Written by Premiership Tips.

Arsenal v Blackpool

Arsenal made a slow start in their season opener at Liverpool; fortunate to come away with a point at 10 man Liverpool. Without Cesc Fabregas they lacked invention, until the late arrival of Tomas Rosicky. Even then, Liverpool’s closing down and positional discipline saw Arsenal have limited chances. But for a Jose Reina howler, Arsenal would be entering this game without a point. Blackpool caused a big shock when they beat Wigan Athletic 4-0 on the opening day. In truth, Wigan were woeful that day and I still believe Blackpool will be heading for the drop this season. Defensively they weren’t tested by Wigan. Arsenal, with the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Andrei Arshavin and Robin van Persie, to name just a few, have too much quality for this Blackpool side and should undo their defence at ease. Anything but a big victory for the Gunners on Saturday will be classed as a disappointment to sections of the Arsenal support. I am confident they won’t disappoint and will beat Blackpool by 2 goals or more.

Wigan Athletic vs Chelsea

Chelsea won the Premier League title for the third time on the final day of last season, defeating Wigan 8-0. Didier Drogba scored his only hat trick of last season in that game and started this campaign with another hat trick against West Brom on Saturday. After his claims of playing at less than 100% for the past six seasons, Drogba looked as sharp as ever to start this season and would become the first player in Premier League history to score hat tricks in three consecutive games should he hit three past Chris Kirkland, who was hapless in conceding two to Marlon Harewood last weekend. At 12/1, Didier Drogba is a good bet for a hat trick in this game. Ultimately though, it’s Chelsea who are going to be coming away from this fixture with the three points. The question is, how many will they score? The aggregate score of their last four Premier League games is a staggering 23-0. 8 of those came against Wigan. Playing a side who conceded 4 at home to Blackpool last weekend, it’s scary to think how many Chelsea will put past them if they don’t improve. Wigan were an unpredictable side last season and they did beat 10 man Chelsea in this fixture last season too. But there were too many mistakes from this Wigan side to think they can pull off a result this weekend. Chelsea are flying and will be looking for another crushing victory to add more fear into their title rivals this season. A big victory is on the cards this weekend and I like the price of Chelsea winning this game by 2 or more.

Manchester City v Liverpool

Monday night football this week stays in Manchester. After Manchester United dismissed Newcastle 3-0 last time, it leaves this week’s two sides 2 points behind their title rivals. This will be a game neither manager will want to lose so early in the season. And for that reason, I expect both Roberto Mancini and Roy Hodgson to play very cautiously and potentially make for a dull affair on Monday night, despite the bags of talent between the two sides. Manchester City have new signings in Mario Balotelli and James Milner to introduce, while the likes of David Silva, Yaya Toure and Jerome Boateng are still settling in. I expect Hodgson to set his team up in a similar style as he did against Arsenal, by keeping most of his players behind the ball and not giving City players much time or space on the ball. There’s several players in Mancini’s side who will get frustrated by their failures to break Liverpool down, which could end up with Fernando Torres and/or David N’Gog having chances at the other end. With neither side wanting to lose this game, I think it will end that way. Good price for the draw.

Written by Fab4.

Arsenal grabbed a point at Anfield after Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina spilled into his own net under pressure form Marouanne Chamakh with only minutes remaining, as both sides ended the game with 10 men.

It was a familiar game that all Arsenal fans have seem a million times over the last few years. Plenty of possession, no cutting edge in the final third and dodgy goalkeeping.

Match report

The first chance of the match fell to Thomas Vermaelen who fired in a powerful long-range free-kick which Reina did well to palm behind for a corner.

It took Liverpool until the 15th minute to cause the Gunners defence any real trouble when Johnsen’s cross almost found Joe Cole in the area. Arsenal were taking charge of the first half and having the lion’s shares of possession but few clear-cut chances were being made.

The nearest the Gunners came was when Nasri played in Eboue but Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard got back to intercept before the Ivorian could get his shot away.

Nasri was seeing a lot of the ball and sent a couple of free-kicks straight at the Liverpool wall. The home side were struggling to create and lone striker Ngog found himself off-side on more than one occasion.

Liverpool finished the half the stronger and debutant Jovanovic found some space in the Arsenal area but blasted his shot high and wide from a tight angle. Shortly after Glen Johnson drew a decent save from Almunia and from the resulting corner Ngog saw his goal-bound header cleared off the line by Clichy.

Then came the first moment of controversy in the match when Joe Cole got a straight red card for a late challenge on Koscielny. My view of the tackle was reckless but without intent, but watching it at normal speed i can understand why the ref had to give Cole a red. Harsh but fair.

Whatever Roy Hodgson said during his half-time team talk paid dividends within minutes of the restart as the home side took the lead. Arsenal tried to play their way out from the edge of their own area but Wilshere failed to gather Arshavin’s pass and Mascherano seized on the mistake and played in Ngog who smashed home from a tight angle. Almunia managed to get his finger tips on it but many will question the keeper as he really shouldn’t have been beaten on his near post from that angle.

Skrtel almost made it two after Almunia completely missed a Gerrard in-swinging free-kick but the Reds defender glanced his header wide. Despite the man advantage Arsenal were struggling to create and Walcott and Rosicky were brought on for Eboue and Wilshre.

Walcott almost made an immediate impact but Reina did well to tip his free-kick round the post. Liverpool brought on Torres for the tired Ngog and the Spanish striker almost burst away from Koscielny but the defender did well to out-muscle the forward and clear the danger.

Rosicky then drew a great save from Reina after some good work on the edge of the area, the Czech midfielder’s effort was tipped over for a corner. Arsenal were getting closer to the equalizer and substitute Van Persie did well to keep the ball alive but his headed cut-back didn’t fall for Walcott with the goal gaping.

With 5 minutes of injury time announced Arsenal pushed for the equalizing goal and finally found it through an unlikely source. The usually reliable Reina failed to deal with a Rosicky cross and under pressure from Chamakh, the Spaniard dropped the ball into his own net.

That wasn’t the last moment of drama as with seconds left, Koscielny was sent off for a second yellow card. The defender was adjudged to have committed intentional handball despite the ball striking him from close range. A very harsh decision considering the foul was committed on the half way line, and Ngog had committed an even more blatant case of deliberate handball during the second half right in front of the assistant referee but no yellow was produced.

Conclusions from the game

- Almunia is clearly not up to it. The goal was not THAT bad, it was a great shot from Ngog, but his positioning has to be questioned. Came and missed at least three crosses.

- Why would Arsene pick Almunia when he has made it clear he doesn’t trust him anymore and he has no future at the club? The Spanish waiter was hardly going to be in the right mind-frame for a big match.

- Koscielny looked good. Very decent start from him and unlucky to be sent off. Only a one-game ban though.

- Arsenal still have the same old problem of over-playing at times and lacked urgency in the final third. Hopefully the return of RVP and Fabregas will go some way to solving this problem.

- New GK and CB asap please Arsene. We were lucky to get away with it at Anfield so lets stop messing around and bring in the players we need to make this squad title winners.

Arsenal Player Ratings

Almunia – 4 – All over the place at crosses and questionable positioning for the goal.

Clichy – 6.5 – Ok from Clichy, nothing spectacular.

Sagna – 6 – See above. Still hasn’t worked on his crosses.

Vermaelen – 8 – Commanding and powerful at the back. Hard to imagine the team without him. Captain material.

Koscielny – 7.5 - Great debut and handled himself very well. Unlucky to be sent off.

Diaby – 6 – Average stuff, held on to the ball for too long at times…..again!

Wilshere – 6 - Looked comfortable on the ball, lost concentration for the goal.

Nasri – 7.5 – Arsenal’s best attacking figure in the first half but faded in the second.

Eboue – 5 - Did very little.

Arshavin – 4 – Did less than Eboue. No Anfield heroics this time.

Chamakh – 6.5 – Worked hard and made his presence felt.

Subs:

Walcott – 5 – Tried his best but fell over a lot.

Van Persie – 5 – Looked hungry but little time to make an impact.

Rosicky – 6.5 - Did well but should maybe have scored when he danced through the Liverpool defence.

Video Highlights

By Minal Vachheta

Arsenal finished the 2009/2010 season third in the league table, meaning they automatically qualified for the Champions League for the new season. This is a slight improvement on the previous season when they finished fourth, but is this enough?

Last season Arsenal scored 83 goals but conceded 41, this was a lot more than league winners Chelsea who only let in 32 and runners up Manchester United’s 28. It is safe to say the Arsenal defence wasn’t the strongest in the league. The gunners’ lack of defence also resulted in them throwing away vital points by losing nine games and drawing six. I don’t think any Arsenal fan will forget the Wigan Athletic game in a hurry where they were 2-0 up with ten minutes to go and ended up losing 3-2. Was this the game that summed up their season?

They began the season with three wins until Manchester United beat them 2-1 at Old Trafford, this knocked their confidence somewhat and resulted in them suffering a hammering at the hands of Manchester City. Important points were dropped throughout the season against teams like West Ham, Sunderland, Chelsea and Burnley. There was hope that things would improve in the second half of the campaign but these were soon dashed after a draw with Everton and repeated defeat with Manchester United. After a losing spell, the Gunners picked themselves up and started getting the wins they needed to maintain their challenge for the title. They looked very strong during this winning spell but soon all dreams of winning the league were destroyed after they lost three games in April, one defeat was to North London rivals Tottenham which had to have hurt the most.

So what does 2010/2011 hold?

Arsenal lost some first team players from during the summer break; Sol Campbell and William Gallas departed from the defence. Campbell proved to be a valuable asset at times during his second short spell at the club but both players were not 100% strong. Gallas wasn’t solid in his central role alongside Vermealan, it was time to pair Vermealan with someone who could stand by his side without slipping up.   Philippe Senderos made his way to Fulham and to be honest this was not a huge loss, Senderos proved more than once that he can be a liability in defence. It was sad to see Eduardo go after everything he has been through but the truth is that after his injury he never fully regained his flair. He has never been the same player since the awful Birmingham game which is etched in every Arsenal fans mind.

The future is looking bright with the signing of Laurent Koscielny the central defender who has already looked strong in pre season friendlies; although some of the score lines still raise questions regarding the effectiveness of said defence. Arsene has added more fire power to his strike force with the addition of Marouane Chamakh. He has already scored in the Emirates Cup on his home debut at the Emirates earlier this month. With the signing of Chamakh this should increase the supply of goals, which are going to be vital in the upcoming season. Only fifteen league goals were contributed by strikers last season, twenty five came from the midfield and seven came from the defender Vermealan making him the fifth top scorer for the season. The strikers are called so for a reason, their role is to get up front and put the ball into the back of the net; hopefully with Chamakh this will be the case.

The final point to be raised regarding transfers would be the whether or not Arsenal need to purchase a goal keeper. My answer to that is yes. Arsene needs to invest in an experienced and proven goalkeeper before the transfer window closes, preferably even before season starts. Manuel Almunia can be fantastic in goal; he has put in some admirable performances in the past and has on occasion made saves that have been out of this world. However on the flip side he has also made some of the worst blunders in the history of goalkeeping and cost them many vital points last season. The odd admirable save is not enough to realistically challenge for the title, Arsenal need a confident goalkeeper that is solid and will not repeatedly make silly mistakes. Lukasz Fabianski is young but has some experience; he has played games for Arsenal in various tournaments. He has the idea of what goalkeeping should be but like Almunia he cannot implement this. Fabianski has also made horrendous errors not only last season but in pre season games in recent weeks too. He can’t be trusted to be Arsenal’s no.1.

With goalkeepers that have so many slip ups, this doesn’t help the defence with their confidence. The defence will always be second guessing the goalkeeper because they know the he is not strong enough. If Arsenal invest in a reliable keeper who knows what he is doing, the defence will perform better because they will only be concentrating on their job rather than the goalkeepers too. A new keeper will undoubtedly enhance Arsenal’s strength considerably.

Arsenal go into the new season knowing that Cesc Fabregas is staying for at least another season. This is what the club wanted as Cesc plays a major role in the team as the captain. He is also at the heart of the midfield and also a major goal provider, losing him would have dented the team’s attack significantly.

If Arsenal strengthen their back five with a rock solid goal keeper and the team as a whole plays with the confidence and determination that we all know they are capable of then there is nothing stopping them from being in the title race with Chelsea and Manchester United. They need to keep consistency in their performances rather than have yo- yo results.

The 2010-2011 Premier League fixtures have just been announced. As usual, the opening day throws up some interested clashes but the tie of the day has to be Liverpool entertaining Arsenal at Anfield. The Merseysiders had a terrible season last year but following Rafa Benitez’s departure they will have a new man at the helm and he will start is Anfield tenure with a tricky tie against big-boys Arsenal. Hardly the dream start for any new manager and I’m sure Arsene Wenger would have hoped for a more favourable start as well.

Another high-profile clash is Tottenham hosting Manchester City at White Hart Lane. The two clubs battled it out last season for that all important fourth spot, with Tottenham securing the final Champions League place after beating City 0-1 at Eastland’s. Harry Redknapp may have hoped for a slightly easier start as his Spurs side would have played a Champions League qualifier just days before the opening day of the new Premier League season.

Sir Alex Ferguson and Carlo Ancelotti will be far happier with their opening day fixtures, as  they both face newly promoted sides at home with Manchester United welcoming Newcastle to Old Trafford, while Chelsea take on West Brom at Stamford Bridge.

Games to be played on the weekend of August 14th.

By Jonny Payne.

Arsenal ensured Champions League football would be returning to the Emirates next season with a classy 4-0 win over an under-strength Fulham side on Sunday. The Gunners had looked destined for a top-three finish since March, but after falling out of the title race, they then faltered, losing matches at Tottenham, Wigan and Blackburn. With North London rivals Tottenham hot on their heels, Arsenal needed a point in their final game of the season to secure a top-three finish.

Luckily for Arsenal they came up against a team with all eyes on Wednesday’s Europa League final with Atletico Madrid. Fulham were far from full strength with the likes of Bobby Zamora, Brede Hangeland and Damien Duff all rested ahead of their historic European game, but Roy Hodgson still included Manchester United-bound Chris Smalling and the American forward Clint Dempsey.

Far from facing a nervous wait for third spot, the Gunners faithful could settle comfortably in their padded seats within just 40 minutes. Goals from Andrey Arshavin, Robin van Persie and a Chris Baird own-goal put the result beyond doubt – even taking into account Arsenal’s recent collapses.

Substitute Carlos Vela added a cheeky third with just over fifteen minutes remaining, and with the news that Tottenham had lost to lowly Burnley after conceding a two-goal advantage, the season ended with beaming smiles.

Arsene Wenger named his strongest possible line-up in the knowledge that his side needed to take something from the game. Lukasz Fabianski continued in goal, while Gael Clichy returned at left-back. Andrey Arshavin was also restored to the starting line-up after recovering from injury, while Robin van Persie led the line as captain in the absence of Nicklas Bendtner.

Arsenal started brightly, with Emmanuel Eboue and Samir Nasri looking to orchestrate proceedings from midfield and Robin van Persie showing once again how he has been sorely missed this season, linking up well with Arshavin and Theo Walcott.

It was a Fulham player who was to have a hand in the first goal however, as the Cottagers ‘keeper Mark Schwarzer took a heavy touch from a back-pass. Arshavin capitalised and beat the Australian to the byline. He jinked one way, and then the other, leaving Schwarzer on his back and the little Russian lashed the ball into the near side of the net despite the best effort of two visiting defenders.

It was soon two-nil. A good pass by Bacary Sagna slipped Walcott clear of the defence on the right and the Englishman squared the ball unselfishly for the unmarked van Persie. Schwarzer deflected the Dutchman’s first effort onto the bar but the mercurial forward got to the rebound first to tap into the net.

It was looking all too easy for Arsenal, but with the news that Tottenham were winning, it was a reminder for Arsenal players to remain focused and not let the complacency seen in recent matches creep in.

Fulham rarely looked likely to threaten, in fact it was Arsenal’s ‘keeper Fabianski who would cause more havoc within his own defence than Fulham’s attack. The Pole seemed to be on a kamikaze mission to convince his manager of his frailties once again as he pawed at a number of straightforward crosses – Wenger must have been checking just how much money he has in his wallet.

Eight minutes before the interval, Arsenal banished all doubts of a comeback. After Walcott had an effort ruled out for offside, the winger again burst down the right, this time his cross was cleverly flicked on by the flamboyant Eboue towards van Persie. Chris Baird got there first, but the former Southampton man’s touch took the ball into his own net – it would have been an accomplished finish had he been wearing red and white.

Arsenal were dominating a match without really getting into second gear and third place was now well and truly secured. Walcott could have scored the goal his performance deserved before half-time but he dragged his shot wide of the post when well placed.

The second half continued in much the same vain, with Arsenal almost treating the match as an end-of-season warm down. You feel they could have turned on the style even more but the players were content with spraying the ball around, many of those on show were inevitably trying not to pick-up injuries ahead of their countries World Cup squad announcements this week.

Van Persie should have scored his second being denied from six yards by Schwarzer and then from even closer by the post when it seemed almost easier to score.

A fourth was eventually added though, when substitute Vela latched onto a Nasri through-ball, lifting the ball effortlessly over the hapless Schwarzer with a trademark chip.

It certainly was party time, but not exactly how Gunners fans had imagined it a few weeks ago. Arsenal’s players took a lap of honour after the match but they would have looked on in envy as Chelsea lifted the title in the Blue half of London. Next year, next year…

Player Ratings: Fabianski 4, Sagna 7, Campbell 7, Silvestre 7 (Djourou 7), Clichy 8, Eboue 8, Diaby 7, Nasri 7, Arshavin 8 (Vela 7), van Persie 8, Walcott 8 (Lansbury 7).

Video Highlights:

Arsenal beat Fulham 4-0 at the Emirates to cement third spot in the premier league. First half goals from Andrey Arshavin, Robin Van Persie and an own goal from Chris Baird saw Arsenal take a comfortable 3-0 half time lead. Carlos Vela then rounded the game off with Arsenal’s fourth. The result sealed third place for Arsenal, although their rivals Spurs lost 4-2 at Burnley so the Gunners would have finished third regardless.

Theo Walcott’s right wing cross was flicked on by Emmanuel Eboue, only for Fulham’s Chris Baird to slice into his own net for Arsenal’s third.

Carlos Vela was introduced with 15 minutes remaining and scored the goal of the game, Samir Nasri sent him clear and the Mexican forward scored with a trade-mark chip to score Arsenal’s fourth and final goal.

By Fab4.

Arsenal host Europa League finalists Fulham on the last day of the season at the Emirates, unexpectedly having to gain a point to secure that all important third place which guarantees a place in the Champions League group stages and avoids the tricky preliminary play-offs. I dare say not many Arsenal fans would have expected this scenario 3 weeks ago, but here we are and the team better turn up with a better attitude than they did against Blackburn last week, or we might just face the ultimate embarrassment.

Sunday’s finale versus Fulham is not the title decider Arsenal fans were dreaming of. Before the Tottenham game on the 14th April, we were fighting for the title and well clear of our North London rivals who were scrapping for fourth place. However, our fortunes have changed drastically since that fateful defeat at Sh*te Hart Lane. Spurs have won 4 out of their last 5 games, while Arsenal have only managed to pick up a solitary point from their last 4. This has culminated in a tense last day for Gooners, and an Arsenal defeat combined with a Tottenham victory would see our bitter rivals steal third place from under our noses. Unlikely, but possible.

