First Andy Carroll, now Robin van Persie. Match Report Plus Ratings

April 12, 2012

So, the great goal droughts are finally over.

Liverpool’s Andy Carroll (£35m, 9 games without a goal, 4 EPL goals so far this season) netted against Blackburn on Tuesday and Robin van Persie (£2.75m, 4 games without a goal, 27 EPL goals this season) scored against Wolves last night.

Not much to choose between them really.

Heh heh heh.

And so to our game at Molineux, which turned out to be doubly comfortable.

Firstly, the team strolled to victory, helped by two early goals and the sending off of Wolves defender Bassong. That’s right, the Bassong who just happens to be on loan from the Tottering Hotspuds. Heh heh heh again.

Secondly, it was not on live transmission here in North America, so I watched it hours later, already knowing the result, which made it very comfortable for me.

It’s a very different experience watching the full 90+ minutes when you know that we have won. There’s none of the agonising, the edge-of-seat anxiety, the frustration when passes go astray.

It’s like watching a video of yourself on an extremely scary fairground ride. You’re an observer, not a participant.

But this dispassionate viewpoint allows you to really concentrate on how each of our players performed and how the game panned out.

Arsène Wenger started with two enforced changes to the team that defeated the Manchester Oilers. Djourou was in for the suspended Koscielny and Santos replaced Gibbs, who was suffering from fatigue, having never played so many consecutive games without injury before.

But Le Boss also made one unenforced change, resting Tomas Rosicky, arguably our star player over the last two months, in favour of Aaron Ramsey. Yossi Benayoun deservedly kept his place in the team after a fine effort against Citeh.

On balance it was a cautious line-up, as if Arsene was expecting a tough battle.

Things didn’t pan out that way. As a contest it was over after 12 minutes. We started brightly, moving the ball well, and before too long Theo Walcott broke into the box and was brought down from behind by Bassong. A clear penalty and a straight red.

Robin van Persie, having not wanted to score for a few games, decided that on this occasion he would, and put the penalty away with an audacious chip down the middle of the goal after sending the Wolves ‘keeper Hennessey the wrong way.

One nil to the Arsenal. And a few minutes later it was two nil. Robin fed Theo who burst into the box and finished low and hard with real confidence for his ninth goal of this Premier League campaign.

After that we seemed to ease off the gas. We kept possession well but our cutting edge was a little blunted.

The commentators I was listening to kept moaning about our perceived lack of adventure, but haven’t we been guilty in the past of being too gung ho when we take a lead? You never know when you’re going to get Dowded, so I, at least, am pleased that we carried on with a steady possession game.

In addition, credit must go to the Wolves players who, although adrift at the foot of the table and on an appalling run of defeats, kept fighting throughout the game. Occasionally they were too physical, but this was partly the frustration borne of being two down with 10 men against a team who won’t let you have the ball (I believe we had 72% possession overall).

The Wolves fans were noisy for most of the match, but seem a pretty stupid lot. For a start they hounded Walcott all game long for having won the penalty. You’d think that after a few minutes word would have got round from people using their mobile phones that the decision was the right one, but apparently it didn’t.

Then they serenaded their own manager, the luckless Terry Connor, with a rendition of “you don’t know what you’re doing” for replacing a striker with a defender after going down to 10 men. It’s probably fair to say that that decision spared Wolves from a much heavier beating.

One noteworthy incident from the first half was when Robin van Persie was deliberately obstructed on the edge of the Wolves penalty area by Stearman. The ref missed it, but Alex Song bounded up to give Stearman a piece of his mind. I was pleased to see one of our senior players coming to the captain’s defence. I don’t think it would have happened last year.

The second half was more of the same (Arteta, Ramsey and Song controlling the game from midfield) apart from a period of about 15 minutes when Wolves had a bit of a go.

Their best moment was a header brilliantly saved by Szczesny, who was going the wrong way but managed to contort his body back in the opposite direction to make an important save to his right. At that point it would have been 1-2 and who knows how things might have panned out. Actually, on second thoughts, if they had scored I think we would have gone straight back up the other end and bagged a couple more. This year’s Arsenal has got heaps more bottle than last season’s model.

The Wolves revival soon fizzled out and we resumed total control, creating a hatful of excellent chances in the final 20 minutes. The only one that got tucked away was a fine shot by Benayoun from the edge of the area after a layback by Song. Benny shaped to do a curler to the far side of the goal. It completely fooled Hennessey and he was wrong-footed when Benny lashed it low and hard inside the near post. A quality goal from a player who has really endeared himself to the fans despite his limited game time.

There was time for a few more near misses by our front line and another great save by Szczesny before the final whistle went. Oxlade-Chamberlain got a run out as a sub for Walcott and looked as direct and dangerous as we have come to expect. And it was nice to see Carl Jenkinson get a few minutes in place of Sagna.

So we’re five points ahead of the Spuds and the Geordies and seven ahead of the Chavs.

The table is looking a lot sweeter than we could possibly have hoped for back in the early stages of the campaign.

However, with an in-form Wigan up next there’s no room for complacency. We need to make this third spot ours, not least for the stability it will give us as we make our summer transfer plans.

RockyLives

Player Ratings

Szczesny: Had little to do, but when called upon he made two fantastic saves – a real testament to his powers of concentration. 8

Sagna: Defensively as reliable as ever and got forward well. A couple of excellent crosses and a few wayward ones. 7

Vermaelen: Very solid and commanding at the back. 7

Djourou: Not too much to do but what he did, he did well. 7

Santos: Generally did OK, but rode his luck a few times. He likes to get forward, but can be caught out at the back. However, he will need a run of games before we can really judge him. 6

Song: Another fine performance, including an assist for Benny’s goal. Some of his attempted “killer balls” came to nothing, but he was combative in midfield. 7.5

Arteta: A good game for the Spaniard, but I thought he was a fraction below par and was dispossessed a few times as well as uncharacteristically misplacing some passes. 7

Ramsey: He out Arteta’d Arteta last night. He was involved in everything – his passing stats must be close to perfect – and he made numerous progressive through balls that could have led to three assists on another night. In one five minute spell he set up Robin twice and Arteta once. He was desperately unlucky not to score when Hennessey made a great block from point blank range, but earlier seemed to fluff a good chance through lack of confidence in front of goal. Nevertheless, he was our best player on the night by quite some distance. 8.5 MotM.

Walcott: What can you say? He had a really poor game apart from the small fact of winning the match for us. He ripped Wolves to shreds in the first 15 minutes to put us two up. After that, pretty much everything he tried didn’t work. Perhaps the crowd getting on his back for the entire game affected his equilibrium. But it has to be a high mark because he did the stuff that really counts. 8

Benayoun: He’s becoming a popular figure among the faithful.  He was less involved than Ramsey or Arteta, but was always a thorn in Wolves’ side and took his goal beautifully. 7

Van Persie: A stylish penalty got him back on the goal trail. He could have had another couple if the chances had fallen slightly better for him, but his hold-up play and linking of our attacking moves were outstanding. 7.5

Subs

Oxlade-Chamberlain: Always looks a threat. 7

Jenkinson: Brief cameo. Nice to see him back. N/A

RockyLives

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Posted by RockyLives

Arsenal – testing your loyalty

April 7, 2012

I’m hoping the long gap between games isn’t causing the players to lose focus as badly as it has me – although it is a concern after our last performance!

