Thursday 29 November 2012

Another away day draw

Everton 1-1 Arsenal


Arsene Wenger’s side produced another disjointed performance last night against a committed Everton side who completely dominated the midfield battle.

The Gunners got off to the perfect start, with Theo Walcott’s deflected strike giving the away side the lead within the first 52 seconds of the game. The Englishman drifted across the pitch from right to left, exchanged passes with Aaron Ramsey on the edge of the box before aiming a shot towards the top corner. The ensuing deflection helped the ball to evade Tim Howard and sail into the back of the net. It was Walcott’s tenth goal of a season in which he is truly becoming indispensable to this side.

Arsenal should have built on the early goal and used it as a platform from which to control the match. Had they been able to keep the game tight, restricting Everton from creating chances, the home crowd would have become frustrated which in turn would have affected their side’s play. Yet the Gunners were not able to assert any such control on proceedings. Their passing, a fundamental element of each and every one of Wenger’s Arsenal sides in the past, was absolutely abysmal. The away side struggled to pass the ball forward with any real fluency as Everton continually pressed and harried those in possession.

There was no real width to Arsenal’s play either, as their poor ball retention essentially restricted both Sagna and Gibbs from supporting the attack, with the Gunners forward play once again becoming increasingly predictable and easy to read. It was no surprise therefore to see the home side gradually coming back into the game. Leighton Baines saw his cross pushed out by Szczesny before Fellaini’s header from Baines’ corner was gathered by the Arsenal goalkeeper. Everton seemed hungrier for the ball as they hunted in packs, forcing their opponents to make mistakes and relinquish possession to the delight of the home crowd. One such instance in the 28th minute directly resulted in Fellaini restoring parity with an excellent strike.

Steven Pienaar’s strong tackle saw the ball squirm away from Arteta and land at the feet of Sagna. However with Everton’s players quickly advancing on him, restricting any time or space afforded to the Frenchman, Sagna’s rushed clearance fell straight to Fellaini and the Belgian international duly curled an excellent shot round Vermaelen and into the bottom corner to make the score 1-1.

The home side were now in the ascendency and should have taken the lead just before half time. Fellaini flicked the ball on, into the path of Jelavic, who in turn flicked it past Mertesacker. Yet having done the hard work, the Everton striker could not get his shot on target and saw his effort fly harmlessly over the bar.

The Gunners just could not get into the game. Their midfield had been swamped and they simply were not able to gain a foothold in this area of the field. On the few occasions Arsenal were able to play the ball up to Giroud, there was largely no support for him and so inevitably the ball came back towards the Arsenal box. On occasions such as these Arsenal fans must surely yearn for an out and out defensive midfielder to be deployed at the base of the midfield to provide a destructive element to their play. With the absence of such a player within the Gunners starting eleven, Fellaini was essentially allowed to dominate the game with his immense strength and intimidating presence.
The second half began as the first had ended, Kieran Gibbs this time denying Steven Naismith with an excellent sliding tackle in the six yard box, before Szczesny was twice called into action in quick succession. The Poland international first saved Pienaar’s near post effort and then parried Sylvan Distin’s powerful header over the bar. Everton should have also been awarded a penalty when Pienaar was hauled to the ground by a clumsy tackle from Arteta inside the box which the referee somehow failed to see.

Yet the away side also had opportunities to snatch all three points. Walcott’s cross was flicked just wide by Giroud, before Ramsey’s innocuous pass inside the box almost ended up in the back of the net following a mix up between Howard and Jagielka. But the Gunners best chance came with only eight minutes left. Having managed to catch Everton on the break, Giroud’s cross was just a fraction too high for Gervinho with the goal at the Ivorian’s mercy.

At the end of the game, Wenger declared himself content with the point his side had gained from a tough away fixture, especially when considering the Gunners had played in a North London derby, followed by a Champions League game as well as two tough away matches, all in quick succession. But surely the Frenchman must be concerned with the sterile forward play his side has been displaying of late. For opposition teams, it has seemingly become far too easy to play against an Arsenal side which appears to have great difficulty in quickly completing the transition from defence to attack. The Gunners may enjoy the lion’s share of possession in the majority of their games but it’s how effective you are in possession that really counts; something which Arsenal must improve upon.

