A very favourable match up for Arsenal:
Theo Walcott vs Roberto Carlos
Roberto Carlos, a former Galactico pitting his 35 year old frame against the blistering pace of 19 year old Theo Walcott down the left. Carlos has lost a step or two and this should be Walcott’s day on the field to exploit the space provided. Look for a very active day down this flank. Walcott should not be hesitant to pull the trigger since it seems to take RVP and Adebayor a lot longer to warm up in these international fixtures.
The X factors:
Emmanuel Eboue vs Kazim Kazim
Emmanuel Eboue in his more circumscribed role as right back. Lets hope he remembers that his primary role is to defend. He will be dragged out wide by Kazim Kazim aka Kazim Colin Richards in his English version. Eboue should eschew his penchant for nifty foot skills in 50- 50 situations for an old fashioned clearing boot deep into opponent territory.
Mikael Silvestre vs Dani Guiza and Semih Senturk
Mikael Silvestre: Short of recent match experience and coming back from injury. Will have to pair Djorou to stop the opportunistic Dani Guiza and Semih Senturk with their talent for out-positioning their markers and scoring goals through deflections and headers.