I don’t know whether it was the abundance of beer, or just the reality. I’m hoping I’ll get some clarity. But I’m sure I just witnessed the greatest right back performance of the season and it came from a player I dislike with full blooded passion.
Yesterday was all about Emmanuel Eboue. He showed the skill he probably demonstrates in training every day and put on a master class in attacking full backery. His mazy runs and tireless work rate were a wonder for the home crowd to watch. If he could do that every week, not only would he start as our right back, he’d be the best one in the country!
Sunderland lacked everything a Steve Bruce side normally has. They played like a team who believed in their own hype after a nice 10 game streak at the start of the year. A real lack of effort on their part combined with a sparky and resilient performance from Arsenal… well, the result was only going one way this afternoon.
The first goal came when Eboue burst into the box with a penetrative run, he jinked in and out turning three Sunderland defenders inside out, he shot across goal allowing Nik to nip in at the back post to tap into the empty net.
Nik Bendtner had a great chance to prove his value to the team today and I’m afraid he didn’t give us his best performance. His control isn’t crisp, the ball usually ends up off the ground disrupting his ability to do anything thing with pace. His lack of instinct for the goal is also worrying. We can talk about work rate till we’re blue in the face but banging them away has to come into the picture at some point. 2 occasions today sparked cause for concern. The first was when Nasri crossed into the box, Ferdinand mistimed the header, Nik didn’t even bother to anticipate this and missed out on a simple header. The second was when he was cut in with a pass from out on the left, he controlled the ball with his left foot instead of his right, then duffed his chance onto the bar. Chances like that should be creeping in and in big games, you’re only going to get one… worrying from the Dane.
There were the usual lapses in concentration at the back. Almunia had to make a tidy save when Bent got through one on one, then Kenwyne Jones beat the offside trap, surged into the box and luckily hooked his shot wide. Bruce said his star striker was worth £30mill. Seriously, it’s that type of talk that gets Premiership clubs into trouble!
The second half was all Arsenal in the main. Sunderland did scare the Arsenal back 4 a few times but Almunia was out to impress today and he wasn’t going to allow the ball the chance to get cosy with his net today!
Arsenal huffed and puffed, but Craig Gordon was in an equally defiant mood and pulled out some classy saves to keep his players team in it. He looks very similar to Ian Curtis of Joy Division… errily so!
Our reward came late in the half, Cesc was bundled over in the box, the ref pointed to the spot! Up stepped Cesc to bury a pin point penalty into the bottom right corner. He ran over to the faithful and did some impressive air punching.
The ref blew up and Arsenal had taken an important 3 points. 2 points behind United, 6 behind Chelsea… and we’re really back in the mixing pot again!
Ratings:
Almunia: A top performance from our keeper. It seems silly that I have to praise our keeper for making 3 or 4 good saves in a game, but I will, because normally one sneaks in. 7
Clichy: I still don’t think he’s playing very well. He’s developed Howler Syndrome and I heard he caught it after sharing a towel with Senderos. I hope he can shake it off because if he doesn’t, Gibbs will surely step in next season. 6
Vermaelen: Had a powerful day at the office. He was quicker to every ball than the Sunderland pair were and he led the back line with much aggression. 8
Silvestre: He didn’t have a Sol Campbell type performance, but he did ok. He dropped a clanger when he set a poor offside trap that Jones took advantage of… but that is the Frenchman for you. 6
Eboue: If he could cut out the theatrics, I’d really like him as a player. Today he let his football do the talking with a superbly constructive afternoon of free flowing attacking full back play. The Sunderland boys didn’t know how to handle him because he was literally unplayable. Superb assist, deserved a goal. 9
Cesc: Not his best game of the season. His passing was sloppy at times and he got caught in possession on occasions. Still… he won a penalty and buried it. 7
Song: I thought he had a very solid game today, breaking up play where he could, distributing with efficiency. 7.5
Aaron Ramsey: Showed straight away why he should always get the nod over Denilson. He made surging runs, crunching tackles and had a few shots. He’s what you call real young talent. Shame he’s Welsh… 7.5
Nasri: I felt we got more for our money today. He covered his full back today, he put himself about and he made some telling attacking contributions. I just wish he’d do it more consistently. 8
Bendtner: He scored the tap in for the goal, which has to be credited. Bar that, it was a pretty cart horse like game for the Danish hitman. He needs to start scoring goals more regularly and he needs to work in his touch and alround play. He also needs to give up his penchant for hitting the wing… he’s not Thierry. His performances seem to have dropped from last season, he’s only got a few games left to prove us wrong. 6
Theo: £60k a week to watch him run up blind alleys, cross to Song’s imaginary friend and generally do very little. Today he did look like scoring twice, something I haven’t seen him threaten to do for a while. However, for the hype surrounding him, he’s really not delivering. If he can fuse that pace with any sort of productivity, we’ll have a top player on our hands… at the moment, it doesn’t feel like we’re anywhere near that. 6
So all in all, an expected win and a solid performance. Roll on Stoke City!