Arsene Wenger had a little dig at Tottenham, well i like to think it was a dig anyway, when he compares how the two teams celebrate the ‘achievment’ of finishing in the champions league places.

“You could see when you look at our rivals, you know that everybody celebrates. We don’t do that anymore because we have [qualified] for so many years that everybody finds it normal. It is not normal – it is the consequences of the quality performances during the season and it is not because we are Arsenal that we are guaranteed that.”

The most important thing from today is a professional display from the Arsenal players. If they turn up with the right attitude and realise what’s at stake, we will get the point required. Play with the lethargic attitude of last Monday’s defeat to Blackburn and we could be in trouble. Fulham are no mugs and will not Lie down as many seem to think they will.

Yes they will have one eye on the Europa League Final and Roy Hodgsen will probably quite rightly rest some of his key players. But i would actually prefer him to play his first team. They will be far more concerned about getting injured than any of the back up players who will play out of their skins in an attempt to win a place in Hodgsen’s European Final eleven. Trust me, if the Fulham ‘reserve’ team play today, they will be well up for it. So Arsenal need to be as well.

Team News:

Unsurprisingly, as with most games this season, Arsenal have a whole host of injury worries. Fabregas, Gallas, Vermaelen, Denilson, Almunia, Ramsey, Rosicky, Song and Bendtner are all definitely out. While Clichy has a chance after missing the Blackburn game last week with an ankle problem. Quite an impressive team could be made up of those absent players. How many sides could make do without that lot and still be able to field a strong eleven? Not many.

Predicted Starting Eleven:

Fabianski

Sagna              Campbell                 Silvestre               Clichy

Eastmond

Diaby                    Nasri

Walcott                                               Arshavin

Van Persie

If Clichy is fit, he should be the only change in the back five, with under-fire Fabianski given one last chance to show what he can do. But it should already be too late for him to convince Arsene Wenger he is ready to be Arsenal’s No.1 next season. I hope Eastmond is given a go in the holding role supported by Nasri and Diaby. Eboue in the middle doesn’t work for me. Theo needs to impress Capello so let him loose on the right with Arshavin hopefully ready to show the Gunners faithful he is ready to fight for the Red & White shirt on the left. Van the man up top and that team should be good enough to secure third.

No messing about Arsene, no experiments, no blooding too many youngsters, just put the best possible team out and get the job done. With champions league football secured for another year, you can then go and make the necessary signings to ensure this time next year we will be parading a nice shiny premier league trophy at the Emirates!

By Fab4.

Arsenal’s season limped towards the finish line with another inept display against a very poor Blackburn side who knew the only way they had a chance of scoring was to pile as many players as physically possible on top of our goalkeeper at every set piece. Unfortunately for Arsenal, those tactics worked a treat and resulted in two goals following more uncertain goalkeeping from Lukasz Flapianski.

Arsenal began brightly and should have taken the lead when speedster Theo Walcott raced clear and cut back for Carlos Vela, who despite being under pressure from a Blackburn defender, should have tapped into an un-guarded net to open the scoring, but scuffed his shot wide of the post.

It didn’t take long before the deadlock was broken with a goal that was more fitting from the George Graham era. Merson takes an in-swinging corner, Bould flicks on at the near post and Adams heads home from close range. Replace those names with Nasri, Sagna and Van Persie and Arsenal have a 0-1 lead at Ewood Park.

0-1 Van Persie (13)

Van Persie came close to doubling the advantage with a 25 yard free kick that Robinson did well to turn round the post and that’s about as good as it got as Arsenal decided to stop trying to play football and the game became all about Blackburn set-pieces and if/when Fabianski would make a howler.

At every single set piece, from throw ins, corners, free kicks and even free kicks in their own half, Blackburn would swarm the 6 yard box with players, crowding our keeper and making his life difficult. Not pretty, but very effective. As our useless Pole took no command of his area, never stuck up for himself and gave the Blackburn bullies anything back, just stood their relying on Sol Campbell to protect him. Could you imagine Jens Lehman just standing their getting pushed about like that?! He would have floored 2-3 of them, or at least give them a cheeky elbow to the ribs to let them know he wasn’t going to be messed with.

Blackburns tactics paid off just before half time when Fabianski came for a corner through a whole host of bodies, the flap we all knew was coming dully arrived, the ball fell to a blue/white shirt who fired a low ball across the 6 yard box finding Dunne free at the far post via a couple of deflections, and the midfielder tapped home for 1-1.

1-1 Dunne (43)

Shortly after half time Blackburn should have taken the lead when Pedersen was through on goal but Fabianski made a great save to deny him. He then made another save from a powerful drive by Junior Hoilett. This is the problem, we know Fabianski can be a decent shot stopper it’s just the rest of his game that sucks.

Anyway, in between the set-piece side-shows there was very little decent football being played by either side. Arshavin replaced the in-effective Vela but he made very little difference. He looked largely un-interested and scuffed a chance to score. Perhaps he has one eye on playing for Barcelona next season already.

Blackburn then took the lead and Fabianski was once again found wanting. Pedersen’s corner was swung right at the heart of his 6 yard box, Fabianski got nowhere near it and Samba headed home from no more than 3 yards out.

2-1 Samba (68)

Arguably the goal should never have stood. Although the goalscorer Samba was doing no more than making a nuisance of himself, Dunne was backing into Campbell which not only stopped the defender from making an attempt to clear the ball, he forced Campbell into pushing Fabianski behind his line and stopping him from making a challenge as well. A clear foul.

Eduardo came on for Eboue but never got in the game, the only real half chance came through the only player who looked capable of scoring, Robin Van Persie, when he turned Salgado in the area before appearing to lose his footing while trying to get his shot away. Replays showed Salgado had made contact with the Dutchman, but it would have been a generous penalty.

There was to be no grand stand finish and Arsenal lost their third game from four and played as if they knew they had very little to play for. Unlikely as it seems, if Tottenham beat City tomorrow they will only be two points behind us. So the players better make sure they turn up and put in a proper shift again Fulham or we could endure the embarrassment of the Spuds finishing third. Unthinkable!

Arsene predictably complained after the match about the tactics used by Fat Sam, but sorry boss…I can’t back you on this one. If we all knew Fabianski is our weak link, then I’m sure Sam Allardyce knew and why wouldn’t an opposition manager target him? You should have expected those sort of tactics and found a way to counter-act them. However, i do agree that there were probably several incidents that the ref could have blown up for on both goals. But that doesn’t mean you can complain about the tactic to target our keeper. Why not go and buy a proper goalkeeper who managers can’t target?!

Player Ratings:

Fabianski 5, Traore 5, Sagna 6, Campbell 6, Silvestre 5, Diaby 6, Nasri 5, Eboue 6, Walcott 6, Vela 4, Van Persie 7. Subs: Arshavin 5, Eduardo 5

Match Highlights:

Arsenal travel to Blackburn on Monday knowing a point will be enough to secure third spot and their participation in the Champions League for the thirteenth year in a row. The Gunners have put Blackburn to the sword three times over the past eighteen months. Two four-nil score lines, both home and away in the league last season, were followed-up with an emphatic 6-2 thumping at the Emirates in October. The match epitomised Arsenal’s early season form, with six different scorers in a master-class of attacking football led by Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie.

But Blackburn have since shown resilience, recently taking points from the top two at Ewood Park. Rovers battled to a 1-1 draw against Chelsea and a 0-0 scoreline against Manchester United, both during the crucial title run-in, to help consolidate their position in the Premier League.

Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger has noticed the improvement in Sam Allardyce’s side, he said:

“You go to Blackburn and you know they had good games against Chelsea and Manchester United. In fairness they have done remarkably well Blackburn; they are eleventh in the league and they’ve turned things around. They have played good football this season I believe, so it promises to be an interesting game and an exciting one as they have nothing to lose anymore – so it could be a good end of season game.”

If transfer stories in the press last week are to believed, then it could also be a chance for Blackburn duo, defender Phil Jones and defensive midfielder Steven N’Zonzi to impress the Arsenal manager, who is rumoured to be interested in their services.

Going into the game, Arsenal’s injury problems have worsened once more with the news that Denilson will miss the remaining two matches of the season. But Wenger has said meanwhile that Andrey Arshavin, who was expected to be fit for Monday’s encounter “has a chance to figure in the last game, maybe, and an outside chance for Blackburn.”

Thomas Vermaelen, William Gallas, Cesc Fabregas, Manuel Almunia and long-term absentees Kieran Gibbs and Aaron Ramsey remain sidelined, giving the likes of Sol Campbell, Mikael Silvestre and Lukasz Fabianski another chance to impress ahead of the transfer merry-go-round. Swiss defender Johan Djourou, meanwhile, has returned to training following his long-term injury lay-off, but he is not expected to figure at Blackburn.

With little riding on the match, Wenger has refused to use the game to blood some of his younger squad members, stating that he seeks to end the season on a high – starting with a win against Blackburn.

“We want to win and I will play the team, which I believe will be the most balanced to win the game,” said Wenger

“I think to be faithful to what we have done during the season it is important that we finish well. First of all, it is important that we finish in the top three and as close as possible to the top teams.”

Most of Arsenal’s players could be forgiven for thinking ahead to the World Cup which is just 40 days away, but for some, impressive performances against Blackburn and again at home to Fulham next week will be crucial if they are to make the plane to South Africa.

Samir Nasri, who has taken up Fabregas’ mantle since the Spaniard limped off against Barcelona, is on the fringes of the French squad, as is Abou Diaby whose inconsistent form of late would be a worry for France coach, Raymond Domenech.

Wenger has been impressed with Nasri’s performances in the middle, but insists his future lies on the wing.

The Arsenal manager said: “I see Nasri wide because he has the tricks the speed the pace – and don’t forget that Fabregas plays in this role.”

The Frenchman added: “He’s had a good season, Samir Nasri. He’s a hard-worker a good dribbler and a very interesting player because he has a combination of qualities that are quite exceptional. I believe Robert Pires is a good target for him because if he can score the number of goals Pires scored he will be an exceptional player.”

Wenger has suggested that Campbell could also be in line for a World Cup call-up with injury worries over the Three Lions two first-choice centre-backs. Another sure-footed performance such as that against Manchester City could impress Fabio Capello enough – but it is in truth a little far-fetched.

One man who has seemingly already won a spot in the England squad is Theo Walcott. Since returning from injury, the winger took time to settle back into the rigors of Premiership football, but he has shown his quality in the past month, particularly in a second-half cameo against Barcelona at the Emirates. If he runs Blackburn ragged tomorrow, which he easily could, Walcott would surely not face a nervous wait ahead of Capello’s squad announcement in two week’s time.

With another season of ‘what could have been’ almost over, Wenger looked ahead to next season, insisting that his squad has the belief to mount another serious title challenge.

“I believe that the squad is convinced that we have a strong chance for next year because we have room for improvement,” Wenger said.

“If you assess our situation I believe that going forward we have been very efficient and that our goalscoring rate is very good. Where we want to set ourselves a target for next year is that we conceded nearly 40 goals and that’s too many to win the championship, that’s where we want to improve,” said the Frenchman.

Wenger continued: “We had disappointing results at Tottenham and at Wigan that’s where we lost the championship. With five games to go we were in a strong position because if we had won at Tottenham I believe we would be level today, and that of course brings immense regrets.”

Possible line-up:

Fabianski

Sagna        Campbell          Silvestre        Clichy

Song

Nasri                      Diaby

Walcott                                                        Rosicky

Van Persie

Subs: Mannone. Traore, Eboue, Eastmond, Bendtner, Eduardo, Vela

If Arsenal’s match against Barcelona at the Emirates two weeks ago was the perfect advert for football, then the Premier League’s marketing department will be pulling their hair out at the sight of a dull goalless draw between the Gunners and Manchester City.

Fifth-placed Manchester City managed only one shot on target, a limp Craig Bellamy shot, while third placed Arsenal hit the target on only four occasions, with much of the play being dictated ineffectively in midfield. It was not a good advert for arguably the best league in Europe.

Arsenal took to the field knowing that the title was realistically out of reach and third place was secure bar a collapse of Lehman Brothers proportions.

A win for the visitors, meanwhile, would have put them in pole position to secure the all-important fourth place after Tottenham’s defeat to Manchester United earlier in the day – but in truth the blues never looked like taking three points.

For much of the game City were happy to let Arsenal have possession, putting ten men behind the ball. It was an interesting tactic for a team that has spent millions recruiting some of the best talent in the league in search of Champions League football for next season.

Arsenal, with a heavily depleted team without the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Andrey Arshavin, William Gallas and Thomas Vermaelen, were much the better side and spent much of the time around their opponents box probing for an opening.

The clear-cut chance never came though, as City’s defenders – helped the Nigel De Jong and Patrick Vieira in midfield – put up a solid barrier in front of Shay Given’s goal.

The most notable moment of the match was the second-half introduction of former Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor, who in the previous meeting between the sides this season had put himself firmly on the hate list of Gunners fans after his inciting goal celebration. It was a wonder Adebayor-shaped voodoo dolls were not being sold outside the stadium before kick-off.

Arsenal started with Robin van Persie for the first time since November. The Holland forward had been in the form of his life before his knee ligament injury but he had looked surprisingly sharp with substitute appearances against Tottenham and Wigan in the last fortnight.

With Gallas and Vermaelen still out, Sol Campbell and Mikael Silvestre continued at the heart of defence. Arshavin had not recovered in time, but Alex Song, who limped off in the Wolves match three weeks ago, returned in midfield.

Arsenal fans had to wait to give Adebayor a hot reception as he had to settle for a place on the bench, but other former Gunners Patrick Vieira and Kolo Toure both started, receiving rapturous applause from the Arsenal faithful.

Arsenal started in control, with van Persie seeking to use his quality to open up the visitors’ defence, Samir Nasri and Thomas Rosicky looking to exchange places at every opportunity and Theo Walcott trying to use his pace down the right.

Wayne Bridge, the Manchester City left-back was looking uncomfortable against the pace of Walcott and would have been pleased to have been taken off with a thigh injury after only 27 minutes.

Manchester City were content to let Arsenal spray the ball ahead of them, feeling assured that they could limit the Arsenal attack to half-chances, and maybe hit the home team on the break as they proved so effective at doing at Stamford Bridge in their victory over Chelsea.

It was a plan that worked. Nasri and van Persie both tested Shay Given but from narrow angles that a goalkeeper of Given’s quality had no trouble dealing with.

Patrick Vieira almost came back to haunt his former team as he found space inside the Arsenal box, but Sol Campbell put in a trademark crunching tackle on his former captain to avert danger.

The second half continued in much the same vain, until the inevitable introduction of Adebayor. A chorus of boos and whistles hailed the arrival of the former Togolese international in the 52^nd minute, the complete opposite to the man he replaced, Patrick Vieira, who was applauded as he walked off.

Complete with pigtails and bright red boots, Adebayor looked immediately lively, with jeering from the crowd greeting at every touch. His arrival did liven the game up, however, and soon Alex Song and Craig Bellamy – who is never far from controversy – clashed after a innocuous challenge.

Manchester City looked happy to settle for a draw, but Arsenal’s players showed more endeavour as they looked for the winning goal. Arsenanl manager Arsene Wenger brought Nicklas Bendtner and Emmanuel Eboue on for Walcott and Rosicky in the hope of creating some chances.

With twenty minutes remaining, Abou Diaby tried his luck from range, only for Given to turn the ball around the post. It was to be the last contribution the Irishman made, however, as he dislocated his shoulder in the process. Faroe Island international, Gunnar Nielsen replaced the 32 year-old for his first Premier League appearance.

After Van Persie scythed down Adebayor earning a yellow card, in what was surely revenge for Adebayor’s stamp on the Dutchman earlier this season, Arsenal’s number 11 then curled a free-kick just over with six minutes remaining.

Despite eight minutes of added time due to the injury to Given, Arsenal failed to open up a resolute Manchester City defence. Both teams would be content with a draw, bit it looks to be turning into a disappointing end to another disappointing season for the Gunners.

The result virtually guarantees Arsenal Champions League football once again however, something most Arsenal fans would be more than happy with given the widespread predictions at the start of the season that they would struggle even to make fourth place. On the evidence of Manchester City’s performance, however, Arsenal’s place in the top four will not be threatened anytime soon.

Arsenal Team: Fabianski 7, Sagna 6, Campbell 8, Silvestre 7, Clichy 7, Song 7, Diaby 6, Nasri 7, Rosicky 6 (Bendtner 7), Walcott 6 (Eboue 7), van Persie 7

Video Highlights:

By Fab4.

I’m not sure what to make of the Arsenal vs Manchester City game this evening. This is a big game for many reasons, yet I’m struggling to get myself up for it in the same way i have obsessed about previous games this year.

After the Wigan fiasco Arsenal’s season is all but over. I’m gutted at how we have thrown away a great chance to win the premier league, and baring a minor miracle, we’re going to finish third regardless of today’s result. Win, lose or draw Arsenal are still going to finish third, so realistically we’re just playing for pride now.

So if the result wont affect our final league position, how can this be such an important game? Well the answer lies in who our opponents are, what their playing for and the return of several ex-Arsenal players.

Manchester City come to the Emirates battling for fourth spot with our bitter North London rivals Tottenham. The thought of Spurs playing in the champions league makes my skin crawl, so naturally part of me wants City to come fourth just so Tottenham don’t. Obviously as an Arsenal fan i want us to win every game we take part in, but City avoiding defeat today against Arsenal may go a long way to helping them beat Spurs to that all important champions league spot. Would i give up some points to help ensure Spurs don’t finish 4th given the fact that our league position is already determined? Perhaps.

However, the next problem is that i don’t want City to finish fourth either. I don’t agree with buying success via sugar-daddies, and would hate to see Adebayor playing champions league football again next year. Plus, if City come fourth they will have the draw of champions league football they need to lure the worlds best players to the City of Manchester Stadium, and will be a HUGE threat for the league title next term. Whereas, i could see Tottenham’s champions league adventure lasting only one season before they return to mid-table obscurity where they belong.

So it’s a case of who is the lesser of two evils? The Scum from the Lane or Adebayor’s money-bags City? It’s 50:50 for me so I think it’s best just to sit back and see what happens. Although, in the long run i actually think Tottenham finishing fourth would be better for Arsenal FC.

The next reason this is such a big game, is the return of Arsenal old-boys Vieira, Toure, (possibly) Silvinho and of course Adebarndoor.

Following the controversial 4-2 defeat at the City of Manchester Stadium earlier in the season, i think it’s safe to say we have a score to settle, especially with a certain lanky Togolese striker. Adebayor’s antics have ensured he will get a torrent of abusive today and he’s brought it on himself. His behaviour during that game was nothing short of disgraceful, and that was before his idiotic celebration in front of the away fans. As well as the despicable stamp on RVP’s face, he was guilty of several other dangerous tackles that were forgotten about due to the RVP incident. The sooner City get fed-up with him being off-side 20 times a match, or they get someone better, and he pisses off to Italy, Spain or outer Mongolia the better.

However, the reception for Toure and Vieira will be a completely different story, with both fully deserving the ‘welcome home’ applause they will get. Personally i cant wait to hear the Arsenal faithful sing ‘Vieira, woah-oh-oh…etc’, amazing chant. For a full preview of their return, click here.

