Arsenal vs Dynamo Kiev preview
Posted on | November 24, 2008 | No Comments
Game : Arsenal vs Dynamo Kiev ( Also spelt as Kyiv)
Competition : UEFA Champions League Group Stage ( Group G)
Venue : Emirates Stadium, London
Date : 25 November, 2008, Tuesday
Time : 19.45 GMT
After falling to their fifth league defeat of the season to Manchester City on Saturday, Arsenal welcome Dynamo Kiev to the Emirates Stadium knowing that a win or a draw would confirm their progress to the knockout stages.
Arsenal were poor against Manchester City. Song and Denilson were ineffective in midfield, and Gavin Hoyte did not do a great job in defence. However centre back William Gallas will return to the first team on Tuesday, but the captain’s armband will be worn by Spanish youngster Cesc Fabregas. Gallas, if you remember, was the scorer for Arsenal when these two teams drew 1-1 in the Ukranian capital a few weeks back. Kolo Toure’s calf injury sees him miss out, while Theo Walcott, Emmanuel Eboue, Emmanuel Adebayor Samir Nasri and Abou Diaby are also unavailable for selection. The status of Bacary Sagna is unknown, but he should return to his usual spot on the right.
Dynamo lost to FC Porto in their last Champions league game, with Lucho Gonzalez scoring an injury time winner for the Portuguese side. The result leaves Dynamo with five points from four games, and they will be eliminated should they lose to Arsenal and Porto beat Fenerbahce. Dynamo’s last domestic game saw them lose 0-1 to bitter rivals Shakhtar- their second defeat in the Ukranian league. Upfront, Artem Milevskiy and Ismaël Bangoura will be the key for Dynamo, especially with the turmoil that the Arsenal back four is going through.
In two trips to London, Dynamo have never managed a win. They drew 1-1 in 1998, with Sergiy Rebrov grabbing a late equaliser. When these two teams met in November 2003, Ashley Cole’s late goal gave Arsenal victory. I’ll stick my neck out and go for a 2-2 draw, with Bangoura and Ghioane scoring. Van Persie and Fabregas to score for Arsenal. Arsenal have a tough game against Chelsea coming up, so this will be an important game.
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