Arsenal definitely got the rough end of the UCL draw but we can still dream can’t we?

Well lovely Arsenal people, Arsenal made my visit to the UK that more enjoyable by being top of the league and beating Porto.  The reward for going through in the CL, a reunion with a certain Harry Kane and a certain Bayern Munich.

Mikel Arteta has got us on this kind of redemption arc of banishing old demons and another one sits in front of us. That 10-2 still hurts, I can’t lie. The narratives are obvious – Harry Kane back at the Emirates, the history of this fixture, Thomas Tuchel again, but I’d like to believe it’ll be different. It was a mismatch of strength last time, but we’ve been to the gym and we’ve bulked up. We were bullied, but many fans and pundits expect us to do the bullying this time around. The narrative is that we’re the better team now. Apart from Kane absolutely battering a league that usually has only one proper team in Bayern and occasionally another pretender like Leverkusen is now, there’s not much to fear. But being the better team doesn’t mean you automatically win. Liverpool are far better than Man Utd, but they still lost in the cup. We may be the better team on paper, but the game is unfortunately played on grass, and the experience of Bayern cannot be underestimated. They are a seasoned CL team, normally one of the favourites and they can play under pressure. Also, they don’t have much else to play for. Out of the cup, double digits behind Leverkusen, it’s CL or bust. Tuchel may be leaving, but he has won this competition, and I believe he got PSG to a final as well. If one thing was learned in the games with Porto is that the CL is different. The game was much slower than some PL fixtures and we never really found that lightning tempo, which has helped us blitz teams away in the PL. We’re also moving away from the surprise package team, to a team acknowledged for its excellence, now it’s time to deliver the trophies. I remember us being a mini-Barcelona, playing the best football and ultimately winning nothing, so we have to overcome the pressure of expectations. The underdog mentality can only apply against Madrid or City, who will be the next challenge should we beat Bayern. But I’m relishing it! When we were schooled by Bayern all those years ago I thought “what’s the point of being in the CL when we have no chance of winning it”. Now we’re back at the big table. I want a night out at the Bernabeu. I want another Henry moment. If we have to face City again, bring it on. We did them twice this year. Imagine our season if we hadn’t beaten Porto, with a trip to the Etihad coming. Another horrendous record sitting in front of us. We definitely got the rough end of the draw, but it could be a good thing. We can’t relax. If you need extra motivation to play Bayern or Madrid, you shouldn’t be at Arsenal football club. Also, the season won’t end in March if we lose at the Etihad, because there is still more to play for. I think winning breeds more hunger to win again, and at this stage of the season playing more games is good rather than bad. Watching United v Liverpool yesterday made me feel bad that we dropped out of the cups so early. What an epic game. There are only 4 trophies a team can win in a season, which is not that much considering how many good teams there are in this league alone. We’re still going for the 2 big ones, but every game from now on is must-win in the league as history has shown us that Liverpool and City can win at all costs. To be honest this is why I’m a football fan – to dream. To be in those tight races, big games. I see Haaland and Saka on sky banners with “race for the title” headlines. That said, Arsenal are kings of gassing me up, to then carcrash the end of the season like the past 2 campaigns. The jump from being the nearly men to champions requires that extra 5 percent in each game. The margins are so small, yet the gap so big. Game by game, that’s the only way we should be going about it. Get the job done one at a time and see where we are in May. Konstantin

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