The story was basically this.

Arsenal played 4 halves of football against AC Milan, over two legs, over two weeks. They dominated each one of those, and in the 4th half, they scored 2 goals. Think of it as superiority paying off.

"We're on our way, we're on our way,
We're going to Moscow, we're on our way,
How we get there we don't know!
How we get there we don't care!
All we know is that we're on our way!"

It was a cold night at the San Siro, and with near 5,000 of us packed high up into the away end at the San Siro, we needed to be in good voice and good spirits to keep warm. The atmosphere of the San Siro was eventually slightly overrated, the Milan fans made a bit of noise pre-kickoff, unleashed a whole bunch of glitter and cheers as the game started, had a few bouts of whistling, and went absolutely crazy for about 3 or 4 seconds right at the start when Kaka did a trick. Otherwise, they were mostly a passive bunch, and got quieter and quieter as the saw Arsenal take control. The euphoria for us of Cesc's goal was met by a steady flow of Milan fans making way for the exits.

The Arsenal dominated Milan on the pitch, and the Arsenal fans dominated Milan fans in the stands, and you can't say that victory for either was undeserved.

There have been enough details about the game all across newspapers and the web for me to not bother too much with details, but the team was just outstanding. Manu Eboue was the only lacklustre performer, seeming more mentally uninvolved than anything else - wasting the ball, avoiding tackles, and running lazily. He dived, and was fortunate to not be severely punished when badly fouling Paolo Maldini. Even Abou Diaby, he of recently lazy form, stepped up his game to an acceptable level.

Milan were disappointing really - although Flamini had Kaka in his pocket (and Cesc made sure he put him back in there whenever he popped his head out), the Brazilian didn't really know what to do or where to go. As a result he tried to go it alone, and with young Pato confused, and Pippo Inzaghi having one of his more primadonna-esque games, he failed to have an impact.

They missed Seedorf, yes, but I'm not sure that Milan could have put out a better side with this squad that they have. It's far too aged and predictable, and they will really be doing some serious shopping this summer. They lack dynamism, and need a bit of freshness.

Pato will of course be a big plus for them, he was their best attacker on the night, and at 18 he already has the ability to compete, all he lacks is the experience.

For Arsenal, it will be a huge boost after a bad Novemeber. They are only a point clear at the top now, and will need to refocus now; the win in Milan will have given them the belief to do that.

Of course, the big challenge now is to go to Wigan and win on Sunday. On Tuesday, Arsenal outplayed and outfought a Milan side on a great pitch with great players who had to attack to win. On Sunday, Arsenal will have to play a Wigan side on a simply awful pitch, against some dodgy players who will be fighting to not lose. It will involve a fair amount of steel, patience, and tactical flexibility. Nicklas Bendtner might have a role to play, since Arsenal will need to seriously consider the direct route - through balls, and little one-two passes are going to be disrupted by the rough surface and the (possibly) rough tackling.

They can possibly lose just one more game this season, and draw two at the maximum, without losing the title - even those estimates are probably a bit generous.