Chapter 661: A New Challenge
Arsenal continue to win games and their excellent performances in the league have made it feel hopeless; Arsenal's form is arguably more consistent and their current lead in the table looks obvious. In fact, at this time, the pressure on Arsenal's opponents is getting bigger and bigger, because Arsenal's performance is really stable now, and it seems that it is really a fool's dream to expect Arsenal to suddenly collapse at this time.
Arsenal's performance is becoming more and more consistent, and as long as Arsenal continue to make no mistakes at this time, then Arsenal's opponents will definitely be completely dragged down. Arsenal now have a certain lead in the standings, and the league is getting closer and closer to the end, at this time continue to let Arsenal firmly lock the top position in the standings, then those who want to fight for the title with Arsenal in the league, it is really too difficult,
After winning the game against Sunderland and gaining three points at the Stadium of Light, Arsenal's performance is really solid now, they will not let the opponent have any chance to chase points, and Arsenal continue to win the game steadily. While Arsenal may have some problems in the course of the game, the winner will certainly belong to the Gunners as they have been able to deal with those difficulties well because Arsenal know how to handle the ball in difficult situations and they are able to adjust and bounce back in a quick time.
Arsenal continue to win, and now they gradually have a tendency to shake off their opponents in the standings, and now Arsenal use their excellent performances to make more and more pressure on Manchester United, Manchester City and other chasers, although they are now trying their best to continue to ensure that they are not left behind by Arsenal. But for them, it is obviously an impossible task to chase points. Arsenal's performance was just too good. They look perfect and almost flawless, and they simply won't give any other team any chance to chase points at this time.
Maybe now is a good opportunity for those teams, as Arsenal are now about to start playing on two fronts, and the Champions League, which fans have been waiting for for more than two months, is finally back! At this time, Arsenal will be preparing for the knockout stages of the Champions League, while Manchester United and Manchester City, now they need to seize this opportunity in the league; This could be their worst chance of the season, having already been out of the Champions League. They just need to concentrate on playing well in the league now. If they can't catch up with the difference when Arsenal play on multiple fronts, then the worst hope of the season for them will be dashed.
In the one-eighth elimination round of the Champions League, the most interesting topic is not who pinched the softer persimmon between Real Madrid and Barcelona, nor Lyon vs Atletico Greek, Zenit vs Benfica, who is the war horse among the dark horses; The fight between the Premier League duo and the Serie A top two is the biggest attraction. AC Milan and Arsenal, Chelsea and Napoli, such a confrontation between the Premier League and Serie A is really interesting, and it is definitely not an easy game.
In recent years, the strong rise of the Premier League has been in stark contrast to the decline of the aristocracy of Serie A. Looking back. The whole of European football was dominated by a group of kings who wore black striped shirts, and they lifted the World Cup a total of four times. There has been no place in the last 30 finals in the history of the Champions League. But now, red, white, blue and black are no longer the most beautiful picture, and the decline of the Apennines in the last decade has gradually depressed these epic color schemes.
The 2006 "Phonegate" scandal nearly brought Serie A to a halt, and with the occasional global financial crisis, Italian clubs had to run dismally. Berlusconi and Moratti, the owners of the two giants Milan and Inter Milan, have a lot of money and money, but now the transfer market has been cautious and does not want to spend a lot of money.
In the Premier League in recent years, their performance in the Premier League has caused a collective encirclement of teams in other leagues; They are accustomed to qualifying from the group, and they are accustomed to winning most of the semi-finals. It's no news that UEFA is secretly suppressing the Premier League, because the Premier League's performance is so strong that it undermines the competitiveness that UEFA wants to see in the Champions League.
Although Manchester United and Manchester City were surprised to be depressed in the group stage this season, Chelsea and Arsenal are now in the knockout rounds, and the London duo continue to enter the knockout rounds. They defend the dignity of the Premier League and as long as they stay in the Champions League, they are the most competitive team and they will still be the favourites to win the title because they have that competitiveness.
