Guardiola expects tough Arsenal clash

Tonight Barcelona face one of the key matches of the season and Pep Guardiola is only too aware of how dangerous Arsenal can be with or without Cesc Fabregas.
When the Champions League draw was made, many fans felt that Barca had been given an easy passage into the semi-final where they would face Inter Milan but you should take nothing for granted as Arsenal are a very strong side with hopes of winning the Premiership.
Naturally for Barca they always want to face teams that like to pass the ball around and as the Catalan side possess arguably the best players in the world then we have to be optimistic. However this is a cup game and Barca aside from Messi are not playing at their best.
The good news is that Abidal is set to be back to bolster the defence but in midfield Iniesta is injured and so it will likely be Xavi, Busquets and Keita in the midfield with the possibility of Toure also starting. Also in attack there are other question marks with Henry unlikely to start against his former club after a disappointing season and his place will probably go to Pedro.
“They will play to their strengths and we will play to ours but it is true that it will be very important if we can score away from home. We will try to attack in a unit and defender each ball with a lot of commitment,” said Guardiola, “We will want to have the ball and so will they so that will be an essential part of the game We are up against a side who are technically strong and pass the ball around quickly. It is a style of football which is very attractive to watch.”
There is still no news yet on whether Cesc will play or not against the side which raised him.
“Cesc is a player with a lot of character and scores a lot of goals coming into the box but this team has shown that it can win without him. They beat Porto 5-0 without Cesc,” Guardiola added.