With every passing day Arsenal’s hope of a domestic trophy diminishes. They were easily knocked out of the Capital One Cup by Southampton, have virtually no chance of winning the Premier League and will also find it difficult, as all teams do, to win the FA Cup in consecutive years. The all allusive Champions League trophy is where Arsenal have the greatest chance of success this year. But could they possibly go all the way in the competition?
There is no arguing that Arsenal have been handed a gift in terms of the draw in the Champions League. After finishing second only to PSG last season, Monaco have failed to kick on this term. Big departures such as the James RodrÃguez and Radamel Falcao to Real Madrid and Manchester untied respectively. This exodus has culminated in Monaco finding themselves 5th in the French league, 9 points behind early pace setters Marseille. By the time that Arsenal play them they should have almost all of their players currently injured fit. (Knowing Arsenal other players will get injured and we will still be short). This should leave Arsenal in strong position to overcome a Monaco team that realistically they should be beating. After years of coming second and facing the likes of Bayern Munich in the 2nd round. This draw has given Arsenal a real chance of progressing and reaching the quarter finals where anything can happen.
However Arsenal would have to make a few adjustments in order to get far in the competition. They are far too open defensively which was demonstrated perfectly against Dortmund away from home this year.
Arsenal conceded a vast amount of shots and the 3 nil score line truly flattered them. Dortmund would be classified among one of the lesser teams left in the cup. If they can open Arsenal up that easily then I would seriously worry about Arsenal coming up against the likes of Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. There is another fundamental problem in Arsenal thinking that they will win the Champions League. They lack the quality of the better teams in the competition. Real Madrid have gone 22 games unbeaten and look to stretch that to beat the record of 26 games. Barcelona have managed to keep pace with Madrid and with Suarez, Messi and Neymar would be a threat for any team. Bayern Munich won their Champions League and are cruising to yet another title. Likewise Chelsea are very strong and the pragmatic approach espoused by Joe Mourinho will be very beneficial in the Champions League. As we have seen on numerous occasions it is not always the best team who wins the Champions and lady luck could be shining on Arsenal this year…….It would be about time!