Footballing Lesson.........but the positives we can take from this is we tend to put our heads down and feel sorry for ourselves against the "big teams" but we kept going until the final whistle. Diaby had a absolute shocker and was it me or i didnt see "the greatest player of all time" do his thing.
He can be kept quiet. Hes an epic player but he can be smothered. When you did let him run at you, he made some beautiful runs.
Do you think you ran out of steam? You were 100% at it for 60 plus minutes...
a royal raping really, how it's 2-2 god only knows. Quite a crumble by Barca tbh.
Don't think it was stem, probably got way to comfortable. What shocked me was the gulf in class between Arsenal and Barcelona, somebody was arguing with me that Arsenal would have more possession, what was it 70% possession in the 1st half and 65% overall
No idea how Arsenal came back though, Walcott was a great addition though and Pep should have told Maxwell to drop back.
Either way confident we will go through, the demeanour in which we dominated seemed like we were at the Camp Nou and not at the Emirates. Two away goals in a draw? Can't complain tbh.
it was a good comeback in all fairness. however with 2 away goals, i can't see Barca losing at home, especially if Fabregas, Gallas and Arshavin are absent for Arsenal. at least now the second leg is worth watching.
Don't think it was stem, probably got way to comfortable. What shocked me was the gulf in class between Arsenal and Barcelona, somebody was arguing with me that Arsenal would have more possession, what was it 70% possession in the 1st half and 65% overall
No idea how Arsenal came back though, Walcott was a great addition though and Pep should have told Maxwell to drop back.
Either way confident we will go through, the demeanour in which we dominated seemed like we were at the Camp Nou and not at the Emirates. Two away goals in a draw? Can't complain tbh.
complacency? cockiness? I just could not see Arsenal coming back into the game. However, when Arsenal did have the ball in the first half and managed to get it into your half and attack you, they nearly had success, e.g. the ease with which Nasri turned one of your defenders and very nearly found the back of the net.
Tonight showed that you're magnificent with ball retention and going forward but that defensively, you have weaknesses. Barca aren't a perfect outfit but attacking-wise, close to perfection really. lovely pass from xavi for the second Barca goal. Sure, the Arsenal defending was a bit dodgy but the dink/chipped pass was delightful.
Gallas and Arshavin blatantly faked their injuries to get out of the firing line.
COWARDS!
Arshavin's injury did look quite fake actually, i mean he jogged off down the tunnel ffs. At least Gallas had the decency to use a stretcher.
Also, Vermaelen had an off game today, caught out twice by exactly the same long ball, he was always pushing forward with an eye on messi, who we managed to control excellently from 15 mins onward.
Syn is going to come on and absolutely rave about how much Fabregas was our captain tonight, and he'll be completely spot on. This is a man who probably shouldn't have even started the game. This is a man who knew he was a booking away from missing his dream match but he still went in and made the challenge he knew he had to make. This is a man who ran all game, who kept going even when he could barely function as a human being. This is man who had the brass ******* ******** to put that ball down, wait out Puyol's delaying tactics, then smack that little ****** straight in. He is our captain, and I ******* love him.