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Arsenal begin their Champions League campaign tonight with a difficult trip to Borussia Dortmund.
Arsene Wenger’s men will be delighted to be involved in the Champions League this year after making it through the qualifying stages, but they will also expect to do well in Europe’s elite club competition.
As has been well documented, it has been a difficult start to the new campaign for the Gunners.
They did pick up their first win of the Premier League season at the weekend against Swansea, but it was a far from convincing performance and did little to make up for the humiliating 8-2 defeat at the hands of Manchester United in the previous match.
Quite simply, the Gunners need a lift and this Champions League fixture could bring them one. If they can go to Germany, put in a good performance and come away with three points, it will do wonders for their confidence.
They are not without their injury problems though. Aaron Ramsey – who has been charged with filling the void left by Cesc Fabregas – injured his ankle in training and will play no part in the contest.
Fellow midfielder Jack Wilshere is also missing with a long-term problem, although the youngster did Tweet a picture of himself working in the gym earlier, so his recovery is well underway.
New signings Mikel Arteta and Yossi Benayoun are both includes in the squad for the trip to Germany though, so they will hope to fill the void left by Wilshere and Ramsey.
Speaking ahead of tonight’s game, Wenger has admitted that his side face a tough task to get the win, but believes the players he has available are more than capable of securing a valuable three points.
He said: “I have a lot of respect for the team. They play very fast, very offensively, very similar to Arsenal.”
“It will be a good match. We will play offensively, they will play offensively so it will be a very attractive match.”
Match odds
Despite their poor start to the campaign, Arsenal are favourites to win this one. You can back them to get their Champions League season underway with a victory at 4.20 (16/5) with Bet365.
If you fancy a home win, that is available at 1.91 (10/11), while the draw is a decent option at 3.50 (5/2).
Correct score
Neither team’s defence has been impressive so far this year, so there could be plenty of goals. Backing Arsenal to come out on top 3-2 could be a good shout and this is available at 52.00 (51/1) with Betfair
A score draw could be a popular option too with a 2-2 draw being backed at around 15.00 (14/1). Then, if you fancy this one to go against the trend, 0-0 is available at 11.00 (10/1) with SkyBet.
First goalscorer
It perhaps says a lot about Arsenal’s goalscoring pedigree at the moment that Borussia Dortmund lead the way when it comes to this market.
Lucas Barrios is the favourite at 6.50 (11/2), closely followed by team-mates Robert Lewandowski and Mario Goetze. Arsenal’s best chance of opening the scoring is new captain Robin Van Persie, available at 8.00 (7/1) with VC Bet.
Recommended bets
Arsenal to win 3-2 @ 52.00 (51/1) with Betfair
Robin Van Persie to opening the scoring @ 8.00 (7-1) with VC Bet
