Alexis Sanchez struck twice as Arsenal claimed their second away win of the week with an uninspiring 2-0 victory at Sunderland.
The Gunners needed two goals in as many minutes to come from behind and beat Anderlecht in midweek and there was a sense of fortune about their three-point haul at the Stadium of Light.
Sunderland were looking to recover from their embarrassing 8-0 defeat by Southampton last time out so it was surprising to see just two changes to their side, with Jack Rodwell and Adam Johnson recalled to the starting line-up.
Although Gus Poyet's men improved on their previous display it was again defensive mishaps that proved costly as their unbeaten home record came crashing to halt.
Arsenal opened the scoring on the half hour mark when Wes Brown's poor passback went straight to Sanchez, and the Chilean raced towards goal before clipping the ball over former Gunner Vito Mannone.
At 1-0, the hosts were very much still in the game but another lapse in concentration cost them dearly as Arsene Wenger's men completed the scoring in stoppage time.
The goal marked an impressive landmark for the Gunners with Sanchez's second of the afternoon their 1500th goal in the Premier League, but it did arrive in fortuitous circumstances. Santiago Vergini, who opened the scoring with an own goal in his side's horror show last weekend, passed the ball back to Mannone and the Italian dawdled too long on the ball before Sanchez nipped in to take the ball and score the simplest of goals.
Although it wasn't the best of performances, Wenger would have been delighted to see his side keep a second clean sheet of the season and to come out of the last two games with maximum points, albeit in fortunate circumstances, is an excellent return. The main other positive for Wenger was the return of Theo Walcott. The England forward was an unused substitute but it was great to see him back in the squad after nine months out with a knee injury. Once Walcott returns to full fitness, he will be a huge asset for the London club once again and it will be interesting to see how quickly he can regain top form. He could yet prove to be a key figure in the Gunners' Premier League campaign.
It wasn't all good news on the injury front with Kieran Gibbs being forced off after 74 minutes. Wenger confirmed after the match that the left-back had sustained a hip problem but it is not yet clear how long the 25-year-old will be on the sidelines for. The Gunners' squad is already stretched with Calum Chambers needed at right-back due to the absence of Mathieu Debuchy. Nacho Monreal has been needed at centre-back due to the injury of Laurent Koscielny, which looks set to extend until at least after the next international break, meaning Arsenal will be praying Gibbs' problem isn't too serious or they will be lacking cover. There is the possibility of Monreal to move back to left-back, Chambers into the centre and Hector Bellerin to cover at right-back, but Arsenal's defence really is being tested to the limit. Wenger really needs to buy an additional defender in January. Although we have some decent defenders in our ranks, all it takes is a few injuries and it looks like we could struggle further, so we need to plug some of the gaps with decent cover in January to help combat any future problems.
The win puts the Gunners into fifth place and only three points behind champions Manchester City, who suffered a shock 2-1 defeat at West Ham. The title race is firmly in Chelsea's favour and if Arsenal are to stay anywhere near the other title chasers they cannot afford to drop any silly point as per earlier in the season.
The next match sees Arsenal host newly promoted Burnley and, without being disrespectful to Sean Dyche's men, this is a match we should be winning comfortably. The players need to take a long hard look at themselves and put in one hell of a performance to prove the quality of players we have can in fact fulfil their potential. We need one of our top class performances where we totally brush aside the opposition scoring plenty of goals. We haven't had many 3-0 or 4-0s in a while, so let's make sure the next game is just that!
COME ON YOU GUNNERS
Saturday, 25 October 2014
Wednesday, 22 October 2014
Podolski present for birthday boy
Late goals from Kieran Gibbs and Lukas Podolski ensured Arsene Wenger celebrated his birthday with a 2-1 victory at Anderlecht.
Wenger, who turned 65 on the day of the match, looked as if he would be forced to contend with a defeat as the Gunners remained behind with 89 minutes on the clock following Andy Najar's earlier strike.
But two goals in under two minutes rescued Wenger's men and guided them to a maximum three-point haul on a nervy night in Belgium and what a crucial result it was. Not only did it stop the rot for Arsenal, who had gone two games without a win, but it also saw the London club extend their lead over third-placed Anderlecht to five points and put them a step closer to qualification for the knock-out stages.
