Arsenal face stern test against Besiktas: Preview
Well, it wasn’t Athletic Bilbao, but I for one am not looking forward to having to deal with Besiktas in Istanbul at The Eagles Nest. I am however happy that Champions League is back, but as usual, we have to go through the qualifying round; this time, without quite a few established first team players.
"Arsenal Team NewsArsenal will be without Kieran Gibbs, who has been quoted three weeks on the sidelines after doing his hamstring in the opener against Crystal Palace; our favorite Spanish left-back will likely replace him in the XI. Yaya Sanogo also has a hamstring strain, so it will be curious to see if Wenger uses Alexis Sanchez through the middle or if he’ll give Olivier Giroud the run out from the off. The good news is that Laurent Koscielny passed fit in his test today, so he travels with the side and is likely to start; Hector Bellerin will travel as well to give additional defensive cover.The news that Koscielny is fit means that Wenger will not have to turn to an earlier return for Per Mertesacker. With Everton coming up at the weekend, Le Prof will be saving BFG along with Mesut Ozil and Lukas Podolski for selection then. While we still have plenty of options, we still will not be fielding our most effective XI just yet."
In regards to Besiktas, if anyone is taking them lightly, you shouldn’t. Most will always fear their more illustrious (at least in name) rivals in Galatasaray and Fenerbache, but the Black Eagles are not a side that you can sleep on what so ever.
Having to go through an extra round of qualifying, they dumped out Dutch side Feyenoord 5-2 on aggregate, which is a very credible result over two legs. They’ll only be without Atiba Hutchinson, but the rest of their side is fully fit and ready to give us a tough go of it at a ground where they are as close to brilliant as possible.
Besiktas in training ahead of their clash with Arsenal tomorrow evening
They’ve had a good summer as well in regards to transfers, bringing in Ramon Motta, Gokhan Tore, Demba Ba and Cenk Tosun. Many of those names you’ve never heard of, but Ba played brilliantly against Feyenoord in both his appearances, one which included a hat-trick.
Gokhan Tore comes by way of SV Hamburg, where he was highly regarded by many in Germany. Tosun and Motta will give you the added work-rate and quality depth necessary at this level; while Tosun is unlikely to feature from the start, he’s a threat off the bench.
"Projected Starting XI’sBesiktas (4-4-2): Tolga Zengin; Ramon Motta, Pedro Franco, Ersan Gulum, Serdar Kurtulus; Olcay Sahan, Necip Uysal, Veli Kavlak, Gokhan Tore; Demba Ba, Mustafa PektemekArsenal (4-3-3): Wojciech Szczeny; Nacho Monreal, Calum Chambers, Lauren Koscielny, Mathieu Debuchy; Mikel Arteta, Mathieu Flamini, Aaron Ramsey; Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Olivier Giroud, Alexis Sanchez"
As for Arsenal, you know what to expect from them, but I think this is a moment where the addition of Flamini at the expense of Jack Wilshere is necessary. Aside from the fact that Wilshere was less than stellar against Crystal Palace, that match highlights that he is still ill-prepared to deal with a midfield dogfight, which is exactly what you need to expect from Besiktas; like all Turkish sides, there is a physical side to their game.
Given the midfield dogfight that looks to be on the cards tomorrow night, including Mathieu Flamini at the expense of Jack Wilshere seems plenty logical
I suspect Giroud will get the nod rather than shifting Sanchez through the middle, and the Ox to get a run out to keep Santi Cazorla fresh for Everton; his added pace and direct approach will certainly give the Turkish side far more to think about when we’re going forward.
It won’t be easy, and the match will be open as they’ll need to get a result, which is why Ox being called on makes more sense – his pace can hopefully catch out Besiktas who are sure to be going for it rather than sitting back.
"Performances to watch out forI’m interested to see how Chambers responds in his first European night for the club. The added pressure he’ll be under during a tough away fixture should show us just how ready he truly is. He has done brilliantly so far this season in both his appearances up till now, and if he comes through just the same, there should no longer be any worries about the boy.In addition, I think keeping an eye on Sanchez is worth doing for the same reasons. He has worked incredibly hard in his first two outings, but his final product has not come to the fore just yet. Naturally a bit of an adjustment period is expected, so while I do not think he will have a show-stopping performance, I will just be happy to see a little bit of added progress on his part."
On the whole, I think we’ll come out okay to be honest. Again, it’s never going to be easy, but even a draw or a loss by one goal wouldn’t be a disaster, though I do think we will win. Besiktas to come with some threats in the attacking third, but there is a gap in quality that favors us rather considerably, so for me, I think 2-1 sounds about fair all things considered. COYG.