Arsenal 1 - 5 Bayern Munich (2-10 aggregate)

First half comments:

When the guys are playing this well, you wonder how they could ever be outclassed as badly as they were in Munich and Liverpool.  The passes were quick and accurate, they were winning more than their share of the 50-50 balls, and they were pretty well organized too.  I was really impressed with AOC, but I've felt that way for some time now.  Even his corners were good.  Walcott was dangerous and combative, and that was a classy goal.  (He could have had two or three.)  Back at the end...

Okay, Kos gets sent off--harshly I thought--while giving up a penalty.  1-1 and we're down to ten men.  I have to complain here about Alexis, who gave the ball away twice in two minutes just before this.  Oh well...it was a smashing game up til now.  Wrap up later...

It's later.  Shit.  Look, Bayern is the better team, no question.  But 10-2?  That's ridiculous.  Kos goes off and we ship four goals again.  Xhaka gives the ball away, makes a nutty challenge (earning a yellow) and takes himself out of the play, leading to an easy Bayern goal--and he was jogging back.  I tell you, he's a moron.  Mustafi looked pretty bad defensively today.  I could play "what-if" on the chances we had but didn't take, but Lewandowski alone bottled two or three gilt-edged opportunities for Bayern.  They could have had nine today.

Yes, Wenger has to go.  It's sad that he hadn't come to that conclusion a long time ago--a year at least--and sadder still that the owner and board didn't have the courage to let him know that he had to step off the stage.  I have no confidence that a new manager is going to win anything next season, but we're going backward now.

Alexis burned some bridges today.  He was going to go somewhere else anyway, but it's a shame he has made himself a villain at his own club.  I don't think I've seen a player laughing at his own team's misfortune from the bench before.

Does it matter if Arsenal doesn't finish in the top four this year?  I don't think so.  They'll get to the FA Cup semis thanks to a favorable draw, and probably lose there.  (But it would be nice if we got that 13th Cup...)  Don't think City, Liverpool, United, and Spurs are going to avoid the occasional pratfall themselves, so sure, we could end up in 3rd or 4th.  But that's not a trophy.

It'll be an interesting off-season.  It's up to Stan Kroenke now.  He's an owner who is in this to make money, not history or romance.  I very much doubt that he will invest a lot in the club.  That will dissuade most top managers from even thinking about joining a club on a downward trajectory.  Kroenke's more likely to pocket most of the Alexis and Ozil money and hire someone like Eddie Howe to manage the talent he already has, hoping to squeeze a European slot out of them, but comfortably mid-table at worst.  The TV money is enough for him.  Anyway, that's how I see it.  I'll still be watching and supporting the Gunners, but the fans who were spoiled in the Wenger era will be howling.

Liverpool 3 - 1 Arsenal

I'm starting this at the half.  Liverpool is deservedly up 2-0 after an all-action display in the first 45.  The Gunners looked overwhelmed.  There was a lot of yak-yak from the commentators about Wenger's decision to start Alexis on the bench, and Ozil's absence due to illness.  But it was our defensive midfielders who looked most at sea so far.  I was very annoyed to see Xhaka jogging back at one point.  Coquelin is having an off-day as well.  Iwobi is for me an odd choice to replace Ozil; Klopp was probably relieved to see Ox start wide right and not centrally.  The goals were a case of our defense being swamped by Liverpool's commitment to get forward, aided by our inability to get back and cover.  Oh, second half starting...it is Liverpool, after all, so I won't give up hope just yet.

Mignolet forced into a save from a Giroud header.  Alexis is in now and firing good crosses in.  After six minutes, it looks encouraging.  Uh-oh...free kick earned by Coutinho in dangerous spot.  But he hits the wall.

