Arsenal again dropped points against
a top six competitor, with another dreary 0-0 draw at home (following the same
scoreline against Chelsea right before Christmas). The team seemed tired and
uninspired for much of the game, though several chances went wanting. The first
of the game fell to United in the very first minute, as Arteta gifted the ball
to RVP just outside the penalty area, allowing the ex-Gunner striker a clear
route to goal. His relatively tame effort was saved by Szczesny, who had two
important saves in a game that lacked any real creative flair. The first
opportunity for the home team came in the 3rd minute, when Wilshere
slalomed through two defenders to get a sight of goal from close range, before
Smalling blocked his path, leading to a corner by Cazorla that gave Giroud a
free header he failed to convert. That was one of at least four opportunities
for the Frenchman to score, with him scorning each wide.
The first half ended without
a score, as the teams were largely even, though Arsenal did have a small advantage
in possession. Rosicky was sloppy with the ball throughout the half and Arsenal
seemed to lack any forward momentum, passing the ball around slowly and without
the usual flair, attacking through a stacked middle with several failed 1-2s
with Giroud begging the question why they didn’t play more from the wings. The
second half started with the same tepid display from the home team, though they
did wake up as the game went on and missed a couple of gild-edged opportunities
to take all three points. Wilshere was off the pace in the second half though,
giving the ball up on at least seven occasions (by my count), with a couple
leading to promising United counters. But for an excellent save from Szczesny
in the 75th, Arsenal would have been punished for the last of these mistakes,
as he parried the ball over after a perfectly placed cross from Rooney found
RVP at the far corner for a hard header. Arsenal kept pushing for the goal
late, but to no avail – though a pretty strong 62nd minute appeal
for a penalty probably should have been given as Vidic pushed Giroud in the
back as he was about to connect with a nice Gibbs cross (one of many
questionable calls by Clatenburg and his linesman in a reminder of the sort of
treatment Fergie used to inspire).
In the end, Arsenal lost a
chance to go top, taking advantage of Chelsea’s surprise draw with West Brom on
Tuesday. Liverpool won again, coming from behind twice to beat Fulham 3-2 and
bring themselves back into the title race discussion, particularly as Chelsea
and Man City still have to play at Anfield. Arsenal will need to improve from
her when they play Everton, City, Chelsea and Tottenham, or this two-game
stretech may well augur the predicted second half fade they have become so infamous
for. Three brief thoughts on the game …
1) Offensive Malaise: It is
now two straight games that Arsenal have failed to score from open play, with
both coming against teams that have been shipping goals with relative abandon
this season. There is a predictability to the Arsenal attack that is making it
easier for teams to defend against and Giroud and Ozil look particularly tired,
though the German did have a decent game after the debacle at Liverpool – minus
a wasted free kick from close range late that could have given the Gunners all
three points. Unfortunately, both Rosicky and Wilshere were wasteful on the
counter and gave the ball away around the box far too often. The Gunners appear
to have fallen in love with the 1-2 with Giroud at the top of the box, but
teams have become familiar with this approach and are defending it well. The
team clearly needed to attack from the wings, but excepting a couple of fine
crosses from Sagna and Gibbs, there was little happening on the wings. One
reason was the absence of both Gnarby and Podolski, calling Wenger’s selection
into question once again. While Cazorla, Rosicky and Ozil should be able to
create scoring opportunities, a problem with this formation is that none of
them are prolific scorers and Giroud seems like really needs a break.
2. This brings us to the
second point, which is the failure by Wenger to buy a second striker in the
last two transfer windows. Sure they were screwed by Chelsea in the Summer on
the cusp of signing Ba, but there is no excuse for not purchasing someone to
take the load off of Giroud, who looked dog tired in this game. With Ramsey and
Walcott out, the question of where goals will come from becomes ever more dire
and why Podolski, the most prolific scorer currently not playing, was not even
on the pitch at the end is truly baffling to me. Personally, I would have
started with Pod, Giroud and Ox up front, with Arteta, Ozil and Wilshere behind
them, or at least replaced one of Cazorla and Rosicky with Podolski or Ox.
Bringing on Ox late did little to change the game, but I thought it was too
late. Both Ox and Podolski bring a directness to attack that was lacking in
this game, and directness of attack has been rather effective against United
this term. In our two games against the Red Devils, we have played slowly and
predictably, and this has played into their hands, allowing them to press up
the pitch, play narrowly through the middle and cut off opportunities that
generally come through that same middle.
3. Manchester Curse: finally,
is the horrific record Wenger has against United in recent years. The Gunners
have won 1 of the last 10 in the league and 1 of 13 overall. This seemed to be
the year when they were ripe for the taking, but poor play, poor strategy and
poor selection (at least in my mind) all contributed to a measly point against
a United team that has lost to Newcastle, Everton, West Brom, Tottenham,
Swansea, Sunderland and Stoke City, among others. Wenger just seems to
constantly get it wrong against United and I think this was the case in both
games this season. Sure, Wenger can’t play for Giroud, but why was he still on
the field after the 70th minute? Why did Wilshere not get subbed out
after his fifth giveaway in less than 8 minutes in the second half? Why not
bring on Gnarby or Podolski in the late going, just for some fresh legs? As
mentioned previously, why not start with a winger with pace, particularly on
the right as Evra’s defensive skills seem on the decline this season? All of
these questions, along with why two subs weren’t even used, are for Wenger to
answer in his own head as we see the traditional February unwinding continue.
Next up is the FA Cup tie against
Liverpool, and Arsenal will have to improve their offensive play dramatically
or they may suffer another loss to their old rivals, though this time at home
in a game that could end another route to a trophy. After that is Bayern in the
Champion’s League, and one hopes a revitalized squad that can push the best
team in the world, though the last two displays certainly give one less hope
than a few weeks ago …
No comments:
Post a Comment