Arsenal 2 West Brom 0: A Tale of Two Penalties

There has been so much fuss in the wake of Arsenal’s recent run of poor results and many had hoped that the Gunners would have enough in the tank top see out an over-achieving West Brom side that has been a surprise package all season long. With so many first-team players rested from that shocker at Athens, Arsene Wenger welcomed a host of familiar faces for the crucial home tie against West Brom.

Gervinho has been a pain to watch in recent times and he was his usual annoying self yet again in the Emirates sunshine. Right from the onset, the Ivorian had a chance when the West Brom defense failed to deal with Santi Cazorla’s corner but he fired his shot wide. Shortly afterwards, the visitors lost Liam Ridgewell as he succumbed to an injury, before being replaced by Goran Popov.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain took on his marker before supplying a cut back to Cazorla but the Spaniard blasted his effort over the bar. With Arsenal failing to take the initiative, West Brom almost punished them when Youssouf Mulumbu located Chris Brunt with a nice pass. The West Brom skipper sent a curler goalwards but it missed by a lick of paint.

Arsenal grabbed the lead in a somewhat fictitious fashion. Cazorla fashioned a chance for himself in the box before dueling with Steven Reid. The maestro made mince meat out of Reid but the West Brom midfielder made a fatal error in swinging his leg in Cazorla’s direction. Cazorla had probably anticipated that Reid was bringing his leg, so he wasted no time in hitting the turf for a glorious dive.

Mikel Arteta had come under the spotlight for all the wrong reasons following his crucial penalty miss against Fulham a few weeks ago. This time, the Spaniard got it right, blasting the ball into the back of the net with a shot through the middle.

Kieran Gibbs drifted forward before crossing the ball into West Brom’s danger area. Gervinho was the first player to attack the ball but his header was awkward to say the least. Arsenal launched another counter attack with Gervinho in the thick of things yet again, he dallied on the ball before sending a teasing pass into the six-yard box but Jack Wilshere sliding effort went wide off the mark.

The Ox got goalside and blasted a shot that was intercepted by Gervinho. The Ivorian had an extra touch before firing a low drive heading for the bottom corner but Boaz Myhill was on hand to make a decent save. The West Brom defense mopped up the pieces afterwards.

Late in the first half, Oxlade-Chamberlain braced himself up for a Goal of the Season contender but he killed a bird in the sky with his proposed effort on goal.

Arsenal started the second half on a brighter note with a series of attacking play that reminded the fans of the old Arsenal. The Gunners switched midfield to attack in a blistering fashion with Giroud and Wilshere in the thick of things but when the ball got to the Ox, his cross brushed the woodwork and went out of play.

Gibbs connected with Gervinho yet again with a nice cross but his header was wayward. On the other end, Thomas Vermaelen did very well to block a Zoltan Gera cross that would have crept into Arsenal’s danger area. Wilshere and Giroud teed up a chance for Gervinho but the Ivorian miscued his effort at the vital moment.

Arsenal increased their tally when the Ox robbed Popov off the ball before drifting into the box. Chris Brunt’s attempt to get the ball was pretty much disappointing as he clearly scythed the Ox down, leaving the ref no choice but to point to the spot yet again. I can remember when Arsenal went through an entire season without receiving any penalty at the Emirates, but in bizarre fashion, we witnessed tho in a game for the home side.

Mikel Arteta braced himself up to take the spot kick but Giroud appeared in the box, asking his vice-skipper to give him a chance to increase his Premier League tally. The last time Giroud took a spot kick, the goalie guessed the right way and Arteta probably had that in mind, which made him decline Giroud’s offer.

The Spanish midfielder fired his shot through the middle and went to celebrate in front of the Emirates faithful. While his teammates ran to celebrate with him, I noticed Giroud heading straight to the center circle. Maybe it was just me though.

Wenger withdrew the Ox for Coquelin to add steel to the midfield as the goal injected some life into West Brom. Arsenal had a free kick on the edge of the area but Arteta scuffed his chance of getting a hat-trick with a poor attempt of a free kick. Tomas Rosicky came on for Gervinho to have a quick run-out.

West Brom threatened twice with a long-range missile from Markus Rosenberg and a poor header from Romelu Lukaku. Lukas Podolski came on for Santi Cazorla right at the death and he was to be involved in some action straight away.

The German teed up a chance for Wilshere and after evading his marker, his shot was blocked. Wilshere in turn, provided a chance for Podolski late on, but the German prodded his shot over the bar from barely six yards out. For a player of Podolski’s quality, that would go down as a howler.

That miss didn’t really matter as Mike Jones’ final whistle brought Arsenal’s fruitless Premier League run to an end. The home side began the game five places and five points behind West Brom. The win propelled Arsenal to sixth place, putting them within touching distance of West Brom and fierce rivals, Tottenham.

Arsene Wenger answered a couple of questions in his post-match interview ranging from the team’s overall performance, Cazorla’s roel in winning the first penalty, squandering chances and his team’s response to criticism. The wily ol’ fox was his usual self, giving nothing to the media Vultures.

