By 1970’s Gooner
Mannone: Did not have many things of note to do. Fluffed his clearance after a bad back pass from Ramsey when he should have kicked the ball out of his area with his left rather than the right foot. But he came out forcefully to clear a through ball. 6
Szczesny: One bad clearance when he should have stayed in his area but two very good saves, one from a free kick and the other from close range. 7
Eboue: one of the worst players in the first half. Hardly played a ball to an Arsenal player. If we can really get 8m for him then grab it and run I say. 4
Sagna: Quiet game but without mistakes. 6
Traore: Fantastic going forward, lousy in defending. Reminds me of Clichy and Ashley Cole in their earlier days where they were excellent going forward but their defensive positioning was lousy. They all had to use their pace to salvage the situation.
Cole and Clichy have turned out excellent defenders and so will Traore but how will Wenger satisfy all three current Arsenal left backs? 7
Silvestre: I am worried about his pace. This did not show today due to the opposition. 6
Toure: Still needs games to get into shape. Some clearances were shaky. 6
Djourou: Has to watch his positioning. 6
Gallas: Solid with a few very good tackles. The decision against him for the penalty was way too harsh. 7
Vermaelen: I liked his positional sense and the cultured left foot he has. He defended and also distributed well. 7
Denilson: Started every friendly game so far. I hope it is not a sign of things to come..Was, along with Ramsey, overran during the first 15 minutes when the opponents dominated. Perked up later. 6
Ramsey: One of his worst games so far. Hardly able to keep the ball or pass it to a team mate. 5
Song: Solid and getting better with his distribution. 7
Senderos: Again started in defensive midfield. Did well but I fear against Premier League opposition he will be giving too many fouls away as his lack of pace will be letting him down. This is not his position of course. 6
Wilshere: Lost on the left wing in the first half but when moved into the play makers position came into the for. This is his natural position and it is up to Wenger to decide whether to trust him there so early on in his career (like Fabregas) or bide his time. He missed two chances to score by trying to be too clever. 5
Bendtner: Increasingly looks the part. Scored two well taken goals and generally his overall play was very professional. This may be a very significant season for him and for Arsenal. I am expecting that he will rise up to fill Adebayor’s gap as I think that Wenger will not buy… 9
Eduardo: Scored two well taken goals. He is a clinical finisher and if he stays fit then he will score goals for us this season. 8
Arshavin: Was not up to his usual high standard today. Couldn’t hold the ball well nor pass it accurately. 5
Van Persie: had an average game but scored a superb penalty. 6
Man of the Match: Nicklas Bendtner
Monday, July 27, 2009
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Arsenal target Melo scores a beautiful goal for Brazil (video)
By Aries
Arsenal target Felipe Melo put Brazil one up against the USA in the Confederations Cup being held in South Africa. The final score was 3-0 to Brazil.
He scored a powerful header from close range after a free kick in the seventh minute and Robinho made it 2-0 in the 20th, completing a counter attack that began when DaMarcus Beasley fumbled a short corner kick. Maicon added the third goal in the 62nd.
You can watch Melo's goal on the video screen above.
If he can score these type of goals for Arsenal then we are onto a good thing here.
Arsenal target Felipe Melo put Brazil one up against the USA in the Confederations Cup being held in South Africa. The final score was 3-0 to Brazil.
He scored a powerful header from close range after a free kick in the seventh minute and Robinho made it 2-0 in the 20th, completing a counter attack that began when DaMarcus Beasley fumbled a short corner kick. Maicon added the third goal in the 62nd.
You can watch Melo's goal on the video screen above.
If he can score these type of goals for Arsenal then we are onto a good thing here.
Monday, June 08, 2009
Milan desperate to lure Dzeko
By 1970’s Gooner
Just when it seemed that things were beginning to get hot, in fly Mr. Galliani and Ariedo Braida, AC Milan’s President and Finane director respectively, to scamper Arsenal’s chances of landing hit man Edin Dzeko.
It seems that they realised that Arsenal were getting pretty close to getting their man and decided to act very quickly.
