Evening folks.
So, on Tuesday we played out a 0-0 draw against Besiktas and the game turned out to be every bit as hard as I've predicted. There are positives to be taken from the game, first and foremost that we haven't lost, while also keeping our goal intact, but we also had a hell of a hard night.
First half
Koscielny and Wilshere were deemed fit to start, while Gibbs and Sanogo were left behind. Giroud started up front and it would prove to be not the best of decisions from Arsene. Bellerin, Miquel and Flamini (who recovered from his illness) made the bench.
It was obvious from the off Arsenal will have to dig deep to win the game. The atmosphere inside the stadium was so hostile even I felt uncomfortable just listening to all the whistling and booing. What it was like for the players in red-and-white, I don't like to think about.
The quality of the pitch, the heat and Besiktas players themselves (spurred on by the crowd) ensured we had a difficult first fifteen minutes. In fact, had it not been for Szczesny's alertness, Arsenal could have gone behind twice. The Pole deflected Ba's shot onto the bar when the striker's ambitious attempt from the half hit the target and then came out on top once more, when the Senegalese got behind Chambers and nearly slotted the ball home on the volley.
Arsenal then started to get back into the game, but lacked a clinical finisher in the final third. Alexis was creative and bullish, often creating space, but his teammates failed to capitalize on the Chilean's wit and energy. Cazorla flashed an effort wide, Wilshere's clever shot was saved and Giroud missed two clear-cut chances.
For the first, the Frenchamn received the ball in the six-yard box, but failed to to unleash a shot on the turn and for the second, he even failed to connect with the ball, after being weaved clean through by a clever lob pass from Ramsey. We could have paid dearly for such wastefulness a minute from half-time, but, thankfully, Ba dragged his effort wide with only Szczesny to beat.
Second half
The second period started with a bang. Giroud set up Ramsey, but the Welshman took too long on the ball when one-on-one and the defenders returned to snatch the ball from him. Besiktas responded immediately, but Sahan, mercifully, curled his shot just wide of the far post with Szczesny clutching thin air.
The affair soon got muddled. Besiktas had more of the ball, though we created better opportunities on the counter. The ineffectiveness of Cazorla, Giroud and Wilshere (completely lost in that second half) ensured we didn't make the most of our chances.
Then, on the hour, another problem added to the growing list of Arsene's worries, as Arteta had to be replaced because of an injury. Flamini came on, did his usual stunt (got booked), but was a positive influence overall. He wasn't as fluid or creative in his passing than the Spaniard, however.
Things quickly gone from bad to worse. We already had Monreal and Flamini on yellows, with Arteta subbed due to an ankle injury, then, on the 80th minute, Ramsey pulled back someone-someone and was branded a second booking. Arsenal was down to ten men, with ten minutes to go. I fully expected Arsene to close up shop and imagine my surprise when it didn't happen. Sure, Besiktas again saw more of the ball, but we actually could have nicked a winner right at the death.
First Chambers headed wide from a corner and then Oxlade powered his way into the box, danced around a defender and fired a vicious effort which rebounded off the post. Replays showed their keeper got a hand to it, otherwise we would have returned to London victorious, I suspect.
The aftermath
This is what Arsene had to say after the game:
"We always want to win but look, Besiktas could have won the game, and we could have won the game as well. Maybe a draw is a fair result because both teams had chances to win the game. We know Besiktas are a good team. They played with 100 per cent pace and did fought for every single ball. We faced a very good Besiktas team tonight who were at our level. Their commitment was absolutely fantastic."Hard to argue with any of the above, really. I remember we had a very hard qualifier against Udinese a couple of years back, but back then we were not as strong financially and didn't possess such a roster of players. However, as I've said before the game, away games in Turkey are always very hard, for a number of reasons.
Now we need to get the job done at the Emirates and only a win will see us through. However, we'd be without Ramsey and very likely Arteta, while the performances of some others leave a great deal to be desired.
I, for one, think that Cazorla, Giroud and Wilshere all had a bad game. And I cannot grasp why. The World Cup is no excuse, because Sanchez, Debuchy, Koscielny and others delivered. And these have played a lot more than the aforementioned trio. However, if we are to remove Santi, Olivier and Jack from the starting line-up in a return leg it will add up to five changes, coupled with Ramsey's and (possibly) Arteta's absence.
Anyway, we have a game against Everton looming large, so we can discuss the squad choice tomorrow. For today, though, it's hard to say anything conclusive on the result against Besiktas. I have a good feeling we'll be able to overpower the Turks inside the Emirates, but it's only a hunch. Though I still think we shouldn't worry just yet. We have another game coming up and it's important we get a good performance in that one, to build up confidence.
Whether we have the ability to do it with the players we have, I'll be back to speculate on tomorrow.
Until then