The stage had been set for the former Montpellier striker, as he entered the tie in excellent form, with eight goals in 11 appearances and plenty of plaudits to massage his ego.
But everything fell apart for Olivier Giroud in the short period after half-time, when he missed a hat-trick of chances. They came in ascending order of gruesomeness, with the third – lifted over the crossbar from close-range – the prompt for howls from the crowd at the Emirates Stadium. He was substituted moments later, making way for Theo Walcott on the hour, and, it was fair to say, few Arsenal fans were sad to see him depart.
2) Ospina will not enjoy replays of his bow on the big stage
This was a Champions League debut for David Ospina, the sort of opportunity he would have dreamed about when he joined Arsenal from Nice. The goalkeeper was rarely employed in the first half until the moment when Geoffrey Kondogbia let fly from 25 yards and the ball deflected off Per Mertesacker. It was horrible to see just how wrong-footed Ospina was while the shot flashed into the very centre of his net – factors that added up to an irritating concession. It was easy to question Ospina’s lack of reaction, even though the ball was travelling at pace. He would recover to make a smart save from Anthony Martial on 62 minutes.
3) Wenger will fume after getting caught on the counter again
Arsène Wenger had laboured the point beforehand. On the back of conceding damaging away goals in the Champions League knockout phase in recent seasons, it was imperative that Arsenal kept things tight this time. But there was plenty of head-shaking when Kondogbia was afforded yards of space in front of the back four in which to advance and shoot for the first while goals two and three came after Wenger’s team were caught cold on the counter. Mertesacker lost his bearings completely on the second and it was shocking to see Arsenal being exposed two-on-one as early as the 55th minute.
4) Monaco disrupt Arsenal’s rhythm despite absentees
Nobody breaches Monaco easily. Les Monégasques had arrived with an astonishing defensive record, having conceded only three times in their previous 17 matches in all competitions, but there had been fears for them here. In short, none of their first-choice back four was playing at the back (Fabinho, the regular right-back, was in midfield) while Jérémy Toulalan, the midfield screen, was suspended. But Leonardo Jardim’s team made light of the setbacks with a well-drilled and athletic performance. They massed men round the ball and threw themselves into the challenge. Arsenal could not find their rhythm.
5) Berbatov: the connoisseur’s choice of centre-forward
What is there not to like about Dimitar Berbatov, the strolling centre-forward who was born to play in a millionaire playboy’s paradise? Unsurprisingly he is loving life in Monaco. There was something soothing about his return to England and the 34-year-old decorated the tie with his glorious touch and a few extravagant moments. His first involvement was jeered by the crowd but there was little venom towards the former Spurs striker. Booing him just feels wrong. Monaco’s top scorer never looked like blowing his chance against Ospina on the counterattack in the second half.
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