Not long to go before tonight’s big match at the Lane. AC Milan are coming hoping to overturn their 1st leg defeat.
We’re 1-0 up thanks to Peter Crouch’s goal at the San Siro, but even still, it’s only a slender lead, therefore it certainly is all to play for.
Throughout our Champions’ League campaign I’ve always thought it’s best to just enjoy it and not expect too much, but due to our recent performances, I’ve got to admit to feeling rather anxious about tonight’s game.
We lost 3-1 at Blackpool, and then on Sunday drew 3-3 at Wolves. Unlike our trip at the ‘seaside’, we finally found our shooting boots and scored three fantastic strikes through Defoe (2) and Pavlyuchenko, but still our defence was about as solid as jelly.
I really don’t know what the problem is with the defence, whether it’s Gomes, who’s not commanding enough in his area, the centre-halves who aren’t shackling opposing strikers, or the full-backs who aren’t stopping crosses. Whatever the problem is, I just hope we defend better tonight!
The good thing about the Wolves game was Gareth Bale’s return, instantly he came on and ran with the ball, causing havoc in the Wolves defence. He even made a few chances which could have secured the win, but sadly it wasn’t meant to be.
It’s looking unlikely that we’ll see Bale start tonight, but sounds like Rafael van der Vaart could following a spell out with a calf injury. If so, I’d be expecting the Dutchman and Peter Crouch playing upfront.
Vedran Corluka, who was on the bench at Wolves, is surprisingly fit, I suspect he’ll play, as Alan Hutton isn’t having the best of times of it of all, especially after conceding a needless penalty at Wolves.
Aaron Lennon and Wilson Palacios will I’m sure return to the first-team after being substitutes at Wolves, the question is where Luka Modric will play, as Harry could keep the Croatian on the left and stick with the impressive Sandro in the centre. Steven Pienaar would of course miss out, but he hasn’t set the world alight with his performances since joining Spurs.
Milan, who won 1-0 at Juventus at the weekend, will be without the suspended Gennaro Gattuso, also missing are injured duo Andrea Pirlo and Massimo Ambrosini. They still have the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Robinho among other big name players, so it won’t be an easy task keep the Italians at bay.
It does sound like Harry intends to attack Milan, which as some say is the best form of defence, and considering our defence, it’s probably a good idea, but whatever happens, it looks like we’re in for another memorable night! COYS!
Tags: Aaron Lennon, AC Milan, Alan Hutton, Gareth Bale, Gennaro Gattuso, Luka Modric, Peter Crouch, Rafael van der Vaart, Steven Pienaar, Vedran Corluka, Wilson Palacios
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