Wenger happy with his 'outsiders'

THAT ARSENE Wenger can still bring himself to watch the re-run of the 2006 Champions League final, when his Arsenal team were 14 minutes from European club triumph against Barcelona, speaks volumes for his single-mindedness.

The passage of time, however, has done little to heal the wounds.

“I watched the game again recently and their equaliser was offside,” he said of Samuel Eto’s 76th-minute goal, which prefaced Juliano Belletti’s winner four minutes later. “We were unlucky because we had chances to score a second goal. It was a huge disappointment. We lost with 10 men against Barcelona who were at the top of their game.”

Wenger once again stands within striking distance of Europe’s summit and familiar foes block his path. Villarreal provided the opposition in the 2006 semi-final when Arsenal squeaked through after Jens Lehmann’s penalty save in the 90th minute of the second leg, and the Spaniards will seek revenge in this season’s quarter-final, the first leg is at El Madrigal, the club’s tight and atmospheric stadium.

Wenger would sign up for a repeat of the last meeting with one of Spain’s emerging if generally unheralded teams and, though he described Arsenal as “super outsiders” for eventual glory in the competition, the confidence is growing and it is difficult to ignore the feeling around the club that fate is finally conspiring in their favour. Although Robin van Persie’s groin problem kept him behind in London, together with the cup-tied Andrei Arshavin, Wenger has selection options while there is no doubt that the draw might have pitted them against more daunting opponents. The opportunity to lay the final demons of 2006 beckons.

“I believe we have a chance but let’s get over this hurdle first and then we’ll see,” Wenger said.

“If we get past Villarreal, I believe we have a good chance but we are conscious that with Villarreal we face a big opponent and for me it’s a really 50-50 game. I believe in my team, I have said that so many times this year, but as well we have to remain humble. It’s all in front of us now, that’s the real test that we face and we can deal with the challenges. It’s down to the tie [against Villarreal] and our performance.”

“We are super outsiders to win the Champions League,” he added, eyeing a potential semi-final against the holders Manchester United, who play Porto in their quarter-final. “When you look at the bookmakers, we are not in there. All of the favourites are Liverpool, Manchester United and Barcelona. That puts a little less pressure on you but once you are on the pitch it doesn’t change too much. I don’t know who will reach the semi-finals. How can you predict when you see games like the one at Old Trafford on Sunday [between United and Aston Villa]?”

The dramatic conclusion to the 2006 campaign marked a turning point for Arsenal. As they prepared that summer to move into the €392 million Emirates stadium and confront the associated costs, Wenger made a decision that might have appealed to his football purist sensibilities but one that also met with the financial imperatives at the time. Wenger’s faith in his project, which has involved the break-up of the old team, spending within carefully defined parameters and promoting youth, has never wavered. With an FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea also on the horizon, vindication is in his thoughts.

“The decision was to go for more youth when we decided to build a new stadium because we are not in a position where we could spend £30 million or £40 million on players,” said Wenger.

“We decided to go for a youth policy and it has benefits like the players developing a spirit together. If players are educated at our club, then the club has a different meaning to them. We’ve gone with the young players and to put four or five players in front of them would be to kill the whole work that we’ve done.”

Wenger admitted that the extent to which he succeeded in rotating his squad would play a decisive part in the club’s quest to end their four-year trophy drought. All eyes are now on southern Spain.

Guardian Service