Won't You Stay Just A Little Bit Longer

In the aftermath of the Champions League defeat, the biggest problem facing The Arsenal was retaining the services. Despite the pessimism shown by most, including your truly, Henry has committed his future to the club until 2010 at the very least. By that time, Henry will be 32 and probably still quicker than 90% of all Premiership defenders. I would not be surprised if he is then offered a two year deal, in spite of the clubs policy of one year renewable deals only once a player hits thirty. It is some consolation to the club and its supporters after the disappointment of Wednesday night. Perhaps Thierry had taken note of Pele's comments on the matter - he reminded us of a bygone era of loyalty by pointing out he had spent the majority of his career at Santos. His observation that Henry had no reason to leave the club where he is barely one step down from God and revered wherever he goes. The alternative is to go to Barcelona where Ronaldinho is King and the adoration will be reduced. At least that was one thing that went right this week and a nice birthday present for me to wake up to.

On the subject of long drawn out contract negotiations, The Laughing Cavalier has taken a step back from the Villarreal precipice. Robert Pires has distanced himself from the Yellow Submarines Presidents assertion that he would be paraded as a Villarreal player next week. The Frenchman has been quoted as saying he has three offers aside from Arsenal to consider. Given the stubborness of the Clubs stance, I will be amazed if he is a home player at the Emirates next season. It is believed that one of his offers is from Bolton although I just cannot see him as a Trotter; his style of play is too languid for Big Sam's All Action Men. A break in the sun (not on Page 3 though) may just do good and help erase his memories of Wednesday night.

UEFA have admitted that Hauge was given Wednesday's match in a fit of pique that he was not chosen for the officials list at the upcoming World Cup. So I was correct in my assertion that he did not get the appointmen on merit. Rather the 50th Anniversary Final was ruined by UEFA's Refereeing Committees' collective tantrum. And UEFA wonder why they are viewed as a bunch of self-serving incompetents?

What Difference Does It Make?

Barcelona 2 - 1 Arsenal

0 - 1 Campbell (37)
1 - 1 Eto'o (76)
2 - 1 Belletti (81)

Gutted. Absolutely f****** gutted.

I cannot sum up the feelings more than that. To have been so near to Europe's top prize and to be denied in the last fifteen minutes, after an hour of probably the hardest work that the team had put in all season. The match as a contest appeared to end on eighteen minutes when Jens Lehmann became the first player to be sent off in a European Cup Final but this team continued to exceed expectations by regrouping, adjusting well to their circumstance, taking the lead, being the more threatening of the two teams, only to be undone at the end by fatigue and sheer volume of possession. It will remain an evening of what-if's and maybe's, what would haves, could haves and should haves. What if the referee had played the advantage and let Giuly's goal stand, what would have happened if The Gunners had fielded a full quota of eleven players for ninety minutes, could the referee have been more inept if he had tried and Thierry Henry should have scored after three minutes and sixty-ish minutes. What was proven this evening was that this Arsenal side, if they stay together, can perform to the highest level.

The passage of play that led to Lehmann's dismissal was the first real chance that Barcelona had carved, Lehmann's save from Giuly minutes earlier was the result of a shot from such a tight angle that it was a one in a thousand chance of hitting the back of the net. There are no arguments with the punishment meted out to the German; it was a blatantly professional foul, in isolation there is no doubt the referee was correct in that respect. Should he have played the advantage to allow Giuly to score? Absolutely. The ball entered the net less than five seconds after the foul so the Norwegian official blew too quickly. Could he have played the advantage, allowed the goal and then sent Lehmann off? Absolutely. Whatever he chose, the referee would have faced criticism. Had this been the only mistake he made then it would have been a media story for a day. As it is, the match and the occasion were too big for him, with both sides suffering at some point in the match although Arsenal appeared to suffer more - why Marques, Puyol, van Bommel and Oleguer remained on the pitch is a mystery, each guilty of at least four yellow card offences. Indeed, when Oleguer was eventually booked, the referee made it plain that there were three previous bad tackles. Perhaps UEFA switched the wrong official prior to kick-off. One of Sky's commentary team observed that the referee was so poor due to the standard of officiating in the Norwegian League and the substandard level of play. Possibly but there have been decent Scandanavian officials before and will be in the future no doubt. What is evident is that UEFA's Refereeing Committee needs to take a step back and re-assess how they appoint their officials. The match last night was an example of a man not being able to keep up with the play sufficiently. Perhaps it is time for them to appoint officials based on ability not on politics.

