Match Preview: Arsenal v Fenerbahçe SK; Champion’s League Playoff
Remarkably, after the turmoil that has engulfed Arsenal after the match on Saturday, I am calm. I shouldn’t be. A trip to Turkey is no thing to scoff about. But frankly, the match between Arsenal v Fenerbahçe is likely a moot point. But hey for 90 minutes we can forget all that.
Why is it a moot point you ask? Well, Fenerbahçe were previously banned from Europe by UEFA. The reason this match is going forward is that Fenerbahçe have appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to rule on its ban from Europe. CAS recently ruled that one of the other clubs banned – Metalist – should NOT be rienstated. So, not a lot is in favor for Fenerbahçe. The ruling on the appeal happens after the second leg. It’s quite possible that Arsenal could lose and still wind up in the group stages.
Still why leave anything to chance. Arsenal need to win. For so many reasons. The club find themselves in a whirl wind of bad press. It’s of their own doing. But every day there is either a bad article, a 30 minute radio show, podcast or blog piece about all that ills Arsenal at the moment. Frankly, we need something to at least for the moment restore some pride.
Now, don’t take for a moment that a win masks over any of the issues that have been brought up here or in other forums. No, it doesn’t but at the very least it gets us to focus on what football is about – the competition.
The powers that be at Arsenal have allowed that to be taken away from us. Now our focus lies on what happens off the pitch. It’s why regardless of the results, I just want to watch a match. For 90 minutes we can leave that all behind.
Now Turkey is not an easy trip. Fenerbahçe ultras are already stirring things up for Arsenal and it’s supporters. Reports came out last night that “activity” was going on outside the players hotel. Additionally, my twitter feed and others was polluted with Fenerbahçe ultras making threats to Arsenal supporters.
Arsenal haven’t fared too bad in the past in Istanbul. Their last visit resulted in a 5-2 win with the likes of Silvestre and Diaby getting on the score sheet.
Arsenal head to Turkey with some good news. Coming out of Villa it was assumed that we could be without Sagna, Ramsey, Rosicky, and Gibbs. All have passed fit and are likely to play some part. Look for Sagna to get rested though. Even though is “fine” the fall looked nasty and Jenkinson is proving to be a solid back up to the French international. Koscielny will be in the lineup as his 1 match ban is domestic.
Players to watch:
Arsenal: Lukas Podolski. Arsenal’s leading scorer in the Champion’s League last season. He scored some beauties. With Oxlade Chamberlain out, look for Santi to swtich to the middle and Poldi to take flight on the left.
Fenerbahçe: Dirk Kuyt. He nows Arsenal well from his days maurauding down the Liverpool flank. Will look for a Champion’s League group stage return by beating his former Premier League foe
Projected Lineups:
Arsenal: Szczesny; Jenkinson, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Gibbs; Wilshere, Ramsey, Cazorla; Podolski, Walcott; Giroud
Fenerbahçe: Volkan, Topal, Yobo, Kuyt, Meireles, Alves, Kadlec, Belözoğlu, Alper Potuk, Topuz, Webó
Arsenal Injuries and Suspensions:
Oxlade-Chamberlain (knee) Vermaelen (back) Diaby(knee) Arteta (thigh)
Head to Head Tournament Stats:
|
Arsenal |
Fenerbahçe |
|
| Goals Scored |
0 |
4 |
| Attempts on Target |
0 |
6 |
| Attempts off Target |
0 |
6 |
| Corners |
0 |
6 |
| Offsides |
0 |
2 |
| Fouls Committed |
0 |
22 |
| Yellow Cards |
0 |
2 |
| Red Cards |
0 |
0 |
Match Official:
Referee: Gianluca Rocchi (ITA)
Assistant referees: Elenito Di Liberatore (ITA) , Gianluca Cariolato (ITA)
Additional assistant referees: Mauro Bergonzi (ITA) , Andrea Gervasoni (ITA)
Fourth official: Alessandro Giallatini (ITA)
Broadcast Information:
US: FoxSoccer 2Go 2:45 PM EST
UK:SkySports 1 1945 GMT/20.45 CET
YAMA Prediction:
Arsenal: 2
Fenerbahçe: 1
Match Facts (courtesy UEFA Press Kit:)
- Arsenal were 5-2 winners when they last visited the Sükrü Saraçoglu Stadium in the 2008/09 UEFA Champions League group stage – a result that ended Fenerbahçe’s 15-match unbeaten home run in Europe.
