it was reminiscent of Michael Owen’s wonder goal against Argentina a decade ago. Looking back on it, I feel it more resembled Michael Thomas in 1989. The game was truly was up for grabs now

Match Review – Liverpool 4 – 2 Arsenal (5 – 3 on aggregate) – Champions League

Where on earth do I start? Its 11pm and I’ve just got back from the Emirates, I’ve got a million thoughts swirling round in my head but I’m also overcome by a massive sense of emptiness. So I apologise in advance for any incoherent rambling.

We lined up similar to the away leg in Milan with Diaby on the left and Hleb behind Ade. Kolo continued at right-back to accommodate Big Phil in the centre, and the bench was pretty strong attacking-wise with the likes of Theo and Robin, who had recovered from the knock he received last week. The Scousers made one change from the team that sneaked a 1-1 draw in the first leg as Crouch came in for Babel to form a partnership with Torres. This meant that Gerrard operated from the left, a curious move.

We started like a house on fire, very reminiscent of our early season form and especially our performance at Anfield in October. Liverpool simply couldn’t live with our passing and movement. Pass and move was the Arsenal groove. To have any chance of going through I felt that we’d have to score first, and the earlier the better. And it came on 13 minutes after some lovely jubbly football, which eventually saw Hleb feed Diaby and the lanky Frenchman fired past Reina at his near post. Cue pandemonium in Club Level as Liverpool’s away goal was rendered useless. The finish had echoes of Belletti’s winner against us in the final two years ago.

Despite maintaining control of the ball and the game, our urgency dropped (naturally). However their goal on the half-hour seemed very much against the run of play, they hadn’t created much even though they had gained more of a foothold in the game. The fact that it came from a corner was very galling and the blame must lay at the feet (or head) of Big Phil, who allowed Hyypia to get away from him and have a free header on goal. It was perfectly placed as it came off the inside of the post past Cesc’s despairing jump.

For the remainder of the half we retreated into our shell, and the mood dropped in Club Level. You sensed that we’d do well to make it to half-time on level terms, and thankfully we did. During the break they did a draw for the winner of a Playstation 3. Everyone who entered the stadium had been given a ticket which contained a number. My number was 0277. The winning number? An agonising 0…2…7…8. I was gutted, all the moreso because the person with the winning ticket did not step forward to claim their prize. My mates Dschin and DJ demanded that the PS3 be given to the person with the closest number (i.e. me), but that Reggie fella said he’d get back to us at full-time. So near, yet so far…a familiar story eh?

Second-half began it was very evenly poised, but again I felt that we’d need to get the next goal. The half began slower than the first, much like a chess match, which suited our opponents more than us. This was no surprise seeing as we’d lost our tempo-setter, Mr. Flamini, just prior to half-time. I hope that’s not his last performance in an Arsenal shirt. The Scousers came close through a low Crouch shot well-saved by Manuel, but chances were few and far between apart from that. In fact the ITV commentator even remarked that the game had the feel of one that was destined for penalties. And minutes after he uttered that comment, the Scousers went ahead. It was Fernando Torres of course, with the sweetest of strikes. He picked the ball up on the left of the area, swivelled and bang! Into the top corner. Ade could never do that. Just like Crouch’s goal on the weekend, again it was a long ball into the heart of our defence that proved our undoing. We need to attack these with more vigour. Let’s bring Tony Adams out of retirement.

DJ said to me that the difference between the two sides was that kind of one-shot/one-goal matchwinner, to which I replied: “We have one…but he’s on the fucking bench ‘cos he’s always injured.” Speaking of the bench, Le Boss wasted no time in bringing on Theo and Robin for Diaby and Eboue, who both played decent (except Eboue’s lack of squaring the ball to Ade with the goal gaping). We were leaving holes at the back, but we were left with no option. If we were going out, then it was gunner be all guns blazing.

And the guns nearly blazed. They should have done after a searching through ball from Hleb (or was it Clichy?) evaded Robin but landed at the feet of Ade, who for once was onside. Almost surprised that the ball had reached him, he lost his composure and sidefooted it wide. He could have had a touch, but reacted on instinct. Gradually we got more into the game again, and as we hit the 80 minute mark a massive, spontaneous roar of encouragement went up around Club Level. Liverpool still looked threatening as we threw caution to the wind, and it was from deep in our own half that Theo’s magical moment came. I don’t how many tackles he got past (I have yet to see any replays), but basically he fulfilled all the hype in that one slaloming run. And he even had the wherewithal to make sure he got ahead of Ade before squaring to the Togonator for a simple tap-in. All around me went nuts (Dschin even broke a few glasses with his flailing arms, the big yogi bear), but I simply slumped into my seat, drained at what had just happened. DJ said to me afterwards that when Theo went through he thought it was reminiscent of Michael Owen’s wonder goal against Argentina a decade ago. Looking back on it, I feel it more resembled Michael Thomas in 1989. The game was truly was up for grabs now. All we had to do was keep our heads for another 10 minutes. Surely we wouldn’t throw it away now? Right? RIGHT?!

