A comfortable victory in the end September 19, 2009
Posted by freekicker in Arsenal, Bendtner, Eboue, Eduardo, Fabregas, Rosicky, Van Persie, Vermaelen, Wigan.add a comment
Arsenal finished off Wigan comfortably in the end. The scoreline which should ideally have been 8-0 or something was 4-0 after 90 mintes. It could have been 5-0 after the two added minutes as Arsenal finished the match with a chance which the unlucky Van Persie could not convert. With this win, Arsenal are sixth in the league( temporarily of course as it depends on the Liverpool result) with 17 goals so far in 5 games, which is by far the highest in the league.
Vermaelen turned out to be the star with two well taken goals, one with his head and the other with his left leg, a sublime finish. He is slowly becoming a crowd favourite with his play, both at the back and in front off set-pieces. His first was a towering header jumping above the Wigan defence and then a one two with Eboue on the left, and a finish which will make Van Persie jealous kept the Gunners two goals ahead. After that every touch of his was cheered by the crowd.
The third was again a good move of the numerous ones created by Arsenal today with Clichy taking time on the right before delivering a weighted cross to Eduardo whose strike hit the post and came off couple of players before it went to Eduardo again who smashed it towards goal and off Eboue into goal. Eboue will get credit for this goal. And a word about Eboue here, he had a good match and this is the same match last year in which he was booed out by the Gooners. Three cheers for him for his performance which will make us forget the previous one. And a word to all you Gooners, lets not boo our own player. As long as he is wearing an Arsenal jersey, lets just support him.
And before the fourth was coming there were chances galore with Van Persie missing a nice through chip from Fabregas and Song going it all alone before hitting the outside of the left post. And there were some good moves too. Diaby was replaced by Ramsey and Eboue and Eduardo made way for Bendtner and Rosicky. This ignited some new moves with Rosicky being more involved and Bendtner also getting more exposure to the passes. He combined with van Persie on the right before crossing to the near post were a limping Fabregas found the net. Hope our captain’s limp is temporary and he will be back to fitness soon.
So that was a well deserved 3 points and lets hope the team builds on this.
Arsenal complete Champions League check-in August 27, 2009
Posted by freekicker in Arsenal, Arshavin, Celtic FC, Champions League, Eduardo, Eduardo dive.2 comments
The first full match I saw this season of Arsenal and it was a wonderful 3-1 victory at home against the hapless-Celtics at Emirates. Coming into this match, Celtics needed atleast 2 goals to attain parity on the first leg score. Their gameplan was to score an early goal and put Arsenal under pressure at home. Fabregas was injured and Arshavin and Van Persie were rested ahead of this clash.
The team that started had a solid defence in the form of Clichy and Sagna in the wings, with the quick-gelling duo of Gallas and Vermaelen at the centre. The midfield comprised of Diaby, Denilson, Song and Eboue with Eduardo and Bendtner leading the line. Eboue had a good game and I think some of the feints and moves he has in his armour are really world-class, when he pulls them off. his performance was rewarded with a goal which was sweetly taken. Denilson, Diaby and Song played a very disciplined game showing the maturity that they are gaining. If they play like this then my opinion about them will only get better and better.
Bendtner had a decent game where he played a crucial part in the second goal with a elegant back-heel. But he missed a sitter of a header at the stroke of half-time. Eduardo had a great game except for the dive to win the penalty. This will be a mlack mark in his otherwise wonderful performance which involved a curler of a shot which was saved by the Celtics goalie. He is gaining in confidence and will be our 20 goal striker for sure this year.
Ramsey came in and got injured which led to Arsenal playing the last 5 minutes with 10 men. I hope he is back to training and fitness. Wilshere came along with Arshavin with 20 minutes remaining in the match. Arshavin is such a skillful clever player that there is excitement on the field when he is playing. He can make those telling runs, wonderful dribbles and feints and make those killer passes and score some goals. He scored his first european goal for Arsenal and I thought when he was on the field we could have scored a couple more. I love that guy and hope he stays fit and scores many more memorable ones, including a couple on Saturday;)
Credit to Celtics for providing wonderful entertainment in the tie. They played well and hard luck to them for the penalty decision. Not that not having that penalty would have saved them the tie because definitely Arsenal were the better team on the night and also over two legs. Good luch to them in SPL now.
Without Cesc if we could show so much creativity on the field it is quite impressive. The passing and movement of the team on the whole was of high standard. Looks like this team is moving in the right direction in the league as well as in Europe. Now lets hope that we get an easy group in tomorrow’s Champions League draw. There is a wonderful article on the current Arsenal formation here. A good read I would say.
Wonderful start…now maintain the momentum August 16, 2009
Posted by freekicker in Almunia, Arsenal, Arshavin, Celtic FC, Cesc, Denilson, Eduardo, Fabregas, Gallas, Patrick Barclay, Vermaelen.1 comment so far
You could not have asked for a better start than this. An away match against Everton is not an easy one be it the start or the middle of the season, but the 6-1 demolition job of Everton was the biggest margin of victory in the Premier League. Goals from Denilson (when was the last time he scored), Vermaelen(that is a scoring a debut), Gallas, couple for Captain Cesc and a return to scoring charts for Eduardo.
