There is no denying that Arsenal were handed a huge slice of luck when the Champions League draw was made this week. Monaco were far and away the best draw the Gunners could have got and now we are actually the strong favourites to progress to the quarter-final stage for the first time in six years.
But I thought that a lot of the football media were a bit too quick to call us lucky, because that was the first bit of good luck that has come our way in the competition for a long time. Poor decisions from the referees as well as tough draws in our recent groups and play-off games have had most Gooners thinking that we were cursed in the competition.
Even the fact that we have finished second by only goal difference in the last two seasons as well as losing to Bayern Munich on away goals a couple of years ago suggested that Arsenal just could not get a break. But maybe we have been saving our luck up.
Because the changes to our Premier League fixtures reported by Arsenal.com for around the time of our two games with Monaco have actually worked in our favour for a change. Whereas before we often found the TV schedules had stitched us up, this time the game against Everton after the first Mnnaco game on Wednesday February 25th has been moved back to the Sunday, giving us an extra day to prepare for the Toffees.
And the game against West Ham before we head to France the following Tuesday has been kept on the Saturday. which gives Wenger and the players the best possible chance. Now there really is no excuse for Arsenal not to go through, is there?