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What a fantastic write up. Great idea with the video insert too.
Reviews
Written by Mean Lean on Sunday, 05 February 2012 23:30
For once, thank goodness for the fixture list.
Had the Arsenal vs Blackburn game been scheduled for today then the snow filled streets of London may have prevented the Arsenal faithful from witnessing an attacking treat of Arsenal goodness. Goodness that has been rather absent of late.
When I look at our squad on paper I struggle to see a seventh placed side and that has always been my view, whether that be rose tinted or not. Performances have not been good enough in recent weeks but that is because we haven't played as good as we can rather than our best not being enough.
There were several things during the 90 minutes that I enjoyed, firstly it was the way we moved the ball. Quicker, earlier and with less touches. We were harder to play against, harder to stop and it was how the 4-3-3 should be played.
Such fine details can decide the pattern of a game and arguably we played better in the first half an hour at Bolton than we did yesterday. The difference may just have been the first chance ending up in the back of the net rather than the other side of the goal post.
Theo Walcott was in the groove yesterday and I think much of that was down to the way we played the game as well as some poor defending by the visitors. Quick early passes with a high tempo helps Theo, it helps keep our opponents on the back foot which Walcott's pace can exploit. When we face teams at the Emirates who sit back and have time to set themselves then Walcott often struggles to have an impact as he is forced to unlock teams rather than attack spaces. van Persie tapped in for the first and that would have lifted any nerves after our goal shy display at Bolton in midweek.
Arsene was understandably cautious with the resting of Bacary Sagna after such a bad injury. It made sense to play him at Bolton and rest him at home to Blackburn. His understudy is looking more and more assured at right back, a position that the manager said that the player had no confidence in. He is doing a mighty fine job of fooling us all.
You could see the confidence in his game with little touches like looking the other way when disguising a pass much in the way that Ronaldinho did so often. Coquelin also had quite a free role when we had possession. Andre Santos had this on the other side when he was available. You could see him pressing and making tackles in the middle of the pitch and joining our attacks. In hindsight, I wonder if Arsene would have selected Coquelin over Djourou earlier while Sagna was out with his injury. Coquelin has a lovely blend of tenacity, guile and flair. Throwing the defensive midfielder tag over his name might be a little unfair after watching his repertoire of tricks, passes and dribbles.
When Laurent Koscielny pulled down a Blackburn Rovers forward outside of our box, I bet a large chunk of Gooners knew what the outcome would be. We've seen it all too many times. The opposition struggle to get a sniff of the ball but either score from a corner, or a rasping shot from distance. Szczesny was beaten from distance from a curling Pedersen strike.
Heads could have gone down after recent results but you get the feeling that words have been exchanged between the Arsenal players and the mentality has changed once more. Shortly after Alex Song had slipped an eye of the needle pass into the path of Walcott who crossed to the right foot of van Persie to dart ahead of his man and tuck away his second tap in of the game.
There were many great things to point out about the game, the crispness of our passing, the excellence of Robin van Persie, Theo Walcott in deadly mood, Francis Coquelin and Tomas Rosicky rolling back the years, for me one player stood out. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is only 18 years of age but already plays like a 23 year old. When watching him earlier in the season he looked like a very good footballer but he has quickly jumped up a level. His reverse pass to van Persie against Manchester United and his through ball to Walcott against Bolton were signs that he was making an impact on the games he was playing in but now it looks as if he is now playing with belief.
Robin van Persie attempted the same reverse pass to Thierry Henry in the closing moments at Bolton but got it fractionally wrong, this time it was inch perfect. But a pass like that cannot be made if a player isn't making the correct run. Chamberlain made that run and his control, side step and finish must have been something that he has done since he was a young kid in the school playground. It looks second nature to him.
We know that young players shouldn't be over hyped, we know that bright talents can fade and lose what they have quickly. But when it is this obvious then what is the point of pretending that he will not be a huge player for years to come. He will be, we all know it already, just as we did when Jack Wilshere burst onto the scene.
Arsene has usually had a certain type of player in wide areas. From the creative passing wide playmaker like Pires, Rosicky and Nasri to the quick direct goalscoring wide striker. Marc Overmars, Jose Reyes and now Theo Walcott.
Arsene may well have found himself a combination of the two in years to come. Chamberlain has described himself as a central creative player but his youth and pace has seen him start his career out wide. The left side of the pitch suits him as he is able to come off the line and get into central areas and make Pires-esque diagonal passes for team mates on the run. We saw an exciting combination of the two roles when he skipped past a tackle, a quick step over past another, a check back and then the pick out at the far post to Arteta who volleyed over.
