Arsenal 3 - 0 Wigan Athletic

At half-time I was getting irked. The old annoyances with regards to our inability to finish teams off were there for all to see. It had been a wonderful performance with all the outfield players contributing to the good stuff being played. Sadly there was only one goal to show for utter dominance. Theo Walcott's decision to pass when one-on-one with the goalkeeper was baffling, while the rest of the attacking players took it in turns to find the opposition goalkeeper in fine form. Arsenal had played their pressing game very well again in the first-half and kept regaining the ball immediately on the rare occasions that possession was lost. Jack Wilshere had his most impressive ninety minutes for some time as he an Alex Song again dominated the middle of the pitch. With Fabregas and Van Persie seemingly at the top of their game Wigan had no answer, but at half-time I remained a worried man. Arsenal then started the second-half in exactly the way we didn't want with the pressing game non-existent all of a sudden. Fortunately this only lasted for around ten minutes and then the machine started to purr once more.
I've just watched Match of the Day and was completely unsurprised by their failure to highlight the second Arsenal goal. The pass by Fabregas was really quite incredible and from my angle you could see the necessity of the accuracy he found. RVP's finish was also sensational and the crowd audibly gasped in admiration at the quality of the goal. In it's own way it was Arsenal's goal of the season, quite fantastic. If Fabregas, Nasri and Van Persie can continue to combine in the way are right now then there may yet be a happy conclusion to our season (though having watched Barcelona for ten minutes this evening it won't be a Champions League ending to the season for Arsenal).
Van Persie's failure from the spot was symptomatic of the way we were in front of goal again today, but it didn't really matter in terms of the result - whether the missed chances cost us when goal difference comes in to play is something we will only know in May. I was particularly pleased that he got his hat-trick eventually (after another stunning Fabregas pass and strong play from Walcott) as I had 14 to 1 from Ladbrokes on his scoring first in a 3-0 win. That little bonus pays for my £10 seat on Tuesday night so everyone's a winner.

With Man City and Spurs dropping points we have hit this kind of form at a very timely juncture. Momentum is key as we head towards to Spring so it is vital to get on a consistent run. We still have our obvious areas of weakness and when Djourou looked injured in the second-half (thankfully he recovered to finish the game) even Arsene Wenger must have seen the urgent need to bolster at the back. I'd like to see Bolton do a job on Chelsea tomorrow and then for their main centre-half to join Arsenal on Monday. Until then I'll keep dreaming!

Lots of loans, Wigan (h)

The entire Arsenal fringe squad seems set for time away from the club. We already knew that Vito Mannone is at Hull and that Jay Emmanuel-Thomas had joined Cardiff City for the rest of the season. He is now going to be joined there, until the end of February, by Aaron Ramsey. I've said on here before that I fear for Ramsey's future as an Arsenal player and this has done nothing to assuage those fears. I accept that he is short of matches, but I would rather see him knocking about on Arsenal's bench than the likes of Denilson. The same goes for Henri Lansbury who has been sent back to Norwich for the rest of the season.. Lansbury is the most unlucky player at Arsenal this season having burst on the scene with a fabulous display at Spurs in the Carling Cup. I am surprised and disappointed that he has not been sent down the same route as Jack Wilshere and been loaned to a side in the Premier League if Wenger felt further experience was necessary. Henri has already spent a whole season at Watford, so I fail to see what he's supposed to be learning at a club in the same division. With Carlos Vela also set for a loan deal, and Kyle Bartley at Sheffield United until the end of the season it is very much a case of hoping and praying for no more injuries.

I'm going to stick to my guns and ignore the transfer hype until something actually happens for Arsenal. I will not pass comment on Arsene Wenger's assertions with regards to Abou Diaby covering Alex Song in the event of a defensive crisis - the very thought does not bear thinking about quite frankly. If you want to read what he had to say then it's at www.arsenal.com

