turn into legends in years to come. Of course, judging from the fact that the last two FA cup final and the last CL final was won through penalties, there is a chance we will have to endure 120 minutes match and penalty horror. Arsenal's revival of late was largely due to the fact that the spine of the team, Lehmann - Toure - Cesc - Henry, have played magnificently. Should these four players perform at their very best tonight, Arsenal will have good chance to win the match in 90 minutes.
With regards to the team selection, Sol Campbell seems to be starting ahead of Senderos. We all wish the Swiss will play but maybe Wenger feels that Sol will be more capable of dealing with big match's tension. Cole should also start ahead of Clichy or Flamini. Of course it's a bit unfair to Senderos and Flamini who have played their part when their senior counterpart weren't available. Only the final score will decide whether Wenger has made the right decision.
And in the end, all I can do here is to cross my fingers and pray. The next time I touch my blog will be when the match is over!
It's normal that we, fans, get all excited over the Final. But when our star players, for all their international football and world cup experience (Henry and Gilberto has even played in and won World Cup final), stated that this could be once in a lifetime moment for them, you can tell how much this CL final means to them.
When you are with England, German, France or Brazil squad in World Cup, it's an expectation rather than wishful thinking for you to fight your way to the Final. But when you are playing for Arsenal, it's a dream date with destiny to play in CL final. And to win it would be nothing short of miracle. We are talking about a team that was written off even before the CL competition begin. And we are talking about a team of youngsters who earned their place tonight by defeating Real Madrid, Juventus, and Villareal fair and square. Such a fairy tale.. who would believe it? Even now.. everywhere I go, and I mean EVERYWHERE, people would say that Barca are the one who DESERVE the trophy. Underdogs to the end, eh?
The magnitude of tonight's match is exactly the reason why I found it strange that some people took the trouble to worry about Barca's players crap about Henry's future. I personally can't even be bothered now. I don't think Henry would even bother to read the papers. And no.. Henry is not a person whose decision can be influenced by tonight's result. He, of all people, know very well that whatever the result going to be, this team has shown what they are capable of.
Back to the topic.
I don't feel like talking about the match itself because I think I can't really give any better insight apart from what have been written in other sites. We all know defense is the key. We all know Victor Valdes and the two fullbacks are Barca's weaker link. But most importantly, we all know that this can be a match determined by the brilliance of some of the very best players that will no doubt turn into legends in years to come. Of course, judging from the fact that the last two FA cup final and the last CL final was won through penalties, there is a chance we will have to endure 120 minutes match and penalty horror. Arsenal's revival of late was largely due to the fact that the spine of the team, Lehmann - Toure - Cesc - Henry, have played magnificently. Should these four players perform at their very best tonight, Arsenal will have good chance to win the match in 90 minutes.
With regards to the team selection, Sol Campbell seems to be starting ahead of Senderos. We all wish the Swiss will play but maybe Wenger feels that Sol will be more capable of dealing with big match's tension. Cole should also start ahead of Clichy or Flamini. Of course it's a bit unfair to Senderos and Flamini who have played their part when their senior counterpart weren't available. Only the final score will decide whether Wenger has made the right decision.
And in the end, all I can do here is to cross my fingers and pray. The next time I touch my blog will be when the match is over!
posted by phoenix chix at 9:32 AM
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