Borussia Dortmund v Arsenal: Champions League – as it happened
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Version 0 of 1. 9.37pm BST21:37 On the bright side for Arsenal, it was only 2-0. This could have been seriously embarrassing. At least it wasn’t worse. But the truth is that this was a gubbing in all but scoreline. Arsenal have been taken apart by a brilliant Borussia Dortmund, who created chances at will and should have scored more. It’s been a tough night for Arsenal, whose flaws at the highest level have once again been laid bare for all to see. Thanks for reading and emailing. Night. 9.35pm BST21:35 Full-time: Borussia Dortmund 2-0 Arsenal It’s over! 9.33pm BST21:33 90 min: Lukas Podolski finds himself through on goal but overruns the ball under pressure from Weidenfeller and it trickles behind for a goal-kick. There will be three minutes of stoppage time. “The worst part about Ozil’s play this season is everyone who spent the last year bizarrely obsessed with how “terrible” he is now getting to lean back and slowly nod to themselves as if they were right all along,” says Luke De Smet. “It’s unjust I tell you!” 9.30pm BST21:30 88 min: Jack Wilshere is booked. Go on, Jack, there’s still time to fly in late on someone and get a second yellow. 9.27pm BST21:27 86 min: Before the resulting corner can be taken, Adrian Ramos is on for Ciro Immobile, who receives a hug and a slap on the backside from Klopp. 9.26pm BST21:26 84 min: But Welbeck is up again now, hobbling a little, but seemingly able to continue. “Mkhitaryan will definitely never score,” says Ademola-popoola Oreoluwa. “God knows what he did to Klopp’s water retention in their second leg match against Madrid last season.” You’re right, he never will score. He bursts through the heart of the Arsenal defence - after you, sir, after you, not a problem at all - and just as he seems poised to score, he’s tackled by Oxlade-Chamberlain. Updated at 9.26pm BST 9.25pm BST21:25 83 min: Welbeck is down after being caught on the knee by Subotic. 9.22pm BST21:22 80 min: The ball is hit over the top for Aubameyang to chase. Szczesny gets there first, heads the ball away and flattens the Dortmund striker. There wasn’t much he could do about it, though, given his momentum. Aubameyang should be okay after a spot of treatment. He just looks a bit winded. Updated at 9.22pm BST 9.21pm BST21:21 79 min: Dortmund make their second change, Milos Jojic replacing Marcel Schmelzer. I’m guessing that will see Grosskreutz move to right-back, Durm go to left-back and Jojic slot into midfield. 9.20pm BST21:20 78 min: Filip Gieldon is back with more on Ozil. “Obviously I rate his talent, but still, he was a bit so-so in the World Cup on the right wing. More so, Mr Wenger seems to play him in a non-obvious position. It’s a bit classic Wenger, isn’t it? The crown jewel being used as a luxury product...” 9.19pm BST21:19 77 min: Arsenal make their final change. Lukas Podolski replaces Mikel Arteta. Elsewhere in this group, it’s Galatasaray 0-1 Anderlecht. 9.18pm BST21:18 76 min: Anything Mkhitaryan can do, Welbeck can do better. He rolls Sokratis on the edge of the area and then rams his shot over the bar from 18 yards. 9.16pm BST21:16 73 min: Mkhitaryan will never score. His finishing has been atrocious. This latest chance came after a grotesque error from the awful Arteta, who gave away possession in his own half. Koscielny tackled Aubameyang but the ball broke to Mkhitaryan. Off he went. Through on goal. On his right foot. His eyes lit up. Szczesny sat down. The ball went over. Jurgen Klopp raged. Updated at 9.16pm BST 9.14pm BST21:14 71 min: This is why people spend so long worrying about their goalkeepers taking too long over clearances. Koscielny knocks a pass back to Szcznesy, who decides now is the perfect time to take a touch, have a breather, ponder Scottish independence. Before he knows it, Aubameyang is swarming him. Szczesny tries to go round the striker whose tackle almost diverts the ball into the net. 9.12pm BST21:12 70 min: Everyone can relax. It turns out those uber-cool German fans also cheer the vanishing spray. 