This is just a bit of interactive fun to fill the time before we take on city tomorrow.

One object of the exercise is to test whether your loyalty to Arsenal might just possibly cloud your judgement in matters concerning by far the greatest team the world has ever seen……..

Try to answer the following questions honestly. It may be that your choices would be the same either way – but I doubt it.

So are you a dyed in the wool Arsenal supporter (in which case you lied in some answers) or are you one of the new breed of fan who prefers to stay seated, doesn’t sing and thinks the ref is a jolly good chap 😕

Feel free to debate the questions and your choices in Comments, or maybe you can suggest similar questions that could have had you battling with your Arsenal conscience.

Written by Rasp

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Posted by Rasp

Arsenal: back to earth with a jolt.

April 1, 2012

Few people have wanted to write about our losses this season – there have been too many sadly – and yesterday was no exception. Watching the game on a good stream it was difficult to draw any positives from a lacklustre performance that was more reminiscent of the dark days in January than the recent exciting football we have witnessed.

There were a few shocks. The team selection was strange for a start. It seems that Arsene hasn’t noticed that the team is unbalanced when he starts with Song, Arteta, Rosicky and Ramsey, who out of that four is supposed to run the left wing? Yesterday it was pretty clear that none of them were going to be, which meant that we only had an attacking outlet with Theo on the right.

Why does Ramsey have to start? Why can’t Gervihno or Oxlade-Chamberlain play for 60 minutes and then bring on Ramsey? If Ramsey starts then surely one of Arteta or Rosicky has to be dropped and Ramsey play in their role but Arteta and Rosicky are pretty undroppable at the moment so what’s the answer? Clearly Arsene needs more time to decide but we struggled against Everton away precisely because the aforementioned four started and yesterday the same problem occurred.

Wenger’s post match pretty much laid the blame at the players feet

It is very frustrating because they left us the ball and waited for our mistakes. We took the ball, did not do a lot with it and made the mistakes. At the end of the day that made the result.

Our performance was not good enough to win this kind of game, especially in the duels. They had a little bit of extra special commitment that took advantage of us in some specific positions defensively. Overall we can only congratulate QPR for their attitude and be unhappy with our own performance.

Playing teams that are fighting to stay in the Premier League are always going to be extra difficult to play against but it looked liked one of our senior players had decided to take control of the game all by himself. What was up with Vermaelen? He deserted Koscielny early on in the first half, was culpable for QPR taking the lead and seemed to not want to be a centre-back. In addition Song was finding it difficult to make his Fabregas-like passes find an Arsenal player. I don’t have a problem with Song or indeed any Arsenal player looking to play an eye of the needle pass except when a simpler pass would have done the trick and yesterday there were a few occasions when just passing the ball would have worked better.

Anyway, moaning apart, we started well, but after 5 minutes of not scoring we allowed QPR to get into the game and they went ahead in the 22nd minute. In the 37th minute Robin was fouled just outside the box but the ref allowed the play to continue and luckily Theo was alert and managed a shot that hit the post and rebounded into his path for him to slot home. I always like it when we come from behind but could we push on and actually craft out a win?

We started the second half brightly but were hampered by not really being able to find the right ball for Robin who seemed to be limping. At around the hour mark Robin hit a great free-kick that was pushed away by Kenny and in the next minute Robin is through again but Paddy Kenny makes a great save. The pressure had been building and it did look like we would score but in the 66th minute Mackie skips past Vermaelen and squares a ball to Diakite to score. 2-1.

There was a change in the 69th minute with Gervihno coming on for Ramsey but QPR were happy to dig in and make it even harder for us to play through them. When that change didn’t achieve anything Chamakh and The Ox were brought on for Gibbs and Arteta in the 82nd minute. I’d like to see changes made earlier when we’re chasing a goal, I can’t see how either Chamakh or The Ox really had time to change the game.

And so it came to pass that we lost our 9th game of the season. We didn’t play very well, we certainly didn’t create enough and probably didn’t deserve to get anything from the game. Was it complacency that led to this, certainly I didn’t think that we would falter in west London. We are still in third though and hopefully will see the weekend out there. The chavs won, the oily chavs dropped points and the scum play today. Seven games to go and still I think there’ll be  some twists and turns on the road to staying in the top four.

I’m optimistic that we’ll return to winning ways next Sunday against the oily ones.

Written by peachesgooner

And the following was written by LB

Yet another one of those infuriating games in which on paper we start as favourites but as the reality of the game dawns we are left with the very same paper embarrassingly crumpled in our hands.

Damn that was frustrating, made even worse by the fact that I have at least ten good friends who support that team, I am going to have to suffer smug knowing looks every time I see one of them. And believe me they have memories like elephants I still find myself from time to time in ear shot of them telling that silly story of oh I was there when John Jenson scored and Impey and blah, blah, blah they won three one if you didn’t know; still, at least they will have a new story to bang on about.

What? You want me to talk about the game? Are you sure? Well, we were crap but some players played more crap than others and I am not going to do the polite thing and just say oh well that was just a bad day at the office and we should all move on and focus our attention on the next game. That my friends makes for a very, very boring blog. Match reports are supposed to be about the opinion of the author, it has to be surely because if it was just about describing the game we could all just go and read far more articulate reports from the likes of Henry Winter.

Ok the game; there were two clear managerial strategies in play: QPR’s was to sit back and wait for us to make mistakes and ours was to play a close, tight, quick passing game in the hope of finding a way round them. The result says all we need to know as to whose strategy turned out to be the most effective.

For long periods we moved the ball around the half way line with all the penetrative thrust of a two month old banana. QPR just waited until we made mistakes and picked us off. And that is the fixture and the match report consigned to the dustbin after one sentence.

Szczesny: starting to believe his own hype, he is taking more and more risks and because of that he will not go the whole season without one major embarrassment. Should have held onto the ball and calmed play down just before QPR’s winning goal. 5

Sagna: a shinning light in a sea of mediocrity. 7

Koscielny: just when I was sitting back smugly thinking, well TA do you still prefer Mertasacker’s slow, giraffe-like style to the lightning mobility of the Frole and the Belgiun, Kozzer goes and puts in a scatter brained performance like that. 6

Vermaelen: Tom you were all over the place mate. 4

Gibbs: time for a change, I expect Santos to start in the next game, we needed attacking nous today and Gibbs left us wanting. 5

Song: you can’t blame him for the lack of chances created, well I can’t anyway. I wish he would be a bit greedier and have a shot when he gets the chance. 6

Arteta: The Spaniard gets my MOTM if one has to be awarded; he at least looked as though it really mattered to him. 7.5

Rosicky: went back to his ineffectual dreadful self, missed placed passes, running into dead ends, poor tackles. 4

Walcott: now you would think that I of all people would save the bulk of my wrath for Theo but even though there was very little space to operate in and his control still leaves a lot to be desired he was not bad, the goal obviously helped but all in all I liked Theo’s attitude. 7.25

Van Persie: service, what service? Isolated for most of the game, not at his majestical best when he got the ball it must be said. 6

Ramsey: we have a problem here, young Aaron is too good to be left on the bench and not good enough to be playing. Wenger knows he would never accept being on the bench for any length of time, he would be off, so the Welshman is shoe-horned into the left wing which as we all saw was no good for him and no good for the team. Yes, I know he is young and yes I know he will improve but this comment is about his performance against QPR. 4.5

I have gone from not caring one way or the other as to whether QPR go down to yelling: open the trap door now and let the bunch of banned words drop.

