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Living in London and playing 5 aside in Finsbury Park on a Thursday night DOES have its advantages, as one of the lads, an Arsenal fan, has a spare ticket for this evening’s Europa League quarter final with AC Milan, a game I considered trying to get a ticket for anyway (until I realised I’d rather play footie). Our match finished 8pm, Arsenal kicked-off 8:05. No worries, we’ll only miss a few mins.
As it is, I’m on my expensive bike, with the cheap lock. There’s no way I’m leaving that outside the Emirates. It also brings back memories of the night Northern Ireland beat England, when I was parked up at the Michael Sobell Leisure Centre and someone kicked in one of my wheels while I watched the match in a nearby pub. Danny lived nearby, so I borrowed a decent lock and scuttled to the Emirates.
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| No mistaking which end I'm in. |
Course, following playing, I was a bit hungry, so I parked up and raided the local Co-op. There was no way I was paying Emirates’ food prices, even if I was getting in for free. And despite knowing my alphabet, I still ended up walking ¾ of the way around the stadium to whatever entrance it was at the North Bank End.
The seat was superb, upper tier, near the front, right behind the goal. Mustn’t complain. Not sure I was dressed for it tho, in shorts and luminous cycling jacket, but it was a mild evening and, for once, most of the Arsenal fans had turned up. There was a sniff of glory in the air.
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| The scene is set...20 mins in and no goals. |
Two-nil up from the 1st leg, this would surely be a formality. So up stepped Hakan Calhanoglu to hammer one in from 25 yards, bottom corner. OK, a long way out, but it was hit perfectly so I’m loathe to blame Ospina in goal. The next three minutes were my favourite of the match, as tension was in the air and the home fans’ confidence noticeably ebbed.
No need to worry though. There’ll always be an Arsenal player capable of falling over and gaining a penalty. In this case, Welbeck is blown over by a mysterious gust of wind. The ref isn’t fooled and plays on. Unfortunately, the 4th (5th?) official says he was touched and the ref changes his mind. Welbeck recovers to put the penalty away. Game over. Half-time came and I even bumped into another couple of Arsenal mates. 'Guess who's an Arsenal fan for the night?' I asked. 'Well, if you're a proper Arsenal fan, you'll have to leave 15 minutes before the end.' Who says Arsenal fans lack self-deprecation?
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| Milan players salute their fans at full-time. |
Thereafter, it’s mostly Arsenal. They’re all about confidence, and now AC can’t live with them. Still, it takes an almighty botch up by Milan keeper Donnarumma to put Arsenal ahead, as he fumbles Xhaka’s long ranger over the line. Then, late on, Welbeck seal it, scoring heading in a rebound from close range after Ramsay’s effort was saved. In the end, it’s easy, 5-1 on aggregate.
Milan fans bounce around like there's no tomorrow, while Arsenal celebrate by either leaving the stadium or chanting reserve keeper Ospina's name (I think, cos Milan fans were chanting something to whatever tune Arsenal fans chant 'Ospina') Deep down, I’m quite pleased for the Arse. Perhaps if they win this tournament, they can hang on to Arsene for another season of filling the airwaves with their moaning. I hope so. It's one of life's small pleasures.
The Damage: free ent (cheers Mani!)
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| Players take their applause. |
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| Arsenal fans salute their heroes (!) |
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| and most fans have left before the players. |
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