Sunderland 0-2 Arsenal: Alexis the hero once again

Hello everyone.

So, we took the much needed three points on Saturday. Coupled with everyone else dropping points, we now sit fifth, nine behind Chelsea and five behind Southampton. Which is not that bad, considering our start of the season. Back to the game, however.

Arsene made just one change (Arteta for Wilshere), but, to the displeasure of many, left the defense untouched. He also didn't omit Flamini from the starting lineup, which, I guess, was down to Ramsey not being fit enough.

It was obvious from the start Sunderland set out not to concede. Understandable, given the spanking they received last week. We got hold of the ball, however, didn't do much with it. Our only half-moment was when Welbeck curled the ball over the bar at 20 minutes.

Suddenly, out of the blue, we scored. Mertesacker hoofed the ball towards no one in particular, Wes Brown lost it under pressure from Sanchez, the Chilean ran half the field and dinked the ball over Mannone.

This didn't bring any kind of response from Sunderland. The Cats continued to sit deep through the remainder of the first half, though they stepped it up a bit in the second.

This allowed us to exploit some space behind their erratic defending, but, unfortunately, Santi didn't have his shooting boots on. He spurned two glorious chances to put the game to bed, leaving all the fans in a rather nervous state until very late.

Till 92nd minute, if you are interested in the definition of "very late". It looked like our attack broke down near Sunderland's box, only for some defender or another to play a back pass to Mannone. The Italian failed to clear and Sanchez was on hand to poke the ball home. 2-0 and game over.

In the cold light of day, our performance looks only marginally better than the one in midweek. However, we got the three points and that's what really matters. We played two away games inside three days and won both. Did we produce good displays? No. But we got the job done, while everyone else didn't. I've written how I'd take an ugly win over a beautiful draw any day and I stand by what I said. Once we get the result, it doesn't really matter how.

What genuinely worries me right now is lack of fit defenders. We had five before the game (Bellerin included), but Gibbs limped off, holding his hip. If we lose the Englishman for any period of time, we're down to four defenders, two of them 19 years of age. Scary.

We can, once again, say how rash it was not to have bought another defender, with just six seniors, one of them with a chronic condition, but you also have to admit that any team will struggle with three injures in one line.

Look at United and their makeshift defense that costs them points in every game. Chelsea can consider themselves incredibly lucky, as they also have just six senior defenders. If the injury crisis hits them, they'll start losing games.

Let's hope there is nothing serious with Gibbs. Then we don't have long till Debuchy and Koscielny are back. Just a month to go. Before we furiously search the market in January.

That's it for now. Back in a couple of days with either fresh news or a preview. Or both.

Until later

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

Sunderland preview: no margin for error

Morning everyone.

It's Sunderland away today and I cannot recall another occasion when we needed a win this badly.

However, Sunderland won't be easy to beat, not just because it's the BPL, where everyone fights tooth and nail, but because of the humiliation the Black Cats suffered in their last game. Having been made a laughing stock by Southampton, Poyet's side will be determined to put things right, especially at their own place. So any loss of focus, dip in concentration or underperformance will be punished.

We go into this game while still adapting to a new system and on the back of a very exhausting away European fixture. We also could have been better off in terms of personnel, so fielding a balanced team is something of a problem. The good thing, of course, is that we've won our last game, despite leaving it very late. With all this sorted out, a guessing game is in order.

The back five

Although Martinez had n excellent game against Anderlecht, I don't think we'll see the Argentine in goal. Szczesny is our number one, so, while it's good to know we have capable back-up, no one should fool himself that it's anything more than just back-up. Wojciech is the experienced guy and will start all games by default, at least till Ospina is back in full training.

Our defense is once again our weakest link. Though Chambers is back, it now looks like Koscielny will spend at least another month on the sidelines. Which is, of course, a huge blow, but given the nature of Laurent's injury we only have ourselves to blame for not buying cover. We knew he had a chronic condition which would require a lengthy treatment at some point and yet we failed to act. And the effort put into signing a defender doesn't really earn us any bonus points or a spare CB. Only the result matters. In this case the result is two injured leave us down to bare bones and the prospect of playing two youngsters week in, week out: Chambers and Bellerin.

And yes, I'd better have Bellerin starting games with Chambers alongside Per, than see Monreal deployed centrally. The Spaniard has bags of experience, but little of it he acquired by playing CB. So an axis of Mert and Chambers would make more sense. I also think it's more balanced and reliable.

The midfield

Here we have Jack unavailable, who serves a one-game ban for picking up five yellows. Apart from the Englishman, however, everyone else is good to go.

I've already stated I'm all for Arteta in that holding role and my opinion hasn't changed. In fact, my belief was further reinforced following an erratic showing from Flamini in midweek.

