Arsenal 2 Barcelona 2
It should be a game which was buried after 1st 20 minutes,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75Cx34-nb14
Almunia , somehow , saved all those shots which could be 3 goal down in 1st half. However , his misjudgement in the opening 22 seconds allowed Ibrahimovic to score the opening goal after restart of 2nd half ..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aj2AfoaB4oA
Gallas absent in 2nd half obviously influneced the whole defence of Arsenal while two goals conceded due to the mobility of Irahimovic who brokethrough the offside trap twice , both times Clichy made him on-side while Song , the temporary centreback could not man-mark Ibrahimovic and only found him 5 yards away already after the offside trap was failed .. could both goals be avoided ? yes if the defensive line could be moved up in time, but we had to give credit to Barcelona well as the timing of running and the skill of passing was 1st class !
Arsenal was outclassed in 1st half and was extremely lucky to hold 0-0 but after 2-0 down in 2nd half .. no even one gunner would expect they could level.. Fortuately , Walcott's subsitution has made the effect and his immediate goal w/i 2 minutes after coming in was crucial.. It's a just in time energizer to reboot the players again , and most importantly the fans found the hope to push the team again !
We all understood even 2-2 draw after 90 minutes did not bring any advantage to Arsenal when they play again in Nou Camp next tuesday but at least the tie is not over yet. After the 1st leg the players should know more what exactly they need to perform in 2nd leg to steal the match.. Barcelona is the top favourite to go through this tie , no question abt this ! Especially w/out Cesc , Arshavin , and Gallas in 2nd leg , I don't even think the gooners all over the world will seriously think abt next opponent in semi-final..
But at least they did not lay down last night , they still have the fighting spirit which is the most important ingradient to improve the team as a whole to reach the top top level.
Last season when they were eliminated by Man United at Emirates stadium , the atmosphere of the pitch was completely silent , anti-climax , disappointing and the team last year has let the fans down . We all know it's only 10 pct or even less chance to proceed to next round this time but lets keep this fighting spirit till the end as we are the fans backing this team , no matter what happen!