Monday 26 November 2012

Gunners draw at Villa

Aston Villa 0-0 Arsenal


Arsenal’s inconsistency resurfaced on Saturday with a drab performance in the 0-0 draw against Aston Villa. Having beaten Tottenham and qualified for the last 16 of the Champions League, Arsenal were expected to take great confidence and motivation into their next fixtures, but unfortunately this was not the case at Villa Park.

In the post-match press conference, Arsene Wenger identified fatigue as a key element to the below par performance he had just witnessed from his side. However, Kieran Gibbs and Carl Jenkinson both began the game in the full back positions having not played a part in the recent fixtures, Aaron Ramsey, who was a late substitute against both Spurs and Montpellier, also began the game in midfield as did Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, himself a late substitute against Tottenham and a starter against Montpellier. Therefore, the manager could not really use the element of tiredness as an excuse, he did freshen up the starting eleven and had he been so concerned about the level of fatigue amongst his first team players, he could have also rested Arteta and played Coquelin and started with Gervinho instead of Podolski.

The Gunners main problem against Aston Villa was the dearth of creativity from the midfield and the lack of hunger and desire from the Arsenal players to make forward runs past Olivier Giroud. This is essential in making the 4-3-3 formation work to your advantage. By making forward runs you automatically drag the opposition’s midfield and defence out of position and create more angles and options for your teammates to play the ball forward. On the few occasions this did happen, the away side did appear dangerous but unfortunately these instances were few and far between. With the lack of support from his midfield, Giroud, in his role as the lone striker, became extremely isolated and although he didn’t have his best game in an Arsenal shirt, whenever he did win the ball, Arsenal were not able to retain possession and gain a foothold in the final third.

As a result, the Arsenal attack was painfully slow and laboured. With no real attacking options, Wenger’s side unsurprisingly ended the game with a solitary shot on target. Ramsey was once again the main culprit for this cumbersome approach to the game. The Welshman simply requires far too much time in possession before deciding what he will do next with the ball. More often than not, his passing is erratic and his shooting ability is also poor. When played out of position, on the wing, Ramsey has a valid excuse for his inadequate performances, but on Saturday no such explanation would suffice as he was played in the centre of midfield. Ramsey’s woeful displays in an Arsenal shirt have become far too common and the only surprise on Saturday was the fact he somehow managed to stay on the field for the entire 90 minutes.

Another problem for the Gunners is the fact that several teams have identified Mertesacker as the weak link in the Arsenal defence when it comes to passing the ball out from the back. On several occasions on Saturday, Christian Benteke would push up onto Laurent Koscielny, leaving Mertesacker with plenty of time and space to pass the ball forward. As the German does not possess Koscielny’s capability to surge forward with the ball, or the passing range to pick out a teammate with a pin point cross field pass, thus enabling the Gunners to get in behind the opposition defence, the transition between the Arsenal defence and midfield becomes extremely predictable and therefore easy to read. This provides the opposition with the confidence to apply pressure on the midfield when the ball is played forward and in turn frequently forces the Arsenal midfielder who has received possession to have to play the ball back, culminating in the slow processional approach witnessed on Saturday.

The Gunners were only able to create mostly half chances, Koscielny missing the best of these towards the end of the first half when failing to turn in Giroud’s low cross, the ball having been played slightly behind him. While Arsenal could consider themselves unlucky not to have converted such a chance, the Gunners would later have Mertesacker to thank for an excellent last ditch tackle on Agbonlahor, with the Englishman bearing down on goal and then Szczesny for a fantastic save, as he managed to tip Brett Holman’s powerful long range strike onto the bar.

All in all, Arsenal could not really complain about the result. Wenger’s side did not do enough to win the game and the Frenchman’s decision to bring on Coquelin in place of Giroud towards the end, seemed to suggest that he too was rather content with a draw. Chants of “you don’t know what you’re doing” were heard from the away end as the substitution was taking place and Wenger appeared riled after the game when asked to explain the reasons behind the substitution. While the manager does not have the funds to compete with the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea, he is responsible for the quality of the players who have arrived at the Emirates in recent seasons and must surely have admitted to himself that his current squad is simply not good enough to compete at a high enough standard throughout an entire campaign. In previous years, in similar circumstances to those at Villa Park on Saturday, Wenger would have thrown on another skilful striker towards the end in an attempt to win the game. Yet he now looks at the bench and all he can see staring back at him is mediocrity.  

