Robin van Persie is a serious doubt for Arsenal's Champions League clash against Barcelona next Tuesday.

And the Gunners have suffered a second blow after their Carling Cup defeat by Birmingham as it emerged that Thomas Vermaelen will not be fit enough to make his long-awaited comeback for the reserves against West Ham on Tuesday.

Van Persie, 27, injured his right knee in scoring his 13th goal in 11 games this year in Arsenal's 2-1 loss on Sunday.

The Gunners' medical team will continue to assess the Dutchman today but he faces a real battle to be fit for next week's trip to Spain.

Van Persie, who has been in electric form this year, scored Arsenal's equaliser in their 2-1 first leg win over Barcelona on February 16.

Wenger had also hoped long-term absentee Vermaelen, who has been out since August with an achilles injury, would play for the reserves at Bishop's Stortford on Tuesday, but it is understood he will not be fit .

Despite Laurent Koscielny's error against Birmingham and doubts about his central defence, Wenger would be reluctant to throw Vermaelen, 25, back into the first team without proving himself in the reserves.


Missing in action: Vermaelen hasn't featured for Arsenal since August

Cesc Fabregas should recover from the hamstring injury that sidelined him on Sunday, but Wenger says Theo Walcott is 'very unlikely' to face Barcelona after spraining an ankle in last week's win over Stoke.

Arsenal face Leyton Orient on Wednesday in the FA Cup fifth-round replay but O's striker Jonathan Tehoue - who scored their equaliser against the Gunners at Brisbane Road - could miss the game after being sent home from training yesterday with a migraine.

Маруан Шамах считает, игра в среду против "Лейтон Ориента" представляет прекрасную возможность реабилитироваться после фиаско в воскресном финале Кубка Лиги.

Всего три дня прошло после обидного поражения от "Бирмингема", и "Арсенал", принимающий на "Эмирейтс" команду из Лиги Один в рамках переигровки 1/8 финала Кубка Англии, в случае победы сыграет в гостях с "Манчестер Юнайтед" в четвертьфинале.

Мало кто может увидеть позитивные стороны переигровки после гола, забитого на последних минутах первого матча Джонатаном Техуа, который добавил еще одну игру в и без того плотный график.

Но теперь Шамах видит игру на "Эмирейтс", как средство от яда, полученного на "Уэмбли".

"В понедельник утром у нас была тренировка, в среду мы играем снова и у нас есть шанс нормализовать ситуацию. У нас была далеко не самая лучшая ночь, но мы оправиться и двигаться дальше".

"Нам повезло, что есть второй шанс, чтобы исправиться. Мы должны думать только о предстоящих играх, сосредоточиться на них и не думать об этом финале".

"Мы должны забыть то, что произошло на "Уэмбли", и убедиться, что поражения не никак не повлияет на нашу игру. У нас впереди много важных матчей и у нас есть некоторые проблемы в игре, но мы будем бороться до самого конца сезона".

После поражения в воскресенье в финале Кубка Лиги, много слов было сказано по поводу игры Войцеха Щесны и Лорана Косьельни, путаница между которыми привела к голу Обафеми Мартинса на восемьдесят девятой минуте.

Однако, Шамах сказал, что это было бы неправильно винить только их двоих в неудаче "Арсенала".

"Мы все несем ответственность за поражение. Это футбол. Здесь есть взлеты и падения".

"Как мы пропустили второй гол не имеет значения. Если бы мы уступили команде топ-класса результат был бы тот же, мы все равно проиграли. Мы проиграли в финале и это трудно принять".

"Мы разочарованы, потому что мы чувствуем, что могли бы выиграть эту игру. Честно говоря, я ожидал, что матч обернётся дополнительным временем и, возможно, серией пенальти, но никак не в проигрышем в основное время".

- Операционная прибыль составила £12.6 млн

- Продажа  50 квартир в "Хайбери Сквер" принесла £22.5 млн (2009 - продано 261 квартир за £96.6 млн). Операционная же прибыль составила £3.3 млн (2009 – £11.3 млн), в связи с тем, что квартир в этом году было уже намного меньше.

- В общем, продажа недвижимости остается наиболее прибыльным делом и принесла в этом году £110.4 млн (2009 – £101 млн).