Wigan Athletic are the visitors tomorrow and I'll be hoping for a repeat of the comprehensive stuffing they got at the start of last season. On the last couple of occasions we've played them Arsenal's defence has failed to do its job, but the attitude on the pitch (badly affected by the ridiculous team changes just after Christmas) cost the team on both occasions. Tomorrow should be different with the team close to full strength. Robin Van Persie, Gael Clichy, Cesc Fabregas, Theo Walcott and Jack Wilshere should all return to the starting line-up and anything less than a victory with this team is quite unthinkable. I have no doubt that N'Zogbia and Rodallega will cause us problems at the back as they have done for a number of defences over the past two seasons - if Wigan could defend properly then they wouldn't be struggling like they are.
I would like to think that, if we can make a rare fast start to the match, and kill it off (no chance!) that Arsene would take the opportunity to rest one or two of the players ahead of the Carling Cup on Tuesday. What is more likely is that we will struggle to hit the net, against an inspired goalkeeper, before Nicklas Bendtner comes on to get a late winner! In truth I wouldn't mind too much if that scenario develops, just so long as Arsenal get the three points.
This is the team I think we might see tomorrow:
Szczesny - Sagna, Djourou, Koscielny, Clichy - Song, Wilshere, Fabregas - Nasri, Van Persie, Walcott

I hope to review the game at some point tomorrow night, probably after Match of the Day.

Leeds 1 - 3 Arsenal - no more messing about

There is a wrestler in the WWF called John Cena. Cena's signature move is called the "Attitude Adjustment" and I wonder if he's been training with the Arsenal squad this week. The display last night was a world away from the first match against Leeds, and the game against Ipswich. Right from the kick-off last night the players went out there with the right attitude and ran their socks off - even Arshavin seemed to be working harder when we didn't have the ball, even if his exploits with the ball at his feet are becoming all the more predictable. Following yesterday morning's controversy I thought we might see more from Denilson last night but he was the one really disappointing player last night for me - and that is not just me jumping on the "get at Denilson" bandwagon.
As I've said the players mindset last night was spot-on. The decision to make Nasri the captain ahead of Arshavin (who did wear the armband at Portsmouth a couple of months after his arrival two years ago) was a signal that Wenger wanted a player who would lead by example. Nasri set the tone as he dominated the ball in the early stages - though he was uncharacteristically profligate in possession a couple of times later in the first-half. Meanwhile Alex Song ran the midfield area as he broke up the play on numerous occasions and got Arsenal back on the attack. The two centre-halves were fairly faultless last night and the Championship is probably a level at which Koscielny would look a very comfortable player. Bacary Sagna was already in decent form before his suspension and the short break has done him no harm - his goal was a super strike, though I thought Schmeichel might have done a bit better having got his hands on the ball. On the other side of the defence Kieran Gibbs has really got to pay attention to his positioning as better players will punish his going AWOL far more effectively than Leeds managed.
In the attacking areas I though Chamakh had a fine first-half and was really unlucky to see his text-book downward header repelled by a fabulous save. Nicklas Bendtner was constrained to the right-wing again and did his best to make an impression. He tracked back to reasonable effect and his cross for Van Persie's goal was excellent. I just hope that Wenger doesn't take that cross as evidence that Bendtner is capable of playing that position on a more regular basis.
The first two substitutions were encouraging in that Arsene showed a genuine intent to win the tie. There was no question of making subs and "resting" players so we saw the removal of Arshavin, and a tiring Chamakh, neither of whom are likely to start on Saturday. I did allow myself a smile at the sight of Gael Clichy being brought on to play on the left-wing, what with his prowess and expert delivery in attacking areas...or not.
All in all it was a fine performance from the boys and showed once and for all that if you beat a team for effort, and make no mistake Leeds gave it all they had, you will surely beat them with your football. Were it not for Schmeichel and Arsenal's customary wastefulness, we would have been out of sight long before Leeds grabbed their lifeline. I was still worried at 2-1 as one small mistake might have let Leeds back in to the game, but they had little answer to us once Fabregas entered the fray. The Leeds captain, Howson, showed he lacks talent in the final five minutes as he tried to leave Fabregas with some new tattoos on his legs and should have been receiving his second yellow-card when he finally got booked (no surprise to hear Andy Townsend sympathising with the Leeds man - add him to the cretin list).
A home draw against Huddersfield now awaits us. The players must not believe that game to be a walkover and the attitude of last night must be present in everything they do between now and the end of the season. A defeat last night might have rattled the momentum they have been trying to build, but that has now been a problem averted. There's a big game on Saturday in the Premier League against Wigan who are owed more than one by this group of players. Then on Tuesday is the biggest game of the season so far for me, a must-win versus Ipswich, which might just set up a piece of silverware for the first time for this squad. There's much to look forward to, if the players can produce like they did last night.

