UEFA Champions League: Borussia Dortmund 2-0 Arsenal

The Gunners got their Champions League campaign off to the worst possible start as they were comfortably beaten by Dormund thanks to goals from Ciro Immobile and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The home side dominated the game and if it weren’t for the post and Szczesny, they would have scored a lot more and inflicted a much heavier defeat on the Gunners.Here are the major talking points from the game.

#1 Dortmund\'s dynamism proves too much for the Gunners

After the transfer window slammed shut, all the talk was about how a front three of Welbeck, Sanchez and Walcott was going to give Arsenal attack a blistering pace, the likes of which it has never had. Although Walcott still isn't back from injury, the game against Dortmund showed just why many don't think of Arsenal as a genuine title contender.

For all of the talk of the pace in Arsenal's attack, it was the Gunners who couldn't contend with the speed of the Dortmund attack. Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker couldn't live with the speed with which the home side swept forward on the counter. Lacking a genuine defensive midfielder who could nip the attack in its bud, the two centre backs were time and again exposed and could do nothing about flurry of Dortmund attackers who came forward almost at will. In the end, the Gunners were lucky that it was only 2-0 and not something more embarrassing.

#2 Immobile and co. show there is life after Lewandowski

With the loss of Robert Lewandowski to Bayern Munich, many felt that this was a hole that was too deep for even Jurgen Klopp to dig his way out of it. Especially, given the fact that he left for free and the club, unlike previous transfers were unable to make any money out of his departure. Not only was the Polish striker crucial to everything that Dortmund did over the last few years, his departure now meant that they had to spend a lot of money to replace him in order to maintain their lofty standards.

Over the summer, Klopp signed two strikers to replace the Polish international. Against Arsenal, Klopp started with Ciro Immobile and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang up front, with Henrikh Mkhitaryan joining the duo from the right flank. Even with the absence of their star playmaker in Marco Reus, the front two gave the Dortmund faithful plenty of reasons for cheer. Immobile and Aubameyang scored either side of half-time to give the home side a comfortable victory, but it wasn't just the goals, but their work-rate and ability to influence the game that would have pleased Klopp. With Adrian Ramos, the club's leading scorer in the League on the bench, Dortmund now have three world class strikers in place of one.

#3 Familiar failings come back to haunt the Gunners

Although this was the biggest transfer window in many a year for Arsenal, there were still question marks about whether they had spent the money wisely. There were those who questioned Wenger's decision to go for another attacking midfielder in Alexis Sanchez, when the club had so many attackers and little cover in defensive midfield. And the club's acquisition of Welbeck, raised even more eyebrows as it meant that the club were signed a striker who was still raw in terms of his finishing, when the club needed the finished article.

The game against Dortmund proved all those doubters right. Injuries meant that Wenger was forced to call upon a teenager Hector Bellerin to fill in at right back and that meant that they started the game on the back foot. In the game, the side's biggest problem was the lack of an enforcer in central midfield who could harry and hound the opposing players. Arteta proved to be as useful as a bag of sand in that role and up front Welbeck's profligacy in front of goal meant that the Gunners had to come away from Germany with nothing to show for their efforts, when it could've been so different had Welbeck taken his chance just before Dortmund scored their first.

#4 Dortmund better equipped to deal with injuries

Before the start of the game, Arsene Wenger was forced to throw teenager Hector Bellerin into the deep end. With Mathieu Debuchy, Calum Chambers and Mathieu Flamini all injured, the Frenchman's defensive options which were limited to began with, got even worse. But it wasn't as though they were facing a full-strength Dortmund side who were without injuries of their own. The home side were missing their main attacker in Marco Reus and their World Cup-winning centre back Mats Hummels.

Although both sides were missing some key personnel, it was the home side who came out trumps. Even with the loss of their best player season after season, the side's ability to bounce back and get back to winning ways is a testament to not just Jurgen Klopp but also the club's scouting network. Already this season the side have snapped up Immobile and Ramos, two first-class forwards to replace Lewandowski and a future German star in Matthias Ginter at the back. For all of Arsenal's spending, they still didn't address the key areas of the squad and that came back to bite them in the end, probably not for the last time this season.

#5 Arsenal might have to settle for second spot.. again

Before the start of the Champions League, all the talk was about how Arsenal had to finish first in the group this time around in order to avoid the big sides in the Round of 16. After their game against Dortmund in which they were soundly beaten, they might have to make do with second spot yet again. The Gunners looked listless against the German side, whose pace, pressing and penetration was too much for them.

With a crucial home game against Galtasaray in two weeks time, the Gunners need to be a lot sharper and quicker with and without the ball if they are to get their Champions League campaign back on the right track. For Dortmund on the other hand, the victory proved that they can still flourish in the Champions League, even if their best players get taken from them season after season.