We can reveal that they actually flew in their private plane to Sarajevo, capital city of Bosnia and Hercegovina, last Saturday and spent the whole day on Sunday talking to Dzeko’s agent, Irfan Redžepagić.
“We began contact when Wolfsburg played against Milan in the UEFA Cup. They called me five days ago and expressed the wish to come. They came to get the consent of the player to talk to Wolfsburg.
After a telephone consultation with Edin we have his consent and actually said to us that it is such a pleasure that Milan is interested in him” Redžepagić said to the Bosnian media.
He also revealed that Milan has so far demonstrated the greatest interest to sign Dzeko.
“Galijani and Braida came here to show how serious they are. They made it clear that they want to see Dzeko as a Milan player” added Redžepagić.
Redžepagić also confirmed that apart from Milan and Arsenal there are three other teams interested in Dzeko: Manchester City, Chelsea, Lyon and Inter Milan. He also offered the opinion that Dzeko will probably not be playing in Germany next season.
“I will inform Wolfsburg the contact with Milan. Objectively, I think that Wolfsburg is now in a race with clubs that are a few classes above in every respect” Redžepagić said.
This turn of events is doubly bad news for Arsenal. For one it seems that the price for Dzeko will now be in the £20m region which may be prohibitive for Arsene’s low budget.
The other reason is that if Milan get their man they will certainly cool off any interest in buying Adebayor and I am one of those that would like to see the back of him….
Just when it seemed that things were beginning to get hot, in fly Mr. Galliani and Ariedo Braida, AC Milan’s President and Finane director respectively, to scamper Arsenal’s chances of landing hit man Edin Dzeko.
It seems that they realised that Arsenal were getting pretty close to getting their man and decided to act very quickly.
We can reveal that they actually flew in their private plane to Sarajevo, capital city of Bosnia and Hercegovina, last Saturday and spent the whole day on Sunday talking to Dzeko’s agent, Irfan Redžepagić.
“We began contact when Wolfsburg played against Milan in the UEFA Cup. They called me five days ago and expressed the wish to come. They came to get the consent of the player to talk to Wolfsburg.
After a telephone consultation with Edin we have his consent and actually said to us that it is such a pleasure that Milan is interested in him” Redžepagić said to the Bosnian media.
He also revealed that Milan has so far demonstrated the greatest interest to sign Dzeko.
“Galijani and Braida came here to show how serious they are. They made it clear that they want to see Dzeko as a Milan player” added Redžepagić.
Redžepagić also confirmed that apart from Milan and Arsenal there are three other teams interested in Dzeko: Manchester City, Chelsea, Lyon and Inter Milan. He also offered the opinion that Dzeko will probably not be playing in Germany next season.
“I will inform Wolfsburg the contact with Milan. Objectively, I think that Wolfsburg is now in a race with clubs that are a few classes above in every respect” Redžepagić said.
This turn of events is doubly bad news for Arsenal. For one it seems that the price for Dzeko will now be in the £20m region which may be prohibitive for Arsene’s low budget.
The other reason is that if Milan get their man they will certainly cool off any interest in buying Adebayor and I am one of those that would like to see the back of him….
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Doctor reveals that Eduardo underwent two surgeries not one
By Aries
Now who are we to believe. Arsenal FC or Croatia’s national team doctor?
Dr Boris Nemec said today that Eduardo underwent two minor surgeries. The first was a revision surgery on the left ankle to remove small metal screws which were originally placed there to assist in his recovery from the horrible injury he sustained more than a year ago.
The other however was on the same ankle which apparently has been troubling him since his come back late this season. It was to remove a bone that has been troubling Eduardo’s mobility.
“The doctor has removed a small bone on the ankle that slightly bothered ankle mobility. After that a small incision was made to remove screws that were placed in the ankle. The operation lasted about an hour Dr Nemec said.
We can reveal that the arthroscopy was carried out by the famous Dutch doctor Niek van Dijk who is very sought after by athletes all over the world suffering from ankle related problems. He was the doctor that treated Manchester United’s Ronaldo last season.
It appears that Arsenal decided to take advantage of the planned removal of the screws to carry out this second minor operation on the troublesome ankle at the same time.
