Arsenal's Champions League group stage couldn't have gotten off to a crappier start as we lost 2-0 to Borussia Dortmund in a game in which the scoreline didn't reflect how thoroughly dominated we were. Dortmund was the superior team from start to finish, while on the other hand Arsenal was sloppy and lethargic. It was an extremely worrying performance on a big stage, but all we can do now is regroup and focus on beating Aston Villa this weekend.
The only two bright spots in defeat were Wojciech Szczesny's play in goal and the full debut of Hector Bellerin. If it weren't for some outstanding saves from Szczesny (as well as some pretty bad misses by Dortmund) we would have been subjected to another five or six-nil loss reminiscent of last season, which is the last thing we need. Szczesny did come way out of goal and get easily rounded by Aubameyang on their second goal, but the defending leading up to that was so bad that it may not have mattered.
Bellerin also stepped in and performed well at right back, considering he's only 19 and it was in a very intimidating European venue. I love everything about the Dortmund fans and the atmosphere they provide is the envy of any club, I just wish we didn't have to keep facing them. It would be great if Bellerin is ready to contribute at right back for us this year, all of the buzz around him has been how good of a prospect he could be. However, between him and fellow teenager Calum Chambers, it's a lot to expect them to consistently produce, especially as defenders. If Bellerin has a season as close to the one that Serge Gnabry had last season, that would be incredible. But with Debuchy out for so long, we may not have to luxury to manage his minutes the same way and it could negatively impact his development, as well as Arsenal's results.
One more silver lining, though, is that Galatasaray and Anderlecht played to a 1-1 draw, so the fact that they both dropped points helps us early on in our group's standing. Still, when a team like Arsenal can't string passes together or simply retain the ball, it's always going to be a struggle for us. It was another lackluster performance by Özil, which gets more worrying with each game that has to be said. But for that matter, the same could be said for Wilshere, Ramsey, and Arteta, among others, and I feel that they'll be able to turn it around. Welbeck's misses in front of goal didn't help matters, either. We knew what his goalscoring record was before we signed him and now he'll have to come into his own, which again I believe he will do. Whenever a striker is new, there is extra pressure on him to score that first goal so once that happens, I think he'll have one less thing to worry about.
Our performance last Saturday against Man City was much better, so hopefully we can get back to playing like we did that day. It's also worth mentioning that this was our first official loss of 2014-15, it was just the way we lost which was inexcusable. Arsene may have to consider whether this formation can work with our players or not. Whatever the case, we have to put this game behind us and make up some ground in the Premier League with a win in our next game.
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