Ok - it's now the Friday after the Tuesday before. Three days since the match, and two full re-watches later. It's about time I got something out to you. So hopefully this review (and preview) will be worth it...
When you get to the rarified atmosphere of a Champions League semi-final, you should expect the quality of opponent to be pretty high. And that was certainly the case with PSG. They're on another level from anything I've seen at Emirates Stadium for quite some time; possibly superior to peak Manchester City from 4 or 5 years ago. I mean... I knew they were good - but did any of us think that they were that good? And the fact that this Arsenal side, shorn of the injured Gabriel, Califiori, Tomiyasu, Jorginho, Havertz and Jesus as well as (crucially) the suspended Partey, and up against a fully healthy PSG, are still in the tie is of great credit to both coaching staff and players.
Just before I get into the game, I'll give my thoughts on team selection. And also on the much-awaited pre-game 'party'. Team selection - precisely as anticipated; the question was how much the loss of Partey might unbalance the side, with Rice dropping into a holding midfield role and Merino in turn forced to play left 8. As for the pre-game tifo display etc... well, what an embarrassment!
Whilst I appreciate that Arsenal have every right to refuse suggestions from RedAction and the Ashburton Army (the Henry tifo for the Real Madrid game was superb, I'm sure you'd agree), I - along with thousands of others - was majorly disappointed with a mere gigantic cannon on a red background. Not large enough, not interesting or inventive enough; and not even hanging properly! A real lack of imagination shown there, Arsenal - must do better. I was somewhere underneath the #MakeItHappen banner, by the way... The atmosphere pre-game, however, was superb. The Angel ('North London Forever') - spine-tingling. My pulse rate already at 110bpm.
And then the game kicked off; very soon giving me flashbacks to May 2009 - the evening when Cristiano Ronaldo and Manchester United destroyed Arsenal's dreams in the first 10 minutes of the home side's most recent appearance at this stage.
For the first 20 minutes, PSG pretty much blew Arsenal away. They were a goal up as early as the fourth minute, following a prolonged period of possession (no less than 26 passes) that dragged Arsenal - crucially including Declan Rice - out of position. Rice had been lured forward, and was bypassed by a 30-yard pass into midfield as Dembélé dropped into the centre circle to receive the ball. Untracked by either Saliba or Kivior, he quickly found Kvaratskhelia on the left wing. With Timber caught infield and unable to engage, he made a tidy pass with the outside of the boot, and the unmarked Dembélé was on the edge of the Arsenal box to sweep the ball home off the far post. A devastating start, and one that put a power cut on the atmosphere; except down in the corner where the PSG Ultras were dancing and letting off flares.
What was noticeable in the minutes that following was that Arsenal couldn't get near the ball for more than very short periods of hurried possession, and it was clear that Rice was going to need to impose himself on the game very quickly for Arsenal not to suffer further. Ahead of Rice, the press wasn't getting to PSG, and they looked really comfortable. Everything felt off kilter. Indeed, PSG were toying with Arsenal, breaking between the lines and dropping into space with impunity. Kvaratskhelia was giving the ever-reliable Timber the most torrid of evenings. But, for all their possession, they were interestingly not actually creating that much.
I can't go much further into this without a mention of the referee, who decided to lay an early and - in the context of the enormity of this match - un-necessarily low marker down by booking Trossard for a fairly minor push on Hakimi, who had been looking to break free following a rare Arsenal corner. A very minor infringement, one would have said, and he compounded that decision with a series of dubious decisions throughout the rest of the game (but showing inconsistency by not getting the card out for worse offences). He certainly appeared to be more lenient on PSG throughout; allowing them to get away with much more than Arsenal. I variously described him as officious and sanctimonious as the game wore on; and some of the other 'descriptive' language around me would burn your screen off!
Nonetheless, Timber perhaps got away with one in a challenge on his Georgian opponent inside the penalty area. Maybe not quite enough for a penalty, but right on that line.
I know that there is less tolerance for physicality in Europe than in England, but some of the decisions bordered on the petty side. On top of this, he was far more lax with PSG on where they took throw ins and free kicks from; thus adding to the sense of injustice. And this was last year's Champions League Final referee; coincidentally (I'm sure) a countryman of the UEFA President...
Meanwhile, in the first quarter of the game PSG continued to deal comfortably with Arsenal's press, and at the same time hurried the home side into errors. It was clear that Arteta was going to have to come up with some sort of tactical shift.
Now, whatever he did appeared to start to work around the 20th minute. The way Arsenal were pressing was subtly altered, cutting down on some of the passes into midfield. Saliba also started following Dembélé out in order to harass him. Thus allowing Rice to get into more damaging areas. And Arsenal started to make some territorial headway. When PSG looked to break on them, one piece of strong play from MLS ignited and energised the crowd.
That, plus a really good save from Raya from a Doué shot that forced him to change direction late, were key moments in the psychological battle. Things were perhaps looking up, with the play looking more even, but Arsenal were yet to threaten Donnarumma's goal in any meaningful way with half an hour gone.
By the end of the half, however, they had very much managed to do so. Bukayo Saka, finally able to influence the game in some way, wriggled past three defenders and had a low shot comfortably saved. He then wandered over to the other side of the field, again used his strength and quick feet to beat three men, and crossed to the far post where Martinelli (perhaps fractionally offside) was inches away from levelling up the tie.
Saka then got himself booked for kicking the ball away following a linesman's call of a foul by him on Mendes that simply wasn't.
