Match Preview: Arsenal v Hull City; Another Banana Peel to Get Around
This one has one big slip up written all over it doesn’t it? We can’t possibly navigate this season without slipping up against one of these upstart teams – can we? Forgive us if we have our moments of weakness. But this seems to be a new feeling for us. (It’s not for those of us who remember those yesterdays of yore when we vanquished everyone)
We seem to get these matches presented to us too after the said opponent has just vanquished a big fish. Last week it was Cardiff right after they impressively drew Manchester United and here we are in the midweek facing off against Hull City after their 3-1 surprising drubbing of Liverpool.
So now we’re being told not to underestimate Hull City as what they did to Liverpool they can do to us. First, let me say that is absolutely true and that’s the beauty of the Premier League –on any given day any team can win. But there it’s not underestimating Hull we are doing. It’s looking at these fixtures realistically.
Against Cardiff when you looked at the matches they were doing well in, with the exception of Manchester City, they hadn’t played a team who is as controlling of the ball as Arsenal were. Hull City went up against a Liverpool who were abjectly poor and had no midfield control of the game and were unable to dictate play. Additionally, when you look at the matches Cardiff and Hull City had, its hard to see them doing it twice in a row. While Arsenal are beating teams like Hull and Cardiff without fully getting out of 2nd gear.
As much a challenge as Hull presents Arsenal, Arsenal present their own challenges to Hull. One of the challenges I see is whether or not Steve Bruce persists with a back 3 in light of Arsenal’s attack. Surely it means a congested midfield but if Arsenal can pull it apart it doesn’t provide any cover for the back 3 and will give Arsenal chances galore.
What is unknown is how much rotation Wenger will use. We’ve projected a fair amount of changes especially with Everton on Sunday, Napoli in the midweek and Manchester City by next Saturday. But he could also do less but still rest key individuals. One change is certain, Bacary Sagna will miss this match as he had what I think is being described as a mild hamstring strain. That means youngster Carl Jenkinson will play. Frankly, it’s a good match for him to get some time in.
Other changes I definitely expect are resting Mikel Arteta and Mesut Özil. Obviously we don’t expect Olivier Giroud to get a rest but Theo will probably get a nod on the right which means either Jack or Rambo will sit on the bench.
A word about Olivier Giroud and no rotation – a lot of people are worried about what happens if he gets injured or exhausted. It’s a valid concern but one thing people don’t know is that Giroud does a very good job of taking care of himself and hasn’t missed many matches in his career. Arsenal for their part have restructured his training so as to not needlessly exhaust him.
The rotation obviously creates some headaches but you have to rotate when matches like this come up. Not completely but smartly. Rest those you can. Arsenal are starting to get healthy. Theo is back and the midfield is chock full of options. Lukas Podolski has resumed full training and Wenger says he will be available for the squad within a week. Rotation is why you have a squad. It helps you get over these humps and keep you in for the long haul.
Sure rotation causes some people consternation as they think that it will break the momentum. In year’s past I could see an easy way to make that case. But the players we have available to us on the bench are quality players and they supplement the starting XI nicely.
All in all, the talent we bring in should be enough to see off the challenge by Hull. As tricky a fixture as it looks, I’m still fairly confident we’re looking at an Arsenal win.
Probable Lineups:
Injuries and Suspensions:
Arsenal: Diaby (knee), Oxlade-Chamberlain (knee) Podolski (hamstring), Sanogo (back) Sagna (hamstring)
Hull City: Aluko (Achilles), McShane (hamstring), Quinn (hamstring), Davies (suspended – 1).
Leading Scorer:
Arsenal: Ramsey 8
Hull City: Brady 3
Assists:
Arsenal: Özil 6
Hull City: Aluko 2
Last Meeting (EPL):
Nothing prior to 2006/2007
Last 5:
Arsenal: WWLWW
Hull City: LWLLW
Goals For:
Arsenal (home): 2.2
Hull City (away): .8
Goals Against:
Arsenal (home): .8
Hull City (away) : 2.2
Goal Differential:
Arsenal: 17
Hull City: -4
Match Official:
Referee: Andre Mariner (Matches: 10. R4 Y41 PK 2)
Assistants: Beswick, Scholes
Fourth Official: Probert
Broadcast Information:
US: NBC Sports Live Extra 2:45 PM EST
UK: Arsenal Player (audio only) 19.45
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YAMA Prediction:
Arsenal: 2
Hull City: 0
Match Facts (courtesy FourFourTwo
- Arsenal have won eight of the last nine matches against the Tigers in all competitions (W8 D0 L1).
- Hull City have won just one of their last 30 Barclays Premier League away games (W1 D7 L22).
- Hull City were the first away team to concede the opening goal but come back to win a Barclays Premier League game at the Emirates Stadium (2-1 in Sept 2008).
- Nicklas Bendtner has scored in two of his three Premier League appearances against Hull City.
- Arsenal have lost just one of their last 15 Premier League games at the Emirates Stadium (W11 D3 L1).
- The Gunners have scored five headed goals from just seven headers on target in the Premier League this season.
- Mesut Özil has provided the most assists in the Premier League this season (6).
- Arsenal have conceded just 15 goals in their last 23 Premier League games, only one team has scored more than one in a match against them in that run (Aston Villa in August – 1-3).
- The Gunners have kept five clean sheets in their last six games in all competitions, conceding just one goal in the other match (0-1 at Man Utd).
