Glorious Gunners Hammer The Irons

Arsenal cruised to a win at Upton Park this evening as they comfortably beat West Ham 3-0 in what appears to be Avram Grant's final game in charge. Van Persie scored two goals, with Walcott getting one too, as the Gunners strolled to another away win and a crucial 3 points.

There isn't much point in doing a full match review as Arsenal were dominant for the entire 90 minutes, something I honestly wasn't expecting before the match. I still thought we would, and should, win the game but going to Upton Park and coming away with a win isn't an easy task, as Man United found out this season in the Carling Cup. So it was a relief to see us win with such ease and in some style too, as West Ham pretty much rolled over for us and the Hammers are in total free-fall right now. The board, the players, the staff and the manager are a complete mess so I'm glad Arsenal took advantage of the situation and didn't slip up. We need to beat the teams lower down the table if we are to stand any chance of competing for the title, so it's good to see Arsene Wenger's men get the job done.

It was fantastic to see van Persie get on the scoresheet, with a goal from open play too. In the 13th minute Robin connected on Walcott's low cross with his right foot (after a nice dummy by Nasri), smashing the ball past Rob Green into the corner for an early 1-0 lead. Exactly the start to the game we needed, and it settled some early nerves for sure. Just before half time, van Persie squeezed in a cross from the byline across West Ham's penalty box, and Theo was quick enough to get on the end of it before the defence could react. He blasted the ball into the roof of the net to make it 2-0 and it was pretty much game over then and there. In the second half Arsenal continued their dominance and never let the home side into the game. To be fair, the 3-0 scoreline could have been a lot more, if it weren't for some fantastic saves by Green (the save from Wilshere towards the end of the game was just one example). In the 77th minute, Walcott was brought down in the box by Wayne Bridge and van Persie converted the spot kick to end the game for good, sending a lot of unhappy West Ham fans home early as the stadium started to empty out.

Arsenal needed this result after some rather limp performances against Championship opposition recently, and it feels good to win again. Up next is Leeds on Wednesday for the 3rd round replay in the FA Cup. Hopefully this evenings win should give the Gunners a boost of momentum ahead of the trip to Leeds, where I'm expecting a much better performance from Arsenal than what we saw at the Emirates a week ago. It is crucial we stay in the competition as we can't afford to pass up a chance at a trophy so easily. I'll be hoping to watch it, but the Mrs might be dragging me to the cinema... we'll see eh?

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Leaving It Late With Leeds

Arsenal escaped an FA Cup disaster this afternoon at the Emirates, battling to a 1-1 draw with Leeds United. I said it yesterday, that it would be stupid to underestimate our lower league opponents and it came true as Leeds thoroughly deserved their draw and replay to be scheduled at Elland Road at later date.

Arsene Wenger chose a stronger team than what was maybe expected, with the inclusion of Song, Chamakh and Arshavin in the starting eleven. The announcer at the Emirates informed the crowd the game was a 60,000+ sellout but there was a lot of empty red seats for a 'sellout'. This annoyed me greatly, because if I lived closer to North London and had the cash, I'd have been there! (though given the final score, its probably better that I wasn't) The game started pretty slowly and in the 10th minute Arshavin wasted a fantastic one-on-one opportunity after a great through ball by stand-in captain Rosicky. The little Russian had acres of space to score but shot right at Leeds keeper Kasper Schmeichel, a disappointing effort. For the majority of the first half Arsenal failed to get into any rhythm at all and were sloppy all over the pitch. The chemistry in the squad was reminiscent of the Wigan game not long ago - crap. However, with roughly 15 minutes left before half time the Gunners notched things up a bit and turned up the tempo. In the 27th minute Chamakh nodded the ball back to Arshavin who hit the ball nicely on the volley but it was straight at Schmeichel and out for a corner. From the resulting set-piece, the ball ping ponged around the box and was finally cleared off the line by a Leeds defender before Denilson forced a good save from distance at Schmeichel. Arsenal had definitely raised the bar and Leeds were struggling to cope. Defender Alex Bruce, who had a tremendous game in the Leeds defence, cut out a dangerous pass by Arshavin intended for Bendtner which would have had Leeds in trouble. From the resulting corner, Chamakh headed straight at Schmeichel wasting another good opportunity. Just before the end of the first half, Bendtner jinked his way into the Leeds penalty area before unleashing a low shot which was comfortably saved by Schmeichel yet again. Arsenal just couldn't get that crucial goal and it was the visitors who left the pitch at half time the happier.