Get your coat Denilson, Leeds (a) tonight

Denilson has decided to speak candidly about his colleagues in an interview with Arsenal Brasil. The article was published by Arsenal Brasil and Arseblog late last night, though most will have read it in the "exclusive" in The Sun. The general gist is that Denilson has said Arsenal lack leadership among the players which is naturally being seen as a dig at Cesc Fabregas. What Denilson has said is nothing that most of the fans don't already think themselves. The thing is that Denilson is a player, employed by the Club, and should be keeping his mouth firmly shut in public. Any comments like this should never make the public domain. I remember William Gallas deciding to go public on the problems at Arsenal and being sacked as Captain in the process. Given that Denilson is not in the Gallas class as a player he really should be heading towards the exit door over this. Most Arsenal fans would not complain if Denilson had already made his final appearance for the Club, and his performances in recent weeks have been so lacking in effort as to be disgraceful. At the very least Denilson should be dropped from the team for tonight (he is almost certainly scheduled to be in the starting line-up) - I suspect the travelling Gooners might not be quite so welcoming to him as they usually are. Fabregas, to his credit, has moved quickly to diffuse any problems by posting a picture on Twitter of himself and Denilson on the team coach this morning - the players are travelling to Leeds by train incidentally.

On to the match tonight and Leeds' Manager Simon Grayson has decided to stoke things up a bit by slagging Theo Walcott. According to this brain-box young Theo should be suspended for admitting that he committed a bookable offence in the first game. That's right people, Theo should be banned for admitting to doing something punishable by a yellow card. The Leeds crowd will surely be rabid enough tonight without their plank of a boss winding them up even further.
I am concerned about tonight. I'm concerned because Arsene will make numerous changes to the team again, and I can see Ignasi Miquel possibly making his debut with Djourou rested (I'd far rather see Song move back alongside Koscielny, and Djourou really does need a rest). This Arsenal team has been incredibly inconsistent, but that is possibly reflected in the changes made to the side every few days. Obviously certain rotation is required to keep players fresh, but Wenger is likely to choose to abandon the FA Cup in favour of a Title push - which is okay (actually it's not okay at all) if you have a team that will definitely challenge. Of most concern is what a defeat to rubbish like Leeds would do to the fragile mentality of our players. It is a sobering thought to consider that by this time next week we could be out of both Cups and clinging on to Manchester United for dear life in the Premier League.
We know that Szczesny will play in goal after a "setback" for Lukasz ("out for a couple of days") Fabianski. Apart from that there are no clues as to the starting line-up. Cesc Fabregas and Jack Wilshere are definitely on the trip, and Cesc's withdrawal early on Saturday hopefully means he will start the game and dominate it in the way he did when coming on as sub eleven days ago. My Leeds supporting mate tells me that pace is something they simply can't deal with, as evidenced by Walcott's influence in the first game, so I'd love to see Theo play from the beginning as well. I am always in favour of seeing the game get won, and then resting players, rather that needing to chase like we did against them last time out.
Despite my concerns I expect Arsenal to win tonight - Arsene has spoken about the "wake-up call" at Ipswich last week and certain players need to start delivering some performances - we keep hearing about the strength of the "squad" at Arsenal, and tonight represents a fine opportunity for this "squad" to show its mettle in a hostile northern environment. I, sadly, will be employing the Sky+ and watching the game "as live" after the event due to a badly timed committee meeting at my cricket club. I'll review tomorrow morning.