This victory was highly needed and it will give the Gunners a chance the much-needed confidence boost to press on as the season progress. A Capital One quarterfinal fixture against Bradford City comes up next and Wenger will be given a chance to rest some tired legs out there,

“I’ll rotate a little bit, yes. For example Sagna, he has played today with a very bad ankle. He is such a tough boy that he said he could play. He will be rested on Tuesday, maybe one or two more. But we will go with a strong squad, we are in the quarter-final and we have an opportunity to go through. We want to take it.”

Time to brace myself for the much-anticipated Manchester derby.

Sayonara.

You can download the Gooner Daily  BlackBerry App to receive notifications on your Smart Phone when a post is published.

You can follow Gooner Daily on Twitter  @goonerdaily. I’ll follow back

Feel free to visit Gooner Daily’s  Facebook page and click on the like button.

You can also join Gooner Daily’s Mailing List to get notifications of new posts by email by clicking on the Follow button

Thoughts on Henry’s Return and Pre-West Brom News

In the wake of Arsenal’s recent run of results, the latest Premiership betting odds will be firmly stacked in Arsenal’s favor, as the bookies will probably believe that tomorrow’s game will certainly not be a stroll in the park for the Gunners despite being at home. A poor return of five wins in 15 Premier League games has seen the Gunners float in mid-table waters, and this has caused a stir among the Arsenal faithful.

I don’t know about you, but I’ll still have a bet on Arsenal. I’ve seen this club go unbeaten and I’ve been there throughout the trophy-less spell. I’ve witnessed my team throw away a handsome four goal lead and I’ve also seen the team come back despite being four goals down in the first half.

Arsenal will host West Brom knowing that anything less than a win would suffice for the fans. The players have been all over the news as well, doing what they do best – talking with their mouths in front of the cameras, instead of talking with their legs on the pitch. Francis Coquelin wants his team to have focus, Bacary Sagna wants the team to be wiser, Mikel Arteta wants to do his best to win the fans and Olivier Giroud has stated that the fans have been brilliant to him.

Bleeeeeh!

According to the official website, the club has an ever-increasing injury list. Abou Diaby (Diabytes) and Lukasz Fabianski (ankle) have been bored for a long while and they’ll be happy to know that Lukas Podolski (hamstring), Theo Walcott (calf), Bacary Sagna (foot), Laurent Koscielny (thigh) and Andre Santos (the spirit of van Persie’s jersey) will be with them on the treatment table.

The French defensive duo of Sagna and Koscielny picked up knocks from the Battle of Goodison but it’s really sad to know that the attacking duo of Walcott and Podolski will be joining their ranks.

This means that Arsenal will have Gervinho and the Ox on the wings supporting Giroud and the French forward might be starved, as both wingers don’t have crossing in their lexicon. I’d love to share these words culled from Soccergunz in his recent post, 5 Lessons from Greece,

 …Chamakh and Gervinho were dismal: Save the assist to Rosicky, Gervinho was his usual annoying self. A simple pass would have been great in many situations but he just dilly-dallies and dribbles to a brick wall. Chamakh was worse. Nothing went right for the Moroccan. He is a goner.

…Chamberlain isn’t living up to expectation: He might be 19 but Arsenal isn’t a youth Championship side. He has been below-par this season and I didn’t notice him on Tuesday night. Is he being over-hyped or are we being impatient? Ramsey and Coquelin are in the same ship.

With the creative talent Arsenal’s midfield has in its disposal, it’s really sad to know that Arsenal’s second-string attack isn’t up to scratch. The attacking triumvirate of Podolski-Giroud-Walcott has a good goalscoring return of 24 goals, but when Wenger fielded their deputies against Olympiakos, they were pretty much peripheral figures.

You could say that I’m being harsh on Gervinho, Chamakh and the Ox judging from the fact that they haven’t had much playing time this season (bar Gervinho) but the lack of attacking cohesion showed in Greece was a cause for concern as injuries have paved the way for these wingers with below-par performances all season long to strut their stuffs yet again.

I really hope that they’ll give me a chance to swallow my words on Saturday and I’ll keep my fingers crossed on that front. Mike Jones has been appointed as the referee for the contest and we can only hope that the Gunners will come out with all guns blazing this time.

With Arsenal failing to get a center forward that was good enough to fill up van Persie’s big shoes (no disrespect to Giroud), many believe that Arsene Wenger has to delve into the transfer market this winter to get a clinical center forward that would bang in the goals that would propel the Gunners further up the table.

For a striker coming from another footballing culture, Giroud has done well but at this point in time, he has no able deputy. Any injury suffered by the forward would make Arsenal fans press the panic button so hard, it would spring from its remote control. Nowadays, Arsenal has been reduced to using Gervinho as a center forward and we all know how that has panned out.

There must be a reason why Gervinho never seems to look up when he’s with the ball in the final third. Could it be his massive forehead, his dreadlocks covering his eyes or it is because he’s looking for Aliens on the pitch to destroy because he looks like a Predator?

Arsenal will have to make do with Giroud, the Predator Gervinho, Chamakh (oh my!!), the Ox and the injured attacking duo till the January transfer window.

