Arsenal facing difficult Champions League draw

Arsenal scraped into the knockout stages of the Champions League with a 3-1 home win over Serbian side Partizan Belgrade, eventually.

It was a very nervous night for the Gunners and their fans, as the Serbians put up a bigger fight than expected.

Worried

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger revealed he was never nervous but was ‘worried’. He revealed in an interview afterwards: “I was never really nervous. Worried yes, because you cannot say you don’t worry when it is 1-1.

“But I felt we had the resources to score and in the last 20 minutes they would drop physically. I was always confident that we would qualify but you never know.

“We didn’t find our pace in the game. We didn’t manage to find openings in their defence and they defended very well”

Opponents

The fact that Wenger’s side have finished second in their group behind Shakhtar Donetsk, means that the Gunners could face Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Arsenal may be doing well in the Premier League but I just can’t see them getting a result against either of the La Liga sides.  Barcelona is being labelled ‘potentially the best team ever’ by some and I’m sure Wenger will be hoping to avoid them (but is not prepared to admit it!).

Real Madrid has looked outstanding this season apart from that 5-0 hammering at the hands of their bitter-rivals. They will be determined to do well in the Champions League after going out of the competition early in the last few seasons.

If Arsenal struggles to beat the likes of Partizan Belgrade and Braga then Barca will simply blow them away. Arsenal were dispatched easily by Barca last season over two legs and will be hoping to draw the likes of Schalke or even compatriots Bayern Munich for the knockout stages, rather than the Spaniards.

Both German sides are struggling in the Bundesliga. Schalke are currently just outside the Bundesliga relegation zone and reigning champions Bayern are currently in seventh place in the Bundesliga, 17 points behind league leaders Borussia Dortmund.

Best

Arsenal winger Theo Walcott has stated that if they want to be the best they have to play the best. However it doesn’t always work that way. Two of the big guns could clash and Arsenal could have an easier path into the next round.

Doubts

There are still some considerable question marks over the Arsenal team. Keeper Lukasz Fabianski has been in decent form of late but I’m still not convinced he’s the answer to the Gunners problems between the sticks.

Arsenal still look like they lack a good solid centre-back. Thomas Vermaelen is the first choice when fit but he’s currently struggling with injury. Summer signing Laurent Koscielny has shown quality at times but obviously hasn’t completely settled with the Gunners.

I am still not convinced by former-Monaco defender Sebastien Squillaci. He just doesn’t look like a top quality centre-back. It’s an area that Wenger really needs to look at strengthening. I don’t think the Gunners are ready to compete with the best just yet.

League

The Arsenal players now have to focus their attention on the Premier League with a big clash against Premier League title rivals Manchester United on Monday night. The clash at Old Trafford could prove a pivotal game in the Premier League title race.

Arsenal has a chance to also send out a signal of intent across Europe with a victory over the Red Devils. Even if they do beat United on Monday night I somehow doubt that Barca or Real will be quivering in their boots.

Are Arsenal good enough to win the Champions League?