AC Milan 0-2 Arsenal: 5 Talking Points
Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Aaron Ramsey combined to sink Milan in the first leg of the Europa League last 16 at the San Siro, as Arsenal arrested their four-game losing run in quite an emphatic fashion.
The torrid run of results in the recent weeks had the Gunners on the backfoot, but a much-improved display here should soothe the frayed nerves.
Arsenal dominated the proceedings for a good measure of the first-half and effectively killed the tie with two strikes in the same period, while Milan were guilty of missing several gilt-edged chances post the break in what was a lacklustre show from the Serie A giants.
The result leaves the North Londoners with all but one foot in the quarter-finals as Milan are left with a mountain to climb in the return leg next week. Let's discuss the main talking points:
#1 Arsenal stepped up to the plate
The atmosphere surrounding the red half of North London had never been more dreadful. A run of four consecutive and dire defeats not only had massive tensions simmering in the camp, but also the fans baying for Arsene Wenger's head. Arsenal's season was collapsing spectacularly and they entered this tie in arguably the worst frame of mind.
But as Arsenal have done in recent times, they stepped up to the plate again when the odds were stacked heavily against them and grabbed an unlikely win.
The visitors made a meal of Milan's limp defence to pull two clear by the stroke of half-time. Although they fell back a bit in the second-half and allowed the hosts back into the contest, the Rossoneri weren't formidable enough to stage a comeback as Arsenal managed to win comprehensively.