Monaco 0-2 Arsenal: it's Arsenal 2.0

Seasoned Arsenal supporters know that, when faced with a monumental task, there are two types of Arsenal which can emerge. The first completely loses it's shape and can go down to anyone (Borussia, United, Monaco), the second can send chills down your spine by showing how good they can be (Borussia, United, Monaco!). Alright, count City in.

It's that second type we saw yesterday. Completely focused on the task at hand, motivated, organised, willing to fight.

Can we say it was a little too late? Would you say so having watched the game last night? I'd say this: we have to demonstrate good football for 180 minutes in the knock-out stages, but we could (and, probably, should have) gone through to the last eight. That we didn't wasn't for the lack of trying, it was down to not getting even a little bit lucky.

However good we were yesterday (and we were pretty damn impressive), I was astounded by how poor Monaco was. They were playing in front of their fans, with a two-goal handicap and they didn't even try to attack us. They showed nothing, absolutely nothing up front. Zilch. 0 shots on target. 29% possession. Their most dangerous moment was an offside one, and even then Ospina came out on top. They clung on top their away-goal advantage (only just in the last fifteen minutes) and, while I can get them celebrating their progression to the last eight, they should be ashamed by how little they did on their home soil.

Not much actual football happened during the ninety minutes, so I'll go full-Mourinho and just give you the minutes and what happened on these. But first, the squad.

Team

At first I was a bit baffled by Arsene's selection. Bar Monreal for Gibbs, he fielded exactly the same side that went down 3-1 in the first leg. There was no Gabriel, Cazorla started alongside Coquelin at Ramsey's expense and Welbeck was preferred to Walcott.

And then it crossed my mind the manager wanted to have real options on the bench. It's one thing bringing Welbeck for Walcott and a bit different the other way around, isn't it? Same goes for Ramsey.

15th minute

Up until this point Monaco enjoyed a stint of possession (it would be their last during this encounter) and we just couldn't find a way through their highly-congested midfield. Then, Ozil found Bellerin on the right, the Spaniard escaped his marker with a burst of speed and put a cross in. Giroud headed wide when I thought there was just no way he could miss from such distance.

23rd minute

Ozil whips in a cross from a free-kick, scuffle ensues and Koscielny hits the bar from point-blank range moments after the offside flag goes up. And it's quite fortunate he didn't score, because replays showed Abdennour won the air, not Giroud and so Kos wasn't in offside position. Inept refereeing.

36th minute

Alexis nicks the ball on the flank, returns it to central midfield, Cazorla finds Welbeck between the lines of Monaco's defense and the Englishman sends Giroud clear. Olivier's initial shot is blocked by Subasic, but he then recovers (Giroud, not Subasic), picks up the rebound and fires the ball under the bar with two Monaco defenders on the line. 1-0.

38th minute

Pumped up by the goal, the Gunners storm forward. Abdennour's poor clearance falls to Welbeck on the edge of the box and the Englishman unleashes a powerful shot. It takes a deflection of a floored Abdennour and nearly rolls into the corner with Subasic stranded. Nearly.

46th minute

The last minute of the half and we should have gone 2-0 up. Welbeck fooled the defender and burst into the box and then squared the ball to Giroud. Giroud underhit it and the effort ended up with Subasic and at first I was angry as hell. How can you not score from point-blank range?! Replays showed the pass took a deflection and it changed the trajectory just enough for me still not to know with which part of his body Giroud actually took the shot.

Dunno which minute, but a huge moment

It happened inside the second half already and was pretty straightforward: Ozil fired a free-kick over the wall and forced a great save out of Subasic.

73rd minute

Took us long enough and it wasn't really a moment, but still. Walcott (who came on for Welbeck two minutes prior to the incident) was trying to get on the end of a cross. He didn't, because Abdennour passed the ball back for his keeper, who handled the ball. Which is a foul and a free-kick, but hey, could you expect any different from the referee after Kos was flagged offside and Sanchez got booked for simulation?

79th minute

Ozil finds Monreal with a clever cross, the Spaniard pulls it back for Walcott and the Englishman hits the post for what would be his only meaningful on-pitch action. Abdennour clears the rebound, it falls for Ramsey, Aaron takes a touch to get the ball under control and fires an unstoppable effort past Subasic to set up a frantic finale.

83rd minute

This one literally gave me nightmares afterwards. Ozil whips in a cross from the left, both Giroud and Sanchez win the air, but, as there is only one ball, neither manage to get full power into the shot. I still don't know who should have taken this chance. Probably Sanchez, as he was in a better position, but then he's not a good header of the ball. The combined effort from Alexis and Olivier almost went in nonetheless. Almost. And so it finished 2-0.

