Well I’m away for a long weekend so I thought I’d better get in my Chelsea/Arsenal preview in before it was too late – no Internet access where I’m going… but I have been told I’ll get to see the match down the Pub so it’s not all bad. Anyway, no doubt most of what I say will be totally useless by the time the match actually kicks off but I’ll try not to sound totally stupid.

It might only be Friday but there’s no shortage of animosity between Arsenal and the Russians!

Jens Lehmann has come out and said Cashley Ass Cole deserves the abuse he is likely to get from the Arsenal fans on Sunday. God I do love Jens! He does make a good point about why the hell a 25 year old needs to publish a book about his career but then again we all know Cashley is a complete idiot.

And obviously you must have seen the Cashley Cole bank notes going around t’internet at the moment. Apparently The Gooner have printed 20,000 of them so I’m sure you’ll hear about it come Sunday! You can download them and print off a few if you like by visiting this Arsenal World artcle or even at Myles’ site.

Gilberto has rallied the troops before the match at Stamford Bridge, saying:

“Thierry is very important to us because he’s the skipper. But we are doing best and have shown that we can play without him.

“Against Chelsea he might not play so we need to do our best without him and I hope we do the job well.

“Now we have another tough match against Chelsea. It won’t be easy to win the game as it’s always difficult to win at Stamford Bridge.”

I hope the team don’t dwell too much on the players who are missing and concentrate on the task ahead which shouldn’t be a problem considering the performance and result we got at Old Trafford.

With Kolo missing from suspension and Gallas looking ‘very doubtful’ for the match the fitness of Djourou is vital for Arsenal to have any sort of defensive shape. Luckily Arsene is hopeful that he will be fit enough to make it.

Personally I think Arsene is being over cautious with Gallas and he will be ready for the game on Sunday. Well, I’m more hopeful than anything because without Gallas a defence consisting of Djourou, Senderos, Clichy and Eboue is too young to cope with such a big game. If Djourou AND Gallas don’t make it then it’s not worth thinking about! Having to play Gilberto at the back would severely weaken the midfield that would most likely have to be Flamini and Fabregas which isn’t exactly imposing! Don’t be surprised if Baptista is used in some sort of capacity.

With the defence picking itself due to absentees and injuries the only question is who will play in the midfield supporting Adebayor upfront.

Fabregas and stand-in Gilberto will start in midfield (providing the latter doesn’t play at the back) and with Rosicky still injured you would bet on Hleb, Freddie and Van Persie to start.

The Dutchman started on the bench against Porto so is definitely going to start, but with both Hleb and Freddie playing the full 90 minutes (however relaxed it may have been) there might be a strong shout for either Baptista or Walcott to start, especially with Wenger saying the teenager would get his chance in Henry’s absence.

Personally I hope both Baptista and Walcott start firstly because Chelsea would not expect it and secondly Walcott’s pace is frightening! Also, Baptista is known as ‘The Beast’ so Sunday would be a decent time to show it!

I fully expect the line-up on Sunday to be:

Lehmann, Eboue, Gallas, Senderos, Clichy, Hleb, Freddie, Fabregas, Gilberto (c), Van Persie & Adebayor.

Chelsea are having selection problems of their own, with Mourinho saying that there are 9 untouchable players in his team that can’t be dropped – but Schevchenko isn’t one of them!

It was blatantly obvious Schevchenko wasn’t a Mourinho buy and Chelsea have suffered because of his inclusion in the team. So I hope he plays against us on Sunday!

Although the odds are stacked against us (6-1 with some bookies!) I honestly believe that we can get a decent result at Stamford Bridge. Call it blind faith in the team but Arsenal have shown to surprise the critics.

Prediction?

I’m shocking at these so I’d better leave it this time! But I think if things go our way we can leave there with all 3 points!

And if my abundance of optimism wasn’t enough for you then Arsenal’s official website used the Football Manager computer game to predict the Chelsea v Arsenal match with the Gunners coming out 2-0 winners with a double from Adebayor!

P.S. I’m sure there’s loads of spelling and grammar mistakes but it is 5am in the morning!

First the injury news. Gallas is still out but should be back for the Chelski game, Tomas Rosicky will miss the match and will probably be out until the new year with a hamstring problem, as willl captain Thierry Henry with his neck problem. Although whether he’s been a pain in the neck for Wenger is another story…

But Arsene and Titi have put the so called ‘row’ behind them, with Wenger saying:

“I just feel that it’s important to reiterate that there’s no problem between us, in fact, we have always had a strong relationship and that remains the case.