Magnificent move and great finish through Alexis to Welbeck, and it's 1-2, with 35 minutes to go.  Liverpool seems to have decided to play back.  There's a real open feel to this game now, making it exciting to watch.  Chances at both ends.  Firmino and Mane are looking very good today.  Alexis is looking lethal.  Xhaka looks ordinary at best.  Was it Coquelin who was taken off for Alexis?  I haven't seen him and now Ox is playing centrally.  Oh no...Walcott coming on?  Also Lucas Perez.  Giroud and Welbeck off.  Too many easy giveaways!  Frustrating.  Almost a Reds goal on a free kick.  Awful challenge on Walcott by two Liverpool players results in Arsenal free kick and an apparently serious injury to Emre Can.  Since Can is on a yellow, it could have been worse for Liverpool.  The yellow goes to Xhaka, though, for mouthing off.  He's a very stupid player sometimes.  ten minutes to go...

Origi heads off the post, on a free kick.  Haven't seen Perez involved.  Have to say, Liverpool looks the more dangerous side now.  86 minutes gone...  Perez finally has a chance, but well blocked by Klavan.  Time running out.  Liverpool finishes off the game in extra time after a great chance for Arsenal--Alexis blasted it when he could have tied the game with a side-footed shot.  I thought Origi was offside, but really, 2-1 or 3-1, Liverpool wins, and deservedly so on the night.  In truth, it could have been worse and we'd have no complaints.

It does not look good for Arsenal at this point in the season.  It's the midfield that seems to be letting the team down.  We're in fifth place with 12 games to go for most of the top six (Liverpool has just 11) so we'll have to become more ruthless against the lower-ranking clubs and find the ability to beat our top rivals if Champions' League is to be in our 2017-18 plans.  Man U stumbled against Bournemouth today, managing a point at Old Trafford.  No one except Chelsea seems immune to a run of bad form, and they're so far ahead that they must feel the rest of the season will be a precession.  I don't have any suggestions.  We may just not be good enough to be a top four team.

I'm very disappointed in Xhaka, today and on the season.  Yeah, he's got talent, but he's also got a clinker in his thinker, as the late great Ann Landers used to say.  I don't know where this group of players "should" finish, but it's becoming clear that Wenger is not organizing and preparing the team in a way that gets the most out of them.  When he goes this summer, I think Alexis and Ozil will go too.  No one will want Xhaka at a price we'd accept.  AOC's emergence as a credible central midfielder with goals in him should help.  Walcott needs to go.  Ramsey needs to stay healthy.  Our franchise player is probably Koscielny, if Alexis and Ozil leave as I expect.  Welbeck is not the answer up front.  Perez is very good but is also not going to replace Giroud or Alexis as the main man up top.  We'll need to buy someone.  If we don't get 50M pounds for Alexis I will be very surprised, so the money will be there even without dipping into cash reserves, of which Arsenal has a lot.

I don't see us beating Tottenham, United, or Chelsea for the FA Cup, but if we do, it will redeem the season as far as I'm concerned.  But it shouldn't save Arsene's job.  He's been wonderful about his situation, leaving it up to the club rather than angling for a soft landing at one of the big clubs who'd love to have him, but it's time.

I'm too bummed to rhapsodize about the crop of young talent coming up, or spin stories about Jack's triumphant return.  I want Szczesny back.  We have depth in defense.  Stan Kroenke has sandbagged us yet again by refusing to provide the cash for a big time striker.  But that's an old story.  I just want us to be the best we can be with the resources available.  We're short of that now.

Class Is Permanent, and a Timely Break

Everyone has heard by now that Arsenal was class all the way in its dealing with Sutton United in their FA Cup clash.  It was a huge payday for Sutton, mostly because of TV money.  Arsenal FC sweetened that pot by donating £50,000 to Sutton so they could build a couple new classrooms for their youth program.  Instead of the usual pennant to exchange when the captains meet on the field, the Arsenal chairman presented his Sutton counterpart with a silver cannon.  The Arsenal players all left their jerseys in the visitors' dressing room.  And in a tribute to Sutton, Wenger put Alexis on the field for the last 15 minutes.  The fans and players will always remember the day they went up against one of the very best players in world football.  Quite a contrast with Joey Barton flopping in a losing cause against Lincoln City.  Makes one proud to be a Gooner.

