Inter Milan were not as good as I expected.
AC Milan were better than expected.
Lyon got lucky when Sir Alex picked the wrong team again.
Olympiacos 0 Chelsea 0 was no big surprise. And Celtic led 1-0 and 2-1 before Barcelona beat them 3-2 at Parkhead.
In the first half, Arsenal’s back four passed the ball to each other a bit too much.
Second half, the team switched to turbo and flowed forward at high speed, passing beautifully for 15 minutes.
It was like a full-court press in basketball, or a powerplay in ice-hockey where it’s five against four because a player has been sin-binned. Pirlo didn’t know what was going on as passes and men went past him and behind him again and again.But Milan had the nous and class to hang on, and after the hurricane blew out the game opened up a bit.
From 45 to 60, Milan were saved by the disciplined shape of their back nine. A very accomplished defensive unit which was able to survive the loss of Nesta after 50 minutes. Their defending was exemplary, even when they were being stretched and pulled around for those 15 hectic minutes.
Against any other team in the world, Arsenal would have scored in that period.
Senderos was magnificent, Clichy was superb, Gallas too. And Hleb was marvellous, as usual.
Bottom line, Milan came for a 0-0 and they got what they came for.
In Lyon, Karim Benzema scored a sensational goal in 54.
Sir Alex had started Scholes with Anderson, which he should never do. A compromise which did not work. Then Lyon scored. Then Tevez came on and started to direct traffic and United improved and created a lot of pressure and Tevez got a lucky goal when the ball bounced to him off Fred, of all people.
The Benzema goal was goal of the week by a country mile.
Toulalan gave him a short pass outside the box and as he moved, with defenders all round him, Benzema nudged the ball slightly to his left and instantly lashed a low left-foot shot in off the post.
Only a player of the highest class can score a goal like that against a team as strong as Manchester United. Peter Osgood could have scored that goal, Platini could, George Best could. I’ve been thinking about whether the great Ian Rush could have scored that goal. And I don’t think he could have done.
Some goalscorers became stars, a few become legends. Anelka became a star but not a legend. This kid Benzema might have a bigger career than Anelka. He’s 20 and just starting and one to watch. He should stay where he is for three more years.
France is a producer country which takes coaching seriously and puts structures in place to improve the technique of young players. The Lyon academy is very productive and the strikers are coached by Sonny Anderson, a Brazilian of sublime skills who was excellent in the French league but didn’t make it at Barcelona.
Watching Inter v Liverpool, I wondered whether Julio Cesar is the best goalkeeper in the world.
He seemed to have the physical command of somebody from outside football, the self-contained aura of confidence that you see in a pole-vaulter, a javelin-thrower, a triple-jumper maybe.
Inter demonstrated the arts of defending for 80 minutes and then Torres had a moment where he should have turned and shot but he tried to pass to Gerrard. Then Kuyt’s shot deflected and bounced in for 1-0. Gerrard made it 2-0 at the death with a shot that Cesar may have thought was going wide. It hit the post and went in.
Those two Liverpool goals came from perseverance and pressure, not classy play.They will go to the San Siro the week after Arsenal visit AC Milan.
On Sunday, I’m hoping Spurs beat Chelsea in the Carling Cup Final.
Paul Robinson made two great saves against a lively Slavia Prague last night and Spurs squeezed through 3-2 on aggregate. If you searched the five continents you would not find a more perfect partner for Berbatov than Robbie Keane. Those two are made for each other. Maybe Jenas will show Lampard how to score a goal. There’s talk that Lampard might not play but that would be self-defeating stupidity.
Chelsea’s African boys have not settled back in yet after their Cup of Nations tournament.