AC Milan 0-2 Arsenal: 5 Talking Points

Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Aaron Ramsey combined to sink Milan in the first leg of the Europa League last 16 at the San Siro, as Arsenal arrested their four-game losing run in quite an emphatic fashion.

The torrid run of results in the recent weeks had the Gunners on the backfoot, but a much-improved display here should soothe the frayed nerves.

Arsenal dominated the proceedings for a good measure of the first-half and effectively killed the tie with two strikes in the same period, while Milan were guilty of missing several gilt-edged chances post the break in what was a lacklustre show from the Serie A giants.

The result leaves the North Londoners with all but one foot in the quarter-finals as Milan are left with a mountain to climb in the return leg next week. Let's discuss the main talking points:

#1 Arsenal stepped up to the plate

A much improved Arsenal — A much-improved Arsenal

The atmosphere surrounding the red half of North London had never been more dreadful. A run of four consecutive and dire defeats not only had massive tensions simmering in the camp, but also the fans baying for Arsene Wenger's head. Arsenal's season was collapsing spectacularly and they entered this tie in arguably the worst frame of mind.

But as Arsenal have done in recent times, they stepped up to the plate again when the odds were stacked heavily against them and grabbed an unlikely win.

The visitors made a meal of Milan's limp defence to pull two clear by the stroke of half-time. Although they fell back a bit in the second-half and allowed the hosts back into the contest, the Rossoneri weren't formidable enough to stage a comeback as Arsenal managed to win comprehensively.

#2 Wasteful Milan have only themselves to blame

Giancomo Bonaventura missed 2 clear cut chances — Giacomo Bonaventura missed 2 clear cut chances

Arsenal definitely deserve their share of credit for a good performance, but that isn't to say Milan weren't without their chances too. The hosts managed to create a handful of opportunities going forward, especially in the second half but were undone by some poor and painfully wayward finishing.

The first of the lot was by Patrick Cutrone, who mindlessly slotted into the side-netting when he only had David Ospina to beat, but Giacomo Bonaventura was culpable of missing arguably their best chance on the night when he lashed an effort into row Z with almost half the goal gaping. Milan produced numerous chances from both flanks, but acutely lacked the cutting edge to finish it off.

On a night they mustered 16 shots - twice as much as Arsenal - only a solitary effort was directed on target, summing up the otherwise profligate finishing the Rossoneri were guilty of.

#3 Mkhitaryan bursts into life

Following a hat-trick of assists on his impressive debut against Everton last month, Mkhitaryan faded into mediocrity as Arsenal had a dramatic decline of form. The Armenian still had a lot to prove with his new club, and the goal last night might just be the start of an incredible run.

The former Dortmund ace was lively throughout the night and held his own, getting the creative juices flowing and making intelligent runs.

Mkhitaryan started it all off with an amazing strike - deftly chesting down a cross from Ozil, the Arsenal No.7 evaded his marker with a quick sidestep before launching a shot that deflected into the back of the net for his maiden strike with his new side. He nearly bagged a second when he rattled the crossbar just a few minutes later.

Mkhitaryan arrived at Arsenal with a point to prove after seeing his stature deteriorate in the second season with Manchester United. And even though he doesn't get among the goals so regularly, this particular one today should do him a world of good.

#4 Milan wilt under pressure

The Rossoneri entered the tie on the back of a 14-match unbeaten run in all competitions and also maintaining an enviable record of a clean sheet in each of the last five games. So basically, they were clearly the favourites on paper and also better placed to win. But games aren't won on paper and the Milan of last night were a poor imitation of their recent selves.

Listless in attack and leaky at the back, the home side seemed to have suddenly forgotten all their good performances in recent weeks and everything that could go wrong did go wrong as Arsenal turned up the heat. Milan, very meekly, gave in and the nervous performance showcased the same.

On a night where the Serie A giants should've complimented the aforementioned stats, they rather ended up folding themselves. Skipper Leonardo Bonucci just reaffirmed it in a post-match conference when he enunciated that Milan "were scared" .

#5 Ozil leads Arsenal's midfield revival

Arsenal's midfield functioned like a cohesive unit

A bulk of the criticism fired during Arsenal's poor run of four defeats had its midfield at the receiving end of it. The palpable lack of creativity and ideas through the middle rendered Arsenal grossly impuissant and ineffective. That had to change if Arsenal were to get back to winning ways, and much to the respite of the increasingly disgruntled fans, Wenger engineered just that.

Whilst we've already discussed the blinder put up by Mkhitaryan, Mesut Ozil was at the heart of the much-improved midfield. He not only won his duels, but was also directly involved in both away goals that Arsenal mustered as he first laid a cross to set up Mkhitaryan, whilst the through ball back to Aaron Ramsey for the second was as precise as it could get.

The Welshman, on the other hand, nonchalantly rounded Gianluigi Donnarumma to slot home into an empty net. The link-up play in the build-up was terrific, and Arsenal fans will be hoping that their much-maligned midfield puts in good performances until the end of the season.

Edited by Ashwin Hanagudu