Here’s what happened in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday, in case you missed it…
The results
Watch match highlights: Arsenal 0, Bayern Munich 2 | AC Milan 0, Atletico Madrid 1
Read match reports: Bayern impresses at the Emirates | Costa gives Atletico slender lead
Three thoughts on the day
1. Bayern grinds it out: It took Bayern Munich close to an hour to break down Arsenal, who were reduced to 10 men just before half time when goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny clattered into Arjen Robben. And had Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil converted from the penalty spot early on, we might have had a different game on our hands. But Bayern remained patient—perhaps, their greatest virtue—and didn’t get flustered. Instead, they kept at it, grinding the Gunners down with their crisp passing and making Arsenal chase them. Bayern’s Toni Kroos put on a master-class showing, completing 152 passes for a game high 96.7 percent success rate. By comparison, Jack Wilshere made the most passes for Arsenal, with 30. In total, Bayern Munich made 863 passes compared to Arsenal’s 222. The Germans also enjoyed 73 percent possession, in large part due to captain Phillip Lahm. The German’s elegance on the ball was something to behold, and the way he calmly picked out teammates with simple but precise passes allowed Bayern to dictate the pace. It was Lahm’s delivery that led to both goals —just reward for a dominant performance from the reigning European champions on English soil
2. Courtois to the rescue for Atletico: Take a bow, Thibaut Courtois. The Belgian goalkeeper had a blinder of a game for Atletico Madrid, coming up with a number of great saves as AC Milan laid siege on Los Colchoneros’ penalty area in the first half. Kaka, Andrea Poli and others were thwarted on the night by the on-loan shot stopper, as Courtois, at age 21, demonstrated why he is one of the best goalkeeping prospects in the world. Truth be told, the Italians deserved far more, and a draw would have been a fair result based solely on the balance of play. But Courtois’s heroics set the stage for Atletico to net a late winner through Diego Costa, as the Spaniards scurried out of San Siro with a valuable road goal in the bag. With efforts such as this one, you have to wonder how much longer Chelsea will loan out Courtois, even with Petr Cech showing no signs of slowing down.
3. Ozil’s poor form continues: Mesut Ozil was far from his best on Wednesday, with the German continuing a recent string of poor performances after taking the Premier League by storm following a summer transfer move to Arsenal. Ozil was soft against Bayern: Soft in the tackle, soft in his defensive duties and soft in tracking runs—just soft. His tame penalty miss early in the first half set the tone for what turned out to be one of his worst games in an Arsenal uniform. If ever the Gunners needed Ozil to shine and influence the game with his unique brand of attacking verve, this was it. But the German was a non-factor against his countrymen, and the game sped by him. Could it be that Arsene Wenger has relied too much on Ozil, and that the French manager should have done a better job of managing his playing time up until this point of the campaign?
Stat of the day
100 – The 100 red cards for Arsenal under Arsene Wenger have been given to 50 different players & against 42 different opponents. Info.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) February 19, 2014
Goal of the day
There can only be one choice. Bayern finally broke the deadlock against Arsenal in the 54th minute as Philipp Lahm rolled a pass back for Toni Kroos who smacked it first time into the top corner.
Save of the day
Thibaut Courtois made a handful of highlight reel stops for Atletico Madrid versus Milan, with his best effort coming in the 18th minute. Adel Taarabt whipped a pinpoint cross from the right flank deep into the box that Andrea Poli powerfully headed towards goal. It looked destined for the corner, but Courtois made a sensational diving stop to tip it onto the post and out of danger.
Question of the day
[polldaddy poll=7813416]
Tweet of the day
Yes, he should…
Philipp Lahm won't ever have big scoring statistics, but he should be a more realistic Ballon d'Or candidate pretty much every year, no?
— Grant Wahl (@GrantWahl) February 19, 2014
3 stars
1) Toni Kroos: The German international was absolutely sublime in his passing, and he scored that magnificent goal that sent Bayern on its way to victory.
2) Thibaut Courtois: The Belgian goalkeeper had a great day at the office, keeping Milan off the score sheet and allowing Atletico to escape San Siro with a win.
3) Philipp Lahm: The Bayern captain was elegant in possession the entire game, showed great patience in his distribution, and set up both goals.
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