Arsenal 3-0 West Ham: Wengerball at its finest

What a win. I'm still buzzing from the game. We took matters into our hands from the beginning, scored a 46th minute goal, soaked up a bit of pressure in the second half without allowing West Ham to create anything dangerous and then finished them off with the precision of a surgeon Ozil. Quality game from back to front.

I usually go over the performance as a whole in my review, but this evening I'm in the mood to try something different. It's most likely a one-off, like something I did here, so don't worry if it doesn't come off. It won't become a tradition.

Up to the point, though: instead of writing a usual review, I'll ramble a bit about every on-pitch player of ours and how he fared. Starting with

David Ospina

The Colombian regained his rightful place between the sticks after sitting out the FA Cup clash and this decision is both unsurprising and welcome. Luckily, Ospina had little work to do. Apart from that first half save from Nolan/Noble (couldn't bother to look up the name), the Colombian only had to take goal-kicks. I enjoyed this simple action immensely (as did he, I suspect), because every time Ospina cleared the ball the routine "Oooooospina" erupted from the stands. There was a heart-in-the-mouth moment when David went down after a collision with Sakho, only for the former to get up to Szczesny's frustration. Ospina's just playing with the Pole.

Calum Chambers

One thing I haven't taken into account when writing a preview is that Bellerin may need a rest. I was quick to forget the Spaniard in only 19 and so three games inside eight days may be one too many. Thankfully, Arsene didn't forget that and put on Chambers. He may also have done this as the Englishman's approach is more conservative and as such should compensate for Walcott's tendency to neglect his defensive duties.

And Chambers put in a shift. I think we started to forget a little bit just how good Calum is, this was a gentle reminder. Bar one or two moments in the first half (Jarvis cross stands out), he was solid and his delivery was such that Ramsey and Alexis really could have done better. Will give Arsene a selection headache ahead of the Monaco game.

Koscielny and Mertesacker

Their bromance is certainly much more touching than Reus and Goetze, to say nothing of The Twilight. Basically, any romance is better than The Twilight saga. The moment that demonstrates how nicely these two dovetail is when Kos blocked Sakho's path and Mert blocked the shot itself.

However, Koscielny deserves a special mention. I admire his nerves and his ability to cleverly distribute the ball even when under pressure. Kos the boss.

Monreal

Solid, good in the tackle and more cautious going forward this time. Will be remembered for a couple of good sliding tackles and that brilliant interception late in the second half (we were 1-0 at the point, unless I'm mistaken). Deserves a start against Monaco.

Coquelin

The usual bite in the tackle, threw his weight about, made some clever through-the-line passes and one magnificent cross to switch the play, while getting the ball to Danny. The sliding tackle in the 90th minute to cleanly get the ball sums him up. Warrior.

Ramsey

If there were any misgivings Cazorla is a better candidate for that deeper position, the Welshman firmly tilted the scales in his favour. A goal, an assist, 4 shots, 5 chances created, 3 tackles and 3 interceptions. Covered every bit of grass that was there to cover. Some reports suggests he walked on water after the game.

Ozil

Not long ago I was looking for one adjective to describe him and I found it: sublime. But I think another word, a noun, describes Ozil even better: a visionary. He didn't get an assist, but that first goal was of his making. Probably should have shot or squared it to Giroud late on, instead of trying to pick out Walcott, but what the hell. He's brilliant, if you can't admire him, you are dead inside.

Walcott

Not his best game. Missed three big chances. The first one still drives me up a wall. Theo looks a player low on confidence and motivation and this doesn't bode well for the future. Completely disappeared in the second half and was rightly taken off for Cazorla. It was Theo's chance to establish himself, he seems to have wasted it.

Alexis

Not his best game either, though he still could have scored twice. Both times was denied by brilliant saves from Adrian. Looked a bit jaded in the second half and came off for Welbeck. Hope the Chilean is firing on all cylinders come Tuesday.

Giroud

Splendid. A cracker of a shot for the first, a dummy and a one-two for the assist and a magnificent flick to Cazorla in the build-up for the third. The Frenchman now has 14 goals in 24 games, three less than Costa, but the Brazilian played in 32. He also has 11 league goals, just two or three less than Sanchez. Not bad for a "lamp post", a "tree" and an "average striker". Not bad at all.