Team News:

Arsenal welcome back Alex Song to the squad following a knee complaint and is likely to replace Eastmond in the holding midfield role. Eduardo is also back in the squad after suffering a broken toe, but he is likely to start from the bench.

Andrey Arshavin, Cesc Fabregas, William Gallas, Thomas Vermaelen and Manuel Almunia are still out, along with long term injury victims Gibbs, Djourou and Ramsey.

Predicted Arsenal Starting XI:

Fabianski

Sagna                Campbell                       Silvestre                    Clichy

Song

Diaby                 Nasri

Walcott                                                        Rosicky

Van Persie

This is the line-up i want to see start against Manchester City, but as you know Arsene likes to shake things up, so Eboue or possibly even Bendtner, may play instead of Walcott on the right. I see no reason Van Persie shouldn’t start, but Arsene may be overly-cautious with him after such a long lay-off and keep in on the bench.

The key to the game will be how our stand-in centre back pairing of Campbell and Silvestre handle Tevez and Adebayor. The pair have a wealth of experience between them, but I’m not sure that will be enough to contain the dangerous City front men.

However i fully expect Arsenal’s front trio of RVP, Walcott and Rosicky to cause plenty of problems to the City back line, so we could be in for another 6 goal thriller. Let’s hope the 4-2 result is reversed this time round! Or do we? I still can’t figure it out!

Would part of you be happy to see City win if it meant Tottenham missing out on fourth? Or would you rather Spurs than City made the top-four? Please leave your comments below….

Wigan 3-2 Arsenal

By Fab4.

If it wasn’t all over before kick-off, it certainly is now. Arsenal blew any slim hopes of winning the title with what i can only describe as one of the worst 10 minute displays i have witnessed by an Arsenal team.

A match report would be pointless, the game was awful for the most part, so i will give a quick run-through of the goals then share my thoughts on the result.

After missing a golden opportunity to give Arsenal the lead, Walcott was again put through on goal, this time he stayed calm and tucked it past Kirkland with a neat finish to give Arsenal a 1-0 lead just before half time.

0-1 Walcott (41)

The game looked to be over minutes into the second half when Silvestre headed home from a Nasri corner to double Arsenal’s advantage.

0-2 Silvestre (48)

The game was played in 1st gear, Wigan were un-adventurous and were there for the taking. Arsenal were walking the game, quite literally for many of the players, but never really pushed on to score the 3-4 they could easily have done if they tried. So after 80 minutes we were in a comfortable 2-0 position, not playing well but in control.

But the weak links in the Arsenal side were once again exposed in devastating fashion as Wigan scored three goals in the final 10 minutes.

The fightback began when Moses was found free on the left, he cut back for the un-marked Watson to score his first goal of the season.

1-2 Watson (80)

Clichy made a hash of his attempted clearance/block, as replays showed he missed the ball as he stood on the line. The headless Diaby never tracked Watson and left him free in the area, while Silvestre was drawn out of position and turned too easily in the build up. That meant the whole defense having to shift across to cover him, which left Moses free on the left-hand side to create the goal.

A catalogue of errors that resulted in a crucial foothold in a game that Wigan were never in.

If several players were at fault for Wigan’s first goal, the blame for their second lay firmly at Fabianski’s door. The calamitous keeper dropped an easy catch from a corner in the 89th minute right onto the head of Bramble who nodded over the line for the equalizer.

2-2 Bramble (89)

I actually laughed when that goal was scored, how a goalkeeper as poor as Fabianski can play for a club like Arsenal is simply laughable. Players like him don’t deserve a premier league winners medal, and he will never get one.

Arsene Wenger threw on Robin Van Persie in the final minute, 20 minutes too late in my eyes, in a desperate attempt to win the game. But a shell-shocked Arsenal side managed to concede a third to lose a game that was impossible to lose.

Wigan booted the ball up top, Clichy opted to let the ball drop instead of heading clear. N’Zogbia got in-front of the left back to take possession of the ball. He switched onto his left and ran un-challenged across the edge of the box before unleashing an unstoppable shot in off the post.

3-2 Bramble (90)

I found the equalizer funny but the winner was hilarious. To lose this game perhaps sums up our season. But am i the only one not surprised by the result? With players like Fabianski and Silvestre in the team, who can be surprised when mistakes are made?

Wenger claims Almunia was injured and that’s why Fabianski played, but i think he was giving him a chance to prove himself, as Wenger doesn’t see Almunia as a long-term No1. Well he failed miserably. Paul Merson summed up what i have been saying for years, Arsenal will not win a major trophy until they buy a proper goalkeeper!!!

Simple catch for any professional goalkeeper, no matter what level you play at. But Fabianski simply can’t handle pressure, he may be a decent shot stopper and perform well in training, but when it matters he has ALWAYS blown it.

The goalkeeping position has cost Arsenal the title, make no mistake about it. Mannone cost us 2 points at West Ham, Almunia cost us 2 points at Birmingham and Fabianski cost us 3 points at Wigan. 7 crucial points that would leave us top of the league. Wenger doesn’t have a No1 he trusts,  and back-ups who aren’t ready, as shown through-out the season. YOU CAN’T WIN TROPHIES WITHOUT A TOP CLASS GOALKEEPER!

Looking at the team we had out against Wigan today and the lethargic way they performed, i was surprised Arsenal managed to take a 2 goal lead. Wigan were poor and if we were on our game it could have been 4-0, but the way we fell apart from a slight bit of pressure shows how vulnerable we are.

Yes a full strength Arsenal side would not have lost this game, but the back-up players aren’t up to it. If the last couple of weeks hasn’t shown Arsene that a goalkeeper and a centre back is needed this summer i don’t know what will. Although reading his post match comments hasn’t filled me with confidence. When asked if the club needed a new goalkeeper, Wenger replied:

“Everybody has an opinion. I keep my opinion for myself and let everybody have different opinions. I believe you cannot say today we lost the game because of the goalkeeper.”

I say when your keeper drops the ball 2 yards from his line onto the head of an opposition player to gift them an 89th minute equalizer, you can blame the goalkeeper! This squad was never going to win the league, too many weak links and too many injury prone players. The first team and a few subs make the grade, but all our keepers aren’t good enough and Silvestre, Denilson, Diaby, et al are not good enough for Arsenal FC. Simple.

Player ratings:

Fabianski – 2 – Couple of decent saves but horrendous error ended Arsenal’s title challenge.

Clichy – 4 – Poor for 1st and 3rd goals, apart from that did ok.

Sagna – 6 – Did ok

Silvestre – 5 – Scored a good goal, out of position too often.

Campbell – 6 – Did ok

Eastmond – 7 – Played well, much more enthusiasm than Denilson in holding role.

Diaby – 4 – Pathetic effort, caught in possession too much.

Nasri – 6 - Some nice touches, not in the game enough.

Rosicky – 6 – See above

Walcott – 6 - Nicely taken goal, not involved enough.

Bendtner – 4 - Forgot he was playing. Did nothing.

None of the subs made an impact. Pathetic performance all round, the only shinning light was Eastmond who i thought did very well in midfield.

VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS HERE

Where do Arsenal go from here? Please leave your opinions below….

Arsenal threw away a 2-0 goal lead to concede 3 goals in the final 10 minutes to lose 3-2 to Wigan at the DW Stadium.

Theo Walcott gave Arsenal a deserved lead just before half-time, then defender Mikel Silvestre looked to have secured the 3 points for Arsenal with a second just minutes into the second half.

But Wigan midfielder Ben Watson began the fightback on 80 minutes, before Arsenal goalkeeper Lucas Fabianski gifted Wigan an equaliser after dropping a corner onto the head of Titus Bramble.

Charles N’Zogbia scored a wonder goal for Wigan only a minute later to complete a remarkable turn around.

The win goes a long way to keeping Wigan in the premier league, but leaves Arsenal’s title dreams in tatters.

Watch all the action in the videos below.

Wigan – Arsenal 3:2 [18.04.2010] Canal+
Uploaded by mexicas18. – Check out more sports and extreme sports videos.

Does Fabianski have a future at Arsenal, or will this latest mistake be the end for him? Please leave your opinions below…

Arsenal play Wigan today as they look to close the gap on Chelsea to 3 points and manager Arsene Wenger has been forced to make changes.

Regular Arsenal No.1 Almunia has an apparent wrist injury so Fabianski takes over, with Alex Song still out Craig Eastmond plays in the holding role, Mikel Silvestre takes the place of the injured Vermaelen while Robin Van Persie only starts from the bench. Eduardo not named in the squad.

Arsenal Team:

Fabianski

Sagna                  Campbell                   Silvestre                     Clichy

Eastmond

Diaby                            Nasri

Walcott                                                      Rosicky

Bendtner

Subs: Mannone, Troare, Eboue, Henderson, Merida, Vela, Van Persie

Wigan Team:

Kirkland

Melchiot                    Gohouri                   Bramble                 Figueroa

McCarthy             Watson                Diame

Moreno                 Rodallega                    N’Zogbia

Subs: Stojkovic, Boyce, Scharner, Gomez, Sinclair, Moses, Scotland.

Arsenal take on Wigan tomorrow knowing that the Premier League title is now surely out of their grasp.

After bowing out of the Champions League to Barcelona eleven days ago, Arsenal’s depleted squad travelled to White Hart Lane in midweek knowing only a win would do if they were to remain in contention for the Premier League title.

A 2-1 defeat to their local rivals, however, means that the title is now realistically out of reach once more with the Gunners now six points behind Chelsea with four matches remaining.

Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger, refuses to give up on the title, however, and insists his team will be focussed on winning the next four fixtures.

“It’s more hope than a realistic view but anyway let’s finish as strong and as well as we can,” said the Frenchman.

Wenger added: “The morale is of course down because we lost a game that we couldn’t afford to lose, but our job is to focus on the next game and finish the season as well as we can and gain as many points as we can. That’s our target and we want to show we can respond on Sunday.”

It looks an uphill struggle to catch Chelsea. The team from Stamford Bridge have two tough matches at Tottenham and Liverpool, but they have a far superior goal difference – so effectively they are seven points ahead of The Gunners – and two winnable home matches against Stoke and Wigan.

If Arsenal fail to catch Chelsea, it will be the fifth consecutive year without a trophy, but Wenger is optimistic going into next season.

“I believe overall this team has gained a lot of credit and from my opinion they have done extremely well until now, so it is important that they do not now have a negative vibe from our season. Our season will be judged on how well we finish and that is why we play a vital game on Sunday,” he said.

With Champions League qualification all but secure, all Arsenal seemingly have to play for is to pip Manchester United to second spot.

Robin van Persie, the one shining light from Wednesday’s defeat may again play a part in tomorrow’s match. The Dutchman showed he has not lost any of his quality in his 20-minute cameo appearance at White Hart Lane, twice coming close to scoring. But for Tottenham’s flying goalkeeper, Heurelho Gomes, van Persie would have been the hero.

Wenger said: “You could see that you miss these players when he came on. He has not kicked a ball for five months, it was not even realistic to put him on the bench at the start, but we have so many injuries – he has shown how much we’ve missed him.”

The Dutchman may remain on the bench though, with the Arsenal manager unwilling to gamble on a player who has been out for five months, and who also has a terrible injury record.

“We have to see how he responds,” Wenger said. “He had very tight muscles everywhere because he had not played at all so we have to see if we go for the gamble or not. If he feels physically alright he will start, but if there is a little gamble we will not take him because he’s been out for such a long time.”

Wembley’s pitch has been a major talking point this week, but Wenger believes there will be no problems with the playing surface at Wigan’s DW Stadium. It is also used for Rugby League matches, but remains in good condition.

Wenger said: “That is one of the aspects that I’m keen to see, they say it’s better so we’ll see. Wigan try to play football so it’s in their interest to have a good pitch. I believe that the Premier League has to create a criteria committee where the pitch is part of a required level. If you want to be the best league in the world we need the best pitches in the world.”

With more injuries piling up ahead of the match, though, the trip to Wigan will be harder than first expected as Wenger may have little choice but to field some of his fringe players.

With Thomas Vermaelen and William Gallas out for the rest of the season – and Alex Song also sidelined with a knee injury – Sol Campbell and Mikael Silvestre will be expected to start at the back.

Wenger has hinted that defensive reinforcements will be brought in during the summer so it will be another chance for the veterans to impress.

Densilon is also struggling to be fit meaning that Craig Eastmond could be handed only his second Premier League start in the defensive midfield berth.

Theo Walcott may get another chance to impress England manager, Fabio Capello ahead of his preliminary World Cup squad announcement in three-weeks time.

Andrey Arshavin is still not fit to return and he joins fellow absentees Cesc Fabregas, Johann Djourou and Kieran Gibbs on the sidelines who will are out for the season.

Wigan, with their forward-thinking young manager Roberto Martinez, are arguably the most inconsistent team in the league. Commendably they try to play an attractive style of football when an often more effective defensive approach is taken by their rivals in the lower reaches of the top flight.

Despite their lowly placing just above the relegation places, Wigan have a number of key threats as Chelsea found out earlier this season during their 3-1 defeat. Hugo Rodallega, their nine-goal striker, has been linked with a £10 million move to Arsenal this summer, and his pace and power may trouble Arsenal’s ageing centre-backs, while Charles N’Zogbia and Maynor Figueroa have also impressed.

Possible Arsenal Team:

Almunia

Sagna    Campbell    Silvestre     Clichy

Eastmond

Diaby           Nasri

Walcott                                         Rosicky

Bendtner

Subs: Fabianski, Traore, Merida, Eduardo, Vela, van Persie, Eboue

By Jonny Payne.

Arsenal fans trudged home to the red side of North London last night knowing in their hearts that a disappointing defeat, the first in the league for 11 years to Tottenham, signalled another trophyless season.

The fat lady could not wait any longer. After being stifled twice already this season she finally tipped her head back and opened her vocal chords letting fly in, of all places, the home of the enemy.

Arsenal had twice been written off this season but hauled themselves back into the title race admirably, but it proved to be a step too far for an injury ravaged squad.

Goals from Danny Rose and Gareth Bale condemned Arsenal to their seventh defeat of the season, while a late goal by Nicklas Bendtner served merely as a consolation as another great escape failed to materialise.

All talk before kick-off was the long-awaited return of Robin van Persie. The Dutchman, who had been out since November with ankle ligament damage, was not risked from the start but took his place on the bench alongside Theo Walcott.

Arsene Wenger stated before kick-off that without the injury to his star striker, Arsenal would be a few more points better off, and therefore be leading the pack.

If Arsenal were to continue their pursuit of the Premier League title they knew only a win would do, conversely Tottenham also needed all three points to keep-up in the four-way race for fourth.

You just have to ask Manchester United about the absence of their star striker Wayne Rooney, to relate to just how important van Persie is to Arsenal.

Arsenal started with a more solid-looking team than that which took on Barcelona last Tuesday. Emmanuel Eboue came in for Walcott on the right with Tomas Rosicky on the left. The midfield trio of Denilson, Abou Diaby and Samir Nasri continued in the absence of Alex Song and Cesc Fabregas. Sol Campbell, meanwhile, replaced Mikael Silvestre at the back to take part in his first North London derby for four years.

It was a bright start by The Gunners with Samir Nasri pulling the strings from midfield, but despite much of the possession for the first ten minutes the team in red failed to create any clear-cut chances.

Arsenal were soon made to pay.

After Vermaelen had blocked a shot by Roman Pavlyuchenko with ten minutes gone, Gareth Bale’s resulting corner was punched clear by Manuel Almunia, but only as far as Premier League debutant Danny Rose 30 yards out. The 19 year-old steadied himself and hit a delicious inch-perfect volley first-time over the Spanish ‘keeper and into the roof of the net.

The game was not going according to plan.

Arsenal had to respond and respond quickly if their season wasn’t to crumble at the very place that would hurt the most.

To make matters worse, Thomas Vermaelen was then forced off with a calf strain. Wenger must be wondering what he has done to deserve his terrible luck with injuries this season. Mikael Silvestre came on to partner Campbell in a central defensive partnership totalling 67 years of age.

In true Arsenal style they did respond, as always with a spell of tantalising possession football. But for some poor control and a scuffed shot by Nicklas Bendtner on the edge of the box in the 27^th minute, Arsenal could have equalised. The Dane failed to control Rosicky’s ball on his left and scuffed his effort wide -Van Persie was surely thinking he could have done better.

Tottenham could have extended their lead with five minutes of the first half remaining. Luka Modric was left to race through into the box first by Silvestre and then by Clichy, but Almunia dived bravely at the Croat’s feet.

Tottenham manager, Harry Redknapp, replaced the goalscorer Rose with former Arsenal winger David Bentley at half time. Bentley scored an incredible long-range effort against Arsenal last season in the 4-4 draw at the Emirates and he has been impressing again of late.

Tottenham started the second period on the front foot and after only three minutes they had extended their lead. Jermain Defoe shook-off Sol Campbell on the left and played in Gareth Bale who had escaped the attention of a ball-watching Silvestre in the box. The Welshman coolly slotted past Almunia and sent the Spurs fans into raptures.

Arsenal were looking exceedingly shaky and gaping holes started to appear at the back as panic ensued.

The Gunners took a while to get back into the flowing passing that characterised their first half performance and were looking the shadow of the side that had decimated their North London rivals 3-0 earlier in the season.

Walcott, the game-changer against Barcelona in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final was brought on in place of Bacary Sagna, but the speedy winger was not having much luck against Benoit Assou-Ekoto and Gareth Bale who were doubling the marking to thwart the young Englishman at every opportunity.

Robin van Persie was also introduced with twenty minutes remaining, but by then Tottenham had settled for the two-goal victory and plugged their defence with a wall of white shirts during every attack.

The Dutchman could have made a perfect start. Latching onto a lofted through ball by Diaby, he controlled effortlessly on his chest and hit a typical left-footed snap-shot but Gomes produced a world-class save to turn it wide.

The Brazilian goalkeeper again preserved Tottenham’s two-goal advantage first from a Campbell header and then palming a van Persie free-kick over the bar.

Van Persie was showing he had not lost his exquisite touch and soon set up Walcott on the right. The 21 year-old crossed low for Bendtner in the middle who beat Younes Kaboul to the ball to knock the ball over the line. It was the Dane’s ninth goal in the last 11 games, and with five minutes left Arsenal were soon back in the game.

Memories of last-minute recoveries against Hull and Wolves now sprang to mind, but Tottenham stifled their visitors for the remaining few minutes as Arsenal failed to produce another miraculous escape.

With the season now all but over, questions will be asked as to why Arsenal’s fragile squad was not added to in the January transfer window.  Only Wenger will know, but the pressure will now be on the Frenchman to spend some money in the summer and strengthen the areas where obvious flaws still exist.

The truth is Arsenal have shown this season that they are not up to the job when it matters the most.

Take comfort though, there is always next season.

Arsenal Team: Almunia 6, Sagna 6 (Walcott 6), Campbell 7, Vermaelen 6 (Silvestre 6), Denilson 6 (Van Persie 7), Diaby 6, Nasri 7, Eboue 6, Rosicky 7, Bendtner 6

Do you think Arsenal’s season is over? Have your say below:

Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal
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Tottenham Hotspur entertain Arsenal in a huge North London derby and the teams have been announced. Arsenal’s Robin Van Persie makes his comeback from injury but only makes the bench. Theo Walcott has been replaced by Eboue, while Sol Campbell comes in for Silvestre.

Tottenham welcome back captain Ledley King, while Peter Crouch has been replaced by Pavlyuchenko, Rose makes his premier league debut.