- Также были сделаны такие важные вещи, как подписание новых контрактов с ключевыми игроками первой команды и с Арсеном Венгером.

- Непосредственно, "футбольные" доходы составили £9.3 млн (2009 - £18 млн). Они уменьшились в связи с увеличением заработных плат игроков, а также с тем, что в этом полугодии команда сыграла меньшее количество домашних матчей (10 в 2010 против 12 в 2009)

- Прибыль от продажи игроков составила 4 млн (2009 – 33.9 млн)

- Общий итог – убытки в размере £2.5 млн (2009 – прибыль в размере £29.2 млн)




Председатель совета директоров Питер Хилл-Вуд прокомментировал результаты финансового отчета за II полугодие:



"Это отличный результат в рамках современного футбола, именно на нечто подобное мы и рассчитывали. Подобные результаты дают нам возможность долговременного планирования развития клуба".



"Клуб, вообщем-то, оправдывает наши ожидания, сейчас концовка сезона и мы боремся за все трофеи.  Я знаю, что Арсен Венгер и его подопечные полностью сконцентрированы на борьбе за титулы, и они очень благодарны за поддержку фанатам клуба по всему миру".



"Я также хочу добавить, что я очень горд, что мы боремся за трофеи на самом высоком уровне, при этом оставаясь верными своим традициям и принципам. Мы продолжаем строить самоокупающийся клуб. Конечно, это совсем нелегко , ибо приносит некоторые проблемы в условиях растущей конкуренции, однако это послужит платформой для успешного будущего "Арсенала".

"Тоттенхэм" хочет приобрести нападающего лондонского "Арсенала" Никласа Бендтнера. Трансферная стоимость футболиста составляет восемь миллионов фунтов стерлингов, а его контракт с "канонирами" действует до лета 2014 года, сообщает издание Caught Offside.

Датчанин в последнее время редко попадает в основной состав нынешней команды и не раз выражал желание сменить место работы. В текущем сезоне чемпионата Англии Бендтнер провёл за "Арсенал" десять матчей, в которых забил два мяча и отдал одну голевую передачу.

Отметим, что в услугах датского нападающего также заинтересованы "Галатасарай" и "Гамбург".

From Vladislav23
Andrey, when are you going to have another masterpiece of a goal? I want to make a stake on a goal.
P.S. They are all your masterpieces =)
AA: Hopefully, in February.

From Trellis
Hi Andrey, I'm a Chinese woman. I have many questions, because many people love you in China. What do you think about Wenger? I think that he’s  beautiful, what do you think? Good luck!
AA: He's a good coach, and his beauty shall be evaluated by the ladies, not by the players.


From palych1974
Good afternoon, Andrey! The question is not tactful, but I want to know if
there is a worthy replacement for our national team, if there is - then who?
Thanks for the reply ...
AA: Hard to say. I don’t have an opportunity to follow the
Russian championship. I think if there are such people, then they will play in the
match against Armenia.

From Unknown1989
Hello, Andrey! I want to say thank you for your faith in Russia and supporting the World Cup 2018 bid! Did you have an opportunity to have a word with Mr. Blatter personally? What did you feel when you stood on stage and presented your speech? Good luck and health to you, Julia and the kids!
AA: What did I feel? Rather, what did I want? To win.

From CSKAblechepsin
Hello Andrey. I watch the Premier League games and I surprised by the quality of the pitches, even in the lower divisions, the fields are excellent. Do you believe that by the World Cup 2018, Russian stadiums will be better than the English ones?
AA: We do not need to try to outdo the British; we just have
to correspond to the high level. And now, and it is a well known fact: England has the
best stadiums in the world.

From Baklazan
Hi, Andrey. In the 2008 Zenit came to play against Luch in Vladivostok, (the weather
back then was terrible). Well, when the bus carrying the team approached the
stadium, it paused for several seconds. At this point, I was lucky to
be near it. I saw you, Advokaat, Radimov and Gubochan. I
waved at you and you looked back at me and then away, Gubochan was laughing wildly.
Remember me?
AA: No, I do not recall you.

From 2018RUSSIAN
Hello, Andrey! I have a question for you: what will a ball look like at the WC 2018?
AA: It will be round. That’s for sure. There is nothing more I can say.)

