The Daily Mail posted an article today about Jose Mourinho's analysis on the two match ups. As eager as I was to see what the "special one" had to say about his former club and, of course, Arsenal, I was disappointed in the end. Mourinho disclosed some steamy anecdote about how he told Lamps that he was the best midfielder in the world while Frank he was in the shower. His words hold weight and according to the Portuguese maestro, his words change his players and effect their performance. His response: Just look at Zlatan this year after I told him he was the best striker in the world. My response: How many goals did Zlatan score against Manchester United in the Champions League round of 16? Better yet, how many did your team score?
Regarding the meeting between Arsenal and Manchester United, Jose had one crucial point. Arsenal will need to score in the first leg at Old Trafford in order to have a realistic shot at traveling to Rome for the second time this year. To the dismay of Arsenal supporters over the world, Arshavin will not be playing next week after he told the Russian press that he will score five goals at Old Trafford on May 16.
In other news, Robin Van Persie and Gael Clichy are highly doubtful to play next week in the semifinals. This is devastating but I will not go as far to say we are out of contention with Manchester United without them. with Toure, Silvestre, Sagna, and Gibbs holding the back line we have potential to defend effectively and prevent the powerful United attack from getting out of control. Here are a couple of notable match ups to be aware of:
1. Bacary Sagna & Cristiano Ronaldo: Sagna is an under-rated right back in the Premier League. He is capable of making mistakes and you don't have to think back too far to remember one. At Anfield on Tuesday his dreadful cross landed on Kuyt's laces, eventually Dirk would place the ball on El Nino's head. The ball was then past Fabianski's gloves before he could say "Polksa".
Cristiano Ronaldo is Cristiano Ronaldo; we all know what the lad's capable of. However, it is worth it to mention he's not on form like he was last season. Then again, no one really has ever been on the form like he was last season. 41 goals for a winger is a feat that only greats can fathom.
2. Adebayor & Rio Ferdinand: Adebayor had a patchy start to the season but he is beginning to show signs of invincibility. His goal against Villareal showed to me that he is either in his prime or just on the verge of it. Adebayor's strengths are in his ability to maintain balance on the ball, maintain control of the ball, while he simultaneously sprints past defenders seemingly effortlessly. One defender that has the potential to be a formidable foe for Adebayor is Rio Ferdinand. Rio and Vidic have formed an unbreakable barricade this 2008-09 campaign. Rio defends with patience and intensity while Nemanja Vidic seems to defend with his heart. Few teams have found goals at Old Trafford this season and it will be up to Adebayor to produce divine performances, therefore, breaking the norm.
As an Arsenal supporter it's almost hard to believe that a 2006 final replay is one step away. As soon as my dreams evade me I realized how great of a step it is to make the final. The road to the Champions league is an arduous one with it's mid-season struggles and injury pile-ups. Arsenal's path to the semifinal stage was not flawless. Finishing second in the group the Gunners could only manage three wins in the group stages. Manchester United's path to the final was also not a graceful one. United must have caught Arsenal's draw disease with four draws out of the six group fixtures. With only ten points in the group stage the Red Devils were lucky to finish top of the group ahead of Villareal.
After 180 minutes, with injury time more like 190, a finalist will be crowned. United are definitely in higher spirits after their victory over Portsmouth and after, ironically, Arshavin banged in four at Anfield. United are a game in hand and three points ahead of Liverpool. The psychological battles are surely taking their toll on both sides because Arsenal theoretically have everything to play for in the Champions League. With a fourth spot in the Premier League looking secure the Gunners must only be thinking about one thing and that is to be crowned the first team in London to win European club's first and most prestigious honor.
For now I will continue to bask in the glory of Arshavin's four goal masterful performance. Once Wednesday rolls around, I'll be prepared. I hope you all have a laugh at Arsenal's wonderful Fanzone rep Ali May, especially after Arshavin's fourth. Have a great weekend everyone.
