Celui-la de match je vais pas le rater ^^
Preview: Arsenal v Manchester United
WHEN two top dogs suddenly become underdogs there can only be one outcome, an old-fashioned dogfight. And that is exactly what we all expect to see at Highbury tonight when Manchester United and Arsenal snap and snarl to decide who takes second place in the Premiership.
There is far more at stake than valuable automatic qualification for next season´s Champions League, and far more than the pride of two bitter rivals.
The team which loses tonight also loses the right to challenge Chelsea for their currently undisputed No 1 spot.
Sir Alex Ferguson is under no illusions about the nature of tonight´s squabble: " At this moment in time it does look as though Chelsea have an unassailable lead," he said.
" You do keep thinking about what everyone says about football, that it is such a game that it can change.
" There have been disasters time and time again. When I was at Rangers in the 1967-68 season we went the whole season undefeated until the last game, against Aberdeen. We lost that game and Celtic took the title.
" So we have to hope and keep on chasing Chelsea until it is out of the question."
No-one at Old Trafford would disagree with that, but the concern is that Fergie trotted out the same story about Rangers last season, as Arsenal were accelerating away with the title.
The manager concedes that the Londoners are not about to " do a Newcastle" and toss a 12-point lead away, as Kevin Keegan´s side did in 1996.
Resilient
" Chelsea are far more resilient defensively than that Newcastle side were," Fergie added.
" I remember going to see Newcastle play at Maine Road not long before we played them in March, 1996. They drew 3-3 and could have lost by ten, and I was saying to myself `They could lose games easily, we go there in a week or so and if we can win there it could make a difference´. It did."
Chelsea look uncatchable while for United it looks like they will have lost in the title race for the second year running - the first time that will have happened since the 26-year hoodoo was brought to an end in 1993.
Questions will be asked, unless United can come up with something special in the Champions League.
Chief inquisitor will be Fergie himself, although he already knows the main reasons for United´s failure to stick with Chelsea´s pace this season, that awful start, peppered by absenteeism at the Olympic Games, by injury and by a shambles of a US tour.
The players will come under intense scrutiny at Highbury tonight. It is only in these pressure-cooker games that you can truly see who is up to it, who has lost it, and who needs replacing or reviving.
The same goes for Arsenal. Neither side will settle for being second-best to Chelsea, and their problems are perhaps more deep-seated than those of the Reds.
United have shown that, given a settled team and time to gel, they are still a major European force. The football they played against Middlesbrough on Saturday and in the second half against Chelsea last Wednesday, proved that point.
They should have Ryan Giggs fit, the experience winger having overcome a tight hamstring, but Alan Smith and Darren Fletcher ( both ankle) remain doubts.
Fragile
Arsenal have a more fragile nature than the Reds, as their implosion following defeat at Old Trafford in October showed.
From being the invincible Masters of the Universe, they have become the third best team in the country on current form, as Fergie mischievously hinted last week.
They still have great players, but the fact that Patrick Vieira and Thierry Henry have been in reverse gear since their unbeaten run came crashing to an end at United´s hands, has raised question marks about their temperament.
Chelsea have piled the pressure on both teams, and the responses have been in marked contrast.
Arsenal have gone into the football equivalent of a sulk.
United have won ten and drawn two in their last 12 league games, and their performance against Chelsea last week spoke highly of their character, even if it raised questions about their defending at the highest level.
As in 1998 and 2002, it looks as though the Gunners, for all the southern media hype, are flashing in the pan again.
And with a new ground to buy, they will be relying more heavily than ever on Arsene Wenger´s knack of picking up top talent on the cheap.
United´s path ahead looks clear. They have an exciting new team evolving around the talents of Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney, but need to find the right men to step into the shoes of monoliths like Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and, in particular, Roy Keane, in the years ahead.
Keane remains a key figure and his longevity will be up for question again tonight when he clashs with old adversary Vieira.
Keane can still destroy opposing midfielders, as much with his presence and reputation as his ability.
But when it comes to the truly big games, he is not feared, and it comes down purely to how much he still has in the tank.
Last week Frank Lampard and the hugely impressive Claude Makelele both outshone Keane, not something he has been used to as the undisputed king of the Premier League midfielders for the last decade.
If the same happens again tonight, against Vieira, the quest for a successor for Keane will have to be stepped up.
United have other players who come to a crossroads tonight, not least Roy Carroll, with many Reds still unconvinced that he and Tim Howard have what it takes to hold down the goalkeeping position.
Battles within a battle, two managers who dislike each other intensely, and the ignominy of being only the third-best team in England are all at stake. It should be fascinating.
Manchester United ( possible): Carroll, Heinze, G Neville, Ferdinand, Silvestre, Keane, Scholes, Giggs, Ronaldo, Rooney, Saha.
Arsenal v Highbury - the stats
LATEST PREMIERSHIP FORM
United: W W D W W
Arsenal: W W D L W
HEAD-TO-HEAD
Dec 1 2004 United 1 Arsenal 0
Oct 24 2004 United 2 Arsenal 0
Aug 8 2004 Arsenal 3 United 1
Apr 3 United 1 Arsenal 0
TOP PREMIERSHIP SCORERS
United: Scholes 8, Rooney, Smith 5, Van Nistelrooy, Giggs 4
Arsenal: Henry 16, Pires 10, Ljungberg 7, Reyes 6
DANGER MAN: Thierry Henry - As ever the French striker is capable of undoing Reds.
REFEREE: Graham Poll - Big name for a big game but controversy does tend to follow him at times.
PREDICTION: Arsenal 1 Manchester United 2
A suivre, ça changerait pas mal de choses ^^