The media Vultures have wasted no time in linking Arsenal to several forwards in the football galaxy. The Mirror reports that the Gunners are lining up bids for Klass-Jan Huntelaar and Wilfred Zaha, the Sun reports that Arsenal is set to trigger Demba Ba’s £7.5m buyout clause and the Telegraph reports that the Gunners have Fernando Llorente on their radar.

Articles like this are usually taken with a pinch of salt but when Goal.com, Football.co.uk, Just Arsenal News, Soccer Without Limits and many more columns out tell you that King Thierry Henry is coming back to Arsenal for a third spell, a few thoughts have to go through your mind.

Last Christmas, I wrote an article giving 5 reasons why Henry shouldn’t be re-signed by Arsenal (Bleacher Report’s version here). As expected, the article brought mixed emotions as some Gunners shared the same sentiment with me while others felt that I was wrong to judge the King.

With Gervinho and Chamakh out in the shores of Africa, Henry had a fairytale debut with a trademark finish against Leeds United. After playing seven games with the Gunners, he signed out of the Premier League in grand style with a 93rd minute match-clincher against Sunderland.

Henry solidified his legendary status with the team and Wenger had expressed his desire for the King to stay a bit but Henry had other commitments with his parent club, New York Red Bulls.

One year on, Arsenal is in a similar situation, with Henry’s return imminent. Last time out, I had expressed my concerns about his age, lack of pace, Henry being past his prime, tainting his legacy and ultimately, the fact that there are better players out there.

This time around, I’m 100% percent behind the King returning to the Emirates yet again but he should focus on being an inspiration off the pitch, and if afforded a chance, on the pitch. At the age of 35, Henry has seen it all – Premier League titles, FA Cups, La Liga titles, Champions League, you name it.

In this current crop of Arsenal players, no one, I mean, no one knows what it feels like to stand on a podium celebrating a trophy. Winning your first trophy is like smoking a cigarette for the first time, for some strange reason, you’ll be compelled to take another cigarette…and another, till you get to the point where you’ll quit smoking years later.

Funnily enough, some never quit till they die.

Translating it back to football, Sir Alex Ferguson is a manager that has won many trophies with this Manchester United side and he had every reason to quit after surpassing Liverpool’s long-standing record of 18 League titles. Despite winning 12 League titles, five FA Cups, four League Cups, 10 Community Shields, two Champions Leagues, one Cup Winners Cup, one UEFA Super Cup and one Club World Cup, he has not rested on his laurels and his team are currently topping the table, despite having a jersey that looks like a table cloth.

Here he has smoked so many cigarettes and despite being a chain smoker, he’s not quitting anytime soon. That’s why Arsenal lost Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie, because there were no cigarettes for them to smoke.

When Olivier Giroud heard about the rumors linking Henry with a possible return, he was overjoyed. When he joined Arsenal this summer, he wasted no time in choosing the No. 12 jersey and I have a hunch that the decision was influenced by the fact that it was a jersey recently vacated by Henry.

As I’d stated earlier, having a living legend like Henry around will be a positive influence to the lads, because they could do with a lift right about now.

On the pitch, Henry has done pretty well to maintain good fitness levels as well as his amazing goalscoring form in the MLS. In the concluded 2012 season, Henry scored 15 goals (including a corner kick) and supplied 12 assists in 25 games. His team finished in fourth place though.

In conclusion, I’ll welcome Henry back to Arsenal in open arms. Feel free to share your thoughts as well.

Sayonara.

You can download the Gooner Daily  BlackBerry App to receive notifications on your Smart Phone when a post is published.

You can follow Gooner Daily on Twitter  @goonerdaily. I’ll follow back

Feel free to visit Gooner Daily’s  Facebook page and click on the like button.

You can also join Gooner Daily’s Mailing List to get notifications of new posts by email by clicking on the Follow button

West Brom Aftermath, RVP on the Spotlight and Podolski Eager For Action

Lukas Po-Goal-ski

“I’m going to find it hard serving two masters, very hard.”

“The marriage between me, my future wife and Arsenal is a somewhat polygamous lifestyle which is certainly unhealthy, but it can’t be stopped. I’m scared I may love Arsenal more than her and it’s already trumping my nuclear family.”

“Sunday’s game against West Brom was heart pounding as the game progressed but the end was no different from ‘orgasm’. I’m still feeling the effect of this entire campaign and it will last in my heart forever.”

“The tension Arsenal gives is a drug. The drug could kill but it has become an addiction to me.”

“The love I have for Arsenal is unrivaled” 

****

These are the words of Bobby Agulanna or @dkingpin as he’s known in the Twitterverse. This season has been one hell of a roller-coaster ride and it’s fair to say that the Gooners have seen it all.

In Arsene Wenger’s news letter, he commended the team for their performance on Sunday and was proud of the fact that Champions League berth was achieved again for the 15th year in a row. He also paid a befitting tribute to his trusty side kick, Pat Rice.