Friday 23 November 2012

Gunners destroy Spurs then qualify for Champions League last 16

Arsenal 5-2 Tottenham

 

Arsenal 2-0 Montpellier


In the past week, Arsenal have emerged from a horrid run of results to record a wonderful 5-2 demolition of fierce rivals Tottenham Hotspur and a 2-0 victory over Montpellier to secure qualification from the group stage of the Champions League.

The build-up to the North London derby had been as tense as ever, with Emmanuel Adebayor proclaiming that Arsenal constantly sell their best players in Saturday’s morning papers. His comments seemed to have stirred his new team mates as Spurs began the game far quicker and hungrier than the Gunners. In fact, with only ten minutes played, Tottenham took the lead, through the villain in chief, Adebayor. It was an extremely poor goal to give away from an Arsenal perspective, a simple long ball saw Mertesacker inexplicably push up to play offside, while the rest of the defence stayed back. This enabled Jermain Defoe all the time and space he needed to advance on the area and shoot on goal. The shot was saved by Szczesny but he could only parry it into the path of Adebayor, who had been allowed to stroll into the penalty area, past the Arsenal defence, unchecked, to shoot into the empty net. At this stage the away side appeared to be in control of the game and moments later Aaron Lennon squandered an opportunity to double his side’s lead as he could only skew his shot narrowly wide of the goal.

Yet in the 18th minute the game changed dramatically as Adebayor did what he does best and lost his head. The Togolese international’s needless studs up challenge on Santi Cazorla, near the half way line, left the referee no option but to issue a red card to the delight of the home crowd, who let Adebayor know exactly what they think of him as he slowly trudged off the field. From this moment on, Arsenal never looked back. Despite Andre Villas Boas’ claims that Spurs were in charge from the first to the last minute, Arsenal in fact completely dominated the game following the sending off and created chance after chance. Many pundits have since claimed that had Adebayor remained on the field, the away side would have completed an easy victory, but the way Spurs capitulated suggests otherwise.

Yet the sending off did enable Cazorla and Wilshere to become more prominent in the game. Cazorla was simply exceptional and at the heart of every Arsenal attack. On numerous occasions the Spaniard demonstrated exquisite control and skill to bamboozle the opposition. Tottenham can only dream of having such a player in their ranks. Wilshere on the other hand was a real bulldog. He ran and chased and harried every Tottenham player, simply refusing to give up at any stage. One occasion in the second half summed up his performance perfectly. It appeared as though Gareth Bale had wriggled free on the edge of the box, with no Arsenal player in sight, yet out of nowhere Wilshere emerged and hunted the Welshman down with all his might, ultimately winning the ball back with an excellent challenge. In addition, Lukas Podolski’s work rate as he continually tracked back and put in tackle after tackle and The Walcott continually threatening to expose Tottenham’s shortcomings, also helped Arsenal to take control of proceedings.

The Gunners were winning the midfield battle and were level in the 23rd minute thanks to Per Mertesacker’s wonderfully well placed header, which more than made up for his earlier mistake. The German escaped from Willam Gallas to meet Theo Walcott’s cross and guide the ball into the corner of the net, past the despairing dive of Hugo Lloris for his first Arsenal goal. The Arsenal onslaught continued with Lloris saving well from a Giroud header and Cazorla’s long range effort flying just over the bar, before Giroud was once again denied by Lloris from a close range header. The home side’s dominance was rewarded with three minutes of the first half remaining through Lukas Podolski’s deflected effort which rolled slowly into the net. And there was more to come before the end of the first half, Oliver Giroud’s excellent finish, turning in Cazorla’s low ball, making the score 3-1 to the Gunners.

Arsenal were on fire and continued in the same vein at the start of the second half. On the hour mark, Giroud’s cushioned header found Podolski on the left hand side and the German’s low cross was met by the advancing Cazorla to send the Emirates wild once more. Tottenham were on their knees and a real drubbing was on the cards. Yet Gareth Bale had other ideas and reduced the deficit with 19 minutes remaining with a fine effort, having been allowed to surge forward by the back pedalling Arsenal defence. Suddenly the previously exuberant home support became nervous and edgy and rightly so, as soon after Tottenham’s second goal, Bale had a glorious chance to reduce the deficit further but fortunately missed the target.