9.10pm BST21:10 69 min: “Do you feel that the case of Ozil is him being mis-played by Wenger on the right, or is he just...well, poor,” says Filip Gieldon. He’s not playing well for a long time but he’s obviously class. He’s just won the World Cup! 9.09pm BST21:09 67 min: Grosskreutz tries to bend one in from the left. He does not bend it enough. “I might be missing the point, but why should the Arsenal players be doing anything anyway?” says Robin Hazlehurst. “They’ve already won this competition by getting through the preliminaries, and there is no real money in getting any further than they are now. It’s not as if they plan to win the thing. Focus for the season is now on getting fourth place in the league and being back here next year. Ozil being an electric bunny tonight won’t help that happen. It’s modern football philosophy, nothing false about that.” 9.08pm BST21:08 66 min: Has it ever struck you how much of your life you spend worrying that your team’s goalkeeper is going to get closed down as he takes his time over a clearance? 9.06pm BST21:06 64 min: Fashion watch: Mats Hummels is wearing a t-shirt that has a drawing of a panda on the front. 9.03pm BST21:03 62 min: Arsenal make two changes. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain replaces Mesut Ozil and Santi Cazorla comes on for Aaron Ramsey. 9.02pm BST21:02 60 min: “About an hour ago you told us that Ozil was on the right supporting Bellerin,” says Peter Littley. “Just wondered if he had moved much since your first and only mention. Probably saving himself for some other important game I guess.” He’s done nothing. None of Arsenal’s attacking players have. It’s been a risible performance. 9.01pm BST21:01 59 min: Immobile chips a cross to the far post from the left. Aubameyang gets up but nods wide. 9.01pm BST21:01 57 min: Chances at both ends. First, one for Welbeck. An astute reverse pass from Sanchez got Gibbs behind the Dortmund defence but Welbeck couldn’t make the most of the cross to the near post. He was under pressure. The ball squirted loose and Dortmund cleared - and attacked at great speed. All of a sudden, there was Aubameyang scorching away down the right, taking on Koscielny and then cracking a rising shot against the bar! Updated at 9.01pm BST 8.59pm BST20:59 56 min: Schmelzer’s free-kick is headed away by Mertesacker but the ball is picked up by Sokratis, whose well-struck effort from 20 yards is held by Szczesny. 8.57pm BST20:57 55 min: Dortmund’s centre-back, Neven Subotic, is allowed to run 40 yards forward unopposed. Dearie me. Eventually Arteta fouls him. 8.56pm BST20:56 54 min: Arsenal haven’t been able to muster a response to the second goal. Has anyone told them the second half has started? Although here’s something. A booking for Ozil for a foul on Schmelzer. He’s a bit unlucky, mind you. Schmelzer milked what there was of that for all it was worth - and it was worth roughly 3p. 8.53pm BST20:53 51 min: This could get ugly. Arsenal are a rabble. Mkhitaryan flicks a pass back to Immobile in the area. He lets rip with his right foot and Szczesny does well to push the ball over the bar. Nothing comes from the corner. 8.51pm BST20:51 49 min: Dortmund smell blood. Mkhitaryan speeds up the right flank and knocks a ball into the six-yard box. This time Mertesacker is on hand to clear. 8.51pm BST20:51 GOAL! Borussia Dortmund 2-0 Arsenal (Aubameyang, 48 min) This is another well-taken goal and Arsenal are in big trouble. Dortmund attacked down the left, Grosskreutz in space. He cut inside and then stabbed a lovely pass through the middle, where Aubameyang had been left all alone by the Arsenal defence. He got there before Szcznesny, took it round the goalkeeper, made sure he didn’t lose control of the ball just when it seemed he might and then beat the attempts of Koscielny on the line. Arsenal are on the rack here! Updated at 9.12pm BST 8.48pm BST20:48 47 min: Sanchez has a dig from roughly 35 yards. A deflection takes the sting out of the shot and it’s an easy save for Weidenfeller. I wonder how many tea cups Wenger broke in the Arsenal dressing room during the break. 8.47pm BST20:47 46 min: Here we go again. Dortmund have made a change, young Matthias Ginter replacing old Sebastian Kehl. Updated at 8.47pm BST 8.43pm BST20:43 That can’t be right, though. Otherwise Wenger would have sorted that position out ages ago. 8.42pm BST20:42 Forgive me, but do you know what Arsenal have really lacked so far this evening? A robust central midfielder. Dortmund have found so much space in front of the Arsenal defence. 