The Gunners started the second half brightly, piling more pressure on Leeds - it only looked a matter of time before Arsenal converted one of their many chances and took the lead. But then disaster struck, as it often has at the Emirates this season. In the 53rd minute against the run of play, Leeds winger Max Gradel was upended by Denilson in the box and referee Phil Dowd (whom I despise) had no option but to point to the spot. Robert Snodgrass stepped up to take the penalty and narrowly squeezed it under Szczesny's left hand to make it 1-0 to Leeds. A nightmare upset was suddenly on the cards for the home side and Arsenal really had to step things up to avoid humiliation. A few minutes after the visitors took the lead, Fabregas was brought on to replace Song and ten minutes later Theo Walcott was introduced, replacing Chamakh. It was all or nothing now for Arsenal, but it was Leeds who nearly took a two goal lead when Becchio forced a stunning save from Szczesny, who palmed away the Leeds man's powerful header. Arsenal were banging their heads against the brick wall of the Leeds defence, constantly looking dangerous yet not really looking any closer to scoring that all important equaliser. With ten minutes left, Arsenal were getting desperate and things got a bit crazy; Bendtner blazed over a good header, Theo wasted a great chance when he hit it right into Schmeichel's hands. With only a couple of minutes left, madness ensued when Phil Dowd appeared to reward the Gunners a penalty after Walcott was tripped, only for Dowd to change his mind when the linesman signalled that Bendtner was apparently offside. The problem was, the trip on Walcott happened before Bendtner was offside so the penalty should have stood! But the outrage at the ref didn't last long as Theo was pulled down again in the Leeds penalty area only seconds later, and this time Dowd whistled for a REAL spot kick. Cesc stepped up to take it and dispatched the ball right down the middle, past the diving Schmeichel, to make it 1-1 and save the home team from a famous cup upset at the hands of Leeds. There was still time for a winner in injury time as Arsenal wasted more chances to finish the opposition off and put the tie to bed. Bendtner sliced a decent chance with his left foot (really horrible miss), Denilson nearly won it but for an amazing save from Schmeichel (man-of-the-match from the Leeds goalie), and finally Walcott narrowly missed a making it 2-1, hitting the side netting from a tight angle. The final whistle blew and a sigh of relief was heard all over the stadium - at least we didn't lose...

Obviously most Arsenal fans expected a win and with all the chances we had there really should have been only one outcome. However, we are still in the competition and that's what really matters. I don't particularly like the idea of a replay at Elland Road, especially when we already have a hectic schedule of games in the near future, but it is what it is and we must go there and beat them on their home turf. A match we are more than capable of winning - if we can't then we don't deserve to be in the FA Cup for much longer, simple as that.

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Cup Fever & The Return Of Rambo?

Arsenal get their FA Cup campaign under way tomorrow against Leeds United at the Emirates in what's set to be an interesting game. There is no doubt Arsene Wenger will rest some of his key players against the Championship opposition but I'm sure whatever side the boss puts out will be looking to give Leeds a real run for their money.

Despite being the underdogs, it would be unwise to underestimate the Whites in this FA Cup tie. Leeds are currently sat in 5th place in the Championship, which is pretty impressive for a team that only got promoted from League One half a year ago. So it would be a good idea for Arsene to choose a team that isn't too different from what we see most weeks. I expect Nasri and van Persie will be rested, and probably Cesc too; in a match like this, with the quality of players we possess, there is no reason we shouldn't beat Leeds with whatever team the boss picks, but football games aren't won on paper and we recently saw what happened when you play a team of guys who don't get much match-time (at Wigan). Eboue will be filling in for Sagna, who starts his suspension after the clash with Zabaletta in the City game on Wednesday. Kieran Gibbs has returned to fitness so expect him to replace Clichy at left back. Other than that, I don't expect there will be any more drastic changes. Polish keeper Wojciech Szczesny will probably replace Fabianski in goal, as he normally does in the Carling Cup, so it'll be another opportunity to see our potential future number 1 in action again. Up front, players like Bendtner and Rosicky will be given the job of leading the attack against Leeds, players who have more than enough in their locker to win games like these.

