Arsenal 3-0 AC Milan: Champions League Match from a Chelsea Fan's Perspective

Arsenal crashed out of the Champions League Tuesday after mounting a near epic comeback from four goals down to AC Milan at the Emirates.

There were three games that started at 2:45 pm EST on Tuesday: Benfica vs Zenit St. Petersburg, Arsenal vs. Milan and Chelsea vs. Birmingham. Not able to subscribe to Fox Soccer without paying an extra $20 a month, I am forced to choose between the three of which I will stream on my computer.

The first option is out because it's Benfica vs. Zenit, need I say more? And the second, because, well, it’s not my team.

So I sit down in my small studio apartment in Brooklyn with a can of Dr. Pepper and computer on my lap to see if Chelsea’s newest manager in the ever-revolving carousel of caretakers can lead them over the big and mighty Championship side Birmingham in the fifth round of the FA Cup.

Less than 25 minutes in I find myself examining the contents of my soda (did you know the only difference between Coke and Dr. Pepper is in the sodium content?) rather than paying attention to the dull drab of an increasingly inept Fernando Torres and the droll possession of an aimless midfield.

I decide to just have a quick look at the other scores just to see what’s going on and all of a sudden, BAM! Like a diamond bullet right through my forehead (for the film buffs out there), Arsenal had a chance.

I quickly lost interest in the Chelsea game and switched over to watch the Gunners as they attempted to mount a historic comeback from four goals down to AC Milan and advance to the Champions League quarterfinals.

In the end it would be too much to overcome, and though they did not win the game, they may take small consolation in knowing that those 65 minutes I tuned in won them a fan.

I know it may seem blasphemous for a Chelsea fan to look upon the great feats of Arsenal history in respect, but we all do (some just make it more cynical and, thus, it becomes jealousy.

We have always been trying to mimic what our neighbors to the north have done over the decades, establishing a strong youth academy and a tenured manager who has a vision backed by a history of success. What do you think was the purpose of hiring Andre Villas-Boas in the first place?

I make no claim to some kind of historic rivalry that exists between the two sides. Chelsea fans try to make it out into some greater battle for the pride of London, when I’m sure you Gunners just see us as the pesky new guy in town swooning away your publicity, providing nothing more than being different.

But I am not your average fan. I don’t have a rabid passion that will keep me from sleeping after a bad loss or some kind of ill-conceived belief that what the team does affect me in daily life. I respect sports exactly for what it is: a trivial little contest between men (or women) for the pure means of entertainment, both in physical performance on the field and the exaggerated male soap dramas off it.

So, when I saw Robin van Persie blast that third goal into the top right corner from the penalty, I did not loathe the thought of Arsenal bettering Chelsea in Europe. I stood up and cooed like a school girl being asked to prom by the hot guy in school.

I watched the rest of the match with the vigor and passion I have not expressed for a Chelsea game in what seems like months. The pace, the flow, the stakes were all at a high, keeping me on the edge of my seat and interested in what would happen next.

I felt like I did three years ago eagerly awaiting the newest episode of Lost, and just like the show was back then, Arsenal was a complete departure from what I was used to.

Chelsea has always been a dull team to watch, but winning kept intrigue in every match. The play was direct, and often moments of brute force outweighed any kind of development in style. However, it was effective.

Villas-Boas was brought in to change this, but instead only made things more difficult to stand. The play was as bland as ever, and without the wins to justify it, he was eventually given the axe.

Never had I felt such disinterest in watching a Chelsea match as I had this season. For the first time, I was simply doing it to write the article and not for the enjoyment. I was no longer a real fan. I was no longer watching sports for what it is meant to be.

I have always had a passing interest in Arsenal to the degree that it was a rival of Chelsea’s in the EPL. I am aware of the goings-on at Emirates, but rarely ever stopped to appreciate them to any effect.

However, with a dog that refuses to let me sleep in on the weekends, and Arsenal the early game two weeks ago against Tottenham, I figure why not give it a go. What I saw did not disappoint. One of the most spectacular sporting events I had seen all season—nothing but pure entertainment.

Again, the next weekend, dog wants to pee, I want to sleep—dog always wins. And so did Arsenal as they played an absolutely abysmal 90 minutes of football, but were still able to edge out Liverpool in a North/South rivalry.

And then there was Tuesday. This time no animal forced me to watch what I may have not otherwise. It was a purely personal choice to prefer the beautiful aesthetic of 11 men working in unison toward one albeit meaningless goal.

It was the only result of the three that did not bode well for the club and its fans. Both walked away from the game with heads hung low as a valiant effort was just not enough.

But I, as a Chelsea fan, was gleaming with joy, and not in some kind of malicious mode of vengeance and disrespect for what Arsenal had done to my beloved Blues earlier in the season. No, it was nothing but respect for a team that not only gets what it means to play the game, but what it means to play a sport.

Thank you Arsenal. You will never be my favorite London club, but you will always remind me that out there someone gets what all this nonsense is really about.

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