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Newcomer
Walcott could face Real baptism of fire
Teenager prepares to go straight
to the heat of Champions League
THEO Walcott could make his first-team debut in the cauldron
of the Bernabeu stadium as the Gunners take on Real Madrid in
the Champions League on Tuesday.
Arsenal’s new £5 million signing scored on his reserve
team debut against Portsmouth last week.
The teenager missed Monday night’s draw against Chelsea’s
reserves with a shoulder injury.
But yesterday (Wednesday), the 16-year-old star looked set to
be included in the squad to face the Spanish galcticos.
Real Madrid, who include Ronaldo, England captain David Beckham
and 18-year-old Brazilian superstar Robinho, currently trail
Barcelona by 10 points in La Liga.
Arsenal are struggling domestically too, and Tuesday night’s
loss to Liverpool in the Premiership has seen manager Arsene
Wenger give up hopes of a top-two finish.
But he has not given up hope of Champions League qualification,
saying it “is still possible”.
“At the moment we are struggling for confidence and that
affects the senior players as well as the younger ones,”
he told the BBC.
“We need to recover now and find the right balance to go
to Spain for the Champions League, we must find a way to put
Real Madrid under pressure.”
Veteran striker Dennis Bergkamp would have helped restore the
balance and was expected to make the 800-mile journey to Madrid
to boost a side lacking in experience in both defence and attack.
But the striker – who has a fear of flying – picked
up an ankle injury in training and will not travel.
Striker Jose Reyes suffered heavy bruising at Highbury against
Bolton and may still struggle to travel to Madrid.
Dutch striker Robin Van Persie is out until March and new signing
Emmanuel Adebayor is cup-tied, paving the way for a possible
appearance by Walcott. |
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