There's not enough tactical talk in the British media, but pre-Barcelona was something of an exception. Unfortunately, the sports writers seemed determined to link Arsene's use of the 4-3-3 system this season to Barcelona's, as if the Catalans had actually invented the formation and Wenger was so bereft of ideas he'd resorted to plagiarism.

Even so, the similar systems coming together made for fascinating encounter. Barcelona dominated possession because their fullbacks did a superb job of pressing into the midfield, forcing Arsenal's wide frontmen to drop deep and making it difficult for them to put too many passes together. As Barca dropped out of the game, having retreated content with their two-goal lead, the game turned.

For my money it wasn't Walcott's introduction that caused the shift in the match - it had far more to do with Eboue moving to right fullback, galloping forward and allowing Arsenal more possession in dangerous areas.

All in all, the overwhelming feeling, after the euphoria of a very memorable night has died down, is frustration because I believe we got the tactics wrong. In general, I think we gave them far too much respect, which meant we didn't get a foothold in the game until we needed to chase it. When Barca had the ball, we stood off out of caution. When we had it, we couldn't get forward because they pressed us frantically. On the rare occasions we made it forward, we hadn't committed the numbers needed in dangerous areas to keep the ball.

Some blame for both goals conceded should go to Almunia, but I think both have to be chalked up as tactical mistakes. Wenger said after the game he was upset at the mistakes that led to goals, but to my mind it was the strategy that was wrong. On both occasions, our high defensive line was sprung and we were left chasing shadows. My feeling is that Wenger decided on the high line because Ibrahimovic is known for many other qualities ahead of being particularly pacy. Barca's speed is out wide, where it poses less of a breakaway goal threat.

But unfortunately, this is where the strategy broke down: on both occasions it was Zlatan who outwitted our defence and managed to find himself free and in behind. Almunia made a howler and should never have been where he was for the first goal, but it can't be ignored that the ball through caught our defence too far forward. On the second, perhaps a goalkeeper who hadn't made the first blunder would have got his positioning right and come off his line to close down the goalscorer. It can't be forgotten that he also had a superb first half.

Clearly worried that Barca would pick their way through around the penalty area, both goals came from relatively nothing, and within their own half. I can't and won't hold Wenger to account for that mistake though, because Barcelona showed they were more than capable of tearing us apart, from anywhere on the pitch. The quality of their passing and technique is stunning, and had the fight been stopped at 2-0, we'd have shrugged our shoulders and gone home knowing we'd been beaten by a special side.

But the Arsenal side of 2010 has a Championship character, even if it's lacking ever-so-slightly in Championship quality. Aside from the blip at Birmingham, this Arsenal team has ground out a succession of tricky wins despite not playing their best football. Last night, they earned themselves a great credit by going toe to toe with the world's best, being battered, but still throwing punches at the end. That's an undignified analogy for two teams that both played beautiful, technical football, but if Arsenal lost the footballing contest, they earned their point because they refused to go quietly and accept defeat. That's an attitude that, with a couple of astute close-season signings, could be the backbone of a very successful 2010/11.

So the big questions that remain now are: 1) Can we win at the Nou Camp, and 2) Can we pinch the league?

The first one can't be overthought, and the answer can't be anything other than "of course we can". What the last 20 minutes last night reminded us of is that Barcelona are far from invincible, even though they might have seemed like it at times during the first half. Our tactics need to be spot on from the beginning, and that means giving them as little respect as possible, taking the game to them, giving them no time on the ball, and not letting their slick teamplay be our undoing. If doing so leaves us susceptible to a moment of individual brilliance, the logic and the maths says we'll need to score twice in any case.

As for the second question, ask me again on Wednesday week. Whatever happens between Man United and Chelsea will benefit Arsenal, but the real test will be when those sides meet a Liverpool side that are nowhere near as poor as they were at the start of the season. If Chelsea were to win against United but lose to Liverpool, I'd certainly say we've got a fight on our hands. And I've seen enough from this team in the past few months to know that if it's a going to come down to a scrap, we'll give ourselves every chance.