- Arsenal also got the better of a Fenerbahçe team coached by Ersoy Sükrü in the first round of the 1979/80 European Cup Winners’ Cup. Terry Neill’s side – who went on to reach the final – won 2-0 at home through Alan Sunderland (30) and Willie Young (87) before a goalless draw in Istanbul.
- League runners-up in Turkey last term, Fenerbahçe are bidding to return to the group stage for the first time since that 2008/09 campaign. They missed out on a sixth appearance 12 months ago, suffering a play-off defeat by FC Spartak Moskva, but instead reached their first ever European semi-final in the UEFA Europa League before losing to SL Benfica.
- In seven home games in last season’s UEFA Europa League, Fenerbahçe posted four wins, two draws and just one defeat.
- Fenerbahçe came up against Premier League opposition in the 2007/08 UEFA Champions League quarter-finals, beating Chelsea FC 2-1 at home but losing 2-0 in the second leg in London. Their overall home record against English sides is W3 D1 L3.
- Fenerbahçe’s only two-legged win against an English team was a 2-1 aggregate success against Manchester City FC in the 1968/69 European Champion Clubs’ Cup first round.
- Fourth in the English Premier League last term, Arsenal have a 100% record in UEFA Champions League qualifiers, winning both legs as they overcame each of NK Dinamo Zagreb (2006/07, agg 5-1), AC Sparta Praha (2007/08, agg 5-0), FC Twente (2008/09, agg 6-0), Celtic FC (2009/10, agg 5-1) and Udinese Calcio (2011/12, agg 3-1).
- Arsenal have never played in the rebranded UEFA Europa League and their last game in the old UEFA Cup was actually the 1999/2000 final, which they lost 4-1 on penalties to Galatasaray AŞ after a 0-0 draw – their only other meeting with a Turkish team.
- Arsenal reached the last 16 of last term’s UEFA Champions League before succumbing to FC Bayern München, the eventual winners, on away goals. Their 2-0 second-leg victory in Munich left them with a record of W2 D1 L1 on the road in 2012/13.
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stag, i watched the game. it was what i expected. like i said before the match, arsenal have better players than fenerbache. the question was could the youngsters in midfield play good soccer in the tough parts of the match without arteta. fenerbache didn’t really offer much of a challenge. they were downright bad last night. i don’t see a way back for them.
i read an article in the guardian that says flamini’s a free agent and has been training with the arsenal first team for the past few weeks. for him to sign with a champions league team as a free agent would be equal to a winning lottery ticket. wenger may be thinking that if he can’t sign the dm he’d like, flamini would be a very nice emergency option after the window closes. problem is arsenal could be well off the pace by the time the window closes. in my opinion, flamini ranks every bit as good in dm as petit, gilberto, and vieira. we’ll see.
i’d like to see arsenal sign sako from psg and kondogbia from sevilla. the team could use a couple of hard-hitting brothers to go to work with a pair of pliers and a blow torch (love that movie). no more little technical white guys. arsenal has plenty of those and need a couple of big, scary-looking black guys in the team. theo’s fast but he’s not scary.
seriously, those are two young but very high-quality players who wenger could legitimately sign this late in the window. sako eats strikers but can’t get a game in paris ahead of thiago silva. he’s quicker, stronger, and faster than per and he can play football. kondogbia is young but very phyiscally imposing and tactically sound. while i’ll stop short of comparing him to vieira, he’s very close. the two would make arsenal stronger. kondogbia is linked with milan and, with xabi alonso breaking his foot yesterday, real madrid could re-ignite their interest in this kid. then, they could work on convincing pogba to come to arsenal. man united got it so wrong when they let that kid go; especially considering how much they need good center mids. we’ll see.