P.S. If you have any spares to the Burnley game coming up, I have plenty of Grovers looking! Drop me an e-mail! Oh, and I’ve noticed it getting a little narkey in the comments section, lets keep it friendly… we’re all gooners and a multitude of opinion helps the blog go round.
Lol Pires fouled Ronaldo and he got a pen, looked like dive. Kinda ironic.
pedro
i am not saying everybody is “greedy”. when a person can get double salary for exemple she would take it and if that person can get more she would take that again. and can be generous beside that.
Chelsea vs Arsenal reserves highlights.
http://www.101greatgoals.com/videodisplay/4823851/
JET has a great game. He has better strength, heart and desire than some of the 1st team players.
Gooby that isn’t the case though, money isn’t the be all and end all, the are always other reasons to whether someone will want to take the job or not.
Almost all of our previously star players that have left could have left well before and earnt a fair bit more money
101greatgoals dot com has Arsenal vs Chelsea reserves. JET has a stormer.
Gooby, I think money is a factor to a certain extent… then when you’re hugely rich, it becomes less of an issue.
Where you live, happiness, family… they all factor in…
Pedro,
Its called expected utility theory.
The first million has more use than the second million, etc etc.
In other words, is there anything you can do with £8m pa that you cant do with £6m pa.
yeah all that true. money can play ahuge part too.
Now it depends on people look at ade flamini…
others find that bit of class to be loyal or have diffrent motivations(project youth?)
In other news, Porto won 5-0 or 5-1 today I hear
Wenger is a comtrol freak and he wouldn’t have control at madrrid. they would buy players without his say so
Gambon, I think I was taught that theory with cheese burgers…
Pat, I reckon we’ll trounce them next week.
GM, Wenger has a 13 year old girl over here… I’m sure I’ve read him say he classes here as english… and it would be pretty disruptive for him to do one to Spain. Plus the control freak thing… no chance he’ll go to Madrid!
I dunno Pedro, I could see it in time, although not his bailing on us for Madrid. When he does leave us I would see it being a distinct possibility. Capello went to Madrid, I could see him being like that, going over there, winning everything for a year or two then leaving or getting sacked because of a falling out with those above his head!
I don’t think Wenger would uproot his daughter at 13-14…
I’d be surprised.
Especially listening to him talk about how he can’t go on forever… assessing his hunger etc…
Just reading up about Pompey… they are so fucked it’s a joke!
Is ther a warrant out for their ownwer in the Emirates Pedro?
I’m pleased for EE
Yeah true Pedro, though I could see him just going across for a year or two to try his hand in a totally different environment. It’d just be like the daughter going to boarding school if she stayed where she was, not sure it’d be totally out of the question if/when he left us.
Yeah Pompey are buggered, REALLY hope they get some very generous backer in in the next couple of days, or even just someone who reckons he could pay up the debt, and dissolve the club in the summer, a property developer who’ll make bucketloads knocking down Fratton Park and building apartments! Though I’ve got no idea where Fratton Park is in Portsmouth….
Defender Gael Clichy – Report
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is pondering the merits of cashing-in on French full-back Gael Clichy, 23, who has two years left on his current deal.
According to the News of the World, AC Milan are keen to seal a deal for Clichy, who was once revered as a potential world-beater but has since fallen from grace due to season where he has been off-form.
A left-back is believed to be one of the main areas that the Serie A outfit will be bolstering first, as Paulo Maldini’s Milan replacement – Giuseppe Favalli – is 38.
