Well Wenger actually got it right tactically today...afterall it doesn't take a genius to park the bus, try to close the spaces and play on the counter- but it does take good preparation, discipline and capable players to execute it... that was Arsenal's plan, and for the most part they prevented another exhibition of target practice on Almunia...apart from the individual brilliance, Arsenal seemed like they did what they came out to do...and they got the first goal too.....but like they say- there are somethings you can't coach, or coach against.....Lionel Messi is one of those things...holy sh*t...
Na well honestly some of Arsenal's defending was quite poor. They played way too high on occasion and left too much space for Barca to operate.
The final goal where Messi was left wide open was just a prime example.
Arsenal just don't have the players (at the best of times) to play the type of game plan that the likes of Utd, Chelsea and Rubin Kazan have been successful with at the Nou Camp. So with a weakened defense - they were never really likely to contain Barca for 90 mins.
Indeed Bendtner's early goal just served to light a fire under Barca, and they never looked back.
Tue- the execution wasn't spot on...they had their lapses, but remember they needed to score 2wice....It was tough to tell by the flow of the game that they were the team that needed to press for a result, but that was the case, so when they got the ball they had to push players forward and actually try to create, as opposed to the traditional park the bus, and hoof it out to safety...
So yeah in the end there were gaps, and one on one, they (Silvestre in particular) couldn't keep up at critical points...Point is, compared to the 1st outing, you can tell they did their homework and had a plan- they stayed compact for most of it and were no where near the chasing and scambling team that played a week ago. By missing some key players, and being the weaker of the two teams even if at full strength, it was always going to be an uphill battle...Messi's individual performance just made the hill even steeper...you can't coach against that.
