Nine Jimmy Rimmers – Arsenal and Football

Winning the games you don’t deserve.  That’s what it takes to stay at the top end of the league.  In the first half against Liverpool we needed stacks of luck to stay in the game.  We were really clinging on.

The Arsenal team looked knackered and uninspired, particularly in midfield.  We were being over-run.  But we were clinging on and it took a mistake from Koscielny to get Liverpool their goal.

They had already had a chance to go one up by then of course when Suarez went down and Halsey gave a penalty.  Did Szczesny actually make contact with Suarez?  A lot of neutrals are saying yes but I’m still not convinced.  It looks like Szczesny is pulling his leg back away from Suarez when he goes down.  Plus Suarez had already launched himself into space before any contact could have happened anyway.  In the end it didn’t matter as Szczesny pulled off a magnificent double save to keep Kuyt’s penalty out.

That save, and a string of others earned Szczesny most people’s vote in our man of the match poll.

But thanks to Sagna and Van Persie we levelled the score and got to half time.  As Arsene Wenger said, we were lucky not to be two or three down.  It’s great to have Bacary Sagna back, a crucial goal and two assists already.  That’s what we missed having to play central defenders as fullbacks.

In the second half we were better.  Not brilliant, but better.  Suarez didn’t get as much of the ball.  We got fresh legs from Gervinho and Oxlade-Chamberlain.  But the whole team raised their game.

It looked like a draw was the best we could do, and it was more than we deserved.  But then, thanks to two great bits of skill, we took the lot.  A great pass from Alex Song was inch perfect for the running Van Persie, outflanking the Liverpool defence.  He smacked it past Reina first time on the volley.  Great skill, like his goal against Everton.

After the game Van Persie said we didn’t deserve to win, which is exactly why players like him are worth what they are.  Also after the game, Arsene Wenger said the club will do what it needs to in order to keep Robin.  I hope so, but first on the list isn’t the cash, it’s being able to offer Champions League football and that is beginning to look a whole lot more plausible than it did a month ago.

During the game we had a little cameo from Diaby who showed us a little flash of why Arsene Wenger persists in the hope that he can return to full fitness.  n the twenty minutes before his hamstring tightened he showed how he can cover the ground box to box, how he can move off the ball to help a pressurised team-mate find a pass and how he can start attacks.

The potential of the guy is obvious, but after twenty minutes so was the problem.  I wish him good luck, but sometimes staying in the top end of the league has to be a ruthless business and you’ve got to think that Arsenal need to find someone who does what he does without the fragility.

So, Arsenal win ugly.  Even better, Chelsea screw up against West Brom.  So now we are clearly in fourth with three points rather than goal difference or goals scored between us and Chelsea.  Slowly we have taken a better grip on our chance of securing that Champions League spot.

It seems to have come at a cost though.  Arteta, Benayoun, Diaby and Gibbs all got injured.  Who will be fit for Tuesday?  Are just kidding ourselves that it matters?

We’ll see.  Just for now I’ll settle for celebrating fourth place with a bit of breathing space.  Oh, and Kenny Dalgleish having nothing to smile about.  He forfeited that big time over the way he handled the Suarez and racism issue.

Except for those taking comfort in blaming the referee, I guess most fans first reaction was to heap it all on Emmanuel Eboue.

I was certainly stunned by him conceding a daft penalty and I had a bit of a post-match rant myself.  Lucas was heading away from goal with only seconds to go before the whistle and Eboue was well-placed between him and the goal if he tried to turn.  Whatever you think Lucas was up to, there was no need to risk making contact.

The irony is that Eboue actually had one of his better games up until that point.  Yes he still got caught out of position, leaving some big gaps for Meireles, but he was more effective than usual and more determined than some of his team-mates.

More of a problem was the fact that it took us ninety-eight minutes to score despite dominating the possession through-out.  And that was on the back of two previous goal-less home draws.