Speaking of Lincoln, that's who we play on the 11th of March in the quarters.  On the 4th we go to Anfield and on the 7th we host Bayern in what will be either a dreary anticlimax or a thrilling attempt to make the greatest comeback in ECL knockout play ever.  I'll take a 2-1 win over Liverpool, 4-0 over Bayern, and 3-0 over Lincoln, please.  And no injuries or red cards for us.  We're off until March 4th because Southampton is playing in the League Cup final against an outfit from some dreary northern town.  The rest will do us good.

Sutton United 0 - 2 Arsenal

A strong Arsenal squad made heavy going putting nonleague Sutton to the sword today.  We made few chances and gifted the opponents possession numerous times.  We looked too casual out there.  Our center backs were trying to put spin moves on their offensive players, and lost the ball a few times.  Ospina kicked it right to an onrushing Sutton player, under no pressure.  We gave away cheap fouls all over the pitch.  And Xhaka once more flirted with disaster by picking up a very early yellow card in one of the dumbest and most obvious fouls you will ever see.  Seriously, how stupid is this guy?  The only way Sutton can win is to get someone sent off, and Xhaka gets halfway there as soon as he can.

Sutton was prepared and played well.  0-2 is a very respectable scoreline for them.  They nearly had goals on a couple of crosses and on a lightning bolt off the crossbar, so this was, improbably, a competitive game.  But we had too many poor passes, too many dribbles into traffic, and too many attempts at a Hollywood pass that were nowhere near completion.  Theo got his hundredth, and Lucas got on the scoresheet too.  Arsenal was on top for the big majority of the match but I wouldn't say they dominated it.

I liked Perez's energy; he was one of the few for us who seemed switched on all game.  Holding was fine most of the time but made some scary decisions on a couple of occasions.  Monreal was steady.  Mustafi did his job, as did Gabriel.  Elneny was doing fine before he got hurt.  Xhaka did not have a great game.  The Jeff was just OK, as was Iwobi.  Walcott was fine but I expected more from him.  Ospina looked pretty bad.  Not only did he present a golden opportunity to Sutton passing out from goal, he failed to get to one cross he came out for and punched clear another only because their forward misjudged the flight of the ball.

Oh, well, Lincoln should give us less trouble at the Emirates.  By the semis, we might be playing well again.  I hope so.  We look very ordinary now.

Bayern Munich 5 - 1 Arsenal

I may as well live blog this sucker.  Starting after the first goal.

No one expected Arsenal to win this game.  The opening quarter hour showed why.  Arsenal had one foray forward early that yielded nothing interesting.  Otherwise, it was all Bayern.  We kept dropping off.  When we won the ball back, we lost it immediately--poor passing.  Bayern's first goal (I'm sure there will be more) came off nothing special:  Robben was given way too much space when Iwobi didn't follow him and Coquelin didn't move quickly enough to close off the inevitable left footed shot, which was perfect, curling into the far upper corner--excellent finish, and 1-0 in the 11th minute.  (Ozil in area but stood motionless throughout.  Weird.)  It stays that way into the 25th.

Alexis received the ball in space and beat Alaba, who bundled him over just outside the box.  Neuer fumbled Ozil's hard shot right at him, but offsides nullified any advantage that could have come from that.  First corner of the game, for Arsenal, results in a penalty.  Koscielny made a tremendous interception on a bouncing ball in the box, and was kicked by Lewandowski.  Alexis took the PK, hit it right at Neuer, but put the rebound in.  1-1.

Bayern feels aggrieved, and Hummels play-acts Alexis into a yellow a minute or two later.  They go ballistic when Bellerin's arm got in the way of a cross, but no penalty.  Both teams playing hard, Arsenal picking up the fouls.  Xhaka not looking sharp at all.  Iwobi learned his lesson and is not letting Robben free.

Cutback after nice counter from Alexis to Xhaka, who nails the volley but straight at Neuer.  Game a bit cagier now.  Arsenal not having much possession.  Lewandowski just under a smart cross and it goes over.  Lovely free kick from Alonso not met properly by Hummels and the header goes wide.  One minute extra time.  Ozil can't get his shot past Neuer when released with through ball (tight angle); Arsenal finishes on front foot.  Halftime.

