Arsenal 3-2 Brighton (FA Cup)

Arsenal largely dominated this encounter throughout, but two defensive lapses kept it close until Walcott settled it with an 84th minute winner. The scoring started in the 15th minute, after a great save by Szczesny stopped a Brighton striker in on goal. Rosicky drove forward with resolve and speed and passed to Podolski in the box, who laid the ball off for Giroud to send it into the top left corner of the net from 18 yards out. But as has happened so often this season, rather than put the encounter beyond doubt, Arsenal settled into a lazy defensive mold, failing to press or push forward with resolve, giving the ball up regularly and casually showing off before the equalizer came in the 32nd minute after a short corner (given up by the consistently terrible Santos) was crossed into the Gunners box and no one on the squad, including Sz, reacted -- leaving two Brighton players to decide who should head into goal. It was the 10th goal Arsenal has given up on set pieces this year and reaffirms a sense that Bould and his zonal marking just aren't working at present.

The Gunners started with more resolve in the second half and a great overhead pass by Diaby was taken down with real style by Giroud before he pounded it into the Albion net, giving him his second brace in less than a week. Within five minutes, Brighton were even yet again, after another shambolic effort at defending by Santos and Mertesacker allowed a cross to come in undefended and a free header on goal. Wenger had seen enough and Walcott and Wilshire replaced a relatively tame Ox and better Rosicky in the 68th minute. Arsenal looked dangerous fro that moment on, though most of the traveling fans must have felt more confident after Santos came off for Gibbs in the 78th minute. After scrambling forward, a corner led to the decisive goal in the 84th minute, as Walcott settled on a ball coming out of the box and careened it off a Brighton defender and into the net. A cross in the 90th minute almost led to yet another equalizer, but Arsenal left the visitors with the victory and no need for a replay in the busy upcoming schedule. 

It was not a stellar performance by the team overall and they must consider themselves lucky to win, but there were a number of positives including the play of Diaby who seems to be coming back into form and fitness, the return of Rosicky, who had a decent game and provided the assist to the assist on the first goal, another late goal from Walcott who has had a few this year and, much further to the South -- another good performance by Gervinho in the African Cup of Nations. What did we learn from the game? 

1. Our Defending is too Disorganized: though this is well-trodden ground, it is worth repeating after another awful performance from our back four, including a very average game for our best defender this year -- Mertesacker. Koscielny is clearly not the same player he was last season and we are lacking a fourth centre-back who can establish order when we lose focus. Jenkinson came in for Sagna in the game, and performed adequately, though his passing was average and he gave the ball away dangerously on several occasions. Zonal marking on set pieces is clearly not working though, and Bould's early success in restoring confidence in the defense has seemed to completely disappear. Letting french defender Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa go to Newcastle seems to me like a big mistake.

2. We still Need a Striker: while Walcott continued to score (his 17th in all competitions this season) and Giroud put in his second brace in a row, we still lack even a second striker when we start Podolski, Giroud and Walcott on the front line. Wenger appeared to admit this in an interview after the game and one hopes he actually signs someone worthwhile. The obvious targets are Villa from Barca of Jovetic from Fiorentina. But if we don't pick one up, one has to wonder why we didn't go in for Ba. Adrian Lopez seems another target, though the summer might be a more realistic time to sign him (Llorente is now gone as an option after pre-signing with Juve last week).

3. Andre Santos Must Go: I decided to include a post specifically related to this player who has disgraced himself and the team the entire season. When he first arrived in 2011, he was a relatively unknown quality and contributed positively to the team (though the defensive weaknesses were clear, particularly against Chelsea). Then he was injured in the meaningless final game of the Champion's League qualifier again Olympiakos and has never looked the same player. This year, it is not just the lack of quality but lack of effort that have made him a figure of scorn across Arsenal nation. Not only did he lose his license in London and exchange shirts with RVP at HALFTIME of the Manchester game, but he appears completely uninterested on the pitch when he does appear. He jogged out toward the right winger on the second equalizer, took two absurd shots from at least 35 yards out on either side of halftime and just didn't seem to care most of the game. He is a liability whenever he is on the pitch and is symptomatic of everything wrong with Arsenal at the moment.

4. Giroud Could Become a Top Striker: Giroud sometimes looks like a guy who has never played football before with his poorly-timed jumps, awful first touches and lumbering runs (he actually started the game later than most); other times he looks like a genius. He has all the attributes of a top-class striker except speed, but clearly needs to improve his consistency and finishing to move to the next level. But if the last two games are an indicator, he might be ready to do so. He can shoot with both feet (though he prefers the left), has a nice touch and increasingly heads the ball to spaces where others like Walcott or Pod can latch on and thrust forward. He makes quality runs and no one can critique his level of effort. And though he needs to work on his defensive headers, his role in the defense has been important on more than one occasion this campaign. While he will probably never rise to the heights of RvP, I could certainly see him contribute 20+ goals a year moving forward (and with his passing and vision, some important assists to boot).

5. Wenger Must Go: I am more positive about the Gunners after the past two results, and a good week ahead could put real pressure on Tottenham, but Wenger seems unwilling to make the changes necessary to challenge for titles and win silverware. We have clear needs in defense, for a defensive midfielder and a striker, yet Arsene continues to argue that there is "no quality" out there? Really? Newcastle has signed several players, Man United signed one of the most exciting young talents in English football (Zaha), Tottenham signed our supposed target Holtby, M'Villa went to Russia and Chelsea added Ba. And there are still quality players available if we are willing to stump up the cash and convince them to come. But this isn't the only reason Wenger should go. One consistent outcome of history is that leadership that lingers on too long with too much power rarely succeeds. Totalitarian and authoritarian tendencies become institutionalized, the leader develops a God complex and the ability for the social organization to change are tempered by a tired complacency. That appears to be the case with Arsenal over the past several years. I listened to an interview with RvP today on Fox Soccer, and he seemed to indicate clearly that the difference between the Gunners and Red Devils was the winner's attitude in the locker room, on the training ground and during games. He intimated that that used to exist at Arsenal (when he first arrived nine years ago) but had disappeared in the intervening years. 

To reiterate a belaboured point, there are several areas in which Wenger has failed as a coach including 1. transfer policy, 2. retaining his best players, 3. formational flexibility/preparation for opponents and 4. motivating his players. Recent articles have highlighted his role in each of these areas and the fact that he has complete control over our oddly socialistic wage scheme (where young players and subs are paid salaries far above the range they would receive anywhere else and our best players are underpaid in comparison to our main rivals). The reality is that Wenger is too stubborn and dictatorial to listen to those around him (including the media, his coaches and his own players) and seems intent on proving that his approach of youth first, finding diamonds in the rough and balancing the books can work. It clearly doesn't and though I dream of a Wembley final appearance in the FA cup, it still wouldn't be enough for me to buy into the Wenger plan any longer.