Arsenal Team:

Almunia

Sagna                 Campbell                     Vermaelen                Clichy

Denilson

Diaby                          Nasri

Eboue                                                   Rosicky

Bendtner

Subs: Fabianski, Walcott, Silvestre, Van Persie, Eduardo, Merida, Eastmond.

Tottenham Team:

Gomes

Kaboul                 King                Dawson                  Ekotto

Rose                   Modric               Huddlestone             Bale

Defoe          Pavlyuchenko

By Fab4.

Arsenal travel up the seven sisters road to play Tottenham at S*ite Hart Lane tonight in what could be a season defining game for either club. This must be the most important North London derby in years.

An Arsenal victory will not only sustain their title challenge, but will also severely dent their rivals hopes of finishing fourth. Something I’m sure all Gooners will enjoy immensely. Likewise, a Tottenham victory will see them take a huge step towards qualifying for the champions league next year as well as all but ending Arsenal’s quest for the premier league title. It doesn’t get much more important than this!

Arsene Wenger confirmed that Robin Van Persie is available and will be in the squad which is a massive boost for Arsenal. It’s likely he will start on the bench though as it would be a huge risk to throw him in from the start in a game of this magnitude.

“He is in the squad for tomorrow’s game,” revealed Arsène Wenger at his pre-match press conference.

“It’s a bit premature maybe [for Van Persie to start the game] so I will see but he is in the squad. I haven’t picked the team yet.

“When I pick a player it means he is fit and sharp and has worked very hard. Of course he lacks match-practice but physically he is ready, he is fit.”

If we can get him on for 20 minutes, get him some match time that would be a huge bonus. We have missed him during the last 6 months, there’s no doubt about that. Arsenal averaged over 3.3 goals per game in the league with him playing, without him that went to below 1.7. I firmly believe if Van Persie had stayed fit we would be the ones sitting at the top of the table.

But let’s not expect too much from him. He has been out a long time and won’t come back on carry on where he left off. He will need a bit of time to get back into the swing of things and with only 5 games remaining, perhaps RVP’s return has come a couple of games too late to push Arsenal onto title glory.

After Chelsea were gifted yet another 3 points last night it looks like lady luck is shinning down on the boys from the bridge and they have one hand on the trophy. If being given a match-winning goal that was 3 yards off-side at Old Trafford wasn’t enough, Chelsea got away with 2 blatant hand balls in their penalty box last night. Truly unbelievable how the officials missed them both. With that kind of luck, does the best team always win the league? I’m not so sure. The sooner video technology is used for important decisions the better. Just from those 3 situations, Chelsea could have at least 4 less points than they currently do now. Obviously it’s not as easy as that, and nobody knows what the outcome of either game would have been, but you can’t deny that Chelsea have had huge slices of luck when it has mattered most. And i don’t buy into that it evens itself out over the season, it’s impossible that EVERY team gets an equal amount of decisions go both for them and against them.

Anyway, if Arsenal are to have any chance of toppling Chelsea they must win tonight….simple. A draw combined with Chelsea suffering defeats at both Anfield and S*ite Hart Lane could still land us the title as long as we won our other 4 matches, but that’s a lot of ‘if’s’. Let’s beat the scum, go second and put some pressure on Chelsea. Don’t hand them the title, make them work for it.

Team News

Obviously the big team news for Arsenal is that Robin Van Persie returns, most likely on the bench. Arsene Wenger also confirmed that Alex Song has been ruled out for the next 2 games, which is another blow as this means Denilson will start, and he joins Arshavin and Gallas on the sidelines.

“Song is out. Definitely out,” confirmed Wenger at his pre-match press conference.

“He looks like he will be out for the whole week and over the weekend he will not play as well.”

“Arshavin is out. [It could be the] Man City [game] for him, but I don’t think he will make it,” said the manager.

“Gallas is not available for the next two or three weeks. I don’t know [if he will play again this season]. I hope so, but it will be short for him.”

Sol Campbell will return to Arsenal’s starting line-up and will be in for a hot reception from the home crowd. I hope they don’t take things too far, we expect a bit of banter, but let’s keep it at that.

Predicted line-up

Almunia

Sagna             Campbell                 Vermaelen               Clichy

Denilson

Diaby                        Nasri

Walcott/Eboue                                               Rosicky

Bendtner

So a very similar line-up to the team that played Barcelona, with Campbell coming in for Silvestre. If we can get some support up to Bendtner we will cause them problems. If Walcott does play, it will be an interesting battle down that side with Bale who is lightning quick himself and likes to bomb forward down the left wing. So Theo will have to do his fair share of tracking back and help out Sagna. For this reason i wouldn’t be surprised to see Eboue in from the start, just to offer a little bit more protection down the right.

Campbell will have to use all his years of experience to not only deal with a hostile crowd, but the lanky England goal-machine Peter Crouch, who does like a goal against Arsenal.

The last time Tottenham beat Arsenal in the league, Sol Campbell was playing for them. That’s 10 years ago so we’ve had a whole decade of bragging rights. It must hurt to be a Spurs fan, i couldn’t imagine not beating them for 10 years! Of course they will bring up the 5-1 joker cup win over the kids, but you’ve gotta give them something…just to keep it interesting.

No prediction for tonights game, but i think it will be a very close. Maybe a game that will be decided by a game-changing substitution?

Who will win tonight? Will RVP’s return inspire Arsenal to victory? Or will Tottenham end our title hopes?

By Fab4.

Nicklas Bendtner was the Arsenal hero once again after coming on as a second half substitute to head home a 94th minute winner against 10-man Wolves at the Emirates. Just when it seemed like Arsenal’s title challenge was over for another season, the big Dane ensured a vital 3 points keep us in touch with the top two.

Arsene Wenger made seven changes from the side that faced Barcelona, with injury victims Fabregas, Arshavin and Gallas being joined by Diaby, Nasri, Clichy and Bendtner who were rested in a risky gamble by the boss, who brought in Eboue, Silvestre, Campbell, Rosicky, Walcott, Eduardo and Denilson.

Arsenal began well with Walcott starting where he left off against Barcelona, flying down the right wing and creating chances. It was from Theo’s cut-back that Eduardo wasted the first of two great opportunities to open the scoring, in the 5th minute his shot was well saved by Hahnemann before he scuffed an effort wide from close range minutes later.

Next up to waste a chance was Sagna, when he should really have done better after being put through but his shot was straight at Hahnemann, before Walcott hit a volley from the edge of the area straight at the Wolves keeper.

As Arsenal spurned their chances the urgency went out of their game, the good start had fizzled out and before you knew it half time came and the score was still 0-0.

Arsenal continued to press at the start of the second half without creating any real chances. However, soon the game went a bit stale and Walcott, who was the main threat in the first half, looked like he was running out of ideas and his final ball began to let him down.

Arguably the turning point of the game came in the 66 minute when Wolves captain Carl Henry was sent off for a tackle from behind on Rosicky. Henry’s right foot caught Rosicky half way up the back of his calf, many pundits have claimed it was never a sending off but the open cuts on Risicky’s leg would argue it was.

Arsenal were still seeing plenty of the ball but still couldn’t get that all important goal, Eduardo wasting another good chance but slipped at the crucial point and his shot flew wide. Arsene Wenger threw on Nasri, Bendtner and Vela to try and find a way past a resilient Wolves defense.

The changes upped to the tempo slightly and finally there was a presence up front in the form of Bendtner.

Walcott had been far quieter during the second half, only a trade-mark slalom run to speak of, but the young winger should really have done better when well positioned in the 90th minute, but could only stab wide.

With only seconds remaining, Sagna finally found a decent cross which was met by 6ft 4″ striker Bendtner who’s diving header flew past Hahnemann to secure a priceless 3 points for Arsenal.

1-0 Bendtner (90+4)

There was even time for Arsenal to squander yet another chance with Wolves pushing for an equalizer, Arsenal broke and found themselves 4-on-1, Walcott cut back for Denilson but his touch let him down and his shot was blocked.

The final whistle went soon after and there were relieved Arsenal fans all over the world. Bendtner has now scored a couple of vital last minute winners in recent weeks, could he be the unlikely hero that guides Arsenal to the premier league title?

The importance of his physical presence was once again highlighted today. Time after time crosses went into the box with nobody there to challenge, they were a complete waste of time and Wolves dealt with them with ease. But once Big Nik was in there, suddenly the Wolves defense had something to think about.

It was a little disappointing to see Walcott fade so badly. He started very well and full of confidence but as the game wore on he was feeling the pressure and making bad decisions. He really does blow hot and cold but his pace is such a lethal weapon i would still start him against Barca.

I thought Sol Campbell played really well and i hope he also plays on Tuesday, i don’t like Song at centre-back. Keep him in midfield where he belongs.

So a good day all-in-all. The Spuds lost 3-1 to Sunderland to dent their hopes of fourth place. United lost, and although Chelsea won it was the lesser of two evils. If United had won they would surely have gone on to win the title for a fourth time. But now with Chelsea going to Anfield all Arsenal fans will be honorary scoucers for the day!

Video highlights from todays game are below.

Arsenal 1 – 0 Wolverhampton
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Arsenal vs Wolverhampton [1St Highlight]
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Arsenal manager Arsene Wneger has made a host of changes ahead of Tuesdays champions league second leg against Barcelona. Clichy, Bendtner, Nasri and Diaby have all been rested with Eduardo, Rosicky, Silvestre and Eboue coming in.

Arsenal starting line-up:

Almunia

Sagna                  Vermaelen                      Campbell                    Silvestre

Song

Eboue                                 Denilson

Walcott                                                             Rosicky

Eduardo

Subs: Fabianski, Diaby, Nasri, Bendtner, Vela, Eastmond, Clichy.

Arsenal will be looking to close the gap on the top two this afternoon, but with so many injuries already, Wenger has been forced to rest a few of his players with Barca in mind. Let’s hope the gamble doesn’t back-fire against an in-form Wolves today.

By Jonny Payne

Arsenal will field a team shorn of many regulars as they take on Wolves on Saturday as injuries have again taken hold in what has become an all too familiar state of affairs for the Gunners this season.

Just when the queue outside Arsenal physio, Colin Lewin’s, treatment room was starting to diminish, three more Arsenal players join the likes of Robin van Persie, Kieran Gibbs, Aaron Ramsey and Johann Djourou on the treatment table.

Andrey Arshavin (calf) and William Gallas (calf) were both taken off in the first half against Barcelona in midweek and will be out for three and five weeks respectively. Cesc Fabregas, who finished the game limping with what is now known to be a broken leg, will miss the rest of the season.

It is Arsenal’s third broken leg of the season following Samir Nasri’s in pre-season and Aaron Ramsey’s horrific leg-break in February. The team’s misfortune seems endless.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger remains optimistic despite the growing injury list:

“It was bad news for us because to lose a player of his [Fabregas] touch of course is difficult and we will need to fight together even more to overcome that. Now of course we have no Arshavin, no Fabregas, no Gallas and no Van Persie available; it’s a lot but we want to focus on our targets and still achieve them,” he said.

Wenger added: “But that’s why the big clubs have big squads, no matter what happens we cannot complain because we have the luxury to have 20 players of the same level or nearly the same. Of course in every squad, though, you have two or three personalities who are a bit more dominant.”

Arsenal will have to continue without their casualties, as they face an in-form Wolves team in a must-win match tomorrow, with Arsene Wenger stating that Arsenal have to win all of their remaining games.

The Arsenal manager said: “I’m still quite confident but of course we know now that we cannot afford to drop points now.”

What’s more, the Wolves game will be seen as one of the few chances to decrease the gap in goal difference between their title rivals Manchester United and Chelsea, who meet each other in the lunchtime kick-off on Saturday.

If the early game finishes in a draw, Arsenal will have the chance to close the gap to just two points. With five games remaining, Arsenal would be firmly in the thick of the title race once more.

Wenger said:  “First of all our main target is to win our games, but tomorrow’s game is an opportunity to catch one of the teams, or two of the teams with a draw, but anyway the main target is for us to win our game.”

Far from struggling at the foot of the table, Wolves have been in blistering form in recent weeks picking up eight points from the last four matches, including wins at West Ham and Burnley and draws with high-flying Aston Villa and Everton. The West Midlands outfit had only gained 24 points from 28 games prior to their hot-streak.

Wolves now sit five points above the relegation zone and it is unlikely that their manager Mick McCarthy will rest his first team regulars for this match like he did earlier in the season at Old Trafford.

The likes of Matt Jarvis, Nenad Milijas and Kevin Doyle have finally settled into the Premiership and they can be very dangerous on their day.

Wenger is urging caution ahead of the encounter:

“Wolves are on a good run, we are on a good run, but I believe that this game demands 100 per cent focus,” he said.

Wenger added: “Nobody beats Wolves at the moment just turning up and thinking it will be an easy game, they play well and they are on a good run as well. It will be interesting and it will show as well how much focus we can bring into a game like that.”

The Frenchman will rotate some of his players ahead of the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final at the Nou Camp on Tuesday.

Theo Walcott, who almost single-handedly hauled Arsenal back into Wednesday night’s match, will be given a run-out, with Wenger hinting he may hand the winger a start against Wolves.

“The target for Theo is to be an regular player. He started the game at Birmingham he has a good chance to start again tomorrow. I believe that these kind of games you win with a squad, most of the time they battle so hard that after 70 minutes when the level drops a little bit, players who have quality can come on and make a difference.”

Bacary Sagna’s poor performance against Barcelona could mean that Emmanuel Eboue starts at right-back, as he often does against teams in the lower reaches of the Premier League, and Armand Traore could come in for Gael Clichy who has been declared fit but has been struggling with an ankle injury from mid-week.

Denilson, who also picked up a small injury against Barcelona, is in the squad and could start in place of Alex Song. He will be joined in midfield by Samir Nasri, who will replace the injured Fabregas.

With Bendtner expected to start against Barcelona on Tuesday, Eduardo could also get a chance to impress in place of the Dane, while Thomas Rosicky should replace Arshavin on the wing, and Sol Campbell should return to partner Thomas Vermaelen in defence in the absence of William Gallas.

Possible team:

Almunia

Eboue                      Campbell                Vermaelen                     Traore

Denilson

Diaby                                   Nasri

Walcott                                                                                              Rosicky

Eduardo

Subs: Fabianski, Sagna, Silvestre, Bendtner, Vela, Song, Clichy

Birmingham 1-1 Arsenal

By Fab4.

Arsenal’s title hopes took a severe hit after conceding an injury time equaliser against Birmingham at St.Andrews. It was far from a classic encounter on a dodgy pitch that was not suitable for Arsenal’s passing game. Substitute Samir Nasri fired a superb opener for Arsenal 10 minutes from time before Phillips equalised for Birmingham in stoppage time with a mixture of good fortune and inept goalkeeping.

Arsene Wenger made several changes with Song stepping back into the centre back berth vacated by the suspended Vermaelen, taking his place alongside Campbell, Sagna and Clichy. Arshavin and Nasri were rested with Rosicky and Walcott starting either side of Bendtner up top. Denilson, Diaby and Fabregas made up the midfield.

The first half was mostly a dull affair with little goal mouth action. The pitch looked like it had hosted a horse show the day before, which of course hampered Arsenal’s passing game.

Diaby had the first attempt on goal but Bowyer made a good block, but Birmingham were causing a few problems from set-plays with Gardner firing over after McFadden’s free-kick was only half cleared.

Walcott was sent crashing to the deck inside the area, but replays showed he was out-muscled by Ridgewell…although if it was Valencia at Old Trafford I’m sure referee Howard Webb would have pointed to the spot.

Denilson showed just why he isn’t suited to being a defensive midfielder in the premier league with a weak challenge allowing McFadden to get a dangerous shot off from 20 yards which flew inches wide. Then Walcott used his pace well to get onto a ball over the top but Hart closed him down and blocked his effort.

Jerome and McFadden were causing Arsenal problems with both testing Almunia with long-range efforts. Our back four were getting very little protection from the midfield.  With Half time approaching a moment Arsenal fans didn’t want to see….Fabregas struggling with a knee injury following a ‘robust’ challenge from Gardner.

The Spanish maestro is now a doubt for the clash with Barcelona on Wednesday. No Fabregas, no chance I’m afraid.

That was pretty much it for the first half, Arsenal were disappointing and Birmingham were predictably well organised.

It looked like Arsenal had woken up in the early stages of the second half with both Diaby and Rosicky having efforts on goal. But the urgency soon disappeared from the game again until Birmingham almost took the lead after a Ferguson free kick found Johnson who hit the post and Dann somehow putting the rebound over form 2 yards.

Huge let-off for Arsenal and it prompted Arsene Wenger to bring on Nasri and Arshavin for Rosicky and Walcott. The substitutions made an immediate effect on the game with Arsenal looking far more dangerous.

Nasri’s cross could and probably should have been converted if Bendtner had been more alert, then Arshavin cut back to Nasri who shot straight at Hart. Then minutes later Diaby thought he had opened the scoring, blasting into the bottom corner form the edge of the area but the goal was ruled out for an alleged barge on Bowyer during the build up. A 50:50 decision in my eyes, but one which didn’t go our way.

With only 10 minutes left Arsenal finally made the breakthrough. Nasri drove towards the box before unleashing a drive into the bottom corner from 20 yards.

0-1 Nasri (81)

Great stuff from Nasri. If Arsenal could hang on it would be a massive step towards the title.

The young Frenchmen then had a great opportunity to tie up the game as he burst through on goal but with only Hart to beat he elected to pass instead of taking on the shot…what was he doing?! I had a horrible feeling that was going to cost us.

With 90 minutes nearly up Arshavin won a free kick on the edge of the box, Fabregas fired a powerful effort at goal which Hart did well to parry away.

Just when it looked like Arsenal had ground out a 1-0 victory, Birmingham hit a long ball straight up the middle which wasn’t dealt with by the Arsenal back line, Sagna’s attempted clearance deflected off Phillips’s face towards Almunia for what should have been a relatively routine tip over, but our Mr Average only managed to weakly palm the ball into his own net. Unbelievable. It gets worse every time i watch it. (if you haven’t seen the goals, highlights are available below)

1-1 Phillips (90+1)

Yet another example of why you need a reliable goalkeeper to win trophies, and as i have said many times…Almunia is not reliable enough to be Arsenal’s No.1….simple. It should also be said that the defense should have dealt with the first ball. Nobody attacked it and it was allowed to bounce just outside the 18 yard box. Criminal.

So 2 points dropped by poor defending and even worse goalkeeping when it really matters.  What is it with Arsenal and St. Andrews? We’re just lucky Gallas wasn’t on the pitch this time, who knows what he would have been kicking?! Almunia’s face hopefully.

It remains to be seen how this set back will affect the players. They don’t have long to recover with the big-one against Barca on Wednesday, and a defeat then could be too much for our young squad to come back from.

A major worry ahead of Wednesday if the fitness of captain Cesc Fabregas after he sustained a knee injury yesterday. He completed the 90 minutes but was uncomfortable through-out and was clearly hampered by the problem.

After Chelsea’s demolition of Aston Villa and Manchester United’s similarly impressive 4-0 victory at Bolton, where does this leave Arsenal in the title race? Well i thought before today we needed to win 6 from the remaining 7, with a draw against Tottenham, to win the title. Now we have used that draw so beat Spurs, along with the other 5 teams, and we could be champions.

