Hello everyone.
Arsenal have got the job done yesterday with a professional 2-0 win over the now-relegated Norwich and there were a lot of things to like about our performance. I'll come back to these a bit later and start with the usual line-up against the Canaries.
It sprang a few surprises, truth be told. While Rosicky for Cazorla was pretty obvious, Sagna as a centre-half and Fabianski in goal definitely wasn't. I also didn't assume our midfield trio would be the strongest one, but I guess momentum issues crossed the manager's mind and he decided to play as good a side as possible.
Arsene probably opted to give Mert some well-deserved rest, while Vermaelen could still have been a bit short. Why Fab started in goal? There might be several explanations.
First, the older Pole could have been given some playing time ahead of a Cup final. A game with nothing at stake to just get the feel of competitive football, before being thrust into action in one of the most important encounters we had in nine years.
Second, it could have been just to rest Szczesny. This way it was, most likely, the last game Fabianski featured in for Arsenal.
While the second explanation seems more logical to me, I would not claim to possess the ultimate knowledge. There could have been a zillion other reasons I cannot think of, moreover, Arsene himself has confirmed he doesn't know which players will start in five days at Wembley, so view this sub the way you like.
Whatever reason Arsene had in mind to back his decision, I feel genuinely sorry for Szczesny. He could (and should have) got the Golden Glove, instead it'll go to Cech. The Pole may have been promised a start against Hull, he may have been convinced that he's being rested for the good of the team as a whole, but in the end, Szczesny would not get the prize he so craved. I just hope he'll have a chance to get it. He's got years with Arsenal in front of him, the opportunity should come.
Back to the the game, and from the very first minutes it had the feel of the last league game, in which teams had nothing to fight for. Norwich pretended to care for the first ten minutes or so, then they just surrendered possession and invited the Gunners to come forward. Arsenal took no hesitation in doing so and this resulted in three quality moments inside the first half.
First, some slick quick interplay led to a brilliant backheeled pass from Giroud. This pass fell right into the path of Podolski, whose fierce shot was heroically saved by Ruddy.
The second moment of danger occurred soon after. Giroud found some space in the box to go one-on-one with the keeper, but the Frenchman's right-footed effort was splendidly tipped over the bar by Ruddy.
The third one Giroud created himself. He received a pass on the the edge of the penalty area, turned and let fly with his left, but again Ruddy was on hand to palm the effort away.
There was also a half-chance for Ramsey, who produced a shot of his own after fooling two defenders, but it was blocked by yet another defender. The teams went into the tunnel minutes later.
The game continued in the same vein after the whistle for the second half blew. And this time around, Arsenal's relentless probing was rewarded.
We broke down the middle after one of Norwich's rare forays forward, Rosicky found Giroud who was thinking a shot, but then the Frenchman spotted Ramsey in a good position at the far post and crossed the ball towards the Welshman. Aaron, still moving backwards to make himself some space, lashed out a shot on the volley that Ruddy could only stare at. The beauty of the goal was such that even home fans acknowledged it with applause.
Nine minutes later Arsenal added another. Gibbs received a pass on the left and produced a low cross for Podolski to finish. The German missed the ball entirely and it fell to Jenkinson, whose effort left Ruddy with no chance. Jenks celebrated with unparallelled joy, which is understandable, given how much he loves the club.
The game calmed down after the goals. Arsene took off Ramsey, Giroud and Rosicky to give some playing time to Wilshere, Sanogo and, most notably, Diaby. The Frenchman was greeted warmly by the Arsenal fans and I liked it.
After all, it's hard not to feel for Diaby. He hasn't wasted his career like Bendtner, for example, he is an honest, hard-working chap who just wants to play football. I hope he'll manage to do it, though I'm not completely sure he'll do so for us.
Arsenal let their guard drop a bit in the final minutes, so I must give some credit to Fabianski, whose decisive punching about ensured we got a 17th clean sheet. We have almost made it 3-0 in the dying seconds, but Sanogo's deflected shot was saved.
This is what Arsene said afterwards:
However, Liverpool didn't manage to win the league. And the reason is not the loss to Chelsea or a draw with Palace, but rather weak defense. To concede 50 goals inside a season is unacceptable for a team with title aspirations and even a brilliant Suarridge duo wasn't able to rectify that. So my condolences to Liverpool fans, but it's not the last couple of games that cost you the title.
That's it for today. Back later
Until then enjoy the win and steady your nerves for the upcoming final
Arsenal have got the job done yesterday with a professional 2-0 win over the now-relegated Norwich and there were a lot of things to like about our performance. I'll come back to these a bit later and start with the usual line-up against the Canaries.
It sprang a few surprises, truth be told. While Rosicky for Cazorla was pretty obvious, Sagna as a centre-half and Fabianski in goal definitely wasn't. I also didn't assume our midfield trio would be the strongest one, but I guess momentum issues crossed the manager's mind and he decided to play as good a side as possible.