Josh.
You just compared Matty Flamini… “every bit as good in DM” as Petit, Gilberto and Vieira.
PUT THE CRACK PIPE DOWN! Please.
Flamini was a nice little player. I liked him. If we were to sign him on a free, no harm done.
But he couldn’t carry Manu Petit’s jock strap, I’d easily take Gilberto over him (highly under-rated until he got injured)… and please don’t mention Flamini in the same breath as Vieira, in any footballing sense!
:)
Just saying… he wasn’t in Petit and Vieira’s league… no chance. no way.
You need to go back and watch a bit of Petit and Vieira… they weren’t just a bit above average… and we still have not won a fucking thing, since Patrick Vieira’s last kick in an Arsenal kit… NOTHING.
We’d be pretty smart to get him back at the club in some capacity… QUICKLY.
there’s no crack pipe, brother. likewise, i haven’t come close to forgetting how good petit and vieira were. i’m not comparing flamini to those guys as players but as dm’s. a blind man can see the gulf in actual talent between vieira and flamini. however, as a dm, flamini was very smart and worked very hard to be effective.
there’s only one time since vieira’s departure that arsenal have come close to a championship and that’s the one season flamini was a regular at arsenal. coincidence? nope. dm is the most important position on the pitch and flamini played it as well as anyone that year. arsenal’s lack of a proper dm, despite how talented wilshere is, meant arsenal got stomped at home by aston villa.
didn’t watch a minute of it, but checked the score on Soccernet…
from what I read, we had control for most of the match.
Keown said that winning, actually increased our chances of making signings, and it increased the possibility that players would come…
I wasn’t thinking that way, but could make sense…
I LIKE the rumor that we are talking to Real Madrid about Benzema and DiMara…
that would be a major coup.
12 days. we’ll see.
the benzema link is bullshit. no way is real madrid going to sell their top striker; their only big name center forward. arsenal know that. the season has already started and they’ve already sold higuain. i’ve been a fan of di maria since he was an argentine u-19 but the kid is way too fragile for england.
these links are wenger lip service. i’m sure he’s got an agenda but it’s surely not what it seems. it never is. maybe he’s trying to call a liverpool bluff on not taking the 40 mil for suarez. we’ll see.
Hey Josh, I’m fine, just posting elsewhere…(I still read stuff here, the comments mostly, just to check in on my buddies…)
I guess I felt like trying to stay upbeat (yet realistic…) was a little too tough here on the YAMA… An alternate way of saying it is that I ran out of hugs for Stag… :) (C’mere, big guy, one last one for old time’s sake…) Also, I’m sad that the DAG let the GDC go away (where a lot of the more personal interaction happened) and that the focus seems to be on the Podcast and Twitter side of things…Obviously, I’m a comment kind of guy and live for the back and forth…
Still, I prize my time here (and at AA before)… (All family members wear our YAMA T-shirts with pride, not to mention the Sagna kit I won in the fantasy league…) If not for the YAMA I never would’ve met Arthur 3 Shedds (and his lovely wife) who hosted us at New Years and for the Newcastle 7-3…
Tough times for the Arsenal, no? What a freaking PR disaster this summer’s been. I’d love to get excited about Benzema (a movement oriented forward to rival RVP…) but I (too) can’t see it happening. 93 million for Bale, however, maybe means they’re rethinking things in Madrid. Seriously, watching them in Spain, both Higuain AND Benzema (great players, IMO) were considered failures. Not enough ball when Ronaldo puts his head down seemed the real issue…
Anyhow, thanks for wondering/worrying about me… (Hopefully Nipuna’s fine too…)
HEY STEVE!!! Good to see you mate.