Written by LB (Not a happy bunny).

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Posted by peachesgÖÖner

Missing Na$ri like a hole in the bench

March 29, 2012

How much is Arsenal missing Na$ri?

The departure of Nasri at the end of August last year was used by many journalists, and plenty of fellow Gooners, as evidence that Arsenal had become a selling-club and was no longer ambitious enough to compete for the top prices. Seven months on, after a rollercoaster ride of a transitional season so far, it is becoming apparent the sale of Nasri was actually very good business for Arsenal after all.

Wenger was desperate to keep hold of Nasri last summer: losing Fabregas and Nasri at the same time, was far from ideal. Nasri had shown glimpses of his potential at Arsenal, but it was clear to most of us he was no replacement for the Spanish Maestro. The vacant role of advanced midfielder – the one who orchestrates our attacks and dictates play – was meant to be filled by Wilshere or Ramsey, with Rosicky and Diaby as suitable back-up. Wilshere suffered a long-term injury, and it is gradually becoming clear that Ramsey would fit better in a deeper role – the one currently occupied by our new Spanish hero: Arteta. Rosicky has recently found his best form again and has played a big part in our resurgence into the top-4 since February. Diaby…same old story, I am afraid.

The few times Nasri had played in this pivotal position at Arsenal, he had been ok, but not more than that. Yes, he had some fantastic games in the first part of the 2010-2011 season, but mostly in a wide position.

Having watched a few Citeh games this season in which Nasri made an appearance, it’s becoming clear to me that he has not made any progress since he left us. It looks like Nasri will remain a player with a few good games per season, who will operate mainly at the periphery of his new club – that is, mainly on the bench. He is simply not good enough to play centrally and is likely to be played on the wing for most of the rest of his career: would he have stayed at Arsenal, it would not have been any different.

Nasri joined a settled team with plenty of top quality in the squad. Mancini has played him centrally and on the wing, but in both areas he has been pretty ineffective. And there are no excuses for him: he is used to play in the PL, he has got the right age to perform at the required level and he has been fit since he joined the Etihad Oil Refinery (courtesy of Rocky Lives).

Despite of all this, he has had a mediocre season so far. In fact, compared to our three wingers at the club: Walcott, Gervinho and the The Ox, he is performing worst of all of them. In the end, that is where he left a vacancy: on the wing, and in order to answer the question of this post, he needs to be compared to our current wingers:

  Games played this season Goals Scored Assists Goals/Assists per game this season Career average per game
Theo 40 9 13 0.55 0.37
Gervinho 31 4 8 0.39 0.4
The Ox 20 4 3 0.35 0.4
Na$ri 36 5 7 0.33 0.29

Nasri was sold for £22m.Gervinho (£10.6m) and the Ox (£12m) were bought in return. Despite the fact that Gervinho and the Ox are playing their first season in the PL, and have had to find their way in an unsettled team that is going through a major transition this year, they are both currently outperforming Na$ri with a better average of goals and assists per game. Theo has had a significantly better season than Nasri as well. Surprisingly, all our wingers have a better career average of goals/assists per game than Nasri too, which to me is further proof that Arsenal did very good business in selling him last summer, rather than let him run out his contract, hold back the development of the Ox and others, and poison the atmosphere at our club. Two players for the price of one, and they are both better!

So, are we missing Na$ri? Like a hole in the bench! Good riddance and good business all round.

TotalArsenal.

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Posted by Rasp

Alex Songinho, He Assists When He Wants: Match Report

March 25, 2012

Having endured the first 60 minutes of the Chavs’ vs. Spuds’ collective attempt to discover the best cure for insomnia, I was extremely pleased to find a half-decent stream to watch the mighty Red & White take on the Villains. I expected AV to put in a performance, partly based on their half decent effort during our last encounter with them in January (FA-cup), and partly on the fact that they have nothing really to play for anymore, which makes these sorts of games a bit of a bonus for them.

Arsenal has build up a phenomenal momentum since the dark PL days in January, mainly based on grit, togetherness, perseverance, and an occasional sprinkling of quality. It is fair to say that the encounters with Pool, NU, and Everton were not the most beautiful games of football Arsenal has ever played, but, at this stage of the season, we don’t care one iota!

However, our game against Villa was very different from our recent incredible achievements as a result of blood, sweat and thunder: there were periods of free-flowing football and, on more than a few occasions, of individual brilliance. In fact, I felt I was watching a game of the Fabregas-era yesterday; you know, one of those where we were in total control from the start, as a result of an early goal. This probably was our easiest game of the season and it is fair to say that the Villains’ lacklustre performance, combined with the early ‘easy’ goal, helped us a long way.

First Half

Arsenal suffered a mini-blow when, unexpectedly, Koscielny could not start as a result of a knee-problem. However, Djourou was ready and fit to take his place, and his mind was instantly taken off any nerves he might have felt, when Heskey planted inadvertently the back of his arm firmly in Johan’s face. Another great example of Johan Cruijff’s fantastically simple quote: ‘Every disadvantage has an advantage, and every advantage has a disadvantage’! JD never looked back and had a fine performance during the entire game.

Both teams started with a formation of 4-2-3-1, with an aim to press early on the opposition’s goalkeeper and defenders. This led to an open start in which Arsenal dominated and created a number of chances. However, AV had a few half-chances themselves as a result of quick breaks, mainly from the right, through their promising – yet disappointing on the day – young talent of Albrighton.

On the 9th minute, Arsenal produced a great move on the right by the almost telepathically aligned duo of Theo and Sagna, and goal scoring machine RvP. The latter’s lay-off reaches Theo who shoots at goal from close range but straight at Shay Given, who is able to parry his effort, albeit straight in the path of Sagna, who then fluffs his shot with his weaker left foot. Arsenal keeps up the pressure and it does not take long before we score.

Most of the pressure had been coming form the right, but it was Gibbs and Gervinho who were able to breach the Villains’ defence first. In the 16th minute, Gervinho, who played quite centrally during the first period of the game, picked out a good run by Gibbs and the latter found himself in the box with a half decent shooting opportunity. I expected him to pass sideways to another player, but he decided to take a shot himself and was richly rewarded for it: 1-0! The goalkeeper should have done better, but one should not look a Given-horse in the mouth, and I am sure Gibbs won’t do that either: his first PL goal, so early in the game, was just what we needed.