His second goal was thanks to Walcott's driving run, I was begging Theo to drive inside his man instead of continuously outside Martin Olsson. Often there is so much space inside his man and it commits central defenders towards him. Chamberlain neatly shifted back on his right and bobbled in his second of the game. I enjoyed his dancing celebration, not because of the dance itself but because he looks as if he is opening up and feeling relaxed at this level. I am already looking forward to next season, watching his natural progress along with a fit Jack Wilshere combining together. How exciting is that?
Before that our job was made easier by Givet's dismissal before half time. There was no malice in the challenge and he went for the ball but the rules now state that you cannot launch yourself into tackles and the decision was correct.
Arteta fizzed in a shot through the crowd to make it 4-1 two minutes before Chamberlain's second of the game. Robin van Persie struck home his hat trick on the hour thanks to some great work by Francis Coquelin, doubling up as a skilful winger rather than a defensive midfielder playing out of position.
Thierry Henry came on and was given a goal thanks to the unselfish work of captain Robin van Persie. 7-1 should inject some much needed confidence into this team and that was partly down to some poor Blackburn defending all over the pitch along with some much improved attacking football from Arsenal.
It will be a different game all together against Sunderland, a very tough place to go to against a manager who has turned things around at that club. A 1-0 victory would be just fine.
Man of the match: Robin van Persie
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06-Feb-2012 00:56 | | BerlinGood good. Nice read. I just hope we see Rosicky more often in the starting eleven. I would choose him any day over Ramsey. The guy's just not ready yet.
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06-Feb-2012 01:32 | | East Stand AlexMuch better after yesterday, thank you.
Quite optimistic that we can get past the injuries and forge a really good side out of the mess of our squad.
It's amazing how lifting it is when the whole team plays well.
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06-Feb-2012 01:33 | | Shay - RosickyI agree, Rosicky is back to his old self and should be given more time. Rambo is still a year or so away.
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06-Feb-2012 03:09 | | Gooner"Performances have not been good enough in recent weeks but that is because we haven't played as good as we can rather than our best not being enough"
. Well said
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06-Feb-2012 06:05 | | The BearManAnother two other youngsters I want to see given a chance is Afobe n Aneke, before we consider spending millions in the summer!
If the lads are good enough play them.
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06-Feb-2012 08:32 | | MeanLean
I thought Rosicky was way ahead during pre season. I assume that Rosicky just cannot handle too many games these days
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06-Feb-2012 10:44 | | Vuja DeGood write up Mean Lean, with some perceptive points made.
"I am already looking forward to next season, watching his natural progress along with a fit Jack Wilshere combining together. How exciting is that?" - Wilshere's already had his 15 minutes of fame, and is yesterday's news...it's now all about Chamberlain!
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06-Feb-2012 14:20 | | East Stand Alex - VelaMy guess would be that he will if he has kept a regular place for a whole season in La Liga. He hasn't done brilliantly, but he is doing ok. Wenger is loyal, and the way he has talked about Vela in the past, especially about his finishing, does point to him being a player he believes in. Wenger has also talked before about the main part of the loan being a player showing he has the personality to go to a team and force his way into the starting line-up ahead of the club's own players. You're right it can't be a certainty, and maybe Sociedad will buy him, or he will just much prefer to stay in Spain, but my feeling is he'll have a chance if we do have a major squad pruning this summer.
But really the one I'm looking at to be a newly signed up RVP's main back up and load sharer is Joel Campbell. He's being doing well, and getting goals in Ligue 1. He has worked his way into the starting line up, which is a big step up from Saprissa. Coquelin has already shown that Lorient is a decent finishing school, so hopefully Campbell will prove that as well.
I do like Afobe too, but he probably will need a full loan at a decent level before he's ready to be a goal scorer in the premiership.
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06-Feb-2012 22:38 | | MeanLeanI think the thumbs downers didn't quite manage to see the tongue pushed firmly in the cheek.
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07-Feb-2012 12:51 | | RamboNice to see a glimps of the old self.
Ox i think is making Theo stand up and take responsibility. But he did well.
But i think right now, I think we need points over performance. 4th is there to be had
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07-Feb-2012 21:52 | | Gino92I know it might probably be too late to catch the Spuds up the table this season but wouldn't it be wonderful if we could spank them like we did Blackburn at the Emirates later this month? If any team deserves a few good lashings, I'd say it is them. How dare they challenge us for Champions League spot? Hahaha....
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