Cesc Fabregas has been ruled out of the Champions League Knockout Round second leg tie against Porto on Tuesday night.

The Arsenal captain suffered a recurrence of his hamstring injury against Burnley on Saturday. Fabregas fired the home side in front in the 34th minute then hobbled off five minutes later. Afterwards Arsène Wenger had said he would be happy to risk the 22-year-old if the odds were in his favour. At Monday’s pre-match press conference, he confirmed that they were not.

"Cesc is ruled out for tomorrow's game,” said the manager. “He has a hamstring problem and we could not even take a gamble with him.

"I was hoping [he would recover] after the game because we were cautious with him. He was not adamant about coming out of the team but still he has damaged his hamstring and we cannot take a gamble on him.

“However we have gained Sol Campbell back in the squad and Alex Song too, who was suspended against Burnley.”

Wenger added that William Gallas is still out with a calf problem. “And,” he added, “he has no chance for the Hull game as well."

Arsène Wenger has stood by his assertion that all three English clubs will progress to the Champions League Quarter-Finals, despite two of them holding first-leg deficits.

Manchester United were the only Premier League team to win their first-leg, defeating AC Milan 3-2 at the San Siro two weeks ago. Both Arsenal and Chelsea suffered 2-1 away defeats, with Carlo Ancelotti's men losing to Inter Milan.

Ahead of those games Wenger declared that all three English clubs will progress to the next round, and he remains unmoved on his prediction.

"Yes [they will all reach the Quarter-Finals], but it will be hard," he said. "Man United should not have a big problem to go through. Chelsea and Arsenal will be tight games but I think we can both make it."

Samir Nasri is getting stronger and growing in confidence with every game, according to Arsène Wenger.

The French international was one of the stars of Arsenal's win over Burnley on Saturday, setting up the opening goal for Cesc Fabregas with a deft chipped pass and then taking over the captain's creative mantle after he succumbed to a hamstring injury before half-time.

It's easy to forget that Nasri missed the first two months of the season with a broken leg sustained at last summer's training camp in Austria, but he has found his form in recent weeks and could deputise for Fabregas when Porto visit Emirates Stadium on Tuesday. Wenger is convinced Nasri has the talent and temperament to handle the occasion.

"He is the same as Cesc, 22-years-old so very young," said the manager. "But he has adapted very quickly. He is a very intelligent boy, a quiet boy. He analyses what is happening on the pitch very quickly. He has good technical potential.

"He is very versatile too. He can play defensive midfield, attacking midfield and on the flanks. We have a few players like that and I love that.

"Nasri started with a fibula fracture at the start of the season and after two months it took him a while to get back to his best. But in the last few weeks he has got stronger and more confidence."

The Frenchman's run into form is perfectly timed as they try to maintain their European dream without Fabregas. Nasri revelled in his central role against Burnley and Wenger admits his compatriot would like to play there more.

"If you ask any player where he wants to play, they will say in the middle," said Wenger. "He is happy to play there but I believe with the pace he has he can play on the flanks as well."

Arsenal have renewed fears over the fitness of William Gallas after Arsene Wenger conceded the defender suffered a recurrence of a calf injury after being "pushed" to return by the club.

Gallas has not played for Arsenal since a 1-0 victory over Liverpool on February 10 and his recovery was interrupted in training ahead of Tuesday's Champions League tie with Porto as he suffered a setback in his fitness.

It is the latest fitness conundrum for the Arsenal medical team to deal with having seen a substantial number of first-team players sidelined for varying lengths of time in recent seasons.

Wenger has admitted culpability after pushing the 32-year-old to return and reports indicate Gallas could now be missing for a further month. In his absence, Sol Campbell is expected to start against Porto as Arsenal aim to overcome a 2-1 first-leg defeat.

"We are at the starting point with Gallas unfortunately," Wenger said. "He felt very well yesterday and went out training, but he has gone backwards again. We don't know how long it will be, but for Hull on Saturday he has no chance.

"We were impatient with him and we pushed him and he wanted to get on as well, which is why maybe it has happened. There is no obvious sign as to why it keeps coming back. He has no pain at all, then goes for a little jog and then it goes again.

"It was unexpected that Sol would play so many games, but it is also good because I think it was the right decision to bring him back. Sol is a guy who gives everything when he is on the pitch. Can his body still take two or three games in a week? Who knows.

"But we have a good mixture with him and [Mikael] Silvestre because he is also a player who gives everything, so we can rotate them. The only problem is that when you play with two left-footed players sometimes Vermaelen is not always in his best position."

Arsenal are also missing captain Cesc Fabregas for Tuesday's game against Porto after the Spaniard sustained a hamstring injury in a 3-1 win over Burnley at the weekend. Wenger decided against gambling with the player's fitness but Fabregas admits he was keen to play as Arsenal seek a place in the Champions League quarter-finals.

"I wanted to play but the doctors recommended I rest and avoid any risk," Fabregas told the Sun. "I am sad to miss out because Porto is important to us. I will suffer far more than usual, having to watch from the side."

Arsenal approach the Porto game in good spirits following a comprehensive win against Burnley, but the margin of victory on Saturday could have been much greater but for some wayward finishing from Nicklas Bendtner, who missed a succession of golden opportunities.

The Dane - who has scored five goals in a season disrupted by injury - has seen his ability and prowess questioned in the press, but Wenger believes Bendtner is progressing well at Arsenal and that the ultra-confident striker will not let Saturday's disappointment affect him.

"I believe he is on the way up in his game and in terms of his contribution," Wenger said. "He missed some big chances on Saturday, but that is needed for any young striker at some stage. He looks at why he missed the chances and gets it right in the next game.

"Nicklas is really improving at the moment. That was just an isolated game. In every competition you always have something to prove and show how good you are. He has a good mental strength and, even if he was disappointed with the chances he missed, it will not diminish his desire and confidence to going to the next game."

Arsène Wenger believes his decision to bring Sol Campbell back to Arsenal has been vindicated.

The centre-back provided the shock of the transfer window when he re-signed for the club he left in May 2006 but Campbell has already made four appearances and scored what could prove to be a vital away goal in Porto two weeks ago.

With William Gallas sidelined, Campbell is expected resume his first-leg partnership with Thomas Vermaelen on Tuesday night as Arsenal chase a place in the last eight of the Champions League. And Wenger is delighted with what he has seen from his January swoop.

"It was unexpected that Sol would play so many games, but it is also good because I think it was the right decision to bring him back," said Wenger. "Sol is a guy who gives everything when he is on the pitch.

"Can his body still take two or three games in a week? Who knows. But we have a good mixture with him and [Mikael] Silvestre because he is also a player who gives everything on the pitch, so we can rotate them. The only problem is that when you play with two left-footed players sometimes Vermaelen is not always in his best position.

''Sol wants to win and he can spread that through the team and give advice. We want to win this game [against Porto] but we also need to be patient maybe and it is important to keep your head. He gives us a good mixture, it is not only him, but there is a good blend of youth and experience."

Campbell will be 36 in September but, on recent evidence, few would bet against him staying in the Premier League. Could that be with Arsenal? Wenger refused to be drawn on the matter.

"As you [the media] say many times, we haven't won anything yet," he said. "So let's focus on that. Let's focus on winning something first and then we see what we do with the players."