Messi vs Enyeama plus Video Highlights of the match (Arg 1-0 Nig)

Argentina's World Cup campaign started on a bright note, courtesy Gabriel Heinze's diving header in the opening minutes of the match.

Argentina' striker Lionel Messi is undoubtedly the best attacker in the World, and so is the Nigerian goal keeper Vincent Enyeama who plies his trade in Israel.

Villa: Messi is better than Ronaldo

You can tell by the look of things that apart from transfer rumours especially that of goalkeepers - nothing is really happening in the Gooner planet.

While, on a routine check I stumbled on this interesting piece. Valencia's coveted forward David Villa claims Lionel Messi is better than Cristiano Ronaldo.
Catchy isn't it?
Nevertheless, the player ought to be a Gunner by now.

Messi: why I humiliated Arsenal

First of all, permit me to refrain from further discussion pertaining
our embarrassing display in front of a mammoth crowd of spectators at
the Camp Nou yesterday.

Barcelona's one-man-rioter Lionel Messi has sensationally revealed why
he pummeled the Gunners like fromage frais.

In his interview with Barca Tv the diminutive striker said he was
spurred to action because of a bet with Barca's second choice
goalkeeper: "Pinto has a bet with me - I have to score more goals than
last season. That's why we count the goals every week," he enthused. I
have got a funny feeling Pinto will be paying sooner than he might
have expected.

The 22-year-old who single-handedly bundled the Gunners out of the Champions League attributed his four-goal haul to 'team work': "I am
lucky enough to be with a group of players that care about me a lot
and say nice things about me.

"We started off struggling a little, we had some bad luck we were able to react and the goals came thanks to teamwork. Today it was my turn,
another day it'll be Ibra and another Pedro... The main thing is to score. I was lucky enough to get the rebound and I hit it hard."

With breathtaking performances like that, the Argentinean is gradually
running out of records to break. He's the Club's 10th highest goal
scorer and the first to score four goals in a European competition.
This is what the undisputed prince of the beautiful round leather game of Soccer had to say concerning his performance against Arsenal at the Camp Nou yesterday: "I am very happy. The same as the other day when I scored three. It's always nice to score, especially in important matches."

Bendtner: Messi won't shine

Hat-trick hero Nicklas Bendtner is set to face Messi's Barcelona in
the Champions League quarter-finals first leg on Wednesday.

The Danish Striker has warned Barca that the tie won't be
business-as-usual for their dangerman, because their main supply
route (midfield) will be met by the Gunners stiff resistance.
Lionel Messi is capable of making defenders look miserable and
Bendtner who is aware of the susceptibility of the Gunners defence
isn't scared of the Barca magician, he believes Arsene Wenger will
deploy the right tactics to ensure the Catalan giants bow out of the
Champions League in the quarter-finals.

Bendtner insists that the Gunners have the advantage even though the
odds aren't favourable to them: "What counts in Arsenal's favour is
that we play in a different way to which Messi is accustomed in
Spain," he enthused.
"He will probably not get as much room to run with the ball, and the
pace of games is faster in England. It will be an entirely different
battle for him and Barcelona.

Bendtner praised the dimunitive wizard and admitted that he will be a
problem for the Gunners: "So even though they may be slight favourites
against us, I still expect it to be a balanced game. But Messi is the
best in the World right now. He has a fantastic eye for the game, he
has pace and he has scored many goals.
"He has quick feet, and it is impossible to get the ball off him. It
is his overall qualities that count - for me he is the greatest," he
concluded.

Thierry Henry: Messi is super-human

The France international said it is hard to fathom that the Argentine
whiz-kid is a human.

Messi has been in superlative form, banging in the necessary goods and
above all, he's been able to maintain a cool head which has endeared him
to many.
Even Pep Guardiola, in his last interview asserted that the youngster
was reverred at Camp Nou by his team mates, so it is not a surprise to
hear a once (he's lost that magic touch and control) prolific goal
scorer accord honour to whom it's due.

"I have played alongside some great players, but Leo is very special,"
Henry enthused. "What Leo can do is difficult to find in any player.

"The other day I had my head in my hands because I did not know how he
does such things."

The ex Gunner revealed that Messi's bag of tricks is very extensive,
and infact it's difficult to understand how simple the application can
look, yet he somehow manages to captivate his viewers.

"I received a lot of messages all asking me if Leo is human. At times
I myself that what he does is not normal, we just have to enjoy it
all."

Wenger - forget Thierry's return, "Fabregas is a winner"

Arsene Wenger is adamant that Barcelona defeat was the worst in his
illustrious managerial career.

The manager refused to compare Fabregas and Messi, concluding that
"Fabregas and Messi are completely different players."

The boss maintained that Arsenal's machinery is in perfect condition to
help him assuage his feelings by giving the team from Spain a dose of
their medicine.
He was under no illusion, when he urged Arsenal and the fans to
temporarily forget the love and compassion they have for their
darling Thierry Henry, when he makes his emotional return to the
Emirates: "Henry had a fantastic time at Arsenal, and we are forever
grateful," said Wenger.

