Robin van Persie scored two goals against Bolton, including his 100th for Arsenal. The Gunners came out firing in the second half, and dominated the match after Bolton centre-back David Wheater was shown a straight red card.
Arsenal were tentative in the first half, but the Dutchman hit the net less that a minute into the second period. Van Persie took the pass from Aaron Ramsey and blasted the shot near-post. Jaaskelanien was caught standing straight up, and the low, powerful strike was too much for the keeper.
Arsene Wenger needed his team to score another goal against the 10-man Wanderers to close the match out. Van Persie completed his century of Gunner goals in the 71st minute. Theo Walcott broke free down the wing and sent a low cross towards the Dutchman. RvP finished it off with a tap from the outside of his foot.
Surprisingly, it was Alex Song who scored Arsenal’s third. He curled the ball into the upper corner in the 89th minute. Song’s strike was the best goal of the day, but it will be Robin who takes the praise for the win.
David Wheater was sent off with a straight red in the 55th minute. Aaron Ramsey played a perfect through ball to Theo Walcott. Theo had too much pace for Wheater, and the Bolton center-half pulled him to the ground. It was a clear break, so Wheater had to go.
Walcott was terrific. He burned the Wanderers’ back four throughout the match, but especially after Bolton went down to ten men. Unfortunately, Theo fell to the ground in pain in the 90th minute. No one was around him, so it looks like it could be a muscle tear. After the match, Wenger gave an update on the injury (from Arsenal.com):
“I don’t really know [what is wrong]. I thought it was a classic hamstring but it is not. He felt a sharp pain in his knee and at the moment he is with the doctor. I don’t know what the diagnosis will be but it is completely surprising. There was no one near him. I don’t know what they will do, whether they will have a scan tonight, I will have to speak to the medical people.”
The Wanderers created their best chance of the match only two minutes into the game. Darren Pratley stabbed the ball towards the Arsenal goal, and Szczesny made a brilliant save. If it would have gone in, I doubt that the Gunners would have been able to recover.
Bolton were blocking shots right and left in the first half. Arsenal couldn’t seem to find an opening. Whenever a chance did seem to arise, the Wanderers were diving to get in the away of the shot. The Bolton defensive display in the first half should provide a lesson to the Arsenal defenders.
Wenger reflected on the first half after the match (from Arsenal.com): “I felt that in the first half we were a bit impatient sometimes, that we didn’t move the ball quickly enough, that our midfielders came a bit deep because we were man-marked. That exposed us a bit to counter-attacking and we had less support up front.”
Kieran Gibbs preserved the lead when Bolton had a dangerous counter-attack in the 63rd minute. Chris Eagles was put into space by Martin Petrov, but Gibbs raced back to force Eagles into taking a long-range shot.
Arsene Wenger said he believes that giving Van Persie the armband has helped the Dutchman become a better Arsenal player (from Arsenal.com): “I think he is one of these guys who develops with responsibilities. You would think he is not natural at the start but when he has the responsibility he really grows well into the role. I have observed him and he does very well.”
Despite the victory, the media are continuing the criticise the Gunners. Headlines across the country are saying things such as “Arsenal in trouble despite Bolton win.” The Daily Mail even has a story linking Robin van Persie with a move to Manchester City. While the victory over the Wanderers wasn’t perfect, it was a refreshing considering the recent performances.
Robin van Persie became the 17th player to score 100 goals for Arsenal Football Club. He was the driving force behind the Gunners in their 3-0 win. Arsene Wenger was smiling for the first time in quite a while, and Arsenal fans were chanting his name near the end of the match. Arsenal’s next test will come against Olyimpiacos in the Champions League at Ashburton Grove.
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