Last season, Real Madrid were allegedly looking at lodging a £16 million deal for Clichy.
Should the Gunners attract bids in excess of that figure, then the funds received could help supplement Wenger’s summer transfer kitty.
The Arsenal boss has made no secret of his admiration for Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh, while Ajax star Luis Suarez and Lazio forward Mauro Zarate have also piqued Wenger’s interest.
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interesting .. and half believable .
i think wenger is doing what he can to iron out the weak links .
selling clichy probably isnt so absurd .
infact i think he might sell both and return eboue to RB .
it would be another way of getting another cool 30 mil this summer also ..
advance traore or gibbs to LB and eboue back to RB and wenger can make another $$$ wind fall and justify the sale of both …
Wenger wouldn’t go to Real, just as Fergie wouldn’t… They have total control where they are and wouldn’t get that in Madrid…
Can’t imagine selling Sagna ethan… He is solid mate…. Never mind the attacking side of things. He is a great defender first and foremost…
he’s trying out ramsey – positive
eboues return to form – positive
big al’s clean sheet – positive .
nasri – far better .
he also tried out fabianski – failure ..
but i applaud him for experimenting ..
it could of been so easy just to play denilson
and keep with fabianski ..
still he made too many errors with the transfer window for it to be a realistic target this summer . he still doesnt get from me a get out of jail free card .be it his reluctance to spend money or the boards it matters little ..
what is does sound out is lack of passion from MANAGEMENT as a whole …
im not going to finger point at hill-wood or wenger as NO-ONE knows the REAL truth …
but i would say if it was me , i would point to the money men , far more movement in the board room than on the football ground with NEW REPLACEMENTS recently ..
pro -active in the accounts department .
shame they dont have that passion on the pitch or we would win the double .
wengers double
he couldnt win a treble or more because 2 other cups dont exist ..
ManGoonian Says:
February 22, 2010 at 01:06
Can’t imagine selling Sagna ethan… He is solid mate…. Never mind the attacking side of things. He is a great defender first and foremost…
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well whats your take on the eboue in for sagna
deal then MG ?
is it just another case of wenger picking his love child’s again Ye thing ?
MG
another reason for all these defensive frailties is the fact both the wing backs push up more so than they used to do in our winning days ..
this was brought about by him losing freddy and pires and not replacing them for seasons with quality .
i think id prefer to return to attacking wingers and keeping the wing backs into RB-LB respectively ..
also MG remember a month or 2 ago there was a rumor sagna had a bit on him …
from a spanish club again …
i can smell something ..
Eboue has played a fair bit in easy home games this season, it’s really good to have the option of both of them, or to bring Eboue on for Sagna if we’re chasing a game, or vice versa if we’re trying to protect a lead. Eboue to play in the easier games against “park the bus” type opposition, Sagna to play in the tougher games, as has happened a fair bit this season.
It would though be nice to have someone who was good at both, though that’s alot to ask. Coquelin could provide it in a year or so though!
Clichy I wouldn’t mind leaving, Gibbs and Traore to compete at left back, neither are that far behind clichy imo anyways, and both better passers and crossers
ethan I don’t agree with that last bit at all – I’d say that Cole and Lauren pushed up at least as much if not more than Sagna and Clichy do, but they were just much much better going forward, and their ball retention being better meant that we didn’t lose the ball as much when they got it, giving the opposition the opportunity to break.
I really believe that the full backs are a big big factor in our not being as penetrative as we used to be. Cole and Lauren when they went forwards became attacking players, and another option just like the other forward players.
Sagna and Clichy when they get forward just seem like full backs in forward positions, rather than another midfielder who could slot in and pass the ball, as well as understand the attacking patterns, as well as the midfielders and forwards.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1252714/GRAHAM-POLL-Its-time-Arsene-Wenger-took-Arsenal-tinted-spectacles-off.html?ITO=1490&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+dailymail%2Ffootball+%28Football+%7C+Mail+Online%29
Graham Pollis afucking idiot…he implies that our first goal was offside…. and that we got a soft penalty.
is his guy really a former referee.?..