The exciting news ahead of tomorrows clash is the return of Aaron Ramsey. The Guardian have reported that the Welshman is set to be included in the squad and possibly make his triumphant return to the Gunner's starting eleven. The 20 year old Wales international, if he plays, will be making his first appearance for the Arsenal since that fateful day against Stoke on the 27th February 2010, where we all know what happened with a certain Ryan Shawcross. Since recovering from his broken leg, Aaron joined Nottingham Forest on a short loan deal but didn't get much playing time thanks to the ridiculous British weather we've had. Anyway, he's back where he belongs now and probably itching to prove he's still got what it takes at the top level. It'll be nice to see Ramsey run out at the Emirates in the red and white again, after such a long time out, even if the boss just gives him 10 minutes towards the end. Let's hope he can recapture the form he was in just before that nasty injury, when Aaron had forced his way into Wenger's team with some fantastic performances. Fingers crossed.

So I'll be looking to watch the Leeds game tomorrow, as luckily I don't have to work and the game is on ITV, so I should be able to watch it live. After Leeds, we have the now manager-less Ipswich to play on Wednesday night in the first leg of the Carling Cup semi-final, and I'll be looking to watch that too. I have officially caught cup fever.

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Keeping The Pace

Arsenal kept their title bid alive last night by beating Birmingham 3-0 at St Andrews. Goals from Robin van Persie, Samir Nasri, and a howler from City's Roger Johnson secured all three points for the travelling Gunners. Arsene Wenger and his men didn't succumb to Birmingham and their impressive home record against the top clubs (despite City's struggles this season), and are still very much in the mix for the title.

Arsenal needed maximum points last night after their slip up against Wigan mid-week, and Wenger's men managed to deliver. I had the displeasure of watching that performance at Wigan, and it was pretty frustrating to see the team play in such a sloppy fashion. I understood Wenger resting some key players during this busy Christmas/New Year schedule, but the side he put out were obviously out of sorts and couldn't gel on the pitch at all, leading to a disappointing 2-2 draw. Thankfully the boss learnt from his mistake and started the strongest team possible against Birmingham, the same eleven that dispatched Chelsea so convincingly just a week ago.

I'm not going to go into too much detail about last night's game as you can read a match review on the wealth of other, and more detailed, Arsenal blogs around. Overall, we played well for the entire 90 minutes and created so many chances that the 3-0 scoreline was a bit flattering in the end. Fabianski only had one real save to make all game and it was fantastic to see him record a clean sheet, that elusive statistic he'd prefer to have more of. It was also great to see van Persie play a full game and get on the score-sheet as well, even if it was a deflected free kick off Lee Bowyer. Nasri took his goal well in the second half after some typically stylish Arsenal build-up play with El Capitan, Cesc Fabregas. It really was a nice strike by the in-form Frenchman, who has now increased his tally to 13 goals this season. The Gunner's 3rd goal came minutes later thanks to some more brilliant passing by Cesc and Nasri, the latter's beautiful pass setting up Fabregas who forced City keeper Ben Foster into a save. Unfortunately for the home side, the ball ricocheted off of Foster into the Birmingham defence, finally hitting Roger Johnson, before trickling over the line for an embarrassing own goal. Game over and Arsenal managed to hold on for the win and three crucial points, keeping the pressure on the opposition.

This was a massive game and one that Arsenal had to win. Our away record this season has been sublime and we need these results every week to ensure we are up there at the top, battling for first place. Now Arsenal face Manchester City on Wednesday, another important match in this topsy turvy Premier League season. The blue side of Manchester will fancy their chances when they travel to the Emirates this week and we'll have to beat them to distance ourselves in the title race. Here's hoping we get the result and put those Manchester City playboys back in their place.

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Breakthrough Against The Blues

It's about time. Arsenal finally lay their big-club, big-game ghosts to rest, beating Chelsea 3-1 at the Emirates tonight. The Gunners outplayed, outhustled, and outlasted their London rivals in a thriller of a game, and Wenger's men deserved all three points. That's some late Christmas present!

In what was billed as a make or break game for my boys, Arsenal delivered and in some style too. I have no idea what the commentators were smoking in the first half, who seemed to think the Gunners were feeling their way into the game, as it was Arsenal who in fact dominated from the beginning. Apart from a Drogba snapshot in something like the 7th minute, Chelsea hardly had a sniff. Arsenal were controlling the game quite nicely but still had some trouble breaking down that stubborn Chelsea back line. Nasri's delightful chip nearly caught Petr Cech off his line but the keeper was too alert to the ambitious attempt. It was just before half time that Arsenal made the crucial breakthrough, when Alex Song latched onto the ball in the box and slid it just beyond Cech's reach to make it 1-0. When Fabregas was tripped in the box, I thought for sure we'd have a penalty, but before I knew what had really happened Song had picked up the ball and scored. A perfect time to score.