The Gunners went into the match on the back of a disappointing 2-2 draw with Hull and, after a dire first half, it looked set for yet another draw. The first half was played at a high tempo and once again the Gunners dominated possession, but there was little action and very few clear cut chances. In fact, the best chance of the first half arguably fell to the hosts as Youri Tielemans saw his effort well blocked by Arsenal's third-choice shot-stopper Emiliano MartÃnez, who was making his Champions League debut.
Arsenal created a bit more in the second half with Aaron Ramsey shooting wide before Santi Cazorla was put through one-on-one, only to be denied by Anderlecht goalkeeper Silvio Proto.
But it was the hosts who stunned their opponents into silence with the opening goal of a tight contest. Dennis Praet crossed for Honduras midfielder Andy Najar to head home.
The Belgian outfit should've doubled their advantage but Anthony Vanden Borre's lofted effort hit the crossbar before Najar smashed the rebound into the side netting, much to the relief of the travelling supporters.
Alexis Sanchez once again displayed immense work-rate and almost levelled the scores after 80 minutes when his free-kick sailed narrowly wide and into the side netting.
Anderlecht haven't won in the Champions League for two years but looked odds on to do so with their lead still intact going into the final minute of normal time, until an unlikely hero popped up for the visitors.
Full-backs Calum Chambers and Kieran Gibbs combined expertly with the former swinging in a delightful cross for the latter to hit first time and rifle into the bottom corner of the net for his first goal of the season.
The drama wasn't over yet as substitute Lukas Podolski, who had only been on the field for seven minutes, latched onto a loose ball to smash home and snatch victory from their opponents and leave the Belgians feeling deflated.
After the match birthday boy Wenger said "You always want Podolski to have the ball in the box. He has a great shot". This begs the question of why on earth Podolski has not been given more game time. He certainly deserves to be given more of a chance to prove himself before we can really reserve judgement on the German forward, even more so if we are to prevent him from trying to seek a move away from the club in January.
Although the performance was far from ideal for the Gunners, what matters most is the result and it puts Wenger's men back on track ahead of a potentially tricky trip to Sunderland when we return to league action at the weekend. Sunderland is a game we should be winning but, after their 8-0 drubbing at the hands of Southampton last time out, the Black Cats will be hurting and it is impossible to say whether it is in fact the best or worst time to face them.
One thing is for sure - we will need to improve dramatically on the performance in Belgium. Individually there were some positives on show in our European encounter but collectively we need to create a lot more and be more clinical. I am hopeful we can use the Sunderland game as a real springboard for the rest of the season, so fingers crossed for a big performance and result at the weekend.
COME ON YOU GUNNERS!
Wenger, who turned 65 on the day of the match, looked as if he would be forced to contend with a defeat as the Gunners remained behind with 89 minutes on the clock following Andy Najar's earlier strike.
But two goals in under two minutes rescued Wenger's men and guided them to a maximum three-point haul on a nervy night in Belgium and what a crucial result it was. Not only did it stop the rot for Arsenal, who had gone two games without a win, but it also saw the London club extend their lead over third-placed Anderlecht to five points and put them a step closer to qualification for the knock-out stages.
The Gunners went into the match on the back of a disappointing 2-2 draw with Hull and, after a dire first half, it looked set for yet another draw. The first half was played at a high tempo and once again the Gunners dominated possession, but there was little action and very few clear cut chances. In fact, the best chance of the first half arguably fell to the hosts as Youri Tielemans saw his effort well blocked by Arsenal's third-choice shot-stopper Emiliano MartÃnez, who was making his Champions League debut.
Arsenal created a bit more in the second half with Aaron Ramsey shooting wide before Santi Cazorla was put through one-on-one, only to be denied by Anderlecht goalkeeper Silvio Proto.
But it was the hosts who stunned their opponents into silence with the opening goal of a tight contest. Dennis Praet crossed for Honduras midfielder Andy Najar to head home.
The Belgian outfit should've doubled their advantage but Anthony Vanden Borre's lofted effort hit the crossbar before Najar smashed the rebound into the side netting, much to the relief of the travelling supporters.
Alexis Sanchez once again displayed immense work-rate and almost levelled the scores after 80 minutes when his free-kick sailed narrowly wide and into the side netting.
Anderlecht haven't won in the Champions League for two years but looked odds on to do so with their lead still intact going into the final minute of normal time, until an unlikely hero popped up for the visitors.
Full-backs Calum Chambers and Kieran Gibbs combined expertly with the former swinging in a delightful cross for the latter to hit first time and rifle into the bottom corner of the net for his first goal of the season.
