Arsenal were at the receiving end of one of their biggest European humiliations of recent times in the 1st leg of their last 16 tie against AC Milan.
Arsenal crumbled 4 – 0 to the Italian giants, which affectively killed off any chance they had of reaching the quarter finals. The gunners were made to look incredibly devoid of ideas by the rossoneri, with Arsene Wenger coming in for masses of stick from the media due to his tactics and team selection.
In what was most likely Thierry Henry’s final ever appearance in an Arsenal shirt, it was saddening to see just how far they had fallen since Henry was part of the side that made it to the final against Barcelona in 2004. Wenger’s decision to leave the talented Oxlade-Chamberlin on the bench was one of his most contentious decisions, with the young winger being in rampant form in the league of late. Ibrahimovic was the standout player on the field, and as a player with a reputation for being missing in the big games, he really arrived for this one.
However, it also poses the question whether or not a tie against Arsenal is a ‘big game’ nowadays. The fact that the two Manchester teams are already knocked out of the competition, and with Arsenal all but out already, the only English hope left in the competition is from Chelsea, and they are a team who have been in horrendous form all season, with many whispers of unrest behind closed doors.
If Arsenal are to have any chance of returning to the lofty heights they have achieved under Wenger previously, then it appears that Arsenal will have to invest in some proven talent to provide a spark for his ailing team.
