Champions League Last 16 Draw (14/12/15 11am GMT).

[The Emirates Gallactico]

The thing is no one actually thinks we will win this competition and if we did we'd have to beat Bayern, Real or Barca to do so.

Apart from fixture congestion which we don't need what difference is losing to teams like Barca in the last sixteen or the semi final.

We got the easy draw last season and couldn't be bothered to take the first leg seriously so there you go.

I don't know why you (and everyone else) are so pessimistic about our chances in the CL. It's not necessarily the best team in Europe that win the thing.

A poor Chelsea side won it a few years ago, Liverpool won it, Juve got to the final last year, we got to the final .......... at the very least we should be doing better than getting constantly knocked out in the last 16. With some luck avoiding the big teams (and not choking like last year when that happens) we have the quality to make the semi's at least and from there anything can happen.

[Kano]

Fuck those pricks.

Who we got in the Quarters?

[selassie]

The thing is no one actually thinks we will win this competition and if we did we'd have to beat Bayern, Real or Barca to do so.

Apart from fixture congestion which we don't need what difference is losing to teams like Barca in the last sixteen or the semi final.

We got the easy draw last season and couldn't be bothered to take the first leg seriously so there you go.

Yeah this, assuming we got an easier draw and progressed we'd have to face one of the big boys anyway. To be honest...I didn't really fancy our chances against any of the potential draws with the exception of Wolfsburg and Zenit and we were not certain of beating those two anyway. Barca is the hardest draw we could of got though, it won't be pretty watching us go to the Nou Camp and get torn a new one.

[The Emirates Gallactico]

Anyway, I'll start the preparations for putting a curse on Neymar, Suarez and Messi.

[selassie]

I don't know why you (and everyone else) are so pessimistic about our chances in the CL. It's not necessarily the best team in Europe that win the thing.

A poor Chelsea side won it a few years ago, Liverpool won it, Juve got to the final last year, we got to the final .......... at the very least we should be doing better than getting constantly knocked out in the last 16. With some luck avoiding the big teams (and not choking like last year when that happens) we have the quality to make the semi's at least and from there anything can happen.

Hmmm...I think CL isn't as balanced as it use to be, Bayern & Barca are streets ahead of everyone else IMO, offensively they are both just too good, in fact both teams have amazing balance all over their squads.

I'd love to be proven wrong but I see this draw playing out very similar to how we fared against Bayern in the group, I think we can beat Barca at home...but I think we'll get a real beating over in the Nou Camp.

P.S. FWIW, As it stands I think Bayern are the only team in CL that could live with Barca...so it's not like I am downplaying us.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

It won't quite be the suffocation against Guardiola sides but it's going to be close.

Messi.

[Power n Glory]

CL hopes.

Doing all that against Olympiakos only to draw Barca in the next round.

Bound to happen. Stepping up for that game wasn't the challenge. This is the one. Just annoyed that it's another Barca tie. Would have preferred Madrid. But saying that, we have nothing to fear.

[The Emirates Gallactico]

Hmmm...I think CL isn't as balanced as it use to be, Bayern & Barca are streets ahead of everyone else IMO, offensively they are both just too good, in fact both teams have amazing balance all over their squads.

I'd love to be proven wrong but I see this draw playing out very similar to how we fared against Bayern in the group, I think we can beat Barca at home...but I think we'll get a real beating over in the Nou Camp.

P.S. FWIW, As it stands I think Bayern are the only team in CL that could live with Barca...so it's not like I am downplaying us.

Oh don't get me wrong, I completely agree with you here; Barca and Bayern are streets ahead of everyone and we'll do well not to get massacred.

However that's exactly why getting drawn to Barca right now is so depressing. Avoiding them and hoping that they faced each other in the Quarters or Semi's meant that you could have potentially only had to face them in a one off game where anything could have happened (see Chelsea in 2011).

[adzzzbatch]

Shall try and get a ticket hoping for another Arrrrrrrrrsssshavin! moment

[Power n Glory]

Oh don't get me wrong, I completely agree with you here; Barca and Bayern are streets ahead of everyone and we'll do well not to get massacred.

However that's exactly why getting drawn to Barca right now is so depressing. Avoiding them and hoping that they faced each other in the Quarters or Semi's meant that you could have potentially only had to face them in a one off game where anything could have happened (see Chelsea in 2011).

I'd rather we get the big games early so we set the standard early for ourselves. But saying that....this is Arsenal. The springboard effect just doesn't work for us. We could beat Barca but go out in the next round to Zenit. But I hope we put on a show this year. We raised our game against Bayern and we can do it against Barca as long as we have the right team selection.