The problem is if Arsenal perform like they did today, and with Almunia in goal, we wont beat Spurs, Blackburn and City. It’s not completely over, but massive improvement and a lot of luck is needed if we are to lift the premier league title this year.

If you haven’t seen them already, match highlights and goals can be watched by clicking below.

Birmingham 1-1 Arsenal – Match Highlights

Are Arsenal out the title race after this result? Was Almunia to blame for Brimingham’s goal? Please leave your comments below…..

]]> http://football-talk.co.uk/2563/beat-tottenham-and-arsenal-can-be-champions/feed/ 2 http://football-talk.co.uk/2542/arsenal-videos-watch-almunias-horrific-mistake-plus-nasris-superb-goal/ http://football-talk.co.uk/2542/arsenal-videos-watch-almunias-horrific-mistake-plus-nasris-superb-goal/#comments Sat, 27 Mar 2010 17:38:21 +0000 Fab4 http://football-talk.co.uk/?p=2542 More >]]> By Fab4.

Birmingham 1-1 Arsenal

Watch the goals from Arsenal’s draw against Birmingham today. Samir Nasri scored a lovely opener for Arsenal 10 minutes from time, but Almunia showed once again he is simply not good enough. palming a deflected Phillips effort into his own net in injury time. Mistakes like this will cost Arsenal the title.

Birmingham City 0 – 1 Arsenal
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Birmingham City 1 – 1 Arsenal
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Full match report to come….

Has Almunia thrown away 2 vital points for Arsenal??? Leave you comments below……

Arsenal team to play Birmingham:

Almunia

Sagna                Campbell                  Song                 Clichy

Denilson

Diaby                           Fabregas

Walcott                                                          Rosicky

Bendtner

Subs: Fabianski, Vela, Eduardo, Eboue, Traore, Nasri, Arshavin.

Im a little surprised to see Campbell play, going by what Arsene has said previously….this means he can’t play for Arsenal against Barcelona on Wednesday. It looks like Arshavin and Nasri have been rested, with Walcott and Rosicky coming in. Or perhaps Wenger has dropped the Russian after his comments in the press.

This Arsenal team is more than capable of getting the three points today. Massive game, let’s make it 7 wins in a row!

Two years ago Arsenal travelled to St.Andrew’s to play Birmingham, flying high at the top of the Premier League. By the end of the game, however, Arsenal had conceded a late equaliser, in-form striker Eduardo had broken his leg and captain William Gallas had thrown a wobbly in the centre-circle.

It was to prove the turning point of Arsenal’s season as their title challenge faltered while Manchester United and Chelsea went on to battle it out for the honours at home and abroad.

Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger looked back on the match with regret, but he does not believe that the match was the turning point in Arsenal’s season.

“I believe on a particular incident on the day we didn’t deal well with the situation we faced on the day, but since then exactly the same happened to us at Stoke and we responded very well and in a very strong manner,” he said.

“I don’t think on that particular day we lost the championship. I think there were much more ingredients, like some players not completely focused because we had problems with players who were out of contract. I don’t believe we lost the championship at Birmingham.”

Arsenal return to St.Andrew’s tomorrow in a similar situation, high on confidence and with momentum behind them, surely lightning could not strike twice?

With the midweek Champions League match-up with Barcelona looming, Wenger would be forgiven for resting some of his key men, but with his team in the hunt for the Premier League, the Frenchman insists the sole concentration is on the Birmingham match.

“There are three teams in the race and it is down to the team with the most consistency. We can only focus on our own performances because we know our route has to be perfect, and to be perfect it’s important to focus on our own performances. We need some help from the other teams but we know even that only works if we are consistent and keep our momentum. We have created a fantastic momentum and we have created a great belief within our squad but the consistency of our run is the most important.

Wenger added: “We have to just keep the spirit hunger and desire and the intelligence we have shown until now. We know for a long time we have fixed ourselves targets to play every game like our life depends on it and it has been like that for a long time now. I believe we need to bring consistency to our attitude. We have a remarkable attitude and a remarkable spirit in the team and we just have to continue like we have been doing.”

Arsenal will be without first choice defensive pair Thomas Vermaelen – who is suspended due to his sending-off against West Ham last week – and William Gallas, who remains on the sideline with a calf injury.

Speaking at yesterday’s pre-match press conference, Wenger said:

“Gallas is back today from his rehabilitation and he’s back in full training tomorrow, Saturday and Sunday, but he will be too short to be available for the weekend and certainly for the midweek game.”

In place to deputise once more is 35 year-old Sol Campbell, with Wenger insisting that he will not rest the former England international with Wednesday’s match in mind.

“I don’t know, I will pick him for the next game because for me the next game is the only important one and I don’t consider Barcelona for the next game. At the back we need to be solid to win this game, we’ve fought the whole season to be in there and this is the priority,” he said.

There were rumours earlier this week that Nicklas Bendtner, who has scored six times in his last six matches, may not be available for the trip to his former club, but he seems to have recovered in time.

Wenger said: “He should be available he’s not back in full training yet, he has a late test [this morning] but he should be available.”

Bendtner returns to the club where he spent a fruitful season on loan in 2006. The Dane scored eleven goals while in The Midlands helping his team to promotion in the process.

Wenger explained his reasons for sending the striker on loan:

“I’d seen Nicklas Bendtner in the reserves and he had an impact in the games and you feel he needed to go somewhere to toughen up, and there no better place in the world than the Championship to give a player a realistic view of how hard this job is. He went there, and in fairness to him, he became a regular player straight away so that shows you that he has the qualities to survive at the top level.”

Possible team:

With Vermaelen suspended, Alex Song may drop back to partner Campbell with Denilson filling in the defensive midfield duties. Abou Diaby should reclaim a starting role after an impressive cameo against West Ham, while Bacary Sagna should replace Emmanuel Eboue at right-back, as he usually does in difficult away games.

Almunia

Sagna                 Campbell                 Song                 Clichy

Denilson

Fabregas                         Diaby

Nasri                                                                                  Arshavin

Bendtner

Subs: Fabianski, Silvestre, Eboue, Eduardo, Walcott, Rosicky, Vela

By Jonny Payne.

Cesc Fabregas and Nicklas Bendtner may have made the headlines in recent weeks but another commanding performance from Alexandre Song helped Arsenal back to the top of the league with a hard-fought victory over West Ham.

The unsung Song was the heartbeat of the side against the Premier League strugglers, first dictating play from the defensive midfield berth he has made his own this season, then putting in a commanding performance in defence after Arsenal were reduced to ten-men. The Cameroon international has come a long way from the days when his own fans booed him, and he is rapidly developing into one of the best holding midfielders in Europe.

Arsenal were in control from the off and soon made possession pay as Denilson found the net after just five minutes. They did not have it all their own way, however, as just before half-time Arsenal were reduced to ten when Thomas Vermaelen brought down Guillermo Franco in the penalty box. Luckily for Arsenal, Alessandro Diamanti failed to beat Manuel Almunia in the home goal. A late penalty converted by Fabregas then put the game beyond doubt sending Arsenal top in the process.

With all talk of Arsenal’s draw against Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals before kick-off, Arsene Wenger warned against thinking too far ahead, insisting the match against West Ham was his and his players’ main focus.

The Arsenal manager put his faith much of the side that started the match against Hull last weekend with Sol Campbell continuing in defence in the absence of William Gallas. Cesc Fabregas and Song returned from injury and suspension respectively in place of Abou Diaby and Bacary Sagna, with Emmanuel Eboue moving to right-back. Man-of-the-moment, Nicklas Bendtner, continued to lead the line after scoring four times in the past two matches.

Arsenal started confidently, playing some scintillating football at times early in the first half, orchestrated as ever by Fabregas but also by Song who seemed to be everywhere. The 22 year-old dominated the midfield, putting in crucial challenges, linking up play with some neat one-touch football and driving forward to join the attack.

But it was the man so often his understudy who opened the scoring on five minutes. Denilson picked the ball up on the edge of the area and played a quick one-two with Bendtner before firing low into the bottom right corner of Robert Green’s net. There were no signs of the players’ minds being on anything other than gaining three points against their London rivals.

With Denilson soon on the end of another beautifully crafted move, it looked like the floodgates could open, but the Brazilian could only scuff his effort straight at England’s number one. Emmanuel Eboue, another of those whose fortunes have turned around this season, was also proving to be a menace arriving from right-back to join in the attack at every opportunity.

It seemed too easy for the Gunners and just when the men in red and white were thinking more about increasing their goal difference than simply gaining three crucial points, West Ham were given a golden opportunity to equalise.

A hopeful long ball by Diamanti put Franco through and Vermaelen let it bounce, always a risky decision. The Mexican went down as the Arsenal defender stretched for the ball and the referee pointed to the spot and dished out a red card to the Belgian. In truth it was a harsh decision, there was a slight nudge but it is the type of challenge that is often left unpunished. The 24 year-old will only miss one match, away to Birmingham next week.

Luckily for Vermaelen, Almunia saved to his left from the usually dependable penalty-taker Diamanti. The Spanish goalkeeper has come in for some criticism from Arsenal fans recently but his save could have a mammoth impact on his team’s title chances.

Instead of sitting-back, in true Arsenal style the players pushed forward trying to score a second. It could have been two soon after the restart as Arshavin found space in the box from an inviting Eboue cross, but he couldn’t direct his header on target.

West Ham did have some chances. First Diamanti was afforded a lot of time and space to run at the defence but his left-footed effort was deflected wide, then Carlton Cole cut inside skipping past the challenges of Gael Clichy and Song and dispatching a low left-footed effort onto the outside of the post.

But by now Abou Diaby had replaced Nicklas Bendtner, and with Arshavin being pushed further forward, the French international started to boss the midfield. He is finally looking like the player many thought he could become, a calm and confident player on the ball with a devastating burst of pace – an attack-minded reincarnation of Patrick Vieira.

With Arsenal looking almost as comfortable with ten men as eleven, the win didn’t seem in much doubt and with seven minutes to go Arsenal had an opportunity to settle the match.

Former Gunner Matthew Upson handled the ball inside the box after Fabregas tried to break through with a deft touch and the Spaniard stepped up to convert his 15^th league goal of the season, dispatching a calm penalty to the goalkeeper’s right.

From then on it was plain sailing for the Gunners. It could have been more but Arsene Wenger’s men settled for a two-goal win – with ten men it could have been much worse.

It was a confident performance by the Gunners, with yet more proof of the maturing of this young team. A couple of seasons ago Arsenal would have crumbled in this situation, but now they seem to thrive on adversity. With the likes of Alex Song and Abou Diaby improving day-by-day, this team can and surely will go a long way. Barcelona beware.

Player Ratings: Almunia 7, Eboue 8, Campbell 7, Vermaelen 6, Clichy 7, Song 9, Denilson 8, Fabregas 7, Nasri 7 (Sagna 6), Arshavin 6 (Eduardo 6), Bendtner 6 (Diaby

Teams:

Arsenal: Almunia, Eboue, Campbell, Vermaelen (S.O 45), Clichy, Song, Denilson, Fabregas, Nasri (Sagna 74), Arshavin (Eduardo 84), Bendtner (Diaby 57).

West Ham: Green,  Spector, Tomkins, Upson, Daprela, Stanislas, Behrami, Kovac (Noble 70), Diamanti, Franco (Cole 57), Mido (McCarthy 75).

Should Vermaelen have been sent off? Do Arsenal have what it takes to beat Barcelona and win the premier league? Please leave your comments below…..

By Fab4.

Arsenal must forget the epic champions league ties against Barcelona that lay ahead and concentrate on matters in hand, West Ham in the premier league at the Emirates this evening.

Maybe the Arsenal players have to forget about the Barcelona draw, but just a quick word from me about it. All i can say is WOW! What a couple of games they will be. Hopefully there is no sending off to ruin the game this time and we get to witness a true footballing spectacle….twice. Aside from the beautiful football on display, there are a couple of sub-plots to the tie with the return of Sir Thierry Henry back to his spiritual ‘home’ and Cesc quite literally going home to Catalunia in the return leg.

I’m sure Thierry will get a great reception at the Emirates, as long as there aren’t too many Irish in the crowd! It will be really interesting to hear his comments on the tie and to see how well he plays against us but he’s set for an emotional return that’s for sure.

Anyway, back to the premier league and Arsenal have the chance to put some pressure on the top two with a win against West Ham today that would see the Gunner’s move back to the top of the league for a day at least. Both Manchester United and Chelsea are playing on Sunday, with United playing Liverpool at home and Chelsea facing a tough away trip at Blackburn, neither side is guaranteed three points so this has the potential to be a very good weekend for Arsenal.

The Gunners are in great form, having won their last 5 premier league games and have been boosted with the return of captain Cesc Fabregas. Manager Arsene Wenger has said that both Fabregas and Rosicky passed fitness tests on Friday and are in the squad along with Alex Song who is available after completing a 2-match suspension.

“Cesc is back in the squad,” said Wenger. “He had a test on Friday and it was positive.

“Rosicky is back in the squad and [Alex] Song is available after suspension. On that front it looks quite good.”

But for me, if Cesc needed a Friday fitness test he shouldn’t be risked from the start today. Stick him on the bench and bring him on if needed. Why take the risk, we have a good enough squad to deal with West Ham at home so give him more time to heal. How gutted would we be if his hamstring went again and he missed the Barca game? Walcott on the right with Arshavin and Bendtner, with Diaby, Nasri and Song in the middle. More than enough to beat the Hammers.

More of a worry is the constant absence of William Gallas to the mysterious calf strain that has lasted for about 2 years now. Injuries like Gallas’s do make me wonder about the Arsenal medical team, how can they not have sorted it by now? Wenger has also said Gallas is unlikely to make the Barcelona home game either.

“I hope he will play again soon, but at the moment it does not look too good,” said the manager.

“He will play some part before the end of the season, but will he be ready to play against Barcelona? That is another question mark. I would say he is already at 80 per cent out for the first leg.

“But he should play again before the end of the season.”

The fact there is even a question mark about him playing again before the end of the season is worrying. Although Campbell and Silvestre have done a job against the likes of Stoke and Hull, the thought of Messi and co running at either of our elderly pair makes me shudder a little. Let’s hope this mysterious injury heals soon and he makes it back for what is going to be a very exciting and very important run-in.

Preferred starting line-up:

Almunia

Sagna               Campbell                   Vermaelen            Clichy

Song

Nasri                             Diaby

Walcott                                                                     Arshavin

Bendtner

That’s the team i would like to see start but i suspect Fabregas will play with Nasri moving out to the right and Walcott on the bench. But at least our squad is getting back to fitness again and our bench should be as strong as it’s been all season tonight with the likes of Rosicky, Eduardo, Eboue, Walcott/Nasri, Denilson, and possibly Vela all settling for a subs role.

Whatever team Arsene puts out i fully expect an Arsenal victory and a Hammers hammering wouldn’t go a-miss either to boost the goal difference!

Will Arsenal overcome the Hammers? Should Fabregas start or be rested with the Barcelona game coming up? Please leave your comments below………

]]> http://football-talk.co.uk/2193/arsenal-vs-west-ham-fabregas-on-the-bench-please/feed/ 6 http://football-talk.co.uk/1916/most-inportant-goal-of-his-career-as-bendtner-niks-it-at-the-death/ http://football-talk.co.uk/1916/most-inportant-goal-of-his-career-as-bendtner-niks-it-at-the-death/#comments Mon, 15 Mar 2010 09:18:19 +0000 Fab4 http://football-talk.co.uk/?p=1916 More >]]>

By Fab4.

Arsenal’s unlikely march to a first Premier League title since 2004 is still on track after Nicklas Bendtner scored 3 minutes into injury time to secure a 2-1 win over 10 man Hull. The win keeps Arsenal in touch win Chelsea and Manchester United at the top of the premier league, after they both claimed easy home wins over West Ham and Fulham respectively.

The game started in spirited fashion and Arsenal were soon dominating. Hull looked like a team who are sitting in the bottom two and Arsenal were passing the ball about with relative ease. The pressure finally told and Arshavin gave Arsenal a deserved lead 14 minutes in. The Russian collected the ball on the edge of the box with three Hull defenders in front of him managed to wrestle his way through them all, part luck…part skill it must be said, but the finish was class.

0-1 Arshavin (14)

Hull looked completely out their depth and we were running rings round them. It seemed only a matter a time before Arsenal doubled their lead but Hull were gifted a lifeline with some questionable officiating.

Marney flicked a ball over the top into the penalty area to a clearly offside Vennegoor of Hesselink but the referee’s assistant kept his flag down, Campbell was now the wrong side of the striker and jumped into the back of him in an attempt to stop him getting a shot off but only managed to send Vennegoor of Hesselink crashing to the floor. Penalty awarded and yellow card for Campbell.

It was a penalty, as the ESPN commentator pointed out about 20 times whilst also complaining that Campbell should have been sent off, blindly ignoring the fact that the Hull player was offside in the first place. I must say i wasn’t impressed with Campbell’s challenge. It was not the kind of thing you expect from a player with his experience. Vennegoor of Hesselink looked like he had lost control of the ball and Almunia was bearing down on him, to jump into the back of him giving the striker the easy option of hitting the deck for a penalty was stupid if you ask me.

Anyway, Bullard stepped up to smash home to level the game. They didn’t deserve it but Hull were level.

1-1 Bullard (28, Pen)

The rest of the half was a scrappy affair, Arsenal had a couple of efforts through Arshavin and Bendtner but were not passing the ball like we’re used to seeing. Then the inept performance’s of the officials got worse when George Boateng poked Bendtner in the eye before slapping him in the face in an off the ball incident seem only by the linesman. The referee and his assistant came to the bizarre conclusion that both players deserved yellow cards!

Then with half time approaching came yet another despicable act of brutality against an Arsenal player and another poor refereeing decision. This time it was the hugely experienced George Boateng who decided to try and end the career of Sagna with a very late, studs up stamp to the knee that was only punished by a yellow card. Fortunately it was his second which meant he was sent off against Arsenal for the 3rd time in his career. The decision to only produce a second yellow to Boateng for his ‘challenge’ on Sagna was astounding. The ‘tackle’ happened right in front of him but the referee deemed Boateng’s late, knee high tackle as a yellow and not a straight red. Unbelievable.

Half time, 1-1 and we had 45 minutes to beat 10 men and keep out title hopes alive. This was a massive opportunity and the next half of football would tell us a lot about this Arsenal team.

Unfortunately it seemed they had failed as Arsenal didn’t create anything of note until the introduction of Walcott with 25 minutes remaining. He immediately ran at the Hull defense, drove into the area and cut back only for Arshavin to blaze over from 8 yards. Terrible miss.

With the exception of a couple of chances wasted by Nasri and Bendtner, Arsenal were not really making their numerical advantage count. They had a lot of possession but were creating very little in truth.

With only a couple of minutes left Denilson picked up the ball 35 yards from goal. I begged him not to shoot, but he pulled the trigger anyway. To my astonishment it was a pretty decent effort, although straight at Myhill it had plenty of power behind it, so much that the Hull stopper could only parry the ball back in front of him where Bendtner was on hand to side-foot home from 10 yards.  Me and my mate went mental. A priceless goal and a vital one to keep Arsenal right in the title hunt.

1-2 Bendtner (90 +3)

It finished 2-1 to the Gunners and a massive win that keeps us right in the title hunt. Has Nicklas Bendtner ever scored a more important goal in his life? For a 22 year old he has plenty of experience, scored goals at international level for Denmark and with Arsenal in the Champions League and Premier League, but i doubt any goal he’s scored has been as important as his winner against Hull.