Maybe Arsene is playing mind games, eh? He knew Arteta received his bit of criticism prior to injury and decided to show the alternative is worse. So that everyone will cry their little eyes out and pray to the heavens Flamini won't start our next game. A clever ruse from Arsene.

No, honestly, this Flamdess has to stop. Enough's enough. The Frenchman doesn't bring anything to our side, apart from a lot of clapping and shouting. Which are important qualities, since we have very few players like that, but when every other aspect of your game flops, you have to ask a question of whether the cheerleader's qualities are more important than the overall performance of the team.

In front of Arteta I suspect Ramsey will start (who might just improve in Jack's absence) and AW has a decision to make of who to pair the Welshman with. Rosicky or Cazorla? Cazorla is a more natural playmaker, but Rosicky replicates Wilshere's qualities better. He likes to take players on, gives a pass at the last possible moment and it a tireless runner. He'll chase players all over the pitch, and this can be quite useful, when coupled with Ramsey's, Sanchez's and Welbeck's energy. Moreover, the Czech is fresh, having not featured a lot for us this season, so he'll be running through brick walls for us. Won't surprise me if he starts, with Cazorla on the flank.

The attack

Wlebeck is a regular starter, though I'm starting to question whether he can handle that many minutes. Was his substitution in midweek down to weak performance or because Danny's just exhausted?

If it's the latter scenario, we may see either Campbell or Sanchez up front. I think the Costa-Rican should be given a chance, but then I also think Sanchez is a more reliable option as a CF. He's different in the way he operates, but the manager is reluctant to use Campbell in any position right now, let alone as a lone striker. So it's either Welbeck up front or Sanchez.

The flanks are also an enigma. Assuming one of them is occupied by Cazorla, then we have Poldi, Sanchez, Oxlade and Campbell all fighting for one spot. Oh, and let's not forget Walcott, who can make the bench and as such is bound to come on at some point. A nice selection headache for Arsene. I'd personally go with a Cazorla-Sanchez-Welbeck trio, but there's no telling what Wenger may do.

The verdict

All in all, we have enough firepower up front and that little bit of confidence after our dramatic midweek game to win today. The defense is a sticking point, but then we all knew it is risky to go into the new season with just six seniors. No point bemoaning it now, we cannot change it, so time to get behind the team and the manager. And wait till January, when we should be furiously searching the market for a CB. And while we are at it, we might as well buy a DM. A decent one. Cause right now only Arteta looks decent, while Diaby... did I mention he is injured?

Right, that's it for today. Here's for the three points today and I'll get back to you with a review on Sunday or Monday.

Until then and c'mon you Gunners

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

Anderlecht 1-2 Arsenal: by hook and crook

It's tough job being an Arsenal fan. Other people will probably never understand the stress you suffer. Your mood swings. Depression and joy. If I ask a person, why he's so sad or silent and he answers "I support Arsenal", he needn't continue. Should you cite the factors that affect your nervous system you can always count in Arsenal's latest perfo

Yet sometimes it's incredibly rewarding. Like yesterday. After 71 minutes of football I went and fetched myself some validol. When the 85th minute came around I started washing my teacup, deflated and fully prepared to have a long night of self-reflection and misery ahead. But it turned out I have given in too early.

When Chambers swung in his cross I wasn't hoping for anything. With Welbeck off and Alexis not in the box, there was no one to pounce on the cross but Oxlade-Chamberlain. Who picked the wrong position. However, to my immense astonishment, the cross was met with a neat volley and the ball rippled in the back of the net. At first I thought only Poldi, who came on five minutes prior to this episode, could have pulled off that finish. But I was wrong again. Replays showed Gibbs buried his chance, before burying his face in his hands.

It seemed a point for your thought and for Arsene's birthday. Which was unacceptable, but better than no points at all. The ref added 3 minutes, but the goal did what it always does: sparked us into life. Suddenly, chances came flooding in.

And we took the first one that presented itself. Gibbs crossed from the left, a scuffle ensued, Sanchez emerged on top and his pass found Podolski. The German smashed the ball home.

We could have added another in the later stages, but for some wayward passing and a poor first touch. But what the hell, we got the job done. The rest is history. This is what Arsene said after the game:

"We had the spirit. We had to go. It was disappointing we didn’t create more chances tonight but I put that down to the fact as well that Anderlecht defended very well."

I'd take a scrappy last-minute win over a gorgeous draw any day. However, it doesn't mean I'm satisfied with the performance. Far from it. There were only four players who fared relatively well. Martinez, Gibbs, Sanchez and Podolski.

Martinez could have done little about the goal, but kept us in the game by pulling off a brilliant save and then coming off his line quickly when one-on-one with Suarez. Very encouraging from the young Argentine, whose last competitive start for us was a 7-5 game against Reading.

