Thank god its not Milan!

3-1 the final score. Totally outplayed and outclassed by the Gunners. We fielded a strong squad. Both Pelle and Moro did not even made it to the bench despite them being match fit, so i think Rafa is using the remaining matches to prepare the team for the Finals. Rafa opted to play the 4-1-4-1 formation again, with Baros playing as the lone striker up front and he chose Riise over Kewell to play that left winger position. Using this term 'a match of 2 halves' to describe the game is just too apt.

We were woeful in the first half. And i thank god if the news of Reina joining us is true because Dudek was at fault for Arsenal's first and 3rd goal! Imho, i think he can do better to not concede this 2 goals. I cant imagine what the scoreline would be if Thierry Henry had played today. Arsenal's attack just come in waves, hitting us left, right, center. And our defense looked so lost forlorn today. Hyypia aka Pellegrino II, was awfully S.L.O.W(i seem to be repeating this sentence day in day out!) to react and he gives the ball too often to the opponents. Its time we get a new CB ffs. Carragher was a pale shadow of himself on Wednesday...most probably still recovering from fatigue after giving his 200% in the CL match i guess. Finnan was totally outclassed by Robert Pires. Traore spared from further embarassement as Ljunberg is out injured. But his speed in coming back from attack is terrible and was often caught out of position.

The midfield was not there. We could not hold the ball and kept losing possession to the Gunners. Milan Baros is just his usual self... running around like a headless chicken and jumping onto defenders.

We played much better in the 2nd half with the introduction of Cisse and Kewell. Gerrard's deflected goal in the 51st min gave us a lifeline. As we go in search of the 2nd goal, the midfield looked more lively and we managed to hold the ball up front. Cisse just look better and better every game. START WITH HIM IN INSTANBUL!!! The combination of Gerrard and Alonso looked lethal and this injected creativity in our attack. But no matter how we attacked, Arsenal's defense stood firm (all thanks to Sendoros... wat a youngster). And we only had ourselves to blame for a string of missed opportunities.

In the dying seconds, Arsenal caught us flat-footed in defense and Fabregas fired home to ensure a sounding victory for the Gunners. And after the final whistle gone, my instant reaction was to thank god that we are not playing Milan today. Looking at our defense today, we will be slaughtered by Shevchenkov if we were to play against Milan! We always look so vulnerable during counterattacks! I hope Rafa can do something about this Achilles heel of ours before we set off for Istanbul.

Sigh...Its just another episode of our Premier League rollarcoaster.