8.42pm BST20:42 “Sanchez is spent because he is in the last game of a long spell with lots of travel - in the past 2 weeks he was in California and Miami with Chile national team, and now 2 top opponents with Arsenal,” says Geg Kutylo. “Granted he’s not flying middle seat in economy in between 2 crying infants while he’s traveling but that is still a lot. He is in great condition but expends a lot of energy the way he plays. Wenger never gives these players a rest until they break down or can’t function.” 8.33pm BST20:33 Half-time: Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Arsenal And with that, the half-time whistle blows. Arsenal thought they had escaped. They were wrong. 8.30pm BST20:30 WHAT A GOAL! Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Arsenal (Immobile, 45 min) Ciro Immobile gives the rest of the class a lesson in finishing. This is an excellent goal and just what Dortmund deserve. The ball reached him on the halfway line and the fact he had no support didn’t bother Immobile. Instead he roared forward, showed great pace and strength to bustle in between limp challenges from Koscielny and Gibb, and then arrowed a deadly low right-footed finish across Szczesny and inside the far post. Updated at 8.45pm BST 8.29pm BST20:29 43 min: Mkhitarayan shoots wide again. This is becoming a recurring theme. He was teed up by a lovely pass from the right by Grosskreutz and may feel he should have hit the target from 20 yards, but instead dragged his effort badly wide. 8.27pm BST20:27 41 min: Is Danny Welbeck ruthless enough? The latest compelling evidence suggests that he is not. Moments after Arsenal had an escape up the other end when an Immobile pass intended to send Aubameyang clear was cut out, the visitors broke, a long clearance allowed to sneak through the middle and spark Welbeck’s interest. Durm’s covering challenge ran to Ramsey and he turned a clever pass through to Welbeck. He was clean through on goal but he stroked well wide of Weideneller’s right post. A poor miss. 8.24pm BST20:24 38 min: Sanchez has been dismal and now I’ve said that, he’ll score the winner, because it’s all about me. “I expect Shinji to come on, tear Arsenal apart and show Man Utd what they are missing,” says Mark Judd. “A man can dream.” Updated at 8.24pm BST 8.22pm BST20:22 37 min: Ozil swings a free-kick into the Dortmund area. Sanchez is unmarked as the ball reaches him. Excitement levels rise for a moment. But the flag is up for offside. “BVB should buy a winger named Strang so that one of their flanks would be Durm und Strang,” says Peter McMurry. “Sorry. I watched too much Monty Python as a kid.” 8.21pm BST20:21 36 min: “I think Wenger not purchasing another centre back while being Interreligious Match for Peace on transfer deadline represents a clear theological streak in his football philosophy,” says Matthew Wilhelm-Solomon. “Leaving years of patient team building work to be potentially ruined in a few injurious seconds is clearly a leap of faith of the highest order.” 8.21pm BST20:21 34 min: Another chance for Dortmund goes begging. Kehl was all over the surprisingly lethargic Sanchez like a cheap one and suddenly Arsenal were exposed. Kehl had options left, right and through the middle. However his pass to the right to Aubameyang was poor and meant that the ball slightly got stuck underneath the striker’s feet. He sorted himself out but his shot from a tight angle was pushed past the post by Szczesny. The corner’s cleared but Dortmund pile forward again, Schmelzer pinging a low effort on target from 25 yards. Szczesny holds. Updated at 9.10pm BST 8.18pm BST20:18 32 min: Mkhitaryan glides past an Arsenal midfielder to earn a sight of goal from 20 yards but he hammers a firm effort wide. “Please, don’t even bring up Marco Reus,” says Will Land. “I fear Bayern are reading your live blog and he will be bought before he’s even back from injury. No, I’m not bitter.” 