Arsenal advanced to the Champions League group stage by defeating Udinese 2-1 on Wednesday night in Italy. Wojceich Szczesny’s penalty save kept the momentum of the match with the Gunners. Robin van Persie and Theo Walcott chipped in with the Arsenal goals, while Antonio Di Natale provided Udinese’s only tally of the match.
The key moment of the game came after the referee handed Udinese a penalty in the 58th minute. The score was 1-1, and Udinese needed two more goals to advance to the Champions League group stage. Antonio Di Natale was the obvious choice to take the penalty. The Udinese captain struck the ball hard but Wojciech Szczesny made a brilliant, stretching save and the ball popped over the bar.
Udinese would have fancied their chances of advancing had Di Natale converted the penalty. It was not a terrible strike from the Italian striker, but Szczesny made a strong, confident block. The shot had tremoundous power behind it, but the Polish keeper denied Udinese the opportunity. The Italian side looked dejected after the penalty, while Arsenal were uplifted by the great stop.
Di Natale opened the scoring for Udinese in 39th minute. The 33-year old put a majestic header into the Arsenal net. The ball floated towards the far corner and popped off the post before settling in the goal mouth. Di Natale had been unlucky early in the match when he had a goal disallowed and also hit the post.
At halftime, Arsene Wenger’s team had a very real chance of dropping into the Europa League. They were down 1-0 at the Stadio Fruili, and the home fans were raising the volume.
Robin van Persie scored the Arsenal equaliser in the 55th minute. Gervinho, who was terrific all night, sent a drive across the box and RVP tapped it in. It was a real potcher’s goal for the Dutchman, and the pressure shifted back to Udinese.
Only a few minutes after the Arsenal goal, Udinese were awarded the penalty for an apparent Vermaelen handball. It was a harsh ruling from the official. The ball did appear to hit Thomas Vermaelen’s hand, but his arm was by his side. Szczesny made the aforementioned save, so no one will debate the legitimacy of the call.
Theo Walcott extended the lead in the 69th minute. Bacary Sagna, who had an excellent game, sprung Walcott foward, and Theo used his speed to create a one-on-one with the keeper. Walcott fired the ball near post, and the shot got by the talented Udinese keeper, Samir Handanovic.
The victory was the best Arsenal performance of the season. The passing was fluid. The runs were concise. Arsenal were much better than in the 1-1 draw in the first leg at the Emirates. Szczesny did make up for some rather sloppy defending. However, it was the first time this campaign that the Gunners scored two goals in a game, and hopefully the quality carries over to the Manchester United match at the weekend.
Gervinho was particularly exceptional Wednesday night. The Ivorian’s excellent dribbling skills are never questioned, but this time his runs showed purpose. His cross set up Arsenal’s first goal, and his contributions were massive throughout the match.
Arsene Wenger talked after the game about Gervinho’ performance: “He was always dangerous. I told you yesterday, and many times, that he will be a big player for us. Sometimes the quality of the player is linked with the transfer amount and it is not always the case.”
Bacary Sagna put in another consistent performance. The French defender was playing out of position (left back) due to the inclusion of Carl Jenkinson (who plays right back). Sagna hooked up with Walcott for the winning goal, but, more importantly, he was a steady force on the back line.
Wojciech Szczesny was the man of the match. He is proving the doubters wrong, and is quickly becoming a top keeper. Szczesny has improved so much since the Carling Cup Final. Writers and pundits, who have asked Wenger to buy an experienced keeper, are back-tracking and are now praising Szczesny.
Arsene Wenger said this about Szczesny’s vital save during his post-match press conference: “Yes, that was a turning point of the game because it was at 1-1. You could see mentally it has an impact on their belief and they were not the same team after they missed the penalty.”
Thomas Vermaelen may miss Arsenal’s clash with Manchester United due to an injury suffered last night. Wenger told Sky Sports: “We have worries about Thomas Vermaelen after the game because he wanted to come off.”
With this victory, Arsenal may be able to secure several more signings before the end of the month. With any luck, one of them will be a centre-half.
After the match, Arsene Wenger responded to his critics: “We live in a society where everybody has an opinion on everything. I’m like somebody who flies a plane for 30 years and I have to accept that somebody can come into the cockpit and thinks he can fly the plane better than I do. But that is part of our job and we have to accept that. I just would like to say that the Club is in, overall, a very strong position. Tonight, for 14 years on the trot, we play in the Champions League. We have a new stadium, a fantastic training ground, a very good financial situation and a very strong team. Sometimes you have to take a distance a little bit [from the criticism].” Very well said, Arsene.
We will have full coverage of Thursday’s Champions League draw. Look at our Twitter for the latest news and check back later for an article examining Arsenal’s group.