This means that Eduardo will now be ready to start physiotherapy and if all goes well will be ready for preseason training on the 5th July.
Now who are we to believe. Arsenal FC or Croatia’s national team doctor?
Dr Boris Nemec said today that Eduardo underwent two minor surgeries. The first was a revision surgery on the left ankle to remove small metal screws which were originally placed there to assist in his recovery from the horrible injury he sustained more than a year ago.
The other however was on the same ankle which apparently has been troubling him since his come back late this season. It was to remove a bone that has been troubling Eduardo’s mobility.
“The doctor has removed a small bone on the ankle that slightly bothered ankle mobility. After that a small incision was made to remove screws that were placed in the ankle. The operation lasted about an hour Dr Nemec said.
We can reveal that the arthroscopy was carried out by the famous Dutch doctor Niek van Dijk who is very sought after by athletes all over the world suffering from ankle related problems. He was the doctor that treated Manchester United’s Ronaldo last season.
It appears that Arsenal decided to take advantage of the planned removal of the screws to carry out this second minor operation on the troublesome ankle at the same time.
This means that Eduardo will now be ready to start physiotherapy and if all goes well will be ready for preseason training on the 5th July.
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
F**** the potential Arsene, we have had enough
By 1970’s Gooner
This was men against boys. The difference in class was so obvious to see.
The United players were more experienced, stronger and covered so well for each other that even if Gibbs did not slip to let Park score the first goal they would have still run out comfortable winners.
The Arsenal team was littered with young boys and seeing them try to get to grips with the United pros was embarrassing.
Gibbs, yes he has potential but so obviously not ready for this type of game. He was found wanting in the first leg where most of United’s attacks and goal originated from his side.
In tonight’s game his slip set the tone of the game. And make no mistake his slip was a result of being under pressure, from knowing that Park was lurking behind him with intend.
Why didn’t Wenger go for more experience right from the first leg and play Eboue. He did after all trust him to start the Champions League Final in 2006.
Djourou was turned inside out by Ronaldo and Rooney and the centre of Arsenal’s defence looked porous all night.
Walcott was once again shut out of the game by Evra who was too strong for him.
Adebayor was a little more interested but was not effective enough and Van Persie was unfit and unable to support him.
Fabregas was nowhere to be seen, passes going astray and above all showing no leadership.
The only players to come out with any credit were Nasri and Song. Nasri was trying really hard, chasing the ball and making the play. Song was doing the defensive work very well and in addition was also trying to be creative, so ineffective was Fabregas.
And finally Wenger has to accept the most criticism for making all those inexplicable selections in the first leg, with Fabregas, Nasri and Diaby all played out of position in a formation which was wrong.
It was he that said that these ties are lost in the first leg. Well he did loose it in the first leg didn’t he?
He also lost it in that FA Cup semi final against Chelsea when for some unfathomable reason he dropped Arshavin played Van Persie out of position who promptly got injured too!
What a shambles. And what a shambles this policy of relying mostly on youth is turning out to be.
Well you can’t do that Mr Wenger, you have to have a balance in the team and blend these exciting youngsters with more experienced and physically stronger players. Otherwise you will still be pitching this potential lark to us for years to come.
Well it’s been four years now and we are still waiting.
WE HAVE HAD ENOUGH.
This was men against boys. The difference in class was so obvious to see.
The United players were more experienced, stronger and covered so well for each other that even if Gibbs did not slip to let Park score the first goal they would have still run out comfortable winners.
The Arsenal team was littered with young boys and seeing them try to get to grips with the United pros was embarrassing.
Gibbs, yes he has potential but so obviously not ready for this type of game. He was found wanting in the first leg where most of United’s attacks and goal originated from his side.
In tonight’s game his slip set the tone of the game. And make no mistake his slip was a result of being under pressure, from knowing that Park was lurking behind him with intend.
Why didn’t Wenger go for more experience right from the first leg and play Eboue. He did after all trust him to start the Champions League Final in 2006.
