Wenger can beat Rafa but he must ditch fancy stuff

But it's a different game in Europe and you just have to look at Benitez's record - the victory in 2005, the final last year, beating Chelsea twice in semi-finals - for evidence of his pedigree.

Over two legs, it's going to be tough for Arsenal. As a supporter, I would settle for a 0-0 draw at Emirates with Liverpool denied an away goal. Wenger is very good at setting up teams not to get beaten and at Anfield I believe they are capable of repeating the kind of away result which accounted for AC Milan.

However, the key decision to settling both this contest and the upcoming league matches is for Wenger to make.

In my view, he must be prepared to sacrifice some of the Brazilian style in favour of a more pragmatic approach when it's required. Winning, not entertaining, is what really counts now.

At the beginning of the season - even though Thierry Henry had left and Wenger had not signed a new contract - I still fancied Arsenal to finish in the top two, but I questioned then whether they had the mental strength to win it. I have no reason to change this view and it also applies to the Champions League.

This Arsenal side are a great footballing team, but they cannot be described as a great team until they have won something.

There is of course no argument that this Arsenal side is technically superior to one I played in the late 1980s, but we had a deep strength of character which was reflected in the trophy haul.

I actually thought Arsenal had turned the corner at Goodison Park in December when, after going behind, they played ugly in the second half and ended up winning 4-1.

But things have slipped after the victory in the San Siro and getting sucked into so many draws in matches they should be winning - Wigan, Middlesbrough, Aston Villa - could prove costly.

Manchester United and Chelsea have become experts in winning when it matters over the last couple of years and Arsenal must learn the lesson.

Look at United when they were missing key players earlier in the season. They were criticised for playing ugly, but, crucially, they ground out the wins.

In September, for example, their matches with Sunderland, Everton, Sporting Lisbon and Birmingham all ended in 1-0 triumphs. Arsenal's stuttering form of late now put those results into perspective.

It would be unfair to talk about a soft centre, because they are such talented players, but I found extremely worrying the way Kolo Toure and William Gallas were bullied in the second half of the 2-1 defeat at Stamford Bridge.

When you are 1-0 up away from home to a title rival, you are always going to come under pressure late in the game and that is when your defenders earn their money.

It's obviously difficult to make comparisons across generations, but had Steve Bould and Tony Adams been playing that day, I don't believe Arsenal would have lost.

Toure and Gallas may be better equipped technically, but Bould and Adams would have found a way to stop those goals going in. They were so desperate for their team to win.

Elsewhere, Arsenal's other problem of late - Bolton game excluded - has been goalscoring. Some are beginning to question Emmanuel Adebayor, who has not scored since the Milan game, but I don't think that is fair. All strikers go through lean spells and I am convinced he has the quality to rediscover his best form.

In the meantime, it is up to the rest of the team to chip in with goals to ease the burden. There was a bountiful supply earlier in the season, but not so much in recent matches.

The 3-2 win at Bolton was the first time Arsenal had hit more than three goals in a game since the start of February and hopefully it is a sign of improvement.

It was good to see Robin van Persie back on the scoresheet at the Reebok as Arsenal will need him to step up to the mark both against Liverpool and beyond. In fact, he could be the key to ensuring that Arsenal's European dream is still alive next Wednesday morning.