Arsene probably opted to give Mert some well-deserved rest, while Vermaelen could still have been a bit short. Why Fab started in goal? There might be several explanations.
First, the older Pole could have been given some playing time ahead of a Cup final. A game with nothing at stake to just get the feel of competitive football, before being thrust into action in one of the most important encounters we had in nine years.
Second, it could have been just to rest Szczesny. This way it was, most likely, the last game Fabianski featured in for Arsenal.
While the second explanation seems more logical to me, I would not claim to possess the ultimate knowledge. There could have been a zillion other reasons I cannot think of, moreover, Arsene himself has confirmed he doesn't know which players will start in five days at Wembley, so view this sub the way you like.
Whatever reason Arsene had in mind to back his decision, I feel genuinely sorry for Szczesny. He could (and should have) got the Golden Glove, instead it'll go to Cech. The Pole may have been promised a start against Hull, he may have been convinced that he's being rested for the good of the team as a whole, but in the end, Szczesny would not get the prize he so craved. I just hope he'll have a chance to get it. He's got years with Arsenal in front of him, the opportunity should come.
Back to the the game, and from the very first minutes it had the feel of the last league game, in which teams had nothing to fight for. Norwich pretended to care for the first ten minutes or so, then they just surrendered possession and invited the Gunners to come forward. Arsenal took no hesitation in doing so and this resulted in three quality moments inside the first half.
First, some slick quick interplay led to a brilliant backheeled pass from Giroud. This pass fell right into the path of Podolski, whose fierce shot was heroically saved by Ruddy.
The second moment of danger occurred soon after. Giroud found some space in the box to go one-on-one with the keeper, but the Frenchman's right-footed effort was splendidly tipped over the bar by Ruddy.
The third one Giroud created himself. He received a pass on the the edge of the penalty area, turned and let fly with his left, but again Ruddy was on hand to palm the effort away.
There was also a half-chance for Ramsey, who produced a shot of his own after fooling two defenders, but it was blocked by yet another defender. The teams went into the tunnel minutes later.
The game continued in the same vein after the whistle for the second half blew. And this time around, Arsenal's relentless probing was rewarded.
We broke down the middle after one of Norwich's rare forays forward, Rosicky found Giroud who was thinking a shot, but then the Frenchman spotted Ramsey in a good position at the far post and crossed the ball towards the Welshman. Aaron, still moving backwards to make himself some space, lashed out a shot on the volley that Ruddy could only stare at. The beauty of the goal was such that even home fans acknowledged it with applause.
Nine minutes later Arsenal added another. Gibbs received a pass on the left and produced a low cross for Podolski to finish. The German missed the ball entirely and it fell to Jenkinson, whose effort left Ruddy with no chance. Jenks celebrated with unparallelled joy, which is understandable, given how much he loves the club.
The game calmed down after the goals. Arsene took off Ramsey, Giroud and Rosicky to give some playing time to Wilshere, Sanogo and, most notably, Diaby. The Frenchman was greeted warmly by the Arsenal fans and I liked it.
After all, it's hard not to feel for Diaby. He hasn't wasted his career like Bendtner, for example, he is an honest, hard-working chap who just wants to play football. I hope he'll manage to do it, though I'm not completely sure he'll do so for us.
Arsenal let their guard drop a bit in the final minutes, so I must give some credit to Fabianski, whose decisive punching about ensured we got a 17th clean sheet. We have almost made it 3-0 in the dying seconds, but Sanogo's deflected shot was saved.
This is what Arsene said afterwards:
"We wanted to finish the job well and not concede. We have won 11 games away from home, I think it's the best in the Premier League and it was our 17th clean sheet - that is remarkable as well. We just wanted to finish the season well and we did it in a serious way so it's a good basis to prepare for the FA Cup final next Saturday".And on finishing fourth, despite acquiring 79 points:
"Yes, unfortunately it's the first time in the Premier League that you finish fourth with 79 points and it was very tight. I believe that Liverpool can be frustrated tonight, we can be frustrated, Chelsea can be frustrated because only one team can win it. But at the top the number of points made by all the four teams is top quality".Also, a word for Liverpool. After it became clear Arsenal won't lift the PL Cup over their heads this season, I wanted Liverpool to do so. It would have showed, that sometimes money cannot buy you titles and, as I have more than a couple friends who support the Reds, I could have at least joined in on their celebrations.
However, Liverpool didn't manage to win the league. And the reason is not the loss to Chelsea or a draw with Palace, but rather weak defense. To concede 50 goals inside a season is unacceptable for a team with title aspirations and even a brilliant Suarridge duo wasn't able to rectify that. So my condolences to Liverpool fans, but it's not the last couple of games that cost you the title.
That's it for today. Back later
Until then enjoy the win and steady your nerves for the upcoming final