"But on the day, you think really we will be focused on how Thierry
Henry will feel on the day? We will be focused on our game. The rest
will be disrespectful."

Promininent on the gaffer's to-do-list is revenge - he doesn't care if it is
at home/away, the bottom-line is we must advance to the Semis at the
expense of the Catalan giants.

Wenger who blamed the referee for our defeat to Barcelona at the
Champions League final four years ago, is still defiant that the
referee made a mistake by sending off Jens Lehmann: "When a referee
makes a decision like that he has to be absolutely sure," he said.

"You cannot kill a final that one billion people watch. Yes, we have
regrets. I do not say we could not win the game. Thierry had two good
chances. But it was not the game that everybody expected on the day.

"We had a fantastic season in the Champions League, we only lost one
game and that was the final, in the whole season. The game was not
there. Eleven against 11, it would have been a fantastic game."

The manager admits that Pires has refused to forgive his decision to
substitute him on that fateful night, albeit the gaffer recognises the
decision as a mistake and he's amazed at how vivid memories of the
night and past events were on his mind.

"Then we had to take Pires off, and he still hates me today! We took a
great player out who could have added to the quality of the game.

"You never forget completely about the game and in a Champions League
final you know you will not get back there necessarily the next year.
You never forget it, but you have to focus on what is in front of you
in this job.

"I did an interview recently about ten years at Arsenal. I was
surprised at how much I remembered from every single disappointment. I
thought I had forgotten but evey little detail came out in my head."

Arsene believes that Fabregas and Messi are both unique in different
ways, and he insists that Fabregas as a professional won't give in to
emotions easily when he faces his former club.

"Fabregas and Messi are completely different players. What is
interesting is that they played together in the youth team.

"When I spoke with Fabregas's mother when she brought him here at 16,
she said they always won 6-0, 7-0, 8-0, or 9-0 because Pique, Fabregas
and Messi played in the same team.

"There will certainly be some emotion there but Fabregas is a winner,
he wants first to qualify. I believe Cesc goes out every single game
to win it - if it is Barcelona or someone else, he will just want to
qualify.

"Actually we owe Barcelona one - if that's the word. We'll be up for
it, and are looking to get a couple of decent results."

Wishes are now as prevalent as roses

We've got it! The dream match, the Camp Nou experience, the
possibility of evicting Europe's power-house from the Champions League
and the stark reality involved if we fail looms ahead.

Clichy has been wishing for the right but sinister things within the
week, and I am really glad the chap got what he wanted. The question
every gooner is/might be pondering on is if the young man can deliver
his promise by living up to our lofty expectations.

That apart, we now face an uphill task in our bid to unseat the
incumbent holders of the Champions League, who have in their
possession the World's most lethal attacker. We have our own
weapon/weapons, and it isn't an individual weapon but rather the team
as a whole.
And maybe, we'll finally get our long awaited chance to inflict damage
on the Catalan club's title aspirations by scuppering their
second-term ambition.

Thierry Henry, will definately be elated about the prospect of him
playing and maybe scoring against his former employer (Arsenal).
Personally I think Henry has lost the magic and flair that endeared
him to so many Arsenal fans. He's the least of our problems.

The draws have been made. Here they are:

The quarter-finals first legs will be played on March 30/31 and the
return legs on April 6/7 respectively.

Arsenal v Barcelona

Bayern Munich v Manchester United

Inter v CSKA Moscow

Lyon v Bordeaux

The semi-finals draw for the elite club event is as follows:

Bayern Munich/Manchester United v Lyon/Bordeaux

Inter Milan/CSKA Moscow v Arsenal/Barcelona

The first legs will be played on April 20/21 and the second legs on April 27/28

Thierry Henry believes "Nobody" wants Barca because of Messi and Stuttgart coach compares him to "Diego Maradona"

Arsenal's former player Thierry Henry has claimed that every club
(including Arsenal) is scared of playing the Spanish Champions,
because of Messi.

Henry was full of praise for his team mate after his goals and overall
team contribution helped the Champions dump German side Stuttgart out
of the Champions League. Stuttgart felt like they were hit by a fiery
thunderbolt, but it was all the doing of no other person than Lionel
Messi, who personally booked their flight to Germany via a superlative
display.
The ex Arsenal forward is obvious of the fact that they are favoured
by almost every Soccer pundit to win a second successive title, to
continue their rein as European Champions and he believes Messi will
be instrumental to that effect.

Henry has refused to doubt the little magician's prowess on the pitch
and admits his touch of brilliance and commitment is what every Coach
yearns for: "It's kind of ridiculous what he's doing," Henry enthused.

"It's amazing. I don't know if you can say he's playing better, but
he's maintaining what he was doing and playing at a level where nobody
from Barcelona wants him to stop."

Stuttgart's coach Christian Gross showered encomiums on the little
Argentine who wrecked his team's chances of making the quarter-finals
of the most prestigious club event on Earth: "His ability is
incredible," Gross admitted. "When you consider his age I think it's
fine to compare him to Diego Maradona."