Kevin Whitcher
With 15 minutes on the clock, Arsenal came good and converted their superiority in this London derby into the much-needed maximum points. And yet, West Ham fans might feel justified that – on the chances up to this point – they could have won the match. It was the kind of game where Arsenal played wonderfully in patches, and woefully in others.
What it seemed to suggest is that the defensive discipline of the early fixtures may have been something of an illusion, because familiar errors have crept back into the Gunners’ game. The way Aaron Ramsey was dismissed for the first goal was shocking. And when Andy Carroll headed the ball straight to Vito Mannone from a corner, ‘challenged’ by Lukas Podolski, it was clear that nothing had been learned from Joleon Lescott’s goal a fortnight earlier at Eastlands. It was a carbon copy except for the finish. Conclusion – zonal marking does not work because it allows the opposition players to decide who they are going to attack for the ball. So you will get mismatches and concede goals.
Still, it could have been worse. Per Mertesacker at least made Carroll’s life a bit more difficult that Laurent Koscielny would have managed, when he had the opportunity to compete with him. The decision to start him was the right one and we can only ask ‘what if’ as far as his non-selection against Chelsea the previous Saturday is concerned. West Ham had other decent chances though, and Carroll’s near miss when he competed for a high ball against Mannone brought back memories of the home defeat to Newcastle in 2010-11, when Fabianski was the culprit.
But ultimately, it came down to the old story of – if our defence isn’t what it should be, we will simply outscore you. And that has been the story of Arsenal for a few seasons now. It’s one that has failed to secure trophies, and it’s one we want to move on from, which was the reason for such optimism after the season started with three clean sheets.
Going forward, the dominance at the start of the match was startling. Corner after corner, although the goal wouldn’t come. When the home side went ahead against the run of play, the balance shifted and it became a more even game. Wenger’s team gradually slipped into that over-ponderous mode where they lack the incision to play the killer pass or take a percentage shot, but before half time it came good with Olivier Giroud’s first league goal, created by an excellent cross from Podolski. It was the kind of ball we have seen played a good number of times in recent seasons, but without a traditional centre forward, they have often found no-one, except on occasion when Robin van Persie has not held back.
Giroud demonstrated the value of gambling on such a delivery, and it’s not the first time he has done so, but up to now has failed to convert. There are fears he is another Marouane Chamakh, and that both men have been top scorers in the French League suggests that this achievement is no guarantee of success in England. But let us hope Giroud proves otherwise. I know he has his critics in the Arsenal crowd, but my feeling is that he will come good, because he has always done the right things positionally, even if his finishing has gone through a bad spell. Do you score goals in the Ligue 1 if you can’t hit the target? Hopefully they will come regularly now.
Long term Upton Park regulars would have reflected on the performance of Santi Cazorla as the kind of display they would love to see from a player in a claret and blue shirt. With Big Sam at the helm, the notion of the Academy that produced the Hammers’ flair players of old has probably ground to a halt, although in spite of this, at times the home team did play some decent on the floor football. It wasn’t like facing Bolton in the old days when the midfleld was at times redundant, even if Andy Carroll was the main threat.
Ricardo Vaz Te’s injury looked like a classic example of karma to me. He failed to lift his trailing leg to avoid hitting Mannone in the face. A cynical act, but as a consequence he lost his balance and dislocated his shoulder. Don’t mess with Don Vito… (unless you’re Andy Carroll it would seem).
As the clock ran down, it seemed a question of fitness. Ironic given Sam Allardyce is a big believer in keeping his players in tip top condition, with a huge backroom team and all the latest equipment to analyse the players’ physical condition. But the gaps that appeared on the pitch favoured Arsenal and Theo Walcott, on as a sub, did what he does best and didn’t need to think when he beat the offside trap for the second goal. Just hone in on the goal and use the angle the keeper gives you. Theo could make a significant contribution to the team this season if he is used as a sub in this way.
The third from Cazorla was a lovely piece of icing on the cake, and killed any hopes of a Hammers revival. He had been guilty of missing a decent chance earlier, so it was good to see him put one between the sticks. Arsenal coasted home for the remaining minutes. It was strange to see them playing in last season’s away kit again, although by logic it should get one more outing when the team travel to Aston Villa.
12 points from 21 looks a lot better than nine going into a fortnight’s break, the nine points dropped in three draws and one defeat. It’s the defeat that hurts the most. At home to Chelsea, if the Gunners had taken three points there, they’d have 15 points to the 16 of Roberto Di Matteo’s side and be level with Manchester City in second. As it is there is a seven point gap.
Still, Arsenal must focus on picking up the points they should reasonably be expected to. This season, the only other failure to do that was at home to Sunderland, the first time the new-look team played together in anger. Norwich and QPR are up next before the visit to Old Trafford. It is imperative Arsenal go to Manchester with 18 points, and work on defending set pieces in the meantime, or United will smell blood…
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