Between them they have 16 titles and 24 finals in two languages. And that’s how it’ll stay for this year.

Milan fell to an outstanding Arsenal side yesterday 2-0 in the second leg of their Champions League after a scoreless draw in England. The task was daunting for the young gunners given that no English side has ever tasted victory at the majestic San Siro.

From the onset, observers described this showdown – while drooling - as one in which seasoned sophisticated experience was pitted against youthful, talented exuberance. As it turned out, Arsenal's assets prevailed.

Over the course of two-legs (as opposed to two-arms. I know bad joke), the Gunners were clearly the better side as Milan constantly searched for its identity. The heartbeat of Milan, Andrea Pirlo, never really found his form and Arsenal isolated Kaka effectively. Clarence Seedorf, so often a monster performer for Milan, was injured for the second leg and his absence was felt in the middle of the pitch.

For Arsenal, this was a coming of age outing of sorts for Cesc Fabregas. Still, it wasn’t just Fabregas who impressed. Emmanuel Adebayor, William Gallas, and Mathieu Flamini were all splendid in their respective roles.

The loss is tough to swallow but Milan and their fans can keep their heads high. They tasted enormous success in tournaments in recent years. To their credit, they heaped nothing but admiration before and after upon Arsenal. That's what champions are supposed to do.

Now the rossoneri have some decisions to make in retooling their own arsenal – excuse the pun.

As for Arsenal, I suspect they are quite capable of winning the tournament.

For their part, in recent years, the Champions League has not been kind to Real Madrid.

Madrid hoped to change this after they were pitted against AS Roma in the round of 16.
Real Madrid had every right to feel confident. On the other hand, the Romans have slowly grown into a world class side. As a result, the two sides gave fans everything they expected: stylish and fluid soccer.