For Arsenal; Revenge is a Dish Best Served at Home
The narrative we’ve been told in the past is that winners win matches they by all accounts shouldn’t have won. The find ways. Yesterday depending on which side of the equation you fall on, Arsenal either found a way to win or were helped with the unrelenting eye of Howard Webb.
All that matters is that Arsenal that came out were much better for this match, then they were eight days ago at Anfield. We don’t need to relive the nightmare that was that match. We know how it turned out and we have the scars to prove it.
It was pretty clear that Liverpool were once again going to come out and try to quickly gain the advantage over Arsenal. They knew that a quick again likely could have the same delirious after effect it had last week. And if not for the poor aim of Sturridge and the quick reflexes of Lukasz Fabianski, they might have. However, after the quick 5 minute gut check, Arsenal made a slight adjustment on the fly.
They opened with pushing the high line which Liverpool successfully tried to exploit. If you ask any CB what they don’t like, it’s speed. So Arsenal forced the CB pairing back and retained some defensive shape from the midfield as well and started to lock things down.
For Liverpool’s part while they tried to press on a similar vain to last week, it wasn’t as consistent nor was it as feverish. This gave Arsenal time on the ball and the important space they needed to make chances. And they got them this time.
From about the 10 minute mark right up on until the goal, you sensed Arsenal had taken the match on and were finding their boots. There were a couple of 1-2 connections between Ox and debutante Sanogo that forced Liverpool to make last ditch challenges as well as a lovely interchange between Flamini and Mesut Özil to find Monreal who’s cross was shall we say – wanting.
Finally in the 16th minute, given time and space Özil looks in from wide right and with a lovely lofted cross finds Yaya Sanogo, who chests the ball down with Liverpool defenders all over him. He gets a wicked volley off and its Oxlade-Chamberlain who is quickest to the ball to net the opener.
Game on. For the last 8 or so matches at the Emirates, Arsenal had won but they hadn’t managed to score in the first half. It’s a stat that’s overlooked when you are winning and as we’ve argued its probably part of a larger strategy against preverbial bus-parking teams. With a desire to make an account of themselves after last week, there would be no waiting until the second half for a goal.
A goal works wonders for any team. Its why you knew Liverpool wanted to try and snag one early. But with the goal, and the home crowd clearly up for it, Arsenal grew more confident and with Liverpool allowing them to have the ball.
With their defensive adjustments holding, Liverpool resorted to crosses to try and unlock the Gunners. Only Suarez’s attempts looked the more lethal. Attempts by others were either to deep or no one was able to get in the box to latch on one.
It got a little nervy when Sterling used his pace to absolutely skin Jenkinson on the end line but in the end it came to nought as he goals for goal and Fabianski forced him to shoot for goal and maybe on another day the young England international has a better chance but his shot goes into the netting.
Mesut Özil who was much maligned last week. Moreso than any other player. I called it undeserved and today he showed why. The Guardian in the post-match report:
“He did nothing astounding but was involved in everything, knitting together Arsenal’s moves with relentless deftness.”
This statement sums up the beauty of Özil and really is the essence of what I’ve been saying in the face of all his critics. He is unassuming in his play. However, when you really look at it he is everywhere and involved in everything. He had a hand in both goals and he almost had his own if not for the brilliant save of the Liverpool keeper.
Özil was highly effective in this match. Again Liverpool adjusted slightly and didn’t crowd him out this time and he had time to get into space and create chances. His perfectly weighted pass for Oxlade-Chamberlain as his speed beat Agger was a prime example of Özil’s skill. The pass was so good it not only was weighted to beat the defender but to be right in the way for Ox to get on it. The subsequent cross to Podolski led to what amounted to a clinical tap-in the German isn’t likely to miss.
Now, again depending on which side of the narrative you fall in to, either Liverpool began to dominate or Arsenal as they have done many times this season when up 2-0 sit back to try and now take you on with a counter-attack. The Arsenal defense outside of the Villa, City and last week’s Liverpool match know how to shut down a game. It causes at times more heart burn then we’d like as supporters but it’s a tactic that has worked and there was no reason for the Gunners to break from their form.
It’s a bend don’t break tactic. I do worry about said approach in the light of opposition like Liverpool who are blessed with attacking speed up top. And when you have Suarez who will just about always get a shot on net – from anywhere, you have to be concerned.
After the second goal the match really opened up and there were chances for both sides almost one after the other. Suarez gets a shot on goal from almost nothing and it sailed maybe a foot high. Look I don’t personally care for his antics, but it’s amazing what a confident goal scorer will do. He knows that if he gets on one anything can happen and it almost always does. The problem is against the better teams, he’s not doing it. I think its because better defensive teams keep him outside of the 18 where its more than likely his chances are going to be of the wild variety. Still say what you will about him, he had some wickedly scary chances.
The match could’ve been put to bed if not for the outreaching hand of Liverpool keeper Jones. Again it’s Özil finding time and space and a connection with Podolski whom he has plenty of time playing with in the German national team. Podolski lays off a beauty for him and in the replay you can see the determination in Özil’s eyes. He takes a quick peek to the far corner and rifles a nice low shot that if it either was slightly higher or Jones a little slower would’ve ended the match then and there.
