Kevin Whitcher
Stoke did not take up their full away supporters’ allocation at Arsenal. And no wonder. Anyone spending their time travelling to watch their unique brand of football needs to take a good look at how they derive their pleasure. The most entertaining aspect of the team is watching manager Tony Pulis gesticulating on the touchline, his council estate garb adding to the humour of the man.
It was rotation time for Arsenal, with Cazorla and Podolski on the bench, as Oxlade-Chamberlain and Mikel Arteta came into the side. Additionally, the new signing, Nacho Monreal, started at left back. Andre Santos was on the bench, as efforts to sell him to a Turkish club on Friday failed because he could only achieve a wage of £30,000 a week there. More interesting was Sebastien Squillaci’s rejection of a rest of season loan deal to Brighton. He would still have got the money he is on now, with Arsenal playing the bulk of it. However, faced with the choice between a meaningful footballing challenge for the next four months, or enjoying the comforts of the Colney crèche (copyright Myles Palmer), he opted for the easy life. That is the kind of motivated individual that Arsene Wenger purchased in the summer of 2010. A different style of manager would have either made Squillaci up his game to the level where he was competing for a first team spot, or ensured his life was such a misery he would want to get out at the first opportunity. However, he is not the only one who has not been challenged and just got comfortable, going nowhere until his overpaid contract runs out. What a waste.
Other transfer developments were that a deal was agreed for Atletico Bilbao’s Fernando Amorebieta, but the player did not want to move. If he had, then apparently Monreal would not have been purchased, as Bilbao were in turn lining up Monreal and would have used the Amorebieta money to sign him. Arsenal upped their bid for David Villa to £15.5 million, but Barcelona didn’t even bother responding, so short was it of their valuation (and reflective that they can afford to maintain a decent player as back up).
So there was some attempt at doing transfer business, but looking at the gulf between Arsenal and the league leaders, one can only hope that the huge amounts left untouched in the player trading account are being saved for a new manager in the summer. The club obviously did not really go the extra mile in their dealings. The fantasy being a tacit agreement that Arsene Wenger has agreed to hand over the reins in the summer and go to Paris St Germain. The Frenchman has not actually been offered a contract renewal as it stands. And even Ivan Gazidis, reporting to Stan Kroenke, must be aware of the general level of dissatisfaction with the line that Champions League qualification is some kind of trophy. It is getting harder for him the peddle his familiar lines about Arsenal’s priority as being to win things, given the evidence.
As for Monreal, he looked generally tidy and positionally good, although in fairness Arsenal’s defence had an easy afternoon. The long ball to lone forward Crouch was dealt with easily enough. So really, it was a matter of waiting for the breakthrough. Three very decent opportunities were created in the first half, two of them being fired straight at Begovic, who had a very good match. There is speculation he will join Manchester United in the summer. Theo Walcott had a good game from wide and actually put in a decent number of quality crosses. There are still moments of frustration, but the return we are getting from the player is definitely improving. Abou Diaby is slowly beginning to show touches of the early season form we witnessed. If he can remain fit and continue in this vein, it will give the manager some options and allow him to rest players in need of a break, as he did with Cazorla yesterday.
The second half saw more of the same. Arsenal pressure, cynical fouls from Stoke. Bringing on Podolski and Cazorla turned the tide, and the former netted a free kick that went through the wall. Fortunately, Chris Foy overruled his linesman who considered Theo Walcott had been actively offside. I’ve not seen anything of the game on TV and they weren’t replaying it on the stadium screen, but I am informed the linesman is an idiot.
So it was job done. Not many will watch the full 90 minutes of this one again on Arsenal player, but points are everything at this stage of the season, and with both Everton and Chelsea dropping them unexpectedly, a top four place is still very much within reach. As for Stoke, they will remain mid-table, and be back to entertain us next season. Tony Pulis is achieving his targets, and one suspects has a job at the Britannia for as long as he does. And we think we are suffering!
The current issue of The Gooner will be on sale next weekend at the away game v Sunderland. It can also be bought online here. There is also an e-version of the issue available to read on your ipad/tablet/iphone/android. The app is free and you can download the first few pages of each issue as a taster before deciding whether or not to purchase the whole thing.