The drama wasn't over yet as substitute Lukas Podolski, who had only been on the field for seven minutes, latched onto a loose ball to smash home and snatch victory from their opponents and leave the Belgians feeling deflated.
After the match birthday boy Wenger said "You always want Podolski to have the ball in the box. He has a great shot". This begs the question of why on earth Podolski has not been given more game time. He certainly deserves to be given more of a chance to prove himself before we can really reserve judgement on the German forward, even more so if we are to prevent him from trying to seek a move away from the club in January.
Although the performance was far from ideal for the Gunners, what matters most is the result and it puts Wenger's men back on track ahead of a potentially tricky trip to Sunderland when we return to league action at the weekend. Sunderland is a game we should be winning but, after their 8-0 drubbing at the hands of Southampton last time out, the Black Cats will be hurting and it is impossible to say whether it is in fact the best or worst time to face them.
One thing is for sure - we will need to improve dramatically on the performance in Belgium. Individually there were some positives on show in our European encounter but collectively we need to create a lot more and be more clinical. I am hopeful we can use the Sunderland game as a real springboard for the rest of the season, so fingers crossed for a big performance and result at the weekend.
COME ON YOU GUNNERS!
Sunday, 19 October 2014
Yet another draw
Danny Welbeck rescued a point for Arsenal as his side were forced to settle for yet another draw following a 2-2 against Hull at the Emirates.
Despite some very mixed performances this season, I genuinely thought we would claim maximum points against the Tigers in what was the first game of the season I had missed. No offence to Hull but, even with the players missing, the starting XI put out by Arsene Wenger should still have been capable of getting a better result.
Injuries saw Wenger forced into changes, with Nacho Monreal playing out of position at centre-back and teenager Hector Bellerin making his first Premier League appearance at right-back. With that in mind, it was never going to be easy, but this issue really needs address. There is great potential within our squad and, if we could remain injury free, our strongest starting XI can compete with most sides. But it is so clear that we need more depth and stronger more experienced back-up. Bellerin looks like he could have a bright future and I am all for giving youth a chance, but we really need more depth. Wenger is no stranger to injuries and this has happened to us before and I feel we need to add more faces in January to help us get through this.
I am confident we can still finish in the top four but we really should be aiming higher than simply achieving Champions League football every year, regardless of how impressive an achievement it is. We are not too many players off being able to properly compete with the likes of Chelsea and Man City, and even proved against Man City in the league this season we are no pushovers. But the performances are not consistent enough and we need an experienced defensive midfielder, another centre-back and possibly even another striker and then, maybe then, we can seriously compete for the title.
The most frustrating thing is, we really are not that far off, but the little tweaks that need made need to be addressed! We have only lost one of our eight league games this season, which is an impressive feat but five draws from those games is simply not good enough! We are not even at the end of October and we are already 11 points behind leaders Chelsea. We need to act quickly and January needs to be a busy month for us in terms of transfers! If Wenger can get the final pieces of the jigsaw we can match City and Chelsea, but we need to add one or two players first. The other improvement we need is to be able to kill off games. It has happened too many times that we have been in control and not made our dominance count and then had to settle for a draw. We need to take our chances and be more clinical. City haven't hit top gear in all their matches, yet they are still up in second place.
Back to the match, and it all looked good when Alexis Sanchez, who has made an impressive start to his Gunners' career since joining from Barcelona over the summer, opened the scoring after 13 minutes. The Chilean winger beat Curtis Davies before continuing his run and placing a low shot beyond Steve Harper in the Hull goal.
It was a deserved lead for Wenger's men following their early dominance but lasted just four minutes. Mohamed Diame got the better of Monreal before appearing to pull back Mathieu Flamini. Referee Roger East failed to blow for a foul and with players protesting, Diame was left to clip the ball over Wojciech Szczesny for the equaliser. The goal shouldn't have been given as the foul on Flamini was blatant but, at the same time, Per Mertesacker should have played to the whistle and tried to put a challenge in instead of trying to get East's attention.
Hull were dealt a blow before half-time when Harper had to be replaced by third-choice goalkeeper Eldin Jakupovic after 43 minutes due to tearing a muscle in his left arm. But the Tigers didn't let it affect them and took a shock leadless than a minute into the second half as former Spurs duo Tom Huddlestone and Jake Livermore combined to set up Abel Hernandez to head home.
