Five Things We Learned after the Blackpool-Arsenal Game

Arsenal has been at the receiving end of skepticism since they lost to Birmingham in the Carling Cup in February with justification. In the last three-four years, February and March have proven to be the stage of the marathon in which Arsenal struggles to find remaining sources to make the final push.

This year didn’t look any different.

After three consecutive draws in the Premier League, their only remaining trophy to fight for, the Gunners have done to themselves what others cannot do—surrendered their title-winning aspirations for Manchester United to decide. It, now, depends on how United perform in their remaining six games. If they slip, Arsenal will have to show what they have failed to show this season so far—champions’ mentality.

A result of 3-1 over Blackpool may have provided a necessary injection of self-confidence that they so much need, but they still have some way of going back to their winning ways. In fact, it was a game of two faces: the second parts of the first and second halves, in which Arsenal controlled the game, and the beginnings of the halves in which Blackpool dug deep to defy the odds.

Here are a few key points worth discussing after Blackpool-Arsenal.

Jens Lehmann is a grandpa who knows how to keep the ball out of the net

The wacky German was the backbone of the Arsenal defense against fighting-relegation Blackpool. His close-to-perfect positioning and authority at the back, along with his aerial superiority, injected his team-mates with calmness and assurance.

But his football skills were only the tip of the iceberg.

At 42, Lehmann is experienced, very experienced. While he was ostensibly out of playing form, he showed the real importance of having the right mentality for the goalkeeping position. Scary and commanding as Lehmann is, he yelled every time when someone in front of him made a mistake making sure the players in front of him knew when they did wrong—and they did know.

Something else became evident as the game progressed. At one time, DJ Campbell received a through ball, but the assistant referee raised his flag to signal an offside situation. Having little time to respond, Campbell went on trying to go around Lehmann. What was strange was that the German keeper did what not a lot of other keepers would do: he made a full stretch to deflect the ball away from the feet of Campbell. Why did he do that?

It was psychological. By not allowing the ball to roll into his net even after the game had been stopped, Lehmann was sending a discouraging message to oppositional attackers. It’s that kind of mentality that a decade of football can teach you.

In the end, Lehmann signified what Arsenal has been lacking for a couple of years: someone who knows football is being played by ordinary men, who, in the end, can be influenced by ordinary things.

Fabregas’ passion has been waning

The Blackpool game was just another primary example of a lack of commitment by none other than the current Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas. Last summer, amidst huge speculation that Barcelona wished to sign the Catalan-born Arsenal captain, Cesc filed for a transfer request.

After serious talks with Wenger, Fabregas decided to stay. But for how long was a question hanging in everyone’s mind. His attitude throughout the season has hinted that the most likely answer to this question is for only one more season.

Against Blackpool, Cesc was not his usual passionate self. While he distributed short passes, long and through balls in his usual brilliant way, there was something lacking in his desire to keep possession of the ball or win it back from the opposition. He made way too many mistakes trying to build up the Gunners’ game.

Blackpool turned the tempo up in the beginnings of the first and second halves. They became more aggressive and more direct—a tactic that is known to work against Arsenal. The Arsenal midfield desperately needed to raise their game, but mostly they desperately needed for someone to step up and throw his legs in the grinder and attempt to take the ball forward.

Surprisingly, and yet not so surprisingly, it was not the captain who did that, but Jack “Brave Heart” Wilshere. He received a few painful kicks, in the second half, but his dribbles did what they were supposed to do and eventually Arsenal regained control of the game.

Despite having suffered from nagging hamstring injuries this season, Cesc had to work harder and take more responsibility. He failed to do so and understandably was outshone by two other Arsenal players: Jack 

Wilshere and Samir Nasri.  

Arsenal have been incredibly unlucky in the defensive department

Yes, it’s an observation more true for the entire season rather than for the match against Blackpool. They have been deprived of the services of one of the best defenders in the Premier League, Thomas Vermaelen. The two new signings, Sebastien Squillaci and Laurent Koscielny, have been good, but somehow failed to form an effective partnership with each other. On top of that, a defender on the rise, Johan Djourou, suffered an unlucky injury to his shoulder which would rule him out for practically the rest of the season.

Having been restricted by unfavorable turn of events, Wenger needed to relocate his hopes to the potentially problematic partnership between Squillaci and Koscielny. The Blackpool game was yet another example of that.

This time it worked, but mostly because the cogs of the Arsenal machine turned well everywhere for most of the time. Defenders can shine, but only when other departments of the team do not work well. Squillaci and Koscielny had the chance to deal with dangers in a more chaotic environment when Blackpool took the initiative in the beginnings of the first and second halves.

This time, the healing wound of the Squillaci-Koscielny partnership withstood the test of being rubbed with salt yet again, but it was risk Wenger had to take.