To get six points from away games against Stoke and Hull shows just how far this team has come in my opinion. You could see the relief on Arsene Wengers face when Bendtner scored, he knew what a big 3 points this was for us, especially after playing against 10 men for half the match. A draw would most certainly have felt like a defeat. But last minute winners when you’ve played badly are what champions are made of.

In truth this was a horrible match to watch. Apart from the opening 20 minutes, Arsenal played poorly and Hull did everything they possibly could to disrupt the flow of the game with a succession of unpunished fouls. The pitch looked like what it is…a rugby pitch….so obviously that didn’t help Arsenal produce their usual slick passing game. But it was the referee’s inability to stamp out the  consistent fouls dished out by the Hull players that really ruined the game for me. Time after time they fouled, pulled shirts and disrupted the game and time and time again the referee failed to punish them.

The more teams like Hull are allowed to adopt their cowardly tactics against Arsenal the more Ramsey/Eduardo/Diaby type incidents there will be. Sagna is a very lucky boy indeed not to be joining that list following Boateng’s attempt of a tackle yesterday.

Although Bendtner didn’t play particularly well, he once again highlighted my point that he picks up good positions in the box. Although his finishing can be erratic, if he keeps finding dangerous positions in the box he will get plenty of chances to score in a team like Arsenal. I am a big fan of Nik’s, he is a very useful player in this 4-3-3 formation and he may just prove to be the ’something different’ we have been crying out for this season and lead Arsenal to the premier league title.

Player ratings:

Almunia – 6 – Had very little to do but didn’t put a foot wrong.

Sagna – 7 – Defended well against the physical Altadore.

Clichy – 8 – Thought Gael played really well in both defense and attack.

Vermaelen – 8.5 – Where would we be without this guy? Another great display for the Verminator.

Campbell – 6 – Shakey again from Sol, better in the last 30 minutes but never looked assured.

Denilson – 5 – Fall over, get up lose ball, fall over again….decent shot lead to Bendtners winner though.

Diaby – 6 - Disappointing performance, never got hold of the game.

Nasri – 6 – Looked tired and never got near his level of recent games. Subbed off.

Arshavin – 7 - Great goal, involved in most of Arsenal’s good work but missed a couple of good chances.

Eboue – 6 - Looked tired as well, not the threat he has been in recent games. Subbed off.

Bendtner – 7.5 – Not his best game but scored a vital winner.

Subs:

Walcott – 7 -Made an immediate impact using his pace to create a chance.

Eduardo – 6.5 – Some neat touches and got involved in the game.

By Fab4.

Arsenal will have to navigate a tricky away tie against Hull City in order to keep their Premier League title hopes alive. With Manchester United and Chelsea both playing at home this weekend, it seems likely that Arsenal will need to grind out another three points away from home to keep in touch with the top two.

Chelsea have a home derby against London rivals West Ham, but even with their goalkeeping crisis they will have too much for Zola’s inconsistent West Ham team. Similarly with Manchester United, they have a home tie against Fulham who are not great away from Craven Cottage and have just played a Europa League game in Italy last night, losing 3-1 to Juventus, so will be feeling the effects of that i presume. A comfortable home victory seems likely for both.

So this is a game that Arsenal simply have to win if they are to end this season as champions. Three points are a must for the Gunners. To fall 5-6 points behind again at this stage may write us out the title race psychologically as much as in reality. I still believe that Arsenal could win the league with 7 wins and a draw from the remaining 9 league game. If you look at the fixtures, Chelsea and United will drop points for sure. Just look at how close Man Utd were to dropping points at Wolves last week, there will be plenty more of those types of games to come. But a defeat on a day when your closest rivals both win can have damaging effects mentally on a team. Arsenal have clawed their way back into the title race twice already this season, to do it for a third time may be asking too much.

Looking at the table, with Arsenal sitting joint second and Hull joint second from last, you would think this should be a relatively easy one to predict. But no away game is a guarantee in the Premier League and no doubt Hull will be fighting for their lives. A saying all too appropriate for a couple of Hull players this week, as Jimmie Bullard and Nicky Barmby traded blows during a post-training warm down routine. Not the kind of team spirit Phil Brown would be looking for with his side battling to avoid relegation. But it might just be the kind of fighting spirit that sees them give Arsenal a tough match on Saturday evening. The KC stadium is not an easy place to go but Arsene Wenger’s side should be confident by the fact that Hull haven’t beaten Arsenal at home for nearly 100 years!

No bad blood?

Arsene Wenger has declared there is no bad blood between Arsenal and Hull.

“I feel there is respect, and we go in to the next game,” he said.

“We don’t make a special fuss of anything, we just try to play football. We have to focus on what is the most important, which is that the people who pay to come to watch a football game get something for their money. That is what we always try to do.

“We do not focus on bad blood. We just focus on our game and try to play well. In fact, if you look at what happened [in December], there was not a lot, nobody has been injured. There was a little brawl at some stage where we got punished, them as well, but the game was not dirty.

“I look forward to seeing my team play football well. As for the rest, I respect everybody in life, and I don’t make any special issue of that.”

Nice try Arsene. You may be big enough to forgive and forget but i assure you the fans aren’t! I  despise that orange-faced p*ick Phil Brown, and that was before he accused captain fab’s of spitting at his assistant. The only problem i had with the accusation was that Cesc hadn’t spat at Brown! Go stick your stupid bluetooth headset up your a*se you t*at. I have nothing against Hull as a club, i just don’t like their manager and for that reason i hope they get relegated.

Team News

Arsenal have several worries ahead of the match. Captain Cesc Fabregas is definitely out with a hamstring problem, Thomas Rosicky is a doubt with a groin injury and Sagna is also doubtful with an ankle complaint.

Sol Campbell is expected to shake of cramp, although Wenger may select Silvestre anyway as he doesn’t feel Campbell can cope with two games in 4 days yet.

William Gallas remains sidelined with a recurrence of a calf injury, while Alex Song completes a two game ban. The are joined by long term absentees RVP, Gibbs, Djourou and Ramsey in missing the game.

Prefered starting team:

Almunia

Eboue                    Campbell                       Vermaelen                     Clichy

Denilson

Diaby                                Nasri

Walcott                                                                       Arshavin

Bendtner

I can see Big Nik B continuing his goalscoring form (Burnley aside!) with a goal tomorrow. His height and power have really helped the team in recent weeks and he will be vital again against a physical Hull side. I hope Eboue is given a chance even if Sagna is passed fit as he has been very impressive lately whenever he has played. Get Theo on the ball as much as possible and use his pace. Arshavin and Nasri will provide the silky-skills, but Walcott’s pace will terify them.

Another massive weekend to enjoy, let’s hope it’s another successful one for the Arsenal!!

]]> http://football-talk.co.uk/1870/no-bad-blood-my-ase-arsenal-vs-hull-preview-3-points-needed/feed/ 0 http://football-talk.co.uk/1783/arsenal-3-1-burnley-walcott-stars-fabregas-injured-as-gunners-make-hard-work-of-burnley/ http://football-talk.co.uk/1783/arsenal-3-1-burnley-walcott-stars-fabregas-injured-as-gunners-make-hard-work-of-burnley/#comments Sat, 06 Mar 2010 17:27:39 +0000 Fab4 http://football-talk.co.uk/?p=1783 More >]]> By Fab4.

Arsenal made hard work of Burnley today and failed to get the 4-0 win they needed to go top of the league, although Nicklas Bendtner could have scored enough on his own to take home two match balls. He missed a series of great opportunities before Arshavin made the game secure in the final minute. But it was the performance of Theo Walcott that will catch they eye, he was unplayable for most of the game.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger made four changes from the side that beat Stoke last week. Rosicky replaced the injured Ramsey, Silvestre came in for Campbell, and Sagna and Song made way for Walcott and Denilson.

Arsenal came flying out of the blocks and probably should have taken the lead on the third minute. Nasri sent a lovely ball over the top which found Bendtner in the clear, but he took too long to set himself and Paterson got back and made a great tackle. From the resulting corner Rosicky fired narrowly wide with a great volley.

Burnley showed they were a threat at the other end when Carlisle got free at a corner but sent his header straight at Almunia.

Theo Walcott was looking dangerous down the right and made a couple of runs but nobody was on hand to finish his cut backs. Again the best of Arsenal’s stuff was down the right, this time a one-two between Fabregas and Eboue but the Captain couldn’t find the target from a tight angle.

The linesman wasn’t having a good day so far, he made a couple of poor off-side decisions to deny Nasri and Bendtner opportunities through on goal. Burnley’s best efforts were from long-range that didn’t really test Almunia.

Just after the half hour mark Arsenal began to turn the screw and a superb flowing move cut Burnley open, Eboue’s dangerous cross found Bendtner but Jensen got out well to deny the big Dane. Seconds later Arsenal opened the scoring. Nasri’s looping ball over the top from the edge of the box found Fabregas who cooly slotted home between Jensens legs. Great goal.

1-0 Fabregas (33)

Minutes later another flowing move should have seen Arsenal go 2-up but Bendtner couldn’t finish off from an Eboue cut back. The Gunners were playing some great stuff, but it hasn’t been Bendtners day so far.

Fabregas has pulled up with a hamstring injury, it doesn’t look too serious but he is replaced by Diaby and looks to be a doubt for Tuesday’s game against Porto now.

Half time and Arsenal should really be out of sight by now, but as it’s only 1-0 Burnley will feel they are still in the game.

Arsenal should have doubled their lead in the first minute of the second half. Walcott sent in a superb cross straight on Bendtners head but he somehow missed the target from 6 yards out. It got even worse for the big Dane when Walcott did well to keep a deep Clichy cross alive, his cut back found Bendtner unmarked 6 yards out in the centre of goal but he blazed over. Unbelievable.

Theo then got bored of his good work going to waste so decided to go it alone, but his drive from the edge of the area was too high.

A completely one-sided game was turned on its head when Burnley grabbed an equaliser they hardly deserved. Eboue’s poor clearance was headed back in by Carlisle, Suddenly Nugent was clear and he lobbed Almunia from 10 yards. Arsenal should have been 5-up but were somehow level.

1-1 Nugent (50)

Arsenal responded well and should have taken the lead, more good work down the right from Walcott and his cut-back again found Bendtner who once again failed to finish. It was getting funny now.

Nasri sends Walcott clear and the England winger gets a powerful shot off but Jensen does well to tip it round the post. All Arsenals good work is going through Walcott, he is clearly out to prove the doubters wrong.

He certainly went someway to doing it as he scored a great goal to give Arsenal a deserved lead. For the first time in the match he cuts inside and curls the ball into the bottom corner with his left foot. Superb stuff from Theo and just what his performance deserved.

2-1 Walcott (60)

This is getting silly now, MORE good work down the right from Walcott, again he cuts back but this time its Arshavin who blazes over from close range. Arsenal just can’t seem to put this game to bed.

Amazingly it gets worse for Bendtner. Eboue bursts forward and passes out wide to Walcott, his cross finds Bendtner free in the box but he drags his shot wide from 6 yards with just the keeper to beat. The crowd and laughing but it wont be so funny if Burnley nick and equalizer! He could and should be taking home TWO match balls today! Instead he is taken off to great applause, most of which is probably out of sympathy for him, not his day but at least he tried.

Burnley are having a lot of the ball now and Thomson blazes over from a corner. A warning for Arsenal there. Arshavin sends a good opportunity wide, then has a good chance blocked by Jensen. But in the final minute, the little Russian gets the third to secure the three points for the Gunners. He cuts in from the right and beats Jensen at his near post with a powerful finish. Game over.

3-1 Arshavin (90 +4)

Player Ratings:

Almnia – 6 – Didn’t have much to do and not a lot he could have done for their goal

Clichy – 6 – Steady enough and sent in some better crosses today

Eboue – 7 – Some good work going forward

Vermaelen – 7 – Rock at the back again

Silvestre – 6 – Made me nervous a couple of times but did ok

Denilson – 6 – Kept us ticking over without doing much of note.

Fabregas – 7 – Great goal before going off injured

Nasri – 8 – Fine display today, good movement and always on the ball

Rosicky – 7 - Some neat touches and looked dangerous

Walcott – 9- Superb today from Theo, especially the second half. Great goal as well.

Bendtner – 5 – What can i say, just not his day. Couldn’t finish his diner.

Subs:

Diaby – 6 – Some nice work without ever really stamping his authority on the game.

Arshavin – 7 – Great finish for his goal

Eduardo – 6 – Not a lot of time, did well for the third goal

So Arsene Wengers men go joint top with Chelsea having a game in hand. Although Manchester United could go clear if they beat Wolves this evening. Wenger and Arsenal fans will be extremely happy with Walcott’s performance, he produced several great final balls that have been lacking lately and scored a superb goal. My MOM without question.

The worry will be Bendtner’s poor finishing. It was almost unbelievable at times. No lie, he could have scored six easily today. It turned out ok in the end as we won 3-1, but if that was against tougher opposition they would make us pay for his misses. He was been in decent goal-scoring form of late so i’ll give him a break, but he needs to improve on Tuesday if we are to beat Porto.

Well that’s one down and nine to go. Let’s hope Wolves can do us a favour and beat United in the 5.30 K.O.

]]> http://football-talk.co.uk/1783/arsenal-3-1-burnley-walcott-stars-fabregas-injured-as-gunners-make-hard-work-of-burnley/feed/ 0 http://football-talk.co.uk/1770/pundits-miss-the-point-plus-burnley-preview-team-prediction/ http://football-talk.co.uk/1770/pundits-miss-the-point-plus-burnley-preview-team-prediction/#comments Fri, 05 Mar 2010 12:35:15 +0000 Fab4 http://football-talk.co.uk/?p=1770 More >]]> By Fab4.

Premier League football is back this weekend after another round of internationals during the week. I hate international weeks, the only positive was that Arsenal managed to come through without suffering any serious injuries.

Arsenal have been in the news a lot this week with the Ramsey injury-Showcross tackle still heavily publicised, and Theo has been hammered fro his performance against Egypt. What made me laugh was how John Motson picked on Theo for criticism after 30 minutes when England were 1-0 down. Every player was useless, Terry had made a couple of errors, Upson slipped for the goal, Gerrard  and Lampard were annonomous, Defoe had hardly touched the ball…but no, it was Theo performance that made Motson say ‘Walcott, look at him, just what is he doing out there?’. Well Motty, he’s playing badly just like the rest of the England team. The funny part was that it was Walcott’s run and cut back that had produced England’s only real chance in the match to that point. Did he miss that? Did he miss Lampards pathetic finish? Why pick on a 21-year old who has played 8 games all season?

Brainless pundits

The fall-out from Ramsey’s injury continued throughout the week. Some of the rubbish supposed ‘experts’ came out with made my blood boil. Lou Macari and Stan ‘wifebeater’ Collymore being the worst culprits. People like them keep missing the point. Arsene doesnt’ want tackling banned from the game, he wants players protected from idiotic dangerous tackles. Tackles that are the result of brainless managers dishing out irresponsible tactics.

All i hear is ‘there was no malice in the tackle’. SO WHAT! Malice is not the point Arsene and Arsenal fans are talking about here. Nobody thinks Showcross was intending to break Ramsey’s leg. What it’s about it the very clear bully-boy tactics that are adopted against Arsenal can result in serious injury. Managers, players and pundits all love to claim Arsenal are soft, weak and easy to bully when it suites them, but as soon as it all goes wrong they deny all knowledge and start bringing up Arsene’s disciplinary record and how dirty a player Vieira was. What could be more irrelevant to this situation than a player who played for us 5 years ago getting sent off 8 times?! Were any of those sending offs due to Vieira breaking any legs? No, didn’t think so.

We are talking about the here and now, and the fact is teams DO go in to games to bully Arsenal about with over-zealous tactics. What Arsene is saying is that serious injuries like Ramsey’s can be the result. It’s blatantly obvious to anyone who wants to see it.

Rafa Benitez style facts:

• Certain teams DO take an overly physical approach against Arsenal
• Players have admitted to this in the build up to games
• It is well documented in the media that Arsenal ‘don’t like it up em’
• We are the second most fouled team in the league
• 3 broken legs in 4 seasons, all by English players playing for Northern teams with English managers.

I really don’t see where the confusion is. Why these people don’t have the balls to just apologise and say taking a physical approach is the only way to stop Arsenal is beyond me. To make it even more ridiculous, they cite the Gallas incident against Bolton a few weeks ago as being just as bad a tackle as Showcross, with some saying it was WORSE! Are these people serious? Gallas didn’t  go diving in with all his body-weight with a  two-footed slide tackle with raised foot, Shawcross did. To compare the two tackles is crazy.

Burnley: 5-0 please

So Burnley at home tomorrow in the premier league, if we can’t win this game we don’t deserve to be champions so three points is a minimum. What i am looking for is a 5-0 victory to see us reach the top of the premier league….for a couple of hours at least. These are the types of home games where you need an early goal and the flood gates should open. Arsenal currently have the 3rd best goal difference in the league with +35, Chelsea are on +39 and United +42. We’re only 3 points behind Chelsea, so goal difference could be important at the end of the season. Lets take advantage of Chelsea playing in the FA Cup and Manchester United playing away and record a comfortable victory, boost the goal difference, and put some pressure on Chelsea and United.

This is what you wanted Arsene…to be playing Burnley at home instead of an FA Cup tie days before the Champions League second leg, so don’t mess it up by being too clever and resting the big-guns. Put the best team out, thump Burnley and we’ll be full of confidence going into the Porto game.

It will be interesting to see if Theo Walcott gets a start after his England performance. Eboue played the full 90 minutes for Ivory Coast, so maybe this would be a good game for Theo to get back in and gain some confidence. I would like to see him start in a front three with Arshavin and Bendtner. Arsene may start Arshavin from the bench just to give him a little bit more time to recover ahead of the Porto tie, so Rosicky could be given the nod on the left.

I don’t want Nasri and Rosicky to be our two wide players playing off Bendtner, they are too alike and we don’t have enough variety in our game when they play on the flanks together. We need either Eboue or Walcott on the right to give us some direct pace.

With Song suspended and Diaby only rated 50:50 to recover from injury, it gives Wenger the perfect opportunity to bring in his beloved Denilson. If Diaby is passed fit i hope he is given the holding role with Nasri and Fabregas ahead of him. But we all know Denilson will play. Just before his injury, Ramsey seemed to have replaced the clueless Brazilian, but now Wenger has an excuse to play him again.

Gallas is still missing and Sol Campbell is a doubt with a groin problem so Silvestre may start. Normally i would shake with fear at the thought of that, but a home game against relegation candidates….even Silvestre should cope with that. Carlos Vela wont be considered due to fatigue after his goal-scoring performance for Mexico.

Preferred team:

Almunia

Sagna                 Vermaelen                   Silvestre                   Clichy

Diaby

Fabregas                               Nasri

Walcott                                                             Rosicky/Arshavin

Bendtner

This is the team i would like to see, but i’m sure Denilson will force his way in somewhere. It may be harsh on Eboue to drop him after his impressive performance’s of late but Theo needs a chance and this is a good game for him. Eduardo got 20 minutes for Croatia in mid-week so he should be available as a super-sub.

Lets put some pressure on with a big win. Im backing Bendtner to continue his goalscoring form with a brace.