It’s all about content – hence the podcast and the twitter. But the blog is still key even if its just the regulars. I don’t really care who comments but this place started off as a home for everyone post AA.
As for the GDC. I’ve moved to a new hosting company so I am working on a solution that doesn’t become a resource draw and difficult to manage as the other one did.
Stay Tuned!!
Cool…I’ll try to keep tuned in…Very good writing when the Suarez stuff started up, I thought. (Note the avatar…) It’s tough times, so whatever you do, stay tough and keep it up… Cheers…
I need more than a hug at this point!
everything I said over the past 5 years is coming to fruition!
Arsenal FC are a SCAM! a money making scam!!!
Are you out there on Wenger Island with the last few hold-outs!?!
:)
be well. enjoy the league… going to be a very exciting season with a good
3 team race – City, Chelsea and United…
and if Tottenham gets and spends the 90 Million for Bale, they can even challenge
as well…
Tottenham finishing ahead of Arsenal will be the straw that breaks the camels back…
Unless we sign big in the next 12 days, it is a LOCK to happen…
peace love and understanding, you hippie!
Here’s your hug, Stag…
Didn’t you say we wouldn’t make top 4 last year?…Sorry that didn’t happen and you had to wait (ALL SUMMER!) for the Villa match…Winky face, eh, my friend…
Here on the Island, it’s more about watching the vultures fighting over the scraps of our skeleton squad…
No washing until the transfer window closes!! It’s gonna get smelly!!
steve, good to hear you alive and well. it’s a bit worrisome when a regular abruptly stop posting. you never know…
like you, i miss the gdc. i thought it was getting fixed last year. it’s in a seemingly perpetual state of repair. like you, i don’t tweet, twit, twat, or whatever the hell the proper term is. it’s been a right ghost town around here. occasionally, some of the brethren will check in, but it’s been stag and myself posting (trying to keep it going). you already know that. don’t be a stranger.
Josh, are you still thinking Suarez is a possibility?
really?
even Wenger has said NO CHANCE.
It was never ever ever going to happen.
Probably correct on the Benzi and DiMaria links…
I still don’t believe we will sign anyone of note…
Just get to the window, see it shut, and deflect deflect deflect…
it’s not that i believe arsenal are interested in suarez still. i’m simply saying that i believe arsenal has an agenda and it’s not what it’s being made to look like with wenger’s comments.
the only way i can see the benzema pursuit not being an illusion is if real madrid are genuinely interested in suarez and plan to bring him in to replace benzema. bottom line is real madrid’s ego wont allow them to begin a season without a big name at center forward. we’ll see.
where the heck is steve? makes you wonder when people just disappear what might have happened in their life; still wondering what happened to nipuna.
You know . . . till you mentioned them, I had totally forgotten about them. Advantages / disadvantages of choosing to stay anonymous online.
arsenal have better players than fenerbache. they are also currently without a leader. because they have better players, they could win. because they are without a leader, they could very easily get turned over.
one thing is for certain, young aaron ramsey and younger jack wilshere will have to step into the arteta gap and play smart soccer. if they don’t get it right, the pressure of that turkish crowd can and likely will overwhelm them. we’ll see.
You are predicting a win?! really?
football is a crazy game… so anything is possible.
I hope we don’t win… because it will paper over the problems, and Wenger can point to a CL win and say the Villa loss was just a blip… opening season jitters, and that we’re just fine as we are…
0-0 would be perfect… we’d still be on the edge of being knocked out, and could still force the club to act, and bring in the proper players…
its our only hope…
As currently constituted… Tottenham are definitely ahead of us.. more depth, signed some really good players, and could be adding more including Centraeo and Willian…
they could make all those signings, sell Bale, and MAKE MONEY this Summer.
What have we done again? oh right, Yaya Sonogo on a free.