Lessons for Arsenal in fantastic Chelsea win

I think the consensus of opinion is that 10-man Chelsea played perhaps the best game of the year against Barcelona last night, in the Champions League semi-final. And the win by Chelsea against great odds was definitely well deserved.

Would an Arsenal team forced to play Barcelona under the same circumstances as Chelsea have done as well? I think the consensus of opinion would be that they would have capitulated quite easily. But perhaps the same opinionated people would have to concede that Arsenal is a superior team to Chelsea in several areas.

But not in the one that mattered the most last night.

Chelsea could teach Arsenal a thing or three about defending resolutely. And about hanging on, no matter what. Arsenal have the class of Barcelona, but without the tenacity and sheer will to win against great odds, the physical and mental toughness, they are not going to become giant killers like Chelsea or consistent winners like Barcelona.

Arsenal have however got probably the best manager in the business in Wenger, and a crop of promising players that have the potential. But will that potential mature in time for next season?

Let’s wait and see…

Former gunner shows the lazy incumbents how to shoot

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“Pinch me, I’m dreaming.”

That’s probably what Thierry Henry was shouting after scoring the only goal after coming on as a substitute in the FA Cup match against Leeds United last night. And what a goal it was too – typical Thierry Henry finesse.

Thierry Henry?

Yes, the one and only. Five years after leaving Arsenal for Barcelona and New York Red Bulls, he is back… and boy was he needed. I’m sure a fairly large number of supporters at the stadium, and even those watching on television viewed his comeback and goal-scoring as a kind of fairy tale. It was indeed a magical night; one to remember. Perhaps a twin statue outside the Emirates Stadium is required to commemorate this fantastic event. It certainly does not happen very often.

Hopefully Marouane Chamakh and Andrey Arshavin were attentive and learnt how to find the net from the ageing master. However if they did, it seems certain that they will only get to use the knowledge effectively with new clubs, as they are set to leave Arsenal after yet another dismal performance. Arshavin is a busy player but lacks the concentration and finesse of a goal scorer. Chamakh on the other hand is just too lazy for me.

One can only hope that Henry gets more games and extends his stay into the Champions League spell. More goals from the hero of Highbury, would send the Emirates into spasms of pure ecstasy.

RvP, Arsenal’s MVP

Arsenal are on the up!

Image by Ronnie Macdonald via Flickr

Five wins in a row in the Premier League; it didn’t appear that such a run of form was possible after the disastrous start to the season, just three months ago.

However Wenger and the new captain Robin van Persie, turned things around. And boy do I feel like an ass for doubting Wenger’s ability to lead Arsenal into the future, with the departures of Fabregas and Nasri.

Fabregas in particular was thought to be Arsenal’s most valuable player. But with his mind set on a move to Barcelona, he had become a liability to the team, and was in fact a negative influence which probably contributed to some of the embarrassing losses they suffered.

Perhaps van Persie’s true talent was never really appreciated while Fabregas was around, but his true value has finally come to the fore. Not only is he scoring freely [currently the Premiership’s leading scorer], he has probably been instrumental in inspiring Arsenal’s turnaround.

But will he renew his contract and elect to stay at Arsenal? If anybody can convince him to stay, it has to be Wenger…

Barcelona = Soccer Surgery

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Precise, surgical passing and movement, clinical finishing. It’s the Barca way!

Last night the champions of Spain were crowned the Champions of Europe for the second successive year by defeating the champions of England Manchester United. To be fair, “defeating” is a euphemism. Manchester United were handed their asses on a plate. They were literally mesmerised into submission by the sublime Barcelona.

So is it fair to conclude that the Spanish League is superior to the English Premiership?

While Barcelona are currently untouchable, I don’t believe they could perform consistently well for a whole season if they were drafted into the Premier League. The Premier League may not exactly be a display of stylish football, but it is arguably the toughest and most demanding in the world, on both players and coaches. I’m also skeptical if any of the Barcelona players would perform as well should they be signed up to any English team.

Currently they’re performing masterfully in a team and environment which suits them well.

Arsenal in England compares very favourably with Barcelona in style of play and producing the type of football that make the purists go orgasmic with delight. However Arsenal have too many young players who though laden with talent, are still brittle and inexperienced. Off course it doesn’t help that they are playing in such a tough League. I imagine that they should perform better in the Spanish League.

So then, who is the best footballer in the world?

Without doubt it has to be Lionel Messi. I’d venture to say that he’s superior to Maradona or anyone else ever, in the history of football. Messi is the son of the footballing gods. And the best part is that he’s chosen to remain here on Earth among us mere mortals and not sit up there in football heaven smirking like someone else’s son we know.

Some invasive surgery needed to fix wounded Arsenal

So we lost the game to Barcelona. The aggregate scoreline of 4-3 suggests a close battle over two legs, but Arsenal did all the hard work in one game only – last night they just showed up to watch Barcelona pass the ball around.

Forget about the abysmal refereeing decision that led to Van Persie being sent off. That’s going to keep happening until FIFA realise that referees are not the reason people pay money to watch football; until FIFA start sanctioning referees for obvious bad decisions.

Let’s talk about the abysmal Arsenal performance on the night. The only players who were prepared to put in some work were Nasri, Van Persie, Wilshere, Almunia and perhaps Koscielny, Clichy and Djourou did enough. Diaby’s performance was atrocious and Rosicky continued his downward spiral towards has-been-dom.

But the worst player on the night, was conspicuous by his desire to please…the Barcelona fans. I have never seen Fabregas this disinterested in making an effort for his team before. In keeping with all the rumours of his intentions to move back to Spain, it was mentioned by a friend that he could be deemed to have started playing his first match for Barcelona last night.

The other player to have disgusted me the most last night was Bendtner. Seems that his lazy-arse approach creeped in again. Having the chance to win the game by scoring what would have been hailed as a wonder-goal, he couldn’t find that extra five percent to stick his leg out and tip the ball goalwards. What a loser! Strikers have that killer instinct in the goal area – Bendtner has just the lazy itch.

We really missed Song in the midfield and the pace of Walcott on the wing. Why are Arsenal’s most inspiring players always injured for the most crucial games.

Its time for Wenger to perform some drastic surgery. It’s time to cut the lazy players loose. I think we all know who they are.

Gunning for Glory

The Gunners have been to “Hull” and back, and after last night’s Champions League performance against FC Porto (Arsenal 4 – 0), it seems they are ready to face all their demons, and not just the Red Devils. There is serious talent in this squad, and I can’t wait for them to “Leave-a-pool” of tears in their wake from Chelsea, United, Barcelona, Real Madrid and the rest…