Well if you’re a football fan from N London it’s been quite a couple of days. I’m amused by the thought that Joe Jordan and Gattuso’s real disagreement could have been about which win was the better; Tottenham’s 1-0 victory over AC Milan at the San Siro or last night’s home victory by Arsenal over the mighty Barcelona. It’s a real poser eh. Both games were cracking adverts f0r the strength and quality within the Premiership but both results were a little unexpected if I was being honest.
Now this might draw some ridicule from one or two gooner mates but while it is true that Arsenal inflicted an against-all-odds defeat on what many believe is one of the best teams to have graced the football pitch, the achievements of Harry Redknapp’s team was I reckon the more impressive one as Tottenham showed a footballing maturity that was extraordinary for a club in its first season in the Champions League.
To out master the Italian team that is currently sitting atop the Serie A table in doing what they do best – defending tight for large periods and seizing on rapier-like counter-attacking opportunities is a quality that Spurs have developed beautifully under Redknapp in Europe and they can look forward to the second leg with real confidence.
Arsenal’s come-back against Barcelona was genuinely thrilling, but they could easily have been 3-0 down by half-time with the tie out of sight. Instead they still face the daunting task of travelling to Camp Nou and trying to repeat the heroics from last night. Put another way beating Barca at home is one thing, beating them on their own turf is something of an altogether different prospect. And a 1-0 win for the Catalans will see them through. It’s hard to imagine that they won’t score a single goal at least.
So a win for N17 over N5 this time but two super games, no question. Mind you if Arsenal were to pull off a result at the Nou Camp then that would rate as a truly awesome outcome, irregardless of what THFC might achieve against AC at home. Anyone disagree?
pp
Pasta Paulie 