8.17pm BST20:17 31 min: Will Dortmund regret those two misses? They were almost made to pay for them instantly. Gibbs showed excellent initiative with a driving run to the byline on the left, from where he hung a cross to the far post. Schmelzer and Weidenfeller made a mess of it together and the ball dropped to Welbeck but it wouldn’t come down quickly enough for him to turn it into the empty net and Weidenfeller was able to scoop it away from him. 8.16pm BST20:16 29 min: Now Mkhitaryan spurns a wonderful opportunity to give Dortmund the lead! A long pass down the left found Immobile haring away behind the Arsenal defence. He reached the ball before it went out and then tried to find Aubameyang at the far post for what would have been a tap-in. Szczesny managed to get down to get a hand to the ball and push it out, but only as far as Mkhitaryan, arriving at pace and ahead of Wilshere. A goal looked certain. He was six yards out. He blazed it over. What a glaring miss. 8.14pm BST20:14 27 min: Ahem. Dortmund should be ahead. Durm started the move by drifting inside from the right. He seemed to have hung on to the ball for too long but then it opened up for him, allowing him to roll a pass to the left to Grosskreutz, who was in acres of space. He instantly knocked a low cross towards the near post, where Aubameyang was unmarked. He sidefooted it goalwards from six yards with his right foot, opening up his body, but Szcznesy spread himself to make a fine save! Updated at 9.11pm BST 8.11pm BST20:11 25 min: Schmelzer lofts a straight free-kick into the Arsenal area. After a spot of head-tennis, Aubameyang nods harmlessly wide. After the opening 10 minutes, Arsenal are dealing with Dortmund’s threat with increasing comfort. They’re not keeping the ball well enough, though. 8.10pm BST20:10 24 min: As well as Dortmund are playing, when they get to the final third you can see that they are still a work in progress and that they are missing the cut and thrust of Marco Reus. There has been a lot of pressure but Wojciech Szczesny hasn’t been overworked. 8.07pm BST20:07 22 min: Immobile tries to score from 30 yards. But he doesn’t. 8.06pm BST20:06 20 min: Alexis Sanches puts the ball into the empty Dortmund net but the whistle had long gone for offside. He points to his ears, saying he couldn’t hear it over the din. He’s lucky the referee isn’t Massimo Busacca. 8.05pm BST20:05 19 min: Arsene Wenger isn’t happy. He thinks that Mkhitaryan, who’s already on a booking, has dived again in the middle of the park and gestures as such towards the referee, who’s not interested. The Armenian midfielder is on thin ice, though. 8.04pm BST20:04 18 min: Arsenal enjoy some decent possession. Whistles. Ear-splitting whistles. Until the flag goes up for offside against Sanchez. 8.03pm BST20:03 17 min: A moment of worry for Arsenal as Koscielny handles the ball on the edge of the area. But the referee has spotted that the Arsenal defender received a shove in the back and instead awards a free-kick to the visitors. 8.01pm BST20:01 16 min: After a neat lay-off from the influential Aubameyang, Ciro Immobile has a pop from 20 yards with his left foot. It goes wide. 8.00pm BST20:00 14 min: Sokratis wastes a fine chance for Dortmund. They took the corner short and the resulting cross from the right came to the Greek defender. But after a sharp piece of chest - or stomach - control, he snatched at his shot under pressure and turned it wide from eight yards. A let-off for Arsenal. 7.59pm BST19:59 13 min: An innocuous ball down the inside-right channel somehow bounces all the way through to Grosskreutz. His cross is turned behind by the covering Koscielny. 7.58pm BST19:58 12 min: It feels like Dortmund have managed to pack 90 minutes worth of running into the opening 10 minutes. The pace has just slowed down a little now. Arsenal won’t be too displeased with that. 7.56pm BST19:56 10 min: A loose pass from Mertesacker reaches Grosskreutz, who charges into the area from the left, only to be halted by Mertesacker. He settles for a corner, which is a total nonsense from Mkhitaryan. He’s not quite done it for Dortmund yet, has he? Maybe this is to be his night. 7.55pm BST19:55 9 min: Mesut Ozil is on the right of Arsenal’s attack at the moment, with Sanchez on the left, which means that Bellerin is being protected by Ozil. 7.54pm BST19:54 8 min: A lull. A lovely lull, a chance for everyone to catch their breath and for Arsenal to try and take the sting out of this start from Dortmund. 7.53pm BST19:53 7 min: Arsenal mount their first serious attack. Welbeck clatters into the area and seems to have won a corner off Sokratis. But the referee awards a goal-kick. Presumably because he hates Arsenal. 