Kevin Whitcher
An important win was registered against Everton yesterday, in the sense of continuing what has become something of a cyclical experience for Arsenal fans. Team gets eliminated from Champions League in their first knockout tie, makes top four in Premier League, gets back in Champions League, go again.
However, some variety this season. As opposed to being beaten eliminated by a bad draw against a top side, this season, the Gunners were not the underdogs in their last 16 tie. Sure, technically, they aren’t eliminated yet, but Monaco entertained PSG last night and the game ended goalless. Even if Arsenal were to score, are they going to get three in the principality? Without conceding? It’s within the realms of possibility, but the chances are about one in 33 according to the stats people. A long shot.
Anyway, to matters on the pitch yesterday. Two below par performances from two teams, although Everton’s struggles this season, with the burden of a Europa League run, give comfort to those who caution that Arsenal could do a lot worse than the consistent outcomes achieved in recent years.
Roberto Martinez’ defence was well-organised, and limited the chances the home side enjoyed. Olivier Giroud was given the opportunity to put wrongs right after being hauled off against Monaco, and although he could have had a hat-trick, will have been content with scoring the key goal in the match, a well taken volley from Mesut Ozil’s corner.
A more significant inclusion was Gabriel in place of Per Mertesacker. Competition for places in all areas of the team is important, and this luxury was not available for the first half of the season due to the inability to sign a replacement for Thomas Vermaelen. The defender will need to play a few games before we can draw any solid conclusions, but the signs were encouraging. There were a couple of dodgy moments, not dealing with the ball in the first half that allowed Lukaku a great chance to score, and a suicidal pass to Koscielny in the second. Yet there were also some fine moments, principally the tackle on Lukaku when the game was goalless, which has been rightly highlighted.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain started in place of Danny Welbeck, although it looks as if he will need more matchtime to get into his groove. Overall, there weren’t too many outstanding performances, although Bellerin, Coquelin and Ospina stood out.
It’s interesting to see Kieran Gibbs being given a run in the side after his return from injury. Nacho Monreal seemed to be doing ok, certainly defensively, and although one cannot say the lack of defensive nous against Monaco might have been any different with Monreal in the side, there is an argument to play a more naturally cautious defender in European ties. Granted, Gibbs does get forward a lot to help in attack, but in truth, he is rarely effective when he is on the ball. Like many positions in the team, the left back is one where the incumbent in the Invincibles line-up has never really been replaced. You do this either through good scouting or spending money wisely. Two areas that Arsenal have not excelled in since the stadium move, especially when wages are taken into account where the latter is concerned.
I did not check the stories in the papers and online before the match, although was informed of a story in the Daily Mail that indicated Josh Kroenke was unhappy with Arsene Wenger and wanted Thierry Henry to take over as Arsenal’s first team coach. Apparently, both he and his father left the stadium “seething” after Wednesday’s defeat. Any trace of the story had been removed from the Daily Mail website (if it was even on there, it might have only been in the print version for all I know), although the ‘Metro’ relaying of it had left an electronic footprint (on the Newsnow aggregator), even though that, also, had been removed. One imagines the club’s press office had been at work to quash the story, and frankly, its credibility is highly questionable in the first place. Who, from the Kroenkes, is going to brief the UK media? I can believe they would not have been happy after the Monaco game, certainly, but Thierry Henry?
However, it did give a brief glimmer of hope that, just possibly, there might be something in young Josh that does not view repeated Champions League exits at the first sign of things getting serious as the qualified success some seem to regard it as. Time will tell. Whether or not Josh will be pulling the strings before Arsene Wenger’s time in the dugout comes to an end is one we will have to wait on.
In the Premier League anyway, things look set fair for a battle between five sides for the last two Champions League places, assuming Manchester City get their act together and finish the season with some element of consistency after they are (one imagines) eliminated by Barcelona. Southampton are starting to show signs of fading, although Liverpool, on the contrary, have picked up, and if Daniel Sturridge plays most of the matches between now and the season’s end, they will be a threat. Going out of the Europa League on penalties to Besiktas was by no means the worst thing that could have happened to them.
As for Manchester United, who knows? The suspicion is they will pick up enough points at Old Trafford to make the top four. Tottenham have no distractions between now and the season’s end and can focus on winning points. One assumes they will still drop too many cheap points, but any of the teams in the mix have proven well capable of that. As for Arsenal, who knows what kind of team we will see in the FA Cup quarter final. Wenger has sacrificed this competition before in terms of team selection, preferring to focus on more financially rewarding priorities. Ever the economist. He might see continued participation in the FA Cup as compromising the chances of finishing in the top four, and he will probably believe his team has a chance of winning 3-0 in Monaco. It’s good of the club to lay on subsidized travel to the thousands making the trip, but it might be a long old return trip down the M6 and M1.
More immediately, Queens Park Rangers on Wednesday. One hopes to see a little more zip in Arsenal’s play against a very beatable Rangers’ side. As for yesterday, a case of job done in a game that won’t live too long in the memory. Tomas Rosicky’s introduction led to the goal that avoided a repeat of last season’s late equalizer, calmed nerves and an important three points after the wheels had come off in midweek.
I am now on Twitter@KevinWhitcher01.
The new issue of The Gooner can be bought online here. It will also be on sale at the home game v West Ham and at Manchester United and Monaco away.
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Further Reading
A sequel to Arsènal – The Making of a Modern Superclub and entitled Arsène and Arsenal The Quest to Rediscover Past Glories has been written by myself and co-author Alex Fynn. It takes up the story of the club from the last update of the previous book, and can be bought online here. Use the promo code ‘Gooner’ to get 10% off the publisher’s price of £8.99.