AV kept pressing high up the pitch, forcing Szczesny to demonstrate to us the one skill he still needs to improve on: kicking the ball out with some precision. Arsenal, though, managed to pass itself with relative ease out of the Villians’ inconsistent pressing, and a few quick attacks made sure we kept the pressure on our opponent. TV found Theo with a fine diagonal cross and our right-winger demonstrated once again that he possesses a fine first touch, leaving Warnock for dead in a fraction of a second. This time though, it was not to be, as his second touch pushed the ball just a bit too far so Cueller could clear it at the last moment.

The first of three top-quality moments of the game materialised at the 25th minute. Alex Song, who probably has the most complete skills-set in the PL – he can play as a CB, DM, AM; he might even be good as a nr9 or a goalkeeper! – produced once more one of his trademark lofted balls over the top. This time, it was not aimed at RvP but at Theo, who made another clever horizontal run towards the box. His first touch was excellent again and he finished clinically past Given: 2-0!! Some will argue the Villa defence should have done better, but the sheer quality of a) Song’s lofted ball, b) Theo’s first touch and c) his controlled finish were a joy to behold: football at it’s very best!

The second top-quality moment happened on the 39th minute. Song and RvP combined through the middle to reach into the box: RvP seemed to have lost the ball but somehow drags it back from the defender with his left leg, moving it swiftly onto his right, but his shot somehow hit the head of Warnock: it could so easily have been the third goal. It was a brilliant piece of skill by our captain.

Second Half

AV started the second half with a low tempo and similar tactics. Arsenal was able to pass the ball round with relative ease but we lacked a bit of urgency and focus in our attacking endeavours. Gervinho was involved in a few attacks but was no longer able to deliver a precise final ball for his teammates. But the damage was done in the first half, and with the Villains lacking the spirit to start a fight-back, the sun shining nicely, Arsenal enjoying the ‘easiness’ of the game and the supporters singing in unison, we allowed the game to peter out a bit in the second half.

There were still some noticeable moments though. Rosicky had a decent effort on target in the 65th minute, and Santos, who had just come on for Gibbs, gave the ball away clumsily in his first minute on the pitch, which could easily have led to a Villa goal. He can be forgiven though as he, naturally, will have been a bit rusty after such a long lay-off. In the 73rd minute, RvP takes a cheeky free-kick from the left, only for Given to just tip it over the bar. In the 82nd minute, the newly-on Ox makes a blistering run on the right into the box, but a last-minute, great tackle by Ireland just keeps the young Englishman from pulling the trigger. I think Ireland just had enough of the ball for it not to be a penalty, so Dowd called it well imo.

The third top-quality moment of the match was left to the very last minute of the game. In extra time, Arsenal were rewarded a free-kick well outside the area, after a foul on Song. Arteta stepped up once again and this time he was successful with a thunderous bullet to the top right corner of the goal.

A magnificent effort and thoroughly deserved: 3-0!!! You won’t see a better free-kick this season.

Finally

Seven wins on the spin, another clean-sheet, a fitter than ever squad, and a real belief our team can go all the way and finish in the top-3 in May. Happy times!

We are in the driving seat and ahead of us are the Manc teams – the new Oilers and Old Bacon Face’s bunch of scrapers – and they are lucky there are most probably not enough games left to catch up with them anymore. In the rear-mirror we can see the sorry-Spuds and if we narrow our eyes with a bit of effort, we can see the old Oilers, the Chavs, catching their breath whilst desperately looking around who they can put the blame on this time. In the far, far distance we can see some ant-like spots that can only be Dalglish’s darlings. Ooh the virtues of momentum!

We are not there yet though – let’s be careful not to become complacent – but if we can keep this good run of form up, then soon we’ll be firmly positioned in third spot. Not only would this make us the top team in London once more, it would also provide a perfect platform for a firing-on-all-cylinders team for next season. It has been a year of transition, with some tough moments and big disappointment, but the road ahead is full of promise and potential, based on a sound foundation of all the things that matter in football: a great squad, a great manager, a financially healthy club with money for one or two more quality players, a great stadium, fantastic support, and a football philosophy based on total football. Class is permanent – long may it continue!

TotalArsenal.

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Posted by Rasp

Arsenal’s Biggest Surprise This Season?

March 19, 2012

Fellow arsophiles, I want to pose a simple question:

In a season of ups and downs, false dawns and unexpected revivals, which Arsenal player has turned out to be the biggest surprise package (in a positive way)?

I’m not talking about the likes of Vermaelen and van Persie, of whom we all expected great things. I want you to consider the players – whether already in the squad or newly signed – for whom you had NO high hopes, but who have gone on to confound your pessimism.

The grit that turned into pearls, as it were…

You can register your own choice in the Poll below, but let me offer my own shortlist for the contenders…

Tomas Rosicky

The Little Mozart – or Schnitzel, as I am assured is also his nickname – was high on the list of players most supporters wanted to see shipped out last summer. Unlike Fawlty Manuel and Sideways Den, footballing abilities were not the issue with the little Czech – it was just that he seemed as fragile as a Ming vase. And on the odd occasion when he was not too cracked to get a run out, he usually seemed a peripheral figure: the Ming on the wing. Fast forward to today, and we see a player showing just what he can do when he stays fit and gets a run of games in his preferred position. He’s now one of the first names on the team sheet, which makes a change from having his own engraved name plaque in the treatment room.

Kieran Gibbs

Like TR7, our young English left back has often given the impression of being made of glass and was on first name terms with all the medical staff, their wives and husbands, their cousins and neighbours, even their pets. But since he got back in the side our results have improved and he has begun to show why Arsene Wenger has persevered with him for so long. In recent games he has begun to really look the part.

Francis Coquelin

This cocky French cockerel was not on most fans’ radar at the start of the season and it was generally assumed that Frimpong was ahead of him in the midfield pecking order. But while Frimpong’s inexperience was exposed in some early season games, Coquelin took every opportunity that came his way, whether deputising at fullback or playing in his preferred midfield role. Undoubtedly the season of first team football at Lorient is what put him ahead of his young English rival, but he looks to have the quality to be a first team regular in the future. Sadly both he and Frimpong have been unlucky with injuries.

Theo Walcott

OK, I know this is a bit of a controversial one. But so many people were so down on him in the close season and at the start of this campaign that I feel it’s right to include him. Personally I have never understood the level of abuse he gets. Being a winger means you are always trying to do the pointy-ended bits of the game – beating defenders, putting in crosses, making goal assists, hitting the back of the net. Inevitably, things don’t always come off, but with eight goals and 11 assists his contribution should be recognised. If you doubt his importance, just look at how Robin van Persie values him.