The aftermath

Prince Albert was jumping up and down in his seat like crazy, but the simple truth is such that everyone inside that stadium and everyone I've spoken to since last night knew we could have won it by a three-goal margin. Every single Monaco fan was so unnaturally happy because all of them were shitting their pants for the last fifteen minutes. And I haven't even mentioned Cazorla's blocked volley or Welbeck's header to Giroud.

I'm not going to chastise any player on the basis of last night. It was as brilliant and organised a performance as I've seen this season. Had we demonstrated half of that during the first leg, we would have gone through. Had we had a bit of luck on our side yesterday, we would have gone through. But neither has happened.

And for the outcome of this encounter we only have ourselves to blame. We should learn how to demonstrate quality football for the entirety of the 180 minutes, not just after we've screwed up big time in the first leg and give ourselves a mountain to climb. I do not envy anyone who gets Monaco in the last eight, but I also don't think the Frenchmen will survive that round. They got one hell of a lucky bounce to survive even this one.

Finally, a couple of words on Ozil. He had a great game. Full stop. He didn't hide, he got the ball in dangerous positions, he dictated the tempo of the play with his passing and his ability to hold onto the ball when necessary. He didn't overcook it like Sanchez (who's knackered and clearly needs a rest) and, overall, he did everything in his power and really put himself into it. I specifically watched him the entire game and came to the simple conclusion that he's world-class and worth every penny paid for him.

Right, that's it. Back in a few days, as always.

Don't hang your heads

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

Monaco preview: not mission impossible, but mission improbable

Three years ago Arsenal were pinned against Milan in the last 16. I remember this very vividly: we topped the group (for once) and this should have ensured we got an easier opponent. However, our luck was such that we didn't: we landed the worst draw possible. Thing is, Milan was in the same group as Barca and thus the Italians finished second. That's not to say they were pushovers, far from it: it was Milan in their prime. And we had to play them.

The first tie was horrible. We were rolled over at San Siro and even an in-form Van Persie and club legend Thierry Henry were unable to prevent the sound thrashing we were handed out. As some bloke scored a penalty to make it 4-0, I turned the game off, as I couldn't stand the humiliation any longer.

No one believed in us doing anything of note in the return leg. I was at the Maldives at the time the game was played. Naturally, I found a TV with a game on. And as the game kicked off the commentator put brilliantly what was to come in a nutshell: "It's not mission impossible for Arsenal, but mission improbable". We know what happened next: Arsenal almost qualified. Almost.

I'm not trying to get your hopes high, there's a reason why the last time someone overturned a two-goal home deficit happened in 1969. However, I am also not going to write Arsenal off completely. I've seen us beat Milan and Bayern and these games suggest we can turn our current tie around.

Team news update

We are still without Mathieu Debuchy, Mikel Arteta and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, while I also don't think Jack Wilshere will be involved. Arsene was quick to downplay the Englishman's availability mid-week and this suggests we won't see Jack until after the international break. Wenger may just be protecting Wilsh from being called up to England's national team and, if so, it's completely fine with me. No point risking Jack in a meaningless friendly, he will be much-needed during the final push in the league and the cup.

Rosicky's involvement is also shrouded in mystery. The Czech was unexpectedly omitted from the squad right before our game at Old Trafford and didn't even make the bench five days later against West Ham. The only explanation I've seen is that Tomas is down with flu and I hope it really is the case. He can make an impact both from the start and as a sub, so fingers crossed the Czech is included in tomorrow's squad.

However, good news is that Gabriel is back and I think the manager will be tempted to play the Brazilian from the off . We'll most likely adopt a high pressing line tomorrow and Mertesacker is not the best man in this particular case.

With that sorted out, time to put together a squad.

Defense

Only Koscielny seems a guaranteed starter to me. Mertesacker may, or may not, be replaced by Gabriel (I hope it's the former), Bellerin's involvement depends on who will play ahead of him on the right, while the Gibbs/Monreal dilemma hinges on who will be the right-back on the night. I think Wenger won't try starting two romping full-backs again, that's part of the reason we were punished at the Emirates, so Gibbs should play with Chambers and Monreal with Bellerin.

My hunch tells me we'll see Bellerin, Gabriel and Monreal get the nod. Bellerin because it looked like he was being rested on Saturday. Gabriel because of the high pressing line and his ability to sweep up should Bellerin get caught up high upfield. Monreal both to balance the defense and due to his form. That should be it concerning the defensive line.