Mertesacker should've marked his man far better! The German defender didn't look like a World Cup winner and will want to bounce back with a big performance in the midweek Champions League clash with Anderlecht. Mertesacker and his absent centre-half partner Laurent Koscielny are often solid, but when basic mistakes creep in it is frustrating.
Arsenal stepped it up a gear in the final five minutes and only a fine save from Jakupovic prevented Sanchez from heading in his second goal of the game. Sanchez refused to give up and, even from the highlights alone, his superb work-rate was again clear to see and the Chilean was rewarded as he provided the assist for Arsenal's leveller.
Sanchez went on a mazy run through the defence before setting up Danny Welbeck to control the ball and send a left-foot shot into the corner of the net as Gunners' fans breathed a huge sigh of relief.
There was still time for Wenger's men to grab a winner and get the maximum three-point haul that had been expected before the match. Santi Cazorla saw his shot spilled by Jakupovic but the follow-up by substitute Joel Campbell was very poor. Sanchez still wouldn't give up and his cross got the better of the visitors defence, but Kieran Gibbs effort was well kept out by Tigers' shot-stopper.
There were to be no repeat of the heroics that saw Arsenal come from behind to beat Hull in last season's FA Cup final, so Wenger's men were left being forced to settle for yet another draw despite again dominating possession. There was at least some positives for Gunners' fans though, with key midfielder Aaron Ramsey coming off the bench to make his return from injury. Sanchez again impressed and it was great to see Welbeck get another goal, but this result again highlighted the need for us to add depth to the squad.
Focus now moves to the Champions League and the trip to Anderlecht before we return to league action away at Sunderland, who got thumped 8-0 by Southampton in their last match. No disrespect to Sunderland but if there is anyone we want to be playing soon it is them and nothing other than six points will do from these two games.
COME ON YOU GUNNERS!
Despite some very mixed performances this season, I genuinely thought we would claim maximum points against the Tigers in what was the first game of the season I had missed. No offence to Hull but, even with the players missing, the starting XI put out by Arsene Wenger should still have been capable of getting a better result.
Injuries saw Wenger forced into changes, with Nacho Monreal playing out of position at centre-back and teenager Hector Bellerin making his first Premier League appearance at right-back. With that in mind, it was never going to be easy, but this issue really needs address. There is great potential within our squad and, if we could remain injury free, our strongest starting XI can compete with most sides. But it is so clear that we need more depth and stronger more experienced back-up. Bellerin looks like he could have a bright future and I am all for giving youth a chance, but we really need more depth. Wenger is no stranger to injuries and this has happened to us before and I feel we need to add more faces in January to help us get through this.
I am confident we can still finish in the top four but we really should be aiming higher than simply achieving Champions League football every year, regardless of how impressive an achievement it is. We are not too many players off being able to properly compete with the likes of Chelsea and Man City, and even proved against Man City in the league this season we are no pushovers. But the performances are not consistent enough and we need an experienced defensive midfielder, another centre-back and possibly even another striker and then, maybe then, we can seriously compete for the title.
The most frustrating thing is, we really are not that far off, but the little tweaks that need made need to be addressed! We have only lost one of our eight league games this season, which is an impressive feat but five draws from those games is simply not good enough! We are not even at the end of October and we are already 11 points behind leaders Chelsea. We need to act quickly and January needs to be a busy month for us in terms of transfers! If Wenger can get the final pieces of the jigsaw we can match City and Chelsea, but we need to add one or two players first. The other improvement we need is to be able to kill off games. It has happened too many times that we have been in control and not made our dominance count and then had to settle for a draw. We need to take our chances and be more clinical. City haven't hit top gear in all their matches, yet they are still up in second place.
Back to the match, and it all looked good when Alexis Sanchez, who has made an impressive start to his Gunners' career since joining from Barcelona over the summer, opened the scoring after 13 minutes. The Chilean winger beat Curtis Davies before continuing his run and placing a low shot beyond Steve Harper in the Hull goal.
It was a deserved lead for Wenger's men following their early dominance but lasted just four minutes. Mohamed Diame got the better of Monreal before appearing to pull back Mathieu Flamini. Referee Roger East failed to blow for a foul and with players protesting, Diame was left to clip the ball over Wojciech Szczesny for the equaliser. The goal shouldn't have been given as the foul on Flamini was blatant but, at the same time, Per Mertesacker should have played to the whistle and tried to put a challenge in instead of trying to get East's attention.
