an side, after scor

It turned out to be the perfect gift his team could have given him. Carlos Beltran Jersey . Arsene Wenger celebrated his 17th anniversary as Gunners boss on Tuesday and it was fitting that Arsenal performed well in a competition he loves. Napoli at home was billed as the most significant test yet of high-flying Arsenals credentials with new super star Mesut Ozil in the side. They passed it easily, dominating the Italian side, after scoring twice inside the opening fifteen minutes. "Overall, it was an outstanding game," said Wenger post match. Wenger is at his best when he talks about the Champions League. During his time in England he has seen the Premier League evolve into a giant led by giants, a competition whose identity is not something he is totally comfortable with, but in Europes most glamorous tournament he always feels at home. It is a competition that he adores and one that has often been good to him and his team, despite what he says about recent draws going against him. "Yes, we would love to win it as it has never been done with this club and we have flirted with a few times but I feel in recent years we have not been helped by the draw. We have played Barca, Barca, Milan, Bayern Munich, so we have had difficult draws. Recently, we havent had the quality to go through," reflected Wenger this week. It is true that during the last four years they havent been good enough to beat those super clubs he refers to but during the group stages, twice in the past four years, they have lost at home to Schalke and away at Braga to lose their grip on the top of their group. When you finish second in your Champions League group you deserve no favours. Yet, when the draw was made for this years group stages every Arsenal fan would have happily accepted second place after they were handed the toughest team in pot three, last years finalists Borussia Dortmund, and arguably the best team in pot four, Napoli. "It is the toughest group of all," Wenger announced after the draw. Anything other than a win on Tuesday against Napoli would have been a concern for Wenger heading into a stern test against Borussia Dortmund, who they play back-to-back on October 22 and November 6. With six points gained through two games, Arsenal will know four points from their last four matches should be enough for them to qualify. "Mathematically I think they say we need 10.2 points to be sure," Wenger joked this week. As usual, he had done his homework. In the past five years of the tournament, teams have finished second with tallys anywhere from 8 to 13, but the most common achieved by a group runner-up has been 10 points with the 40 runners-up averaging just over 10 points. Only five teams in the 22 year history of the Champions League format have failed to qualify with 10 points but that list includes an English side in each of the last two years, Chelsea last season and Manchester City in 2011-12. Qualification for the last 16 is essential for a club like Arsenal. Not only does it send a message to star players that they are still a force but it maintains their consistency in the UEFA coefficient standings. Arsenal have benefited at the draw by being placed in pot one, based on their performances in the Champions League and Premier League over the five seasons previous. Staying in the top eight plays a big part in them reaching the knock out stages of the Champions League (this year aside, Arsenals groups have been quite favourable in recent years) yet they slipped to seventh, behind Benfica, in last months latest round of coefficients and with Atletico Madrid and Porto closing in, it is important that they reach the last 16 again this year to help next seasons effort should they qualify once again. Wenger, though, has much bigger dreams than the last 16 and still wants to one day win that elusive European Cup. "It is something I miss that I will try to fight very hard to fill my CV with that.....You always think lets do it every year, one year it will go for you. Lets hope it will be this year." Arsenal know only too well the harder that path becomes when you dont win your group. Tuesdays win over Napoli puts them in a great position to qualify but the performance will leave them believing they can beat a team like Borussia Dortmund and find an easier path to the final, where they last reached seven years ago in Paris. That day Arsenal were 15 minutes from glory before Barcelona scored twice to turn Wengers dream into a nightmare. The Frenchman has been dreaming of getting another crack ever since. Alfonso Soriano Jersey . Hell be hard-pressed to match an unbeaten streak like this, though. Tanaka had his unbeaten regular-season run snapped at 42 starts, allowing a career-high four runs in six innings, and the Chicago Cubs beat the New York Yankees 6-1 on Tuesday night. Babe Ruth Yankees Jersey . Lee doubled and scored in his debut, Buerhle struck out a season-best eight over 7 2-3 innings and Miami beat the Milwaukee Brewers 4-0 Thursday to split the four-game series. SUNRISE, Fla. -- Max Pacioretty kept the Montreal Canadiens on a roll. Pacioretty had two goals and an assist to help the Canadiens extend their winning streak to five games with a 4-1 victory over the Florida Panthers on Saturday night. Thomas Vanek added a goal and an assist for Montreal and Carey Price made 36 saves. David Desharnais had an empty-net goal. This was the first time Pacioretty has scored goals against the Panthers. Coming into the game, Pacioretty had never scored on 50 shots in 16 career games against the Panthers, although he did have eight assists. "Its a good feeling. I havent been able to score against this team so its nice to come into this building a put a few on the board," Pacioretty said. Both of Paciorettys goals were similar; standing near the crease and waiting for a pass to redirect into the net. "I got set up perfectly for both goals," he said. Paciorettys second goal put the Canadiens ahead 3-0 in the second period. Pacioretty camped at edge of the crease and tipped in a pass from Desharnais at 14:00 for his 35th of the season, a career high. Pacioretty has 11 points in his past 10 games. "Nothing really special (about the number of goals) Im trying to get better every year, and every year my game has gotten better," Pacioretty said. The Canadiens are playing their best hockey at an opportune time, winning eight of their past nine. "Obviously, were trying to make a push toward the playoffs. Its all about timing and being able to play well at the right time," Price said. The Canadiens seem to be hitting a groove, with good efforts from top players such as Pacioretty and Vanek and solid goaltending from Price. "They played really well again tonight," Canadiens coach Micheel Therrien said. Joe DiMaggio Yankees Jersey. "The chemistry is there; they are having a lot of fun playing together and it worked out again tonight." Brad Boyes scored for Florida and Dan Ellis stopped 15 shots for the Panthers, who have lost five of their past six games. The Panthers closed to 3-1 on Boyes goal. Boyes took a pass from Sean Bergenheim and wristed it past Price at 16:09 of the second. Boyes leads the Panthers with 19 goals, but that was his first in eight games. "No finish. We generated a lot of shots, a lot of chances ... again, a lack of scoring obviously hurt us," Boyes said. The Canadiens two leading scorers each had goals in the first. Montreal went ahead 2-0 on the first goal by Pacioretty. Daniel Briere passed from the left side across to Pacioretty at the right side of the crease, who tipped it in with 2:57 left in the first. The Canadiens took a 1-0 lead on Vaneks goal. Vanek took a shot from the slot that Ellis blocked but the puck drifted under Ellis pads toward the net. Ellis couldnt find the puck but Vanek did and he skated in and poked it in at 10:47 of the first, his 27th of the season. Vanek has six goals and 10 points over his past seven games. Desharnais empty-net goal came with 23.4 seconds left. "Price was the biggest difference," Panthers coach Peter Horachek said. "Theyre a very mature team that capitalizes on their chances." Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo missed the game after sustaining a neck injury during a collision with Carolinas Radek Dvorak on Thursday. Luongo is day to day. NOTES: The Panthers recalled Scott Clemmensen from AHL San Antonio on Saturday to back up Ellis. ... Canadiens C Tomas Plekanec missed Saturdays game due to personal reasons. cheap jerseys ' ' '