From KaTyA1996
Hello, Andrey. Perhaps you have already been asked this, but
just in case, I want to ask you again. During the World
Cup 2018 bid, after the victory of our country, our delegation, including you,
climbed on stage. In my opinion, you behaved in a constrained manner; could
you tell me the reason? And the second one: why did you (later, when the hostess of the FIFA World Cup 2022 was announced) apologize and leave the stage?
Thank you in advance, Regards. Katya.
AA: I was in a hurry to get to the airport, I had a flight to London in an hour.
Constrained? It's very simple. I rarely go on stage, that’s why I was shy.

From Masha192
Hi Andrey! I have a question for you: When you are in St. Petersburg, are you going to visit the SOS Children’s village???? Thank you in advance)
AA: Yes, I have it in my plans.

From Gegegegemon
Andrey. I think you're perfectly able to manage Russian football as the president of the Russian Football Union. How do you like this prospect?
AA: I think it's still too soon to talk about it right now.

From 65367547
Hello, Andrey. I have already tried to ask you a question on your site, maybe it wasn’t a very important or serious one, but still I received no reply.
Attempt number 2 It has long been evident, but only recently people have started to talk that it’s time for Akinfeev to move to the top championships. Someone sees him in Manchester, the others madly want to see him in Arsenal (I’m no exception), someone just wants Igor to leave for any European top club. It’s evident that Igor has already surpassed the level of Russian football. I want to see him with Arsenal with all my heart. But unfortunately, this is not going to happen. Arsene Wenger in the pre-match interview against Fulham made it clear that he is not going to enter the transfer market. Now the question: In those days, when there was an actual problem of getting a goalkeeper in Arsenal (just a few months ago) were there any talks about Igor in Arsenal? Did Wenger consider his candidacy? After all, Igor like no other meets the “policy of young players” that Wenger sticks to. Igor is quite young. He needs progress. There will be no progress in Russia. . . Maybe you can give Wenger a hint regarding Igor? I want him to make one more step up in his career so that he could start playing at a new level. In Russia there is no prospect for him - this is obvious. He is the best in Russia. But he needs to go to the top European club. I will appreciate it very much, if you reply,just a couple of thoughts on the above written. Good luck in the match against Fulham. The game is going to be great today. I'm sure. I hope my question won’t be left unanswered.
AA: I have not heard that Arsenal would like to purchase Igor. Nobody has discussed this with me, that’s for certain.

From Dinusha
Hi, Andrey! You have written here that you wouldn’t mind to catch a “golden fish”, that’s the question: what would you wish? Good luck and thank you for being who you are!
(“The golden fish” is a Russian fairytale – translator)
AA: I think everything will depend on the moment in my life when I catch it.

From Sirotenko
Andrey, how are you doing in Arsenal?
AA: Fine.

From interes
Andrey, Good afternoon! Who was this boy that was shot in the video for the WC 2018 bid together with you? What's his name, where is he from? Is this a new "star" of Russian football?
AA: We are together in the picture, but actually we didn’t meet at the shooting of this video.

From Ninapr
Hello Andrey! There are a lot of your profiles on odnoklassniki.ru. Are those yours or it’s just your crazy fans who pour filth and abuse on your behalf. I’ve been very offended by one of them. Tell me what to do.
AA: I do not know who these people are  I’m not registered there.

From ALEKSEITYULIN
Andrey! I am 11 years old. I'm your fan. I want to open my own club. Give advice what will be useful for my business.
AA: And who is your Daddy?

From nixy9sebe
Andrey, do you think FC.Ural will ever come out of the first division?
AA: If Yekaterinburg wants this very much.

From Veronika1
Andrey, what can you say about FC Tom?
AA: Siberians.

From Tanya297
Hi, Andrey! – there is a good song with this title “Privet, Andrey” (“Hi, Andrey”). How are you doing in London? Petersburg is missing you and waiting for you at home.
AA: Yes, Julia also likes this song.

From Nika16
Hello, my favorite football player I’m your crazy fan from Saratovskaya oblast, I’ve got a little question for you: Have you ever happened to visit Saratov?
AA: It is better to be smart. Yes, I’ve been there.

