Champions League: 7 Untold Truths Of European football

1) Arsenal’s ‘luck of the draw’ excuse has finally been put out of its misery

Remember how Arsenal staff and fans alike would rue their terrible luck in the Champions League last-16 draw? How they constantly lamented being paired up against the likes of Barcelona and Bayern Munich while
other sides were able to ease into their campaign against less imposing sides such as Porto and Schalke (and, well, Arsenal themselves)? That run of luck ended in December as the Gunners drew Monaco, a side who reached the tournament on the back of signings such as Radamel Falcao and James Rodriguez.

Those two gentlemen are no longer there. They reached this stage thanks to their defensive record, but came into the first-leg at the Emirates with several key defenders missing. Arsene Wenger went attack-heavy with his line-up, hoping to fill his boots at the Emirates...and STILL found himself tactically overwhelmed by the weakened underdogs in a wretched 3-1 defeat. Tie over surely. Wenger lacks tactics, the right direction, the correct passion and players to threaten Europe's finest. Let us face it: Wenger does not have what it takes to replicate what he achieved with this side in 2006 by reaching the final. And will never lift the European Cup - old 'big ears' - above his head. Sad, but true.

2) Vincent Kompany is going through a bad patch

We know it sounds hard to believe, but it is true. Manchester City's hugely impressive captain Kompany looks half a yard off the pace, and half a yard at such a lofty level is obviously hugely damaging with Barcelona exploiting the Belgian centre half at least twice at the Etihad Staduim. And twice was enough for Luis Saurez to expose the deficincies. He has also been guilty of diving into situations rather than resist the urge to commit in certain parts of the park.

Martin Demichelis has been pilloried for his lack of speed on the turn, but he banished the demons of his sending off against Barca a year ago with a solid enough performance against the Catalans a year on. Unfortunately, the same can't be said of Kompany. Just because he is a great player doesn't mean he can't struggle. ITV pundit Paul Scholes was right in his observation: Kompany is going through a sticky patch.


3) Borussia Dortmund have not replaced Robert Lewandowski

There is a reason why Jurgen Klopp's Borussia Dortmund are struggling in the Bundesliga. And part of the reason comes down to the lack of goals in the forward area. You can't really take the goals of Robert Lewandowski out of a side - a whopping 74 goals from 131 outings - and expect the same results. Dortmund's results have been poor this season, but they appear to be rallying out of the Bundesliga relegation spots. A 3-0 win over Freiburg was followed by a 4-2 win over Mainz then a 3-2 win at Stuttgart.

They are on a decent run with the 2-1 defeat at Juventus in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 encounter giving them a chance to progress. But in the long run, they require more imposing forwards to support Marco Reus, who scored from an unfortunate fall and slip by Giorgio Chiellini in Turin. Ciro Immobile faced his former club, but blew several chances to earn Dortmund a draw at Juventus Stadium. Dortmund lack firepower. They need a proven striker to replace Bayern forward Lewandowski.


4) Barcelona remain football's most entertaining side

Barca remain a terrific team to watch. Can they win the Champions League? Obviously, but they will find life a little more bit more testing when they confront a side like Real Madrid, Bayern Munich or perhaps even Chelsea. However, let us just revel in how easy Andres Iniesta, Lionel Messi, Neymar and the outstanding Luis Suarez continue to make the game look. Manchester City again came up short in the first knock-out stage, but you must also remember what they were up against. Barcelona are more than a club as the saying goes. They are also more than a football team. They make the game resemble a scuplted work of art, but there is a directness to their play that is also intriguing. Call it tiki taka with a twist, it remains very alluring.


5) What are we going to do when the Champions League moves to subscription TV?

We are truly spoiled as football fans the United Kingdom. We really are. We have been guaranteed at least one live Champions League game since the inception of the tournament in 1993, but all that will change next year when the club game's greatest tournament moves to BT Sport. How will we access it? What are we going to do in this bleak mid-winter Tuesdays? Barcelona's trip to Manchester City will no waiting for us.

Unless you are willing to fork out money for a subscription, there is no guaranteed method to see the action. Most people with a subscription for Sky can't afford another one for BT Sport. The general public who can afford neither will have to go to a pub and hope it is on. Or else listen to the radio. We can't help that thinking selling off the Champions League without terrestrial TV coverage is extremely short-sighted by UEFA. It might be good for the clubs cashing in, but not for the good of the game. Or the average fans who will have to do without.


6) The Premier League is rich, but is far from the best league in the world

Money does not mean anything. The Premier League remains low on quality when it comes to taking on the Champions League. Even with millions and millions spent on players, the imports from oversea are short on technique. Manchester City's latest collapse against Barcelona, and Arsenal's humbling by Monaco prove that money cannot buy the best. If it did, City and Arsenal would be performing a lot better than this. Let us not even mention Liverpool, who couldn't even finish second ahead of Basel in the group stage as they were dumped into the Europa League.

There is no doubt about the excitement of England's top division, but let us not be blinded by the facts of life. Only Chelsea are worth talking about in Europe, and that is not really good enough for a set-up that thinks of itself as the best in the world. Is such fare really worth over £5 billion for a three-year deal? The returns in the Champions League would suggest not. And yet the myth goes on. It is quite embarrassing really. Seconds before Sky Sport ended their coverage last night, pundit Jamie Redknapp astonishingly suggested that Monaco's players could easily lose the second leg because the French Ligue 1 is nowhere near the Premier League. Which makes you wonder if he had been watching the same game as the rest of us.


7) Bayer Leverkusen youngster Hakan Calhanoglu is a true star

The scorer of the only goal in Bayer Leverkusen’s last-16 first-leg success over last season’s finalists Atletico Madrid is making headlines on the continent’s biggest stage, but that’s hardly shocking for anyone who has watched him in action over the last 12 months. With great playmaking abilities and tremendous free-kicks – not to mention a very potent scoring ratio from set-pieces -  the Turkish international has a bright future ahead. Especially since he’s still just 21 years of age!