UEFA Champions League Preview: Partizan Belgrade v Arsenal
Arsenal take on Partizan Belgrade on match-day two of the UEFA Champions League. The former English champions are coming off a terrible 3-2 loss against West Brom and should be looking for a chance to bounce back instantly.
Arsenal’s man in goal, Manuel Almunia, who was at the centre of criticism following his howlers against the Baggies, will not be travelling with the team after injuring his elbow. Lukasz Fabianski is expected to be between the
posts for the Gunners instead as they look to forget about their defeat at home and look instead to build on the 6 goals they scored in their first group game.
Arsenal Boss Arsene Wenger is also looking to instil some confidence in his team after their demoralising defeat.
"The whole squad was very low after the weekend but I believe we will play well on Tuesday," said Arsene Wenger.
Missing goalkeeper Almunia is not the only worry for Wenger. He still does not have his captain Cesc Fabregas back from injury. Theo Walcott, the young winger who was looking like the real deal this season following a hat trick
against Blackpool, is also out. The Dutch striker Robin Van Persie completes the shocking injury list that can give any manager sleepless nights.
Kieran Gibbs, the starting left back, is also not a 100% fit and will undergo a late fitness test to determine his chances of playing.
The first game of their European campaign saw Arsenal dismantle Braga by six goals to nil, and Wenger believes that his team will put the loss at the Emirates in the past and go out for another big win.
Following the defeat there were obvious cries from all corners of Almunia being the culprit. However Wenger insisted that it was the whole team that was to blame and to have a scapegoat was not fair.
"There is always an easy target, an easy scapegoat," added the Gunners manager. "But I believe we win together and we lose together.
"Even if people think Manuel made a mistake on the second goal, we made a few before that as well as a team, so we all have to stand up for what happened.”
Wenger said that Almunia is a man totally committed to the club, and he has total faith in him. He added that the keeper was very dejected and low on confidence after the game. However that was not the reason why he did not to
travel with the team. The French manager reiterated that it is the elbow injury that has kept Almunia out of the squad.
Partizan Belgrade, Arsenal’s opponents for this game, are a fairly unknown quantity in European football. The Serbian team is though currently top of the table in their domestic league. Their last game in the Serbian league ended
in a 0-0 draw against Spartak Subotica on Sunday. Their first game in UEFA Champions League ended in a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Shakhtar Donetsk.
The players to watch out for Arsenal in the match would have to be Serbian international midfielder Sasa Ilic and Brazilian-born striker Cleo. Sasa is a well rounded player and can play deep and also in advanced positions in the
midfield. He is known to have the eye to make threaded passes to the front men and can be a real thorn for Arsenal at the Stadion FK Partizan. Cleo on the other hand is a well built, tall striker; he can be intimidating for the young and inexperienced Arsenal
defence.
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