Not as impressive as most think - West Ham 0 - 3 Arsenal

On the face of it a 3-0 away win against a team we traditionally struggle with is a very impressive result. It's fair to say that West Ham hardly threatened the Arsenal goal, save for one or two mistakes from Johan Djourou (more below) but that does not excuse the second-half performance from Arsenal. After a bright start to the second period the Arsenal players moved back in to their comfort-zone and stopped playing fast-paced, attacking football. Instead of playing to their natural strengths the players started cocking about, happy to play out time. I seem to remember them doing this on other occasions in the recent past, only to be caught out by an opposition taking its chance to make mugs of our defence. Make no mistake West Ham were one set-piece, or one fortunate deflection, away from getting back in to the game on Saturday. I was starting to get very edgy when we finally sprang to life to get the penalty. The Manager should have been on the touchline berating the boys for their arrogance and lethargy, throwing on a couple of subs (not Arshavin) to liven things up. It told me that Arsenal have still not learned any lessons from their past failures.
It seems a little churlish to chastise the team, however, following the most consummate of first-half attacking displays. West Ham's weakened midfield had no answer to Song, Wilshere and Fabregas, whilst Nasri, Walcott and Robin Van Persie ripped the defence to shreds. A 2-0 lead at half-time was not a fair reflection on Arsenal's complete dominance, punctuated by those Djourou errors, which I will cover now. I suppose Johan was due to have a game where he didn't hit his recent heights but I do have an explanation for his display. If you watch the game back you will see that Djourou was constantly looking to his right to see whether Eboue was actually where he should be. This led to the Swiss effectively playing two positions and failing, therefore, to deal effectively with Carlton Cole. Make no mistake, Eboue has become a disruptive influence within an already fragile back-four and Sagna's return can not come soon enough for me. I didn't think I would be writing that a few months ago, but Eboue has regressed in to the player that was booed from the pitch a couple of years ago.
Back in the attacking areas on Saturday Arsenal were outstanding. If the score had been 4-0 or 5-0 at half-time West Ham could not have felt hard done to. I thought we had some bad fortune to go with our usual below-par finishing. When Frank Lampard has a shot deflected the ball flies in to the corner of the net, when we have a shot deflected it flies straight in to the hands of the goalkeeper. Robin also hit the inside of the post only to see the ball come straight out to a West Ham player (that's the third time we've struck the woodwork since New Year, following seventeen such occurrences in 2010 - the most in the Premier League). All in all it was another big three points and keeps us right up there as the chase becomes interesting.

I can't finish without a word about the situation at West Ham. I notice that Gold and Sullivan have said nothing about the issue, but their silence is deafening. Then there is Karren Brady. Can someone tell me what this woman knows about football? Her comments in The Sun on Saturday, amid the rumours of Avram Grant's impending dismissal, that she will give her opinion to the Manager told you all you need to know about what is wrong in the East End. The arrogance of the woman is staggering. She really is the prime example of why women should have no place in professional football. Not content with trying to ruin the last series of The Apprentice with her pretentious "businesswomen of today" nonsense, she now is making a laughing-stock of one of England's most traditional football clubs. West Ham is, rather like Arsenal, known for doing things the right way, from football on the pitch, to an unseen board of directors. At the moment they have a team that is failing (though not through the fault of Avram Grant - appointed by Brady and her cohorts), and a Club that is having its good name sullied by the machinations of an embarrassing set of executives.

The FA Cup replay is on Wednesday night but there is still no sign of a new centre-back at Arsenal. Thomas Vermaelen has confirmed he is to have an operation on his injured achilles and will be out for at least six weeks following that. Even if Squillaci recovers his fitness we are short of at least one central defender, an issue that will surely cost us as the season comes to a close. Wenger must act to address the shortage, and he must do it quickly.

West Ham (a) preview

The boys are back to the Premier League grind tomorrow and a tough trip to Upton Park lies ahead. With West Ham struggling against relegation again we should be looking forward to a straightforward afternoon, but things are never easy for Arsenal at The Hammers and, let's face it, Arsenal are not exactly tearing up trees themselves. Since we beat Chelsea the inconsistency has been infuriating with only one win since then. Wednesday night provided a new low-point for the season and I'm sick of saying that the players must now come out and show their true form. I fear that their true form is exactly what we've been witnessing because only teams that can play well almost every week have the ability to win the Title.
Arsenal will go in to the game with Wojciech Szczesny in goal once again. Fabianski has suffered a shoulder injury and failed a fitness test. Wenger says that Fabianski will be out for "days" but this is the same injury that kept him out of the game at Old Trafford before Christmas. With Mannone away on loan we suddenly look very short in goal which was already a serious weakness given the overall quality we have at our disposal. Almunia remains officially "injured." According to Jamie Sanderson (YoungGunsBlog) in his webchat last night, Manuel Almunia has been refusing to be part of the matchday squad. If that is the case I sincerely hope his wages are being with-held by the Club. With only Szczesny available we face the prospect of a Premier League match with James Shea on the bench - this is unacceptable when you think how close we were to being without Szczesny too for tomorrow after he got away with a handball on Wednesday night.
Elsewhere we will see the return of Samir Nasri and Robin Van Persie. Hopefully Nasri will be able to provide the "spark" that Wenger said was missing in midweek. Apparently Denilson is fit following a thigh niggle - not sure why this is worthy of reporting, but there you go. I don't expect Denilson to start tomorrow, but stranger things have happened with a Wenger selection - after all, Stefan Malz and Alberto Mendez had playing time at Arsenal under him! Apart from that the team is pretty much selecting itself I think, though I wouldn't put it past Le Boss to drop Theo Walcott and keep Arshavin in the side.
It goes without saying that we have to win tomorrow and we can hope that Spurs take some points off Manchester United on Sunday. As I've said, West Ham is a place we find difficult more often than not, but if the players apply themselves (as I keep on saying) they should win the game. West Ham will be right up for it you can be sure, and a packed Upton Park can be an intimidating place (though somewhat less so than years ago).

