Milan 0 – Arsenal 2, The beginning of the End?

By: Gianfranco | March 4th, 2008

There really isn’t much I can say right now that will make me feel any better, in fact a review or match recap in my eyes is a futile exercise that may actually only make me feel worse. As I sit here and watch the game a second time around it really hasn’t sunk into my head that this game could be possibly end two-nil. No team really established and no team really let up, in fact it was a great game with a lot of end to end action, and a fair amount of world class play. But when the game is played at such a high pace, and high level of class the mistakes become glaring and apparent, and the missed chances make your stomach twist and turn.

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I do want to start out saying that Maldini should hold his head proud because if this was his last game in the Champions League, and most likely is, it was by no means a poor performance on his part. His flank run when he nutmegged Eboue and cut a perfect pass made me smile and wonder where his legs find that skill. A bit of vintage Maldini in the fading moments of his career, and the sinking feeling I have now is more for Paolo than for anyone else.

I will also say that Pato showed his youth tonight, he played a game that by his high standards was subpar. He made decisions that made me cringe, and was offside more than Pippo, and we all know how hard that is. Kaka was also clearly not 100% percent and it showed coupled with Pirlo’s inability to move into the attack and it really made this game as open as it could get.

I am by no means angry with Arsenal, or with the effort put into place tonight by the Rossoneri but when the cards were down and the chips were on the table, Arsenal wanted this game and took it. The announcer said that young teams make a name for themselves in big games and big competitions and Arsenal could not have picked a better stage. The first English team to defeat Milan at San Siro, and in effect ended a strong run of play for an aging team, and making a poor season even worse.

I am not going to beat a dead horse here and say that the bench lacks depth and we need more health, I am really just exhausted. With that said I really don’t have all that much to say anymore, I read all the comments and have to say everyone here really helped in making this loss a bit more palatable, but a loss is a loss and I am going to need a day or two to really let it sink in.