Arsenal complete English set after penalty shootout win in Rome

Published: 11 Mar 2009 - 22:43:39

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Arsenal complete English set after penalty shootout win in Rome

With English football again utterly dominant in Europe, it was perhaps appropriate that Arsenal should seal their progress to the Champions League quarter-finals in Rome, the home of an empire that once ruled the entire continent. A nail-biting victory on sudden-death penalties over Roma also means that the Premier League's 'big four' will supply half of the quarter-final clubs for the second successive year. Having been beaten 1-0 after extra-time, Manuel Almunia emerged as the hero, saving from Mirko Vucinic as triumphed 7-6 in the shoot-out. Related ArticlesChampions League action Top 10: European coaches Euro 2008: Slaven Bilic sees dreams go up in smoke as Turkey beat Croatia on penalties Juande Ramos commends Spurs lottery loss Guus Hiddink restores Chelsea's feel-good factor with Champions League progress Another season and yet another setback for Celtic manager Gordon Strachan It was a thrilling way to end a night that demonstrated the best and worst in football following news that an Arsenal supporter had been stabbed outside the stadium shortly before the match. In his team selection, Wenger was true to the belief that attack would be the best strategy for preserving a slender one goal advantage and he sprang something of a surprise by starting with the exact team which had largely out-played Roma two weeks ago at the Emirates Stadium. It meant deploying Samir Nasri in a free role behind Robin van Persie, while Nicklas Bendtner, who was so profligate in the first leg, was retained on the left. Roma had been eliminated from European competition against English clubs in each of the past three seasons, though they boasted an unbeaten record since October in their intimidating Stadio Olimpico and the hostile atmosphere initially unsettled Arsenal. It may have been kidology from the Italians but, after suggesting that Francesco Totti would be sidelined with a knee injury, the former Italy international spearheaded an equally attacking Roma line-up which also included Mirko Vucinic, the scorer of two goals in the 3-1 win against Chelsea earlier this season. Totti's involvement was immediate and mixed. He could feasibly have been sent-off after appearing to kick out van Persie, though it took just nine minutes for him to decisively demonstrate the more appealing side of his game. He found space on the left and sent a low, skidding cross into the Arsenal penalty area. Inexplicably, the entire Arsenal back four froze and gazed at one another, allowing the ball to travel to the far post and be guided under Manuel Alumnia by Juan, the Roma centre-back. It was only the fifth goal Arsenal had conceded in their past 14 matches. With the tie level on aggregate, Arsenal came under intense pressure with Rodrigo Taddei forcing two outstanding moments from Almunia. The first was an excellent close range block, while the second was an even better full length finger-tip save. Arsenal were rattled, with Denilson, who had previously played every minute of their Champions League campaign, struggling to retain possession and provide any sort of base in midfield. On the stroke of half-time, they were extremely fortunate to survive a penalty appeal as Gael Clichy tangled with Marco Motta and appeared to pull back the Roma right-back. Having previously squandered a first leg Champions League lead on just one previous occasion, Arsenal rarely threatened a precious away goal during the entire first-half. William Gallas should have provided a sterner test of Doni, the Roma goalkeeper, when he found space on the back-post, while Abou Diaby had a more powerful header saved. Arsenal were placed under further pressure at the beginning of the second-half, with their former striker Julio Baptista forcing a headed save from Almunia and then John Arne Riise also testing the Spaniard with a trademark driving shot. Totti was defying his advancing years by cleverly drifting into space between Arsenal's back four and midfield and impressively retaining possession. His quality should have clinched what would have been a winning goal, but Baptista missed a wonderful opportunity from six yards after Totti had split open Arsenal's defence. By contrast, few Arsenal players seemed comfortable on the ball and their wastefulness in possession amid relentless whistling from the Roma supporters was encapsulated by Emmanuel Eboue's over-hit pass when Bendtner was through on goal. Amid signs that Roma were becoming tired, Wenger opted to replace Eboue and Bendtner with Walcott and Eduardo, a move that prompted an immediate lift among Arsenal's 3,400 travelling supporters. As the match entered extra-time, however, both Kolo Toure and Van Persie snatched at inviting chances that would have sealed a quarter-final berth.