Cazorla, Welbeck and Flamini

All contributed to the cause. The Spaniard bagged an assist, Welbeck was a live wire up and down the left flank (and was unlucky to have been denied a headed goal right at the death) and Flamini, well, scored. All the subs had a tangible impact. Santi will most likely be reinstated against Monaco, Welbeck should be too, in my opinion, while Flamini just came on to shore things up and allow Ozil a breather.

The aftermath

I'd like to stress once again that this was, above all, a team performance at the highest level. Though I've described each player, we all know how everyone's brilliant in a win and atrocious in a loss. Each player is only as good as the guy next to him, so going over individual performances was just another way of writing a post, rather than suggesting the game was made up of individual players and their actions. It was a collective effort and a most brilliant one at that.

This win cements our third place and allows us to move within one point of City (who have lost to Burnley). Now onto Monaco.

Back with a preview. In the meantime, enjoy our eight consecutive home wins and the goodies they bring.

Until later

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

West Ham preview: need to keep the momentum going

Evening everyone.

It's West Ham at the Emirates tomorrow and this is our final league game before we face Monaco in the Champions League. A win is hugely important for two reasons: bar City, everyone else from the top 7 has a tough opponent and is likely to drop points and, secondly, we need to be in the mood when we don on our Champions League outfit come Tuesday.

Team news update

We just can't catch a break with injures. Flamini is back in the squad & Gabriel is due to return on Sunday, but Wilshere is still out, while Oxlade's hamstring strain will keep the Englishman sidelined for 3-4 weeks:

"It's a classic hamstring. That means he will be out for three weeks, four weeks maximum. He will not be available for England as well."

The England part also sheds some light on why Arsene seems keen to downplay Wilshere's availability. Either that, or Wilshere is slowly becoming Diaby. God forbid.

However, as we have Ramsey up and running, I'm much more concerned about Oxlade. The Ox was the first name on the teamsheet the whole first half of the season. At some point I even expressed concerns about his fatigue levels. And now he's in and out again, just when he produced a stunning display against United. Real shame.

"It's very frustrating for him because he played more games than ever this season. In the last two months I feel he was a bit in and out. He has shown again on Monday night what an important player he can be for Arsenal and for England. It's a shame that in the final sprint and he's not there."

I wonder whether that opens the door for Walcott. I intended to write an article on Theo's current predicament at Arsenal a couple of days back, but then I saw Tim Stillman's column and decided he said everything I wanted to say.

To me it looks like a make-or-break situation with Walcott. His strengths are obvious, but so are his shortcomings. He's not switched on defensively, most of the time. He likes to drift infield and effectively limits Bellerin's passing options. He prefers to play without the ball by making runs behind the opposition's defense, but finds space hard to come by when we face defensive-minded teams. He's not the strongest player or technically most gifted to get past defenders or out of tight spots. His passing (if it's present) is sometimes wayward and even when it's not, Theo is hardly an Ozil or a Cazorla.

And what exactly are his strengths? Pace and finishing, I'd say. He is also, despite the aforementioned tendency of his to drift inside, the closest thing we have to a winger. Ox is number one in that regard, Walcott probably comes second.

I really think Theo will have his work cut out between now and May to convince he's earned a new contract. With rumours afloat that Wenger will have 50 million to spend in the summer, we may well be on the lookout for a more complete winger. Sure, we still need a defensive midfielder (even if only an understudy to Coq) and the jury is out on our goalkeeping situation, but we can get both a goalie and a DM and have enough money left for a quality winger. Especially if we sell Podolski, Jenkinson and Walcott. Something to chew on.

Righto, onto our probable squad tomorrow.

Defense

Ospina will be back in goal, no doubt about that and I wouldn't be too surprised to see an unchanged defense. Monreal did brilliantly upon his return and doesn't deserve to be dropped in the slightest, while the only other change I can envisage is Chambers coming in for someone, but for whom? Mertesacker? Unlikely, both because the German had a good game and because it's too risky to play Chambo alongside Bellerin.

The only other option is removing Bellerin himself, but again I don't see why Arsene should do this. Bellerin is on form, he dovetails with Monreal nicely and, finally, rotation for the sake of rotation doesn't make any sense. Moving on.

Midfield

Here we have an interesting dilemma. I was quite certain Ramsey would start against United for a more balanced midfield, instead Cazorla did. Furthemore, when Oxlade strained his hammy, it was Ozil who was shunted on the right flank, not Cazorla and it hints at the manager's reluctance to remove the diminutive Spaniard from central midfield.

