We're out but we're out on a high. When Van Persie's pen flew in before half-time I thought it was on, I'm sure many did but we sit here today out of the Champions League. Nobody was expecting us to turn it around and the spirit and the fight we displayed on Tuesday night were exceptional. So I think we can only be happy with what we got, obviously its a disappointment to be out but we were never going to win the trophy anyway and this will give us a chance to focus on qualifying for next season.
I think we just ran out of steam. Right from the first whistle we pressed extremely hard and Milan panicked. After half-time things were different, they had more of the ball, we calmer and were allowed to have more space. Our chances were very much more limited after the break but Robin Van Persie in particular missed a fabulous chance. He went for a chip, for some reason, and Abbiati got a hand to it.
Maybe it set the tone for the rest of the game, we couldn't break through and if it weren't for WS maybe the tie would have been over. You have to look at the positives of the game rather than the disappointments and lets hope this gives the players a boost instead of bringing them down. The way we fought back was magnificent but to just miss out was obviously heart-breaking for players and fans.
Arguably the most disappointed looked Thomas Rosicky. He has, in recent weeks, come to life. He missed out on the Player of the month only to RVP and was instrumental in games against sp*rs and Milan. The way he keeps the ball moving makes the injury to Arteta much less painful. In midfield its vital to have a player who just hardly gives the ball away, who keeps it moving and provides the link between attack and defence. Rosicky has begun showing these skills in abundance as well as snatching a couple of goals. Praise has to go to him because many wrote of his Arsenal career, yet now he is in the process of signing a new contract.
There's fifteen minutes to go. We need a goal. We bring on Maroune Chamakh and Ju-Young Park. They've scored a grand total of two goals between them and, Park especially, were no great help against Milan. Park came on, lost the ball, gave away a foul, and went off. I think its unfair to critisize him too much because at the moment he's being outcasted and surely there is no way back for him. Maybe its something in training, maybe he's just not very good but it was the club's decision to sign him and that's where the blame should go.
One quick word for the atmosphere on Tuesday night and on Sunday against sp*rs. In both of those games the fans were outstanding, two of the best games, atmosphere wise and football wise Ive seen at the Emirates. Sometimes we get critisized for our atmoshpere but when its good, its very good so its only fair that fans get credit for this when we get slagged off when its crap.
Reports in recent days have linked us to Lukas Podolski, in a deal worth around 10 million. I have to say, unlike many, I'm not completely sold by him. Ive watched him a few times this season and, whilst his goal scoring record is very good, you have to look at his stint at Bayern and wonder if he can produce under that kind of pressure. Don't get me wrong he is a very good player but I would worry about his ability to play under huge expectation every week. Still I suppose all he has to be better than is Chamakh and Park so it'l be money well spent whatever happens.
Newcastle await next and the games got the Monday night slot. We always seem to play better when we play first but lets hope we can carry on this momentum. The good news is there's almost a full week of rest between Milan and then so hopefully we'll get some of the injured back. The Ox and Theo both had problems against Milan and its important we have as many fit as possible. Newcastle's a big game but I don't think, at the moment, its any bigger than another Premier League game. We just need points on the board and every game needs to be a fight. Till then.
Thanks for Reading.
@Arse_Licker
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