“I wanted to clear this up and end any further speculation as it is a pivotal week in our season.”

So hopefully all the speculation and hearsay can stop and we can all focus in the upcoming matches.

With Henry being sidelined for the next few weeks, Wenger has said that he will use Theo Walcott much more than previous months which is a good thing – considering he has the ability to change a game with his fantastic pace.

With both Arsenal and Porto needing just a draw tonight to progress, both teams have said that they are playing for the win which is expected really. What else can they say?

Tonights game will be really tough and I’ve got a feeling Arsenal will need to score a couple of goals to get at least a draw. Porto are at home and although we comfortably beat them at the Emirates earlier this season this game will be totally different.

They are top of the Portuguese league, are unbeaten in 10 games and haven’t lost at home this season – and have won every one of them excluding the goalless draw against CSKA Moscow!

There’s no doubt that without Henry Arsenal play differently and like the games against Spurs and Manchester United I hope the players on the pitch take more responsibility and really perform. With Thierry playing there’s too much expectancy on him to win the game single-handed so Henry’s absence should give Arsenal that edge tonight.

Sky Sports ‘expert’ Phil Thompson has predicted that Arsenal will lose with Porto nicking it with a 1-0 win and therefore knock us out of the Champions League.

I don’t share that view at all – I certainly think Arsenal can score a couple of goals out there but obviously Porto will be dangerous in attack playing in front of their own fans. But Arsenal have performed at their best this season when their backs have been against the wall and I expect exactly the same tonight.

The only questions on the team tonight are in midfield and in defence.

Lehmann, Eboue, Clichy and Toure will be at the back, with Gilberto, Fabregas, Hleb, Van Persie in a 5 man midfield with Adebayor up top by himself. So it will either be Senderos or Djourou to partner Toure and Wenger has several options to complete the midfield 5, including Baptista, Walcott or Mathieu Flamini.

With Van Persie pushing on to support Adebayor I would expect Flamini to play with Gilberto to protect the defence and make sure we don’t concede a goal. But Baptista has strength to impose himself on the game and Walcott offers an outlet on the break if needed. It’ll be interesting to see who plays in that 5th midfield place tonight.

Prediction?

Well I thought we’d beat Manchester United at Old Trafford and even though I might be tempting fate I see the same happening tonight. Porto will be under pressure to attack tonight and I think Arsenal will take advantage of it.

But I don’t think we’ll keep a clean sheet, and Arsenal are likely to give away another stupid goal which is usually against the run of play.

It will be a tough, tough game but I think Arsenal can come out 2-1 winners and qualify for the next stage. Although I would be more than happy with a boring 1-0!

Everyone is expecting Arsenal to easily beat Everton but I have a feeling that it’s going to be the toughest test for the Gunners so far.

We have 17 points from 8 games while Everton have 16 from 9 – and we’ve both scored 15 goals this season.

Considering we’ve been in free-scoring form and Everton are usually defensive the fact they already have 15 goals this season is impressive – especially when only Manchester United have scored more in the league so far.

Andy Johnson has been huge for Everton and fits in perfectly to their 4-5-1 formation with his pace, scoring ability and handy knack of winning a penalty!

And with Arsenal looking slightly frail from set-pieces at times this term Tim Cahill could cause all kinds of problems.

But of course, Arsenal were stunning against Reading with our own 4-5-1 (but more like a 4-1-4-1 I suppose) with Hleb, Rosicky, Fabregas and Van Persie linking well with Henry. I hope Arsene doesn’t change too much and plays the same attacking 5 against Everton.

Teams always play deep at the Emirates and Everton will be no different, looking for the quick break lead by Andy Johnson. Don’t be surprised if he wins a penalty!

Both teams will go into the game full of confidence which will make for an excellent game with probably a few goals.

Prediction?

3-1 to the Arsenal!

It’s that time of the season again – Arsenal travel to Old Trafford to take on Manchester United in probably the game we would love to win the most throughout the entire season. Is it because we are the two teams that have dominated The Premiership over the past decade? Is it because the matches are usually electric? Or maybe it’s because Arsenal winning at OT is a good omen for the season. Whatever it is, tomorrow will be a huge game.

Even though things have changed over recent seasons with Chelski having taken over United and Arsenal’s domination of English football and Vieira and Keane at pastures new, there is still a tension, hype and excitement when these two teams meet.