Wrong. And how cruelly wrong. Straight from the kick-off, Babel advanced down the left, we backed off and backed off until he went over after the SLIGHTEST of tugs from Kolo. If that was a penalty, then Hleb’s last week warranted two penalties. I got up and simply grabbed Dschin’s sleeve and hid behind it. From agony to ecstasy in the space of a minute, and just like last week we had failed to preserve a lead for more than a moment. How frustrating, but how cruel. Gerrard in front of the Kop, no mistake. How about you do it for England next time eh Stevie? Actually don’t. I’d rather see anyone win than that collection of cunts. People say Arsenal don’t have any luck. That is false. We do have luck. It’s all bad.

We pushed for a lifeline, leaving more gaps at the back. We won a free-kick in our own half and Cesc launched it with everyone forward. The little Spaniard was last man back and was helpless in stopping Babel breaking on the counter and finishing the game. And that was that. No Moscow.

I’d always believed deep down that we’d get to Moscow. This belief was based on a number of things. Firstly, coincidence. In 2005, Liverpool beat Milan. In 2007, Milan returned the favour. I was hoping it’d be the same for us and Barca. But another reason was Dainton Connell AKA The Bear. Now I am only 22 so I did not know of the bloke until his untimely passing in October 2007. He was a bodyguard to the Pet Shop Boys and was killed on duty in a car crash…in Moscow of all places. At the game following his death many Gooners dressed in black (there is a video on YouTube) and sang the Moscow song, replacing the lyrics “We’re going to Moscow…we’re on our way” with “We’re going to Moscow…to see The Bear.” I just had a feeling, but alas it will not materialise, c’est la vie.

If someone had said to you that Arsenal would score two goals, you’d likely have thought it’d be enough to go through. No-one could have legislated for conceding four, not even the most optimistic of Scousers in their wildest dreams would have believed that. But it is a cold hard fact. Yes we were mighty unlucky for the penalty, and yes the fourth goal was a breakaway so I don’t take it into reckoning, but the other two were eminently avoidable. Even for the penalty, we should never have allowed Babel the time nor space to run at us. Hack the bastard if needs be.

There are many things right about this wonderful football club we support. But there are also a few things wrong. I’m not going to talk about the lack of depth and need for signings, that is best left for another day. But I will say something about the mentality of the Club. Why is it when we go on a massive unbeaten run, lose one game and everyone expects things to come crashing down? The chilling fact is, they often do come crashing down. For Arsenal, it never rains, it only pours. And would the Chavs or the Mancs have snatched defeat from the jaws of victory like we did at the end? Not bloody likely. It is something that needs to be addressed. It’s like we’re lacking an inherent nastiness in our play. I’d do anything to go back to the days when we were horrible cunts and often down to 10-men but still grinded out victories through sheer bloody-mindedness. Maybe I’m looking at it too harshly due to emotion, because let’s face it, the ref did them a fucking massive favour that we were not afforded last week.

RANDOM FACT OF THE DAY: since Sagna went off injured at the Bridge, we’ve conceded a whopping ELEVEN goals in four-and-a-bit games.

RANDOM THOUGHT OF THE DAY: why is it everytime Theo does something awesome, it is overshadowed? I’m thinking of his goal in the Carling Cup final last season, his brace against Brum marred by Eddie’s injury and the last minute, and his run here soured by a robbery.

I have no axe to grind with Liverpool. They rode their luck, it’s not as if we wouldn’t gleefully accept the penalty decisions that have gone their way this past week. I have a lot of respect for Liverpool and the Anfield crowd, although I’m not overly happy with their southern fans who give it large on the train on the way home yet have never been to Anfield in their lives. Glory-hunting cunts. Yet despite my admiration for Liverpool and the fact they’re playing the Blues, I’m gonna find it mighty difficult cheering for them in the semi, knowing what could have been. Either way, we can only hope that at the end of the tournament it is a smiling Thierry Henry lifting the European Cup and dedicating it to all Gooners.

Here’s a final analogy for you: at Club Level they were distributing free bottles of water. After the final whistle, I chucked mine away in anger, not wanting to take it home and keep it as a reminder of this night. Then just as we were exiting the stadium, DJ came up to me and gave me one that he had nabbed. But instead of chucking it away, I have decided to keep it. Why? Because there is no use ignoring your failures. To learn from them and progress forward, you need to embrace them. And we can only hope that The Arsenal do the same. A bit of luck wouldn’t go amiss either.