Were Arsenal sloppy or Bayern the best team we've faced at Emirates?

By Avenell Dave

It comes to something when you get messages after a game from M*nure, T*tt*nh*m and Liverpool fans saying that they feel sorry for you.

I can take banter, I can take mockery but I can't handle pity from my rivals.

I had another look at the Arsenal Facebook page last night and the vitriol directed towards the club, the manager and even the players was nothing short of a disgrace.

Where is the class? As @Arseblog put it this morning, it was great that the real fans drowned out the chorus of boos as they echoed at the end of the first half and the end of the game.

We all had reason to lambast the referee but the fact that thousands around me applauded both Arsenal and Bayern speaks volumes for the class that too many on social media seem to have forgotten.

Some people said to me that they thought Bayern were a better team than any of the Barca sides we have faced - and while it's a tough call, I know what he meant.

They have some superb players, make no mistake, but they also work incredibly hard, they're organised and they know how to suck the life out of opponents without wasting their own energy. And they're clinical.

The sad fact is that in the cold light of day, we have some really good players, but we lack the organisation and strategy to help them work well together.

Arsene Wenger sides will always have an attacking focus but stopping the opposition from playing and making it hard to score has to be a priority and too many sides in the past few years have torn us apart with ease.

You got the sense last night, apart from a 15-20 minute spell in the second half, that Bayern were even playing within themselves, chipping away and waiting for openings.

It would be easy to lament the fact that we looked vulnerable on the left, that Thomas Vermaelen never looks comfortable at left back and additionally that he didn't get the support he required.

It would be easy to look at Wojciech Szczesny's performances and wonder if the Pole is not going backwards. Just looking at his kicking last night and even when under pressure, he rarely found a team-mate, let alone the halfway line, when Manuel Neuer could get the ball halfway into our half even when being closed down.

Szczesny could certainly have done better on the second and third goals as well.

All focus now has to be on getting fourth place and I believe we can still do it but the Club needs to start working on addressing the inherent problems we can all see before we really are a fallen giant and part of the also-rans.

We need fresh blood, new ideas, new routines and new players.

Then, let's hear from the owner, not just Ivan Gazidis, about the strategy and back it up with signings that will galvinise the players, excite the fans and make us contenders for all the trophies once again.

We are not far off, and the 'crisis' could be far far worse, but we need to start going forward because for far too long we've been going backwards and fans are starting to vote with their feet.