Hull were dealt a blow before half-time when Harper had to be replaced by third-choice goalkeeper Eldin Jakupovic after 43 minutes due to tearing a muscle in his left arm. But the Tigers didn't let it affect them and took a shock leadless than a minute into the second half as former Spurs duo Tom Huddlestone and Jake Livermore combined to set up Abel Hernandez to head home.
Mertesacker should've marked his man far better! The German defender didn't look like a World Cup winner and will want to bounce back with a big performance in the midweek Champions League clash with Anderlecht. Mertesacker and his absent centre-half partner Laurent Koscielny are often solid, but when basic mistakes creep in it is frustrating.
Arsenal stepped it up a gear in the final five minutes and only a fine save from Jakupovic prevented Sanchez from heading in his second goal of the game. Sanchez refused to give up and, even from the highlights alone, his superb work-rate was again clear to see and the Chilean was rewarded as he provided the assist for Arsenal's leveller.
Sanchez went on a mazy run through the defence before setting up Danny Welbeck to control the ball and send a left-foot shot into the corner of the net as Gunners' fans breathed a huge sigh of relief.
There was still time for Wenger's men to grab a winner and get the maximum three-point haul that had been expected before the match. Santi Cazorla saw his shot spilled by Jakupovic but the follow-up by substitute Joel Campbell was very poor. Sanchez still wouldn't give up and his cross got the better of the visitors defence, but Kieran Gibbs effort was well kept out by Tigers' shot-stopper.
There were to be no repeat of the heroics that saw Arsenal come from behind to beat Hull in last season's FA Cup final, so Wenger's men were left being forced to settle for yet another draw despite again dominating possession. There was at least some positives for Gunners' fans though, with key midfielder Aaron Ramsey coming off the bench to make his return from injury. Sanchez again impressed and it was great to see Welbeck get another goal, but this result again highlighted the need for us to add depth to the squad.
Focus now moves to the Champions League and the trip to Anderlecht before we return to league action away at Sunderland, who got thumped 8-0 by Southampton in their last match. No disrespect to Sunderland but if there is anyone we want to be playing soon it is them and nothing other than six points will do from these two games.
COME ON YOU GUNNERS!
Sunday, 5 October 2014
Fabregas Frustrates Gunners
Cesc Fabregas returned to haunt his former club as he helped his new club Chelsea to extend their lead at the top of the league to five points following a 2-0 victory at Stamford Bridge.
Fabregas played a key role in the match, setting up the winning goal for Diego Costa as the Spanish pair's partnership continues to flourish. It is still very strange seeing Fabregas in a Chelsea shirt, with many Gunners' fans frustrated their club didn't take up the option to sign the midfielder as they did actually have first refusal on the former Barcelona man. I can half understand why Wenger didn't decide to bring Fabregas back to the Emirates, mainly because midfield is an area we actually have a large amount of players in, but that doesn't stop me being frustrated and wondering what might have been had the 27-year-old had the correct shirt colour of red on in the October clash.
The Gunners, who had been unbeaten in their last 11 league games, made an unsurprisingly cautious start to the game, which kicked off 15 minutes late for security reasons, as they were keen to avoid a repeat of last season's 6-0 hammering by the Blues.
There was little to choose between the sides until the opening goal, with the most worthy incident of note before that coming when Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois collided with Arsenal's summer signing Alexis Sanchez inside the opening 10 minutes.
The Belgian was eventually forced off after 24 minutes and his replacement Petr Cech was rarely threatened by the Gunners attack. Just three minutes after entering the action Cech saw one of the key moments of the game. Luckily for him it came at the other end of the field. Laurent Koscielny stuck out a leg to clumsily bring down Eden Hazard in the box. The Belgian forward made no mistake as he sent Wojciech Szczesny the wrong way and fired his spot-kick into the bottom corner.
Arsenal almost hit back soon after when Santi Cazorla set up Jack Wilshere with a fine pass but the midfielder's control in the box took the ball away from him to sum up the visitors' frustrating afternoon. The Gunners were showing some promising signs, with some lovely passing moves but their lack of a killer final ball and not getting enough shots in prevented them from causing too much of a threat to their opponents.
In fact the main highlight for the visitors in the first half came when manager Arsene Wenger squared up to his Chelsea counterpart Jose Mourinho, with the latter having the last laugh with all three points. The pair fronted up to one another with Wenger appearing to shove Mourinho after Gary Cahill's clumsy lunge on Sanchez, with some supporters thinking the card should've been red. Things evened themselves out later in the match when Danny Welbeck received just a yellow for his two-footed challenge on Fabregas.
