English soccer on a high in UEFA Cup

And it’s an Italian who says so, with Chelsea boss Gianluca Vialli candidly telling the British press on Tuesday: “English football has taken over. It is the strongest league in Europe.”

Even the most one-eyed of Serie A fans had to admit as much after Juventus, Parma, AS Roma and Udinese all flopped in the UEFA Cup fourth round while AC Milan couldn’t even get through the Champions League first phase.

Arsenal and Leeds should both progress unhindered as both English Premiership outfits have comfortable first-leg cushions.

The Gunners, the bookies’ favourites, beat Germany’s Werder Bremen 2-0 at Highbury while Leeds went one better against the Czechs of Slavia Prague.

Veteran Arsenal full-back Lee Dixon has warned his side, nonetheless, that they must improve their away form, which includes recent league defeats at Bradford and Middlesbrough, if they are to go all the way and win the tournament.

“We have always been strong at Highbury where we know we can dominate matches and score goals but looking at some of the teams we’ve lost to away from home it is embarrassing,” said Dixon.

“We’ve also lost key players like Tony Adams, Dennis Bergkamp, Marc Overmars and Kanu for long periods all at once.”

Gunner’s coach Arsene Wenger was cautious ahead of the trip to North Germany. “It’s still 50-50 but we have a good chance if we play to our strengths. We know Bremen are a team to be reckoned with at home. They showed it against Lyon and Parma,” said the Frenchman.

Bergkamp will be absent in Bremen owing to his hatred of flying and the Germans will be a different side to the negative one seen at Highbury.

Werder have staged remarkable comebacks before in the UEFA Cup, this season beating French team Lyon 4-0 at home after losing the first leg 3-0 and then knocking out holders Parma on a 3-2 aggregate despite losing the away leg 1-0.

Coach Thomas Schaaf admitted: “I cannot recall a more disappointing performance than the one we gave at Highbury. “It is going to take something very special for us to knock them out now.”

Leeds are on a high after hammering Wimbledon 4-1 in the league at the weekend but coach David O’Leary warned against complacency despite the 3-0 win over Slavia Prague at Elland Road.

“We might have done our homework in being 3-0 up, but it’s far from over. If we’re professional, then we should do our job by keeping a clean sheet at the back and then letting the boys run riot up front,” cautioned O’Leary.

Centre-back Jonathan Woodgate is available again after an hour’s work-out in the reserves’ 2-1 defeat at Middlesbrough on Monday following a month-long lay off with a calf strain.

In Thursday’s other quarter-final returns, the two Spanish survivors have to bounce back from unimpressive first-leg showings.

Real Mallorca are surely on their way out after a 4-1 home drubbing against Galatasaray of Turkey, while Celta Vigo, who thrashed Juventus 4-0 in the last round, were held to a goalless home draw by French side Lens.

Galatasaray, who like Arsenal qualified after being knocked out of the Champions League, will again look to experienced Hakan Sukur to lead the line as well as he did in Spain a week ago.

The Turks also have the creativity of veteran Romanian playmaker Georghe Hagi, the `Maradona of the Carpathians’.

Lens, who have recovered well in the French League from an appalling start to the season and who have knocked four goals past their last three UEFA Cup opponents prior to Vigo, are set to be without defender Erik Sikora, who has a thigh strain.

The French outfit are also awaiting the outcome of a fitness test on Newcastle target Oliver Dacourt, who has a stiff groin.