So Geoff proved his commitment to the cause by heading up to Arsenal with 11 broken ribs, a wrist broken in 4 places and a punctured lung on the repair… pretty silly in my opinion… but commitment none the less. Just thought I’d drop that in to all you ‘real fans’ out there who question his support.
I bet he wished he hadn’t bothered when he saw the line up… Wenger claimed in the pre-match interview that this was a more important match than the ManU game at the weekend… then dropped RvP and Arshavin. Very odd… even more irritating was the inclusion of Eboue in the midfield.
Still, I had no doubt the team would do the job… but why risk not playing your best players?
Celtic started on the front foot… the crowd were dead… probably shocked by the line up… the Celts were probably encouraged by the lack of star names.
The first real chance fell to us… Diaby won the ball by the corner flag, cut it into Nik at the front post, he flicked the ball over Boruc who parried it across his goal… Eduardo slid in narrowly grazing it right of the post… what a miss! He’ll have nightmares over that one!
The lack of pace in this starting 11 was glaring… there was no spark, the ball wasn’t holding up in midfield or up front. I couldn’t help but procrastinate over the fact that it didn’t need to be like this…
Denilson went close before the breakthrough, not managing to get his shot across the keeper. Then Eduardo sparked into action… he played a lovely one-two with Eboue… Nipped it round the sliding Boruc… and fell to ground. Replays are inconclusive… there looks to have been the slightest of contact… regardless, the penalty was played for and it wasn’t very fair. Still, shit happens… right gang?
Eddie stepped up to take the penalty… waited for the fat Polish Keeper to dive and slotted it down the middle of the goal. 3-0 (agg)… you’d have to say Celtic were now dead and buried.
It didn’t take us long to improve on our lead after the second half started. Sagna started the move by weighting a lovely ball down the wing, Nik B flick the ball into the path of Diaby who waltzed into the penalty box and passed to Eboue, who created a bit of space for himself and buried it low and hard past Boruc. A very nice goal indeed… Eboue really was having one of his best games in an Arsenal shirt.
Celtic were beaten and Arsenal’s class started to show. We brought on Ramsey, Wilshere and Arshavin and the pretty, creative football began to flow. Arsenals final goal of the night started when Denilson went for a run through the middle of the park, fell over… Arshavin picked up the pieces and powered into the box… passed to Rambo, who returned the ball to Arshavin, who pirouetted… and slotted it low past Boruc.
I was explaining to my football colleagues that Arsenal always seem to concede a sloppy goal… well, we were certainly doing our best to switch off towards the end… Brown looped a high ball right to the back post… Donati angled the ball back a across goal past Almunia. I’ve watched the goal about ten times now… and I can’t help but think Almunia should have been more alert and got across to it. Donati didn’t hit it very hard… and this is my point about Big Al… he is very standard. If he were a car, he’d be a Volkswagen Golf, he wouldn’t have colour coded bumpers, he wouldn’t have Air con… he’d be your bog standard, hub capped Golf. He’ll rarely surprise you by keeping out the impossible like Reina or Cech might… and so far, you’d have to say his start has been less than impressive.
Ratings:
Almunia: I thought he could have done more to keep the Donati shot out. He’s had a problematic start to the campaign this year… he needs to pull his socks up. 6
Sagna: I don’t think he should have allowed the ball drop in the box for Donati to get a shot off. You can say that a shot like that isn’t expected… but this is the Champions league… expect the unexpected. Other than the slight mishap at the end, I thought he had a very positive game. 6.5
Clichy: Alert and looking very sharp so far this season. I thought our dynamic Frenchman was very impressive today, bombing up and down the wings looking much happier. 7
Commodus: Our man from Belgium just looks better and better every time I watch him. He is the first defender since Sol Campbell who attacks the ball in the air… he has pace, power and that grit to his game we’ve so needed. It’s a real pleasure watching a defender who has a passion for his art. 8

Vermaelen showing us his serious face.