So I'd say there's only one chance for this happening: simple exhaustion. Cazorla has played a lot this season, he's definitely in the top three along with Sanchez and Mertesacker, so giving him a rest may not be completely off the cards tomorrow.

If he does play, however, then it may indirectly affect Walcott's chances. I'm pretty sure Coquelin, Ramsey and Ozil will start whatsoever and, as such, the German will play on the right flank. Walcott's flank.

Attack

And so it's a turning point for Walcott. If he plays, it will happen at the expense of Ramsey or Cazorla, maybe even Welbeck. If he cannot find his way into the team without Oxlade and is second to Ozil or Welbeck, both of whom aren't typical wingers, then it's time to say cheerio to Theo.

With Wenger hinting he'll make two-three changes I wonder whether Alexis will be given a rest. And it's also interesting to see who starts up front: Giroud or Welbeck.

Personally, I'd go with Giroud. He's just the better man for me. Aerial ability, hold-up play, distribution, physical qualities: you name it. He's better than Welbeck at CF and should play as such.

Tomorrow's front three is the most unpredictable part it seems. I'd like to think Wenger will go with Alexis-Giroud-Ozil, but I won't be hugely surprised to see Welbeck and Walcott come in for any of the three.

The verdict

A quick look at West Ham's results will show you they've won only twice in the league in three months. That, coupled with Carroll's and Valencia's unavailability and our good home record (overall and against West Ham), hints that anything less than three points will be an underachievement for Arsenal. However, Premier League is Premier League, no team can be taken for granted here, so let's just treat it as any other game. That means showing up, showing up with the right attitude and, basically, putting in a shift.

So come on you Gunners.

One last thing. Bellerin seems to have signed a new contract with the Club, one which will keep him here for the next four years and I'm personally very happy he did. The young Spaniard has progressed magnificently this year, he's our number one right-back at the moment of speaking and you feel there is still a lot to come from him. However, I think Bellerin's rise to prominence signals an end to Jenkinson's career at Arsenal and it's a very sad thing. Jenko is a Gunner at heart, seeing him part ways with the Club will be heart-breaking, but I just don't see where he fits in. Hope Arsene has a plan which includes the Englishman in it.

Until later

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

Manchester United 1-2 Arsenal: payback time

We won. Close your eyes for a moment and say the words. Savour them. We won. At Old Trafford. We turned up and produced a performance that, had it not been for De Gea, would have seen us win by a greater margin. We were compact and organised and Welbeck's goal was the cherry on top of a committed outing.

The squad and tactics

The starting XI was once again unpredictable. Both Szczesny and Monreal started, but there was no Ramsey or Giroud. Instead, Cazorla continued to anchor the midfield and Danny Welbeck replaced the Frenchman. I initially thought such a decision can prove costly: Giroud is in great goalscoring form (and he already netted against United this season) and, more importantly, Giroud's hold-up play and aerial prowess is much better than that of the Englishman. And I think we've missed those qualities in the first half at least.

Our set-up was clear: we wanted to play on the counter. And that was exactly what we did for the most part. I don't have any problem with such a plan. Quite the contrary: it showed we can adapt to the opponent and the situation and still deliver.

The first half

It was pretty even, to be fair. United had more of the ball, but were unable to create much. We moved the ball better when we had it, though you could sense we were somewhat reluctant to pile men forward on these occasions. Our first clear chance happened in the second minute already. Alexis received the ball on the left, cut infield and unleashed a shot, only for the ball to take a deflection and end up with De Gea. United responded by firing an effort over the bar when Young combined with Fellaini in our box.

Oxlade sent a shot over after Ozil set him up and then our goal came. Ozil and Monreal combined on the left to make space for the German, Mesut passed to Oxlade, the Englishman danced past Valencia, Young and Shaw and sent Monreal clean through with a splitting pass. The Spaniard took one touch and powered the ball past De Gea.

The joy didn't last long, unfortunately. Di Maria found space on the left and sent an inswinging cross in. Koscielny lost Rooney and the latter was gifted a free header just outside the six-yard box. 1-1.

United continued lodging long balls. Another inswinging cross from Di Maria was claimed by Szczesny and then the Argentine latched onto a high ball to smash the ball towards the near corner, only for Szczesny to parry it away. Welbeck had the final say in the half by forcing De Gea into a save, but the first 45 minutes ended with the scores level.

The second half

Unlike Wenger, Van Gaal decided to introduce changes to his side immediately after the restart. Rojo and Herrera gave way to Jones and Carrick and off the teams went. Three minutes into the half Oxlade pulled his hamstring and was hauled off for Ramsey. Ozil shifted to the right flank.