Gael Clichy can make costly mistakes

Gael Clichy has been a pretty consistent left-back with tendency to make costly mistakes in the last two years. The 25-year-old Frenchman made an error of judgment against Blackpool early in the second half by keeping the ball, trying to dribble it out of danger. While his decision did not cost Arsenal a goal, mostly because of another brilliant Lehmann intervention, it was a schoolboy error.

Clichy is no stranger to making costly mistakes.

Earlier this season, he was at fault for Barcelona’s goal at the Emirates in the Champions League. Gael ruined the offside trap, set up by Johan Djourou, to allow a through ball to release striker David Villa.

In September last year, Clichy was also at fault for allowing Sunderland to score a very late goal, through Darren Bent, to equalize. In a melee in the dying stages of the match, the French left-back made a sloppy clearance and subsequently remained back while his team-mates attempted an offside trap. The result followed: three Sunderland players left alone in the box and Bent scoring the dramatic equalizer.

While Clichy can be consistent, at times, he can be sloppy and disoriented. He sometimes makes tactical mistakes and gets caught off his position. Against Blackpool, it was a mistake of a different sort though. He had all the time in the world to clear the ball or pass it to a team-mate, but failed to do so.

Jack Wilshere is one step closer to PFA Young Player of the Year, but Samir Nasri is one further

Jack Wilshere, once again, proved he is the revelation of the season by pulling off a great performance against Blackpool. The 19-year-old assisted Emmanuel Eboue for Arsenal’s second goal. On top of that, his dribbling and fearless attitude was a major factor for Arsenal to regain control of the game following a Blackpool inspiration early in the second half.

The performance is sure to put him one step closer to winning the PFA Young Player of the Year award for 2011. His biggest threat for that accolade will come from Nani and Javier Hernandez who also had a great year.

Samir Nasri, on the other hand, was not his usual self. Samir raised the bar a mile higher with his performance in the first part of the season, but against Blackpool, it was not his day.

He managed to miss a couple of very good chances to score and lost possession of the ball a bit more than usual.

Arsenal: Signs of Improvement from Last Season

Another season has started and yet again the unrelenting sea of questions floods our minds: What has been done to improve the team’s fighting chances from last season? What has been improved?

Major or minor changes, one thing is certain: the team is not the same as last year.


Defence

Watching those matches last season, not once or twice sympathizers of Arsenal shuddered at the thought of losing either of the two first-choice defenders—Thomas Vermaelen and William Gallas.

And how wouldn’t they? Just a quick peek at the available options sitting on the bench was enough to perceive the inadequate defensive depth.

Arsene Wenger had 36-year-old Sol Campbell, 32-year-old-with-obvious-signs-of-aging Mikael Silvestre, and fallen-out-of-favour Philippe Senderos at his disposal.

This year though, things look slightly different.

The unused Senderos left the club along with three other over-30 defenders—Gallas, Silvestre, and Campbell.

In their shoes stepped Laurent Koscielny, Djohan Djourou—who missed the whole last season due to a serious injury—and the recent acquisition Sebastien Squillaci.

While a quick glimpse may reveal that this has done absolutely nothing to ease the depth problem—four out, two in—this conclusion would be nevertheless deceiving.

William Gallas has been directly replaced by Sebastien Squillaci. Both are experienced enough and with somehow similar characteristics.

Sol Campbell and Michael Silvestre have been replaced by Johan Djourou (who can be considered a new signing) and Laurent Koscielny.

As you can see, the ratio has changed: three out, three in. Meaningless to say, the incumbent defenders are much younger, and so possessing the needed pace to deal with the high Premier League’s tempo.


Midfield

The midfield was top class last season. Inspired, they created goals, scored them, and had wide variety in their game. Hardly a lot could be done to improve this further. But it has.

Keeping Cesc Fabregas was the main event that ensured the safe environment for the younger players to develop in stayed intact. Securing the main holding block is not the only positive outcome of this summer though.

Youngsters such as Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott have improved tremendously, despite what most critics say about them.

Wilshere was awarded his first ever international call, and Theo Walcott hinted for his world-class potential by scoring a hat-trick against newly-promoted Blackpool.

These are sure signs that Wenger has two upgraded options at his disposal for this year’s Premier League battle.

On top of that, the influential Thomas Rosicky’s return from injury is a further moral boost for his team-mates. Add to the picture the overt signs that Samir Nasri is getting used to the English way of football and the future looks bright.


Attack

Although little has changed in the forward ranks, reasons for smiling are not totally absent. Having let go of Eduardo, Wenger has acquired a physically strong striker with great heading abilities in Maroune Chamakh.

This exchange could be viewed as an improvement since, unfortunately, Edu looked as he was not able to shake off his horrific encounter with Birmingham’s defender Martin Taylor a couple of years ago.

