EPL News: Arsene Wenger believes Arsenal have what it takes to win the Champions League
Arsenal's manager Arsene Wenger strongly believes that his team is now strong enough to contest with Europe’s finest, for the title of being the Champions of Europe. The only way the team can achieve those honours is if they manage to win the UEFA Champions League.
Arsenal have never managed to lift the prestigious trophy in the past and along with that the French manager has also never laid his hands of the trophy of the biggest club competition in Europe.
The closest that Arsenal came to lifting the trophy was in 2006, when the team managed to make it all the way to the final game, for the very first time in the clubs history.
However the final was not all rainbows and cup cakes for the team. The match started with the team’s goal keeper, Jens Lehmann being shown a red card and by doing so he became the first player in the history of the contest to be sent of in the final game of the tournament.
Despite being reduced down to ten men, the team looked threatening the whole night. Sol Campbell even managed to open the scoring in the night for the Gunners. However two late goals in the second half, saw the North London team loose out to Barcelona, who went on to lift the trophy.
Now four years in the future, the manager is high on optimism. He believes that his team is now finally ready to out do the team’s previous personal best in the European competition.
However the manager also still feels that Barcelona would be the team to beat, if he stands any chance of lifting the trophy. He feels that no matter how good a team is their ultimate test would be in a game against the reigning Spanish Champions.
In press release, the manager was reported to have said: "If there is a team to fear, it is Barca,"
"Nobody is unbeatable but they are the team to beat.
"We are equipped to win the Champions League, yes. We have in our squad a good mix of quality and experience. When you see our team play, they are no longer tender."
Arsenal are going to kick things of this season in Europe, with a match against Portuguese side, Sporting Braga, the match is scheduled to take place this Wednesday night.
Most critics also believe that if Arsenal are every going to lift the trophy, it's now or never for the team. It has been five years since the team last managed to life any silverware and this has acted as a major factor in most players re considering their future with the team.
If Arsenal are to win the trophy, they would also manage to cement their position as being one of the greatest teams of all time. Despite the fact that the team plays some of the best football, they don't have enough trophies to make up for it. Winning their first ever Champions League trophy could however act as catalyst and help the team achieve unprecedented success.
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