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Camden Sports - TOM FOOT
Published: 06 November 2008

Gunners fizzle out against Turks

Frustrated Arsenal fail to find net in fireworks night Champs’ League clash

Champions League
Arsenal 0, Fenerbahce 0

FERNERBAHCE foiled Arsene Wenger’s Champions League gunpowder plot last night, holding a depleted Arsenal side to an exasperating goalless draw at the Emirates.
The young guns wheeled and flashed like a spinning Catherine Wheel on fireworks night – great to watch, but fizzling out frustratingly at the end. Arsenal remain top of their group but need one more win from their last two games to progress to the knockout stages.
Arsene Wenger was forced to ring the changes after losing a series of first-team regulars to injury. Lucasz Fabianski started in nets, with young Aaron Ramsey replacing Walcott on the right wing. A makeshift central defensive pairing of Johan Djourou and Mikael Silvestre looked comfortable and the lumbering Niklas Bendtner replaced injured striker Emmanuel Adebayor.
Robin van Persie should have put the Gunners ahead on eight minutes after the vision of Cesc Fabregas found him in space by the penalty spot. The Dutchman's snap half-volley whistled agonisingly wide.
It was one of those nights for the striker and his petulant side, witnessed on Saturday when he was sent off for a push in the Stoke City match, began creeping back into his game and he was booked in the closing stages.
Substitute Carlos Vela, on for Bendtner, failed to make an impact in the second half while Silvestre was taken off with a bloody nose due to an elbow.
Manchester United arrive at the Emirates on Saturday and the Gunners, without a win in three, will have to up their game a notch.

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