Men Against Boys At The San Siro

UEFA Champions League: AC Milan 4-0 Arsenal

 

It was supposed to be the match-up of this round, Arsenal versus AC Milan. The last time these two teams met at the San Siro in 2008, the Gunners beat Milan with goals apiece from ex-players Cesc Fabregas and don’t-we-just-love-to-hate-him Emmanuel Adebayor.

But history was not to be repeated as Arsenal received a thrashing by the home team in what their own manager described as “a shocking result and a shocking performance. It's our worst night in Europe, mistake after mistake.”

The invisible Arsenal midfield, usually dominated by Arteta and Song, was taken advantage of by AC Milan from the get-go. But the list of Arsenal transgressions did not end with the midfield, as the defense got increasingly muddled as the first half went on.

Boateng was the first one to deliver the blow at the 15^th minute as he scored an incredible goal that hit the underside of the crossbar  and sailed over Szczesny. The opportunity stemmed from a miscued kick from the Arsenal keeper himself. From then, Milan enjoyed comfortable possession on the ball and lobbied a couple more attempts at Arsenal’s goal. At the 38^th minute, an unmarked Robinho made the second goal for Milan with a brilliant assist from The Zlatan Ibrahimovic .

 

Robinho wasn’t done with terrorizing Arsenal’s keeper as he slotted in another goal minutes after the second half whistle blew. A slip by Vermaelen enabled Robinho to break free and shoot past Szczesny. The third goal couldn’t have come at a worse time for Arsenal, as it deflated whatever zest they had during the first four minutes of the second half that came with the substitution of Henry for Walcott.

With their third goal, Milan grew increasingly more confident. A couple of attempts by Robin van Persie were all saved by Abbiati, but apart from that, Milan was visibly in control. Oxlade-Chamberlain went in at the 66^th minute and everyone wondered why he wasn’t started in the first place.

The metaphorical nail to Arsenal’s coffin came when Johan Djourou fouls The Zlatan in the penalty area and the latter converts the penalty. Szczesny went the right direction but just about missed saving it.

Sure, this is only the first leg and like what Arsenal’s ex-captain Fabregas is fond of saying in these situations, the tie is played over 180 minutes. Of course, that’s probably not what he’s saying right now. As Arsene Wenger puts it in his post-match conference, “We don't live in a dream world. There may be 2% or 5% chance statistically, but realistically we are out of this competition.”

Written by:
 Janina Montoya, who didn’t mention the pitch until now, because both teams played on the same pitch tonight so it should NOT be an excuse.