Per Mertesacker

Quickly christened ‘The BFG’, our supersized German centre back was written off by some before he had even kicked a ball for us. He was too slow, not good enough in the air despite his height, he wouldn’t be up to the speed of the English game etc etc. Up until his injury, however, big Per showed us that he is, above all, a footballer of the highest quality. I know many supporters believe Koscielny and Vermaelen are our first choice CB pairing, but I really feel Mertesacker adds a level of composure to our transitional play from defence and is brilliant at reading the game and I would start him alongside either of the other two.

Carl Jenkinson

A young fullback, signed from Charlton Athletic with only a handful of first team games under his belt… what was Arsene thinking of? Well, our Carl is a Gooner through and through and when he has had opportunities to play he has shown great promise. His engine is fantastic and, for my money, he’s the best crosser at the club. He’ll be England’s right back in a few years time.

Andre Santos

A Brazilian we had never heard of, signed from the Turkish league. Surely this was another piece of craziness on our manager’s part. And when he turned up with what looked like 20lbs of hashish in his shorts the doubters were even more skeptical. But Santos quickly won people over with his adventurous style of play (it was his goal that got us back on track away at Chelsea) and his infectious enthusiasm.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

Isn’t it funny that many of the same people who were furious when we signed Oxo (“we need proven quality, not another punt on some untried youngster for Chrissake”) were exactly the people booing when Alex was subbed off for Arshavin towards the end of the home game against Manchester United. We knew he was very highly regarded at Southampton, but many thought he would be “one for the future” or “Walcott mark two”. Instead he has already made himself a fan favourite and is another player who has everything it takes to be an Arsenal great.

OK, that’s it.

If you would like to suggest a different candidate please click on the “Other” option below and make your suggestion in the comments.

RockyLives

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Oops We Did it Again : Comeback Kings

March 13, 2012

Only three weeks ago after the FA Cup exit away to Sunderland and the disaster in the San Siro even the most positive of Arsenal fans was starting to doubt that this team had the necessary cojones to get us back in to the Champions League qualification places. Two morale boosting wins in the Premier League against much feted domestic opposition and the demolition of the Italian Champions elect at The Home of Football and all of a sudden the despair and gloom around the club has gone, players returning from injury, the media saying nice things about the boss, and the players, life was okay again.

In truth in those three games we were the underdogs, written off at home against the cretins from N17, no chance of overcoming the deficit against Milan, and surely we couldn’t beat the Carling Cup holders at their place. Last night we were favourites again, some will tell you that we don’t do being favourites, too often have we have seen us close wide open doors on ourselves when presented with the chance to catch up or to extend our points advantage. But somewhere between two nil down at home to the Lilylivers and beating Milan 3-0 the Emirates became a fortress, it became a mass of positivity, restored faith, vocal support, proper support. And the players they became warriors.

This is Arsenal

With two minutes to go pegged back in our own corner to defend a throw in the game looked up, the critics were sharpening their knives ready to rehash bottling stories. This squad decided they didn’t want to read that tomorrow, they scrapped for the ball from the throw in, first Gibbs, then Ramsey, then Arteta, the ball finally breaking to Song who moved it quickly to Van Persie, trying to take on three striped shirts whilst support arrived, there was Song again who moved it out wide to Theo. Theo took his time as red and white shirts filled the box and delivered an inviting chipped cross, neither Van Persie or Ramsey could make a decisive touch, and as it bounced down Vermaelen arrived to smash it home past the onrushing Krul. And then everything went a bit mental.

Bundle

This team with no heart no passion no desire, well they showed they had to all in spades, Vermaelen epitomised this spirit, after having his knee accidentally stamped on he had limped around for ten minutes of the second half while he ran it off, and somehow he found the energy to sprint the length of the pitch to be on the end of that cross and bravely finish taking another clout from Krul. The mass bundle proof if you needed any that this group of players cares, and they care as much as us about finishing above the shower down the road. Whilst Wenger is playing down the chase for the Spuds the players are mentioning it in every post match, maybe Pat Rice has had a quiet word in their ear. “Listen lads, we don’t finish below them, it doesn’t happen, go get ’em”.

Before that thirty seconds of brilliance there had been another ninety minutes of a football match, well 70 minutes of football and 20 spent waiting for Krul to put the ball back in play. Newcastle came with a game plan, flood the midfield, don’t over commit, nick a goal if possible and then soak up everything Arsenal could throw at them. For the opening ten minutes the game was scrappy, if anything we were over eager to retrieve the ball sometimes getting in each others way or the ball bouncing away and back to an enthusiastic Newcastle midfield. Tiote is perfect fit for the way Pardew wanted to play past night, chasing and breaking up play, and able to give it to those more gifted than him.

The first chance fell to Robin, a good leap from Sagna flicked the ball on for Theo to chase, no player has personified our turn around in fortunes as much as our young marmite winger, he burst into the open space and delivered a fizzing cross along the ground to the back post where a despairing slide from Van Persie failed to connect. Clearly Robin didn’t want to yet.

Around the 15 minute mark Arteta intercepted a Tiote pass, Vermaelen couldn’t do much more than push the ball back out and Tiote picked it up again played it to Ba, Cabaye joined in and pushed it to Ben Arfa, Gibbs chasing back was easily wrong footed as the skilful Frenchman put in on his left foot and produced a very good finish to beat Szczesny at his near post. I have watched it a few times and have decided that he could not have done much about it, it was a very good finish. Gibbs had been caught out of position but only because he was trying to win back possession from Ba.

Maybe the payers had heard that no team had ever won 4 consecutive games from behind in the Premier League, and as we haven’t set any records for a while they decided they would like to have a crack at that one. Within 30 seconds of the restart we were level, good work again from Theo, Sagna and Rosicky, set Theo free down the wing, he delivered another first time cross which found the Boy Wonder, this time he decided he did want to, his first touch was sublime taking the defender out of the game the second touch put the ball onto the trusted left foot and his third touch was despatch past Krul.

The rest of the half was a bit scrappy, Newcastle didn’t seem to know what to do next, the plan had been defend, nick one, defend, well they didn’t appear to plan for what happened if we equalised. They didn’t commit, and they started to time waste, I know teams need to regather their shape, but this is an opponent that before last night still had a chance of Champions League football, they are not going to get relegated, they had already scored once, where is the sense in defending and being satisfied with a point? Robin had words with Krul, Krul had a few back.

As the half played out Robin had another chance but his strike found the Emirates crowd, a free kick into the hands of Krul and Theo had a scrappy chance off balance from a corner. Whilst we had been good down the right, we were a bit lop sided, Oxlade Chamberlain rarely getting into the game, and Gibbs not advancing as much as normal due to the attacking threat of Ben Arfa.

From the restart of the second half Arsenal dominated possession, territory and Newcastle, they had occasional forays into our half, mainly from a long ball to Ba, but the two of Koscielny and Vermaelen dealt comfortably with everything thrown at them, both picking up knocks and injuries as they refused to retreat.