Djourou was turned inside out by Ronaldo and Rooney and the centre of Arsenal’s defence looked porous all night.
Walcott was once again shut out of the game by Evra who was too strong for him.
Adebayor was a little more interested but was not effective enough and Van Persie was unfit and unable to support him.
Fabregas was nowhere to be seen, passes going astray and above all showing no leadership.
The only players to come out with any credit were Nasri and Song. Nasri was trying really hard, chasing the ball and making the play. Song was doing the defensive work very well and in addition was also trying to be creative, so ineffective was Fabregas.
And finally Wenger has to accept the most criticism for making all those inexplicable selections in the first leg, with Fabregas, Nasri and Diaby all played out of position in a formation which was wrong.
It was he that said that these ties are lost in the first leg. Well he did loose it in the first leg didn’t he?
He also lost it in that FA Cup semi final against Chelsea when for some unfathomable reason he dropped Arshavin played Van Persie out of position who promptly got injured too!
What a shambles. And what a shambles this policy of relying mostly on youth is turning out to be.
Well you can’t do that Mr Wenger, you have to have a balance in the team and blend these exciting youngsters with more experienced and physically stronger players. Otherwise you will still be pitching this potential lark to us for years to come.
Well it’s been four years now and we are still waiting.
WE HAVE HAD ENOUGH.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Player analysis and ratings Vs Liverpool
By 1970’s Gooner
Fabiansky
Kept Asrsenal in the game with a string of fine saves and looked to be redeeming himself as a result. He was however at fault for Liverpool’s second goal as he was way behind the goal line to stop their second goal. He could also have parried Torres’s shot to the side but instead his outstretched hand wasn’t strong enough to do that. 5.5
Sagna
Brought back sound defending on the right hand side. Was not adventurous enough going forward. 6
Gibbs
Had a difficult game. Couldn’t keep up with the pressure Liverpool were putting on his side of the pitch. 5
Silvestre
Was found wanting on Liverpool’s two of the goals and generally, as against Drogba, did not have the pace again to deal with Torres and co. 4
Toure
Was culpable for Liverpool’s last minute equaliser as he along with Silvestre panicked and run into each other. Up to then had a decent game. 6
Song
He was immense again. He did his job very well, managing to block the opponents and actually make telling and forward passes. He is growing into a permanent feature in this team. 8
Denilson
Once again a below par performance. He did not deserve to start tonight as his showing against Chelsea was simply not good enough. Not good enough tonight either. 4
Fabregas
Provided the assist for Arshavin’s first goal by showing maturity beyond his age when he looked up to spot the little Russian demon. He was not forward minded enough for me tonight (as also against Chelsea). 6.5
Nasri
Was back to form tonight. He was purposeful and provided a lot of nous on his side of the pitch. He cleverly dispossessed the Liverpool defender to create the first goal by first waiting and then nudging the ball to Fabregas who run into the position behind Liverpool’s defence to receive it. 7
Bendtner
Was isolated tonight like Adebayor was against Chelsea. But also like Adebayor he did not hold the ball at all well up front nor did he bring any of his team mates into the game. Was largely ineffective. 4
Arshavin
I call him the little Russian demon and that is what indeed he was tonight. He unleashed all that energy he had to save from last Saturday onto poor Liverpool. What a performance, what a feast of goal scoring and what a lesson as to how to take chances he gave tonight. Absolutely immense. I can only give him a perfect 10!
There is no reason to put up a poll for the man of the match tonight is there?
