Arsene Wenger said that Arsenal “completely dominated” the match against West Brom on Saturday. Our passing was fluent, and the defending was solid for a change. The Baggies never looked like forging a comeback because of the supreme partnership of Vermaelen and Koscielny.
Top Performers
1. Robin van Persie: At this point, nothing can hold back the Dutchman. He scored a tap-in for the opening goaland provided an assist on Mikel Arteta’s goal. Van Persie is the center-piece of this Arsenal attack. Sometimes he drops into the midfield to spawn the forward play, and other times he lurks in the penalty area like a deadly assassin.
2. Thomas Vermaelen: The vice-captain is certainly back to full fitness. Vermaelen finessed the ball in the net after a friendly bounce off Gervinho. Many centre-backs would have blasted the opportunity into the clouds, but TV is not your normal central defender. He also made an important tackle on Somen Tchoyi to prevent what would have been West Brom’s best chance.
3. Carl Jenkinson: This right back is a crossing machine. Jenkinson often found yards of space down the wing and executed many splendid crosses. Slowly, he is becoming a solid defender to go along with his crossing ability.
Team Performance
It was clearly Arsenal’s best performance of the season on both halves of the pitch. We scored three goals, but, more importantly, the passing was quick and tidy. Our midfield controlled the possession and therefore the pace of the match. West Brom only had 33% of the [...]
After the thrilling 3-5 game, we were just destined to have a nil-nil. Arsenal’s attackers were not clinical enough in the penalty area. On a positive note, Mertesacker and Vermaelen partnered up to hold Marseille to a clean sheet.
Robin van Persie was left on the bench as Ju Young Park got the start. The South Korean striker had very little impact on the match, and the Dutchman was brought on to save the day in the 61st minute. Unfortunately, not even a flaming Robin could play the role of Superman at the Emirates on Tuesday night.
After his stellar performance against Bolton in the Carling Cup, Park blew a chance to move up further in ranks. Arsene Wenger explained his decision to leave van Persie among the substitutes (from Sky Sports): “It was a bit on the edge. It was a gamble that you can say tonight didn’t come off.
“But, overall, he was very tired after the game on Saturday. He has played many games and I took the gamble to rest him first and make him come on.”
One thing I cannot understand is why Robin does not take every free kick. He is a proven marksman from set pieces, but he barely ever gets a chance to work his magic from the dead ball. In stoppage time, Thomas Vermaelen and Mikel Arteta lined up behind the free kick, and RvP was nowhere in sight. He needs to step up and tell [...]
Robin van Persie scored a hat-trick to lead Arsenal to victory at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea were wide open at the back, and the Gunners quickly filled those holes. John Terry’s slip, which led to the winning goal, will live in the memory of Gooners for years to come.
Let’s start with Terry’s hilarious miscue. Florent Malouda sent a poor pass back to JT, but Terry still should have gathered it easily. Instead, he fell flat on his face while van Persie raced away towards Cech. The Dutchman eased past the Chelsea keeper before showing Fernando Torres how to score in an empty net. The goal was Robin’s second of the day and gave us a 4-3 lead.
Who knows if the comical fall is even a slip? It looked as if Terry just tumbled over for no reason. Maybe he was looking for a phantom call, or maybe he didn’t want to reveal his true pace, or lack thereof. Van Persie still had to finish the chance, which is easier said than done when you have that much time and space. A player of less quality and class (Torres) would have let nerves settle in during that time.
Arsene Wenger must have done something at halftime. We were trailing 2-1 at the break and then scored four goals in the second half to bury the Blues. Andre Santos was a completely different player after the interval. In the first half, the Brazilian left back was exposed time and time again. In the [...]
Arsenal defeated Bolton at the Emirates to advance to their ninth Carling Cup quarterfinal round in nine years. Ju Young Park and Andrey Arsahvin were the goal scorers, while Thomas Vermaelen made his return from injury.
Bolton fielded a strong team, while Arsene went with a mix of young players and little-used experienced players. Arshavin and Park outshined the young talented players like Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Francis Coquelin. The little Russian did well playing behind Park, with Benayoun and Chamberlain on the wings. Park played much better than he did in the last Carling Cup game against Shrewsbury. You could see his confidence growing as the match wore on.
Park played right on the edge of the Bolton backline, similar to how Chicharito positions himself for United. Cahill and Knight caught him offside a few times, but the South Korean continued to make intelligent runs. Park made a run, but Arshavin did not make the pass. The little Russian waited for Park to get back onside before releasing the South Korean. Park curled the shot into the side netting in the far corner for the winning goal.
Wenger made a very good point about Arshavin after the match (from Arsenal.com):”Andrey is a player who of course takes a bit gamble on nearly every ball he plays. Sometimes he loses balls he shouldn’t lose but when you look at the end of the game he has always had a big impact. Tonight he scored and made an assist. He had a good performance tonight.”
Robin van Persie scored two goals for Arsenal as the Gunners defeated Stoke City 3-1. Gervinho was fantastic, scoring one goal and making the other two. Arsene Wenger’s team jumped up to 7th in the table.
Many Gooners were surprised to see that van Persie was not included in Sunday’s starting eleven. Arsene Wenger explained after the match why he decided to keep Robin on the bench (from Arsenal.com):
”He had muscular tightness and I took 19 players [in training] yesterday because I was not sure whether to involve him on the teamsheet. He made a check this morning and he was medically alright to be on the bench.”
Despite the muscular tightness, RvP was the hero again at the Emirates. Wenger inserted the Dutchman in the 66th minute for the ineffective Marouane Chamakh. It was apparent from the minute that he stepped on the pitch. Van Persie was a class above the rest of the players from both sides.