Like Wenger mentioned after the match, when we are having a match like this, anyone in this team can score!!! Well that is quite true. We do have matches like this once in a while. Song and Denilson did have a good match and it is players like them who have to play like this week in and week out if we have to give a title-challenge come December. Already bookers William have brought down the odds of Arsenal’s title chances from 9-1 to 11-2!!! Mark Lawrenson in BBC had predicted a 2-0 victory to Everton in his weekly predictions, I am sure he is having a great day today. In a way I like it when people under-estimate us and we prove them wrong. I guess Patrick Barclay in Times is the only pundit who gave Arsenal some weightage.
Lets not get over excited by this win and prepare and finish the job at Celtics midweek so that we are assured of some revenue from playing in Europe. And then take it up from there. And one good word for Van Persie, Arshavin and Bendtner who were immense in the match too. Almunia was stellar under the bars catching every corner and cross that came to the Arsenal box. It really feels nice after we win like this 
Clinical finishing Arsenal in FA Cup Quarters March 10, 2009
Posted by freekicker in Arsenal, Arshavin, As Roma, Burnley, Eboue, Eduardo, Eduardo Injury, Kieran Gibbs, Song, Walcott.2 comments
A great display of finishing from Eduardo and Vela sealed our entry into the quarterfinals of the FA cup followed by one of the most surprise combinations for an Arsenal goal ever, a Song backheel and a Eboue drive for the third goal.Well surprises do happen but credit should be given where it is due, Song and Eboue had a good match.
But for me the man of the match was Arshavin. He was making those piercing runs, giving those through balls and looked like doing the unexpected and make the opposition in disarray.Like I have been saying in this blog for some time now, he is going to be the key difference for us from now till the end of the season. And this match saw the comeback fo Eduardo(with the captain’s armband) and Walcott from their long layoff from injury. Burnley should also be credited for not parking their bus in front of their defence and attacking right from the 1st minute. A word of praise for Kieran Gibbs too. He is a star for the future.
One of the things which was lacking in Adebayor and Bendtner and to some extent in Van Persie was their finishing. If they needed some lessons, they should just see the replay of the Vela goal for maintaining composure and scoring with his leg but thinking from his head…and the Eduardo goal for the turn which broke the offside wall and the heel kick which surprised the goalie on the direction of the shot. Again a strikers instinct in display. He is our poacher when it comes to playing inside the box. One should note that Van Persie got a similar chance like Eduardo’s and he missed and Walcott had a similar one to Vela’s and he too missed. But I am sure these guys will all improve and the team will get better and better as the season comes to an end.
With this result we are 3 matches away from the FA Cup triumph. I know we should not take it too soon, but if this team just displays some consistency we are in store for a cracker of a finish in both the cup competitions and for the league, though we may not win it now. The CL match tomorrow at Roma is going to be crucial and I believe we will score as Roma will be looking to score and therefore opening up space at the middle of the park and back. I would love to see Van Persie starting with Eduardo up front. The likely team:
Eduardo Van Persie
Arshavin Nasri Denilson Walcott
Clichy Gallas Toure Sagna
Almunia
Well this is a good team and I have the confidence that they can beat Roma away from home.
Eduardo “fit” again January 9, 2009
Posted by freekicker in Arsenal, Arsenal TV, Arsene Wenger, Arshavin, Eduardo, Eduardo Injury.add a comment
Let me start the new year with some good news – Eduardo our man who promised a lot before he got injured played 45 minutes in training…but it might be sometime before he is back playing in the premier league. This was disclosed by Arsene Wenger in Arsenal TV today.
Get back to your scoring form Eduardo…we need some inspiration in the second half of the league.
In other news, Arshavin has been quite seriously rumoured to join Arsenal. It might be a decent fit but I still feel that we need a defensive midfielder.
No point in creating if we cannot complete April 4, 2008
Posted by freekicker in AC Milan, Adebayor, Anfield, Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, Bendtner, Eboue, Eduardo, Fabregas, Flamini, Gunners, Liverpool, Rafa, Rafa Benitez, San Siro, Van Persie, Walcott.add a comment
The first leg at Emirates turned out to be quite a frustrating one for Arsenal as they scored first but in less than three minutes Liverpool equalised through a defensive lapse and then minutes and minutes of possession and control of proceedings did not yield the winner. This has been a season of missed opportunities like last year, where they created a lot but the finishing left a lot to be desired.
A footballing team like Arsenal will always create chances in any match (unless they play really really bad). Wenger philosophy of passing football, maintaining possession and playing in the opposition half will go waste if he cannot find a striker who can finish off these chances. Even converting one quarter of all the chances created can yield 3 points or a victory in every match the team has played so far. Such has been the creativity of Fabregas, Hleb, Walcott and even Adebayor for that matter. But when it came to finishing, Adebayor himself has left us disappointed, so has Van Persie after coming back from injury (and going back to it) and Bendtner, whose enthusiasm is understandable but finishing undefinable.