At the beginning of the last season, Arsenal started well and strolled to the top of the table. This was partly due to the form that Robin van Persie was in.

However, after he received an injury during an international friendly match with his country, the Gunners started struggling to find goals. With a little more luck this year, the Arsenal goal-making machine will stay fit which could be exactly the dose needed to cure the title-drought disease.



Player Growth

It’s a mistake to consider a player stays at the same level of quality every season.

This is exactly the case at Arsenal, especially with the young footballers.

Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshere, Alex Song, Abou Diaby, Aaron Ramsey, Samir Nasri, Vito Mannone, Wojceich Szczesny, Emannuel Frimpong, Kieran Gibbs, Carlos Vela and Nicholas Bendtner have all gone through the tribulations of growing as players.

And they continue to do so.

Since last year, we have seen signs of growth and that shouldn’t be discounted. Alex Song transformed into an important first team player and will beyond doubt continue to develop.

Similar is the case with Theo Walcott. The short quick striker was used predominantly on the wing as part of his development process. Against Blackpool, we saw him efficiently swapping positions with his attacking partner Maroune Chamakh which only hinted how deadly Walcott can be in the centre.

Nicholas Bendtner also proved to be on the right track last year. He more than adequately played the role of a lone striker when no one else was there to do it.


Conclusion

Arsenal are not the same team as last season; that should be clear. Improvements which seem minor at a first glance are actually huge steps towards the completion of the team.

Arsene Wenger wouldn’t have signed another contract if he wasn’t sure of that.

With a little more luck, the seed that was planted years ago, that grew into a young tree, might grow into a strong, unmovable oak.

And the sea of questions floods our minds again, only this time it is: How will these improvements help? Is the team ready at last?

Time to Look Ahead: Arsenal’s Youngsters May Provide Needed Moral Boost

Flowers may not seem to be blossoming for the Gunners at present times. Two losses in a row in the Premier League—one against a supposedly inferior team. Understandably, the spirits of the team have been lowered. Nobody wanted to record a defeat, especially two, that’s for sure.

But all is not lost. While Arsenal is currently trailing 11 points from the leaders Chelsea, there is still hope as a significant part of Chelsea’s team is to leave for the Africa Cup of Nations in January. Same goes for a lot of other teams.

Nevertheless, the source of hope and uplift may come from the most unexpected places. The youngsters at Arsenal, ironically, can be the ones to provide the team with a significant moral boost.

Players like Carlos Vela, Jack Wilshere, Sanchez Watt, Armand Traore, Fran Merida, Jack Wilshere, and Vito Mannone are more motivated than ever to prove themselves.

The injury epidemic at Arsenal brings them one step closer to their dreamed first-team participation.

And what better motivation than seeing what you want just in front of you, only an arm’s reach away; and the only thing you have to do is just reach and grab it.

Just recently, after the match against Chelsea, Wenger announced that the youngsters will get their chance to prove themselves.

On Wednesday, Arsenal is playing Manchester City in the Carling Cup. A good performance by either of the aforementioned players can put pressure on the first-team starters to perform better.

Eduardo is one of those players; undoubtedly, he feels Carlos Vela breathing down his neck. This may prove beneficial to him. Even if it does not work, it is a good chance for Vela to apply for a regular first-team place, in case he provides several good performances, of course—a chance he will definitely have in the coming weeks before Niklas Bedntner returns from injury.

Similar is the situation on the left-back position. Personally, I was tad surprised to see Kieran Gibbs being chosen over Armand Traore during the last year. I have always considered Traore to be the more progressed player. But this still is beneficial for the team. Competition will always raise the bar for its participants.

With Clichy out for another two weeks, and Gibbs out for a significantly longer period of time, it is a golden opportunity for Armand Traore—an opportunity which he surely has waited for a long time.

Another positive sign can be found even in the much tormented and problematic front-line of Arsenal.

The absence of Van Persie is certainly a big blow for the Gunners, and Eduardo’s current form does not help as well. But here’s where two relatively new faces will see their chances.

Carlos Vela has been talked about a lot, ever since the time he spent loan spells at Salamanca and Osasuna, where he gained invaluable experience and was often involved with the first team. Now, he is prepared for Premier League football. His fitness is top notch, and he is more eager than ever to prove himself.

Recently, he stated at the Arsenal website:

"I really want to improve on last season," he said. "I want to score more goals than last season and play more and the main aim for the team is to win something."

After an injury-stricken beginning of the season, the hunger for improvement for Carlos Vela is there. There is only one way for him: up. And what better than that for the team.

Another new face that may become involved in Arsenal’s attack, and most likely will be seen in the game against Manchester City, is Sanchez Watt.

I have always been an admirer of the youngster’s skills. Skills he demonstrated during the team’s preseason preparation. He is tall, technically apt, and reads the game very well.