And what of the much vaunted Barcelona team. Personally, I thought they were poor on the whole. Ronaldinho's big stage left him struck down with nerves. Playing 11 v 10 should have given him the space to exploit and drive his teammates on. He failed to do that. In the end the difference was Henrik Larsson's introduction, effectively making their formation 4 - 2 - 4, with each having licence to roam. The Swede popped up on the left for the equaliser, his pass took out Eboue to leave Eto'o whilst the winner came from Larsson's pass on the right to Belletti that split the defence and midfield.

Once the dust has settled on this, Henry will announce his future, stating last night that he would now think about it. Post match comments accusing the Barcelona players of diving like women and being disparaging about Ronaldinho and Eto'o from the Arsenal Captain will make it interesting should he decide to go to the Camp Nou in the summer. I do not know what Eto'o said to him after the game but a look of dejection turned to fury on screen. Having been so close to winning the trophy, does he consider this to be unfinished business with the club? Or has the team come as far as it can in his eyes? Will he join Pires in La Liga next season? Not sure on that. I think he will leave but whether Barcelona will be his final destination is not as clear cut as it once was. Should Shevchenko leave for Stamford Bridge, a trip to Serie A is not out of the question as he may feel he has a point to prove to the Italians.

Any Day Now

The biggest game of Arsenal's history, not just the season, takes place on Wednesday. There I knew there was a decent variant to that theme. Many pundits believe that this is the purists final and this could well be true but is dependent upon two factors. Firstly, which players will be beset by nerves; the more that suffer, the less of a spectacle. Secondly, which Arsenal will turn up? If it is the variety that played in both matches against Madrid and Juventus then it will be a good game. If it is the same as the second leg in Villarreal or Manchester United in last seasons FA Cup final then, dear viewer, you are well and truly stuffed if you expect a scintillating final. Personally, I believe in order to win, it is the former that needs to be in Paris but then I am much less concerned about the match, more the result. It is after all the premiere trophy in European football, a chance for the victors to be crowned "Champions Of Europe".

To suggest that Arsenal are the underdogs is being unkind to underdogs. I would go as far to put forward the view that they are less of a favourite to win than Liverpool were last season. That is not saying we are poorer than they were, more that Barcelona are perceived as being a far better team than Milan. But before you say that this is defeatist claptrap, I believe Arsenal can win. Note I said "can" not "will".

I will say that I have changed my mind from a few days ago about the composition of Arsenal's starting XI. In order to win, I would start with:

Lehmann; Eboue, Toure, Campbell, Cole; Hleb,Gilberto, Fabregas, Ljungberg; Pires; Henry

The main change I have made is Pires for Reyes as despite the Frenchman's inconsistency, he gives the team better balance than Reyes, despite the latters greater pace. This was apparent in the matches against Villarreal. The other switch is to move Hleb to the right and Freddie to the left. Hleb plays equally well whichever side but Ljungberg has played more on the left for Sweden and with a record of scoring twenty goals in the last thirty internationals. A somewhat better strike rate than he has managed for Arsenal this season, two goals in thirty six appearances is not a record to strike fear into opponents. Reyes would be a great substitute to throw into the fray, his pace would be particularly telling in the latter stages. Coming on against Sunderland, he proved that with two goals in the final twenty minutes. Yes, I know the Wearsiders were not strong opposition but tired players are tired players no matter what their qualities when at their peak.

From the reports that I have read, the expect Barcelona line-up will be:

Valdes; Oleguer, Puyol, Marquez, van Bronckhorst; Iniesta, Deco, van Bommel; Giuly, Eto'o, Ronaldinho

There are three or four options on this line up. Firstly, Belletti may replace Oleguer on the right hand side of defence. The Brazilian is far quicker going forward, more of Cicinho than Cafu whilst neither is particularly strong defensively. This may be why Reyes gets picked ahead of Pires; he would certainly be able to take both of these on for pace and win. A more unlikely change is Silvinho for van Bronckhorst on the left. I suspect the Dutchman will get the nod as he seems stronger defensively.

