Gamegist.com » robin van persie http://gamegist.com Our Game, Our Passion, Our Gist Fri, 13 Aug 2010 21:33:05 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 End Of The Road For Arsenal ? http://gamegist.com/2008/03/03/end-of-the-road-for-arsenal/ http://gamegist.com/2008/03/03/end-of-the-road-for-arsenal/#comments Mon, 03 Mar 2008 18:39:00 +0000 Eduoku http://gamegist.com/2008/03/03/end-of-the-road-for-arsenal/
I told a friend before Arsenal’s champions league first leg tie with AC Milan that they will not advance to the next round, he argued so passionately that we placed a bet which he lost. He is a die hard Gunner. He believes that Arsenal will win every match they play. I love their smart short passes, but good football without goals will definitely land any team in hot water.
This is what Arsenal faces each time they play. When they started scoring a lot of goals this season, i thought they have realized their mistakes, but after watching their last 2 matches, i know for sure that they still have that problem. What manner of strikers turn their backs to the goal when they should shoot for goal. So much for their nonsensical style of play.
Okay, so they travel to the San Siro tomorrow to play AC Milan, veteran campaigners in the champions league, and of course the defending champions. So many are talking about the return of Robin Van Persie. I like this a guy because he is the only Arsenal player that will shoot for goal when he has to do it. For me, he is the only striker Arsenal has right now. But even he will not stop AC Milan from picking this one. History favors the Italian giants anyway.
Let me just spice this up a bit with history and recent facts.

Head-to-heads
Prior to the 0-0 draw in the first leg of this fixture, the only European encounters between Arsenal and AC Milan came in the two legs of the Uefa Super Cup 13 years ago.
They drew 0-0 at Highbury on 1 February 1995 and Milan won the return leg 2-0 at the San Siro a week later.
European history
AC Milan have won the Champions Cup four times and the Champions League three times. They are currently the defending champions, and have successfully negotiated this stage of the competition in all four seasons since it was introduced in 2003.
Arsenal’s best European performances are their Fairs Cup win in 1970 and Cup Winners’ Cup win in 1994. Their best performance in the Champions League was finishing as runners-up to Barcelona in 2006. The Gunners have lost at this knockout stage on two of their four appearances; Bayern Munich eliminated them in 2004-05 and PSV did the same last season.
Current European form
AC Milan have won their last four home matches in the Champions League, and are unbeaten in six at home.
Both these clubs won four, drew one and lost one of their group phase matches, but while the Gunners finishing second in Group H behind Sevilla, AC Milan won Group D.
Player and disciplinary info
Emmanuel Adebayor and Denilson (Arsenal) and Gennaro Gattuso (AC Milan) will be suspended for a quarter-final match on receiving another yellow card, which ever team qualifies.
Kaka and Gattuso have played every minute in the Champions League so far. Andrea Pirlo, Clarence Seedorf and Daniele Bonera are the other Milan players to have appeared in every CL match this season.
Other miscellaneous facts
AC Milan drew 1-1 with Lazio on Saturday, and are unbeaten in nine Serie A matches, winning five of them. They have only conceded three goals in the nine games, and are fifth in the table.
An injury time equaliser from Nicklas Bendtner gave Arsenal a 1-1 home draw with Aston Villa on Saturday, and kept the Londoners one point ahead of Manchester United at the summit of the Premier League.

More Champions League Gist Here
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