Walcott to inspire another Champions League win?

Match Preview: Arsenal vs Ludogorets - Champions League - 19.10.2016

The Champions League is back and Wednesday night sees the visit of Bulgarian champions Ludogorets to The Emirates. What do we expect? A comfortable win or a night of frustration trying to break down a stubborn opposition… Let’s take a look.

Bulgarian football is improving and you should never take any opposition lightly in this competition. Ludogorets are here on merit and anyone watching the Anderlecht or Olympiacos games of recent memory will know just how easily Arsenal can slip up when they relax too much. That said, at the risk of sounding arrogant or dismissive of the opposition, this is a game Arsenal should be winning with a degree of comfort and worth looking into matched betting for.

As they travel to London the visitors sit 2^nd in the Bulgarian First League, behind Levski Sofia, with just one defeat this season and having won their last 5 league matches on the spin, in short they are no mugs. Two players to keep a keen eye on are Brazilian Jonathan Cafu, a direct pacey forward with a trick or two up his sleeve and a fine art from the dead ball and Marcelinho, also born in Brazil but a naturalised Bulgarian. Marcelinho has bagged 4 goals in 8 games this season and will give the Arsenal central defenders plenty to think about with his close control, hard running and physical presence up top. Anyone thinking Ludogorets won’t be up for this I urge you to watch their home defeat to PSG last time out, they lost but they gave the French champions a real scare!

So that’s the opponents dangers mentioned, what about Arsène Wenger’s men, well after a hard fought  3-2 win over Swansea at the weekend you have to think the confidence levels are on a high at this point. At times back to their silky best in recent weeks The Gunners will likely use this game as an opportunity to really take a grip on Group A, especially with PSG expected to beat Basel at home the same night.

It is expected that the Manager will make a few changes to the starting XI with the likes of Ospina, Gibbs, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Lucas Perez all pushing for selection, but that remains to be seen. One thing is for sure, if Arsenal turn up and are at it as they were against Basel I can only see this game going one way, as with the Swansea game last weekend an early goal might just lubricate the oppositions defensive hinges in to opening wide enough to ship a few goals.

I anticipate Arsenal being set up to be patient and pick their spots in this game, a high line, quick passing in and around the box and the use of Theo Walcott’s pace in behind would be the way I anticipate us playing, much the same as we did in the win against Basel in truth, the one thing I would hope we do improve upon from that particular game is the finishing! We need to be clinical, if for nothing else to get the chance taking ratio up, we’ll need that against the higher level sides if we progress from the group stages.

In closing I will say a win is essential whether it be 1-0 or 11-0 but another high level performance is also key as we head in to a busy period of time, momentum goes a long way, it makes a statement to watching eyes around Europe and can only help our increasingly impressive League form, will we win the Champions league? Probably not, should we compete with the best every season and dispatch lesser sides in the process? Absolutely! Arsenal, it’s over to you! COYG!

Previous MEETINGS

This is the first time Arsenal and Ludogorets have met.

FACTFILE

• This will be Arsenal’s first meeting with a team from Bulgaria in all competitions.
• Arsenal have scored 22 goals in their previous 12 home games in Europe.
• Ludogorets have only failed to score in 1 of their last 9 Champions League ties.

INJURIES

Ramsey (Hamstring) & Giroud (Toe) out. Mertesacker, Welbeck and Akpom long term injuries with no return dates at present. No new injuries from the victory over Swansea at the weekend.

Predicted STARTING XI

Cech, Bellerin, Koscielny, Mustafi, Gibbs, Coquelin, Cazorla, Walcott, Özil Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lucas Perez.

GOONERSPHERE'S PREDICTION

Arsenal 3-0 Ludogorets

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