Still confused about this match. Arsenal was poor and punching way above their weight in terms of quality for all but about 10 minutes of this match...but yet it's 2-2 and everything to play for... I guess that's the beautiful game for yuh...
Barca weaknesses are 1) mental (they shut down into training ground mode), and 2) Despite being a great ball wining/defensive unit around the pitch, they are kinda light weight at the back when it counts sometimes.
Arsenal will have to either play ALOT better or put on a tactical masterpiece at the Nou Camp, because in pure footballing terms, based on this game they are way way inferior to Barca, and "should" be on their way out of this one....as much as I respect Barca, I was very surprised to see the footballing gap between the two teams especially at the Emirates...Tie still wide open though...somehow
Interesting quote from Wenger via soccernet.com:
"We are lucky to escape with the draw, I cannot deny that," conceded the Arsenal boss. "We gave them too much room to play their football and we have to say Barcelona are an exceptional side. The annoyance for me is we gave them two cheap goals, but you have to say we were lucky to be still in the tie before those goals arrived.
"It's not easy to accept it when your team are outplayed, but it certainly feels less upsetting than when we are kicked by teams and drop points in the Premier League. What we saw from Barcelona was art and it added up to a great night for football in many ways. I still feel we have a chance in the second leg, but clearly they are a fantastic team."
Good to hear a coach be honest and respectful...