Midfield

I think Arsene will be highly reluctant to introduce any changes. Coquelin, Ramsey and Ozil did a brilliant job on West Ham. However, another consideration may come into play: our right flank. I'm almost certain Walcott won't start there:

1. Playing Bellerin and Theo at the same time is risky and will invite Monaco to attack down our right
2. Walcott probably won't have space to exploit. If Monaco sits back, we'll be forced to pass it around. This isn't Theo's game

As such we may either play Ozil on the right or Welbeck. Games against United and West Ham showed us Wenger is determined to play Cazorla centrally and so Ozil will have to play wide if Santi is on the pitch.

I'd probably opt to have an unchanged midfield and throw in Cazorla at some point if needs must.

Attack

Sanchez and Giroud have to start. I think I don't need to explain why.

This leaves us with a choice on the right wing to make. Personally, I'd prefer Welbeck there. He has the pace and is a more keen tracker of runners than Ozil. But I still won't exclude Ozil shifting to the right. We'll most likely have the job on our hands stretching Monaco's defense and so having as many capable passers of the ball as possible is not such a bad idea.

The verdict

This tie should never have come to this. We should have had an advantage going into the second leg, instead our light attitude and profligacy made the task at hand almost impossible. Almost.

If there are positives in our current predicament, it's that Monaco are now favourites. The pressure is on them to finish the job, not on us to qualify and this situation plays into our hands. We all know Arsenal can play exceptional football when there's nothing to lose.

Let's try maximising the benefits from this situation and then see what happens.

Come on you Gunners.

Back with a review.

Until then

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

Arsenal 3-0 West Ham: Wengerball at its finest

What a win. I'm still buzzing from the game. We took matters into our hands from the beginning, scored a 46th minute goal, soaked up a bit of pressure in the second half without allowing West Ham to create anything dangerous and then finished them off with the precision of a surgeon Ozil. Quality game from back to front.

I usually go over the performance as a whole in my review, but this evening I'm in the mood to try something different. It's most likely a one-off, like something I did here, so don't worry if it doesn't come off. It won't become a tradition.

Up to the point, though: instead of writing a usual review, I'll ramble a bit about every on-pitch player of ours and how he fared. Starting with

David Ospina

The Colombian regained his rightful place between the sticks after sitting out the FA Cup clash and this decision is both unsurprising and welcome. Luckily, Ospina had little work to do. Apart from that first half save from Nolan/Noble (couldn't bother to look up the name), the Colombian only had to take goal-kicks. I enjoyed this simple action immensely (as did he, I suspect), because every time Ospina cleared the ball the routine "Oooooospina" erupted from the stands. There was a heart-in-the-mouth moment when David went down after a collision with Sakho, only for the former to get up to Szczesny's frustration. Ospina's just playing with the Pole.

Calum Chambers

One thing I haven't taken into account when writing a preview is that Bellerin may need a rest. I was quick to forget the Spaniard in only 19 and so three games inside eight days may be one too many. Thankfully, Arsene didn't forget that and put on Chambers. He may also have done this as the Englishman's approach is more conservative and as such should compensate for Walcott's tendency to neglect his defensive duties.

And Chambers put in a shift. I think we started to forget a little bit just how good Calum is, this was a gentle reminder. Bar one or two moments in the first half (Jarvis cross stands out), he was solid and his delivery was such that Ramsey and Alexis really could have done better. Will give Arsene a selection headache ahead of the Monaco game.

Koscielny and Mertesacker

Their bromance is certainly much more touching than Reus and Goetze, to say nothing of The Twilight. Basically, any romance is better than The Twilight saga. The moment that demonstrates how nicely these two dovetail is when Kos blocked Sakho's path and Mert blocked the shot itself.

However, Koscielny deserves a special mention. I admire his nerves and his ability to cleverly distribute the ball even when under pressure. Kos the boss.

Monreal

Solid, good in the tackle and more cautious going forward this time. Will be remembered for a couple of good sliding tackles and that brilliant interception late in the second half (we were 1-0 at the point, unless I'm mistaken). Deserves a start against Monaco.

Coquelin

The usual bite in the tackle, threw his weight about, made some clever through-the-line passes and one magnificent cross to switch the play, while getting the ball to Danny. The sliding tackle in the 90th minute to cleanly get the ball sums him up. Warrior.