With the clock appearing to be standing still, Arsenal finally began to control the game again, passing the ball amongst themselves and forcing Spurs to chase shadows. As the match entered its final minutes, Oxlade-Chamberlain broke down the right and delivered a perfect ball for Theo Walcott to complete the day’s scoring with Arsenal’s fifth to replicate last season’s score at the Emirates, 5-2.

Having well and truly trounced Spurs, the Arsenal faithful would have expected an increased confidence within the squad, with the belief that such a result could lead to a turnaround in their recently faltering season. However, the first half performance against Montpellier on Wednesday suggested otherwise. It appeared the Gunners were suffering from a derby day hangover as time and time again they lost possession through wayward passes.

In contrast to their hosts, Montpellier were able to control the game, playing short intricate passes, yet they did not really create enough genuine goal scoring opportunities to really trouble the Arsenal goal. In fact, Arsenal had the best chance of the first half, Laurent Koscielny’s header coming back off the bar from Wilshere’s cross.

Arsenal’s second half performance was vastly improved and was helped somewhat by an early goal. With only four minutes of the second half played, Thomas Vermaelen’s cross was nodded down by Giroud and Jack Wilshere raced forward to clip the ball over the advancing Geoffrey Jourdren in the Montpellier goal. Arsenal made sure the game was safe just after the hour mark through Podolski’s exquisite effort. The German played a one-two with Giroud on the edge of the box meeting the Frenchman’s chipped ball with a sensational volley which flew into the back of the net.

The Gunners managed to see out the rest of the game in relative ease and with Schalke defeating Olympiacos, Arsenal’s win saw them qualify from the group stage of the Champions League for the 13th straight season.

All in all a very productive week for Arsenal F.C. Hopefully the squad will gain confidence from and build on these two games and we will see an improvement in both the team’s performance and results. Olivier Giroud is fast becoming a pivotal member of the first team, while Podolski is chipping in with his fair share of goals and Wilshere is slowly but surely getting back to his best and gelling with his new teammates. These are all positive signs which may well point to a bright future ahead.

Monday 12 November 2012

Defensive errors cost Arsenal again

Arsenal 3-3 Fulham


 
 
 
Saturday’s pulsating match against Fulham couldn’t have ended in more dramatic fashion as Phil Dowd blew the final whistle seconds after Mikel Arteta had seen his penalty saved by Mark Schwarzer to deny Arsenal victory. As a result, Gunners fans couldn’t help feeling extremely frustrated at the squandered opportunity and failure to take all three points from a game in which their side had led 2-0. Yet when reflecting on the match it would be very difficult to make a case for Arsenal having merited a win.

 

With Jack Wilshere suspended, following his red card in the away defeat to Manchester United, Francis Coqulein started the game at the base of the midfield. In theory this would provide more of a screen for the Arsenal back four, with the young Frenchman being more naturally defensive minded than his central midfield teammates Cazorla and Arteta. Yet Arsenal’s main defensive problems appear to be on their left hand side, with Lukas Podolski at times neglecting his defensive responsibilities and failing to track back. Kieran Gibbs’ injury has not helped matters either, as before the Englishman’s enforced spell on the side-lines, the Gunners defence appeared to be a solid unit. With Thomas Vermaelen filling in at left back, as he did against Schalke, the home side still did not appear capable of stemming the Fulham attack from this side of the field. In fact, the away team started the match brighter, looking dangerous every time they attacked and could have taken an early lead through Brian Ruiz, but the Costa Rican’s deflected effort sailed just over the bar. 

 

However, with only 11 minutes gone and slightly against the run of play, Olivier Giroud headed Arsenal into the lead from a Theo Walcott corner. The Frenchman managed to evade his marker and timed his run to perfection, expertly steering a powerful header on goal, which Schwarzer could only parry into the back of the net. Although the Gunners weren’t anywhere near their fluent best, they managed to double their lead in the 26th minute through Podolski. With Fulham down to 10 men due to Kieran Richardson’s injury, Arsenal attacked down the right flank. A forward ball which should have been easily cleared, managed to squirm through to Arteta on the edge of the box, following a mix up in the Fulham defence and the Spaniard drove forward before sending a low cross into the box for Podolski to steer home. In a strange twist to proceedings, the two goal lead did not seem to give Arsenal the confidence to play their own game and dominate the game. In fact the home side appeared very nervous, as their play became sloppy, conceding possession far too easily.