Gibbs defended staunchingly, especially since he was offered little support from Cazorla, Alexis or whoever was supposed to cover for the Englishman on the left. Scored a brilliant volley too, and provided a cross for the second goal.

Poldi gets the props for doing what he was asked to do in the short ten minutes he was on. A sublime first touch and a cracking finish.

And Sanchez. Our only consistently good performer right now. Giving his all and contributing. Got another assist under his belt, nearly scored from a beautifully curved free-kick and set up Cazorla for the first really dangerous passage of play. Hope the Chilean has enough energy left in the tank to put in a performance against Sunderland.

Everyone else: not so good as a team, not so good at individual level. Monreal looked out of his depth, Chambers had an atrocious game (surprising, really. Maybe the schedule is catching up with him?). The Englishman was continuously caught out of position, let the opposition breathe past him too easily. A game to forget.

Our midfield also was far from the optimal condition. Wilshere and Ramsey cannot play together without one of them flopping, and right now Wilshere is the in-form guy. That's why I think it's reasonable to suggest to drop the Welshman and play Cazorla centrally. That way we'll have a real winger on the left, who'll be able to help Gibbs out, while also allowing the Spaniard to spread play effectively and feed Sanchez.

Flamini is a good cheerleader, but an average player. He should be omitted, Arteta definitely won't commit the kind of mistakes Flamini committed yesterday.

Up front we should maybe consider playing Podolski more often. His conversion rate is way too good to deploy the German for occasional 15 minutes or so.

On a side note, Borussia had smashed Gala in Turkey, and have thus ensured qualification. If they beat the Turks at home, while we win our game against Anderlecht, we'll be through. Can we top the group? It looks unlikely considering the Germans' form. They only have to lose by a one-goal margin to us and win their remaining two (home) games to ensure the top spot. But hey, it's the Champions League, where you can take nothing for granted.

That's it for today. Enjoy the win, if not the performance.

And Happy Birthday, Arsene

Until later

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

Anderlecht preview:...

I've already run out of imperatives of how important it is to win the next game. After this season's showing I'm not even sure we can win tomorrow. Community Shield included, Arsenal only had three good performances this year. We can kind of count in the Man City performance, though we dropped points on that occasion.

A very gloomy atmosphere indeed surrounds our tomorrow's fixture. The fan base, predictably, erupted, after we failed to get the points against Hull. However, even had we nicked the win in the dying seconds of the game, would that have changed much? I'm not sure. The problem was not so much the result, but the performance itself. Shaky at the back, unconvincing up front. Lost, if you are looking for one word to describe our showing on Saturday.

However, the press and our own fans are definitely overreacting. The press is ready to scourge Arsene (did you see that awful interview with Jacqui Oatley? Disgusting), while rumour has it the fans are preparing some anti-Wenger banners for our game in Brussels. I've even heard about some back-turning to the pitch every 18 minutes to demonstrate the fans' dissatisfaction with AW.

I, for one, think such measures are completely uncalled for. What will they lead to, what are the fans trying to achieve? They want to show their displeasure and that's understandable, but, if you just think one step ahead, this will accomplish nothing, apart from heaping even more pressure on Wenger and the players. Arsene won't step down till at least the end of this season and thus I see no reason to try and force his retirement now. However bad the situation is, there's no immediate rescue, no easy answer to our problems. Both our manager and our footballers are in desperate need of our support exactly because we're going through a hard period. Right now they need our backing, not our contempt. Come the end of the season and we're still in a mess, fine. Protest all you want. Summer is a sufficient period to bring in a new manager and some new players, but right now there's no point, cause nothing will change. Not because the existing situation is good, but because it can become much worse with an interim manager.

Moreover, I've already stated that Arsenal gets the stick far more often, than other clubs under roughly the same circumstances do. Liverpool, Everton, Tottenham and United are much worse off than we are, yet I see next to no criticism coming their way. It goes to the point of absurdity. United drew yesterday against West Brom by only just getting a point thanks to a late equaliser. Yet for them the result is somehow acceptable, even good, while our draw against Hull is considered shameful. Man Utd appointed a wonder-manager, a brilliant tactician and bought world-class players for £150 mil, and sit just one point above us. Nonetheless, their start is kind of normal, Mata is somehow more effective than Ozil and Van Gaal is just unlucky, while Wenger is incompetent. What a fair world we live in.

Anyway, this was supposed to be a preview, so onto matters more pressing and more Arsenal-related.

The back five

Martinez will start between the sticks, while some rookie or other will make the bench. Surprised? I know I was when I first heard of it. Szczesny is out of the equation due to suspension, it was known long before, but where's Ospina? Well, can you guess?