Will Theo make the world cup squad? What’s your take on the Aaron Ramsey affair? What’s your starting eleven against Burnley? Please leave you comments below….

]]> http://football-talk.co.uk/1770/pundits-miss-the-point-plus-burnley-preview-team-prediction/feed/ 0 http://football-talk.co.uk/1741/oh-not-you-lot-again-plus-van-persie-and-clichy-news/ http://football-talk.co.uk/1741/oh-not-you-lot-again-plus-van-persie-and-clichy-news/#comments Sat, 27 Feb 2010 10:00:42 +0000 Fab4 http://football-talk.co.uk/?p=1741 More >]]> By Fab4.

Back to the Britannia we go for what is arguably Arsenal’s toughest remaining fixture this season. Stoke City seem to know how to play Arsenal and it’s been effective so far. Two Rory Delap throw-ins helped Stoke to a 2-1 victory last season, and he was at it again this year in the FA Cup with a fairly strong Arsenal side losing 3-1 on this occasion. Two defeats from Arsenal’s last two visits, a third loss and the Premier League is gone for another season.

It’a no secret Arsenal don’t particularly like playing Stoke away. But why would they? Eleven big strong men playing in-your-face, physical, long-ball football with 28,000 vocal fans cheering them on, who would enjoy that? It seems not many teams, as Stoke have a great home record this year and currently sit a very respectable 11th in the Premier League table.

Any other season i would see a draw as a decent result at the Britannia Stadium but as things stand in our chase to catch Chelsea, victory is essential. Anything but a victory combining with a Chelsea win over Man City and we can forget the title for another year. With Chelsea playing at Stamford Bridge and City without Adebayor i predict a home win so we need three points to stay in touch with the leaders.

Team news

Arsenal’s task has not been made any easier due to the usual injuries problems. Arsene Wenger confirming Gallas, Diaby and Arshavin would all miss the clash but Eduardo may return.

“Gallas (calf), Diaby (knee) and Arshavin (hamstring) are all out but Eduardo joins in training tomorrow [Friday] and we will decide after training,” said the manager at his pre-match press conference.

I hope Sol Campbell comes in for Gallas as he is a big beast who can deal with Sidibe, well better than Silvestre can anyway. I know Campbell got caught out in the FA Cup match, but he has a couple more weeks behind him now and is much fitter so i am confident Campbell will impress if he gets the nod.

Losing a player of Arshavin’s quality is never a good thing, but if he had to miss any game in a season Stoke away would be right up there. It won’t be a match best suited to a player of Arshavin’s size and he wouldn’t fancy the physical approach from Stoke.

The loss of Diaby will be felt the most. His height would have been invaluable in dealing with Stokes aerial threat. Somehow i can’t see Denilson or Ramsey having the same impact in that area.

Eduardo will be on the bench as Nicklas Bendtner is our big-man and he will be relied upon a lot today. Not only to be an outlet in an attacking sense but his role defensively will be important. Bendtner will have to be ready to fight for every long-throw and every corner. Two things are common knowledge:

1. Stoke are set-piece specialists and score the majority of their goals that way.
2. Arsenal are poor at defending set-pieces.

So defending set-pieces well is vital today if Arsenal are to get the three points. Stoke are unlikely to score in open play so if we restrict them on set-pieces we have a real shot.

Preferred starting team

Almunia

Sagna              Campbell             Vermaelen                 Clichy

Fabregas             Song                Ramsey

Eboue                                                                      Nasri

Bendtner

I would keep Eboue in after his MOM performance against Sunderland, plus he is powerful, decent in the air and can cross a ball. Use Theo as an impact sub. Campbell in for Gallas and Ramsey ahead of Denilson, Stoke away is no place for the weak Brazilian.

Clichy form improving

In other news Arsene says Gael Clichy is improving his form.

Against Liverpool and in our last game against Sunderland he had strong performances,” he said.

“He was out for a long time and like every player at the start he was not completely back 100 per cent but I felt in the last two games he was very convincing.”

He needs to be! Clichy has been a shadow of his former self since the fateful day in Birmingham when he gave away a ‘penalty’ in the final minute to deny Arsenal a deserved victory over Birmingham. Of course injuries have interrupted him, but he has been error-prone over the last two years. Maybe an extended injury-free run will get his confidence up and we will get the old Clichy back. I hope so, i am a real fan of his, if only he could improve his crossing!

No early return for Van Persie

Arsene has also poured cold water on hopes that Robin Van Persie will make an early comeback in early April.

“No, I would love to agree but I believe they [the Dutch FA] are a bit optimistic in that,” said the manager.

“I haven’t seen Robin because he is in Holland at the moment but [early April] looks to be a bit early.”

I never took any notice of those reports because the final decision is down to Wenger and i knew he would be cautious over Van Persie’s return. When Arsene says and injury will take 4 weeks that normally means 6, so i don’t expect to see Robin back before the Manchester City game on the 24th of April, with any luck maybe he will make the Champions League first leg on the 20/21st!

Until that day arrives when Van Persie pulls on that No.11 shirt, the pressure is on Bendtner to produce as a central striker. Show us you have what it takes Nik, a brace today will do nicely!

Arsenal 2-0 Sunderland

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger made six changes following Wednesdays defeat to Porto. Almunia replaced Fabianski after his horror-show in mid-week, Song came in for Denilson, Ramsey replaced the injured Diaby, Silvestre replaced Campbell who is not yet fit enough to complete two 90 minutes in four days, Eboue replaced Sagna and Walcott started ahead of Rosicky.

Match report.

Arsenal began well and set about attacking the Sunderland goal with several half chances being squandered by Bendtner and Walcott. The young England winger was giving McCartney all sorts of problems with his pace, although not for the first time his final ball was letting him down.

Cesc Fabregas played a short corner to Samir Nasri who cut in and saw his deflected shot fly narrowly over the bar. Sunderland were playing with Jones up front on his own and were causing Arsenal’s defense very little trouble. Niklas Bendtner wasted a glorious opportunity on 18 minutes to open the scoring after being found in space 8 yards out by Fabregas, but the Dane’s weak left foot shot deflected off Turner and dropped onto the bar.

But Bendtner didn’t have to wait long for his goal. Eboue made a superb jinking run into the box and cut the ball across goal, Bendtner was their to simply tap into the empty net.

1-0 Bendtner (24)

All the play was coming down Arsenal’s right hand side through the pace of Eboue and Walcott and it only seemed a matter of time before the Gunner’s extended their lead. All that was missing was that killer final ball.

Lorik Cana was booked for a lunge on Eboue shortly before Kenwyen Jones missed a glorious opportunity to level things up. Aaron Ramsey was caught in possession in the centre circle by Richardson who opened up the Arsenal defense with a through-ball which found Jones in the clear. He was one-on-one with Almunia but scuffed his shot wide of the post. Terrible miss and Arsene Wenger will not be happy with Ramsey losing possession in such a dangerous area.

Another ball over the top of Arsenal’s defense caused problems as Almunia came rushing out of  his box to deal with it but his clearance hit Vermaelen and luckily bounced out for a corner. Finally Sunderland were posing a threat.

Once again Walcott was clear down the right and sent in a dangerous ball towards Bendtner but Gordon did well to get down low to intercept.

Half time and one of the most one-sided game you will see. Although Sunderland were completely out-played for most of the half, they missed a glorious chance to go in at 1-1 but Jones fluffed it.

Arsenal started the second half like they began the first, attacking the Sunderland goal. A great piece of skill by Nasri turned Tuner inside-out but his cross was too high for Bendtner. Soon after Fabregas sent in a dangerous cross which narrowly evaded the out-stretched leg of Vermaelen.

A superb run by Ramsey saw him find Walcott who again sent in a disappointing cross. But the flying winger almost extended Arsenal’s lead after a trade-mark run saw his low left-footed drive well saved by Gordon. Much better from Walcott.

Alex Song was having a great game in the middle of the park, he was winning everything today.

Walcott won a free-kick just outside the area as Vermaelen tried to send him clear. The Belgian centre-half took the free-kick himself and stung the fingers of Gordon with a powerful strike.

Just as a second Arsenal goal seemed on the cards Sunderland almost grabbed an equalizer. Bent wrestled past Silvestre to find himself  one-on-one with Almunia, but the Spaniard got down well to smother him and make an important block. Another warning for Arsenal.

Another superb run by Eboue as he drove into the box and cut it back  to Ramsey who’s shot was deflected wide for a corner.

Arsenal wasted three chances in a minute to extend their lead. First Nasri saw a low effort well saved by Gordon, with Walcott also being denied on the follow-up, the ball eventually fell to Nasri again who blazed wide. Surely a second goal is coming for Arsenal sooner or later.

Cana fired straight at Almunia from long range as Arsenal looked to have run out of ideas.

With 2 minutes remaining Sunderland won a very generous free-kick on the edge of the area.  But Zenden fired straight at the wall.

Two minutes into injury time Arsenal won a penalty as Febregas was hacked down just inside the area. He stepped up himself to slot past Gordon to make it 2-0 and secure the three points.

2-0 Fabregas (92)

Player ratings

Almunia – 7 – Never thought i would say it, good to have him back. Couple of important saves.

Eboue – 8 – Great game from Eboue, always dangerous, superb run created opening goal.

Vermaelen – 7 – Steady game, dealt with Jones well enough.

Silvestre – 7 – See above.

Clichy – 6 – Quiet game, but solid at the back.

Song – 8 – Great game from Song, won everything. Glad he’s back.

Walcott – 5 – Same old Walcott, bits of brilliance, but no end product.

Fabregas – 8 – Good game capped off with a penalty.

Ramsey – 7 – Solid game, full of running, but error almost let Sunderland back in the game.

Nasri – 7 – Comfortable on the ball and even had a few strikes at goal.

Bendtner – 6 – Easy tap-in but should have ran-riot against this Sunderland team. Didn’t do enough for me.

A hard fought victory but in honesty we made it a lot harder than it should have been. Sunderland were awful and an in-form Arsenal would have hammered them today. Song, Fabregas and Eboue were all very good today. Eboue was a constant threat with his surging runs down the right, Song bossed the midfield and Fabregas was Fabregas.

Arsene Wenger will be concerned by the lack of cutting edge his side showed today, but three points in the bag, a clean sheet, a striker scored a goal (as predicted in my match preview!) and only 2 points behind Man Utd in the Premier League table. A good day all round for the Gunners.

]]> http://football-talk.co.uk/1640/1640-arsenal-2-0-sunderland-match-report-and-player-ratings/feed/ 0 http://football-talk.co.uk/1626/1626-more-injuries-for-arsenal-rvp-update-wenger-slams-ref-again/ http://football-talk.co.uk/1626/1626-more-injuries-for-arsenal-rvp-update-wenger-slams-ref-again/#comments Sat, 20 Feb 2010 08:40:27 +0000 Fab4 http://football-talk.co.uk/?p=1626 More >]]> By Fab4.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger  will be looking to put a disappointing week behind him as Arsenal return to Premier League action against Sunderland at the Emirates this afternoon. The Gunners will be hoping to build on their last Premier League outing that saw them beat Liverpool 1-0.

Ahead of the game Arsene confirmed more bad news on the injury front as Abou Diaby has been ruled out with a knee injury. Just when are Arsenal going to get over their injury problems? It’s becoming ridiculous. Just when it looked like we were getting the squad back together, and by back together that doesn’t include the three long-term injury victims RVP, Gibbs and Djourou, but we got Nasri and Rosicky fit, Clichy, Denilson, Vela, Walcott and Bendtner all returned from various injuries and Song came back from the African Cup of Nations. So we started to have options again. Then bang, Arshavin, Eduardo, Song, Gallas, Almunia, Ramsey and now Diaby all pick up injuries.

I really don’t know any other Premier League team that could cope with that number of injuries  on a consistent basis. My Yid mate said to me the other day when i told him about Arsenal’s latest bout of injuries ‘yeah but every time you moan about all the injuries you’ve got, when i see your line-up it’s always good’. Something to think about perhaps.

Despite the injuries i fully expect Arsenal to have enough to beat Sunderland at home. Arsene’s biggest challenge will be picking the players up after the Porto fiasco. The week’s major talking point centred around Fabianski’s errors and i really hope Almunia passes a late fitness test as i don’t think it would be a great idea to throw the young Pole straight back into the action after his performance in mid-week. Or maybe it would be good for him, a home game where he should have a relatively quiet game might build his confidence. I dunno, only time will tell i suppose.

RVP return update

Wenger also gave an update on Robin Van Persie and it’s not great news if im honest. Last month Van Persie told the media his injury was healing well and he hoped to be back at the end of March/beggining of April. Arsene then said it was likely to be mid-April. Now we will be lucky to see him back at the end of April.

If you ask me is it the beginning of April, I would say categorically no because he has not started any real fitness work yet,” Wenger told the club’s official website.

“Once he starts that, it will take at least six weeks.

“Maybe (he will be back) at the end of April if all goes well. If there is no setback, he should be back before the end of the season but it is very difficult to predict.”

I bet in 2-3 weeks Wenger comes out and says we wont see Robin again this season. Obviously i want the injury to be 100% healed and not to rush him back early, but his return couldn’t come quickly enough for me. We have missed him badly and i remember nearly smashing my laptop when i saw he had gone off against Italy, i just knew with our luck  it would be a bad injury.

Wenger slams Porto referee

Arsene has not let the referee’s performance go and i don’t blame him. It doesn’t do his reputation for being a moaner any good, but the ref was so bad i can see why Arsene sees fit to rip into him once more in his pre-match press conference on Friday.

“It’s not my job to judge is he good enough or not, I just feel in that game he has shown he is not competent.

“He has made at least five mistakes. I believe he is not competent or not honest. I prefer not competent.”

“But he missed a 100 per cent penalty on Rosicky. That is a judgement in a second that I can accept. For me, the back-pass of Sol Campbell was accidental.

“He has judged it is voluntary. Okay we have a difference there. That I can accept. Technically so many mistakes. His body position. Where he stands is completely wrong at the moment he gives a free-kick.

“He takes the ball from Lukasz Fabianski. They score. What he does doesn’t make common sense and is against the rules of the referees.

“When a guy makes so many technical mistakes that are not even linked to judgement, I believe he is not competent.”

I couldn’t agree more Arsene. Mr Hansson’s performance was a disgrace on Wednesday. But let’s move on, why not ensure a similar incident will never happen again by buying a world class goalkeeper in the summer! A better keeper would not have picked the ball up or turned away once he had relseased the ball.

Team News

Arsenal have an 80% chance of having Almunia back in goal, the goalkeeper will face a test on a twister finger. There is less chance of Song making it but Arsene Wenger is still hopeful.

Abou Diaby is definitely out along with Gallas, Arshavin and Eduardo. Sol Campbell should continue to deputise for Gallas after his impressive goalscoring return against Porto, although Arsene Wenger is questioning whether he can complete two 90 minutes in four days.

Sunderland have injury worries of their own and could be without six midfielder with Henderson, Reid, Carrermole, Meyler all out. There are also doubts over Malbranque and Richardson.

Defenders Ferdinand and Menseh are also facing a race to be fit, while Campbell should make the bench.

Arsenal’s probable eleven.

Almunia

Sagna                  Vermaelen                Campbell                   Clichy

Fabregas                 Denilson           Nasri/Ramsey

Walcott               Bendtner                 Rosicky

Let’s make up for the 1-0 defeat we suffered at the Stadium Of Light in November, oddly enough that was Sunderland’s last victory in the league, and give the Northerners a spanking. I fancy Bendtner to Nik one (couldn’t resist), it’s about time an Arsenal striker scored a goal!

]]> http://football-talk.co.uk/1626/1626-more-injuries-for-arsenal-rvp-update-wenger-slams-ref-again/feed/ 0 http://football-talk.co.uk/1491/arsenal-back-in-the-title-hunt-after-liverpool-victory/ http://football-talk.co.uk/1491/arsenal-back-in-the-title-hunt-after-liverpool-victory/#comments Thu, 11 Feb 2010 10:13:58 +0000 Fab4 http://football-talk.co.uk/?p=1491 More >]]> By Fab4.

Arsenal 1-0 Liverpool

Arsenal kept their title hopes alive with a vital 1-0 victory over Liverpool at the Emirates last night. The win saw the Gunner’s close the gap on Chelsea to 6 points after they were beaten 2-1 by Everton. With Manchester United also dropping points it was a great night for Arsene Wenger’s men. Liverpool remain 4th on goal difference but Manchester City have a game in hand.

Match Report

Arsenal were boosted by the return of striker Niklas Bendtner to the starting line-up with Theo Walcott dropping to the bench. The only change made from the defeat to Man Utd was Emmanuel Eboue replacing Bacary Sagna at right back. Liverpool made one change from the side who beat Everton replacing the suspended Kyrgiakos with Martin Skrtel.

The first chance of the match went to Arsenal, an unmarked William Gallas heading over from a Fabregas cross. But apart from that the first 20 minutes was highly forgettable. Arsenal were struggling to get their rhythm going while Liverpool’s game plan was to defend in numbers and stifle Arsenal, with attacking an after-thought. It made for a very scrappy first half.

There was a  brief moment of excitement in the 25 minute when Arshavin put Bendtner through but he smashed his shot over the bar. Nasri had a goal-bound effort blocked shortly after, while Liverpool managed their first real threat on Almunia’s goal with Maxi Rodriguez blazing over from the edge of the box.

The only other talking point of a poor first half was Nasri being forced off after a blow to the head, being replaced by Thomas Rosicky. 0-0 at half time with Rafa Benitez likely to be the happier of the two managers, his Liverpool side had subdued Arsenal’s attacking threat although they had created very little themselves.

The second half began with a much faster tempo and it seemed both sides were going to have a go. Arshavin was first to carve out an opportunity but sliced his cross into the side netting when well positioned. Liverpool went straight up the other end and Leiva shot narrowly over from inside the area.

The best chance of the game so far fell to Ngog after Gerrard sent him clear. The young Frenchmen never seemed confident and his indecision allowed Gallas to get back and make a superb interception. Arsenal hit back immediately, Arshavin fed Rosicky inside the Liverpool area but his heavy touch meant the chance had gone. It was end-to-end stuff.

Minutes later Bendtner bull-dozed his way through the Liverpool defense only for Reina to make a smart block. Then the Dane was booked for diving after he went down following a Daniel Agger challenge just inside the area, reply’s showed there was a slight touch so Arsenal and Bendtner were unlucky.

Arsenal almost took the lead mid-way through the second half but a Rosicky drive was deflected out for a corner. Although the game was still tense you could feel a goal coming and it was Arsenal who were looking the more likely to score.

It wasn’t long before Arsenal made the break-through. Bendtner did well to retain possession in the Liverpool box, he laid it off to Rosicky who’s cross found an unmarked Diaby to head home.

1-0 Diaby (72)

The goal forced Liverpool to open up and search for the equalizer, while Arsenal are not renowned for holding onto 1-goal leads and seeing out the game, it was always going to be a tense final 20 minutes.  

With 15 minutes remaining Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard tried a desperate attempt to win a penalty, chasing a loose ball he dived into the back of Abou Diaby falling to the floor apealing for a penalty. If Howard Webb booked Bendtner for diving where was the card for Gerrard?