However, as Arsenal are sometimes wont to do, they make it interesting. With Suarez attacking the box, and suitably covered, Podolski makes the rash choice to go in and try and take the ball away. He comes in needlessly and his foot to foot clip on the line “causes” Suarez to go down.
Now in the history of penalty calls, you can classify that one as soft. But Webb and his assistant see Podolski go in. I think the assistant makes the call, because Webb doesn’t make the call right away. It looked like he got notification from the assistant who is looking from behind. Maybe at another angle the play doesn’t get called and it’s more of a dive. But it gets called. Gerrard gets the ball and places a nicely done PK to the right.
I tend to agree with the pundits in that Arsenal should’ve been prepared for that strike of his. It’s a high pressure scenario and when the pressure is on, even for the coolest of shooters, they go with what they are comfortable with – for Gerrard, this is a shot low and the left (if we are facing the goal). Fabianski, who was stellar on the day, goes the opposite way. Game on.
Again, narratives being what they are, Liverpool clearly came back into the match and starting really testing Arsenal’s bend don’t break defense. And they clearly had cause for concern when Webb doesn’t call the more obvious penalty shout when Oxlade-Chamerblain takes out Suarez. However, I can only assume that even though Webb is right behind the action he sees Suarez’s histrionics and rolling on the ground – and deems it play acting. I think Suarez gets the softer call because he doesn’t carry on. He just goes down and gets back up. No gunshot wound. The second one, well if Uruguay have a diving team, he would’ve nailed the triple back flip without a splash.
Liverpool fans were aggrieved. But dear Scousers welcome to the game of football. Every team has in the course of a season or their history had moments when the subjective nature of refereeing causes them chances. The problem is that we all ignore the fact that there may have been chances that were missed or other moments that had they occurred then the call is inconsequential. It happens it was not why Liverpool lost.
Both sides had reason to question Howard Webb. Should Monreal have seen red for his late challenge early in the match? Should Gerrard have seen a second yellow and subsequent red for his take out of Chamberlain in the second half? Or how about Sterling not seeing a card for touching a ref? How about the challenge on Cazorla in the box when Skrtel gets his foot on the Spaniard’s knee? Missed calls yes. But many more chances for either side to bury the match.
Liverpool supporters proudly looked at the stats and assumed they “played us off the park” as they suggest in one of their forums. I can see where that mentality comes from in light of the 5-1 result. But results like that need to be looked at in the context of a whole season. And they are anomalies and Arsenal are a better team all around then last week’s score line suggested.
We’ve made the Emirates a fortress. Can you name the last opponent who came into the Emirates this season and scored more than 1 goal? The last team was Dortmund in the Champion’s League and before that it was Villa on opening day. Two matches all season at home where the opponents have scored more than 1 goal. Additionally, in all of their goals given up this season in the league (26) 14 of them have come from 3 matches. 3 matches of 26. That means we’ve let in 12 goals in 23 games. The point is I didn’t think the 5-1 was reflective of the nature of this side and the Scousers have wrongly assumed as much.
Post-match I even saw one scouser argue that they killed us psychologically this season and we’re done. It’s kind of reminiscent of AVB’s negative spiral remark from last season. Liverpool supporters are exactly like Tottenham supporters in that every year we hear that this is their year. They argue they are replacing us in the echelons of English football and every year they fail.
Liverpool are an improved side but they have a tendency to look at the result of individual match and think big things. Looking at the long haul of a season Arsenal have showed the consistency and resilience at home that makes winners.
The argument can still be made that they can win the title. The debate is around if they will. They certainly are in it for the FA Cup as they are gifted with another Merseyside visitor to home. It will be interesting to note that all of our FA Cup ties this year have been at home. Home is where the heart is and where Arsenal have been at their best. The FA Cup has always been my realistic goal for this season. Because it can set the table for the future. Win something, anything and all the doubts and questions about this team are removed and it is a foundation for future winning.
Final Notes:
Yaya Sanogo. Not one to big up someone after 90 minutes of play but the lanky 21 year old certainly made his presence known against Liverpool. Pre-game people were worried that putting him in this big match was a big mistake. Heck, everyone pretty much thought that a squad that featured 7 changes over the week before was a big mistake.
LeGrove (whom I respect for his varied opinions) said Wenger starting Sanogo shows he has lost the plot. This in the face of all reports from training that Sanogo has been really impressive. Well, I think Wenger and Sanogo showed that the kid has something.
So strong was the kid that he forced Liverpool to put 2-3 bodies on him in the second half. And for the most part he came out on top. Save for some air kicks, he was impressive and for his first real competitive match, he has hopefully shown that his future portends well at Arsenal.
And for the eventual Scousers who will come in and complain about my reading of the match. We celebrated loudly and proudly the win not because we had beaten some mighty team. No, we celebrated because we are still in a cup competition we have a realistic shot at. We celebrated because regardless of the scoreline, we’ve now beaten you two of three and avenged our loss in the span of 8 days. We didn’t celebrate like this because we view you as a bigger or better team. We don’t. We won’t. Sorry that’s just the way it goes.