Arsene Wenger's men started the second half brightly and should've drawn level within four minutes of the restart. A sweet passing move ended with Sanchez passing across the edge of the box for Cazorla, but the Spanish international sent his effort just wide of a post.
Arsenal continued to try and find a way back into the game but were reduced to half chances as Wilshere's shot deflected over the bar for a corner amidst shouts for a handball against Fabregas, in an incident that potentially could've changed the game, as the hosts appeared to be showing more urgency. But that urgency was failing to turn into enough clear cut chances on goal.
The Gunners' failure to test Cech enough proved costly as their London rivals grabbed a second goal to wrap up all three points. Fabregas played an inch perfect ball over the top for Diego Costa, who lifted a fine finish over Szczesny for his ninth goal in seven games 12 minutes from time.
Chelsea did superbly to defend their lead but neither side did much to really test the goalkeepers and it was ultimately the hosts' ability to convert chances when it mattered that decided the contest.
As for the Gunners, it was only a first league loss of the season and a huge improvement to the away displays against the big guns from last season, but in the end it had the same outcome - defeat.
Welbeck, who had scored a hat-trick against Galatasaray in midweek, again looked lively in attack although he didn't really have any clear cut chances to grab a goal this time around. Fellow striker Lukas Podolski failed to produce any kind of spark when he came on for the final 11 minutes of the match. But in fairness to the German international it must be hard to build up any kind of momentum when you are not given much game time. Given the injury to Olivier Giroud, Podolski should have played a lot more even since the arrival of Welbeck. Podolski deserves to be given more chance to prove himself this season and am unsure why he isn't being given that.
The midfield didn't do too badly and Wilshere showed a lot of potential at times, while Santi Cazorla also looked a threat. But that threat failed to amount to anything. The Gunners will have to be a lot more ruthless in attack when they return to action after the international break with a home match against Hull.
The defence weren't too bad, aside from the two goals, and they restricted Chelsea to fewer chances than expected and Szczesny didn't have too much to do. However, the few they did get the hosts made count and ultimately that was the difference between the sides as Mourinho's men continue to look odds on favourite for the 2014/15 Premier League title.
If somebody doesn't beat Chelsea soon to put a blip in their unbeaten run the title race may not be as open as in recent seasons as they really do look like running away with it at the moment. Meanwhile, the Gunners must regroup and forget about their first league defeat of the season and focus on beating Hull and getting their season back on track.
COME ON YOU GUNNERS
Fabregas played a key role in the match, setting up the winning goal for Diego Costa as the Spanish pair's partnership continues to flourish. It is still very strange seeing Fabregas in a Chelsea shirt, with many Gunners' fans frustrated their club didn't take up the option to sign the midfielder as they did actually have first refusal on the former Barcelona man. I can half understand why Wenger didn't decide to bring Fabregas back to the Emirates, mainly because midfield is an area we actually have a large amount of players in, but that doesn't stop me being frustrated and wondering what might have been had the 27-year-old had the correct shirt colour of red on in the October clash.
The Gunners, who had been unbeaten in their last 11 league games, made an unsurprisingly cautious start to the game, which kicked off 15 minutes late for security reasons, as they were keen to avoid a repeat of last season's 6-0 hammering by the Blues.
There was little to choose between the sides until the opening goal, with the most worthy incident of note before that coming when Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois collided with Arsenal's summer signing Alexis Sanchez inside the opening 10 minutes.
The Belgian was eventually forced off after 24 minutes and his replacement Petr Cech was rarely threatened by the Gunners attack. Just three minutes after entering the action Cech saw one of the key moments of the game. Luckily for him it came at the other end of the field. Laurent Koscielny stuck out a leg to clumsily bring down Eden Hazard in the box. The Belgian forward made no mistake as he sent Wojciech Szczesny the wrong way and fired his spot-kick into the bottom corner.
Arsenal almost hit back soon after when Santi Cazorla set up Jack Wilshere with a fine pass but the midfielder's control in the box took the ball away from him to sum up the visitors' frustrating afternoon. The Gunners were showing some promising signs, with some lovely passing moves but their lack of a killer final ball and not getting enough shots in prevented them from causing too much of a threat to their opponents.
In fact the main highlight for the visitors in the first half came when manager Arsene Wenger squared up to his Chelsea counterpart Jose Mourinho, with the latter having the last laugh with all three points. The pair fronted up to one another with Wenger appearing to shove Mourinho after Gary Cahill's clumsy lunge on Sanchez, with some supporters thinking the card should've been red. Things evened themselves out later in the match when Danny Welbeck received just a yellow for his two-footed challenge on Fabregas.
