Gunners on Song
Posted by Young'un in Arsenal | 16 April 2009
"The worst season we've had under Wenger." Those were the words of so many gooners. In December that was. Having lost a cringeworthy five games before the turn of the year, you could forgive Arsenal fans for thinking this season held no promise. But it turns out that they were wrong. Fast forward 4 months and we look to have secured 4th place and that all-important Champions League spot; unthinkable 8 weeks or so ago. Plus, we're in the Semi Finals of both the FA Cup and the Champions League. Some failure season, huh?!
I have not been going to watch The Gunner as much as I would have liked this season, but I did manage to attend last night. The Emirates is often criticised for having a lack of an atmosphere, but the place was buzzing at 7.45 last night, there was an aura of exitement and anticipation, only really felt on a Champions League night. Wenger had opted for 4-4-2, not seen very often in Europe, or even in the league in recent times. Eboue deputised for the unwell Bacary Sagna with young Kieran Gibbs on the opposite flank. Kolo Toure and Mikael Silvestre had to hold the makeshift back 4 together. And judging by the result, you can't have too many complaints about their performance. But it wasn't just the defence that was re-shuffled. Denilson was sacrificed instead of Song, with van Persie returning up front alongside the suddenly prolific Emmanuel Adebayor.
Arsenal started brightly, performing the style of football we have come to love and expect right from the off. Van Persie headed over from Fabregas' cross before Adebayor squandered a great chance as his touch let him down. Godin had perhaps Villarreal's best chance of the game early on as his acrobatic effort fell straight into the arms of Fabiaski, who wasn't rarely tested all night. Then on 10 minutes, Eboue brought the ball out of defence and found Fabregas. The Spaniard deftly flicked the ball through to Walcott who had timed his run brilliantly. The goalkeeper was out in a flash but Theo wasn't fazed. He cooly chipped it over Lopez and watched the ball land just inside the far post. It was a finish of the highest quality, and further eveidence that this boy is improving with every game. Chances were few and far between after that. Adebayor had two good chances in the air but couldn't convert either. His lack of effort, poor control and woeful finishing had the fans around me frustrated. It was one of the worst performances 'The Togonator' had produced.
But the gaffer must have said something to him because Adebayor came out a changed man in the second half. He chased everything, his first touch was improved and his goal was very well taken. Van Persie picked him out with a precise pass, and the lanky striker prodded the ball into the far corner to effectively wrap up the tie for The Gunners. The goalscorer was joined by Eboue, Song and Silvestre in celebrating the goal with a ridiculous jig. It was the only disappointment on the night. With 20 minutes left, the impressive Walcott was tripped in the area and the referee had no choice but to point to the spot. Villarreal were reduced to 10 when Eguren was dismissed following a second yellow for dissent. Van Persie placed the ball on the spot and there was only gonna be one outcome. Lopez went the right way but could not get anywhere near the ball due to the sheer force the Dutchman had generated. The perfect penalty to cap a perfect evening for The Gunners. The goalscorers were all substituted to get a well-deserved breather, as an equally important FA Cup semi is next on the agenda.
I was paticularly impressed with the back four. Eboue looked far more comfortable at right back than in midfield and linked up well with Walcott. Toure seems to be returning to his old form after a jittery start to the season, likely to be because of his malaria he picked up in the summer, and has been a total rock recently, while Silvestre's performance was so good I couldn't believe the fact hat he had not started a game since early January. But, for me anyway, the jury is still out on Kieran Gibbs. On the ball he looks good, and he's a threat going forward, but I'm not convinced by his defending. He was caught out of position far too many times, meaning Silvestre had to come across and cover. Luckily for us, Rossi was so poor that Villarreal could not take advantage of the gap through the heart of the Arsenal defence. I realise that Gibbs is still a teenager, and left back is not his natural position, but the thought of him coming up against Ronaldo in 2 weeks time? Let's just say I'm not feeling confident. Not in that area of the pitch at least.
Theo Walcott rightly ges the attention but there was another star performer last night: Alex Song. We've been crying out for a DM all season, and although Denilson has done a decent job, he's not the answer. But Song may well be. He's strong in the tackle, works hard for the team and is perhaps surprisingly, very comfortable on the ball. Several times last night he was facing his own goal but managed to turn and get away from his marker. Although the likes of Walcott, Djourou and Diaby have come on leaps and bounds this season, I think we all agree that Song has been the most improved player. I genuinely think he can be Cesc's long term partner (assuming he rejects the inevitable approaches from Real and Barca).
So, in all honesty, we have a bloody good squad. We breezed through last night without half the defence and without Andrey Arshavin, who has lived up to his incrdibly high expectations, and is proving to be worth every penny of the Undisclosed Fee paid to Zenit. With him back on Saturday we have every chance of beating Chelsea and it's just a shame he can't play in Europe. We're doing well but we need to keep our feet on the ground, because we all know there will be tougher tests to come than Villarreal.
Comments
I have to say i totally agree with that analysis of Song. He was last night in a word - astounding. I say that not beacuse it was such a shock but due to the quality of the performance. Although i had to do a double take in my head after thinking about it -he was for a period the best player on the pitch. Calm on the ball, intelligent in distribution and he even turned away from his marker on a few occasions a la Alex Hleb. I'm shocked but to be fair he had been improving steadily over the last 5 games. Everytime i've seen him in the PL he has been getting better. That performance last night was way better than anything Denilison has ever produced in an Arsenal shirt and is tobe totally commended given the pressure of a CL quarter final.
Bravo Alex. Now if you could just shoot and score from outside the box.!
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