I'll post a match review either tomorrow night, or on Sunday.

Ipswich 1 - 0 Arsenal - how many wake-up calls are needed?

Another disgraceful embarrassment of a performance. Arsene Wenger says the players have had a "wake-up call." What, another one? What about West Brom, Tottenham, Newcastle, Wigan, Leeds? How many wake-up calls should this squad of players need? Apparently they were also struggling with "fatigue." Grow up Arsene. With the exception of Jack Wilshere (who is still a boy remember) and Johan Djourou (three games in a week for the first time in about three years) that is the most lazy excuse Wenger has ever made for the below-par efforts of his overpaid prima-donnas. Arsenal's problems are not of fatigue, but of attitude. When you have Arsenal's level of ability (and last night's team was not a weakened one if we're being honest) then you will beat almost anybody you play against, provided you work harder than the opposition. If Arsenal can beat a team for effort, they will surely then beat them with their football. With the exception of Barcelona I think this applies to any team Arsenal might play, anywhere in the World.
I have always defended Nicklas Bendtner, Eboue and Denilson. Not any more. Bendtner finally got his chance to play at centre-forward last night, certainly his strongest position. Not only that, but he was up against a defence that sits 19th in the second division of English football. He was awful, disgraceful. Arsene Wenger should forget about loaning Jay Emmanuel-Thomas to anyone else, but should promote the boy to the first-team squad on a weekly basis. I'm sorry Nicklas, but you've had your chances and you've failed to do the business. The same thing goes for the other two whose lack of effort is becoming sickening in these types of matches. Do they think that playing in these games is beneath them or something? Eboue has returned to the diving, cheating and general nonsense that punctuated the worse period of his Arsenal career a couple of years ago. His on-field behaviour is not befitting of "The Arsenal" and I would like to see the Board making this clear to the Manager.
I'm fed up of writing about Andrey Arshavin. I don't rate Carlos Vela but surely he is more deserving of a proper opportunity than the Russian. Arshavin looks like a man who would rather be almost anywhere else than on the pitch in an Arsenal shirt. The Club should cash in while they still can because he is running short of charity from the fans and the derision is only going to get more audible with every lazy flick or awful first-touch. The really frustrating thing with Arshavin is that, unlike Bendtner, Denilson, Eboue etc, we KNOW he has the ability. He is a World Class footballer when he wants to be. The problem is he seems to not want to be a World Class footballer at Arsenal anymore.
The second-leg is two weeks away and Arsenal have three massive games before we even get to it. When we do play Ipswich again we have an uphill task. I remember well the last season at Highbury when we trailed Wigan 0-1 in the semi-final after the first game. A strong Arsenal team went on to dominate the second-leg but found an inspired keeper who kept his side in the tie right up until the last minute of extra-time when a long punt caught out our defence - just like the goal last night (and seemingly numerous other occasions). The Manager of Wigan that night was, of course, Paul Jewell. Fabregas has compared Ipswich's style as being like rugby because of the high-ball - I would call their style intelligent as they could see the obvious Arsenal weakness and knew how to exploit it. We can expect much more of the same in a fortnight. Any game that you start with a one goal deficit means that you have a hill to climb. This Arsenal side is more than capable of destroying Ipswich in the same way that Chelsea did on Sunday afternoon, but I fear they lack the temperament required to do that. Ultimately that is this squads major problem - they have plenty of ability, but not the correct attitude and that is why the silverware suddenly looks a long way off once more.

There'll be a preview of the West Ham game tomorrow. It goes without saying that a better performance will be needed, but I'm beginning to feel like a scratched record in saying that.