Kenny Dalglish is no fool and had correctly analysed the videos.  Stick two diligent defensive midfielders (Spearing and Lucus) in the middle and tell your fullbacks to stay in a tight formation with the central defenders to form a tight barrier on the edge of the box.  Don’t worry if that means Arsenal get down the sides because when they do get crosses in there generally isn’t anyone running into the box to do anything with them.

What will happen next (as in the whole of the next ninety minutes) is that Arsenal’s talented midfielders will grind down their enthusiasm and their very souls against this wall of six disciplined defenders until their passing becomes more and more ambitious and less and less effective.  Give Arsenal’s midfield space to play and they will up the pace, stretch the game and kill you dead.  Take away the space and they won’t know what to do.

Arsenal were quite good at the back yesterday, despite opting for Diaby over the more consistent Song.  Koscielny plays better alongside Djourou than he does alongside Squillaci.  Presumably because he can focus more on his own play.  Rather like Viera playing better alongside Gilberto.

Clichy, with good help from Nasri, kept Kuyt under control.  Eboue was better than usual until his gaffe.

Szczesny kept his concentration up to be good when needed.  His distribution still needs work as he put Clichy and Djourou in difficult positions during the game, but he’s convincing me at the moment that a new keeper isn’t the priority.

The problem is that we don’t score enough goals.

There’s quite a bit around the blogs today about how Arsenal should stop all this tippey-tappey football.  But I don’t think that’s quite the point.  The only problem with the way we attack is that it’s the only way we attack.  We’ve been sussed!

Eboue (we’re a forgiving lot!) and Djourou lead the man of the match poll.  Add your vote here.

What with the takeover and the tragic loss of Danny Fiszman, last weekend’s game seems a while ago now.  But it mattered a lot because we finally found our way to three points again.  Would’ve mattered a whole lot more if we’d done that the week before of course, but there we are.

This week we need to do it again against Liverpool who go about their business rather better than Blackpool.  They’re not at full strength: Gerrard, Agger and Johnson will all be missing, but with Carroll, Suarez and the industrious Dirk Kuyt they are definitely dangerous.

The injury news for Arsenal is quite good. Szczesny and Djourou may return and Song is definitely back.  Almunia’s knee or whatever still keeps him out so if Szczesny doesn’t make it then mad Uncle Jens will play again.

If it Lehman then I hope that Szczesny keeps his eyes and ears fixed on him to pick up how he takes charge.  Anyone in the wrong place, anyone who fails to pick up a runner, Jens makes sure they know about it.  But he also hands out praise as well.

Hopefully Djourou will make it, because asking Squillaci whether he wants to take Carroll or Suarez doesn’t sound like a question with a correct answer.  If it ends up having to be asked then it will have to be Carroll because Koscielny will need to take on the movement of Suarez.

The ninety minute threat of Dirk Kuyt, generally on the right, means that Clichy is going to need consistent help.  Which isn’t what you generally expect from Arshavin.  So, Nasri on the left?  Or even Gibbs, or is that too negative?

With Nasri, Arshavin, Walcott and Van Persie all available we’re probably not going to see Bendtner or Chamakh start.

There has been talk that both might leave the club this summer.  This is a tricky issue for Arsenal.  Playing the formation we do now, only one out and out striker will start.  But given the vulnerability of Van Persie to injury we need a good striker ready to step in.

Perhaps it has to be an older player like Berbatov at Man Utd?  Someone who isn’t worried that their future is being jeopardised by lack of time on the pitch.

Anyway, back to the Liverpool game.  Late fitness tests allowing I expect to see:

________ Szczesny ________
Eboue Djourou Koscielny Clichy
_______Song _ Wilshere ___
_________ Fabregas ______
Walcott _ Van Persie _ Nasri

What do you think?

It would be churlish not to say thank you to the hardworking Dutchman who has moved this weekend from the ‘crap’ to the ‘not too bad really’ column.

So, three points behind with a game in hand. This strange season, with its reluctant title challengers, rolls on.

Man United P29 – 60 points  +33
Arsenal P28 – 57 points  +30