Preview: Arsenal v. SC Braga, Champions League Group Matchday 1

Those colors look familiar... Pic via Daily Telegraph.

Emirates Stadium, London

Wednesday, September 15

19:45 BST, 2:45 p.m. EDT

• Referee: Alain Hamer (Luxembourg)
• First competitive match between these two sides
• Arsenal's League Form: D-W-W-W
• Braga's League Form: W-D-W-L

Predicted Line-Up

guesses in red

Almunia

Sagna - Koscielny - Vermaelen - Clichy

Song - Fabregas - Nasri

Rosicky - Chamakh - Arshavin

Subs from: Fabianski, Squillaci, Gibbs, Eboue, Wilshere, Denilson, Vela

Out: Diaby (ankle/shin), Walcott (ankle), Bendtner (groin), Van Persie (ankle), Ramsey (broken leg), Frimpong (knee)

Arsenal News and Notes

• Abou Diaby is expected to miss at least two games (those being this match and Saturday's trip to Sunderland) after he was hacked to pieces by Paul Robinson.
• Theo Walcott, Robin van Persie, and Nicklas Bendtner remain out until mid-October with their respective injuries.
• Samir Nasri should return to the starting line-up, having recovered from meniscus surgery, an injury he picked up at Anfield a month ago.
• Thomas Vermaelen should return to the starting XI as well, from an Achilles injury picked up on international duty.
• Aaron Ramsey is on pace to return in November from his broken leg. That probably means Christmas.

Braga News and Notes

• SC Braga are without defender Elderson and midfielder Leandro Salino, serving one match bans for accumulation.
• Braga won two playoff rounds to qualify for group play. They ousted Celtic 4-2 in the third qualifying round (in between legs, Celtic lost to Arsenal in the Emirates Cup,) and beat Sevilla 5-3 in the final playoff round.
• The team is known as "The Arsenalists" because, since 1921, they have worn red and white, having chosen their colors based on Arsenal. Which really means we're both copying Nottingham Forest.
• Braga fell to their first domestic defeat of this season on the weekend, losing 3-2 at FC Porto.
• Braga sit fourth in their league table. They are five points behind first place Porto.

Match Facts

• Arsenal last faced Portuguese competition in the Round of 16 last year, defeating FC Porto 6-2 on aggregate. They played Porto the year before that in group play, winning both matches at home and losing both matches on the road.
• Arsenal have won four straight group stage home matches. Their last draw was a 0-0 draw with Fenerbahce on November 5, 2008.
• Arsenal's last loss at home in group play was to Inter Milan, 3-0 on September 17, 2003; incidentally, that was at the start of the year Arsenal went unbeaten in the league. Arsenal famously won the return fixture at the San Siro 5-1.
• Both Arsenal and Braga are talented offensive sides with some question marks on defense. This could be a high scoring match.

The Referee

• The referee is Alain Hamer from Luxembourg.
• Last year, he worked Arsenal's 4-1 group stage win over AZ Alkmaar at the Emirates. The year before that, he worked Arsenal's 1-1 group stage win over Dynamo Kiev, also at the Emirates.

England in the Champions League This Week

• Tuesday: Werder Bremen v. Tottenham Hotspur; Weserstadion, Bremen
• Tuesday: Manchester United v. Rangers; Old Trafford, Manchester
• Wednesday: Zilina v. Chelsea; Stadium Pod Dubnom, Zilina