On Wednesday Arsenal take on Borussia Dortmund in a confident mood after a convincing top of the table clash with Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium. It was dubbed a big test for the Gunners and a way of seeing how far this Arsenal team has come since the surprising and humiliating opening day defeat to Aston Villa. Well, that is what most newspapers are reporting. I for one do not buy it.
Liverpool are a good team with two in form strikers that a lot of people predicted would not work together because of their occasional moments of selfishness. We saw on Saturday a little bit of truth in that as Luis Suarez ran through the Arsenal defence in the second half and went for glory when perhaps the easier option was to pass it to Daniel Sturridge. Racism, perhaps?
Nevertheless, Arsenal won the “test” and it was a vital three points. However, as a believer that the English Premier League is the best and toughest league in world football, there are no easy games. It is an old cliché but everybody can beat everybody.
Every game for Arsenal so far has been a test and there is more pressure on Mr. Wenger this season because of the purchase of Mesut Ozil. The former Real Madrid assist machine has had a bigger impact on the psychology of the club than Michael Jordan did for the Looney Tunes.
On Wednesday night, versus the lovable and loud Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal will not face a test. It will be more like having to write a dissertation with your left hand. Dortmund is a fabulous team that has quickly risen from the bottom to the top. Klopp himself said that if Dortmund had won the Champions League last season then he would “have loved to watch that story if it was a movie.”
It was in September 2011, a mere 26 months ago that Arsenal first came up against Klopp’s Dortmund side in the group stages and the final result was a 1-1 draw at the Westfalenstadion. It was a tough game; a great atmosphere and Arsenal were on the brink of beating the German champions.
In the returning fixture at the Emirates, Arsenal managed to win 2-1 thanks to a brace from a certain Dutchman. Arsenal eventually qualified second in the group and Dortmund could not even manage a Europa League consolation.
A week is a long time in football, and a year feels like centuries. If Arsenal had won two weeks ago they would have been a much more comfortable position. Instead, they lost to a beautiful goal and now the pressure is really on, especially as it is unlikely Marseilles are going to cause an upset against Napoli.
In 2013, Dortmund has a different band of players. Klopps “heavy metal” philosophy has earned his side a great amount of respect from all European sides and Arsenal and Wenger will be expecting a yellow army of tireless rockers. Lets hope Wenger’s orchestra put down their violins and let loose the double bass.
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