Andy's Tuesday tips - Arsenal set for exit
Injuries to key players such as Robin van Persie and Theo Walcott couldn't have come at a worse time. They may also be without Cesc Fabregas though my gut feeling is Arsene Wenger will play him even if he's not 100 per cent. Van Persie is the side's best chance of a goal whilst Walcott's direct approach of running at pace is something few defenders like to come up against. They'll certainly miss those two, unless van Persie completes his reported shock comeback.
Still, it could be worse. At least Arsenal actually have a lead to protect and Barcelona are actually looking a tad jaded just now with matches coming thick and fast. Guys like Lionel Messi, Xavi and Pedro must be wishing La Liga had taken a leaf out of the Bundesliga's book and introduced a winter break.
There are two things Arsenal need to do if they're to have a chance of knocking out the tournament favourites. The first is not concede early, the second is to not get frustrated if they find themselves seeing little or none of the ball for long periods. On Wednesday, they'll know what it feels like to be Wigan or West Ham coming to the Emirates and chasing shadows for most of the game.
I've talked about van Persie's potential absence and the threat he poses from both set pieces and open play but there are some other good finishers in this Arsenal side such as Samir Nasri and Andrey Arshavin.
And whether it's Nicklas Bendtner or Marouane Chamakh who fills in up front for the Dutchman if he misses out, they'll have a great chance of showing they can put in a big performance on the biggest stage against arguably the world's best team.
I fancy Arsenal to score a goal here and I don't think it will be as one-sided a contest as it was last season at the Camp Nou but I do fear it will be Pep Guardiola's team who will be in the draw for the next round.
Recommended Bets:
Back Barcelona to qualify at [1.37]
Back Barcelona to win 3-1 at [12.0]
Back both teams to score at [1.84]
Andy Gray is now on Twitter so follow him for his exclusive tips and his take on the biggest stories in football each week.
Published: 8 Mar 2011
nico (March 8, 2011 7:47 AM) said:
Absolutely no mention of the odds. Van Persie may well be playing. Lazy
Betfair Football (March 8, 2011 8:08 AM) said:
Hi nico, the odds for the bets Andy Gray is recommending are in the article, while he was writing before last night's revelation that van Persie could make a shock return. It also remains unconfirmed whether he will be fit to start.
vignesh (March 8, 2011 8:34 AM) said:
We all know that you are manchester united fan..you dont love arsenal..how can you compare a team of arsenals calibre to wigan..atleast we hav beat the world champions in one leg..but your favourite team is drawing against marseille..what a pity..we will win tonight and prove dumb analysts like you wrong..
Stefan (March 8, 2011 8:51 AM) said:
Nice to you that u reply to our messages!
From what Andy says, a good bet will be "Both To Score", because over 2.5 is way to small, and if Arsenal don't search for a goal...they will be out for sure....1-0 is not to hard to get ..remember Inter last year....even with Mourinho and they ultra defensive tactics, they concede...so good luck to all of us!
I'm a Roma fan....but these days is hard to be a "romanista" :)))
Betfair Football (March 8, 2011 9:33 AM) said:
Heh, wouldn't be too surprised if Roma still qualify for the Champions League next season, while there's still a chance of Coppa Italia success and another derby win this weekend, but take your point that it must be a pretty unsettling campaign on the whole for romanistas. Holding out no hope of a comeback tonight in Ukraine then?
si (March 8, 2011 11:03 AM) said:
gray = everton fan
Horace Horlicks (March 8, 2011 11:21 AM) said:
Am not quite in agreement with Andy on this one. I think Pique and Puyol missing from defence and the consequent re-deployment of Busquets(which will have an adverse effect on their midfield possession)will have a far greater negative effect on Barce than Arsenal's missing personnel. Also Arsenal have been playing better away this season. This could be one of those famous European away victories like Man United's Best inspired thrashing of Benfica and Arsenal's Thierry Henry inspired thrashing of Inter Milan. I'm going to stick my considerable neck out on this one and go for a 4-2 win for the Gunners. By the way, I'm not an Arsenal supporter, I support Fulham.
Best Wishes Horace
flops (March 8, 2011 12:12 PM) said:
The last time i rubbished Andy Gray's call, I ended up not only losing money but finding myself looking very silly indeed. How bout 2-1 to Barca with Barca scoring early with a Messi outside the penalty shot and Arsenal having to crawl back one at the last min :P
bert (March 8, 2011 9:45 PM) said:
Good call, Andy!
Stefan (March 9, 2011 8:34 AM) said:
Nice call indeed!
I had a bet only on "both to score"...but the prediction with the correct score was "sweet".
Conglats Andy!
Marina (March 9, 2011 9:24 AM) said:
Nice one, I got the 3-1 Barcelona's win!