http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml?xml=/sport/2006/12/07/sfnsmi07.xml Resilience bodes well for Wenger's young students By Alan Smith Last Updated: 2:33am GMT 07/12/2006 For Arsenal, qualifying for the knockout stages of the Champions League was never about money. There was more to it than that. While the extra cash, granted, doesn't go amiss in helping to pay the huge mortgage on their sprawling new home, there was more riding on last night's game than mere pounds, shillings and pence. Finishing the job in Porto was about prestige, about being seen breaking bread at Europe's top table. They say Arsene Wenger knows. Well, the Frenchman knew for sure that his side couldn't afford to drop out of this exclusive clique too soon if his young players were going to develop in the way he would like. So, as this competition gives way to domestic disputes for a while, Arsenal having progressed with the draw required, a key question lingers: are the club any better equipped this season to go one better than last? Could they reach the final again and actually win it this time? Walking away from the Estadio do Dragao, the Arsenal contingent probably wouldn't have held out much hope. It had been a nervous night of caution and uncertainty for an understrength team peppered with youngsters learning their trade. Emmanuel Eboue and Gael Clichy suffered anxious moments as the bag of tricks that is Ricardo Quaresma and the lively Lisandro Lopez ran at the full-backs with a fair degree of success. advertisement Up the other end, Emmanuel Adebayor was discovering just how hard it could be playing up front on his own. Try as he might, the rangy forward couldn't get near repeating his north London derby heroics. Mind you, he wasn't on his own. Even Gilberto, the most experienced Arsenal man on view, gave the ball away in some dicey positions. Last term's memorable victories over Juventus and Real Madrid seemed a long time ago for a team evolving just now into a different kind of animal. Shorn of Dennis Bergkamp and Robert Pires, Wenger has adjusted his strategy in a clear attempt to suit the players at his disposal, often playing five in midfield and only one up front. Without Thierry Henry and resting Robin Van Persie with Sunday's scrap against Chelsea in mind, Wenger played this same system again. It is a shape that can tear teams apart when all the moving parts are oiled. For solid proof witness the stunning performances at Manchester United and Reading this season. Alternatively, this same set of players can look terribly vulnerable. Fortunately, though, you don't often get bruising occasions in Europe like the one endured at Bolton recently. Nor do you face a limited but highly motivated outfit like Fulham coming at you full pelt — battles that Arsenal still haven't found a way of safely navigating. Champions League football, however, is an altogether more technical test requiring oodles of talent and no little patience; a test that Arsenal, on their day, can pass with straight As. In all honesty, C minus would better describe goings-on here. Le professeur admitted as much afterwards. Wenger will be looking for a marked improvement after half term. On that score, so much depends on the form and attitude of his captain, Henry. On his day this talismanic striker can transform the side into world-beaters. Spearheading the talent that lies just behind, who knows where the Pied Piper can lead his men. On the negative side, if he decides to have a sulk, everyone suffers. Still, all that conjecture can wait for another day. For the seventh year in succession, Arsenal have done enough to mix with the elite. And while this version may be more a work in progress than the finished article, they could still make a mark if they get on a roll. 看槍手昨晚在波爾圖的比賽，開賽十多分鐘我就開始擔心 原因是槍手打得太保守，加上現在這批中後場球員心理素質不是很穩定 看得出來有些球員心理好像在掛念著週末對契爾西的比賽，實力保留的有點太多 兩個邊後衛都不敢上前助攻，使得永伯與Hleb在傳球上少了一個選擇 阿德打球也是有點懶散，即使他拿住球，中場推前去支援他的速度也不夠快 至於後衛線的表現，我真的是看得很緊張，看到九如那樣把球搞丟都罵出口來 還好門柱把Quaresma的射門給擋下... 如果是03-04賽季那條不敗防線，面對Porto想打平的話應該問題不大 但是現在這批年輕的槍手們，如果溫格要他們只拿八成功力，到時發揮的可能就只剩六成 我會這麼說，是因為類似情形大家應該也看過 上季作客Villareal也是打平就可以晉級，結果過於謹慎的心理，加上在聯賽要爭第四 結果發揮的反而不理想，還好最終是萊曼頂住壓力撲下點球 現在就希望亨利能在休息六週後，在一月能回到最佳的狀態 這支兵工廠真的需要一個fresh且sharp的亨利 --

※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 80.229.140.103