- Wojciech Szczesny has the best saves to shots ratio (81%) in the Premier League this season (min 16 shots on target faced).
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For those who doubted the impact of Ferguson and/or the lack thereof with Moyes have a look at United’s position and form. Moyes to United just never had the right ring about it for me. He did nothing of any note with Everton. No trophies and frighteningly few victories over big teams. In many ways he was a modern-day Wenger-lite, achieving mid-table with regularity whereas Wenger achieved top 4. But worryingly Moyes never demonstrated the edge to go to that ‘next level’.
With United, you sensed Ferguson was squeezing the last juice out of this squad. It needed revamping but Ferguson nearing retirement just didn’t have the energy to do so. So he coaxed final seasons out of Scholes and Giggs and bought Van Persie who essentially papered over the cracks and gave him a farewell title while rubbing Rooney’s nose in it. Nice. Hardly surprising then to see the glee on his aging face.
Frankly if I was United I would have intentionally avoided Ferguson’s opinion re his replacement. It’s expecting too much of a guy in Ferguson’s position to act with the independence required to identify a successor that will sustain the club as a winner. Picking winning managers is a vexed job – few do it well. So why get the custodian to do it? Fergie is egotistical, as all super achievers are, and driven in part by his own reputation and legacy… not the next guys. United needed a new broom to sweep out the Ferguson years (of squad decline) and usher in something new to get fans interested and excited. Has Moyes done that? Will he do it? I doubt it, he’s a dour guy and United need more than the team of battlers that Moyes is likely to produce.
United need to be very careful. They have three big clubs, all with financial firepower, itching to make them a thing of the past. Two or three years of Moyes muddling and meandering could see them pulled well and truly back in to the pack and the Fergie Years will be a nagging memory.
Good for Arsenal.
Have the years of excruciation passed? Has Wenger’s luck come in?
As you watch this season unfold you have to wonder if the amalgam of planning and serendipity is finally concocting a potent blend for Arsenal. The on-field telepathy between Ozil and Ramsey showcases this duality. Wenger seized on the opportunity at Real, with the arrival of Bale at outlandish cost, to buy Ozil a player he had long admired. So the arrival of Ozil was a blend of opportunism and intentional action. Similarly with Ramsey, a player who has until recently frustrated a largely sympathetic fan-base with performances that looked effortful but limited. Today he looks a genuine world class midfielder. The guy has everything. The narrative will become one of Wenger’s patience being repaid… and yet even he did not see the gobsmacking awesomeness of his on-field trajectory. Almost every part of the playing squad can be seen as a mix of Wenger’s action and the convergence of fortuitous timing.
Whereas I once looked at the squad with defeat and resignation thinking Wenger had erred and expected too much to go our way. Now, I think the balance is much more favourable. As you look at this squad you see a lot more answers than problems. Old problems have been addressed. Gibbs is motivated by the excellent Monreal. Monreal may in turn be a vital squad man this season with a reach beyond acting as cover at left back. The bite is back in midfield. Arteta is good, so too Flamini. Wilshere competes, as does Ramsey. All the talk has been about a depth issue, yet we keep winning. And much of the season we’ve done so without two of our major goal outlets – Walcott and Podolski. Both are returning and offer options and numbers.
This team seems to have style that is bigger than Wenger. Where once our football looked one dimensional with ticky tacky passing, now we cross and attack aerially with surprising regularity. This evolution in our style is probably a consequence of the players we are signing, both in their strengths and in their own playing maturity. Ozil has no misplaced inhibitions about the merits of a good cross – he sees it as a legitimate part of the game. Similarly, with Giroud and Ramsey eager attackers of good crosses the team has meaningful outlets for this aspect of the game. One feeds the other. Just what Wenger sees about this… who knows… or really cares. I sense this team is less dependent on Wenger for approval and stylistic direction – they’ve been around and want to win and are happy to merge an accurate passing game with a range of attacking patterns. Similarly in defence, you see defenders and the keeper banging the ball downfield as well as passing it out form the back. Again, recent Wenger sides would have been less disposed to “lumping the ball away”. It would have been seen as anti-football. But that’s a silly excursion to the extreme of the continuum. Good football is and always will be a blend of qualities. We need the Jenkinson whipped cross and Bendtner header just as much as the Ramsey through-pass and Ozil’s fine finish.
I really do sense that something special might be brewing. Planning and serendipity.
i don’t see a banana peel here today. hull at home should be 3 points in the bag. however, that’s why you play the game.
agreed, it’s a good time for rotation. i always believe in one player at a time. ramsey needs a breather. likewise, vermaelen could do with a game for koscielny. we’ll see
rumor has it that dimitar berbatov is ready to leave fulham in january. i think he would be an excellent signing if arsene has the audacity to swoop. i’m sure berba’s answer would be “hell yes!”
he’s such a good player. not cup tied. not going to the world cup. his style would blend nicely with özil & co. i’d take him in a heartbeat. in fact, i wanted arsenal to sign him when bergkamp retired; instead, he went to tottenham. yes, i’m a closet bayer fan.
loan nicklas bendtner for the rest of his contract so fulham could have a striker. lastly, with six months remaining on his contract and at age 32, berbatov would be cheap on transfer fee and wages. there’s too much experience and skill for too little money to pass up on. we can go back for suarez or whatever blockbuster in the summer. this guy can help arsenal win silverware both domestically and in europe this year.