5+10+31 equal an Arsenal victory

The malaise that was the beginning of the 2011/2012 is gone. Not quite a memory it is nearly completely faded in the background. A run that saw Arsenal go 2-1-4 is now replaced by a run of 7-1-4. 5 wins in a row and 10 out of the last 12 in all competitions. Doubters remain, but to many Arsenal are back.

No, its not the Arsenal that scared opponents like they did in glory of Wenger’s rule over the club. But it is an Arsenal that competes in every game and is more than likely to come out with a W than a L. At the beginning of this season and the end of last, you couldn’t say that.

For Arsenal, I don’t think this one was very much in doubt. For most of the match Norwich played one man on top. It of course paid dividends with the first goal as Morrison took Mertesacker to the cleaners. I have been effusive with my praise of Mertesacker as he settled into some of his games. Again, I don’t think you make 76+ caps for the German national team without being a good defender. But he had a howler of game yesterday. He was outmuscled and on a few occasions lost headers he should clearly be winning with his height. I am still not going to hang a player of his talent out to dry. Learning this league, especially for a defender can take time for a player. Yes, he was bad. But he is still a good player and hopefully he will come good.

Arsenal came out exactly as I said they would and for the first 15 minutes controlled every aspect of the game. If  not for a combination of wastefulness on Arsenal’s part and luck on Norwich’s part it could’ve clearly been 3-0 inside 20 minutes.  Norwich for their heart and desire did not have an answer for the three headed monster that Gervinho, Walcott and Robin Van Persie are turning in to. Walcott and Gervinho spent all day getting behind the Norwich defence. Walcott especially with some nice skill showing that he may have finally learned how to use his touch and guile to get behind players.  That pace and skill nearly paid dividends immediately with only a Van Persie shot skitting wide and then 12 minutes Norwich were fortuitous.

Coming off a quick counter, Gervinho got the ball over to Walcott who had a rifle shot destined for the low corner only to be saved on the line by Russell Martin’s leg. It was fortuitous because an inch lower and the ball would’ve been an OG off the deflection. Martin would go on to be their best goal keeper with three such goal line saves.

Even though Norwich scored first you knew Arsenal had goals in them. They had been applying pressure all day and I am convinced that this “new” version of Arsenal is not as wasteful of chances as previous iterrations were. And on the 27th minute Robin Van Persie slotted home an easy goal to collect his 30th of the calendar year. Theo using his speed and touch to get around Tierney fed the ball into the middle nicely, Gervinho missed a back heel and it dropped to Van Persie who slotted it him. Maybe a bit of luck for Arsenal but good teams make their own luck and Van Persie’s skill in the box is just money right now.

Still as I mentioned in the preview to this match, Norwich were not going to lie down. They played us well trying to get back into the match. Unfortunately for them they either didn’t have enough attack going forward or their passing game went missing. This is the time of year when things get tough for the newly promoted clubs. Its the time of year when fixture congestion comes into play and it simply is more than the new clubs can handle (for the most part). Still I fancy Norwich to continue to give it a go and what good fans they had.

Still, Arsenal are on a march back to respectability and Wenger is out to show he hasn’t lost it. And on the hour it was once again Robin Van Persie who netted the winner. Coming off a sliding tackled from Ramsey to win the ball, Song scampered forward, he looked off Gervinho (more about that soon) and passed to the in-form Van Persie who took the ball into the box and lobbed the ball off a committed Ruddy.  2-1 Arsenal.

For the remaining 30 minutes it was a bag of missed Gervinho chances and some Norwich chances but as the game wound down Arsenal started doing something that we haven’t seen in a very long while. They kept the ball and closed out a match. If not for a foul in the closing 5 minutes Arsenal would’ve likely held the ball for the final 10 minutes ( okay I exaggerate a little but you get my point) it was impressive. We haven’t done that in recent memory. More so because a 2-1 win never felt like a win we could hold. And while the likes of Mertesacker are still giving us heartburn, I never got a sense of wreckless abandonment we got from previous Arsenal squads. Maybe its Vermaelen. Maybe its we have a goal keeper who doesn’t let in many last minute howlers. Maybe we’ve finally got some maturity on the squad. Maybe, just maybe, it’s all of that and more.

As for players of mention, it would be hard to pass on this match and not mention that it could’ve easily been a route had Gervinho been able to nail the chances we was given. I remarked yesterday that I though Gervinho was been stricken by Niklas Bendtner disease. But that is a discredit to the Ivory Coast international. He offers this club more than the Dane with the ego bigger than the Gervinho’s forehead. He has pace and skill on the ball and can beat players easily. While his first touch was circumspect early on he has settled that down and now just needs to sink his chances. Had he sunk the header or the open net chance he had in the 2nd half the 2-1 score wouldn’t have been as flattering to Norwich as it was.

I think Thomas Vermaelen bears some mention as well. He is clearly the best defender we have and places a calming influence on that line. While Mertesacker had a howler the defence never seemed scattered are all over the place. The only thing I can think that is helping that has to be the fact the Vermaelen is back in the lineup.

I mentioned yesterday that I thought Theo is finally starting to come good. It seems weird saying that for someone who has been at the club for a while but lest we forget he is only 22 and is only about to come into his prime as a player. His first touch and speed are starting to show how effective they can be when used by in a smart manner. He is skinning defenders on a regular basis and is a large part of the reason why Van Persie is scoring goals.

Than there is Van Perise. Enough has been printed and said about the Dutchman. He is simply the best player in the EPL right now and at least playing at a level similar to Messi and Ronaldo. He has 31 goals this calendar year putting him in the company of only Alan Shearer and Thierry Henry of players to do it. With 5 weeks in the season there is no reason to believe that he can’t eclipse the record of 36.

For Arsenal it is now 5 wins in a row. 10 out of the last 12. With matches against Fulham, Wigan and Everton on the docket for the next 3 weeks it isn’t unlikely that Arsenal can’t go into the December 18 match against City with third or fourth on the line. However, I would still caution against visions of grandeur – the road to respectability is paved with land mines.

Player Ratings:

Szczesny: 7 – not busy at all. Couldn’t do anything about goal.
Koscielny: 7 –  proving his maturity and versatility deputising as the RB
Mertesacker: 4 –  relatively quiet except for getting pushed off the ball that led to the goal
Vermaelen: 8 – solid performance
Santos: 7 – yeah it was Norwich but he was tested and actually did well defencively.
Song: 5 – Bad passing except for the assist that up the winning goal
Ramsey: 5 – largely nonexistent with errant passing all day
Arteta: 6 –  Consistent throughout the day
Gervinho: 7 – Okay he didn’t score. But he had Tierney crapping his pants all day long with his speed.
Walcott: 9 – Was a threat all day long (MOTM)
Van Persie: 8 – If not for Walcott’s performance – easily could’ve been MOTM.

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