7.52pm BST19:52 5 min: Dortmund scream for a penalty as Mkhitaryan tumbles over Arteta’s leg in the area but instead the Portuguese referee books the midfielder for diving! It came from another lightning break down the right flank. Aubameyang found Mkhitaryan, who deftly tried to duck inside, past Arteta. He went down and the whistle sounded - but for a dive! It looked like the correct decision. Updated at 8.08pm BST 7.50pm BST19:50 4 min: This is breathless. Dortmund pour forward down the right again. Arsenal are overloaded down that side. Gibbs could do with some help. He’s not getting any. Immobile breaks clear and spots Aubameyang in the middle. The cross isn’t good enough but still reaches the Dortmund forward, who can’t quite turn and get his shot away. 7.49pm BST19:49 3 min: Immobile tries to lob a pass through to Aubameyang. There’s an appeal for handball. Nothing doing. Arsenal need to stay calm. “Arsenal fan here,” says Rohit Kapur. “It’s not even deja-vu anymore. For it to be deja-vu, it has to remind me of something in the past; this, however, is a permanent state that Arsenal seems to be living in for the last decade or so. Wenger seems be flexing the purse strings more these days, but why he refuses to patch the giant, gaping holes in the squad is just plain astounding. Flamini is a liability, as is Arteta in important games. We’ve got five defenders in total, which in our injury-plagued squad is a guarantee of disaster. And no disrespect to Welbeck or Giroud, but even at full strength, they aren’t a very fear-inducing pairing. I hope they prove me wrong, but I’m a wee bit too jaded these days.” 7.48pm BST19:48 2 min: In comes the corner from the right. It’s a dangerous delivery from Mkhitaryan and Wilshere awkwardly knees the ball over his own bar. Schmelzer takes the second corner. It’s headed away but Dortmund continue to press. Eventually Arsenal quell the storm. Dortmund have started at a furious pelt, as is their way. 7.47pm BST19:47 Off we go! Arsenal, kicking from right to left and wearing a navy number with a touch of light blue here and there, get the ball rolling and the Dortmund fans whistle. Immediately it’s launched long towards Welbeck. How very Allardyce. Nothing comes from it and Dortmund attack down the right. Aubameyang flashes in a cross which is cleared, but Mkhitaryan’s subsequent shot is deflected wide for a corner. 7.44pm BST19:44 The 74 officials are wearing grey shirts with white shorts and socks. I’m not sure how I feel about this. It feels wrong. 7.42pm BST19:42 Here come the players, walking out into a Yellow Wall of noise. Both sides are needlessly wearing tracksuit tops. They’ll be taking them off in a minute. What a waste of time. They banned snoods but they can’t do anything about this? 7.40pm BST19:40 Graeme Souness likes Jurgen Klopp because he doesn’t talk about “philosophy this, philosophy that” or about false nines. He finds him a breath of fresh air. He likes the no-nonsense, heavy metal approach. 7.37pm BST19:37 Arsenal fans. Are you happy with your club’s business this summer? Not bothered by not signing a defender or a midfielder? Happy with Danny Welbeck as the new Thierry Henry? Or are you experiencing a sense of deja vu? 7.07pm BST19:07 Wenger says that he knew that Chambers would only be fit enough for the bench at 2pm this afternoon and adds that Bellerin is defensively reliable. He also doesn’t think that Dortmund will target him. “He’s 19 years old,” he says. “If you don’t start at 19, you never start.” 7.05pm BST19:05 Paul Merson is growing a beard. How grown up. 6.59pm BST18:59 My colleague from the Independent, Jack Pitt-Brooke, is yet to work out how to spend his spare time properly and has therefore watched a lot of Arsenal’s Under-21s. Therefore he has seen Hector Bellerin play. Below he gives his prediction on how the Spaniard is going to fare tonight. Seen Hector Bellerin a fair bit at U21 level - he's v quick (was a winger before they moved him back) and tough. No idea how he'll do tho. 6.55pm BST18:55 Team news Borussia Dortmund: Weidenfeller; Durm, Sokratis, Subotic, Schmelzer; Bender, Kehl; Aubameyang, Mkhitaryan, Grosskreutz; Immobile. Subs: Langerak, Bandowski, Ginter, Jojic, Amini, Kagawa, Ramos. Arsenal: Szczesny; Bellerin, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Gibbs; Arteta, Wilshere; Sanchez, Ramsey, Ozil; Welbeck. Subs: Ospina, Chambers, Rosicky, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Cazorla, Campbell, Podolski. Referee: Olegário Benquerença (Portugal). Updated at 7.10pm BST 6.45pm BST18:45 I suppose you’ve forgotten just how good former Arsenal midfielder Denilson was. For shame. 