Is that what Graham Poll was learning how to do as well when he gave a player 3 yellow cards in a Tournament game? being incompetent with good grace and dignity????
why is NewsNow full of stories about Walcott for England?
I didn’t see the game at the weekend, but it didn’t sound like he merited much of a mention. And he’s been anonymous all season – like a sprinter trying to contol the ball with spiked shoes.
It’s one of three things: a) Fattening him up before selling him b) Typical England desperation to find a decent winger c) Wenger desperation to build him up to prove the youth philosophy right.
Either way, it can’t be good: just leave him alone to get his form back or sell him in the summer, if anyone else is stupid enough to pay 60k per week for him. These are the headlines…
Walcott impresses as Arsenal beat Sunderland Belfast Telegraph 10:02
Walcott waiting on England call FIFA.com 10:02
Theo Walcott back on track as Arsenal beat Sunderland Daily and Sunday Express 08:09
World Cup 2010: Arsene Wenger Believes Arsenal Starlet Theo Walcott Will Be…
The importance of being Theo Arsenal Mania 22:59 Sun, 21 Feb 10
Walcott Awaits England News Sporting Life 21:51 Sun, 21 Feb 10
Walcott waiting on England call-up TEAMtalk – Arsenal 21:32 Sun, 21 Feb 10
Arsene Wenger believes Theo Walcott is improving ESPN Soccernet 21:27 Sun, 21 Feb 10
Walcott is getting there, says Wenger TEAMtalk – Arsenal 21:22 Sun, 21 Feb 10
Wenger Backs Walcott For World Cup Sporting Life 21:21 Sun, 21 Feb 10
I thought walcott was pretty dreadul vs sunderland with one or two decent moments.
moray
capello was in the crowd on saturday .
so i suppose they are putting 2 and 2 together , cant see too any other players he would be looking at either ..
it really is desperate, then, if they take Walcott. Ironically, he was a better choice 4 years ago.
If this is the best that England can put together, squad-wise, then it’s looking pretty desperate for them.
luke
theo’s pace sometimes is a disadvantage , he blows everyone off and is left with either an option to cross to no one , or 1 on 1 with the keeper ..
i can understand the reason why he looks ineffective ..
i still think lennon or wright-phillips will be the main stayers on the wing , but theo could be a good super sub option for capello , IF theo get his shit together NOW …
im sure he’s trying to IMPRESS to be included in the WC squad . and that can only be a good thing for us ..
Good Morning all!
The way City and Pool played yesterday, neither of them look capable of beating Chelsea or Manu when they play them.
Where in the world is Eduardo? And Vela?
Why are they always injured? And at the same time?
And Diaby…is there a clause in his contract saying he can’t play 2 consecutive games?
Serioulsly what is going on?
Oh…morning all
Oh and Denilson should be a squad player…not a starter…
Rambo’s turn.
And Eboue..Please keep it up mate
So unReal Madrid want Wenger…
Benzema, M.Diarra & Metzelder should do it
bnsb
Liverpool got a good result. Dont you remember us getting smashed at City?!
So who do you think City will smashnext time a) chelsea. B) manu c)both ?
.. and Gerard did not dive yesterday or did he?
Def manure
Yeah, good point.
Theres no chance City could beat either, that would be like Everton beating UTD or something!!….oh wait!
I hope tevez is back for those games.In a way i am glad torres is back for lpool
City were overtly negative yesterday. Passing way back most of the times, typical Italian style.
“He’s 21-years-old and with different qualities. He’s very strong, is 1.94m tall and very intelligent. He can improve a lot but how much he can improve is down to how hard he will work
“He had a good game on Saturday in fairness to him and we hope that we will click in the final third. We have Arshavin coming back, Diaby coming back, Bendtner in good shape and Walcott in good shape.
“It will be very important from game to game now that everybody is available
Was he describing Denilson?
499
new post!
Graham Poll is totally wrong on both counts. Bendtner was played on by the left back and Fab was fouled both outside and in the area.I have listened to Poll quick a lot in the past year or so- It has to be said that Poll is usually wrong. I wonder if it is rank poor eyesight or he simply writes for effect.
I dont know what gives him the right to cast judgement on his former colleagues- he was at least as prone to errors as any of them- if not more so.
What are the chances of Beckham making the world cup?