Seville 3 - 1 Arsenal

Well, we knew it was coming sooner or later. Arsenal suffered their first loss of the season yesterday in a 3-1 stuffing by a rampant Seville. Having already clinched qualification for the next round, Arsene Wenger fielded a weakened side - only three starters took to the pitch - and the match proved a good testing ground for some of the second tier players.

Nick Bendtner and Dudu look the real deal. The two combined on Arsenal’s only goal of the game, an excellent poacher’s goal by Dudu which opened the scoring eleven minutes in.

However, Gilberto, Justin Hoyte and Philip Senderos looked out of their element. By halftime, it was 2-1 Seville. Gilberto improved his play in the second half, but I’d be very surprised to see Senderos on the squad list after January.

So, a “meaningless” game that gets some playing time in for the second-choice players against a very good team, it also served as that “first loss of the season”.   Better to lose in the Champions League after having secured qualification than to drop points in the league, or get knocked out of a cup.   The players can put that worry behind them as they turn their attention back to the Premiership. It’s a trip to England’s second-city, Birmingham, to take on Aston Villa. Kickoff is 12:15 PM ET here in the US, and the match will be shown live on Fox Soccer Channel.