Frustrating again; but hope was starting to spring. And especially when a driving run by MLS and a perfect release sent Martinelli in on goal as we hit the 45-minute mark. The Brazilian tried the old Henry-esque finish, which Donnarumma read. He could probably have started the ball out a little wider, but I wish he'd have gone near post instead; which the keeper would not have anticipated. Kudos to MLS, however - his contributions were lifting his team-mates and supporters alike. And the crowd booed the referee off the field at half-time.
From where I sit, the Spaniard looked a yard onside when he nodded home. But from the television angles that I've now seen, he did look offside (Kvaratskhelia's elbow looking the only hope of salvation); not quite able to get back on from the trademark Arsenal 'jump back' move. Bearing in mind that UEFA use semi-automatic offsides, the three-minute delay that followed was inexcusable. With match-going fans clueless as to what was happening, this was an infuriating passage of 'play'.
Difficult to discern a change in the pattern of play early on in the half, but it soon became clear that a) Arsenal were looking to go longer with their passing and b) Rice had moved further forward and was happier to carry the ball further. The second a brave move, with the centre-halves being entrusted with preventing the PSG midfield from benefitting from pockets of space. And the game was much more even.
In the 55th minute, we saw a trademark Declan Rice run. He strode through the midfield and released Trossard on the left with a perfectly weighted pass. The Belgian did (almost) everything right, and forced Donnarumma into an excellent save low to his left. If anything, Trossard perhaps scuffed the shot slightly, but he couldn't have done much more. Credit to the keeper, who got his 6'5" frame down to the turf, and stretched out his arm, very quickly indeed. If Trossard lifts that shot a couple of feet, however, it's in the net. Like the Martinelli effort at the end of the first half, it was fine margins.
The bravery in Arsenal's play was clear at this point. Kivior hardly put a foot wrong. Merino dropped in intelligently to cover Rice. Rice himself continued to drive at the French midfield at every opportunity. MLS dealt with an attempted Cruyff turn from Doué with disdain. Saliba could be seen constantly tracking Dembélé into the centre of the field. It was so much better.
However, as time passed and we approached the 80th minute, it was apparent that Arsenal were either running out of ideas, or perhaps even settling for a narrow defeat; conceding a second goal may well have been terminal. It was also worth considering that whilst Enrique had the luxury of being able to call on the likes of Barcola and Goncalo Ramos, Arsenal's injury woes left Arteta with very little in the way of game-changers. The fact that his first change was White for Timber told a story, and it was only very late on that Nwaneri replaced the disappointing Odegaard.
And a word on our skipper. He's clearly nowhere near his best; and we don't know why. We're not seeing the incisive running and passing that we've become used to, and in this game he began to drop deeper and deeper in an attempt to influence the play. He's off his normal high standards, as his stats from the game showed. Passing - well below acceptable levels. Dribbles - one completed all night. Duels won - zero. But he gets no respite as the only alternative in his position is the teenager. But it cannot be said that he's not trying. He runs hard, leads the press, waves other players into where he needs them. He needs that spark back, but it may take a summer off for him to get there.
Would you risk trying something different in a game such as the one next week? Nwaneri from the start? Trossard at left wing and Martinelli down the middle? Zinchenko into midfield? Start Saka at right 8? It all feels far-fetched to me. And I'm not even going to mention Raheem Sterling...
In the last 10 minutes, Arsenal could well have conceded that decisive second goal. Joao Neves blasted one opportunity over the bar. Barcola shot just wide following a clever one-two. Ramos's shot hit the bar. Worrying times as the home team's second half efforts took their toll.
But it ended 0-1, and whilst it wasn't what we wanted hope springs eternal. The sight on the television of Califiori, Havertz and Partey standing in the tunnel near the end gave a hint of what might have been, and next week will be different. Of course, going to the Parc Des Princes will not be easy, but I sense that Arteta knows what to do from here. Importantly, with Partey back it will mean that a) Rice can move forward, b) Merino can go back up top as a tall target man, c) Trossard will add depth to the bench and d) they've seen what they need to counter now, and they'll have Partey to help counter the threats. It ain't over until it's over.
I've heard a lot of nonsense spoken about the 'lack of atmosphere' in the ground. But I'm not buying it. That's really quite harsh. It was superb pre-game. But the early concession burst the balloon good and proper. You'd expect the away support to make the noise they did - it's the same everywhere you go - and Arsenal didn't really do enough to consistently get the crowd up. When they did, the crowd responded. But otherwise it was as you'd expect, in my view. Talk of 'tourists', and the fans not backing the team are wide of the mark.
Just a quick mention of the other semi-final. If you didn't watch it, you missed an absolute treat! It ended 3-3, but could have been 6-6. Barcelona are devastating going forward, and in Raphinha and particularly the mercurial Lamine Yamal have two scintillating wingers. And Inter surprised me; willing to counter attack throughout, and completely unlike any Italian side I've seen before. Whoever reaches the final from that side will be very dangerous - but they have plenty of apparent weaknesses too.
And now from the sublime to the ridiculous. Spurs against the Norwegian champions. Manchester United in Bilbao. And Chelsea facing the might of Djurgaarden. Yes, all three look favourites to reach their respective finals; but how jealous must their supporters be of Champions League-chasing Arsenal!
On a personal note, I intend to start a petition to UEFA requesting that they cancel the Europa League final - or at least withdraw the trophy. To think that Spurs or United could finish 17th, yet still be in next year's Champions League, makes an absolute mockery of the seeding/coefficient system.
In the meantime, it's Bournemouth at home before the trip to Paris next week. A game not to be taken too lightly, as Arsenal need 7 points from the last 12 to guarantee second place - and still have to face Liverpool and Newcastle. Expect rotation, of course - but there can't be much with so many out injured.
COYG!
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