Ghana's Asamoah Gyan warns Arsenal over Barcelona

Published on: 07 March 2011

Ghana and Sunderland star Asamoah Gyan has warned Arsenal not to try to outplay Barcelona in their Champions League meeting on Tuesday.

The Gunners have a 2-1 lead from the first leg and Gyan thinks they need to be more defensive at the Nou Camp.

Arsenal have a reputation for playing free-flowing football but Gyan thinks they have to be cautious.

"If you don't have a defensive mindset, they will score," he told the BBC's African sports programme Fast Track.

"You must make sure you don't concede goals - you must wear them down. If you go there and try to play them at their own game then you will have a very big problem.

"They are the best team in the world - they are an all-round team, they keep on passing, keep on moving - it is really difficult to mark them."

Gyan and his Sunderland colleagues held Arsenal to a draw in the Premier League at the weekend.

"Arsenal know how to play the ball and how to move, they have the same style but Barca have more ball jugglers who can take people on."

Arsenal will be missing several key players for the last-16 match in Spain on Tuesday, including Cameroon's Alex Song.

But Arsene Wenger's team have been buoyed by the news that captain Cesc Fabregas - a former Barca trainee - is likely to be fit.

Arsenal know all about the challenge that Barca can pose, after last season's demolition at the hands of Lionel Messi.

The Argentina forward scored all four of his side's goals in a 4-1 win which gave Barcelona a 6-3 aggregate victory over the Gunners in the Champions League quarter-final.

Source: BBC

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