Arsenal didn't waste time trying to put the game to bed, as they soon doubled their lead after half time. The pressure from our midfield was terrific all game and it paid off in the 51st minute when van Persie managed to win the ball, which Essien accidentally played into Walcott's path, who bore down on goal before playing the ball into Cesc's path who had the easy job of tapping into an empty net. Just like that it was 2-0 but things got even better for the Gunners. Two minutes later, more pressure in the midfield brought us a reward. Fabregas, who had a game reminiscent of his finest days (not quite 100%, but he's getting there), dinked the ball through the panicked Chelsea defence into Walcott, who dispatched the ball past Cech with sublime skill to make it 3-0 and game over. It was a brilliant finish from Theo, who made a rare start and rewarded the manager's faith with a fantastic performance. Nearly every Gunner on the pitch played a blinder, but praise must be given to Djourou, Wilshere, Cesc and Theo in particular.

Chelsea tried to stop the game becoming a rout when Ivanovic headed home from a set piece but it was enough not enough to force the Blues back into the game, as they ultimately sunk to defeat. This victory should provide Wenger and his team with immense confidence, as they finally break that horrible 'Arsenal can't beat the big teams' hoodoo, and pile on the pain for Ancelotti's Chelsea. The Gunners now need to press on from this outstanding result and ride the momentum onto bigger and better things... like a league title.

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Utah "Too Jazzy" For Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers fell to defeat last night against the Utah Jazz. The Cavs tried to keep it close, but the quality of Utah's squad ultimately prevailed, as the Jazz left Cleveland 101-90 winners. If you're an Inbetweeners fan, you'll get the joke in the title.

After beating the Knicks a couple of nights ago, confidence and momentum was high heading into last night's contest against the Jazz. And the Cavs certainly started brightly too, with Antawn Jamison catching fire early in the first quarter, nailing some big shots. Daniel Gibson, gifted a start by Byron Scott, also began the game brightly. Initially I was impressed by the hustle of the Cavs on defense, as the Jazz struggled to get into their rhythm and were turning the ball over. However, once the Jazz settled down, it spelt the end for the Cavaliers.

Utah's ability to get offensive rebounds was what eventually cost Cleveland the game. The Jazz were pulling down offensive rebounds whenever they wanted, as the Cavs just couldn't regain the ball. The opportunity for second chance points helped the Jazz enormously, but Cleveland still kept it close. The introduction of J.J Hickson brought an improvement in rebounding, and he eventually finished the night with a team-high 9 rebounds. Late in the second quarter, Mo Williams found his groove. His jumpshot was falling nicely, and a nice stop-and-pop 3 pointer took the Cavs back into the game. Mo was also passing the ball extremely well, racking up a lot of assists in the first half, as he moved the ball brilliantly. Cleveland's 3 point shooting was outstanding in the second quarter, with Mo, Gibson and Anthony Parker all hitting massive shots from beyond the arc. But the Cavs just couldn't get out to a big enough lead, as the Jazz were also having a terrific night shooting the ball. At half time I began to realise what a good team Utah are, in respect to the pieces they've got on their team. Jefferson, Deron Williams, Miles, Millsap, Bell, the list goes on. A defense's nightmare...

At the start of the third quarter, the Jazz were still making their shots in spite of the Cavs' best efforts. It felt like Raja Bell didn't miss all night, as he consistently converted on open shots. The rebounding difficulties for the Cavs weren't disappearing either, as Utah kept regaining possession and making it count with second chance points. It was frustrating to watch, as the Cavs were trying their best to box out, but the ball just didn't fall the home side's way. The Jazz were trying to put the game beyond doubt in the third quarter, but Gibson was keeping Cleveland in it, hitting back-to-back 3 pointers and carrying the team on his back. Boobie was thriving in his role last night, and he was growing in confidence with the increased minutes he received. Gibson is playing so well this season, with consistency that I've never seen from him before in his career. Despite Boobie's best efforts, the Jazz began to pull away late in the third. Deron Williams took control of the game, and was deceptively amazing without me really noticing. I suppose that's what makes D-Will one of the top point guards in the game, that he is a true team player. Williams was racking up the assists and moving the ball so well, giving the Cavs' defense some major problems. By the end of the third, the Jazz had opened up a decent lead, as the Cavs' offense was stuttering - I think they fell in love with the 3 point shot a bit too much, and overall just made some bad shot selections.

