Arsenal’s hopes of reaching the Champions League final suffered a huge blow as they were beaten 1-0 by Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday night.
Ousmane Dembele’s goal after four minutes was enough to win the first leg of the semi-final at the Emirates Stadium.
Here, Mail Sport’s DANNY MURPHY analyses where it went wrong for the Gunners – and why they should have reason to believe they can turn it around in Paris on Wednesday.
THE 26-PASS GOAL
It was brilliant from an excellent Paris Saint-Germain team, but the split-second misjudgment by Declan Rice underlines how fine the margins are at this elite level.
When Nuno Mendes played a great ball through the lines for Ousmane Dembele, Arsenal’s defensive shape was still good, and Rice and Mikel Merino were running back to support.
It only took PSG four minutes to cut Arsenal apart with a 26-pass move for their goal
Declan Rice was culpable as he went over too far, leaving Ousmane Dembele free in the middle
Dembele’s strike after just four minutes was enough to win the first leg at the Emirates
It was when the ball was then spread by Dembele to Khvicha Kvaratskhelia on the left that things went wonky.
I can fully understand Rice’s desire to go over and help team-mate Jurrien Timber, such is ‘Kvaradona’s’ reputation, but he got it wrong on this occasion.
He went over too far and left Dembele free in the middle. Merino was not blameless, either. He should have smelt the danger and got closer to the forward when Rice left him.
All of a sudden, Dembele had space. He converted the chance and that spread doubt and nerves through the Arsenal ranks that lasted for half-an-hour.
The early goal also gave PSG confidence, which happens when every pass finds its mark.
I don’t think Arsenal were wrong to press PSG. You know against good teams that there is a risk they can play it out past you, but even when the ball crossed the halfway line, Arsenal were still organised at the back.
I imagine if you asked Rice now, he would think he should have left Timber one-on-one rather than tried to get across. It is to his credit that he recovered and was superb in the second half.
Some of the reaction to Arsenal’s defeat has been overblown. It will be tough to triumph in Paris but they won, deservedly, away to Real Madrid, so it is not an unassailable mountain.
Leandro Trossard was denied by one of the saves of the season by Gianluigi Donnarumma
It took one of the saves of the season from goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to thwart Leandro Trossard and stop Arsenal drawing on Tuesday.
This tie was always likely to come down to tiny details, as was the case with PSG-Liverpool. That finished 1-1 and went to penalties. You would not bet against a repeat.
PARTEY ON
Thomas Partey will be in Mikel Arteta’s line-up next week after being banned for the first leg and that makes Arsenal stronger. I don’t think you can say Partey’s presence would have stopped PSG’s winner – Rice is hardly an inexperienced holding midfielder – but the Ghanaian’s return will allow the England man to push on as a No 8 and Merino to go up front.
That is the system which helped Arsenal outplay Real Madrid at the Bernabeu. I like Trossard, but he is better as a wide player, whereas Merino is a physical presence up top, even if he is relatively new to that position.
Arteta had the option of keeping Merino and Rice in their current positions on Tuesday if Myles Lewis-Skelly had slotted in for Partey, and Kieran Tierney had come in at left back. But that is easy to say with hindsight.
I don’t blame Arteta for playing Rice there – he has excelled in that role for many years with West Ham, Arsenal and England.
And though Kvaratskhelia gave Timber a few early problems at the Emirates, I would have no hesitation in putting the Dutchman on him again. It turned into a good battle and Timber more than held his own.
Thomas Partey will be in Mikel Arteta’s line-up next week after being banned for the first leg and that makes Arsenal stronger
CHANGE UP THE FREE-KICKS
Arsenal have rightly won plaudits for their set-pieces this season, but I get the feeling opponents are beginning to work them out, particularly at free-kicks.
The Gunners have kept a similar plan for months, their players starting in an offside position, running centrally and trying to get onside before the ball is played.
Credit to them, it has worked regularly, but it relies on the opposition lacking the courage to keep a good defensive line.
If a team like PSG, with a great leader like Marquinhos, are brave and stay together as a unit, Arsenal are going to get caught offside. They were very close to an equaliser this week, but ultimately it doesn’t matter if you’re offside by an inch or a couple of yards. Maybe it is time for the famed Arsenal set-piece coaches to vary things a little. It would be strange if PSG had not studied what they have done in other matches.
And by the way, I don’t think Ben White’s foul on Donnnarumma late on was planned by the staff — that was just a silly decision by the player!
LEAVE THE FANS ALONE
I thought it was odd Mikel Arteta made so much of the fans and the atmosphere before the first leg. It is not like you need to motivate anyone before a Champions League semi-final.
It is up to the players to rouse the crowd through their performance, not the other way round. When Aston Villa fought back against PSG at Villa Park, the ground shook. It was the same when Rice scored two free-kicks against Real Madrid.
Arsenal have rightly won plaudits for their set-pieces this season, but I get the feeling opponents are beginning to work them out
I do not think people should have a go at Arsenal fans for being quiet. The players need to take responsibility to get supporters off their seats
I am not a fan of players gesturing to supporters to make more noise if they win a corner of make a tackle.
They would be better off staying focused on their jobs, because if they do that the fans will make noise anyway. I don’t think people should have a go at Arsenal fans for being quiet on Tuesday. It is the players’ responsibility to get supporters off their seats by showing energy, creativity and application.
If you give a team like PSG 75 per cent possession and concede in the first few minutes, of course the crowd will be shocked.
LEWIS-SKELLY IS A STEVIE G THROWBACK
I was at Liverpool when a young midfielder called Steven Gerrard played a few games at right back with such dynamism and technical ability that he would probably have become the world’s best in that position.
We don’t know in which position Lewis-Skelly will be playing in five years, but the world is his oyster regardless.
As a left back, he is already keeping specialist defenders out of the team. It is hard to believe he is only 18. He played with such strength and maturity against some of the best in the world. I’ve no doubt if he returns to midfield, he will be a success there, too.
The world is Myles Lewis-Skelly’s oyster. The Arsenal star has a huge future ahead of him
A young midfielder called Steven Gerrard played a few games at right back during his early days at Liverpool
I don’t think Arsenal would entertain any offers for him, even at £100million. He is exactly what a club desires – a homegrown lad who is going to be a superstar.
AND FINALLY A RAY OF HOPE… FROM PSG THEMSELVES
Everyone wrote off PSG when they lost the first leg 1-0 at home to Liverpool, but they believed and they went through.
Arsenal must go to Paris with confidence. Either team are good enough to beat the other.