In midfield, Xavi's return to fitness is a problem of the nice kind for Rijkaard. It is a straight choice between Xavi and Iniesta. The latter has played well in the formers absence and may be the deciding factor. Up front, Giuly could be swapped for Larsson although I suspect the latter will be a substitute rather than starting. Certainly the Swede would pose a greater threat in the area than Giuly but he does not have the same level of pace.

The key will be stopping the space behind the defence being exploited. There is no point in man marking Ronaldinho but that does not mean the supply of the ball to him should not be cut off. Also, they need to minimise the amount of time he spends cutting inside - this is where he is most dangerous. Deco presents a different problem. He will play deeper, pass well and be energetic in supporting the attacks. It is important that Fabregas and Gilberto are tight on him, a suspect temperament means that he can become frustrated if things do not work as he planned.

Defensively, they are not as strong as Italian teams. It is therefore important that Arsenal do not leave too much space between Henry and the midfield. If this happens, two things occur. Firstly there is no outlet for the defence and no momentum in attack which means little opportunity to score. Secondly, possession will be surrendered too cheaply and one thing that Barca are very good at is retaining the ball. See, this tactical lark is easy.

Anyway I'm off back to Championship Manager to win the Champions League for the fourth season running so here are Today's Tunes, from The Hideaway Club Classics compilation, opening with Little Willie John - Don't Play With Love. I profess to knowing little about the man, if you will pardon the pun. However, the tracks that I have heard show what an incredible voice he had. A good biography can be found at Shades Of Blue. Next up is the incomparable Ray Charles with The Train.

For Your Entertainment

Rotherham United escaped relegation from League One by two points. Today it has been announced that they will start the new season on -10 points as they have entered a CVA with their creditors approval. I have every sympathy for their supporters who have tried hard all season to raise funds to keep the club afloat. I do however wonder about the timing of the announcement and the Directors need to explain fully as to why the decision was taken one week after the seasons end. The Football League should also look closely at the rules and see if they have been broken by the dubious timing of the action - will Hartlepool look at this and raise a protest? Surely the whole point of these rules, brought about by Leicester City's CVA in League One following their relegation from the Premiership, was to prevent clubs gaining an unfair advantage over their rivals by following this route. In any case, has the 2005 - 06 season officially finished? The Play-Offs are still in progress, the transfer window re-opens at the end of the season according to UEFA, so have the Merry Millers abused the rules?

Liverpool overcame West Ham after penalties today in a final that was a million times better for the viewing public. Jose Manuel Reina's reputation dropped during the match but he proved that his last two seasons in Spain where he saved eight or nine penalties, was no fluke. And well done to him, he showed his strength of character to come back from the three goals conceded - Jamie Carragher ought to sign up for Strictly Come Dancing with the fancy footwork he showed for the first whilst Paul Konchelsky probably could not repeat the outcome of his cross in the next one hundred times he tried it. Only the second goal was truly Reina's fault but he must have been thinking that God really did not like him this afternoon. That is until the penalties. Yes some of the West Ham spot kicks were not good but the keeper still has to save them. It seems a little harsh for West Ham to lose , especially if one considers that they would have been 3 - 1 to the good inside the first minute of the second half if Marlon Harewood had converted his chance, but you get the feeling that it may be your day when your captain strikes an equaliser such as Gerrards last gasp shot. I did not see the Man of the Match Award presentation, there's only so long you can hold your bladder, but if it went to anyone else then they were undeserving of it. For West Ham, Nigel Reo-Coker played well in midfield and if this is how he has been performing all season then he justifies Sven Goran Eriksson's faith by placing him as Standby midfielder for the World Cup.

Todays Tunes continue grooving. First on the cyber-turntable is a masterpiece of feelgood funk from New Orleans' Eddie and the Top Notes, Inc. With one of the best basslines ever recorded, Dap Walk has superb rhythms and is the perfect start to an evening. This is accompanied by the equally uplifting Do I Love You (Indeed I Do) by The Casino Soul Orchestra. Get your feet tappin'....