From Natarus
Andrey, are you planning to participate in the World Cup 2018??
AA Yes. As a spectator. [CRYING]

From ALEKSEITYULIN
Andrey, my friend and I want to open a football club, we are 12 years old. Do you think we’ve got a good plan and we are going to succeed? Only I want you to tell me the truth, I won’t get offended if you say no.
AA: Who are your daddies, guys?

From miksere
Hi Andrey, you play in a great manner and score very beautiful goals. Please win the Champions League and score 5 goals in the next game. I'm rooting for you and I wish you all the best!
AA: Yes, we definitely needed the fifth goal like air in the recent match.

From dima09
Hi Andrey, tell me if it’s difficult for you to communicate with the other players in English. And I have one more question: who is your best friend in Arsenal and in the Russian national team.
AA: It used to be hard, but now I have no problem communicating with the guys,
coaches, masseurs and the other staff members of the club or any other
English speakers.

From misha5220
I recently went by trolleybus (in Nalchik), and saw Kolinko (Spartak Nalchik’s goalie)! And what about you, do you ever take London buses or trolleybuses or whatever they have there.
AA: Yes, I took a ride on the bus and went by metro with the kids, haven’t seen Kolinko.

From Ainruik
Hello! Aren’t you afraid that your children can forget their native Russian language in England?
AA: No. We are talking in our native language at home. Therefore, it is impossible.

From Sinshine
Hi Andrey. Congratulations on the victory and a scored goal! I’d like to know whether you’re communicating with Roman Pavlyuchenko now?
AA: No, I'm reading your question now, Roma can wait

From SvetlanaQi
Hi, Andrey! In an interview after the game Aston Villa - Arsenal, you said
"I have yet to score 11 goals in all official matches"
Why "11 goals”? Is this your plan for the season? I believe that you are going to score more. Go forward! Good luck)))
AA: It's simple. Have a look at the list of goal-scorers.

From StudentSamGTU
Hello, Andrey. Here is a question ... even though, actually, you probably
don’t care about it,... but still ... How do you feel about the transition to the
“spring-autumn” system in Russian football?
AA: I think we should wait in order to see if this decision is correct or not.

From Ivan1319
Andre, you are going to return to Zenith?
AA: Andre-Andre.

From c0mplex
Andrey, Hi. What should I do if my friend is stronger than I and plays very
aggressively in football and if I take the ball away from him, he makes me
trip or knocks me down to the ground ... And if I tell him that’s he’s fouling, he starts a fight: (but he still considers me his friend (((
AA: Then you need to find a referee

From 100009
Hi Andrey! As an ardent fan of Arsenal, I would like to find out ... How do you
and your team tune up for the game? Thanks in advance. I wish you a lot of wins!
AA: Nothing special is happening in our team’s camp. I think as anywhere: someone is watching a movie, someone is listening to music. The music is always playing in our locker room.

From Alenas
Andrey, please give me a cell number of Victor Fayzulin. I like him very much. Please!
AA: I don’t have his number. And even if I had, I wouldn’t give it!

From sdm1811
Hi Andrey. I’ve been watching your game (since you’ve been playing
under Morozov in Zenith), your game varied, but was thought-out. Can Arsenal win the Champions League in the next 2 seasons?
AA: Arsenal always has a chance to win the Champions League.

From Obkusok
I'm from St. Petersburg. They say I'm a talented player. Now I play for the "Red Triangle" team. Can you give advice what strong club from Saint-Petersburg should I join?
AA: If they like you, you’ll be noticed.

From Ganshin
I’m a school teacher and a class teacher of the 5th grade in Belorechenskiy settlement, Irkutsk region. There is a real junior football team in my class. They have beaten almost everybody, up to the 8th grade and lost to the 9th on penalties. For them, football is everything! The guys are seriously involved in football in their sports group. They know everything about football (or nearly everything!). They even carried out a research work on the history of football and on their favorite players.
Maybe in the future they will also become footballers! My question: Do you, Andrey,
celebrate the International Day of Football? We would like to make our
boys a surprise: Could you write them a few words of support - it will be very important for them! We would like to congratulate you with the Day of Football! Good luck!
AA: Guys, love football and you class teacher!