Wenger isn’t the only Gunner that has been in the act on the aftermath of the West Brom game. Theo Walcott has spoke about his admiration for Kieran Gibbs over that match-saving tackle that was worth its weight in gold, or £30m to be precise. That tackle was trending on Twitter, as many timeline went haywire with Gooners showering praise on Quickie Gibbsie for his heriocs

For those that were probably drunk or had something in their eyes at that precise moment, this is for your viewing pleasure,

Elsewhere, Laurent Koscielny dedicated the winning goal to the team while Jack Wilshere taunted Tottenham fans on Twitter, declaring that North London is Red and it will always be. Let’s not forget that he also won the £3,000 bet he placed with them last year with the ultimate winner being charity. However, Wilshere was calling on every Gooner to support Chelsea in the forthcoming Champions League final in the Allianz Arena, Munich.

Arsenal’s participation in the Champions League is irrespective of Chelsea winning it or not, but I’d rather see Spurs to go the qualifiers to lose to some random team, than to root for Chelsea winning the Champions League before “us”.

The last time I checked, I bleed Red and that’s the color of Bayern Munich.

After a campaign that would be fondly remembered by him, Robin van Persie went home with the Golden Boot, after scoring 30 goals in this season’s Premier League. Manchester United’s Shrek was close in second place (27 goals) while Sergio Kun-Aguero (23 goals) came in at third place.

With this season done and dusted, Arsene Wenger, his teammates and the fans are waiting patiently to see how his contract situation will be addressed. However, van Persie remains coy on his future but he said that he’ll always love the club whatever happens this summer.

A pivotal meeting has been scheduled in London at a neutral location for Van Persie’s camp to begin face-to-face negotiations with senior club officials, Arsene Wenger and Ivan Gazidis and it is rumored that the club is set to hand him a bumper £130,000 per week deal with a £5m signing-on fee.

To whom it may concern, cult-hero Emmanuel Frimpong featured in a Lethal Bizzle rap video about Robin van Persie.

Trust me, its #deeeeeeeench.

Lukas Podolski suffered the ignominy of relegation with FC Cologne but he did his bit in attack with 18 Bundesliga goals while the defense remained shambolic. The world’s worst-kept secret was unveiled when Arsenal announced his signing and the forward has stated that he’s eager for action wearing the sacred Red and White:

“I had a very good season with Cologne, I played well and as a result I’m now going to Euro 2012 with lots of confidence. After that, I will be joining up with my new team-mates at Arsenal and it is my goal just to do my best and be successful there.”

“For me it doesn’t really matter when you take such a step in your career, whether it is now or a few years earlier, it’s difficult to say when the time is right. But I’m now 26, and nearly 27, so this step in my career might just be the right time to do it.”

The striker also revealed that Per Mertesacker told him all about Arsenal, making his decision to move to North London easier. He has also declared that he’ll play anywhere. Podolski is an efficient center forward that’s also adept playing on the wings.

His versatility will play a key role next season and he’s odds on to relieve the goalscoring burden off van Persie as the Gunners banked heavily on the Flying Dutchman in this campaign.

The Gooners believe that Podolski came to Arsenal to support van Persie.

Let’s hope that he’s not his replacement.

Sayonara.

You can follow Gooner Daily on Twitter @goonerdaily. I’ll follow back

You can also visit Gooner Daily’s Facebook page and click on the like button.

Finally, you can join Gooner Daily’s Mailing List to get notifications of new posts by email

 

3 Goals Scored, 3 Points Gained and 3rd Place Secured

Kos the Boss with the winner after a Fulop assist

A season that had engulfed football lovers and neutrals alike was finally coming to an end and I must say that yesterday’s games were the most epic I’ve ever watched in my entire life. Never has there been so much at stake at various positions in the log, ranging from the very top to things down below.

Queens Park Rangers had it at the back of their minds that a defeat to Manchester City was going to cost them their top-flight status but they gave the oil moneybags as run for their money. New signing, Sergio Aguero, put his name in the Etihad folklore with that amazing strike right at the death.

In as much as I was happy to see the Premier League taken off Manchester United’s grasp, the fact that $amir Na$ri justified the noise he made was certainly a bitter pill to swallow. However, it was nice to see ex-Gunners like Kolo Toure and Gael Clichy get that “feeling” yet again.

Arsene Wenger was faced with a monumental task of rallying his troops for one final surge against West Brom with Champions League qualification being the ultimate price. Elsewhere, Tottenham hosted Fulham while Newcastle visited Everton.

Early on, the gauntlet was thrown by Tottenham when ex-Gunner, Emmanuel Adebayor, showed off his technique with a good finish to put the Spuds ahead. Arsenal responded back, thanks for Yossi Benayoun’s determination and Martin Fulop’s stupidity.

The goalie had a moment Manuel Almunia would have been proud off when his decision making got the better of him on the edge of his own box and Benayoun was on hand to punish him. In what might probably be his last game for Arsenal, the Rabbi’s efforts to the club will forever remain in our hearts and we can only wish him the best in his future endeavors.

West Brom almost pegged Arsenal back through a quick shot from Marc-Antoine Fortune but Wojciech Szczesny was on hand to make a good save in his near post. However, Szczesny’s decision making played a quick one on him when Shane Long, that was clearly offside, broke through to place a shot past the goalie.

