haha..were we running on AMTI (empty)? :bsmilie:
Bish Bish! :bsmilie:
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Gritty Fabregas like Beckham as Arsenal make history in San Siro
By Myles Palmer
AC Milan 0 Arsenal 2
Fabregas 84, Adebayor 93
Cesc Fabregas reminded me of David Beckham last night.
His determination was huge. It was awesome. It was total. It was :
However long this takes, whatever it takes to win this game, I'll hang in here and keep battling and do what has to be done.
As long as Cesc Fabregas is around, no game is ever lost.
That's why I used to write (1) It's Cesc's team now and (2) Arsenal can't play without Fabregas and (3) Does Thierry fit into Cesc's team?
The collective character of this Arsenal performance was fantastic.
It was possession and work ethic that beat Milan, rather than stylish passing moves. After 78 minutes, Arsenal had 60% possession.
All day I was thinking : Real Madrid. Two years ago Arsenal played Real Madrid twice and Madrid didn't score in either game and I wondered if Milan might do the same. I doubted that because the Milan galacticos are less lazy, more disciplined, more professional, more Italian.
Arsenal dominated the first half but never looked like scoring and had a few scares at the back.
Second half, Milan were looking for a mistake rather than looking for a move. And a crowd of 81,879 was watching a game where every shot was wide or straight at the keeper.
When Pato's shot deflected off the knee of Senderos, the ref gave a goal-kick when it was obviously a corner. Then Kaka won a throw on the left but the decision went to Arsenal and he threw the ball down and was booked for dissent. Nothing was going for Milan and they were missing Seedorf.
Then Fabregas hit a shot from 35 yards and it didn't seem to have the power. But it bounced and flew into the bottom corner for 1-0.
I'd waited 174 minutes for a goal and that seemed like a long, long time. But now Arsenal had scored.
My best friend Doug had phoned at half-time and I'd said Fabregas was the only Arsenal player who could score. But I said he could only score from inside the box.
Then in 93, sub Theo Walcott beat Kaladze and zoomed to the line and placed a precision cross to the far post to give Adebayor a stab for 2-0. His first Champions League goal.
That strike by Fabregas was not a vital goal. It was not a long-range goal or a speculative goal. It was a historic goal. A historic Fabregas goal that will be remembered for years and shown for decades. The goal that allowed Arsenal to become the first English club to beat AC Milan in the San Siro. Historic.
Paulo Maldini was fabulous. What a classy guy. A couple of years ago Paulo went to the club and said : I'm not playing as many games now, halve my salary.
It's just a shame that Milan wrecked Arsenal's February by being a spectre that has hung over the team since before the FA Cup tie Manchester United. It's been a very, very hard period, with the death of Sagna's brother, the 4-0 fiasco at Old Trafford, the horrific injury to Eduardo, the draws against Birmingham and Aston Villa.
That's what I think. AC Milan ruined February but kick-started March and vindicated Arsene's choice of priorities.
Carlo Ancelotti is a genuine guy and I hope he doesn't lose his job over this. Milan are fifth in Serie A, below Fiorentina in fourth. The vanity of Jose Mourinho would wreck Milan, damage it for years to come.
Italian football has two chances to come back this week.
Roma lead 2-1 as they go to Real Madrid tonight. Madrid are without van Nistelrooy and Robben, so it's up to Robinho to turn it on and have a better night than his friend Kaka had last night.
On Thursday, Fiorentina play Everton in the Uefa Cup. I know exactly what Everton can and can't do but I don't know what Fiorentina can do, and I really don't have a clue what they can do against Everton. Indeed, I don't know what fourth place in Serie A means any more. So I look forward to that game. It'll tell me a lot.
MILAN (4-3-1-2): Kalac; Oddo, Nesta, Kaladze, Maldini; Gattuso, Pirlo, Ambrosini; Kaka; Inzaghi (Gilardino, 69), Pirlo. Subs not used: Fiori (gk), Emerson, Simic, Favalli, Gourcuff, Bonera.
ARSENAL (4-4-1-1): Almunia; Sagna, Gallas, Senderos, Clichy; Eboue (Walcott, 71), Flamini, Fabregas, Diaby; Hleb (Gilberto, 89); Adebayor. Subs not used: Lehmann (gk), Van Persie, Denilson, Bendtner, Justin Hoyte.
Referee: Konrad Plautz (Austria).
Mar 5, 2008