Ramsey

If there were any misgivings Cazorla is a better candidate for that deeper position, the Welshman firmly tilted the scales in his favour. A goal, an assist, 4 shots, 5 chances created, 3 tackles and 3 interceptions. Covered every bit of grass that was there to cover. Some reports suggests he walked on water after the game.

Ozil

Not long ago I was looking for one adjective to describe him and I found it: sublime. But I think another word, a noun, describes Ozil even better: a visionary. He didn't get an assist, but that first goal was of his making. Probably should have shot or squared it to Giroud late on, instead of trying to pick out Walcott, but what the hell. He's brilliant, if you can't admire him, you are dead inside.

Walcott

Not his best game. Missed three big chances. The first one still drives me up a wall. Theo looks a player low on confidence and motivation and this doesn't bode well for the future. Completely disappeared in the second half and was rightly taken off for Cazorla. It was Theo's chance to establish himself, he seems to have wasted it.

Alexis

Not his best game either, though he still could have scored twice. Both times was denied by brilliant saves from Adrian. Looked a bit jaded in the second half and came off for Welbeck. Hope the Chilean is firing on all cylinders come Tuesday.

Giroud

Splendid. A cracker of a shot for the first, a dummy and a one-two for the assist and a magnificent flick to Cazorla in the build-up for the third. The Frenchman now has 14 goals in 24 games, three less than Costa, but the Brazilian played in 32. He also has 11 league goals, just two or three less than Sanchez. Not bad for a "lamp post", a "tree" and an "average striker". Not bad at all.

Cazorla, Welbeck and Flamini

All contributed to the cause. The Spaniard bagged an assist, Welbeck was a live wire up and down the left flank (and was unlucky to have been denied a headed goal right at the death) and Flamini, well, scored. All the subs had a tangible impact. Santi will most likely be reinstated against Monaco, Welbeck should be too, in my opinion, while Flamini just came on to shore things up and allow Ozil a breather.

The aftermath

I'd like to stress once again that this was, above all, a team performance at the highest level. Though I've described each player, we all know how everyone's brilliant in a win and atrocious in a loss. Each player is only as good as the guy next to him, so going over individual performances was just another way of writing a post, rather than suggesting the game was made up of individual players and their actions. It was a collective effort and a most brilliant one at that.

This win cements our third place and allows us to move within one point of City (who have lost to Burnley). Now onto Monaco.

Back with a preview. In the meantime, enjoy our eight consecutive home wins and the goodies they bring.

Until later

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

West Ham preview: need to keep the momentum going

Evening everyone.

It's West Ham at the Emirates tomorrow and this is our final league game before we face Monaco in the Champions League. A win is hugely important for two reasons: bar City, everyone else from the top 7 has a tough opponent and is likely to drop points and, secondly, we need to be in the mood when we don on our Champions League outfit come Tuesday.

Team news update

We just can't catch a break with injures. Flamini is back in the squad & Gabriel is due to return on Sunday, but Wilshere is still out, while Oxlade's hamstring strain will keep the Englishman sidelined for 3-4 weeks:

"It's a classic hamstring. That means he will be out for three weeks, four weeks maximum. He will not be available for England as well."

The England part also sheds some light on why Arsene seems keen to downplay Wilshere's availability. Either that, or Wilshere is slowly becoming Diaby. God forbid.

However, as we have Ramsey up and running, I'm much more concerned about Oxlade. The Ox was the first name on the teamsheet the whole first half of the season. At some point I even expressed concerns about his fatigue levels. And now he's in and out again, just when he produced a stunning display against United. Real shame.

"It's very frustrating for him because he played more games than ever this season. In the last two months I feel he was a bit in and out. He has shown again on Monday night what an important player he can be for Arsenal and for England. It's a shame that in the final sprint and he's not there."

I wonder whether that opens the door for Walcott. I intended to write an article on Theo's current predicament at Arsenal a couple of days back, but then I saw Tim Stillman's column and decided he said everything I wanted to say.

To me it looks like a make-or-break situation with Walcott. His strengths are obvious, but so are his shortcomings. He's not switched on defensively, most of the time. He likes to drift infield and effectively limits Bellerin's passing options. He prefers to play without the ball by making runs behind the opposition's defense, but finds space hard to come by when we face defensive-minded teams. He's not the strongest player or technically most gifted to get past defenders or out of tight spots. His passing (if it's present) is sometimes wayward and even when it's not, Theo is hardly an Ozil or a Cazorla.