Substitute Ryan Babel almost grabbed the equalizer for Liverpool with 5 minutes left. His 25 yard effort was expertly tipped onto the bar by Almunia, it was a great save. There was to be one more piece of controversy from the match in the final minute. Again Gerrard went looking for a free-kick 25 yards out, diving to the floor with no challenge in sight, but instead of pulling the Liverpool man up for a deserved booking, Howard Webb chose to punish Fabregas for a push on Kuyt. A very generous decision and one which incensed the Arsenal captain so much he earned a yellow for his protests.

You got the feeling that Gerrard was going to punish Arsenal simply because of the controversial way they had won the free-kick. Thankfully justice was done when the referee somehow failed to see Fabregas stop the resulting Gerrard free-kick with his arm. Liverpool appealed for a penalty, which was funny as it was outside the box, but would have been harsh anyway considering it should have been an Arsenal free-kick following Gerrard’s antics.

The game finished 1-0 to Arsenal with referee Howard Webb surrounded by Liverpool players at the final whistle. Arsenal deserved the victory, just. It was a nervy game with neither side hitting top gear, but maybe that’s to be expected with so much at stake.

The 3 points mean Arsenal close in on the top two and extend their lead over 4th place Liverpool to 8 points. Arsene Wenger will be delighted with the win and with results going their way elsewhere, it seems his Arsenal side might be back in the Premier League title race.  

Tonight is massive. Not just for Arsenal, but for Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United as all four face tough matches in the Premier League tonight. Obviously Arsenal vs Liverpool at the Emirates is the box office game, but Chelsea’s trip to Everton and United’s to Aston Villa will be just as important.

For Arsene Wenger priority number one is three points against Liverpool. Arsenal have to beat Liverpool tonight, full-stop. An third consecutive defeat against top-four opposition is almost unthinkable. Confidence will hit an all-time low and will leave Arsenal in danger of losing third spot in the league. A draw will end any slim hopes of the Premier League title. No, only three points will do tonight.

Once three points are in the bag, then and only then, can Arsene cast a hopeful eye on the results from elsewhere.

Winning our home games is vital, but winning them on a night when United and Chelsea face tough away games makes them even more valuable. It is not inconceivable that both Everton and Aston Villa take at least a point against Chelsea and Man Utd. Goodison Park and Villa Park are tough grounds to visit for any team. The fixture list has given Arsenal an immediate opportunity to gain ground on the top two.

Arsene is retaining his belief that Arsenal could still win the title as we have played all our games against the best already. As Arsene Wenger himself points out in his pre-match interview, the remaining games between the top sides are vitally important as it guarantees one of our rivals will drop points.

“I believe everybody at the top will drop points because they all play each other,” said Wenger. “We don’t play them anymore and so it’s down to how consistent we will be until the end of the season.”

“It will be tight and we must get on a run now. But when you’ve lost two in a row you worry more about winning the next one and coming back to a winning habit. At the moment, that is my more immediate concern. So the future is this game.”

Three homes wins will do me tonight!

Arsenal vs Liverpool Preview:

Arsenal remain without the services of Eduardo who is still out with a hamstring problem, he may however make the trip to Porto next week. Niklas Bendtner may still not be fit enough to start according to Arsene Wenger.

“I don’t know about him,” said Wenger. “He had a good session on Monday so we’ll see how he responds to that.

“I would love to [start him] but you can see he’s not completely free in the way he runs so we have to see what we do.”

Lets hope Big Nik does start because we could do with him. But i have a feeling Arsene has one eye on the Porto tie next week and wants to protect him for that.

Apart from that Arsenal are unchanged from the side that lost to Chelsea. I would give Thomas Rosicky a start in place of either Theo or Nasri.

My starting line-up would be:

Almunia

Sagna          Gallas          Vermaelen          Clichy

Song

Fabregas          Diaby

Rosicky                                                           Arshavin

Bendtner

That side would beat Liverpool tonight, but don’t be surprised if you see Nasri, Walcott and  even Denilson from the start. Either way i am confident of victory tonight, simply because anything but it a disaster.

Liverpool will be without Alberto Aquilani due to illness, and centre-back Sotirios Kyrigiakos starts a 3-match ban after being sent off against Everton.

Martin Skrtel is likely to replace him with Jamie Carragher continuing at right-back in place of the injured Glen Johnson. Thankfully Fernando Torres and Yossi Benayoun are still out. So Liverpool have problems of there own and Steven Gerrard is not on top form either.

Lets hope for a good night tonight Arsenal fans.

Come on Arsenal, Everton and Villa!!!

Writing about an Arsenal defeat to a title rival has become a predictable story. Dominate possession, create very few clear cut chances, no cutting-edge, concede at set-piece, cut open on the counter-attack, slack defending, world-class striker makes the difference. That’s all you need to know about an Arsenal performance against Chelsea or Manchester United.

The top two know exactly how to play against us. Arsene  Wenger can talk about how we dominated the game with 70% possession all he likes. Does he really think the game would have been like that if Chelsea weren’t 2-0 up after 20 minutes? Carlo Ancelotti’s men knew exactly what they were doing. Defending in numbers with the full-backs tucking in giving us very little room to play our intricate one-two’s around the box and hit us on the counter-attack.

The Italian tactician basically told us his strategy in his pre-match press conference. He highlighted the fact that Arsenal were vulnerable to counter-attacks. Yet we still make the mistake of leaving ourselves open.

But it’s one thing to give a team opportunities, it’s another thing to take advantage of them. The way Drogba powered his way through our back-line was devastating. Again Clichy was all over the place, Vermaelen was forced to cover the Frenchmen taking himself out of position, and Drogba was allowed to cut inside on his weaker left foot and smash it straight through Almunia. It was a rocket of a shot, but i feel Manu could have done better. A world-class keeper gets a hand on that, but there lies the problem…Almunia isn’t world-class.

It was the opening goal that really highlights our poor defensive play though. Leaving Didier Drogba free at the far post was criminal. How can we defend like that and expect to beat a team like Chelsea? A lot of people are hammering Clichy for leaving his post. But watch the replays again. Fabregas and Clichy both noticed that Carvalho was unmarked on the edge of the box. Arshavin was standing on the edge of the area doing very little and should have dropped back to mark him. Fabregas had to leave his position in front of Almunia to cover Carvalho and instructs Clichy to come off his post and replace him. Song loses Drogba and it’s 1-0.

A very messy goal to concede when you look at it properly. We were punished for poor marking and bad decision making, but it wasn’t just Clichy at fault.

All Arsenal fans should be proud of the way the team fought to get back in the game after two early blows. We were excellent in the second half but the lack of a cutting edge up front has once again cost us. If Cesc had buried that free-kick i would have fancied us to snatch an equalizer. But Cech showed why it’s so important to have a world-class goalkeeper. His save from Arshavin when it was 1-0 also changed the game. If we got back to 1-1 it’s game-on.

Positives to take:

Diaby – The return of Diaby will make a real difference to the team. Not only due to his much-needed height and power, but because it means Denilson will be on the bench.

Bendtner – Although Niklas Bendtner isn’t the world-class striker we all crave, but he does give us something different up top so his return to fitness is a boost.

Increasing worries:

Clichy – Clichy’s poor form is a real worry. He not only looks rusty but lacks confidence. Needs to man-up and start producing the performances we all know he’s capable of. I think he will, short term problem.

Almunia – He has never been a top-drawer keeper but was reliable. Now he’s become a liability. Looks short of confidence and the defense know it. Not good enough, replacement in the summer please Arsene.

Nasri – I am a big Nasri fan but his inability to pull the trigger is p*ssing me off! Why on earth did he not shoot yesterday? It’s not the first time he has elected to pass when in a decent goal scoring position either. Technically sound but needs to do more in terms of goals and assists. Again injuries have interrupted him, he’ll be fine but don’t become another Hleb!

Walcott – I really like Theo and think he will come good, but he is just not performing. Rarely getting in the game and when he does often making poor decisions. I will give him the benefit of the doubt for now as he has been plagued by several injuries but time is running out, he needs to find his feet soon. If he does, his pace can be a real weapon. I back him to make an impact in the run-in.

So it looks like we’re out of the title race. But maybe that’s where we’re at our best, being the under dogs. We responded well the last time we were written off following the 3-0 home humiliation to Chelsea and quietly went about our business eventually reaching the summit. Maybe we can do it again.

It has been well documented that after the Liverpool game we have the best run-in by a mile. It is not inconceivable that we go on a 12 game unbeaten run, where that leaves us at the end of the season is anybody’s guess. But as i said in a previous article, you never know what can happen in the highly unpredictable Premier League. Chelsea and United will drop points, whether it will be enough to get Arsenal back in the title race is another question.

Arsene Wenger has little time to lift the players. We now have a truly ‘must-win’ game on Wednesday against Liverpool. Another defeat and our fragile young squad could collapse entirely. Lets get back to winning ways, by beating the scouse. Then if we can take care of the so-called ‘lesser’ teams like we did in the first half of the season we might still have a chance. Don’t forget United won the league last year by only winning 1 game against Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool. There may still be hope for us yet!

Is that it…are our title dreams gone for another year? Please leave your thoughts below….

]]> http://football-talk.co.uk/1412/is-there-any-way-back-for-arsenal-after-deadly-drogba-show/feed/ 0 http://football-talk.co.uk/1407/chelsea-vs-arsenal-match-preview/ http://football-talk.co.uk/1407/chelsea-vs-arsenal-match-preview/#comments Sun, 07 Feb 2010 12:56:17 +0000 Football Talk http://football-talk.co.uk/?p=1407 More >]]> By Fab4.

Match Preview:

Arsenal play Chelsea today looking to repeat last seasons 2-1 victory at Stamford Bridge that would put them right back in the title race. Defeat for The Gunners would leave them nine points adrift and with it all to do. I have a feeling we will get a result today, don’t ask me why i just see us getting at least a draw. But this is based on two things happening:

1) Diaby starts

2) Bendtner starts

Both are well over 6ft and their height and power will be vital for Arsenal today if we are to get something from the game and Arsene will know it. Diaby will have a late fitness test whereas Bendtner is lacking match sharpness. But if i was Wenger i would do all i can to get both of them on the pitch today, as he did with Vermaelen last week.

If Bendtner is adjudged to be short of match fitness, with Eduardo out injured again we will be forced to play Arshavin up top against Terry and Carvalho. Not where he wants to be and Arshavin has said as much himself. The return of Big Nik is vital to give us a bit of strength and height against the Chelsea bully-boys.

Equally important is the return of Diaby to the midfield. Again his height and power will be needed to combat Lampard and Ballack.  Arsene didn’t sound too confident of Diaby’s involvement though.

“He has a chance of being in the squad at least,” said Wenger. “We could do with him.

“But what we have to analyse is if it’s a gamble medically and whether it’s worth the risk of a setback knowing we have to play Liverpool and then the Champions League the week after.”

I don’t even want to think about Denilson starting this one, it would be even more embarrassing than against United, if that’s possible. If Diaby fails his test, stick Ramsey in. He has more ability than Denilson and is bigger and stronger.

Arsene has also been talking about the goalkeeping position recently.

“If you look across Europe you will see that goalkeeping may be the most difficult job because everything is quick,” he said.

“In England it is even harder. The difference is the goalkeeper is always in the negative publicity. If a striker misses two chances and scores two, he is a hero. If a goalkeeper has a fantastic game and makes one mistake, he is a villain.

“They are under massive pressure because of that fear to make one mistake that they know can kill their team and the game. They know it is maybe the most pressurised job in football.

“I think he [Almunia] puts a lot of pressure on his shoulders, too much.”

The main thing i took from his comments was that he seems to have lost faith in Almunia and is giving excuses to explain his recent poor form. The problem is Arsene can’t rely on his back-ups either so will have no choice but to stick with the Spanish waiter this afternoon. If reports that we made a late bid for Thomas Sorenson are true, i am relieved that we are looking to recruit a new goalkeeper. But i’m not sure what these stories will do to Almunia’s confidence. Perhaps he will raise his game to prove he is a worthy No.1. Let’s hope so.

My preferred Arsenal line-up and the one that can win the game:

Almunia

Sagna          Gallas         Verminator          Clichy

Song

Fabregas                  Diaby

Eboue/Rosicky                                                           Arshavin

Bendtner

If Diaby fails his test, cover your eyes for the majority of the 90mins as Denilson will get the nod. If Bendtner is only fit enough to make the bench, we will again see the shortest front-line in the Premier League – Nasri, Arshavin,  and Rosicky. I can see Wenger sticking Eboue in on the right to provide some back-up to Sagna and track Cashley Cole. Don’t forget who assisted the opening two goal’s at the Emirates, i know Arsene won’t.

The defeat last weekend to Manchester United will have knocked our confidence but it’s vital to get back on track today. Another heavy defeat to a title rival may be too much for our young squad to deal with. Let’s put in a back’s-against-the-wall performance and prove all the doubters wrong.

What’s your preferred eleven? List them below please…

Aston Villa 0 – 0 Arsenal

Match Report:

I was at Villa Park as Arsenal and Aston Villa fought out an entertaining draw during Wednesday night’s Premier League encounter. Arsenal had brought a strong travelling support who were in full voice as usual.  Arsenal lined-up as expected:

Almunia

Sagna                           Gallas                      Vermaelen              Clichy

Denilson

Ramsey                               Fabregas

Rosicky                                                                                     Arshavin

Eduardo

Villa started the brighter of the two sides and Young was giving Clichy all kinds of problems down the right, with several dangerous crosses well dealt with by Gallas and Vermaelen. But in defense of Gael, he was given absolutely no support from Arshvin for the first 30 minutes. Our little Russian looked like he had no interest in honoring is defensive duties and Arsene switched him and Rosicky for the last 10 minutes of the first half to give Clichy some cover.

The first chance of the game fell to Agbonlahor when he turned Gallas in the area and got a shot off, but Almunia got down well to tip wide. Arsenal went up the opposite end and Dunne had to deflect Eduardo’s shot out for a corner. Denilson then went one step closer when his left foot drive was well saved by Freidel. It was truly end-to-end stuff. Heskey and Agbonlahor were given Arsenal’s defense plenty of problems and were holding the ball up well. Ashley Young then went close with a 25 yard free-kick which narrowly missed the top corner. Villa were having the better of the first half now and Downing missed a great chance to open the scoring when he blazed over from 10 yards when unmarked at the far post.

Shortly after that chance Arsenal’s injury curse struck once more when Thomas Vermaelen was forced off with a suspected fractured fibula. and was replaced by Sol Campbell. Sickening news for The Gunners. Couldn’t have come at a worse time and now the pressure will be on for Arsene Wenger to find a replacement if it is confirmed as a long-term injury. Campbell was given a tremendous reception by the Arsenal fans who sang ‘Sol’s a Gooner…’ and ‘double, double, double, Sol Campbell has won the double….’ all afternoon.

Then came the best moment of match so far when Fabregas went on a mazy run evading several Villa challenges, he struck a low effort from the edge of the box but the ball struck the foot of the post. What a goal that would have been! Rosicky had a chance from the rebound but Arshavin got in his way and the chance was lost. 0-0 at half time. Disappointing first half performance really. We didn’t play with any real fluency and at times we struggled to hold on to the ball in Villa’s half.

Arsenal started well in the second half and Freidel did well to block a Fabregas effort. Villa responded with a chance of their own and Downing will feel he should have done better when he headed wide from 2 yards after another Young cross. Injury number two for Arsenal, this time Eduardo went off with a hamstring problem. Nicklas Bendtner came on and immediately made his presence felt by getting stuck in to Villa centre backs Dunne and Collins. Big Nik began to win his headers and hold the ball up far more effectively than Eduardo did, understandably given the size difference between the two!

Arsenal were definitely the better side in the second half and were the only team who looked like scoring during open play. Villa’s only threat came  unsurprisingly from set pieces. Andrei Arshavin burst into life with an amazing run from the left, cutting in and skipping past 3 or 4 defenders. He managed to get  a shot off from inside the area but Freidel did well to block. The rebound again fell to Rosicky who took a touch and smashed it against the underside of the bar and the ball bounced to safety. Unbelievable. Maybe he should have done better. The final chance of the match fell to Sol Campbell in the dying minutes when he tried to scramble home from a corner but his effort was blocked and the game ended 0-0.

A really enjoyable draw, although the 2hrs it took just to get on the motorway was less than enjoyable. Why do road maintenance when thousands of football fans will be using the motorway? It was down to 1 lane on the M6, crazy.

Anyway, back to the game. I thought we looked solid enough at the back, Gallas was immense and Sol did really well when he came on. He did look a bit tired by the end and i doubt he will be able to play 3 full games in 10 days. So unfortunately we might be seeing Silvestre coming in for one of the games against United and Chelsea! Cesc was Cesc, and Ramsey did well i though..always full of running. But Denilson had a shocker….again. I am really not picking on him, its a simple fact that he was constantly giving the ball away, losing possession, falling over under the slightest pressure, mis-controlling, losing runners, the lot. The sooner Song is back the better, but i fear Arsene will still persist with Denilson and play him, Cesc and Song together. Keep Ramsey in, he has more talent in his left bollock than Denilson has in his entire body.

Arshavin was in and out of the game, one minute he didn’t look interest, rarely tracked back to help out the defense. Then he explodes into life and goes on an amazing run. Just get him on the ball more and we are laughing. I have to say once Bendtner came on we looked far more dangerous. This is nothing against Eduardo, but he had little joy against the powerful Villa centre backs, but Big Nik bossed them when he came on. He might not be the most elegant of strikers but his power and size will be a useful weapon in the coming games.

A draw isn’t the end of the world, but it just means that if we are to keep up our title hopes we need to beat Man Utd on Sunday. If we don’t, then we will HAVE to beat Chelsea away the following Sunday to have any chance.

Please leave your comments below….

Here are match preview’s for tonight’s Premier League games involving Arsenal and Chelsea. If Arsenal match Chelsea’s result they will return to the top of the Premier League.

Aston Villa vs Arsenal – Villa Park – K.O 7.45PM

Arsenal start off a defining two weeks against Aston Villa at Villa Park tonight.  Tonight’s clash is followed by Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool in consecutive matches. We will know a lot more about Arsenal’s title credentials in two weeks time. 6 points must be a minimum target with 9-10 being a highly successful return.

“I have never known a run of four League games as significant as these in all my time here, never. Not four on the trot. It is a real coincidence that we have games – one after the other – that are all decisive. ” Wenger  admitted in his pre-match press conference.

Arsenal Team News:

Arsene Wenger has received an injury boost with the return of Nicklas Bendtner following 3 months on the sidelines, and Samir Nasri who has returned earlier than expected from a hamstring injury. Both start from the bench tonight.  Defenders Bacary Sagna, Willian Gallas, Thomas Vermaelen and  Gael Clichy will all return to the starting line-up. Manuel Almunia will take up his spot between the sticks with Andrei Arshavin, Thomas Rosicky  and Eduardo also expected to start.

Chelsea vs Birmingham – Stamford Bridge – K.O 7.45pm

Chelsea entertain an in-form Birmingham side that are unbeaten in 12. The Midland outfit held Chelsea to a 0-0 draw at St Andrews on Boxing Day so will come into this game full of confidence. Carlo Ancelotti knows a good win is most likely to see his Chelsea side return to the top of the Premier League table.

Chelsea Team News:

Ivory Coast due Solomon Kalou and Didier Drogba have returned from the African Cup of Nations today but will not take any part. Ashley Cole and Frank Lampard have recovered from knocks and should start.Juliano Belletti may miss out with a calf injury meaning Branislav Ivanovic will get the nod at right back. Jose Bosingwa and Michael Essien are both sidelined.