Cleveland needed to start the fourth quarter brightly to claw themselves back into the contest, but Byron Scott's men came out sloppy and the Jazz quickly scored 4 points to increase the gap to 16 points. From then on, the result was beyond doubt and the game started to look like a blowout. Gibson, C.J Miles and Raja Bell were intent on having their own 3 point contest in the fourth quarter, as I don't remember seeing either man miss a shot from behind the arc. However, in spite of Gibson's best efforts, the Jazz were cruising and ultimately ran out 101-90 winners. Boobie had a career night with 29 points, and he only missed one 3 point attempt all night, a fantastic performance.

Cleveland's next game isn't any easier, as they travel to Atlanta on Wednesday to take on the Hawks. I will be watching, as I recently purchased a month's subscription to NBA League Pass (an early Christmas present to myself). So expects more Cavs-related posts over the next 4 weeks! Hurray!

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A Partizan In A Pear Tree

Arsenal dispatched Partizan Belgrade at the Emirates last night, beating the Serbian team 3-1 to progress into the next round of the Champions League. It was not a typically fluid Arsenal performance by any means, but Wenger's boys got the job done in the end, and I suppose that's all we could ask for.

On a night when the Gunners needed a win at all costs, they certainly didn't look as if they were trying to get it, at least not early on. The eleven guys on the pitch didn't seem to be clicking at all; the passing was messy, we gave the ball away too often, and we just didn't look very dangerous overall. As an Arsenal fan, we are treated to the sublime more often than not and I think we are probably spoiled to an extent, because after watching last night's sloppy first half, you'd think it was Stoke or Blackburn out there, not Arsenal. But after half an hour gone, captain van Persie was tripped in the box and the referee obliged with a penalty. It did look a bit soft, and Robin definitely did his best to win it, but there was contact and the Partizan defender did leave his foot stuck in, so there should be no real complaints. Robin took the responsibility to give us the lead and confidently put the ball in the back of the net to make it 1-0. I was pretty glad to see van Persie get his first goal of the season, even if it was a penalty; they all count. However, his celebration terrified me to my bones (look at the picture below), and I would like it if Robin refrained from such daring moves in the future. I don't want him to break again.

Instead of the goal spurring us on, Arsenal slipped back into their mundane ways, and held on until half time. Fabianski had nothing to do for the first 45 minutes as Belgrade rarely looked like threatening, but the Polish keeper was powerless to prevent Belgrade's equaliser. Seven minutes into the second half, with their first shot on target all night, Partizan equalised with a deflected goal off of Squillaci. Again our defensive frailties were exposed, an all too familiar occurrence this season that has to be remedied at some stage. I don't know what the problem is, as I don't profess to be a defensive expert. I rate Koscielny and Squillaci quite highly, I believe they are excellent defenders on their day, but something is wrong there. Maybe it's the fact that Song is not protecting the back four as much he could be, but there's probably more to it. It's something for Wenger to worry about, especially when we come up against better teams in the competition.

Thankfully, the scary thought of elimination from the Champions League seemed to wake us up. The rather useless Arshavin (who never got going all evening, despite a great game against Fulham at the weekend) was replaced by Theo Walcott, who stamped his impression on the game immediately. The speedy Englishman pounced on Partizan's inability to clear the ball, and Theo volleyed home from a tight angle to make it 2-1. It was a good finish, and I gave a huge sigh of relief when the ball hit the net. Walcott was brought on to give the team some urgency, and he delivered perfectly. The second goal seemed to provide the team with some momentum, and the on-form Samir Nasri quickly put the game beyond doubt, making it 3-1 with a cool finish. After some fabulous passing between Song and Bendtner, Nasri controlled the ball with immense skill before firing in low for our third goal, and his 12th of the season. The guy is unstoppable right now. It was game over from then on, but there was still time for Sagna to collect a straight red card late on. I was pretty annoyed at the time, but it was just my biased nature refusing to believe what had happened. He'll miss the first leg of whoever we have to play in the new year.

So with Arsenal securing a place in the last 16, the focus now turns to who we will face. Unfortunately the Gunners finished second in the group, after Shakthar defeated Braga, which means we'll be playing either Schalke, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, or (gulp) Barcelona. In typical Arsenal fashion, we had to go and make life more difficult for ourselves. I will gladly take either of the German teams, but I dread the idea of facing Barca or Madrid at this stage; Our leaky defence will be torn to shreds surely. Wenger says that we won't fear Barcelona, but it would undoubtedly be the worst draw to get from the available teams.

Our attention now turns to the trip to Old Trafford on Monday night. I'm hoping to be in the pub for that one, so if I get to watch it, expect something on Tuesday. Depends how much uni work I still have to fit in before Christmas!

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