Who will be hung over most?

Celebrate?
By Boris Mellor
March 11 2006

Arsenal have won five out of seven Premiership games after Champion League matches this season, but Liverpool have only won four out of nine.

Memory plays tricks, I thought our record was far worse, but that beggars the question who will be most affected by their midweek exertions? Will it be Arsenal elated by victory over Real, and looking forward to Vieira’s return, or the European Champions gutted by losing their hold on the trophy against Benfica? Will they bounce back?

Gerrard has already launched the mind games by wishing Arsenal well, and saying they could go far if Henry is not injured; in other words don’t play too hard against us Henry you might get an injury. With backing like that who needs detractors?

This is definitely a must win game, Spurs defeat at Chelsea leaves us with a chance of gaining a CL spot. However the multicultural hammering (Bolton) of the England B team means that an outsider might beat both of the North London teams to the CL spot. So its time to focus and get a run together.

We will have to hope that Liverpool forwards still cannot find the goal (it’s those two posts with an onion bag between them lads), and that our forwards can continue to find it as they did at Fulham. Liverpool’s away record is only slightly better than ours in terms of wins, but they do draw a lot more, and lose less.  Ironically they and Arsenal have only scored 13 goals apiece away. Arsenal have not lost to the Pool during the last five Premiership home games, although there has been a draw or too.

Arsenal’s home record is good, even the two matches lost had a large helping of bad luck attached. Liverpool can expect a hard game.

Freddy, is apparently the only doubt (late injury test to come) everyone else was unscathed, but none of those injured prior to Real game are expected to return.

Probable team: Lehmann, Eboue, Toure, Senderos, Flamini, Hleb, Fabregas, Gilberto, Reyes, Adebayor, and Henry.

Possibles: Ljungberg, Diaby, Bergkamp or Walcott