Post by Salem6 on Mar 11, 2004 11:26:22 GMT
By Ian McGarry, Daily Mail
Arsene Wenger went one better than his great rival Sir Alex Ferguson last night when his Arsenal side swept into the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
Thierry Henry scored twice in the first half to become the fourth player to pass 30 career goals in the competition as Arsenal beat Celta Vigo 2-0 on the night and 5-2 on aggregate.
The clinical way Wenger's Gunners finished off the tie at Highbury was in stark contrast to the manner in which Ferguson's Manchester United had gone out in the dying minutes against Porto the previous evening.
But although Arsenal are still on course to emulate United's historic Treble of 1999, Wenger was keeping his feet on the ground. 'Just because we have won well does not make us superfavourites for the competition,' he said after some bookmakers had made them joint-favourites with Real Madrid.
'We played very well but the hard work was done in Spain. It's great that we have now won five Champions League matches on the trot. That is good for the confidence of the players, especially when you consider how many we lost last season.
'When you look at the teams who are still in, like Real Madrid and AC Milan, it makes you feel very humble. Real have won the competition nine times and Milan six. We have won zero. We have a chance but we are not going to be over-confident.'
Chelsea are in the draw, which takes place tomorrow, but even though Arsenal have an incredible record against their London rivals, Wenger does not want to play them. He said: 'I think it would be better if local teams are kept apart because we want the best chance for an English team to go forward.'
David Beckham's Real went through 2-1 on aggregate after beating Bayern Munich 1-0 in Spain and Celta coach Raddy Antic, who used to be in charge at Real, believes his former side could struggle against Arsenal. Antic said: 'With the balance they have in attack and defence they have a great chance against Real Madrid or Milan.'
Holders Milan beat Sparta Prague 4-1 but coach Carlo Ancelotti agreed that Arsenal could go all the way. He said: 'Maybe Arsenal represent the biggest danger but we need to be wary of all the teams.'
www.thisislondon.co.uk/sport/football/articles/9592556?source=Daily
Arsene Wenger went one better than his great rival Sir Alex Ferguson last night when his Arsenal side swept into the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
Thierry Henry scored twice in the first half to become the fourth player to pass 30 career goals in the competition as Arsenal beat Celta Vigo 2-0 on the night and 5-2 on aggregate.
The clinical way Wenger's Gunners finished off the tie at Highbury was in stark contrast to the manner in which Ferguson's Manchester United had gone out in the dying minutes against Porto the previous evening.
But although Arsenal are still on course to emulate United's historic Treble of 1999, Wenger was keeping his feet on the ground. 'Just because we have won well does not make us superfavourites for the competition,' he said after some bookmakers had made them joint-favourites with Real Madrid.
'We played very well but the hard work was done in Spain. It's great that we have now won five Champions League matches on the trot. That is good for the confidence of the players, especially when you consider how many we lost last season.
'When you look at the teams who are still in, like Real Madrid and AC Milan, it makes you feel very humble. Real have won the competition nine times and Milan six. We have won zero. We have a chance but we are not going to be over-confident.'
Chelsea are in the draw, which takes place tomorrow, but even though Arsenal have an incredible record against their London rivals, Wenger does not want to play them. He said: 'I think it would be better if local teams are kept apart because we want the best chance for an English team to go forward.'
David Beckham's Real went through 2-1 on aggregate after beating Bayern Munich 1-0 in Spain and Celta coach Raddy Antic, who used to be in charge at Real, believes his former side could struggle against Arsenal. Antic said: 'With the balance they have in attack and defence they have a great chance against Real Madrid or Milan.'
Holders Milan beat Sparta Prague 4-1 but coach Carlo Ancelotti agreed that Arsenal could go all the way. He said: 'Maybe Arsenal represent the biggest danger but we need to be wary of all the teams.'
www.thisislondon.co.uk/sport/football/articles/9592556?source=Daily