6.30pm BST18:30 Preamble So, what to make of Arsenal? Well, they’ve shown their grit by coming through a difficult qualifier against Besiktas. The last-minute winner against Crystal Palace on the opening day of the season also suggested that steel is running through this side. So did the fightback from 2-0 down against Everton and from a goal down against Manchester City. Maybe we’ve got a new Arsenal on our hands, an Arsenal that won’t lie down and crumble at the first sign of trouble, an Arsenal with resilience and heart, an Arsenal that can handle the pressure of playing big matches, an Arsenal that has grown from past failures. Jack Wilshere is finding his form and they’ve splashed the cash on Alexis Sanchez, a player who can be placed in the top bracket, and spent £16m on Danny Welbeck, England’s new hero. On the other hand, it could be said that they were fortunate to escape unscathed against Besiktas. That they weren’t especially convincing against managerless Palace. That the only reason they had to come from behind against Everton was because they messed up the first half. That they couldn’t hold on against City. That Welbeck’s chip against the champions shows why Manchester United were willing to sell him to direct rivals. And that Arsene Wenger’s decision to sign neither a commanding midfielder nor another centre-back proves that not every lesson from the past has been taken on board. Nothing like a good healthy debate about everyone’s favourite activity, football! When it comes to assessing Arsenal, it seems that there always has to be a caveat. They are an excellent side. But are they a great side? They play fantastic football. But at the highest level, is it winning football? They won the FA Cup. But can they win the league or the Champions League? It could be that we are going round in circles. The temptation is to say no to all those questions; forget the FA Cup, they will prove nothing until they prove something, nothing will change until something has changed. In that sense, it is a little unfair to be critical at this stage. After all, they have a fine squad with some of the best players in Europe. They are in the Champions League every season and they won a trophy last year. In fact, they have already won a trophy this season, beating City in the Community Shield. Can they take the next step, though? Can they? Can they take the next step? If you put a gun to my head - and I don’t know why you would, I’m a nice enough chap, but let’s run with this - I would have to say, no, Arsenal won’t win the league, Arsenal won’t win the Champions League - they’re undoubtedly improving and maturing in all areas, but there was naivety in the way they tried to defend their lead against City on Saturday, they haven’t upgraded on Mikel Arteta or Mathieu Flamini and now they have a defensive shortage because of an injury crisis that everyone saw coming once it became apparent that Wenger didn’t want to sign an additional centre-back this summer. With Mathieu Debuchy and Nacho Monreal injured and Calum Chambers struggling with tonsillitis, Arsenal are in Germany with only three senior centre-backs and word is that the Spanish youngster, Hector Bellerin, will start at right-back. Maybe it will all work out and Bellerin will be fine. But without the benefit of hindsight, this feels like an oversight. That said, Arsenal should not be overawed about facing Borussia Dortmund tonight. It’s an intimidating ground, the Westfalenstadion, but Arsenal have a better recent record there than most, denied victory in the last minute in 2011 and inspired by a Ramsey goal last year. And although there is worry over Arsenal’s injuries, spare a thought for Dortmund. As if seeing Robert Lewandowski follow Mario Gotze to Bayern Munich wasn’t enough, poor old Jurgen Klopp has to contend with injuries to Mats Hummels, Ilkay Gundogan, Jakub Blaszczykowski, Nuri Sahin and Marco Reus. Another test of Arsenal’s credentials, then, and plenty will be read into it whatever the outcome, but it’s one that they might just pass with flying colours. Kick-off: 7.45pm. |