Old-fashioned good start key for Arsenal

While the explosion of multimillion-pound takeovers threatens to replace the romance of the game with the baldness of the balance sheet, Arsenal's manager Arsene Wenger still retains a sense of perspective.

Despite being one of the clubs at the forefront of the naive new world, the Premiership title holders embark upon their first Champions League encounter with their head coach old-fashioned enough to know that human interest underpins the enduring attraction of the sport.

For him Arsenal's European campaign, which kicks off this evening, is as much about what it means to the people playing for him as the financial gains for the club. This is a true football man speaking, not a money cruncher, someone who realises that the further the game moves away from human values the poorer it will become.

The question is, of course, whether this Arsenal team can deliver the rewards Wenger would love to bestow. Their league form so far this season - just one win in five games and one goal in the last four - is patchy, though they have yet to lose. Also, Arsenal have been knocked out in the first round in Europe in the past two seasons.

At least the Champions League can guarantee there will be no repeat of the early exit they experienced in the UEFA Cup. However, it is 14 years since an English team won the European Cup and though Manchester United reached the semi-final two seasons ago, their eventual exit was less than convincing.

As Wenger says: "Still in the mind of many people abroad, to get the real recognition of the quality of the Premier League, you need one of the English teams to do well in the Champions League."

It is crucial that Arsenal get off to a good start. Tonight's tie, along with the following two at home to Panathinaikos and Arsenal's biggest group threat, Dynamo Kiev, will feature Dennis Bergkamp, but Arsenal's visits to the Ukraine and Greece will have to be made without the side's main attacking influence because of his fear of flying.

As his Holland team-mate Marc Overmars says: "We can't afford to lose in Lens. We have got to get points at the start because we will really miss Dennis later on."

Wenger recalls Adams and Nicolas Anelka, who were rested for Saturday's match at Leicester, but Ray Parlour faces a fitness test on a groin injury. Emmanuel Petit, however, is probably out after damaging an ankle in training.

Lens have made a poor start to their domestic league campaign having sold several members of their title-winning team. But Wenger still rates their attacking threat.