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Arsenal four years without Champions League quarter-finals

In 540 minutes Monaco conceded a single goal against Leverkusen, Benfica and Zenit, but they're up for a tougher challenge at Emirates

Next to Madrid's Real, only the London's Arsenal have such a continuity of matches in the Champions League finals, and for the 15th year in a row they reached the round of 16. In the last four years they couldn't pass among the eight best, but tonight they're going to try again against the French Monaco who haven't been in the quarter-finals since 2004 when they reached the finals with Dado Prso. There they were defeated by Porto.

Never before have these two clubs met in an official match, but last year on August 3rd in London they played a preparation match and Monaco won with 1-0. Falcao scored the goal, a player who is now the leader of Manchester United's offense.

There are a lot of connections between these two clubs, and the first is the indestructible Arsene Wegner who has been leading Arsenal for 19 years now. He was leading Monaco from 1987 until 1994 when he was sacked.

So far this season Arsenal have been all over the place regarding the championship. They had a lot of injured players, but they passed the Champions League group without much difficulty, even though Borussia Dortmund took the first place based on goal-difference.

Despite the necessary respect towards Monaco, they're not running away from their role as favorites, especially after a 5-game winning run in the last six championship matches, despite the lower-ranked opponents.

The main question is how they'll reach chances and goals against the defensively immaculate away team who will try to achieve something through counterattacks and transitions.

- I was a bit surprised with the roster because I was expecting someone more 'sound'. That's one of the weird coincidences in life, since I spent 25 years in those two clubs. It's unusual to play against them in the Champions League and for me this is a little emotional shock - said Arsene Wenger, but considering what strong opponents he had in the last few years (Bayern twice, Barcelona, Milan), he's probably happy.

- Lately we've had a difficult roster in the round of 16, and now our chances are 50-50. We know Monaco have a strong defense, they conceded a single goal in the entire group and they have 11 points in total. It won't be easy because they can defend themselves good, they're strong and fast in transitions. We mustn't underestimate our guests, but we hope to pass. My sentimental feelings will stop the moment the match starts because this is the Champions League where we have high ambitions. I will do this match professionally and hope for a win and a pass into the quarter-finals - Arsenal's strategist is determined. He has no worries regarding absences, but the midfield line has long been weakened because Ramsey, Arteta and Wilshere are still injured, as well as defender Debuchy. It's uncertain whether wing midfielder Oxlade-Chamberlain will be ready, and even if he is, he will remain a joker on the bench.

- We played in the Champions League group for 17 years in a row, and we know how hard you need to work to reach each goal and win - concluded Arsene Wenger.

The first defense of the Champions League will be their hardest test yet. In 540 minutes Monaco conceded a single goal against Leverkusen, Benfica and Zenit, but against Sanchez Wellbeck and the rest of the gang the danger will be greater.

Judging by the local derby aganst Nica on Friday, Jardimov's walls still stand strong. They saved their net even though they did most of the match without Abdennour who was sent off, and in the finale, in their own style, they stole all three points thanks to the talented Silva.

- We were great in the second part, they didn't manage to create a single chance. Berbatov did an intense hour of playing, tactically he was flawless - commented the Portuguese.

He cut the time for the Bulgarian veteran because he knows he doesn't have a proper substitution for the Emirates. The question is how much can the 34-year-old stand in a fight against top opponents.

- I hope for a positive score. Arsenal are fast and technically strong, I respect their game style. If we work as a team, maybe we can surprise them - said United's former forward.

Lacina Traore suffered an injury, but lately he hasn't been that important anyway. Potential substitutes are Germain and the new Brasilian Matheus, physically weaker player who can't play the strong role which they need tonight.

It's probable that Arsenal will dominate here and play on their opponent's half of the turf, and Monaco will put up a defense on 20-30 meters and often take long shots. Maybe the hosts might stumble into an offside from "atypical" situations such as free kicks, but the away team should make more mistakes. Berbatov carried the offside-player reputation since United, and Silva and Carrasco can also be found guilty...
Even f it were played on neutral grounds, and that Monaco had Toulalan who would take over the game from time to time, statistics are still clear: Arsenal had a 2.0 average in the group, and they 3.83. he difference i smaller in leagues, but it still exists (1.6 to 2.0), but that's due to a specific competition and it's not an important piece of information.
The bet is, sadly, not available to ll, but you could try with ball possession which is being offered by Marathon, Betsson.... The logic remains the same. I think it's realistic to expect the hosts with at least 56 - 57%.