Arsenal have won the Champions League for the past two seasons, they are the first team to win two consecutive titles since the Champions League was restructured, and they have broken the curse of the reigning Champions League champions, which is indeed an incomparably boosting and crazy performance. Although many people are not optimistic about Arsenal's madness of being able to achieve three consecutive Champions League titles this season, everyone can understand that Arsenal is absolutely capable of upsetting any team.
Arsenal's performance in this season's Champions League is still worth looking forward to, although it is in the group of death, but Arsenal cut melons and vegetables like easy to win the group, their strength is far beyond the other opponents in the group stage, their relaxed state in the process is incredible, because Arsenal is too crazy.
And now, Arsenal has entered the knockout round, and as many people guessed, Arsenal's Champions League journey this season is definitely not easy, they have met the strongest group from the group stage, and as soon as they enter the knockout stage, then they immediately meet the strongest opponent in the knockout stage. Arsenal are now the target of public criticism, everyone wants to limit Arsenal's madness, and they absolutely do not want to see Arsenal completely complete their monopoly on the Champions League.
Perhaps this season will not be easy for Arsenal to create a treble, because they have lost some players in the off-season and their competitiveness has indeed decreased. And Arsenal is now attracting the attention of all the teams, and their goal is to beat Arsenal; And Arsenal have faced the strongest opponents from the start, and with the increasingly dense schedule now, Arsenal will definitely not be easy.
Arsenal's players also know that this is a hurdle, when the Champions League knockout round comes, this is a huge pressure for the Gunners, because the league and the Champions League are fighting on both fronts, which are also two fronts that cannot be lost, at this time the Gunners must also ensure that they go hand in hand, if there is a defeat on even one front at this time, it is definitely a huge blow to the team's confidence.
Xiao Qing and his teammates are ready, although the current momentum of Arsenal in the league is very good, although Arsenal's lead in the league standings is also relatively obvious. But Arsenal can't take it lightly, because they have high aspirations, so at this time they need to be strict with their performance, they can't relax at all because of some of the current initiatives, they need to work harder and be positive.
As for the upcoming Champions League quarter-finals with AC Milan, it is also quite crucial for Arsenal; Entering the Champions League knockout round, this also means that there can be no mistakes at all, although it is a two-legged game that theoretically has the capital to make mistakes, but at this time to give the initiative to the opponent, that means putting yourself on the edge of the cliff, especially when the opponent is a top team, it naturally means that they need to be more cautious, because their ability to grasp the opportunity is better.
Xiao Qing is now very concerned about the next performance, AC Milan is definitely a hard nut to bite, and Arsenal naturally needs to work harder at this time. Although the current Arsenal have performed very well during this period, their form is also trustworthy; But Xiao Qing will definitely not be blindly arrogant, what they need at this time is more effort and focus, and they still need to continue to work hard.
With the Premier League's two powerhouses Manchester United and Manchester City both out, facing the smug Milanese, Arsenal, as the highest-ranked Premier League team currently participating in the Champions League, will carry the banner of defending the Premier League's reputation.
When the draw for the Champions League last-16 tie was announced last December, Milan boss Massimiliano Allegri had a scathing remark about two Premier League powerhouses Arsenal and Chelsea who had drawn Serie A opponents: "Italian football has moved forward, and after Manchester City and Manchester United are out, the situation for the Premier League teams does not look good. ”
Although Arsenal are the reigning Champions League champions, AC Milan do not think they will be worse than the Gunners and they are now confident, especially in the first leg of the match, when they will deal the biggest blow to Arsenal at the San Siro. Arsenal's momentum is good, but AC Milan don't think they're underdogs; In the past two seasons, AC Milan's performance in the Champions League has actually been very average, and AC Milan at that time was in a state of alternating between the old and the new. But now AC Milan has completed the update of the squad very well, and their current strength is really good.
The quarterfinals of the Champions League are about to start, and the players of AC Milan are also full of expectations; Because they have been scorned too much over the past two seasons and now they need to take Arsenal to show that the Rossoneri are back in the top competition once again! (To be continued......)