The most un-English team soars, Mourinho spouts off

Arsenal became the first English team ever to win at the San Siro when it knocked out defending Euro champ AC Milan on Tuesday. AP

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The biggest story in England this week is a team that's hardly English at all.

Arsenal, the most un-English of Premier League squads, was the standout performer in this week's Champions League round of 16 second-leg matches, which saw the three participating EPL teams progress to the quarterfinal stage. Liverpool, the fourth English competitor, travels to Inter Milan on Tuesday.

After a couple of shaky weeks for Arsenal -- striker Eduardo's sickening leg break and draws to Birmingham City and Aston Villa that reduced its six-point EPL lead to a single point -- most people expected the Gunners' match at defending champions AC Milan see them exit at the round of 16 stage for the second year running.

At the San Siro, Arsène Wenger's side ignored the doom-and-gloom script postulated by most observers, and in running rings round their hapless hosts, had seemingly gained inspiration from The Italian Job (the 1969 Michael Caine version).

The Gunners dominated the match, with chief tormenter and man of the match Cesc Fàbregas outperforming Rossoneri midfielders Gennaro Gattuso and Andrea Pirlo in scenes reminiscent of Caine's Mini Cooper evading the bungling Turin police.

The Gunners completed their Italian Job with a 30-yard strike from the virtuoso Fàbregas in the 84th minutes and an injury-time goal from Emmanuel Adebayor. After the match, Fàbregas admitted that Arsenal's game is probably more suited to the continental style of play where the side is given more time and space than in the EPL.

The youngster's comments were heard loud and clear in Team Limey's favorite pie-focused town, Wigan, whose soccer team faces Arsenal this weekend. Wigan goalkeeper Chris Kirkland had seen enough of Arsenal beating the European champions (becoming the first ever English team to beat the Milanese side at the San Siro) to feel that his 14th-place Wigan side can bring Arsenal down to earth. "Some people didn't expect us to get a point at Manchester City but we did," he said, "so why can't we get something off Arsenal?"

Manchester United was always the favorite to progress in its matchup with Lyon, having scored a vital away goal in the previous leg. United bagged the only goal of the second leg, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring his 30th of the season in the 41st minute.

At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea faced a truly awful Olympiakos side that found itself 3-0 down after 48 minutes, and in no way ever looked like it had the power to come back. Of more concern to Chelsea than the Greek champions were the murmurings of a former friend, who seems to have developed a darker side since he left Chelsea.

Team Limey's favorite Special One, José Mourinho, talked of managing another team in the Champions League next season and the possibility of facing Chelsea: "I want to go there and kill them -- that's my message."

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