Even the midfielders who have had goal scoring opportunities, have disappointed. Take Fabregas, who on a one-on-one with the goalkeeper shoots straight at him nine out of 10 times. How many goals could he have scored this season, only he knows. Eboue has been also one of the main culprits and I think he has maybe made the goalie save one or two times maximum this season. Hleb has had lots of opporunities to shoot, but hasn’t. Flamini I would say has had the least number of opportunities to score, but he has also not taken his chances. So this is an area where the team needs to improve.
Eduardo was considered the solution for this finisher problem in the club, but unfortunately he wont be back till end of this year. We can always blame the referee for not giving us the penalty (which was as clear as water), or Bendtner for stopping Fabregas’s prod at the goal (he was off balance and did his best to get away, I think). but if we dont score from the chances that we get, then we will end up ruing our chances after every match. Adebayor missed a sitter at the end of the 90 minutes against AC Milan at the Emirates, but we made up for that at the San Siro. Anfield might not be the same.
Liverpool certainly has an advantage going into Anfield, but I would like to see how Arsenal bounce back. The Gunners can score in any ground as Rafa himself said, but its how Liverpool react after (if) Arsenal scores first that will decide the tie.
The Saturday clash against Liverpool in the League would be again an interesting watch to see who all play and who all get rested. I would love the momentum to be with Arsenal and see them win.
Crucial period for Arsenal February 29, 2008
Posted by freekicker in AC Milan, Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, Aston Villa, Eduardo, Eduardo Injury, Manchester United, Wigan.add a comment
This season in the English Premier League has been one of the most closely fought with not just Arsenal and Manchester United running neck and neck, but also the third place team, Chelsea so close to the second placed team that any goof up from the top two teams can lead to them climbing up. Between Arsenal and Man Utd,the lead has been passed just once around Xmas time and Arsenal have since then steadied the ship.
Manchester United smell a chance in the next two fixtures of the league as they take on the minnows Fulham and Derby and 6 points here could put pressure on Arsenal not to slip up. They need a win at home against Aston Villa, overcome AC milan in what could be a season defining match and then beat Wigan away. This could prove to be a very tricky month for Arsenal as the schedule for March looks like this :
H Aston Villa
A Wigan
H Middlesbrough
A Chelsea
A Bolton
And in between the Villa match and Wigan match, there is the all-important match at San Siro, which if this young team wins, can be a booster to the entire team to go further in Europe.How Wenger will rotate his resources in the absence of Eduardo and Van Persie’s continued absence is the key. “Bendtner and Adebayor cannot play together” has been heard enough and I think if there is one person who can fix it, it could be Wenger. How he moulds this team in this crisis situation is the key to this season.
Villa is one of the teams I like to watch mainly for Young and Abgonhalor. But for tomorrow I wish and pray that Arsenal put it past them and we get all the three points so that we can go into the Champions League on a high. C’mon Gunners
Two points and a striker lost February 24, 2008
Posted by freekicker in Arsenal, Birmingham, EPL, Eduardo, Eduardo Injury, Eduardo Leg, Eduardo tackle.1 comment so far
Eduardo’s injury in the beginning of the match shook up the entire team and ended in a bitter end to the match. Arsenal recovered from a goal down thanks to some inspirational play in the second half from Walcott but conceded in the last few seconds of stoppage time to a very very rare moment of madness/lapse in concentration from Clichy.
1 goal advantage is always under risk as Arsenal found out sadly in this match where an equaliser in the last few seconds made it look like a defeat and got Man Utd closer to Arsenal. A could have been eight point lead was turned to a six point lead before Man Utd take on Newcastle. It was a day where the Ref also for the decisions wrong. It was one of those days. The freekick given against Flamini which resulted in the first goal was never there and the penalty given against Clichy was also a wrong decision. clichy clearly touched the ball and it was NOT a penalty. These are championship deciding decisions which need to be given that weightage before pointing to the spot.
But you might ask what was Clichy thinking when he left the ball to be collected by the Birmingham player when he should have been clearing it away from the box. Gallas’ reaction was also a little on the hyper side. He was very emotional after the defeat but he is the team captain and he cannot be at the other half when the opposition is taking a penalty. Having blamed the referee I think the team also had to take their chances and take a two goal lead with all the chances they got. Adebayor in particular had an off day and he missed many chances. One in particular when he could have passed to Bendtner who was clear.
It is the business end of the premiership and Arsenal cannot lose steam. They have lost four points to Birmingham this season and they cannot afford to lose anymore.
Eduardo’s injury seems to be very serious and this could mean that Arsenal will have to get Persie ready in double quick time and Bendtner and Adebayor to start in every match till then. Walcott might also get the nod to partner Adebayor in a couple of them when Eboue is back from suspension. May Eduardo recover soon and get to play in Euro 08.