Bayern is doing pretty much what it wants outside the penalty box and getting their heads on some wicked crosses in the box, but the Gunners played well enough to hold them to one goal.  Kos was the standout for me.  Bellerin working hard but has gotten turned inside out a few times.  The forward players showed menace at times, giving me some hope for a second away goal, which would be huge.

Arsenal starts on front foot.  Ospina comes out of area to clear a loose ball near sideline, and Douglas Costa cleans him off.  Kos comes out!  Not sure why; replaced by Gabriel.  Bad news.  Crowd decides Ospina is a bad guy for having gotten clattered into and boos him every time he touches the ball.  Bayern goes up 2-1 at 53 minutes on a very good cross, and Lewandowski totally beat Mustafi to it to make a good header across goal.  Alexis loses ball in promising position.  Bayern goes 3-1 up when Thiago runs past everyone to be open 11 yards out.  Mustafi primary goat again.

Gotta say, we look really poor today.  Granted, Bayern is a great great team, playing at home, but it's too easy for them.  Xhaka gets his first yellow--silly.  We get pulled apart again, and after Ospina has to come way out, we're lucky to get away with a corner.  Ospina makes a save, and on the subsequent corner, Xhaka deflects a second chance shot past Ospina.  Should have been cleared before that.  4-1 and totally reflective of the way the teams are playing.

So, with a half hour to play in the first leg, we're already out of the Champions' League, barring some incredible reversal of form.  Kos was key.  Vidal almost sneaks one in from 40 yards.  We just can't keep the ball when we get it, and look stretched every sequence.  Ox exerting amazing energy both ways; no one else is.  Ridiculous--Bellerin simply gives the ball away.  After a scramble in our box, Alexis loses it dawdling up at their end.

Almost a fifth as we simply can't clear; Ospina wraps it up and Lewandowski spikes him, but ref doesn't see it.  The Germans are whining after every challenge, Lewandowski awful actor, much better footballer.  Lots of ineptitude from us.  Giroud and Walcott had entered, but it makes no difference.  A comedy goal makes it 5-1:  Ox coughs it up in front and three seconds later this tie is over for sure.

I think I have something better to do now.  Fuck this shit.

[Yes, I did have something better to do.  Right after the end, when I sure hope Ox didn't hurt himself making a meaningless tackle, I went to a protest of Scott Pruitt's nomination.  He's one of the rogue's gallery President Pussygrabber wants in his cabinet.]

OK, a few hours later, I'm trying to make sense of the astonishing mess I saw in Munich today.  We got some real chances in the first half, but were still outplayed by a wide margin.  We were never really in the second half.  Maybe Kos would have made a difference, but with him out, Bayern overwhelmed us.  They missed some opportunities to put more past Ospina too.  On recent form, Arsenal is not going to finish in the top four--not even close.  This was a result so humiliating that it probably made up a few minds as to where they'll be next year rather than London.  I can't say I'd blame Wenger for retiring or Alexis for going somewhere where players take more pride in their craft.  The lowliest Bundesliga team would have done no worse than we did today.  It was that easy for Bayern.  We weren't properly prepared or properly motivated, nor was the effort and focus there for a significant number of our guys.  All we need now is for Sutton United to eliminate us from the FA Cup.  I wouldn't bet against it after what I saw today.

Arsenal 2 - 0 Hull

It wasn't the best performance I've seen from the Gunners, but it was enough to earn the three points against a side that has played very well recently at home and not been pushovers on the road.  The crowd was nervous throughout, justifiably, as we spurned several chances to put the game out of sight, and Cech was called upon to make a couple smart saves.  Hull did give a good account of themselves.

Special mention goes to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.  He really is growing into the Santi Cazorla role in midfield.  He's long been considered as a future central midfielder, but usually as a #10.  However, he's shown a flair for the long pass to go along with his dogged defense and excellent dribbling.  Coquelin still does most of the dirty work, but Ox was, I think, our best player this time out as well as in the Chelsea game.