Rosicky was everywhere for Arsenal, a diving header from another Theo cross which Krul saved, some great footwork, a spin and a reverse pass into Van Persie which the latter could only fire at Kruls feet. Another chance fell to Rosicky but his  tiring legs could not muster the necessary power after Theo pulled it back for him and the ball went disappointingly out for a throw in.

Arteta and Song picked up loose balls, we harried in numbers and won the ball back in advanced positions. Ox started to come into the game as the Newcastle defence and midfield tired and was unlucky with a volley from outside the box and later opened up some space for himself in the penalty area before shooting wide.

Gervinho replaced Oxlade-Chamberlain, and Ramsey came on for the tiring Rosicky. Neither took anything away from the team thanks to the volume of players returning from injuries our bench now has some quality on it. The two subs combined to produce a cross which no one could reach, but good pressure high up on their goal line by Gibbs regained possession, he fed Van Persie, but again he could not find the finish, or just didn’t want to.

The best chance of the half probably fell to Gervinho, an Arteta cross travelled across the box and found him unmarked at the far post, he couldn’t sort his feet out in time and it drifted agonisingly wide. Arsenal were now camping in Newcastles half, Song produced a wonderful cross which Vermaelen met well only to see Krul tip over. Theo was next to be denied by good defensive work by Collocini. It just looked like it was going to be one of those nights where we couldn’t force it home.

And then Vermaelen thought “if Robin doesn’t want to tonight, I sure as hell do.”

I Want To

All that was left for Robin to ask Tim how much time he wanted to waste now. A bit of a melee ensued and Robin was held back by several team mates, actually I need to commend Arteta here as he intercepted Krul as he ran out of his box to confront Robin, although the Boy Wonder seemed in control he as certainly enjoying the bit of gamesmanship. Do I want my skipper to behave like that? Well actually I don’t mind if he does from time to time.

Take Your Time Tim

Ratings:

Szczesney – 7 Didn’t really have a lot to do, but dealt with most things comfortably and very good distribution last night.

Sagna – 8 Tireless support of Theo, and solid defensively

Koscielny – 8 Fearless in tackle, fast across ground, and a good reader of the game

Vermaelen – 9 Warrior

Gibbs – 7 Starting to show why Wenger has faith in him, good going forward, disciplined defensively. Tidy on the ball.

Song – 8 The kind of game we love to see from him, everywhere needed to fight fires and good use of the ball. No lazy fouls, no lazy touches, no hanging on to the ball.

Arteta 7 – struggled first half to find players and get a foot on the ball, finds a teammate more often than not.

Rosicky – 8 A good performance by the newly re signed Czech, he actually is “Like a New Signing”.

Walcott – 9 Constant threat to Newcastle in behind, good runs, and good delivery.

Oxlade – Chamberlain – 7 struggled to get into game first half, found the ball more in the second and gave flashes of what he is good at.

The Boy Wonder – 9 Another world class performance from our leader, the first goal was evidence of his form right now and why he got the 8, the extra point was for his winding up of Krul, he would have had a ten if it weren’t for some off shooting second half.

Subs:

Gervinho 7 – some good touches and passes, made threatening runs.

Ramsey 7 – found the pace of the game immediately, found some good passes, was in the melee that led to the goal.

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Posted by Gööner In Exile

Theo Walcott: An Appeal

February 28, 2012

Well done Theo Walcott.

After a frustrating first half against the enemy on Sunday he refused to let his head go down and had a storming second 45, capped with two expertly taken goals.

If you believe some of the press, our young wide man was subjected to a dog’s abuse by a proportion of the home support before half time.

Matt Dickinson in The Times had this to say:

“If Arsène Wenger had listened to the fans, Theo Walcott would have been sat on the bench in the second half. If Walcott had listened to the fans, he might have been weeping in the dressing room despairing at how they expect him to perform if he is such a “useless c***”…

“Fickledom is the way of the supporter but, truly, some of the Arsenal hardcore did not deserve to be allowed to stay in their seats for this astonishing comeback.

“They should ask Walcott if he felt buoyed when he had the chance to sprint clear of Tottenham Hotspur’s defence in the first half but instantly offloaded the ball to Robin van Persie rather than risk another volley of “P”s, “C”s and “F”s.

“Some of the angriest men in the world seem to gather at the Emirates, so quick to seize on any mistake that you wonder if they are willing failure.”

Now I should point out that some AA regulars who were at the match reported hearing no such abuse.

Yes, there were groans of disappointment when promising moves broke down, but that’s been happening at football matches since Dandan was a nipper.

I’m not suggesting that Dickinson is making it up (the press don’t do that sort of thing do they?). It may just be that there are a group of particularly angry so-called fans who sit near the press box at the Emirates.

Instead of saying “if Arsene Wenger had listened to the fans” it might have been better journalism for Dickinson to write “if AW had listened to some of the disgruntled fans sitting near me…”

But it’s a better story if you give the impression that poor Theo was being sworn at by 57,000 howling psychopaths.

As far as I could tell from watching on the TV, the support for the team was fantastic throughout the whole game, even at two-nil down.

Nevertheless, anyone who has looked around the Arsenal blogscape will recognise some of the sentiment described in the Times article.

I have seen comments on Arsenal blog sites heaping the vilest of abuse on Theo. I have seen people who call themselves Arsenal supporters wish death on him, I have seen others praying that he gets his leg broken.

As supporters of a club that has suffered three horrendous leg breaks in recent seasons these people, apparently in all seriousness, really do want to wish the same on Walcott.

They are not supporters, they are a cancer in our great club and any site that fails to remove their comments is as much part of the problem as the haters who spout such filth.

Ramsey has had similar treatment this year (his first season back, remember,  from one of the aforementioned leg breaks, in a team struggling as a whole to find its form). Yes he has found it hard  at times, as has Theo, but do they really deserve such odious abuse?

Criticism, fine. Abuse and hatred, never.

Walcott is just 22 – still a player learning his trade. He has some shortcomings and some gifts; he may never be a world class great, but some of his critics would have you believe he should be playing non-league.

Well let’s compare his effectiveness with a player whom those self-same critics would no doubt revere: Marc Overmars, one of the heroes of our 1998 Double winning side.

In three seasons with us, Overmars played 100 EPL games and scored 25 goals – a return of one goal every four games.

In the last three EPL seasons (including this one), Walcott has played 76 games and scored 17 goals – a return of one goal every four-and-a-half games. Not that big a difference, especially when you take into account that Overmars started most of the games he played in, whereas Walcott’s 76 appearances include 22 as a substitute.

I’m not for a moment saying that Walcott and Overmars are directly comparable. For one thing the Dutchman was already 24 years old when he joined us. And I’m happy to accept that Theo has limitations.

But they are both speedy, direct wingers with a roughly similar goal return. And when you’re a winger you have to take a lot of risks because you are one of the focal points of the attack. You are expected to try and beat opponents, to shoot, to cross, to set up assists for goals. Inevitably your efforts won’t all succeed.