Gervinho slithered to the endline before delivering the low cross to the Dutchman. Van Persie’s strike hit Begovich before nestling into the net. Robin simply stuffed in the cross. It wasn’t a pretty goal, but it was the winning play.
Gervinho connected with RvP for the third goal as well. The Ivorian drove down the wing before sliding in yet another low cross. Van Persie tapped it past Begovic to secure the three points.
What makes van Persie a world class striker is that he can score any type of goal. He is [...]
Aaron Ramsey scored the dramatic late winner for Arsenal at the Stade Velodrome on Wednesday night. The match appeared to be heading towards a boring 0-0 result before Ramsey stunned Marseille. The Gunners now lead the group with seven points.
Arsene Wenger’s three substitutes all touched the ball before the winning goal settled in the back of the net. Johan Djourou, who was brought on for the injured Carl Jenkinson, sent in a good cross. Gervinho, who came on for Andrey Arsavhin, failed to settle the ball, and it fell kindly to Aaron Ramsey. The Welsh midfielder seized control of the opportunity and blasted the ball into the net in the second minute of injury time.
Arsene Wenger spoke after the match about Ramsey (from Arsenal.com): “It was a great finish, you see Ramsey in front of goal and you know you have a good chance to score. He is a goalscorer.”
The referee blew the final whistle only moments after play had restarted. We snatched a victory in the 92nd minute thanks to three players who weren’t on the pitch at the start. Both sides looked to be settling for the point after a sloppy match. Winning changes everything and we have recorded four victories in our last five games.
A missed call from the officials was the biggest moment of the first half. Souleymane Diawara clearly deflected an Arsenal corner with his hand, but neither the referee nor the goal-line official made the call. Both should have witnessed the [...]
Robin van Persie’s brace propelled Arsenal to a 2-1 victory over Sunderland at the Emirates. The Dutchman also dispelled rumours about his committment to the club. Former Gunner Sebastian Larsson’s fantastic free kick was not enough to earn the Black Cats a point.
Robin van Persie scored early and late. And by early, I mean the quickest goal in a Premier League match this season. Twenty-nine seconds was all it took for RvP to put the Gunners in the lead. Tomas Rosicky started the move with a chip pass to Gervinho. Gervinho slid the ball across to van Persie, and the Dutchman calmly directed the ball past Simon Mignolet.
Van Persie was just spectacular throughout the match, but escpecially in the first half. His looping chip deflected off the inside of the far post in the 12th minute. Another few centimeters and van Persie would have had a goal-of-the-season candidate.
Sunderland struggled to mount an attack until Sebastian Larsson converted on a free kick. Szczesny could not be held accountable because Larsson’s strike was simply brilliant. The shot danced in the air as it headed towards the back of the net. After the match, Arsene Wenger praised Larsson for his free kick ability (from Arsenal.com):
“Yes he among the best in the league, with Sebastian Larsson. I think Larsson is maybe the best free-kick taker in the league.”
Things were looking bleak for Arsene Wenger in the 80th minute. A draw at home against a terribly inconsistent Sunderland side was not [...]
Kyle Walker’s long strike sealed the victory for Tottenham in the North London Derby. Arsenal’s woes are multiplying as Bacary Sagna’s injury will see him miss three months. Spurs coach Clive Allen was angry at Arsene Wenger after a post-match confrontation.
Rafael Van der Vaart opened the scoring for Spurs in the 40th minute. He received a lofted pass from Adebayor and volleyed the ball inside the far post. It appeared that Van der Vaart handled the ball when he brought down the pass, but nothing was given. He was already on a yellow card. Wenger commented on the goal in his post-match press conference (from Arsenal.com):
“It is frustrating as well because their first goal was handball. I wonder what the linesmen do in these situations. It is a second yellow card as well because he already had one – for handball, on purpose.”
Some fuss has been made about Van der Vaart’s celebration with the supporters after the goal. Technically, that should have resulted in a second yellow. Personally, I do not think that players should be booked for celebrating with fans. Arsene Wenger agrees with me (from Arsenal.com):
“I am not a fan of that. I can understand that when a player scores there has to be some spontaneous reaction to a goal.”
Aaron Ramsey scored the equaliser for Arsenal in the 51st minute. Alex Song made a run down the wing from his centre-back position to cross the ball to Ramsey, and the Welshman blasted it home from [...]
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Andre Santos scored for Arsenal as the Gunners defeated Olympiacos 2-1. The Greek champions did threaten Arsenal, but the Gunners were able to pull through in the end.
“The Ox” scored eight minutes into his Champions League debut. The 18-year old midfielder gathered a wonderful pass from Alex Song and finished in the bottom corner. Chamberlain did well to work his way into space before firing the expert shot.
Andre Santos scored his first Arsenal goal in the 20th minute. The Brazilian left back drove down the flank and his cross was blocked. The ball bounced right back to Santos, and he maneuvered around the defender before sticking it inside the near post. The Olympiacos keeper really should have made the stop, but Santos did a good job of threading the ball into the net.
Arsenal did not waste time in giving away the momentum. A David Fuster header put Olympiacos right back into the match in the 27th minute. Fuster was completely unmarked when he scored. It was yet another example of Arsenal’s terrible marking on set pieces.
Pat Rice was the manager on Wednesday night as Wenger served out his touchline ban. After the match, Rice reacted to the goal the Gunners conceded (from Arsenal.com): “It was soft, yes. From a defender’s point of view it was really poor.”
Many were questioning the Arsenal team selection before the game even started. Robin van Persie, Aaron Ramsey, and Kieran Gibbs all began the match on the bench. Alex [...]
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 [...]