The hosts took the lead courtesy of a cliche Arsenal fans have become accustomed to, suspect defending. An over the top chip from Morrison was controlled by Graeme Dorrans, that used his head to evade Laurent Koscielny before rifling the ball past Szczesny.

Benayoun was one of the livelier figures in the Arsenal forward line and he connected with some nice Carl Jenkinson crosses but the end product was lacking. Andre Santos showcased his attacking prowess, shimming past a handful of defenders before drilling the ball past Fulop.

Wenger showed his intent after the interval, introducing Theo Walcott for Tomas Rosicky. The Czech dynamo wasn’t the usual vibrant Little Mozart we’ve seen in recent weeks. After some intense pressure, van Persie swung in a corner kick that was within Fulop’s range but he chose to flap at the ball towards Koscielny’s direction, that wasted no time in flicking it home.

I’m the Boss…Kos the Boss

Wenger brought on reinforcements in the form of Kieran Gibbs and Aaron Ramsey but the home side looked more likely to score a goal with every attack they launched. Keith Andrews let one rip from some distance but Szczesny was equal to the challenge.

The fact that Jermaine Defoe made it two for Tottenham increased the pressure in my blood and certainly some Arsenal fans out there. Last week, we were in a familiar situation where Benayoun scored early, only for the opposition to score two. We pegged them back and got the lead only to surrender it late on.

An epic moment arrived when the tension was unbearable, even for a manager with an elephant’s skin, Arsene Wenger.

The words uttered by Major D’Sun shortly afterwards are certainly worth sharing:

“It finally got to him (Wenger), this job is not easy. If people did not die from heart attack today, whoever that discovered football needs to be blessed.”

“I hope we have learned our lessons and I don’t want to be put through this kind of tension again”

Late on, Koscielny put his body in the line to block a tackle but the key moment of the day belonged to Kieran Gibbs, that gave everything in him to block a goal-bound shot. The sound of the final whistle was like music to my ears, Arsenal had their destiny in their own hands and they fulfilled it.

Szczesny (7.0) put up a good shift despite a disappointing first half. I also learned that he was nursing a shoulder injury for weeks but he had made himself available courtesy of pain killers.

Jenkinson (7.0) sent a boatload of crosses into the opposition area but he sent chills down my spine with his shirt tugging antics in Arsenal’s box.

Andre Santos (7.5) supported the attack well and had a well-taken goal.

Vermaelen (6.5) was caught out of position for both goals. In as much as I love the Verminator, he needs to improve on his positioning next season.

Koscielny (8.0) covered Vermaelen’s tracks, scored the match winner and made an absolutely important block late on.

Coquelin (6.5) was a bit sloppy in midfield but he held the fort well.

Song (7.5) enjoyed the free role he was assigned too and distributed great passes as well.

Rosicky (6.5) lacked his usual spark.

Gervinho (6.0) pressed and probed but offered nothing in the final third.

Benayoun (7.5) showed his determination in getting Arsenal’s first goal and used his versatility to great effect in the second half.

van Persie (6.5) didn’t get on the score sheet but he held up play well.

Walcott (6.5) added to some wit to Arsenal’s attack.

Gibbs (8.0) will be forever remembered for the tackle that saved Arsenal’s season.

Ramsey (6.5) didn’t put a wrong foot after coming in.

Martin Fulop also deserves a honorable mention for a 10.0 performance against Arsenal. If you take out the “U” in his name, a new word would certainly be formed.

While Manchester City had the last laugh for their stellar performances all season long, the balance was restored in other positions as Arsenal secured what might be an automatic Champions League spot or a Champions League play-off spot.

A few months back, Rafael van der Fart opened his pile hole to say that he’s confident that Tottenham will finish above Arsenal. Despite the fact that I gave 11 reasons why Tottenham can never finish above Arsenal, here are a few more points for van der Vaart and those 5pur2 out there:

• Arsenal made its worst start in 58 years
• Arsenal sold last season’s most influential player
• Arsenal sold its homesick captain
• Arsenal lost its most promising player to an ankle injury for the entire season
• Arsenal lost 8-2 to Manchester United
• Arsenal didn’t win any league game in January 2012
• Arsenal suffered a mysterious injury crisis that saw the team lose all recognized fullbacks for a month
• Arsenal were 10 points behind Tottenham before the North London Derby.

Despite all these shortcomings, the Gunners still finished above Tottenham.

I indulge you to check out this amazing article by Poznan in my Pants where Pictures Speak Loudest.

In all my years as an Arsenal fan, I’ve never seen the Gunners finish below the Spurs.

I’ve also been very confident with this assessment to the stage that I’m still in the opinion that if Arsenal ever ends up in 17^th place, Tottenham will get relegated.

Happy St. Totteringham’s day.

Sayonara.

You can follow Gooner Daily on Twitter @goonerdaily. I’ll follow back

You can also visit Gooner Daily’s Facebook page and click on the like button.

Finally, you can join Gooner Daily’s Mailing List to get notifications of new posts by email

Games that cost Arsenal dearly in the 2010/11 season

Arsenal Football Club ended the 2010/11 Barclay’s Premier League in fourth place despite challenging Manchester United for the right to crowned as champions but they fell by the road side at the business end of the season. Some many factors contributed to Arsenal’s Premier League demise which ranged from the forwards’ profligacy to incompetent refereeing.

