Is The Grass Always Greener?
As Patrick Vieira trudged off the pitch on Tuesday night, which dressing room do you think he'd like to have been returning to? The former Arsenal captain, who'd graced the famous old stadium with such distinction for nine years, had just endured a miserable evening.
Dispossessed by the unaccustomed tenacity of his great friend Robert Pires, who played a blinder in Arsenal's epic Champions League Quarter-Final first-leg victory over Juventus, Vieira saw his error compounded as Pires found another pal, Thierry Henry, who played in the precocious Cesc Fabregas for the Gunners' psychologically devastasting first goal.
Last year Vieira had been the young Spaniard's mentor; now Cesc was bossing the midfield like a seasoned campaigner, pulling the strings, seeing the game in his head, as they say, and orchestrating his team's attacking movement.
Vieira had said before the game that the emotion of the occasion would not get to him. Yet he would not be human if he had not gone through a whole range of conflicting emotions on Tuesday.
Given a rousing reception from the Arsenal fans, he even incurred their wrath after a couple of trademark fouls, and finally got himself booked for a frustrated dig at Jose Reyes. The yellow card ensures his reunion with his old club will not continue next week in Turin.
Manager Arsene Wenger emphasised how much he still admired and respected Vieira, one of the world's great midfielders. But he also revealed that, when Juve came along in the summer with a fivve-year contract for Patrick, he could not justify trying to match it. It was time to move on. It was a tough call; Arsenal would inevitably miss a player of Vieira's stature, abiilty and presence. But Wenger had to consider the future. And on Tuesday, sadly, Viieira was made to look part of Arsenal's past as a vibrant young side ran Juve ragged.
In the build-up to the game, Vieira had said the main difference between the two clubs was the winning mentality in Turin: there was a hunger and an expectation at Juventus that highlighted their greater ambition and potential.
The evidence on Tuesday pointed to the complete opposite. A watching English audience found it remarkable that reigning Serie A champions Juve, eight points clear at the top as they close in on a second succesive and 29th overall Scudetto, could be so comprehensively out-thought and out-played by a team enduring a so-so domestic season who are struggling even to qualify for next year's Champions League - unless they win the trophy this time around.
But let's keep things in perspective. This was undoubtedly a bad day at the office for Fabio Capello, for Patrick Vieira and for the whole of the Juventus team. But all of them have enjoyed a great season, and have another chance to bury Arsenal next week - albeit without the suspended Vieira. Despite that, Patrick himself has repeatedly said he has no regrets about moving, that he needed, and is relishing, the new challenge.
Still, you can't help wondering if that conviction wavered a tad as his former team-mates celebrated a dazzling performance and resounding win.
And you can't help wondering either whether ex-Juve winger Thierry Henry would have thought Hey, maybe there's no need to move. Maybe I can achieve my ambitions with this team. Maybe the grass isn't always greener elsewhere, even in Barcelona.
Graham Lister
Goal.com
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Well, personally I think he'll go to Real Madrid or similar club to prove that he can do something in the CL..
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