Fabregas shines in Milan as Arsenal outclass the holder to progress to the Quarters. Meanwhile, at Old Trafford, Ronaldo’s finishing touch is enough to see United safely through. Here’s some thoughts on last night’s Champions League action…
Milan 0 Arsenal 2
There were no surprises in Wenger’s lineup. Eboue, still serving a domestic ban, was eligible to play on the right of midfield. That meant Hleb could push forward in support of Adebayor. Van Persie was on the bench.
Fabregas stole the headlines with a fine strike, seemingly out of nothing, that caught Kalac unawares. The Spaniard was superb on the night, dominating the midfield with his probing, passing and tackling. Each one of the Arsenal players deserves credit though for a truly inspired performance. Hleb also stood out in his role just off Adebayor who was a towering presence once again.
Enough eulogising though, the long and short of it is that Fabregas showed just why he’s a key fantasy player, particularly in the FPL game where bonus points can reflect his performances as well as his straight goals/assist output. He’ll need to start producing that in the Premiership and the Wigan game on Saturday will be tough considering the playing conditions at the JJB and the likely attention he’ll get from Wigan’s Brown in central midfield. Despite that, there’s little doubt that owners of Fabregas will be keeping him safely tucked away in their lineup as a result of last night’s performance.
The Champions League Quarter Finals are played out on April 1/2 and April 8/9. Arsenal’s first leg follows an away game with Bolton, with the home game with Liverpool to follow just before the second-leg. Looking at the importance of those games in Arsenal’s current position, it seems unlikely that Wenger will risk resting many key players. Van Persie would perhaps, be the only likely figure to be kept in reserve, certainly for the trip to the Reebok.
Looking forward to the Wigan game, Wenger didn’t want to use Van Persie tonight and seems unlikely to throw him in for this one. Bendtner appears to be a more likely option for what will be a physical encounter against Wigan. Eboue is serving the last match in a 3-match ban, so Walcott could well line up on the right or Gilberto could add additional muscle, although it seems likely that Wenger will opt for the Diaby, Hleb, Fabregas, Flamini midfield quartet as usual.
Man United 1 Lyon 0
Ferguson’s lineup was far from expected with Fletcher keeping his place in midfield and first leg scorer, Tevez left benched. Rooney was up front on his own then as United went with a five-man midfield that saw Carrick and Anderson provide further cover in the centre, with Nani and Ronaldo charged with supporting Rooney. Tevez saw action after 70-minutes but Scholes, rather surprisingly, was left on the bench for the entrierity.
It was hardly a vintage performance from United but it was more than enough to see off Lyon, and towards the end the margin of victory could and should have been extended.
Fantasy managers are likely to be affected far more by United’s progress than Arsenal’s. United will face a home game with Villa before the first leg and in between, they’ll visit Boro. Ferguson is likely to rest and rotate for both those games. We’ve already seen that Tevez is a favourite victim of pre-Champions League rotation. Ronaldo is another contender of course, although he’s likely to be needed against a resurgent Villa. The trip to Boro before the second-leg may well be a different matter.
As for the weekend Cup tie, Scholes seems a certain starter having seen no action in this game. Tevez and Saha would also seem set to start up front having been preserved here. Park and Hargreaves are also likely to figure in some capacity.