Arsene Wenger's men started the second half brightly and should've drawn level within four minutes of the restart. A sweet passing move ended with Sanchez passing across the edge of the box for Cazorla, but the Spanish international sent his effort just wide of a post.
Arsenal continued to try and find a way back into the game but were reduced to half chances as Wilshere's shot deflected over the bar for a corner amidst shouts for a handball against Fabregas, in an incident that potentially could've changed the game, as the hosts appeared to be showing more urgency. But that urgency was failing to turn into enough clear cut chances on goal.
The Gunners' failure to test Cech enough proved costly as their London rivals grabbed a second goal to wrap up all three points. Fabregas played an inch perfect ball over the top for Diego Costa, who lifted a fine finish over Szczesny for his ninth goal in seven games 12 minutes from time.
Chelsea did superbly to defend their lead but neither side did much to really test the goalkeepers and it was ultimately the hosts' ability to convert chances when it mattered that decided the contest.
As for the Gunners, it was only a first league loss of the season and a huge improvement to the away displays against the big guns from last season, but in the end it had the same outcome - defeat.
Welbeck, who had scored a hat-trick against Galatasaray in midweek, again looked lively in attack although he didn't really have any clear cut chances to grab a goal this time around. Fellow striker Lukas Podolski failed to produce any kind of spark when he came on for the final 11 minutes of the match. But in fairness to the German international it must be hard to build up any kind of momentum when you are not given much game time. Given the injury to Olivier Giroud, Podolski should have played a lot more even since the arrival of Welbeck. Podolski deserves to be given more chance to prove himself this season and am unsure why he isn't being given that.
The midfield didn't do too badly and Wilshere showed a lot of potential at times, while Santi Cazorla also looked a threat. But that threat failed to amount to anything. The Gunners will have to be a lot more ruthless in attack when they return to action after the international break with a home match against Hull.
The defence weren't too bad, aside from the two goals, and they restricted Chelsea to fewer chances than expected and Szczesny didn't have too much to do. However, the few they did get the hosts made count and ultimately that was the difference between the sides as Mourinho's men continue to look odds on favourite for the 2014/15 Premier League title.
If somebody doesn't beat Chelsea soon to put a blip in their unbeaten run the title race may not be as open as in recent seasons as they really do look like running away with it at the moment. Meanwhile, the Gunners must regroup and forget about their first league defeat of the season and focus on beating Hull and getting their season back on track.
COME ON YOU GUNNERS
Wednesday, 1 October 2014
Welbeck Wonder Treble
Danny Welbeck hit his first senior hat-trick as 10-man Arsenal crushed Galatasaray 4-1 in their Champions League tie at the Emirates.
After an opening round defeat at Borussia Dortmund, and with leaders Chelsea on the horizon, the Gunners responded in the best possible manner - with a largely impressive performance and all three points. Arsenal looked confident in attack and if, and it could be a big if, they can produce the same kind of performance when they return to league action then maybe, just maybe, there is a chance of a shock result at Stamford Bridge. I'm not saying we will get a result, but the confident display we put in against Galatasaray is a huge confidence boost and at least gives us a chance.
Back to the game, and what a game it was for Welbeck and what a way it was for manager Arsene Wenger to mark his 18th anniversary with the club. Arsenal were truly excellent in the first half and, although it fizzled out slightly in the latter stages of the second half, the Gunners were well worth the win that kick-started their Champions League campaign. With Aaron Ramsey and Mikel Arteta likely to be out for nearly a month, Wenger's men needed something positive to cheer about and that is just what they got on an entertaining night in the capital.
As in their previous match against Tottenham, Arsenal were again dominating possession, only this time the hosts were making it count with goals...four well-taken goals!
The Gunners opened the scoring after 22 minutes when Alexis Sanchez played in Welbeck with a perfectly timed pass before the former Manchester United star beat his man and shot through the legs of Fernando Muslera in the Galatasaray goal.
Welbeck doubled his and the London' club's tally on the half hour mark. The 23-year-old- headed the ball on and showed great strength to out-muscle Felipe Melo before calmly slotting the ball beyond Muslera.
Melo can count himself lucky to have even stayed on the pitch after getting away with just a yellow card following a horror two-footed challenge on Sanchez.