He recently signed a new contract with Arsenal which proves that he has what it takes to remain at the club.

"This is a contract that gives me more time to prove myself and hopefully I will," he said.

"I want to get a few first-team chances, even just getting in the squad because you know you're improving if you're getting on the bench because there are a lot of players in the team.”

He is still quite young and is ever-improving, but if he is able to grasp his chance against Manchester City, he can be a contender for a first-team spot, or he can provide some pressure on the first-team starters, and maybe push them to improve their form.

Vito Mannone is a young player who has already proved himself to a degree. Now that he has tasted first-team football, the motivation to come back will be even stronger. He is a more than decent goal keeper who could become the next big thing, but at the moment, his drive to get into the first team can be beneficial for the first team.

Even in an injury-stricken squad like the current one of Arsenal, the youngster can provide Wenger with a headache or two. But that is only if they perform well.

They will have their chances, as Wenger said. It’s up to them.

And at times like this, their determination to prove themselves is exactly what the team needs. Ironically, the source of problems that the age has caused for Arsenal can be the source of hope and inspiration as well.

Good luck, young Gunners.

Arsenal Snatches the Emirates Cup After Vintage Display

In front of an almost full Emirates Stadium, Arsenal and Scottish side Rangers played the last match of the Emirates Cup, to decide who the winner would be.

Despite being backed by a lively and vociferous crowd, Rangers were not able to oppose Arsenal and eventually suffered a heavy defeat: 0-3.

There was good mood on the stands as the weather was shiny and clear in contrast with Saturday’s rainy weather.

Again, Arsene Wenger went on with the experiments with the squad.

Eboue was back to his old position on the right side of the defence, Gallas and Silvestre partnered in the centre, and the left-side was Clichy’s.

Eduardo was leading the attack with Wilshere on the right and Arshavin on the left.

The match started and it was not long before the first opportunity of the match arose.

Receiving a pass from Fabregas in the box, Arshavin skilfully worked the ball and returned it to Fabregas. The Spaniard, though, fell down on the ground, and out of nowhere yesterday’s man of the match, Jack Wilshere, appeared. His shot slid beneath the diving goal keeper Allan McGregor.

Two minutes after the match has started it was 1-0 Arsenal.

Stunned, the Ranger fans did not quite down though, and went on loudly supporting their team.

Nine minutes later, they received another blow.

Fran Merida produced a through pass to Eduardo, who got it under his control, and coolly directed it towards the right lower corner of the Ranger’s keeper. The ball bounced off the post and rolled in.

From there on it was only Arsenal until the end of the first half, with Rangers threatening only once in the 27th minute when Silvestre intercepted a cross by Davis to send the ball a foot off Almunia’s goal.

Just before the half time whistle, the fans were reminded of a player from the past, by a player for the future.

Jack Wilshere dealt with two Ranger players before he chipped the ball exquisitely toward the goal. McGregor stretched to save his team.

It was like watching Bergkamp!

On the half time, both managers decided to bring in new faces.

Clichy and Gallas gave way for Denilson and Traore for the Gunners. Thompson, Lafferty and Beasly from the guests were replaced by McCulloch, Novo and Miller.

With a complete change in personnel at the back, and an improved motivation by Rangers, Arsenal started to experience difficulties.

First, Almunia was able to deflect a cross by Novo, but the ball fell to the feet of Steven Davis. It seemed as if he would score, but Song’s tackle parried the shot at the last moment.

A couple of more attacks passed fruitlessly for Rangers, when in the 62th minute they missed their golden chance.

On the counter attack, Davis was set free by Song’s mistimed tackle. After a spectacular save by Almunia and one more unsuccessful attempt by Ranger’s strikers, the danger was gone.

Then, Wenger made another three substitutions; young talents Watt and Ramsey came on for Arshavin and Eduardo.

But there was one man on fire on the field. 17-year-old Wilshere continued to terrorise with his dribbling and passes.

With the help of his ex-reserve team-mates he scored his second of the match. Twenty minutes from time, Watt battled out for the ball, won it and passed it to Ramsey on the edge of the box.

Ramsey’s cross connected with Wilshere who sent the ball into the top right corner. 3-0 to Arsenal.

Later, Tomas Rosicky was introduced into the game, taking the captain’s brand off the replaced Cesc Fabregas.

Rangers had one more chance to score a goal, unfortunately for them, unsuccessful.

The final result was meant to be 3-0.

The two goals that Jack Wilshere scored were enough to grant his second man of the match award in two days, and to draw the attention of the England manager Fabio Capello, who was watching the game.

Arsenal continues to prepare for the start of the new season. For now, it all seems to go well for Wenger’s team.

They are meeting Valencia six days from now in their last game of their pre-season preparation.