The game grew increasingly dirty and it weren't us picking up yellow cards. Fellaini and Young were booked in quick succession after fouling Ramsey and Welbeck respectively and thus joined Rojo and Herrera in Oliver's book. Fellaini should have been booked long before that, in all honesty. His elbow-to-Coquelin's-face alone deserved it.

And then we struck again. Welbeck pounced on a back pass from Valencia, threw the ball past De Gea and then rolled it into the empty net. He celebrated with gusto, though he didn't overdo it. It was just the celebration of a man happy to bring his team in front in an important game.

Soon after Welbeck was subbed for Giroud and then Bellerin (who got a booking in the first half and was hanging by a thread) left the field to be replaced by Chambers. Teams exchanged dangerous moments with Smalling firing wide from a yard and then De Gea saving from a brilliant Cazorla's volley and then the fun started.

Di Maria got a booking for diving and then immediately got a second for grabbing Oliver by his shirt. The sheer look of disbelief on Oliver's face gave way to anger and he sent the Argentine off.

Michael then continued his fine form by booking Januzai for diving. The Belgian could have caused us real trouble had he stayed on his feet, but, mercifully, his cheaty ways got the better of him.

After that United visibly deflated. Di Maria was arguably their best player and their only creative hub and his absence hit United hard. They didn't do anything in the remaining 20 minutes, apart from launching a lot of high balls into our box which Mertesacker dealt with easily. Arsenal, meanwhile, nearly scored a third, but were again denied by De Gea. Sanchez lashed a fierce shot headed towards the far corner only for the Spaniard to get a hand to it. 2-1 and we are going to Wembley.

The aftermath

It was a massive win for us. Psychologically, it's importance cannot be underestimated. We played our game (more or less), were calm and organised and got rewarded for it. Also, big kudos to the referee. Michael Oliver had a very good game, especially if you look at how poor officiating is this season. Oliver wasn't intimidated by the crowd, he made correct and timely decisions and overall left a very good impression.

I was also surprised by United's performance. Their only game plan seemed to be "Pass it to Di Maria and he'll figure something out". I can understand that this is a team in the making, one that is far from a finished article, but I didn't expect such a performance from them. Had it not been for De Gea and Di Maria we would have ended the game as a contest in the first half, most likely. And how dirty they play is another story entirely. Diving, pleading with the ref, fouling. Only Carrick and, maybe, Blind left an impression of honest players, everyone else went out of their way to gain leverage on us in whatever way possible, bar the most obvious: trying to outplay us. Good thing Oliver was the ref and he had the balls to do what was necessary.

But what do I care about United? Let them rot in mid-table, as long as I'm concerned. The most important thing is that we put in a performance and got rewarded for it. We will now face either Bradford or Reading in the semis.

Wembley, here we come again.

Until later

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

Manchester United preview: just do it

“I don’t believe too much in history. I just believe in the performance on the day. At the moment, we are doing very well away from home. The size of the pitch is exactly the same everywhere, it’s just down to how much we turn up and how much effort we put in to win the game.”

And I think most Arsenal fans can relate to the second part. History is history, we all know statistics can be twisted to prove any point. Every game is a new game, a new chance, a new opportunity.

And let's be honest, we all think United aren't up to scratch this season. Even their fans admit it. They don't demonstrate anything that even remotely approaches the form of the title holders of 2013.

It's our performance we are worked up about. Whether we turn up or not. It's the self-destruct button Arsenal sometimes press and often flirt with that will keep the fans awake at night prior to the game. Schrödinger's Arsenal.

Team news update

We have lost Gabriel in our clash against QPR:

"Gabriel has a little hamstring injury and he will be out for two to three weeks. He has a scan today. That means he’s not available for the weekend and certainly not for West Ham United or Monaco, but after that he should be available again."

Which is sad both for the player, who has finally found his way into the starting XI, and for us, because I, for one, am not so sure about Mertesacker's abilities anymore. However, I also don't think he's a liability. Bottom line is, he's a very good backs-to-the-wall defender, but struggles when we adopt a high defensive line. So whether his frailties will be exposed against United depends on what approach we take.

Szczesny and Monreal, meanwhile, both have sustained slight injures, though both have a chance to be back:

"Nacho Monreal might come back. He will have a test. Szczesny will also have a test. If he comes through, he will play on Monday".