Arsenal had a very different approach in the Cup competitions. The club had a successful run in the Carling Cup but the Gunners crashed in the final hurdle. Most gooners believed that Arsenal’s Carling Cup glory would have fueled the club for greater success but it was the exact opposite. Arsenal lost the game in the 89^th minute thanks to a horrendous error caused by Laurent Koscielny and Wojciech Szczesny. Arsenal had one of the easiest FA Cup run-outs in recent years but they failed in their first big test when they visited Old Trafford.

The Champions League draws offered Arsenal the chance to top a group that had Shakhtar Donetsk, SC Braga and Partizan Belgrade but with the group looking relatively easy on paper, Arsenal somehow found themselves on the back foot after back to back losses to Shakhtar and Braga. There was even a point in time when Arsenal was in a very precarious situation with Europa League football being a possibility if they didn’t secure a win against Partizan and Braga won Shakhtar. The Gunners won the final game of the group but they braced themselves for a clash with the emperors of modern day football, FC Barcelona.

Arsenal shocked the World with a historic 2-1 win against Barcelona at the Emirates but they also entered the football history books when they visited the Nou Camp to be the first side to lose a game in the Champions League knockout phase without a single shot on goal.

History

Here’s my take of the games that cost Arsenal dearly last season from August 2010 to May 2011.

Arsenal 2 West Brom 3 (25^th September, 2010)

Arsenal hosted West Brom three days after getting their sweet revenge against Tottenham in the Carling Cup but Almunia picked up the wrong game to make his critics mouth water. He scythed down Peter Odemwingie in the box and injured his elbow in the process. He did well to save Chris Brunt’s penalty but he put a horror show in the second half that was worse than Resident Evil, Saw IV and Nightmare on Elm Street put together.

Almunia concedes the penalty

He was lost in transit when Odemwingie scored the match’s opener, his judgment let him down when a simple Gonzalo Jara shot went past him to the net and he was miles away from his goal when Jerome Thomas put the visitors 3 goals up with 20 minutes to spare. Samir Nasri did well to score a brace but it was not enough to salvage a draw for Arsenal. A football betting site in Nigeria called Nairabet gave West Brom the odds of 12.0 to win the game. I wonder how those gamblers that placed their bets on West Brom felt after the final whistle.

Shakhtar Donetsk 2 Arsenal 1 (2^nd November, 2010)

Arsenal destroyed Shakhtar at the Emirates before playing them again a fortnight later but Arsenal’s loss at the Donbas Arena turned the tables on Group H.

Rosicky in action

Arsenal went off to a flyer when Theo Walcott dashed through the middle to score a goal that Arsenal legend Thierry Henry would have been proud of but Craig Eastmond decided to score his first Arsenal goal at the wrong end of the pitch though to level the game at 1-1. Clichy’s Self-Destruct chip got activated so Shakhtar’s captain Darijo Srna wasted no time in stealing the ball before gifting to Eduardo who placed the ball past Fabianski. As promised, Dudu Composure did not celebrate the goal.

 

Arsenal 2 Tottenham 3 (20^th November, 2010)

Arsenal demolished Tottenham a month before this fixture but it will forever remembered for Arsenal’s capitulation in the second half after a scintillating first half performance. Samir Nasri squeezed the ball in from a very acute angle after rounding Heurelho Gomes. Marouane Chamakh reacted first from an Andrey Arshavin cross to put the Gunners 2 up but 3 goals from the World’s best left-footed Chimpanzee, Rafael van der Vaart and Younes Kaboul ensured that Tottenham’s grueling 68-match unbeaten streak against a Top Four side came to an end. They didn’t pick any better ground to end the record; the home of the old enemy.

The World

SC Braga 2 Arsenal 0 (23^rd November, 2010)

In a match where Arsenal lost Cesc Fabregas and Emmanuel Eboue to injuries, the Braga side that was whitewashed at the Emirates turned on the style to defeat the Gunners thanks to a brace from Matheus. 

The result put Arsenal’s Champions League lives on the balance and Arsenal was also usurped by Shakhtar after their victory over Partizan.

Manchester United 1 Arsenal 0 (11^th December, 2010)

Samir Nasri’s sheer brilliance against Fulham propelled Arsenal to the summit of the Premier League a week before the Gunners visited Old Trafford so the Gunners had a very simple yet daunting task ahead of them, to avoid defeat but Manchester United’s Korean Wong Fei-Hong’s header was enough to displace Arsenal from the top of the pile. Unfortunately, that was Arsenal’s last stint at the top of the Premier League.

Wong Fei-Hong

Newcastle 4 Arsenal 4 (5^th February, 2011)

Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea have Premier League records that they refer to as their bragging rights. Chelsea is the team that has the least amount of goals conceded in a Premier League season while Arsenal is the only team that didn’t lose any match in an entire season. Liverpool’s 18-league title record was smashed to bits by Manchester United but when they visited the Molineux to play Wolves, they shared Arsenal’s bragging right at that moment. Wolves’ win against Manchester United meant that Arsenal had a chance to cut the gap at the top but Arsenal fed the neutral football lovers with an epic but Arsenal fans with feelings of utter frustration and despair.