Ozil had another disappointing game.  He looks as though he doesn't expect to succeed.  Alexis was happy to have taken the goal scoring lead, but otherwise seems annoyed with everybody.  My biggest criticism is as usual of Walcott.  He should have been far more influential in this game.  He and Bellerin possess frightening speed when they play together on the right, but neither one of them seems capable of putting in a decent cross.  When it's blocked and we lose possession, they were frequently so far up the field they had to struggle to get back while Coquelin held things up.

Well, job done.  Liverpool made Spurs look ordinary in a decent game (especially the first half).  I'm watching the extra time of the Burnley-Chelsea game now with the score 1-1 and hoping for the best.  We needed a lot of luck to get six points off Burnley; they're a very decent side.  They're in there pitching to the end, which has just come with the score unchanged.  Good game.  City has a game tomorrow, but as it stands, there's two points between second and sixth place, with Chelsea ten points clear.

Chelsea 3 - 1 Arsenal

This was the score I was expecting, actually.  The commentators are yapping now about dominant Chelsea was, and I can't argue that they had the better of Arsenal all game, but Arsenal had chances, shots on goal, and possession enough to make the "men against boys" mantra of a disappointed Lee Dixon a bit much.  No question, the Blues 11 were better on the day and on the season than the 11 we put out.  Enforced rotation in midfield cost us defensive strength and fluidity (thanks a bunch, Granit) and we lost our defensive shape far too easily.  I didn't see a lack of effort from the Gunners (well, Ozil did seem his usual nonaggressive self).  Iwobi sprinted back to cover, Coquelin did his thing, and Ox was heroic in getting into our box quickly to break things up when our defenders were beaten.  But Kante was the best DM out there, without a doubt.

I'm not going to criticize our players.  Our frontmen weren't very involved, but that was due to Chelsea concentrating on them, I think.  Alexis was denied the ball for the most part and harrassed when he got it.  It fell to Iwobi to be the danger man, and he played well.  It's a pleasure to see him develop the speed of thought to complement his wonderful skills on the ball.  He'll be a great one.  Walcott shouldn't have started, of course.  What does Perez have to do to get a run on this team?  Maybe Welbeck isn't fit for 90 minutes yet, but I'd still have started him ahead of Theo.  It's a damned shame Cech embarrassed himself with the giveaway for Cesc's goal (props to him for not celebrating), because if Giroud had scored (not a given, obviously) afterwards, it would have at least given Conte an anxious moment.  I agree with Giroud not starting; this wasn't the sort of game he was going to play a role in when the outcome was still in doubt.  Alexis was disappointing there too, but he did what he could, given the attention he attracted.

I'm going to disagree with the commentators again on the first goal.  Bellerin was given a forearm smash that knocked his head out of the way so Alonso could head the ball.  Had Atkinson had a better view of it and blown the whistle, most of the commentators would have agreed with that too.  Honestly, I know Chelsea was going to find a way to win this game.  But still, that goal should have been disallowed.  It's a foul anywhere else on the field too, it was that obvious.

Sometimes you have to acknowledge you lost and you deserved to lose because the team you faced is a better one.  We're missing some important players (thanks again, Granit) but Chelsea, with no European football to distract them, and (partly because of it) few injuries, is riding their excellent squad to what looks like a stately procession to their coronation.  Ask their fans if they care about not qualifying for the Champions' League every year.  They'll take winning it, and the league a few times too.

So, they're saying Arsenal is out of the title race because of this game.  No, we're out of the title race because of the Watford, Middlesbrough, Liverpool, Tottenham, Everton, City, United, and Leicester games.  The first two alone cost five dropped points at home.  You will never win a title dropping points like that.  Chelsea could collapse, but it won't be Arsenal picking up the pieces.  The have cup competitions too that they now look undermanned for.  Let's hope Elneny isn't too banged up when we get him back, and Shad can work his magic on the training table.

I feel a lot better about this game than the last one.  But losing always feels bad.