Nacho's injury finally explains why he didn't play the last three games. Out of these three the Spaniard only made the bench for the Monaco game. However, Nacho will now face an uphill battle to regain his spot in the starting eleven. Gibbs did okay against Everton and was very solid against QPR, so I won't be surprised to see the Englishman start even with a fit Monreal.

But I have my reservations about Szczesny and secretly hope he won't make it. Ospina has been a calm and solid presence in every game he's played. He didn't make rash decisions, had no downright blunders and has a calming effect on our defense. Hope he plays.

The approach

I'm really interested in which one we'll adopt. Do we seize the ball and try to suffocate United in their half:

“But overall I still think it is very important that the sport rewards people and teams who take initiative.”

Or do we try and pull off a City? I somehow think it's the latter. We know United have difficulties breaking up organised defenses, so I suggest we give the ball to them and play on the break. We have seen how this approach can be deadly if done right. Moreover, it will suit Mertesacker better. I don't think Arsene will risk playing Chambers alongside Bellerin so that he can adopt a high defensive line. It's way too risky fielding two 19-year-olds. Any miscommunication can prove quite costly indeed.

One last argument in favour for this theory. Arsene played this way not only against City, but also against Tottenham. It's not like we couldn't try and take the initiative at White Hart Lane, yet Wenger opted for a more cautious strategy. United are hardly worse than Tottenham.

So, if we assume Arsene adopts this approach, here's how I think we'll line up.

The defense

Bellerin-Mertesacker-Koscielny-Monreal. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, Monreal looks a better backs-to-the-wall full-back than Gibbs. Besides, we'll have a romping right-back in Bellerin on the other side, so I think it's important to balance him out with somebody more conservative.

The midfield

Coquelin-Ramsey-Ozil. Another controversial decision here. And once again, this midfield looks more balanced to me than the one with Cazorla for Ramsey. Santi has been brilliant recently, but he's not a conventional number 8 and United will try to exploit this weakness, especially if we play "defense first". And no, I don't consider dropping Ozil to make room for Cazorla.

The attack

Oxlade-Alexis-Giroud. Yes, I know Arsene bigged up Welbeck during his press-conference, but dropping Giroud on this form will be mad. The Frenchman doesn't bury all his chances, however:

1. his current conversion rate is 20%. Not bad for 12 million and definitely not bad for the BPL. People in Spain struggle to get such a high completion rate (Sanchez, for example, was third last season, just behind Messi and Ronaldo and had something like 21-22%)
2. he arguably is a more complete striker than Welbeck. His finishing is way better, but his hold-up play, distribution and positioning are also far superior to these of Danny

Alexis and Oxlade, meanwhile, are our best wingers for the occasion. Walcott is a less keen defender than Oxlade, while I'm a strong believer Welbeck is not a winger at all. In my opinion he should either be used as a focal point or shouldn't be used at all.

The verdict

“We go to Manchester United to qualify and to give absolutely everything. That’s the target of the day - hard work, team effort and to give absolutely everything. Both teams will do that and I believe it could be a very interesting game."

I hope it will be interesting in a sense that we rip them apart 5-0 with Welbeck scoring all five and celebrating in front of Van Gaal, but, of course, this won't happen.

We are in for a tough game and our opponents will be not so much United players as ourselves. We most definitely have a psychological issue with United and there's only one thing we can do about it: go there and win. By hook or crook. Anyhow. I'll take a scrappy 1-0 with the goal coming in the 89th minute. The key is not how we do it, but that we just do it.

Come on you Gunners.

Back with a review

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

QPR 1-2 Arsenal: another massive win

"It's another PL game with all that entails. QPR look decent at home, it's their away record that keeps them in the relegation zone, so I'm expecting a tough game. However, if we combine the commitment we showed on Sunday with a little more fluency up top, it's a winnable game."

That's what I said before the game and that was exactly what the Gunners did. This game was no walk in the park, though we really should have sealed the win after going 2-0 up. Three points are three points, though, and these were massive three points we got at Loftus Road. They allow us to stay a point above United (who had a lucky bounce again) and three above Liverpool. However, let's start at the beginning.

The squad and tactics

I honestly didn't anticipate some of the changes Arsene made. Gabriel kept his place, but instead of dropping Mertesacker, Wenger dropped Koscielny. Ramsey wasn't reinstated straight away, while Rosicky was preferred to the Ox. Sanchez and Cazorla, those who arguably needed a rest more than anyone else played the whole 90 minutes.