Fabiansky
Kept Asrsenal in the game with a string of fine saves and looked to be redeeming himself as a result. He was however at fault for Liverpool’s second goal as he was way behind the goal line to stop their second goal. He could also have parried Torres’s shot to the side but instead his outstretched hand wasn’t strong enough to do that. 5.5
Sagna
Brought back sound defending on the right hand side. Was not adventurous enough going forward. 6
Gibbs
Had a difficult game. Couldn’t keep up with the pressure Liverpool were putting on his side of the pitch. 5
Silvestre
Was found wanting on Liverpool’s two of the goals and generally, as against Drogba, did not have the pace again to deal with Torres and co. 4
Toure
Was culpable for Liverpool’s last minute equaliser as he along with Silvestre panicked and run into each other. Up to then had a decent game. 6
Song
He was immense again. He did his job very well, managing to block the opponents and actually make telling and forward passes. He is growing into a permanent feature in this team. 8
Denilson
Once again a below par performance. He did not deserve to start tonight as his showing against Chelsea was simply not good enough. Not good enough tonight either. 4
Fabregas
Provided the assist for Arshavin’s first goal by showing maturity beyond his age when he looked up to spot the little Russian demon. He was not forward minded enough for me tonight (as also against Chelsea). 6.5
Nasri
Was back to form tonight. He was purposeful and provided a lot of nous on his side of the pitch. He cleverly dispossessed the Liverpool defender to create the first goal by first waiting and then nudging the ball to Fabregas who run into the position behind Liverpool’s defence to receive it. 7
Bendtner
Was isolated tonight like Adebayor was against Chelsea. But also like Adebayor he did not hold the ball at all well up front nor did he bring any of his team mates into the game. Was largely ineffective. 4
Arshavin
I call him the little Russian demon and that is what indeed he was tonight. He unleashed all that energy he had to save from last Saturday onto poor Liverpool. What a performance, what a feast of goal scoring and what a lesson as to how to take chances he gave tonight. Absolutely immense. I can only give him a perfect 10!
There is no reason to put up a poll for the man of the match tonight is there?
Monday, April 20, 2009
The reasons behind Saturday’s team selection
By 1970’s Gooner
A lot of commentators have been postulating that Wenger rested players against Chelsea so that they would be fresh to face not Liverpool but Manchester United in the now all important Champions League semi final games.
The reason is that Arsenal are already seven points ahead of their closest rivals, Aston Villa, for the fourth spot in the League anyway (with a game in hand).
But the only players rested against Chelsea among those fit and available were Song and Nasri while Arshavin is not eligible to play against Manchester United in the Champions League anyway.
The fact that Nasri was not in the first eleven may have something to do with his form rather than needing a rest. Nasri has been off form recently and already had a rest due to his absence from the first team due to illness.
No, to my mind, it appears that Wenger made a decision to try and win the FA Cup semi final by matching up to Chelsea’s formation (and resting Song in the process).
It all back fired.
The overriding error is that he showed Chelsea too much respect. In other words he tried to stop them from playing rather than encouraging his own team to play their own game.
But when a team tries to match up the opponent’s formation it has to have players in the key positions that are at least equally good as the opponents.
And Arsenal’s central midfield in Fabregas, Denilson and Diaby certainly wasn’t a match for Essien, Ballack and Lampard. Offensively on the left Van Persie was not up it and Adebayor was too isolated up front.
The 4 3 3 formation meant that Fabregas or Diaby should have been playing further up front in order to support Adebayor (we are still not sure who was supposed to play behind Adebayor- maybe no one?).
This did not happen and Adebayor was left isolated and thus rendered ineffective.
Van Persie’s deployment as a left winger was a disaster.
Some say that he was played there to help young Gibbs out but the downside was that Van Persie did not offer anything going forward and Gibbs had a fine game anyway, both defensively and attacking wise.
But the perplexing decision here is the omission of Arshavin who is cup tied anyway for the Champions League.
He would have not only offered defensive cover for Gibbs (Arshavin has shown defensive responsibility in his games for Arsenal so far) but would also have been more offensively minded than Van Persie was from that position.
The ironic thing is that if Wenger really wanted to rest players for the Man U games then he would have started with Arshavin instead and gave Van Persie a break (by the way Van Persie is now carrying a groin injury).
So trying to match up with Chelsea by using inferior players on the day was Arsenal’s undoing.
Now, if in the 4 3 3 formation Song was deployed in central midfield instead of say Diaby (or Denilson) and Arshavin on the left instead of Van Persie I believe things could have been a lot different.
Fabregas for a start could have been more offensively minded as Song would have been far stronger in midfield than either Denilson or Diaby thus providing the platform for Fabregas to go forward.
