Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger appeared to be unruffled by his side's fourth consecutive defeat last night. The Gunners went down 2-1 in Germany to Borussia Dortmund but still progressed to the second phase of the Champions League after PSV Eindhoven defeated Auxerre 3-0 in Group A's other match.
And Wenger was confident that his side would not be affected the loss, which saw the home side convert a dubiously-awarded penatly for the winner. The Frenchman said: "I don't think it will have a big impact on morale. It wasn't a shame to lose, it was just frustrating. We must take the positives and go into our next game, and in the second half I can't remember Dortmund creating a chance because they had nothing left in the tank, so for us to lose like that - to the penalty - is deeply disappointing."
Thierry Henry gave the Gunners the lead after 17 minutes with an exquisite 25-yard free-kick before David Seaman suffered a double misery. Firstly the England goalkeeper, whose performances have been under scrutiny in recent weeks, was beaten after 37 minutes when Tomas Rosicky's free-kick glanced off the head of Gilberto Silva and flashed inside his far post. Then Seaman was harshly adjudged to have tripped Jan Koller in the box and Rosicky drove home the 62nd-minute penalty.
Arsenal's night was rounded off by the news that their scheduled flight home to Luton Airport was delayed due to fog and diverted to Heathrow.
Filed by James Boylan.