I would need to go back and watch some full games from Overmars’ spell with us, but I now wonder how many times he failed to beat his man, or tried passes that did not come off.  Perhaps if the internet had been as prevalent in his day there would have been “supporters” wishing death on him too.

Yesterday on Arsenal Arsenal a clip was uploaded showing Robin van Persie and Theo Walcott being interviewed after crushing the jumped-up jackanapes from down the Seven Sisters Road.

If you haven’t seen it, you should (and with luck someone will re-post the link in the comments below).

You’ll see the captain of our club – and the best player in the country this year (if not the world) – giving 100% support to Theo and, in a subtle way, asking the fans to lay off him.

Do you think Robin knows what he’s talking about?

Do you think our brilliant captain, who trains with Theo every day and plays with him every week, is better qualified to judge his abilities than some slobbering lard bucket with spittle round his mouth and a face full of fury?

I know I do.

So here’s my appeal to all true Arsenal fans between now and the end of the season:

  • Support Theo and all our players in every game.
  • If he (or others) make mistakes, rein in the anger and frustration. Redouble the support. If in doubt, think about a certain two-nil-down, five-two-up victory.
  • Criticise his performance in the pub or on your favourite blog, but exercise moderation and restraint.
  • If you run a blog, remove comments that are expressed in hateful terms and ban posters who persist in such abuse.
  • If you contribute to a blog, chasitise others who express themselves in such a way and ask the site administrators to take action.
  • At games, if there’s a hater near you ask him to pipe down and support the team.
  • If you feel too intimidated to do that, drown him out with your support.

If we can deal with some of the poison seeping from the internet community and the stands I feel confident that the atmosphere at the ground can also improve, with a knock on positive effect on the team.

Sunday’s brilliant ambience should be the norm, not the exception, but the bad apples need to be silenced.

They are a nasty minority and the majority, the ones who gave unfailing support all game long against the Spuds, do not have to stand for it.

RockyLives

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A game to remember – a win to savour

February 27, 2012

Written by 26may

5-2? What a day, and not just for the bookies. Hyperbole it may be, but I can think of few more suitable games to be described as epic.

I admit it, I approached this game full of pessimism.  We’re not as bad as some make us out to be but it is beyond dispute that we have declined, while our N17 neighbours have finally, finally got themselves a decent squad.  Our fragility is such that I felt I’d have been pleased with one point today.  Not in my wildest dreams did I expect us to thrash the old enemy and in such dramatic fashion.  Scoring enough goals to go back above Chelsea was not on my agenda.

So how did it happen?

First off, Wenger’s team selection was spot on.  Having been out of the loop in recent weeks, I was surprised to see Rosicky and Benayoun in the starting XI, but they were both excellent.  Quietly, Rosicky has been one of our form players this season, mixing efficient passing with intelligent movement and purposeful dribbling.  But goalscoring has disappeared from his repertoire.  What a time to rediscover it, with a perfectly timed run to finish off a lovely passing move and put us into the lead.

And Yossi was our Duracell bunny, constantly offering an option to the man with the ball, but also having the intelligence always to probe the defenders he faced.  The obvious choice might have seen Wenger have Gervinho or Chamberlain start the match, but he had the guts to resist doing the obvious, and put Benayoun up against the excellent Kyle Walker.  I admit, I’ve been a fan of the Israeli since he joined us and have been a little frustrated to see him not given much quality match time.  He is proper quality.

And Robin van Persie was, well, Robin van Persie: excellence personified.

The Arsenal performance in first half hour was pretty uneven, with Sagna and Walcott looking especially out of sorts, and Arteta and Song not looking very focused.  But they dragged good performances out of themselves, and the midfield established control over their Spurs counterparts.

The Arsenal defence had started in pretty charitable mood, leaving too much space for Saha to run into in the build-up to the first Spurs goal and being vulnerable on the break when we were pressing for an equaliser.  They were carved open by a sublime through ball from Luka Modric to Gareth Bale, but everyone’s favourite chimpanzee took a cynical dive to earn a penalty to put Spurs two up.  The atmosphere was all anxiety and depression.

But the defence recovered its poise and was rarely tested after conceding that second goal.  Koscielny was imperious in dominating Adebayor pretty much throughout, and Vermaelen showed he is better than the shadow of a player he was in the Milan game.  Spurs helped us, giving us enough breathing space for us to recover.

And then the game began a mental phase of half an hour around the halftime break.  Spurs seemed to fold, especially in defence, where only Walker can claim to have earned his money.  Kaboul and King were terrible, and played like strangers.

First Sagna, who had seemed incapable of holding onto the ball up to then, powered home a header, then Robin the Master found a pocket of space on the edge of the penalty area from which he gloriously swept home the equaliser.  Tails were most definitely up.

At halftime, Harry “I pay my taxes, me” Redknapp bizarrely chose to put Sandro on the right wing rather than Aaron Lennon, as well as putting van deer Vaart on for Saha.  Thanks Harry, much appreciated.  Sandro’s a good player but he’s no winger, and vdV was really poor on the day.

Meanwhile, our forward players continued to rip Spurs to shreds.  With little cover from Parker, who compared badly to the inestimable Alex Song, King, Kaboul and Assou-Ekotto were carved open three times in quick succession.  Rosicky, arguably our man of the match, put us in front before incredibly Walcott remembered what he can do with the ball at his feet and just the keeper to beat.  After putting a sighter just past the post, he nailed two chances in quick succession (admittedly after some random ball control).  Heavenly stuff for the good guys, and an incredible comeback was complete.

We should remember this game for a long time to come, such enjoyable performances and results are rare and precious things.  But we also need to use this as an inspiration for the remainder of the season.  The squad has its weaknesses, and those need to be attended to in the summer, but there is also real quality there.

Player ratings from Herb’s Army

Arsenal were simply different class today and normal order has been restored.

Szczesny – No chance with either goal (never a penalty!). Has the potential to be immense next season. 7

Sagna – After a shaky couple of games, was back to his imperious self, and what a goal! 9

Gibbs  –  Is growing with every game and today he looked an Arsenal player 8

Koscielny – He has developed into a quality centre-half. 8

Vermaelen – Stepped up well today. 8

Song – When he and we got into our game, Song was colossal today. If only he could do this in more games. 9

Arteta – For me personally, his best game so far, highlighted by his exquisite cross for Sagna’s goal. 9

Rosicky – The performance we all knew he was capable of, but have waited an age to witness. 9

Walcott – A complete enigma. Confounded his critics (yes I’m amongst them), with a scintillating second half showing 9

Benayoun – Fantastic link and tireless work-rate from our much under-used Israeli. 8

van Persie – Our very own super-hero just keeps delivering the magic. 9

Thank you Arsene, thank you Arsenal.

COYRRG !!!!!

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Posted by peachesgÖÖner

Match report – The fantastic story of Theo, The Ox and the Fox in the Box

February 5, 2012

 

How long have we been hoping for a result like this? We said for a long time that somebody will get a hiding from Arsenal sooner or later and today Blackburn – together with a handful of wasted bin bags, filled with nothing but hot air – were taken to the Bin-Bangers.