I am assuming of course that Fabregas would have been given the go ahead to roam forward….
Adebayor would have got the needed support up front and Arshavin would have created 1000% more than Van Persie managed.
In other words Arsenal would have been far more offensively minded.
But is this what Wenger wanted?
A lot of commentators have been postulating that Wenger rested players against Chelsea so that they would be fresh to face not Liverpool but Manchester United in the now all important Champions League semi final games.
The reason is that Arsenal are already seven points ahead of their closest rivals, Aston Villa, for the fourth spot in the League anyway (with a game in hand).
But the only players rested against Chelsea among those fit and available were Song and Nasri while Arshavin is not eligible to play against Manchester United in the Champions League anyway.
The fact that Nasri was not in the first eleven may have something to do with his form rather than needing a rest. Nasri has been off form recently and already had a rest due to his absence from the first team due to illness.
No, to my mind, it appears that Wenger made a decision to try and win the FA Cup semi final by matching up to Chelsea’s formation (and resting Song in the process).
It all back fired.
The overriding error is that he showed Chelsea too much respect. In other words he tried to stop them from playing rather than encouraging his own team to play their own game.
But when a team tries to match up the opponent’s formation it has to have players in the key positions that are at least equally good as the opponents.
And Arsenal’s central midfield in Fabregas, Denilson and Diaby certainly wasn’t a match for Essien, Ballack and Lampard. Offensively on the left Van Persie was not up it and Adebayor was too isolated up front.
The 4 3 3 formation meant that Fabregas or Diaby should have been playing further up front in order to support Adebayor (we are still not sure who was supposed to play behind Adebayor- maybe no one?).
This did not happen and Adebayor was left isolated and thus rendered ineffective.
Van Persie’s deployment as a left winger was a disaster.
Some say that he was played there to help young Gibbs out but the downside was that Van Persie did not offer anything going forward and Gibbs had a fine game anyway, both defensively and attacking wise.
But the perplexing decision here is the omission of Arshavin who is cup tied anyway for the Champions League.
He would have not only offered defensive cover for Gibbs (Arshavin has shown defensive responsibility in his games for Arsenal so far) but would also have been more offensively minded than Van Persie was from that position.
The ironic thing is that if Wenger really wanted to rest players for the Man U games then he would have started with Arshavin instead and gave Van Persie a break (by the way Van Persie is now carrying a groin injury).
So trying to match up with Chelsea by using inferior players on the day was Arsenal’s undoing.
Now, if in the 4 3 3 formation Song was deployed in central midfield instead of say Diaby (or Denilson) and Arshavin on the left instead of Van Persie I believe things could have been a lot different.
Fabregas for a start could have been more offensively minded as Song would have been far stronger in midfield than either Denilson or Diaby thus providing the platform for Fabregas to go forward.
I am assuming of course that Fabregas would have been given the go ahead to roam forward….
Adebayor would have got the needed support up front and Arshavin would have created 1000% more than Van Persie managed.
In other words Arsenal would have been far more offensively minded.
But is this what Wenger wanted?
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Fan demands public apology from Arsene Wenger
This is one of the many rants that were posted on the site right after the defeat to Chelsea in the FA Cup semi final. The main point the commenter is making is that Arsene Wenger gave Chelsea too much respect.
By Anonymous
If we had lost with our two best players on the pitch then we would have no complaints. To lose with the Ash and Naz on the bench is hard to take.
I do not blame the goalkeeper. The blame lies with the all knowing Mr Wenger who gave the chavs too much respect.
He failed the team today with his selection. He undid all the good work of the past months with his cowardly team selection.
The chavs were there for the taking and we bottled it because of Mr Wenger and his cowardly team selection. I hope he rediscovers his balls in the coming weeks or we shall have to chop them off because he is not using them when picking his team.
He has ruined everyone's weekend and we demand a public apology from Mr Wenger for leaving two of our best players sitting on the bench and for filling our hearts with hope only to break them with his cowardly team choice for such an important game.
I don't want Mr Wenger out. I want him to stay true to his beliefs and send out Arsenal teams to play our attacking football and to not worry about the opposition.
