Ewen Cook
Football in a nutshell: despite being gruesomely harpooned in the abs all match by a rampant Barcelona, Arsenal could easily have nicked last night’s Nou Camp nightmare in the 87th minute. Had Nicklas Bendtner translated just a fraction of those vast reserves of self-belief into actual footballing nous, a golden chance for a second away goal might have ended in sweet delirium for the visitors. But this was Nicklas Bendtner, and this was Arsenal – a player and a team equally devoid of competitive common sense.
The most galling aspect of Tuesday night’s comprehensive mauling was the utter lack of adaptability, pragmatism and bloody-mindedness from Wenger’s embattled charges. Despite being down to ten men and facing a painfully superior opposition – and an opposition on fire at that – Arsenal showed themselves entirely incapable of playing the percentage football the circumstances demanded. As well as continually neglecting to hoof the ball clear from danger in the face of all mental reasoning (in favour of literally passing it back to encamped Catalan attackers), Arsenal also blindly rejected the priceless opportunities that are always handed to underdogs at some stage, no matter who the opposition: the chance to punt a free kick long and flood the box on 85 mins; the glimpse of a shot at goal in the dying moments…
Cocooned, like his teammates, in a Barca-lite mental dreamworld (no words can describe Gael Clichy’s contribution), Bendtner failed to do what even a pub-team centre-back would have done: shiver with disbelief and delight at such unwarranted good fortune, and slash a first-time shot with everything you can muster. Successful or not, at least the chance would have been taken: the chance to drill a once-in-a-lifetime, ten-yard strike, on your favoured right foot, in the Nou Camp, in the final seconds of a tie you should have been dead and buried in. Football in a nutshell, right there.
No one, of course, given the circumstances that unfolded, expected a win. But the embarrassment at Arsenal’s lurid immaturity cuts even deeper than the stupidity of millions lost in revenue because of a wholly unnecessary tie. The sight of Barca’s players working even harder than Arsenal’s to chase and restrict space – while their poor relations tried blind passes on the edge of their own box – was a perfect illustration of the difference between a fiercely-observed philosophy and a discipline-free dream.
It takes genuine guts, let alone intelligence, to adapt to circumstances – far more than it takes to ‘stick to your guns’. There is nothing admirable whatsoever in playing suicide passes when you are evidently unable to string more than two together in any area of the pitch. Arsenal were woefully poor, understandably rattled and in need of leadership, yet naïvely continued to play into Barca’s hands. They simply had no conception of anything else – a flaw that must be laid at the door of the manager. This was not ‘being faithful to one’s game’. This was a total inability to use intuition, wit or resolve – the privileges afforded to all underdogs, no matter who they are playing. Pity poor Barca: they cannot play Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal every week.
(Ed’s note - For those interested in the view of Guardian journalist and Arsenal fan Matt Scott, 4 minutes 20 seconds into this clip he gives his damning view on the manager and Tuesday night.)