From Oliakulik
Hi Andrey ..... I have a question for you ....you will probably tell that you can’t answer it ... I do not know ..... but I ask you as an adult who probably went through my difficulties ... Question: What to do when people you love go out of your life? And it seems that life is over ... ... And you’ve got nobody to share your feelings with .... and you’re all alone ..... It’s unlikely that I’ll find your answer (even if you answer) but I hope that it will help somebody. Thanks ...
AA: Everyone, me included, suffered the loss of a loved one.
And however trite it sounds, but usually in such cases we say: one must
overcome it, time heals. One should live for others, friends and relatives, people you love. If you withdraw, you won’t be able to live a normal life. In addition, your retreat into yourself can ruin your life and the lives of people who are close to you. Perhaps you won’t like these words, but that’s what I think.

From PSEVDONIM
Andrey, tell me why after the match against Holland you exchanged T-shirts with
Mario Melchiot, and not with the more eminent football player?
AA: You don’t think about it when changing shirts.

From Bylignik
When are you going to come to Russia?
AA: In the spring time.

From Ainurik
Hi, Andrey! If you had a chance to get number 10 in Arsenal, would take it or would stick to 23?
AA: I do not know. Hard to say.

From Vika23100
Hi Andrey, My name is Vika, I’m 17 and I’m a football player ... I'm your fan ... I adore you so much, you're the best player ... please tell me, when I go out on the pitch, I get confused a bit, tell me how to get rid of this feeling? Thanks
AA: By quitting going out on the pitch.

From BorisP
Andrey, when do you feel more calm, when Fabyanski or Almunia keep the gate? Has Fabyanski’s pink sweatshirt caused jokes in Arsenal? Does he play better in it?
AA: We have three good goalkeepers. When we saw this rosy sweater on the keeper for the first time at the training camp, there were some jokes.

From Fifka777
Andrey, do you read the English press?
AA: Yes. When I come across some newspapers at the training base, I look through them. I do it not to find out some information, but in order to figure out
if I can already understand what is written in the language of the country I work in.

From Fifka777
Do you have a favorite book?
AA: At the present moment, no.

From Fifka777
Belgium ....
What is the reason of the defeat?
AA: There are a lot of them.

From andreysss
Have you ever been to Moldova? What did you do there? Do you know any Moldovan footballers? Are there any Moldovan footballers in England or may be in the Coca Cola league or in the other countries? I want to be the first one if there aren’t any))
AA: Yes, I think, I’ve been in Transnistria. I came there for one day with my mother's acquaintance.

From Erik68
Arshavin, do you think you’ll beat Armenia, and why?) Answer if it’s not too hard for you.
AA: We want this and will do everything to win.

From Moonray
I’ve lost a very dear person... It is so hard ... How can I overcome it? Natalia, Ashgabat. Thank you.
AA: If you’ve lost this person for good, it’s sad. Because this is for always.

From Baziiii
Andrey, I’ve read somewhere that your style of playing (among all present footballers) is the most similar to the style of Maradona. What do you think about this opinion?
AA: I find it hard to assess because I didn’t see how Diego was playing.

From Prostoya
Just wanted to tell you, Andrey that you're so cool.
Oh, and people love you not only for your great football skills! It’s even an absolute pleasure to watch the way you shake your head after the strike, that didn’t send the ball directly into the net. Play as long as possible! And live happily! I wish health and well being to you and your family.
AA: It’s time to stop making those head movements

Французский нападающий американского клуба "Нью-Йорк Ред Буллз" Тьерри Анри заявил, что хотел бы когда-нибудь вернуться в лондонский "Арсенал".

"Я очень люблю "Арсенал". Несколько лет назад мне пришлось уйти из "Арсенала". Но я остаюсь верным болельщиком клуба. В Лондоне я чуствую себя как дома. Я был бы счастлив вернуться в "Арсенал". Надеюсь, что когда-нибудь это произойдет", - цитирует Анри Reuters.

33-летний Анри выступал за "Арсенал" с 1999 по 2007 годы, провел за клуб 369 матчей и забил 226 голов. 2-кратный чемпион Англии, 3-кратный обладатель Кубка Англии, 2-кратный обладатель Суперкубка Англии.