Gallas: The man has been reborn, he has fire in his belly and boy does he look like he’s enjoying his game again. I’ve heard through the grape vine that he and Thomas click in a big way off the pitch. It’s like the new signing has reinvigorated Gallas and we’re certainly reaping the rewards. Another towering performance from our ex-captain. 8
Eboue: As you’ll have noticed, I am more than happy to admit I really don’t like seeing his name on the team sheet if he’s in midfield. Ok, he’s much improved… but I’d prefer Rambo out there. Still, I can’t knock his performance. He tracked back, he bombed forward… he assisted… and he scored a very good goal. I was super impressed with his display tonight and as much as it irks me to say it… I’d be sad to see him go. Tonight guys, I’m doing the unthinkable… I’m giving him MoM. 9
Denilson: I thought he started off very poorly, his passing was sloppy and he seemed to be running around like a headless chicken. However, after the first goal dropped he regained his composure and started passing well, getting up and down the pitch with a bit more ease and he even managed to get another couple of shots off. His main weakness as I see it is his lack of mobility. He’s not very fast and in a slow midfield… this really shows. His interceptions and ability to read the game were quite impressive towards the end of the game. If he were a car, he’d be a Ford Focus Zetec… it’s ok, and it might impress some people… but it has it’s limitations when it’s on the same forecourt as the Ferrari’s and Maserati’s. 7
Song: A very quiet game from Song. He potters around just in front of the defence, breaking up play where he sees fit and distributing it to the closest player he can find. He made a few vital interceptions and for me… he carried on where he left off after the Everton game. 7
Diaby: I don’t know where to start with this man. He was pretty woeful today… his passing was off, his decision making was poor and his head seemed to drop. He had a hand in the Eboue goal, but I think I’d put that goal more down to the vision of Sagna and Nik. If Diaby were a car, he’d be an Alfa Romeo. You know what you’re driving is something a bit special, and at a glance, it looks amazing… the problem is… you just never know whether it’s going to perform… or when it’s going to breakdown. A big thumbs down from me today… comparisons to Paddy were a touch premature. 5
Eduardo: My favourite player at the moment. Cheating aside… the guy is a dream to watch. His intelligence is second to none as a striker, he holds the line, moves into the right spaces… involves everyone in the build up play and has the confidence to try anything. He was a joy to watch today and I think it’s pretty clear he is going to be very important to our campaign this year. Oh, and I’m being serious when I say this… I would have him over David Villa. 7.5
Nik B: Now here is a player who frustrates the hell out of me. He has the talent to be a top striker… there is a 20 goal player waiting to break out… but he just doesn’t concentrate enough sometimes. His touch was off today, and when his head drops… it normally stays dropped. He needs a bit of that hardwork Adebayor used to put in when he was playing for a new contract… if at first you don’t succeed, try and try again. He played a nice flick into Diaby for the Eboue goal, had a nice chip saved by Boruc… but we need more than that this season. We need product and we need it in abundance. I’ve still got confidence in him… he just needs to keep his chin up! 6
Subs:
Rambo: I thought he came on and sparked the game back into life with his clever passing and his driving runs. I’m a huge fan of the Welshman and I do wonder why he doesn’t start ahead of Eboue? He staked a claim for more inclusions with an assist and did his C.V no harm. 6.5
Arshavin: After a very lazy performance at the weekend, our pint sized Russian came on to open his account for the year. He is a massive talent… I hope he lives up to the hype this year with great performances, matched by a great work ethic. 6
Jack: I didn’t really see too much of him to comment. 6
Arsene Wenger: I was disappointed with the starting line up. I thought it reeked of tinkerman tinkering… but I knew it would do the job. I hope team selections like that aren’t going to be the norm this year, because at some point… we’ll come unstuck pissing around like that. His subs were nice and early and we saw the players we like to see coming from the bench. 7.5
Conclusion:
Professional efficiency seems to be our hallmark so far this year. Eboue put in a man of the match performance and the defence, bar one silly lapse, showed us why we have every right to be excited about competing this year. The Champions league money is now in the bank… so lets see what he does now. I’m hoping for at least one more signing, maybe two. Next up is Manchester United at Old Trafford… a real early doors acid test. I’m the most confident I’ve been in years going up north… mainly because for the first time in a while, I feel there is a very good chance we could keep a clean sheet!
So, in answer to Geoff’s question he posed yesterday… are we ruthless enough? Emphatically yes.
See you in the comments!