A loss at home to Ostersunds.
Two consecutive losses to Manchester City, one in a cup final which underlined the disparity between our club and the current top group of Premier League teams.
Then a humbling loss to Brighton.
So a trip to the San Siro is exactly what the doctor ordered.
Our visit to AC Milan pretty much holds our season in its result. The Europa League, however small the chances are, is the only hope of glory in what has been a horrible campaign. The aim, with our confidence levels so low, has to be to gain any semblance of a result that we can pin hope to for the return leg.
An away goal would be handy, but Gennaro Gattuso has instilled a backbone in his side, and two consecutive 0-0 draws versus Lazio recently saw them through to the Coppa Italia final and underlined their defensive merits.
That will be down to the costly but necessary addition of Leonardo Bonucci, who was part of the granite-like triumvirate at Juventus that also had Giorgio Chiellini and Andrea Barzagli. Bonucci is taking to Milan life quite well, and Milan, while not resurgent, are showing signs of life in Serie A.
We’ll most likely have to make do without the talents of Nacho Monreal, as the Spaniard is nursing a back complaint. He has a small chance of making the game, but Sead Kolasinac stands by. Hector Bellerin is missing out with a knee complaint too, so Calum Chambers will slot in.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is cup-tied after appearing for BVB earlier in the season, and with Alexandre Lacazette injured and making his way back to fitness, that leaves Danny Welbeck. The striker is a great addition to the squad with his endless running, his teamplay and tracking back. His finishing though? Not exactly clinical. Let’s hope we create plenty of chances.
Eddie Nketiah could play a bigger part than normal, being the sole back-up, and the youngster would learn an awful lot with an appearance in such a grand arena as the San Siro.
In midfield, Granit Xhaka has played almost every minute of our dire run and has shown very little change. Aaron Ramsey missed the loss to Brighton and is expected to be involved in some capacity, but will he partner Mohamed Elneny, Jack Wilshere or Xhaka? Previous games say the Swiss midfielder will win this race.
AC Milan rested Fabio Borini during the Coppa Italia semi-final, and his extensive knowledge of the English game could be enough for him to gain a place in the starting lineup, although Suso and Crutone may have something to say about that.
This Last16 tie is an opportunity to gain a little bit of confidence and also to dispel the talk of Arsenal being incapable of going past this stage. Our consecutive losses at this stage in the Champions League have put doubt to our European credentials, and it’s quite simply ludicrous.
Milan could well extend the run though. They have the squad and the atmosphere at the San Siro will be white hot. Can we actually play like the team we’re meant to be, instead of strangers on the pitch? The last month says no.
We need to bounce back now, and if we don’t we could find ourselves in that tired scenario where we have nothing to play for in the second leg.
Game over man, game over.
Predicted Lineup – Ospina, Chambers, Mustafi, Koscielny, Kolasinac, Xhaka, Ramsey, Ozil, Mkhitaryan, Iwobi, Welbeck
Predicted Scoreline – 2-1 to Milan I fear, but that would be enough to give us a fighting chance back at The Emirates.
Up The Arsenal 