Remembering Arsenal’s 2011 Champions League comeback against Barcelona
Sign up to FREE email alerts from Football London – Arsenal Subscribe Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email Something went wrong, please try again later. Today marks exactly ten years to the day since Arsenal stunned Barcelona in the first-leg of their UEFA Champions League last-16 tie at the Emirates Stadium, winning 2-1. David Villa opened the scoring for the La Liga side before Arsenal scored twice inside the final 12 minutes to secure a famous win, with Dutchman Robin van Persie and Andrey Arshavin bagging the goals. Unfortunately for Arsene Wenger’s men, Barcelona proved to be too strong in the second-leg, winning 3-1 on the night and 4-3 on aggregate, despite Sergio Busquests netting an own-goal. Ten years on from one of the most famous nights the Emirates Stadium has ever witnessed, football.london has taken a look back on the starting XI that played that evening and what they are up to now. He spent four years with the Turkish club before returning to England in 2016, joining Sunderland on a short-term deal. Frenchman Koscielny spent nine years at the Emirates Stadium and was the most recent player of the starting line-up that faced Barcelona ten years ago to leave. Centre-back Djourou joined Arsenal all the way back in 2004 and had discovered first hand what it was like to be within a club that had suffered the pain of losing a Champions League final to Barcelona back in 2006.
Another player that was part of the Arsenal side that was victorious ten years ago today is left-back Clichy. For Clichy to have been part of the side that defeated Barcelona will have meant everything to him as he was dealt the blow of being ruled out of the 2006 Champions League final with a foot injury, meaning the chance to have played against Barcelona and help the Gunners seal a famous win will have meant everything to him, especially when he claimed an assist. The left-back left Arsenal in 2011 to join Manchester City, as the Frenchman spent six years on the books of the Etihad Stadium club. Just over a year-and-a-half after helping Arsenal get the better of Barcelona, Song made the switch to the Spanish giants in August 2012, signing for the La Liga club on a five-year deal in a £15million move. The Cameroon international had played a key role in helping Wenger’s side topple Barcelona, with his strength and aggression proving vital in the engine room, allowing the likes of Cesc Fabregas and Jack Wilshere to show their class when going forward. Song did return to England after his time at Arsenal, joining West Ham United on loan for two seasons in succession. Fabregas spent three years with Barcelona before returning to England to join Chelsea in 2014. Whilst the win over Barcelona will always be remembered by Arsenal supporters for the magnitude of the victory, it was also a night when Wilshere announced himself to the world.
Wilshere was only 19-years-old at the time and his performance was nothing short of outstanding, leaving Gunners fans purring at the potential he had within his armoury. After a disappointing spell at West Ham United, Wilshere recently joined AFC Bournemouth and has had an encouraging start to his second spell with the Cherries, scoring two goals and claiming one assist in his first five appearances. In the build-up to Barcelona’s visit to the Emirates Stadium ten years ago this evening, Lionel Messi admitted that he feared the threat of Walcott more than any other Arsenal player. “Barcelona players are not scared easily but I can tell you that when we played Arsenal last season he truly worried us.” Dutchman Van Persie was one of the heroes of the night against Barcelona, scoring the Gunners’ equaliser to cancel out Villa’s opener, sparking memorable scenes inside the Emirates Stadium. Arguably one of Arsenal’s best players in recent years, the talented Dutchman, who made a living for himself by scoring goals, retiring in 2019. After three years with Arsenal, Nasri left the club ahead of the start of the 2011/12 season, joining Manchester City. He spent six years with City, winning four trophies during that time, ahead of joining Antalyaspor in 2017. The Russian had already been on the Gunners’ books for just over two years by the time he netted netted that goal and would leave the Emirates Stadium in 2013, returning to Zenit St Petersburg.
Barcelona players were full of praise for Arsenal star Jack Wilshere 10 years ago – when he put in a world-beating display against Lionel Messi, Xavi, Andres Iniesta and co. While Barcelona did go on to win 3-1 at the Nou Camp and eventually take the Champions League against Manchester United, Wilshere’s performance did stick in the minds of some. Before the second leg win at the Nou Camp, Guardiola managed to praise Wilshere while simultaneously taking a dig at his comparison to the same players the 19-year-old saw off at the Emirates. But right-back Dani Alves urged Barcelona to sign Wilshere two years later – despite the Englishman’s injury plights. The Brazilian said: “He is a great player who we have met playing against Arsenal and without doubt he can reach the height of the players we have here at Barcelona like Xavi and Iniesta. Exactly 10 years ago today, Arsenal welcomed Barcelona to the Emirates Stadium for their Champions League last-16 first-leg. Arguably the best performer on the night was Arsenal’s wonderkid, Jack Wilshere. This was the night Arsenal famously came from behind to stun a Barcelona team regarded by many as the greatest club outfit of the last 25 years, a Lionel Messi-inspired side who would go on to win a second Champions League in three years by delivering a final masterclass to humble Manchester United 3-1 at Wembley three months later.
That promise was best illustrated by Jack Wilshere, a 19-year-old sensation who would play 49 games in that breakthrough season. Two loan spells at Bournemouth later, Wilshere finally left Arsenal for good — moving to West Ham in July 2018, where he only made 19 appearances across three seasons before rejoining the Cherries on a short-term deal last month, the immense promise of his teenage years sadly unfulfilled. A Xavi strike and a Messi penalty in a devastating three-minute spell gave Barcelona a 3-1 lead on the night but a second Arsenal goal on the night would have sent them through and they should have got it when Wilshere burst forward to put substitute Nicklas Bendtner through for a glorious chance the Dane would butcher.
Source: https://weedynews.com/news/arsenal-team-news-aaron-ramsey-could-start-against-tottenham-pic-getty
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