Stupidity 101

A Walcott placed finish, Djourou header and van Persie put Arsenal in the driving seat at halftime but Abou Diaby’s silly red card early in the second half paved the way for an amazing comeback for Newcastle. Phil Dowd also had a hand in Newcastle’s comeback by awarding two soft spot kicks.

Arsenal 1 Birmingham 2 (27^th February, 2011)

This is definitely one of the worst games I’ve witnessed as an Arsenal fan. We always have a knack for blaming the referees or other reasons when things go wrong but that game in Wembley was a lot different. Szczesny was lucky to be on the pitch early on after he hacked Bowyer in the box. Nikola Zigic opened the scoring for Birmingham but van Persie equalized for Arsenal and injured his knee in the process. Obafemi Martins scored the winner for Birmingham thanks to….

The perfect time to cry

Barcelona 3 Arsenal 1 (8^th March, 2011)

After the Cup final loss to Birmingham, Arsenal went on a downward spiral that summed up their season with a series of lethargic and frustrating performances. Arsenal visited the Nou Camp on the back of a disappointing home draw against Sunderland that saw Szczesny produce a top drawer save from Welbeck’s shot. Wojciech Szczesny started the game in goal but a Dani Alves free kick ruptured the muscles in his finger thereby giving Almunia another chance to quell his personal demons. Almunia made a series of decent saves but the World’s best footballer scored a goal that only Lionel Messi could score by lifting the ball above Almunia before shooting into an unguarded net. That goal would have been avoided but Fabregas decided to be cheeky at the wrong end of the field and was duly punished for it. Sergi Busquets own goal frightened Barcelona a bit but the referee made a decision that demoralized Arsenal and gifted the game to Barcelona on a platter of Catalunyan gold.

Busacca: You wankhammer!

Xavi and Messi killed off the tie but van Persie’s red card took its toll because if he was at the end of Jack Wilshere’s superb pass at the death, Arsenal would have geared themselves up for a revenge mission with Shakhtar in the quarter finals but it was not to be thanks to the poor first touch of the self-acclaimed World’s best striker, Nicklas Bendtner.

Manchester United 2 Arsenal 0 (12^th March, 2011)

Arsenal entered the New Year with hopes of winning the quadruple but the defeat against Birmingham and Barcelona made everybody hope for the league and cup double but a frustrating performance against Manchester United in the FA Cup quarter final meant that Arsenal had only the Premier League to fight for.

Mr. Consistency

Wenger made a tactical error by playing Kieran Gibbs ahead of a fit Gael Clichy and Arsenal paid for that switch because Evil Twin Fabio’s first goal came from Gibbs position. A Wayne Rooney header ended Arsenal’s hopes for FA Cup glory but the game was marred by Johan Djourou’s shoulder injury inflicted by his teammate Bacary Sagna.

West Brom 2 Arsenal 2 (19^th March, 2011)

Arsenal’s fortnight of horror was complete with the defeat at Old Trafford a week earlier so every gooner expected the players wearing the Red and White to give everything left in them to win the Premier League because Manchester United were still in three competitions at that point in time but Almunia proved to Wenger and the rest of the World that he doesn’t to keep for Arsenal, Spain or England as he aspired at some point in his life. The first goal he conceded was very understandable because even the best keepers in the galaxy conceded goals form headers but the second goal conceded cannot be explained with simple words. I’ll explain it the way I did in my match review blog post for that game.

That awkward moment

“Mulumbu played a simple over the top ball for Odemwingie. Squillaci was with Odemwingie when the ball was played. For no reason explainable to man, Almunia ran out of his box to attack the same ball like a robot whose control chip became dysfunctional. Odemwingie controlled the ball and evaded Squillaci. Almunia then “pushed” Squillaci out of the way like he knew what he was doing. Like his fellow Nigerian Obafemi Martins in the Carling Spoon final, Odemwingie had the simplest of tasks by planting the ball into an unguarded net. Koscielny ran to anticipate the ball but his act was futile. A faster defender like Evra, Clichy or Micah Richards might have stood an outside chance of anticipating it.”

WBA 2 Arsenal 0, so much for my W-W-W-W-W form table.

The commentator said that, “Arsenal attack like Men and defend like Children”.

Arshavin and van Persie scored for Arsenal bought it wasn’t enough as two points went begging.

Arsenal 0 Blackburn 0 (2^nd April, 2011)

In the build-up to the game against Blackburn, the media Vultures told the World that Arsenal had mathematical chance of winning the Premier League as long as they beat Manchester United and win their eight other games starting with a home tie against Blackburn. Jack Wilshere spurned the best chance of the game by missing at point blank range. That was one of the most lethargic performances I seen the Gunners play. Paul Robinson is renowned for being Arsenal’s goal scoring wife with over 60 goals conceded to the Gunners ranging from his days at Leeds, Tottenham and Blackburn but Robinson kept a clean sheet. That shows you how poor Arsenal was.