 Arsene decided to rest the tired Ramsey and also Sagna, who only just returned from a long injury. Blackburn’s Steve Kean did us a massive favour by leaving out the always-impressive-against-us Samba, and Yakubu was still suspended. So, given the weaker line-up by Blackburn, and the fact we were playing at home with a relatively strong line-up, we were of course expected to win. But, haven’t we been here a few times before this season …?

First Half

Arsenal started brightly and got just what the psychiatrist ordered: an early goal. Rosicky found Walcott with a through-pass towards the by-line and Theo kept his composure to pass a fine ball in between the stranded Robinson and the Blackburn Defence, resulting in an easy tap-in for the always alert Robin van Persie: 1-0 to Arsenal in the second minute!

After that, Arsenal dominated without being particularly dangerous in front of the Blackburn goal, although Vermaelen came close once with an effort against the post.

Blackburn tried to keep it tight and were reasonably well-organised in the first part of the first half. Although Arsenal totally dominated in the first half, our lack of thrust and creativity after the early goal, started to subdue the crowd. Out of nothing, Blackburn earned a free-kick in a dangerous position, after Koscielny made a wrong judgement, allowing the ball to bounce after which he had no option but to hold back Anthony Modeste with his arms. It came as no surprise that Blackburn levelled with a superb free-kick by Pedersen. He is one of the best free-kick takers in the PL, and also on this occasion he produced a very fine effort which Szczesny did well to still get a few fingers to, but to no avail: 1-1.

The equaliser tested our patience and resolve. Of course it was against the run of play and therefore undeserved, but that’s how football often goes. Luckily, we did not have to wait long to see whether Arsenal would respond in the right way. A very fine through ball by Song – he assists when he wants, it seems – reached Theo in an identical spot as where he was for the first goal. Also on this occasion Theo kept his composure, as he put in a subtle cross to the once again alert super-Dutchman, who loftily lifts the ball with his ‘inferior’ right foot over the leg of a defender to slot in his second goal: 2-1.

Two minutes later and Arsenal score the goal of the afternoon. It not only was Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain first PL game, but his goal, and RvP’ assist, were reminiscent of a DB10/Th14 goal in our recent, glorious past. RvP just showed with his assist what a complete football player he is. After scoring a Poacher’s brace already, this time he finds a Bergkamp-esque through-ball to the Ox, surgically carving open the Blackburn defence in a split-second. AOC takes the ball into the sixteen yard box with a fine first touch, and with an even better second touch gets himself in an excellent scoring position. The adrenalin must be boiling inside his 18 year young body, but he stays calm and scores with the coolness similar to Thierry Henry’s in his very best days: 3-1.

This was the pivotal moment of the game, not just in terms of quality, but also by having created a two-goal lead, Arsenal had settled its, recently so over-tested, nerves. However, Arsenal were then helped further by a reckless lunge of Givet on RvP, after which the former was rightly sent-off. Luckily, very luckily, RvP managed to lift himself off the ground, a fraction of a second before Givet’s two-footed impact. With a 3-1 lead, against 10-men Blackburn all was looking good for the mighty Arsenal.

Second Half

Arsenal meant business from the start of the second half. It clearly was not prepared to sit back on its lead and soon it was rewarded for its attitude. Arteta, who throughout the first half had made football look so easy with his composure and positioning, pounced on the rebound and slotted home a decent shot from just inside the box: 4-1!

These are the sort of goals we have been missing this season and it was just what we needed to keep the momentum going.

In the 54th minute, 3 minutes after the fourth Arsenal goal, we scored another fine goal. Theo Walcott, who played with real verve and focus during the entire game, made a strong run across the Blackburn sixteen-yard box after which he found the Ox in a bit of space. The Ox did not hesitate for a second and took Theo’s pass in one go, shooting past Robinson’s right-hand corner: 5-1.

Then it was Coquelin’s turn to provide an assist, which RvP despatched once again from close range with this right foot: 6-1.

An easier hat-trick he will never get! Coquelin was impressive throughout the game; he plays with a confidence, maturity and physicality which are way beyond his age. On top of that he has a classy style about him, in the way he runs and he passes the ball: another fine prospect! After that, Arsene made a couple of substitutions: Benayoun and TH12 came on for The Ox and super-Song. Very surprisingly RvP stayed on the field!

Understandably, the game lost some of its intensity after the substitutions and the 6-1 score. However, just before the end TH12 scored a somewhat fortuitous seventh goal from another RvP assist, to complete the total rout: 7-1!

Conclusions

This is a very good result for Arsenal and just what we needed. Of course it is just one game and it would be wrong to get carried away. Blackburn was weakened by the omission/non-availability of Samba and Yakubu and the sending-off of Givet was also helpful. However, seven goals from eleven shots on target is a fantastic return, and four ‘non-RvP goals’ in one match is also very encouraging and much-needed at this stage. Results like this build confidence and bring back the feel-good-factor.

The Ox was phenomenal: his goals were classy and taken so maturely for his age, but on top of that he carries such a threat and thrust with him, every time he starts an attacking move. He reminds me a bit of the ‘Portuguese Ronaldo’ and also a bit of Messi. It is early days of course, but the Ox is the sort of player Arsenal has cried out for, ever since the departure of Dennis Bergkamp (not that they are a similar type of football player).

Theo proved that he can recover from one game to the next and I guess we all have to get used to the fact that he will have good days and average days throughout his career (most wingers suffer from the same problem). It will be interesting to see how the Gerv, Theo and The Ox – and eventually Ryo – will compete for the wing-positions. I wish I could incorporate Arshavin, but it feels his time is up at Arsenal.

Song and Arteta had great games and Rosicky made a decent enough contribution too. The BFG, Koz and Vermaelen had relatively easy games and made no mistakes (except for Koz in the first part of the first half).

TV looks like a Bouncer at a Tea-Party in the LB position, and I am sure he wants to be back as CB asap. Szczesny had also little to do but what he did was good (except for one moment in the first half when he decided to come to the edge of his box to clear a high ball which he messed up: it could easily have resulted in an embarrassing outcome for him).

Coquelin was superb and I just cannot believe our luck that we have so many young players coming through and making it into our first-11 at the moment.

But, ultimately this is the story of the Theo, The Ox, and the Fox in the Box:

Theo: 3 top assists, 0 goals.

The Ox: 0 assists, 2 goals.

The Fox in the Box: 2 assists, 3 goals.

Total: 5 assists, and 5 goals. Simply fantastic!

Player ratings:

Szczesny, Koz, TV, BFG: 7. All did their jobs well, but they were not tested much today.

Le Coq: 8. Fantastic game, with a fine assist as well.

Arteta, Rosicky, Song – ARS: 7.5. All did their jobs well today and all brought something extra to the game with either a goal (Arteta) or an indirect assist (Rosicky, Song).

TheO, The Ox, and the Fox in the Box: 9. Together they are my Men of the Match.

TotalArsenal.

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Posted by peachesgÖÖner

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