It was a very ominous start. One minute in, Milan had a golden opportunity blasted just wide of Ospina's near post. After a good spell for the Gunners, Koscielny had to be replaced (Chambers) with what looked like a back problem. He'd been bumped on an offensive corner, but it didn't seem like a hard blow. (Speaking of hard blows, this was another physical game; Milan fought hard.) At about 34 minutes, it got even more ominous as an unpronounceable player for Milan sent a 28 yard screamer into the far lower corner to put the Rossoneri a goal away from forcing extra time. It was completely against the run of play; we dominated the half.
The main point of controversy will be Danny Welbeck going down very easily in the area when given a tap on the shoulder from a Milan defender. I'm not used to thinking of Danny as a diver, but this is one pen I would not have given. Donnaruma went the wrong way and Welbeck scored the penalty he'd won. A minute or so later, a ball came up off an Italian boot in our box and hit Chambers's arm. I've seen these given, even though it couldn't have been intentional, but this was a no-call. Milan's corners were awful all game, which was great, since that's not Ospina's strong suit. 1-1 at the half didn't do our dominance justice, but it preserved the two goal cushion so I felt good about it.
Milan looked a little better after the break, but not much. We had more of the ball and more chances, though things did open up some and it was an entertaining match. Donnaruma had been making excellent saves in goal for Milan, but on a 25 yard blast from Xhaka around minute 70, he could not keep it out even though he got two arms on it. Welbeck was on hand to tap it in (if he was onside) had the keeper not gathered it in, though. 2-1 for the good guys and everyone breathed easier. Milan would need three goals now, and even though they'd fashioned a few chances, they never looked like finishing them. Ospina had something to do with that, but mostly it was poor work from Milan. Welbeck got another gift when Jack stood a short cross up perfectly for Ramsey to head it in, but he managed to hit Donnaruma with it, and the ball bounced up and to Danny for the easiest goal he'll ever score intentionally. (I have faith that he'll put one in for us off his pancreas one day.)
Like the game in Italy, it's hard to say how much of this result was us and how much was Milan being very poor. But the passing was crisp and we were getting in good positions constantly. Aaron and Jack had very good shots kept out by great saves from Donnaruma. After that first minute, our defense looked organized. It was a great team performance.
I'm going to chop the game ball into three pieces and give them to Mustafi, Monreal, and Bellerin. They were instrumental in shutting down attacks and maintaining possession. Chambers was good too, though not up to Kos standards. Xhaka seemed more switched on today, though he did give the ball away a couple times in our half. Jack did his job and was generally quite good, though I wasn't as impressed as the FS1 commentators were. Aaron did very well and (as usual) covered a lot of ground. Mkhi was good but seemed to run out of gas in the second half; it was no surprise to see Elneny brought in to replace him, and Mo really shut things down. (I love that guy.) Welbeck did a good job leading the line, but I would like to see him win more headers. I'm saving Ozil for last, because I want to register my complaint about him registering his complaints against his teammates' passing. I'm sick of seeing him throw up his hands, give a disgusted expression, and put his head down as he walks back after his run was missed or he wasn't found by a pass. His defensive commitment was conspicuous by its total absence. (I was happy to see him taken out for Kolasinac, who was fine.) Ozil was good in possession but not great. I think the team carried him today more than the other way around. It's going to cause problems in the squad if our highest paid star keeps acting like this.
Well, it's on to a European quarterfinal (albeit the second-tier one) for the first time in eight years. I'm daring to hope again, though Atletico is not going to be this easy to play. They have world class strikers and are well coached. (I hope Simeone considers a move to London.) Never did I imagine that Arsenal would take Milan apart like this. At times, we were playing with them like a cat plays with a mouse. The guys need to take some confidence from this very well played tie. How we lost to the likes of Brighton and Swansea is a mystery. That's in the past; the men can bask in the last three victories through the international break, come back, and (I hope) continue their winning ways in the EPL and Europe.
No comments:
Post a Comment