On a mission: Arsene Wenger's Arsenal squad looks to take full control of Group F with a victory against Marseille on Tuesday night. (Photo by Ian Walton/Getty Images
A make-or-break matchday looms Tuesday with Barcelona and AC Milan able to effectively ensure themselves berths in the final 16, while English giants Chelsea and Arsenal can put themselves in the driver’s seat with wins.
Play begins early on Tuesday, as Zenit host Shakhtar in St. Petersburg and BATE play host to AC Milan in Minsk. Zenit came back twice to draw with the Ukraine side two weeks ago, 2-2, in one of the best games of the group stage. With Group G up for grabs, both teams need a win in the rematch. The key matchup will see Zenit’s inspirational star Danny vying with Shakhtar’s own Brazilian contingent: Luiz Adriano, Willian and Douglas Costa, who are all set to start.
In contrast, BATE are playing for third place and a slot in the Europa League against an Italian side in control of its own destiny. The Belarusian champs face a tall order, despite some injury woes for AC Milan, who will be missing three players for the match. Antonio Cassano suffered a minor-stroke and had to be hospitalized after Saturday’s win over Roma. Philip Mexes has a broken hand, while Luca Antonini is doubtful with a twisted ankle.
In Group F, Arsenal look to complete a remarkable turnaround with a home win over Olympique Marseille. Hot off a massive 5-3 win against Chelsea over the weekend, the Gunners look set to come out with guns blazing. Robin van Persie is currently the hottest striker in the Premier League, and Aaron Ramsey and Theo Walcott have both impressed of late. With the return of Thomas Vermaelen to the center of the defense, Arsenal look like a tough task for a Marseille side that has only won three league games. In their last meeting, Ramsey completed a smash and grab at the Velodrome with a late winner, after what was a turgid and poorly played game from both sides.
Mathieu Valbuena was the only Marseille man who showed any ambition in that last fixture; he will have to be at his top form in London and get help from Loic Remy and Andrew Ayew who were ‘MIA’ last time out. Rod Fanni returns from suspension, meaning that other than long-term absentees — Bacary Sagna and Jack Wilshere for Arsenal and Stephane M’Bia for Marseille — both sides will field fairly full strength sides. Sub striker Maroune Chamakh is the only scratch for the Gunners.
In the group’s other game, dead last Borussia Dortmund must win against Olympiakos to have any hope of remaining in the tournament. They were blitzed in Greece 3-1 two weeks ago, and bluntly, the zest for this tournament seems to have vanished for Jurgen Klopp’s men. While they have been solid in the Bundesliga, they have yet to record a win in Europe.
Next, we move to Group E leaders Chelsea, who put five past Genk two weeks ago at Stamford Bridge. Even though they were blitzed by Arsenal on Saturday, expect them to roll in Belgium. The Blues have real defensive problems, with captain John Terry, right at the heart of the woe. A nasty off-the-field issue involving an allegation of racial abuse is proving to be a massive distraction for both him and the club.
Group E wraps up with Valencia hosting Bayer Leverkusen, who looks to avenge their 2-1 defeat in Germany a fortnight ago. Valencia were stunned by a second-half cloudburst sparked by Andre Schurrle and Sidney Sam, after Ever Banega and Roberto Soldado looked like they had the class to steer the Spaniards to an away win. Unai Emery’s team badly needs three points to stay in the competition, while a win for the Germans would put them on cruise control ahead of their games against Chelsea and Genk. Leverkusen’s Michael Ballack broke his nose in Friday’s win over Freiburg, but is expected to play wearing a mask, on the day after Halloween, no less.
Elsewhere, Barcelona are likely to hand Plzen another loss. At Camp Nou, Plzen didn’t record a single shot and the Catalans strolled to an easy 2-0 win. Pedro will be missing for this match (knee) but don’t expect Barcelona to miss a beat, as Cesc Fabregas is likely to get a run-out in the game.
Finally, in the competition’s tightest group, APOEL will be looking to hang on to their unlikely spot atop the table when they host the return match against Porto. In Portgual, the Cypriots stunned everyone by holding the Portuguese champs 1-1, in a game marred by goalkeeper errors. On paper, Porto — with Joao Moutinho, Hulk, Helton, Kleber and James Rodriguez — are clearly better and should have an advantage, as APOEL will miss first-choice keeper Dionisis Chiotis due to injury. It might seem easy to write off these supposed minnows, but don’t count them out. After all, they knocked off Zenit on these same grounds and Ailton and Helio Pinto have shown they are gifted players.
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