Over at the Short Fuse, SB Nation's Arsenal blog, you might expect things to be a little subdued despite their team's 2-1 win against Huddersfield Town and subsequent advancement to the fifth round of the FA Cup. Firstly, they didn't play particularly well and were lucky not to lose or draw against an opponent two leagues their lessor, but secondly - and far more importantly - they're about to get a taste of what life without Samir Nasri is like after the midfielder picked up a serious hamstring injury in the first half of today's match. And they don't like that at all:
Arsenal Lose Their Attacking Centrepiece - The Short Fuse
Nasri, of course, has been at the center of much of Arsenal's success this year, scoring fabulous goals against Fulham and Manchester City. He is scoring goals at a tremendous rate and providing smooth passing interchanges with Cesc Fabregas, Robin van Persie, and Theo Walcott in Arsenal's best attacking four. His loss will have a big impact on Arsenal's next few weeks, where they have matches against Everton, Newcastle, Wolverhampton, and Barcelona.
That’s some understated grief, but reading between the lines tells you that there’s a very real fear that this could have a major impact on Arsenal’s ability to challenge for the Premier League title as well as cutting deep into their chances of pulling off a stunning upset against Barcelona in the Champions League.
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