Manager Arsene Wenger put his foot down after Gallas' latest outburst

New Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas has called for everyone in the side to play a captain's role after William Gallas was stripped of the armband.

Gallas will return to action when Arsenal attempt to put their season back on track by qualifying for the last 16 of the European Champions League on Tuesday.

Arsenal top Group G with eight points and victory over Dynamo Kiev at the Emirates will see them safely through – although their form of late has been poor.

French central defender Gallas was stripped of the captaincy and dropped for the 3-0 defeat at Manchester City on Saturday after comments about teammates in the media.

Taking to heart

"I think (Gallas) could be stronger as a player now because previously he took all the problems of the team to his heart," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said.

Euro 2008 winner Fabregas praised his predecessor as he took the armband.

"It is a great honour for me to captain one of the biggest clubs in the world," Fabregas said.

"I believe that for me the captain is the voice of the club towards the outside and is one of the leaders of the team.

"But I don't believe in one providential man in the dressing room who sorts out all the problems.

"William is a player that I rate and a man that I rate as well.

"A successful team is a shared leadership inside the dressing room and he will be one of the leaders – but not the only one.''

Second-place Porto take on bottom side Fenerbahce in the group's other game.

From Villa to Villa

Ronaldo receives a bit of banter [AFP]

Manchester United winger Cristiano Ronaldo has flown to Spain for Tuesday's match against Villarreal despite limping out of Saturday's goalless draw with Aston Villa.

Manager Alex Ferguson described the abuse that Ronaldo has to deal with as like being "hit over the head with a bat."

Ferguson defended the Portugal winger after he pointed one finger to the sky and another toward the No 7 on his uniform – which some interpreted as a gesture to say he was the best player on the field – against Villa.

"Some criticise him, say that he couldn't take it on Saturday, but I wonder how many people can take it if you're walking down the street and someone hits you over the head with a bat," Ferguson said.

"That's the mantle you carry when you're a great player. He knows that and he gets on with it."

Berbatov blow

Gary Neville, Dimitar Berbatov and Edwin Van der Sar will play no part in Tuesday's match.

Midfielder Paul Scholes, who has suffered knee ligament damage, trained on Monday but is not yet ready to play.
 
Defending champions United only need a point against Villarreal to qualify for the knockout stages.

Celtic take on Aalborg in Denmark in the other match in the group. Both teams are on two points, six behind the leaders.

Real task

Real Madrid have the unenviable task of beating Belarusian minnow Bate Borisov in freezing Minsk on Tuesday if they are to take a big step toward the Champions League knockout stage.

To make matters worse for the Spanish champions, injuries have ruled out a string of key players for the Group H match against a side that is fired up in the knowledge that a win will keep their slim qualification hopes alive.

Madrid trail leaders Juventus by four points, while Bate are bottom, two points adrift of third-placed Russian champions Zenit St Petersburg.

Drenthe takes on Bate's Vitali Kazantsev at the Bernabeu

Poor form could be the biggest threat to Real, where tensions remain high despite snapping a three-game winless streak with a 1-0 Spanish La Liga win over lowly Recreativo Huelva on the weekend.

"Of course, (tension) is normal. We have to win games, you know. You play for a club like Real Madrid, the people outside start talking,'' Dutch winger Royston Drenthe said.

Gonzalo Higuain, who leads the team with nine goals, will miss the trip to Belarus because he badly sprained his left ankle against Recreativo.

Madrid are already without Ruben de la Red, while Fabio Cannavaro and Gabriel Heinze remain doubtful.

Moral obligation

Bate coach Viktor Goncharenko, whose only absentee is long-term injured striker Vladimir Rzhevsky, dismissed Real's injury problems and said his team is morally obliged to gun for the quarter-finals.

"We want that second place," he said.

"Even if there is the slightest chance, you need to go for it.

"The injuries that Real have will not effect them. They have a long substitutes' bench.''

Zenit down low

Zenit St Petersburg face the monumental task of beating Juventus on Tuesday and Real Madrid in their final Group H match to reach the Champions League knockout stage.

Dick Advocaat's men beat Spartak Moscow 3-1 on Saturday but by finishing fifth in the Russian league they are outside the Champions League places for next season.

"Obviously, finishing fifth is a big disappointment for both the club and our fans," said Dutch coach Advocaat, who steered Zenit to their first Russian title in almost a quarter of a century last year and Uefa Cup victory in May.

"It has been a very long a tough season. Now we have only two games left and we want to end the year on a high note."

Juventus are already through.

Nightmare for Reveillere

Lyon right back Anthony Reveillere was ruled out for the rest of the season with ruptured knee ligaments on Monday, adding to the French champions' injury problems in defence.

Reveillere pulled up while trying to make a tackle on Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Stephane Sessegnon during Lyon's 1-0 loss on Saturday.

Reveillere saw his last action for Lyon this season against PSG [AFP]

The seven-time French champions said that Reveillere had a scan on Monday that showed "the season is finished" for the 29-year-old.

Lyon, who play away to Fiorentina in the Champions League on Tuesday, are already missing utility man Mathieu Bodmer and fullback Francois Clerc through injury.

French sports daily L'Equipe reported on Monday that Lyon could make an offer for Sunderland's French defender, Pascal Chimbonda, who hasn't played for Roy Keane's team since November 1.

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