Come on Mr Wenger, grow some fu*king balls for fu*ks sake!
By Anonymous
If we had lost with our two best players on the pitch then we would have no complaints. To lose with the Ash and Naz on the bench is hard to take.
I do not blame the goalkeeper. The blame lies with the all knowing Mr Wenger who gave the chavs too much respect.
He failed the team today with his selection. He undid all the good work of the past months with his cowardly team selection.
The chavs were there for the taking and we bottled it because of Mr Wenger and his cowardly team selection. I hope he rediscovers his balls in the coming weeks or we shall have to chop them off because he is not using them when picking his team.
He has ruined everyone's weekend and we demand a public apology from Mr Wenger for leaving two of our best players sitting on the bench and for filling our hearts with hope only to break them with his cowardly team choice for such an important game.
I don't want Mr Wenger out. I want him to stay true to his beliefs and send out Arsenal teams to play our attacking football and to not worry about the opposition.
Come on Mr Wenger, grow some fu*king balls for fu*ks sake!
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Player analysis and ratings Vs Chelsea
By 1970's Gooner
Fabiansky
Nervous and shaky. Made three errors out of which two goals were scored! He has to get his act together if we are going to win anything this season. 3
Gibbs
The shining light of the day. Did not put a foot wrong. Very good defensively and equally good going forward. Supplied the cross for Walcott’s goal. 9
Eboue
Has been surprisingly good in his last two games as a right back. Defended well and thrust forward with intend. 7
Toure
Had Drogba in his pocket for nearly all the game. It was in fact Silvestre who was found wanting when Drogba out paced him for his match winning goal. Toure though had a very good game continuing on his good form as of late. 8
Silvestre
He brings experience in defence especially with the young Gibbs in the back four. He lacks pace though and Drogba took advantage of that. 5
Denilson
Had one of his worse games for Arsenal. Kept giving the ball away, often failing to block Chelsea’s midfield. When he lost the ball he invariably gave dangerous free kicks away. A mystery why he was picked by Wenger because he has been out of form recently and Song had been excellent in that position. 2
Diaby
Had a good first half but faded away in the second. Crowded Fabreags out in the midfield areas and was not really offering any support to Adebayor who was left isolated. 4
Fabregas
Was not creative enough today. He did not make any penetrative passes nor did he dictate play as he usually does. Maybe Diaby had something to do with it. 5
Van Persie
Can’t really blame him as he was played out of position but he never got past his man once! Often came inside but was largely ineffective. 4
Walcott
Along with Gibbs, Walcott was the bright spark of a miserable afternoon. Often had the better of Cole and scored Arsenal’s goal because he was at the right position to score it even if it went in off two Chelsea defenders. He has to improve his crosses though as they often got way beyond our attackers. 7
Adebayor
Can’t blame him for his ineffective performance for once. He was isolated up front and never got the supply he deserved. 6
Arsenal’s Man of the Match: Kieren Gibbs
Fabiansky
Nervous and shaky. Made three errors out of which two goals were scored! He has to get his act together if we are going to win anything this season. 3
Gibbs
The shining light of the day. Did not put a foot wrong. Very good defensively and equally good going forward. Supplied the cross for Walcott’s goal. 9
Eboue
Has been surprisingly good in his last two games as a right back. Defended well and thrust forward with intend. 7
Toure
Had Drogba in his pocket for nearly all the game. It was in fact Silvestre who was found wanting when Drogba out paced him for his match winning goal. Toure though had a very good game continuing on his good form as of late. 8
Silvestre
He brings experience in defence especially with the young Gibbs in the back four. He lacks pace though and Drogba took advantage of that. 5
Denilson
Had one of his worse games for Arsenal. Kept giving the ball away, often failing to block Chelsea’s midfield. When he lost the ball he invariably gave dangerous free kicks away. A mystery why he was picked by Wenger because he has been out of form recently and Song had been excellent in that position. 2
Diaby
Had a good first half but faded away in the second. Crowded Fabreags out in the midfield areas and was not really offering any support to Adebayor who was left isolated. 4
Fabregas
Was not creative enough today. He did not make any penetrative passes nor did he dictate play as he usually does. Maybe Diaby had something to do with it. 5
Van Persie
Can’t really blame him as he was played out of position but he never got past his man once! Often came inside but was largely ineffective. 4
Walcott
Along with Gibbs, Walcott was the bright spark of a miserable afternoon. Often had the better of Cole and scored Arsenal’s goal because he was at the right position to score it even if it went in off two Chelsea defenders. He has to improve his crosses though as they often got way beyond our attackers. 7
Adebayor
Can’t blame him for his ineffective performance for once. He was isolated up front and never got the supply he deserved. 6
Arsenal’s Man of the Match: Kieren Gibbs
Wenger picked the wrong team
By 1970's Gooner
I have to call them as I see them. And what I saw during this pulsating FA Cup semi final was a team put out by Wenger which was starved of its midfield tenacity and its forward minded players.