Sanchez had the last laugh as he added Arsenal's third four minutes before the break. Mesut Ozil released Sanchez with a perfectly weighted through ball and the Chilean striker curled a lovely shot into the bottom corner to take his Gunners' tally to five goals.
Arsenal continued to dominate proceedings and Welbeck completed his hat-trick within just seven minutes of the restart. The Gunners' summer signing latched onto a pass from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain before lifting the ball over Muslera. It was an all-round fantastic performance from Welbeck and his treble was thoroughly deserved.
The victory was tainted slightly when the Turkish side scored a consolation from the spot after 63 minutes when Gunners goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny was dismissed for bring down Burak Yilmaz in the box. David Ospina, who joined Arsenal from Nice over the summer, was picking the ball out of the net with his first touch after Yilmaz had got back up to successfully convert the penalty.
Ospina, who was making just his second appearance for Arsenal, went on to make a few top class saves later in the second half to prevent the Gunners conceding any further goals and can be generally pleased with his display. As for Szczesny it was a silly act of madness and it is just fortunate the game was already over by the time he saw red.
Aside from that one moment, it was a wonderful display by Wenger's men and here's hoping we can produce something similar against Chelsea because you never know what might happen. We managed to bounce back from defeat to Dortmund in style with this 4-1 win, so let's make sure we banish the memory of last season's horror show at Stamford Bridge with something a lot more delightful at the weekend.
COME ON YOU GUNNERS
After an opening round defeat at Borussia Dortmund, and with leaders Chelsea on the horizon, the Gunners responded in the best possible manner - with a largely impressive performance and all three points. Arsenal looked confident in attack and if, and it could be a big if, they can produce the same kind of performance when they return to league action then maybe, just maybe, there is a chance of a shock result at Stamford Bridge. I'm not saying we will get a result, but the confident display we put in against Galatasaray is a huge confidence boost and at least gives us a chance.
Back to the game, and what a game it was for Welbeck and what a way it was for manager Arsene Wenger to mark his 18th anniversary with the club. Arsenal were truly excellent in the first half and, although it fizzled out slightly in the latter stages of the second half, the Gunners were well worth the win that kick-started their Champions League campaign. With Aaron Ramsey and Mikel Arteta likely to be out for nearly a month, Wenger's men needed something positive to cheer about and that is just what they got on an entertaining night in the capital.
As in their previous match against Tottenham, Arsenal were again dominating possession, only this time the hosts were making it count with goals...four well-taken goals!
The Gunners opened the scoring after 22 minutes when Alexis Sanchez played in Welbeck with a perfectly timed pass before the former Manchester United star beat his man and shot through the legs of Fernando Muslera in the Galatasaray goal.
Welbeck doubled his and the London' club's tally on the half hour mark. The 23-year-old- headed the ball on and showed great strength to out-muscle Felipe Melo before calmly slotting the ball beyond Muslera.
Melo can count himself lucky to have even stayed on the pitch after getting away with just a yellow card following a horror two-footed challenge on Sanchez.
Sanchez had the last laugh as he added Arsenal's third four minutes before the break. Mesut Ozil released Sanchez with a perfectly weighted through ball and the Chilean striker curled a lovely shot into the bottom corner to take his Gunners' tally to five goals.
Arsenal continued to dominate proceedings and Welbeck completed his hat-trick within just seven minutes of the restart. The Gunners' summer signing latched onto a pass from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain before lifting the ball over Muslera. It was an all-round fantastic performance from Welbeck and his treble was thoroughly deserved.
The victory was tainted slightly when the Turkish side scored a consolation from the spot after 63 minutes when Gunners goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny was dismissed for bring down Burak Yilmaz in the box. David Ospina, who joined Arsenal from Nice over the summer, was picking the ball out of the net with his first touch after Yilmaz had got back up to successfully convert the penalty.
Ospina, who was making just his second appearance for Arsenal, went on to make a few top class saves later in the second half to prevent the Gunners conceding any further goals and can be generally pleased with his display. As for Szczesny it was a silly act of madness and it is just fortunate the game was already over by the time he saw red.
Aside from that one moment, it was a wonderful display by Wenger's men and here's hoping we can produce something similar against Chelsea because you never know what might happen. We managed to bounce back from defeat to Dortmund in style with this 4-1 win, so let's make sure we banish the memory of last season's horror show at Stamford Bridge with something a lot more delightful at the weekend.
COME ON YOU GUNNERS
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