 

The fact that Dimitar Berbatov reduced the deficit only 6 minutes after Podolski’s strike did not help matters either. The Bulgarian striker was standing right in front of Vito Mannone as the visitors prepared to take a corner, but somehow was afforded far too much space and time to head the ball unchallenged, into the net. From an Arsenal perspective, it was an extremely soft goal to give away, the defensive cohesion and stability which was so impressive during the first three games of the season, have since disappeared, leaving behind the same horrific defensive mistakes which have blighted recent seasons. Suddenly the pressure was on and the Arsenal defence simply could not handle it. Unsurprisingly, Fulham restored parity before the half time break thanks to an attack which originated down the Gunners’ left flank. A simple forward ball from Reither picked out Berbatov, on the edge of the Arsenal box, with Podolski too slow to track his run. The Bulgarian had the time to lay the ball back for Kacaniklic to head goal wards. The header was not powerful at all, but Vito Mannone was unable to scramble back across his line to keep it out and Fulham were back on level terms. And it could have been even worse, just before the half time whistle, as Dejagah’ attempt to flick the ball in from John Arne Riise’s low cross, resulted in the ball falling to the feet of Berbatov whose shot was blocked by Per Mertesacker. 

 

The second half started as the first had ended, with Fulham in the ascendancy. Wenger decided to replace Coquelin with Ramsey in order to address this, but the Welshman’s constant dithering in possession resulted in him almost being sent off as on two occasions he was easily dispossessed and then pulled down his opponent. Fulham completed their turn around in the 67th minute as Arteta was caught in possession by Ruiz and then brought him down inside the penalty area. Berbatov was coolness personified as he waited until the very last minute for Mannone to move one way before dispatching his penalty in the opposite corner.

 

Arsenal were now on the ropes and with the home crowd on their backs, could have even conceded a fourth. The Gunners appeared to be down and out, but then Giroud sparked them back into life. Having been put through on goal, the Frenchman steered his shot past Schwarzer but the ball hit the post, with the rebound falling straight to Walcott. The Englishman immediately crossed the ball into the box and Giroud’s excellent header evaded Schwarzer and hit the back of the net.

 

The Gunners now had the impetus and surged forward in search of the winner. Fulham were pressed back into their own half but were always dangerous on the counter attack. Giroud squandered a wonderful opportunity to seal his hat trick in the dying minutes, misdirecting Sagna’s cross when he had a free header and should have at least tested the goalkeeper. Then in the very last minute of the game Riether was harshly adjudged to have handled the ball inside the area and Arsenal were given a wonderful opportunity to win the game. Up stepped Mikel Arteta, but the Spaniard’s penalty was well saved by Schwarzer and the game ended 3-3.

 

While the events of the last few minutes may lead many to believe that the home side were unlucky not to win this match, the reality is Arsenal were simply not good enough once again. Arsene Wenger has since bizarrely declared that his side can still mount a championship challenge and herein lies the problem. The manager simply will not accept that his current squad will struggle to make it into the top four and as a result, the changes required to improve this squad will not be made. Even the most optimistic Arsenal fan must realise that we are all in for a long hard season.

Wednesday 7 November 2012

Arsenal escape with a point in Germany

Schalke 2-2 Arsenal


Arsenal yesterday threw away a two goal lead against Schalke in yet another below par performance. Although the Gunners did race into a two goal lead, the goals came against the run of play, with Schalke once again the superior of the two sides.

Monday 5 November 2012

We want our Arsenal back!

Manchester United 2-1 Arsenal




Another game, another dire performance in which Arsenal failed to create significant chances thanks to Wenger’s frustrating stubbornness. Yet again the manager’s decision to stick with Andre Santos at left back, back fired spectacularly, as did his insistence on playing Aaron Ramsey on the right wing. In each of the last three league games, Wenger has decided to start the match with the very same tactics and each and every time Arsenal have looked lethargic, sloppy and desperately short of options and ideas in the final third.