Arsenal's Possible Champions League Opponents: Who Is Best to Face?

Arsene Wenger's team will have to qualify through a playoff if they are to take part in the Champions League 2011/12. Arsenal finished in a disappointing fourth position last season behind Manchester City, meaning the gunners were unable to automatically qualify for the Champions League.

Here are Arsenal's possible opponents and if they would be good or bad to face and why:

Udinese 

They are strongest opponent that Arsenal could face in the third round. They have a very strong team, with Alexis Sanchez being their big name player.

He is being chased by a number of top European clubs for around 30 million pounds. Other quality players on their team include Cristián Zapata, Mauricio Isla, Antonio Di Natale, Mehdi Benatia, Kwadwo Asamoah and finally Gökhan Inler.

From these players we can see that if we are drawn against them they won’t be an easy team to beat. However, Arsenal’s quality should overpower Udinese and Italy is not too far away, so would not disrupt the start of the season.

Dynamo Kyiv 

Travelling to Ukraine on a cold winters evening with a hostile crowd is never an easy match, and drawing Kyiv would be just that.

The long trip to Ukraine would not be a good thing during the start of the premier league season, where they would have to travel to Kyiv just before the home game against Liverpool in the Premier League.

They do not have much quality players-wise, but the away fixture would be a very tough match. However, Arsenal should be too strong for Kyiv, and they should come out of the tie as winners.

Panathinaikos 

Panathinaikos would not pose a threat to Arsenal.

They have an ample supply of talent, with only Sotris Ninis, Simão and Djibril Cissé their decent players. However, the away leg of the match would be tough challenge, but the home tie should be a walkover, and Arsenal should not be under threat overall.

Twente 

FC Twente managed to win the league with Steve McClaren at the helm two seasons ago. This was a great achievement, seeing as they do not have any top quality players. This means Arsenal should not have a problem in defeating the Dutch team.

The home and away fixtures should not be tough matches. Also Holland is not too far, therefore won’t alter the season too much.

Standard Liege

Alex Witsel and Steven Defour are two creative sparks in the Liege midfield. However, the rest of the teams are not of Champions League quality and therefore should not pose a threat towards Arsenal’s chances of advancing in the tournament.

Belgium is not too far to travel as well, so that would not affect the season too much.

Note Arsenal could also face a winner from the second round of qualifying, but that match has not taken place yet.

Out of the teams the gunners could play, the best draw for Arsenal would be FC Twente. This is because Holland is close by and Twente are not that strong a team.

The team Arsenal would be hoping to avoid in the draw would be Udinese. They have an array of talent available, and they certainly have to ability to beat Arsenal.

The draw will be made on August 5th.

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