Disgrace

Arsenal 1 Liverpool 1 (16^th April, 2011)

Arsenal were going into their most important week of the season with three must-win ties against Liverpool, Tottenham and Bolton but the Gunners produced games that prompted for some fans to ask for Wenger’s head on a plate. In a game against an under-strength Liverpool side that didn’t have the likes of Steven Gerrard, Daniel Agger, Glen Johnson and Joe Cole, Fabio Aurelio and Jamie Carragher suffered injuries in the same but Arsenal couldn’t find a way past them for 90 minutes.

Pantomine villain

In the 7^th minute of extra time, Fabregas waltzed into the Liverpool and was tackled by some bloke leaving the ref no choice but to point to the spot. Robin van Persie converted the spot kick with the class he’s renowned for but Farmer Emmanuel Eboue picked the worst ever game for dive to the ground with an opposition player. For the first time in a very long while, Arsene Wenger was literally on his knees when Dirk Kuyt was about to take the penalty that was converted in the 101^st minute of play. This game summed Arsenal’s disappointing season.

Tottenham 3 Arsenal 3 (20^th April, 2011)

Rival matches are more or less the best games in the Premier League. Arsenal disgraced Tottenham in the Carling Cup in September. Tottenham returned the favor in the Premier League a month later. Tottenham and Arsenal clashed in White Hart Lane with a lot at stake. Tottenham had a taste of Champions League football last season that saw great European sides like Inter Milan, AC Milan and Real Madrid visit their home ground so they wanted to get that feeling again and a win against Arsenal would have helped their cause. Arsenal on the other hand was fighting for Premier League honors so anything less than a win would be labeled as a disappointment.

Clumsy

Walcott scored a goal early on but it was canceled by Rafael van der Vaart’s strike. Samir Nasri scored his first goal since the days Idi Amin ruled Uganda then van Persie smashed the roof of the net to put Arsenal 3 up against the old enemy put goals from Tom Huddlestone and Rafael van der Vaart ensured that both rivals where going to share the spoils of a fiercely contested battle.

Bolton 2 Arsenal 1 (23^rd April, 2011)

Chelsea had usurped Arsenal to second place so a win against a Bolton side that was thrashed by Stoke Rugby Football Club was mandatory but the Gunners showed us why they have been trophy-less for the past five seasons by failing to stand up when they ought to be counted. Arsenal was undone by the oldest trick in the book; set pieces. Impressive loanee Daniel Sturridge was the quickest to react from a corner to give the lead to the home side. Kevin Davies missed the chance to give Bolton a comfortable lead with a penalty that was saved by Wojciech Szczesny. Robin van Persie equalized for Arsenal with a neat goal after a good one-two with Cesc Fabregas but Arsenal lost the tie at the death thanks to more poor defending from another set piece.

Sayonara

At the sound of the ref’s whistle, there were only two teams that eligible for Premier League glory, Manchester United and Chelsea.

Stoke 3 Arsenal 1 (4^th May, 2011)

Arsenal visited the Britannia after restoring some pride with a victory against the eventual league winners but the match against Stoke had a lot of significance because it was the ground where Ramsey suffered that horrible tackle from Shawcross. Arsenal was expected to be fiery in that game but Jack Wilshere was the only player that showed that he had fire in his belly with clashes against Dean Whitehead and that John Legend’s clone, Jermaine Pennant. Stoke wasn’t that good in this game. Arsenal was really poor. Kenwyne Jones scored the match opener with his belly while Pennant’s shot was deflected in by Djourou. Van Persie did well to bring Arsenal back into the game but Djourou’s poor clearance gave Jon Walters the chance to smash Arsenal’s net for six yards and he wasted no time n doing that adding salt to Arsenal’s injury. Manchester City also emerged from the shadows to usurp Arsenal from third spot.

Arsene Wenger was in the touchline when all these games took place so he probably knows what he has to do to prevent this from happening next season. It’s evident that Arsenal needs a big guy like Samba to sure up the defense and help with those vital aerial interceptions with crosses swung into Arsenal’s box. I’ll keep you updated with the latest transfer news as the days go by.

I hope you enjoyed reading this post as I enjoyed writing it.

You can follow this blog on Twitter @goonerdaily. I always get new email notifications on my BlackBerry when I’m followed so I’ll follow you back. You don’t even have to mention.

You can also visit the blog’s Facebook page to receive updates as well as engage yourself in interactive sessions which range from answering questions in polls created to uploading your own pictures and videos of any Arsenal related thing on the page.

You can also subscribe to the blog if you want to get notified by email anytime I publish a post. It’s on the top left corner.

As a proud Nigerian from Ebonyi State, my blog has been nominated by the prestigious Nigerian Blog Awards in the category of the Best Sports Blog so I’ll be deeply honored and grateful if you can visit the site and vote for Gooner Daily. All you have to do is to write your name and email, then search for the Sports Category, click on Gooner Daily then go to the end of the page and click on submit.

You’ll get an email from Nigerian Blog Awards notifying you to click on a link provided to confirm your vote.

If you want to read this post again, you’ll find it in the season reviews section of the site and if you want to share any idea or suggestion with me, just click on the contact link.

Thanks for reading Gooner Daily.

Sayonara