Barcelona fielded its strongest side away to Roma, as did Real Madrid at home to Shakhtar Donetsk, Paris Saint-Germain hosting Malmo, Atletico Madrid away to Galatasaray, Bayern Munich away to Olympiakos and Juventus at Manchester City. None of them lost; in fact, all the European powerhouses won except Barcelona, which drew in the Italian capital — hardly a poor result.

So why did Arsene Wenger feel he had to make six changes when Arsenal traveled to Dinamo Zagreb? Arsenal was deservedly beaten 2-1 by a side that had failed to win in 15 previous appearances at this stage of the Champions League.

The Frenchman denied it, but it is difficult not to believe he had one eye on Saturday's Premier League game against Chelsea and was confident his mix-and-match team could overcome opponents perceived to be among Europe's weakest links in UEFA's premier club competition.