Going into the game, do United look the stronger bet?

Well they have played 4 games in The Premiership and a game in the Champions League and won all 5. Having seen footage in most of those games it must be said that even without Keane or Van Nistelrooy they look impressive. Scholes, Rooney and Saha are playing well and Giggs is back in form, although the Welshman has been ruled out of today’s game.

Arsenal on the other hand have stuttered in the league, having picked up only 2 points from 3 games. We have beaten Hamburg and Dynamo Zagreb 2-1 aswell but at times in the matches have looked frail at the back.

And we look to have Thierry Henry out with a foot injury and Robin Van Persie is out with a hip problem. On the positive side, Kolo Toure should be back in time and Freddie could be pushing for a comeback against the team he has a knack of scoring against.

It will be very interesting how Arsene will play and which players he will pick for the game.

You can almost be certain that Wenger will deploy a 4-5-1 formation, since Adebayor is the only available recognised striker. Without Clichy, Senderos and Lauren, the defence picks itself and the only question will be who will join Fabregas and Gilberto in midfield. The 4 options are Freddie, Hleb, Rosicky or Baptista for the remaining 3 places.

Probable Team:
Lehmann
Eboue, Toure, Djourou, Gallas
Hleb, Fabregas, Gilberto (c), Freddie
Rosicky
Adebayor

Although Freddie and Rosicky could possibly swap positions. A good thing for Arsenal is that although Henry and Van Persie are out, Wenger has players available that can suit a number of systems that will keep Ferguson guessing. Hopefully Baptista will make an appearance because I think he has a lot to offer Arsenal.

Predictions?

Well everyone is writing off Arsenal, with several ‘experts’ predicting a 2-0 or even 3-0 win for United – and on current form not many people could really argue with them.

But through adversity comes great strength and I honestly think Arsenal can shock the masses by getting a decent result. Much of that will depend on how Arsenal can cope with the threat of Christiano Ronaldo, Paul Scholes, Wayne Rooney and Louis Saha who are the in-form players at the moment.

In every game this season Arsenal have dominated possession but today’s match will be a totally different ball game. United will be coming right for us and we will have to withstand a lot of pressure.

The Thing from Tring Graham Poll is the referee for the game and I hope he doesn’t make any clangers like giving players 3 yellow cards before sending them off! Unless it’s an Arsenal player obviously… There’s usually something controversial in this fixture so let’s hope Arsenal get a dodgy penalty! But at Old Trafford that’s not likely!

I’m optimistic about the game and this could be the game that kick starts our season!

One of two things will happen. Either Manchester United will be physical and dominate the match winning 2 or 3 nil, or Arsenal will set the tempo, control the game and run out 2-1 winners. United are in a rich vain of scoring so it would be naive to think we can win 1-0.

If Arsenal win it will be by a scoreline of 2-1. Let’s hope the young guns can pull off a great performance and nick the 3 points!

Well tomorrow Arsenal take on Dinamo Zagreb in possibly one of the biggest games in this season’s fixture list. Arsenal cannot afford to lose at any costs.

Does anyone know anything about Zagreb?

Well not much, and that will be a problem. They did beat minnows Ekranas 9-3 on aggregate in the previous round and the only player I know of them is the German Jens Nowotny.

It’s a major August for Arsenal as we play 2 Champions League Qualifiers, the first Premiership match at the Emirates Stadium and many of the squad are involved in another useless International friendly on the 16th – I pray we don’t get any bloody injuries!

Is it notable that the Official Arsenal page doesn’t include Ashley Cole as an Arsenal player involved in an International friendly?

I think it’s generally accepted that the team that started against AZ Alkmaar last Friday will be the team that starts tomorrow night in Croatia.

With Lehmann suspended (again), Henry just returning to fitness , Senderos injured and Cashley Cole left at home the first eleven will be:

Almunia, Eboue, Toure, Djourou, Flamini, Hleb, Gilberto, Fabregas, Reyes, Adebayor and Robin Van Persie.

Which is the strongest line-up Wenger could pick from the players available.

The only real concern is how Arsenal will play. This is Arsenal’s first competitive game of the season while Zagreb are well underway after starting their domestic league in July.

In other news, Freddie has praised Arsene for his ‘brilliant ability’ to build a team, and also targets the Villa game to come back. Nice to know there are some players who appreciate what a manager has done for them.

And 18 year old prodigy Freddy Adu has criticised Chelsea for their performance in a friendly against MLS All Stars. I like the kid already.