As for our game-plan, it looks like sitting back and absorbing the pressure in the opening stages happened by accident rather than design:

"I felt the first 25 minutes were very physical and they stopped us from playing. They had a direct game and for us it was important to put the ball on the ground and get good passes together and not only fight, but fight and play."

The beautiful thing about not playing the way we wanted for the majority of the first half is that we adapted. We understood that defending was the only option for the time being and so we defended. And were pretty good at it.

The first half

Nothing of note happened up until the 20th minute and that's a compliment to our defenders. QPR had the ball, passed it around, but the closest they came to scoring was when Austin fired an effort wide from outside the box.

Our first chance came in the 22nd minute. Giroud found space for a shot from a tight angle only for Green to get down well to save. Immediately Austin saw his effort blocked by Ospina and you could sense the game was opening up.

However only two moments of interest happened before the whistle blew for half-time. First Phillips's inswinging cross was batted away by Ospina and then Giroud set up Cazorla only for the Spaniard's volley to be parried away for a corner.

The second half

We started it on the front foot and I wasn't really surprised by that: QPR gave a lot during the first 20-25 minutes and it was a question of when, rather than if, the intensity of their game drops.

60 seconds into the half we should have seen a penalty and QPR reduced to ten men. Our move started on the right flank where Rosicky fooled everyone and burst into the box. His consequent low cross was destined for Ozil, who would have had to just tap the ball in. The German didn't and replays explained why: he was simply hauled off his feet by Karl Henry. Had Friend been even a remotely competent referee, he would have shown Henry a second yellow and awarded us a penalty. You noticed how I used a conditional here? That's because Kevin Friend did nothing of the above and the game went on.

We continued poking and probing and Alexis was close to opening the scoring twice in the follow-up. He first hit the post and then dilli-dallied his way through the defense only to poke his effort wide.

But the goal did come. In the 63rd minute Alexis created space for Gibbs to exploit, the Englishman fired a fierce shot straight into the post and then Giroud was first on the rebound. 1-0.

The goal broke the dam and chances came flooding in. It was all us for another 15 minutes or so. Fired up by his contribution Sanchez created three more chances in the next six minutes: one shot was parried by Green, another was actually a pass to Ozil, when Sanchez should have scored after he and Giroud forced an error from Caulker and his third was a goal.

The Chilean received a pass from Ozil, stormed into the box from a tight angle, feinted left, feinted right and then lashed a low shot between the defenders that went in. At first I didn't understand what happened. The angle was so tight I thought it was impossible to score from it. Replays showed it wasn't.

We could have a third minutes later. Bellerin's cross ended up with Ozil, the German sent the defender to the year 3000 and unleashed a shot destined for the far corner. Only a combination of brilliant goalkeeping and a post denied Ozil.

But it wasn't over yet. In the 82nd minute Austin got on the end of a pass on the edge of the box, spun around and shot to make it 2-1. I initially thought Gibbs was guilty for allowing Charlie so much time and space. The replays demonstrated Kieran was actually doing the right thing by moving away from Austin in an attempt to mark the wide man. It was Koscielny who was tasked with putting pressure on the QPR's striker and the Frenchman made a complete mess of it. I also wonder whether Ospina could have done better with this one. Albeit the shot was powerful, the Colombian was standing in the right corner. Oh well.

QPR smelled blood after this goal, but, luckily, they haven't been able to do anything sensible in the time remaining even when they had the ball. 2-1 it ended.

The aftermath

It was a massive win. Every other team from the top seven has won and doing likewise allowed us to keep the status quo. We have also played some very good football in the second half and have built a bit of momentum ahead of our clash with United in the FA Cup.

Finally, a special mention should go to Alexis Sanchez. He has that "never-give-up" attitude and it pays off:

"He never gives up and that’s the strength of a good striker as well. He’s resilient and I don’t know what happened before because it looked like, for someone who was desperate to score, he could have taken the chance and he waited for somebody. After that, the fact that he could still score shows that he has the mental strength to respond."

There was only one downside to this game: Gabriel sustained a hamstring injury that will keep him out for the minimum of three weeks. Which is a real shame, he looked very good prior to the injury. Mercifully, we now have some depth to our squad, so fingers crossed we won't miss Gabriel much. By the way, there's a good article on him (and our defense) written by Dave Seager. Check it out, well worth your time and attention.

That's it for now, back with a preview most likely.

Until then

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

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