And what exactly are his strengths? Pace and finishing, I'd say. He is also, despite the aforementioned tendency of his to drift inside, the closest thing we have to a winger. Ox is number one in that regard, Walcott probably comes second.

I really think Theo will have his work cut out between now and May to convince he's earned a new contract. With rumours afloat that Wenger will have 50 million to spend in the summer, we may well be on the lookout for a more complete winger. Sure, we still need a defensive midfielder (even if only an understudy to Coq) and the jury is out on our goalkeeping situation, but we can get both a goalie and a DM and have enough money left for a quality winger. Especially if we sell Podolski, Jenkinson and Walcott. Something to chew on.

Righto, onto our probable squad tomorrow.

Defense

Ospina will be back in goal, no doubt about that and I wouldn't be too surprised to see an unchanged defense. Monreal did brilliantly upon his return and doesn't deserve to be dropped in the slightest, while the only other change I can envisage is Chambers coming in for someone, but for whom? Mertesacker? Unlikely, both because the German had a good game and because it's too risky to play Chambo alongside Bellerin.

The only other option is removing Bellerin himself, but again I don't see why Arsene should do this. Bellerin is on form, he dovetails with Monreal nicely and, finally, rotation for the sake of rotation doesn't make any sense. Moving on.

Midfield

Here we have an interesting dilemma. I was quite certain Ramsey would start against United for a more balanced midfield, instead Cazorla did. Furthemore, when Oxlade strained his hammy, it was Ozil who was shunted on the right flank, not Cazorla and it hints at the manager's reluctance to remove the diminutive Spaniard from central midfield.

So I'd say there's only one chance for this happening: simple exhaustion. Cazorla has played a lot this season, he's definitely in the top three along with Sanchez and Mertesacker, so giving him a rest may not be completely off the cards tomorrow.

If he does play, however, then it may indirectly affect Walcott's chances. I'm pretty sure Coquelin, Ramsey and Ozil will start whatsoever and, as such, the German will play on the right flank. Walcott's flank.

Attack

And so it's a turning point for Walcott. If he plays, it will happen at the expense of Ramsey or Cazorla, maybe even Welbeck. If he cannot find his way into the team without Oxlade and is second to Ozil or Welbeck, both of whom aren't typical wingers, then it's time to say cheerio to Theo.

With Wenger hinting he'll make two-three changes I wonder whether Alexis will be given a rest. And it's also interesting to see who starts up front: Giroud or Welbeck.

Personally, I'd go with Giroud. He's just the better man for me. Aerial ability, hold-up play, distribution, physical qualities: you name it. He's better than Welbeck at CF and should play as such.

Tomorrow's front three is the most unpredictable part it seems. I'd like to think Wenger will go with Alexis-Giroud-Ozil, but I won't be hugely surprised to see Welbeck and Walcott come in for any of the three.

The verdict

A quick look at West Ham's results will show you they've won only twice in the league in three months. That, coupled with Carroll's and Valencia's unavailability and our good home record (overall and against West Ham), hints that anything less than three points will be an underachievement for Arsenal. However, Premier League is Premier League, no team can be taken for granted here, so let's just treat it as any other game. That means showing up, showing up with the right attitude and, basically, putting in a shift.

So come on you Gunners.

One last thing. Bellerin seems to have signed a new contract with the Club, one which will keep him here for the next four years and I'm personally very happy he did. The young Spaniard has progressed magnificently this year, he's our number one right-back at the moment of speaking and you feel there is still a lot to come from him. However, I think Bellerin's rise to prominence signals an end to Jenkinson's career at Arsenal and it's a very sad thing. Jenko is a Gunner at heart, seeing him part ways with the Club will be heart-breaking, but I just don't see where he fits in. Hope Arsene has a plan which includes the Englishman in it.

Until later

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

Manchester United 1-2 Arsenal: payback time

We won. Close your eyes for a moment and say the words. Savour them. We won. At Old Trafford. We turned up and produced a performance that, had it not been for De Gea, would have seen us win by a greater margin. We were compact and organised and Welbeck's goal was the cherry on top of a committed outing.

The squad and tactics

The starting XI was once again unpredictable. Both Szczesny and Monreal started, but there was no Ramsey or Giroud. Instead, Cazorla continued to anchor the midfield and Danny Welbeck replaced the Frenchman. I initially thought such a decision can prove costly: Giroud is in great goalscoring form (and he already netted against United this season) and, more importantly, Giroud's hold-up play and aerial prowess is much better than that of the Englishman. And I think we've missed those qualities in the first half at least.

