Dinamo Zagreb vs. Arsenal: Score and Reaction from 2015 Champions League

Arsenal left Croatia empty handed after losing to Dinamo Zagreb 2-1 on Wednesday. The result is the worst possible way for the Gunners to start their UEFA Champions League campaign.

Olivier Giroud was sent off in the first half after incurring two yellow cards. The sulking striker was already enduring a poor performance, but an act of dissent and a mistimed tackle led to his dismissal.

At that stage, Arsenal were trailing courtesy of Josip Pivaric's shot, which deflected in off Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Zagreb made their numerical advantage count in the second half when Junior Fernandes doubled their lead, rendering Theo Walcott's late strike mere consolation.

The team news saw Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger start Giroud as his centre-forward ahead of Walcott. The pacy England man had netted in the Gunners' recent 2-0 Premier League win over Stoke City, but Wenger opted to rotate his strikers for the first of a hectic period of fixtures.

Other notable changes included Mikel Arteta filling in for Francis Coquelin as Arsenal's designated holding midfielder. Mathieu Debuchy and Kieran Gibbs stepped in for Hector Bellerin and Nacho Monreal, respectively, at full-back, while David Ospina stood in for former Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech, who joined Walcott on the bench.

Arsenal's official Twitter feed provided both lineups:

Zagreb's noteworthy selection decision involved starting star striker Angelo Henriquez on the bench. The ex-Manchester United outcast has been prolific since pulling on a Dinamo shirt. His initial exclusion was a surprise.

Dinamo entered the game with manager Zoran Mamic and CEO Zdravko Mamic out on bail as they face charges of "bribery, tax evasion and embezzlement," according to Mirror reporter Hamish Mackay.

Predictably against a side as accomplished in possession as Arsenal, Dinamo sat back in numbers, forming a compact shape. Even without suspended holding midfielder Goncalo Santos, Dinamo showed plenty of bite in the middle, robbing Alexis Sanchez early as the Gunners were given little time on the ball. 

Arsenal's direct pace came from Oxlade-Chamberlain. He won a corner that Giroud headed toward goal to force Zagreb stopper Eduardo into a fine save.

Darko Bandic/Associated Press

The opening stages remained even as Dinamo stayed disciplined to frustrate Arsenal, while being far from shy about springing forward when they could. Still, the Gunners continued to press.

Giroud had a shot blocked in the box after being played in by Sanchez. The big French striker then fluffed his lines after his deflected header hit a post, and his rebound was turned wide from close range.

Arsenal weren't helped by playmaker Mesut Ozil being a marginal figure. Rather than dictating play centrally, the languid German was content to drift on the left flank.

While the Gunners were sluggish, Dinamo struck a sucker punch via left-back Pivaric. He capitalised on non-existent defending from Debuchy to bundle in the opener off the hapless Chamberlain.

WhoScored.com detailed how the goal contributed to Arsenal's dire recent defensive record in Europe's premier club competition:

Giroud's sending off then gave Arsenal a mountain to climb. Already on a booking, he committed what might be dubbed a "forward's challenge" as the Gunners were reduced to 10 men.

Dinamo nearly scored from a corner with the sound of the second-half whistle still ringing in the air. Then Ozil lacked conviction after Sanchez and Gibbs helped fashion the chance.

The game quickly set into the same pattern it had before the break. Arsenal pressed to no avail, Dinamo broke with pace. Ozil had the ball in the net, but it was disallowed by the linesmen's flag. But at least the Gunners had more pace through the middle with Sanchez and Ozil further forward.

Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images

Yet the change counted for naught once Junior Fernandes powered in a header from a corner to double Dinamo's advantage. Shockingly, Gibbs and Laurent Koscielny had shied away from the cross.

As a final roll of the dice, Wenger introduced Coquelin for Arteta and strikers Campbell and Walcott for Gibbs and the disappointing Oxlade-Chamberlain. Walcott made fans wish he'd started from the beginning when he slid in a typically cool side-foot finish with under 15 minutes left.

But that proved a mere consolation as Dinamo saw the game out with ruthless efficiency.

Post-Match Reaction

Wenger defended Giroud, stating the striker was "completely unlucky" to receive a second yellow, according to Arsenal's official site. He felt Giroud's challenge was "completely accidental."

The Gunners chief also expressed a deep belief that the changes he'd made did not influence the outcome, during his post-match interview with BT Sport:

It wasn't a view shared by BT Sport pundit Steven Gerrard, who was particularly critical of the decision to leave out Coquelin:

Gerrard's fellow pundit, Rio Ferdinand stated his belief the manager is "hurting" his team by not giving Walcott more opportunities at striker:

Meanwhile, Dinamo boss Mamic said he'd hoped his side would "perform a miracle," according to the tournament's official site.

As for Wenger, he was content to write off this slip as an accident of fate, per the same source: "These were exceptional circumstances tonight. We had one player less on the pitch, we had the possession but Dinamo played a good game. It is too early to make any predictions."

Despite being outwardly defiant, Wenger may regret rotating so many players for a tricky away fixture. He clearly has one eye on Saturday morning's away trip to face Premier League rivals Chelsea.

Failing to take three points to make a fast start in a Group F expected to be dominated by Bayern Munich only increases the pressure ahead of visiting Stamford Bridge.