The first and foremost glaring team selection by Wenger was to keep Song out of the team and play Denilson in his place.
The result was a weak Denilson often failing to block Chelsea’s midfield but above all passing the ball to them and putting our defence under unnecessary pressure.
When he lost the ball he invariably gave dangerous free kicks away. If Song had played I am sure the game would have had a different outcome.
And if Song had an injury then Diaby and Fabregas should have been the pairing in midfield with Diaby instructed to keep back.
The second of what I call “self induced weakness” was to drop Arshavin on the bench and play Van Persie as a left winger.
Not only did Arsenal lose Arshavin’s thrust and penetration the player chosen to replace him was playing out of position and thus the poor man rendered largely ineffective.
The third which arose as a result of playing Van Persie out of position was playing Diaby as the man behind Adebayor. Or was it Fabregas who was supposed to play there.
You see what I mean? Diaby was more often than not in the Fabregas territory crowding the little maestro out thus depriving Arsenal of its creativity.
Or was it Fabregas that was crowding Diaby out? Take your pick because it was not clear who was supporting Adebayor at all. This also meant that Adebayor was starved of any support.
Fair enough you cannot legislate for two goal keeping errors and if Fabiansky had not come out to try and block Drogba then you never know we might have got away with a 90 minute draw and then it would have been anybody’s game.
I also feel that if we had played with a full strength team we would have out played Chelsea to the ground. This leaves me feeling very optimistic for the remaining games and for next season.
But only if Wenger stops messing about with the formation and the selection of players.
I have to call them as I see them. And what I saw during this pulsating FA Cup semi final was a team put out by Wenger which was starved of its midfield tenacity and its forward minded players.
The first and foremost glaring team selection by Wenger was to keep Song out of the team and play Denilson in his place.
The result was a weak Denilson often failing to block Chelsea’s midfield but above all passing the ball to them and putting our defence under unnecessary pressure.
When he lost the ball he invariably gave dangerous free kicks away. If Song had played I am sure the game would have had a different outcome.
And if Song had an injury then Diaby and Fabregas should have been the pairing in midfield with Diaby instructed to keep back.
The second of what I call “self induced weakness” was to drop Arshavin on the bench and play Van Persie as a left winger.
Not only did Arsenal lose Arshavin’s thrust and penetration the player chosen to replace him was playing out of position and thus the poor man rendered largely ineffective.
The third which arose as a result of playing Van Persie out of position was playing Diaby as the man behind Adebayor. Or was it Fabregas who was supposed to play there.
You see what I mean? Diaby was more often than not in the Fabregas territory crowding the little maestro out thus depriving Arsenal of its creativity.
Or was it Fabregas that was crowding Diaby out? Take your pick because it was not clear who was supporting Adebayor at all. This also meant that Adebayor was starved of any support.
Fair enough you cannot legislate for two goal keeping errors and if Fabiansky had not come out to try and block Drogba then you never know we might have got away with a 90 minute draw and then it would have been anybody’s game.
I also feel that if we had played with a full strength team we would have out played Chelsea to the ground. This leaves me feeling very optimistic for the remaining games and for next season.
But only if Wenger stops messing about with the formation and the selection of players.
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