Our set-up was clear: we wanted to play on the counter. And that was exactly what we did for the most part. I don't have any problem with such a plan. Quite the contrary: it showed we can adapt to the opponent and the situation and still deliver.

The first half

It was pretty even, to be fair. United had more of the ball, but were unable to create much. We moved the ball better when we had it, though you could sense we were somewhat reluctant to pile men forward on these occasions. Our first clear chance happened in the second minute already. Alexis received the ball on the left, cut infield and unleashed a shot, only for the ball to take a deflection and end up with De Gea. United responded by firing an effort over the bar when Young combined with Fellaini in our box.

Oxlade sent a shot over after Ozil set him up and then our goal came. Ozil and Monreal combined on the left to make space for the German, Mesut passed to Oxlade, the Englishman danced past Valencia, Young and Shaw and sent Monreal clean through with a splitting pass. The Spaniard took one touch and powered the ball past De Gea.

The joy didn't last long, unfortunately. Di Maria found space on the left and sent an inswinging cross in. Koscielny lost Rooney and the latter was gifted a free header just outside the six-yard box. 1-1.

United continued lodging long balls. Another inswinging cross from Di Maria was claimed by Szczesny and then the Argentine latched onto a high ball to smash the ball towards the near corner, only for Szczesny to parry it away. Welbeck had the final say in the half by forcing De Gea into a save, but the first 45 minutes ended with the scores level.

The second half

Unlike Wenger, Van Gaal decided to introduce changes to his side immediately after the restart. Rojo and Herrera gave way to Jones and Carrick and off the teams went. Three minutes into the half Oxlade pulled his hamstring and was hauled off for Ramsey. Ozil shifted to the right flank.

The game grew increasingly dirty and it weren't us picking up yellow cards. Fellaini and Young were booked in quick succession after fouling Ramsey and Welbeck respectively and thus joined Rojo and Herrera in Oliver's book. Fellaini should have been booked long before that, in all honesty. His elbow-to-Coquelin's-face alone deserved it.

And then we struck again. Welbeck pounced on a back pass from Valencia, threw the ball past De Gea and then rolled it into the empty net. He celebrated with gusto, though he didn't overdo it. It was just the celebration of a man happy to bring his team in front in an important game.

Soon after Welbeck was subbed for Giroud and then Bellerin (who got a booking in the first half and was hanging by a thread) left the field to be replaced by Chambers. Teams exchanged dangerous moments with Smalling firing wide from a yard and then De Gea saving from a brilliant Cazorla's volley and then the fun started.

Di Maria got a booking for diving and then immediately got a second for grabbing Oliver by his shirt. The sheer look of disbelief on Oliver's face gave way to anger and he sent the Argentine off.

Michael then continued his fine form by booking Januzai for diving. The Belgian could have caused us real trouble had he stayed on his feet, but, mercifully, his cheaty ways got the better of him.

After that United visibly deflated. Di Maria was arguably their best player and their only creative hub and his absence hit United hard. They didn't do anything in the remaining 20 minutes, apart from launching a lot of high balls into our box which Mertesacker dealt with easily. Arsenal, meanwhile, nearly scored a third, but were again denied by De Gea. Sanchez lashed a fierce shot headed towards the far corner only for the Spaniard to get a hand to it. 2-1 and we are going to Wembley.

The aftermath

It was a massive win for us. Psychologically, it's importance cannot be underestimated. We played our game (more or less), were calm and organised and got rewarded for it. Also, big kudos to the referee. Michael Oliver had a very good game, especially if you look at how poor officiating is this season. Oliver wasn't intimidated by the crowd, he made correct and timely decisions and overall left a very good impression.

I was also surprised by United's performance. Their only game plan seemed to be "Pass it to Di Maria and he'll figure something out". I can understand that this is a team in the making, one that is far from a finished article, but I didn't expect such a performance from them. Had it not been for De Gea and Di Maria we would have ended the game as a contest in the first half, most likely. And how dirty they play is another story entirely. Diving, pleading with the ref, fouling. Only Carrick and, maybe, Blind left an impression of honest players, everyone else went out of their way to gain leverage on us in whatever way possible, bar the most obvious: trying to outplay us. Good thing Oliver was the ref and he had the balls to do what was necessary.

But what do I care about United? Let them rot in mid-table, as long as I'm concerned. The most important thing is that we put in a performance and got rewarded for it. We will now face either Bradford or Reading in the semis.

Wembley, here we come again.

Until later

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)