Yes, the Colombian is injured. I'm not even sure when he managed to pick up whatever knock will keep him out of the game. So David's unavailable for selection and for the first time this season I'm genuinely worried about the shot-stopper position. I mean, Martinez seems a nice and dedicated lad, but I'm not exactly sure he's up to the task just yet. Fortunately, it's only (ahem), ONLY Anderlecht, so fingers crossed Emiliano won't have an awful lot of work.

The back four is a bit of an enigma. I don't know where we are with Koscielny, I guess it's too soon for the Frenchman, but good news is, Chambers is back. So the question is this: where will the Englishman be deployed? On the right, with Monreal through the middle once more? Or centrally, with Bellerin on the right and Monreal on the bench?

For me, the latter scenario sounds better, mainly because Monreal didn't impress against Hull, while Hector did. Furthermore, Chambers and Bellerin are better suited to play CB and RB respectively. The other two should be Gibbs and Mertesacker, though the German really has to improve on his Saturday's performance. He's not alone there, however.

The midfield

Mikel Arteta for Mathieu Flamini. Please. The Frenchman is more of a nuisance right now, Arteta at least doesn't make positional mistakes and is harder to push off the ball. He's also a much better passer, something that can make the difference. So we need our skipper on, from the very first minutes.

Further up I'd probably go with Cazorla and Ramsey, just because risking Wilshere is, well, risky. He's one of the few in-form players we have, so we should wrap him in cotton wool and use only as a sub tomorrow. If needs must. But I hope it won't come to that.

The attack

Welbeck and Sanchez should be regular starters for an obvious reason: they score goals. However, it's interesting to see, who will complete our front three.

Oxlade, Campbell, Podolski and maybe even Walcott are all candidates. In case with the Englishmen I suspect Alexis will switch to the left to free up the right flank, but, frankly, it looks like Alexis can score goals from any position, so I'm not particularly worried about where exactly the Chilean will play.

If it was for me, I'd probably go with Campbell. I really liked what I've seen from him against Hull and, earlier, Southampton, so Joel deserves his chance. Especially since Walcott may not be fully fit, while Poldi doesn't have the manager's trust. Oxlade will probably edge it, though. Both because I'm bad at guessing and because AW doesn't seem to trust Campbell any more than he trusts Podolski.

The verdict

We are, once again, the obvious favourites on paper, however it doesn't seem to guarantee us anything lately. We have a lot of attacking players to take the game to our opponent, while at the same time covering our ever-changing defense and this is exactly what we should do. We really need to jump-start our campaign.

So c'mon you Gunners

And I'll be back with you for a review.

Until then

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)

Arsenal 2-2 Hull: Alexis Sanchez's stand-out performance masks deep problems

At least twice this year I wrote about draws that felt like a point gained: City and Everton. Twice I lamented dropped points: Leicester and Tottenham. Now has come the third time to bemoan the latter and I don't at all feel like doing it. Needs must, though, so here comes.

The squad

Given Koscielny's injury and Chambers's suspension our back four was predictable: Bellerin, Mert, Monreal and Gibbs. There were rumours Hayden could have started and, taking Monreal's performance into consideration, it probably would have been better for all parties concerned if Isaac did just that. However, our CB sustained an injury (of course he had) and thus didn't even make the bench.

Of all defenders only Bellerin deserves some praise and this in itself tells you a lot about how our defense fared. When a 19 year old, who starts his first Premier League game, becomes the only bright spot, questions need to be asked.

I get it Gibbs may have been exhausted after his game for the national team, but he also wasn't our worst performer on the day, despite clearly being caught out of position for their second. Instead, the heart of our (last year's rock-solid) defense was at fault for both goals. Mert failed to position himself for the second goal, allowing Hernandez to easily head past him and Monreal was nowhere to be seen when Diame scored his first (albeit controversial) goal.

Further up field Wenger stuck with Flamini and I wish he didn't. I already said Arteta is the better passer of the ball and this could have made the difference, especially in the second half, when we were desperately pursuing the equaliser. Further up the pitch we had a predictable duo of Wilshere and Cazorla. Both weren't overly convincing.

Welbeck and Oxlade started up top, which was not surprising, but Alexis did likewise, something I didn't expect, as the Chilean played two full games for the national team, the last finished on late Wednesday. And thank God Sanchez started.

The first half

We kicked off in good fashion, peppering Harper with shots during the first 15 minutes. The goalie saved every single effort on target, but we kept probing and were rewarded in the 14th minute. Sanchez dilly-dallied his way through the defense and fired an unstoppable low shot into the bottom corner. We looked in full control of the situation and the goal was only logical.

However, our joy at being in front didn't last long. Diame ran right through the middle as if our defense just wasn't there, pushed Flamini off the ball and chipped Szczesny. Did Diame foul Flamini? Yes, he did, even Steve Bruce admitted it after the game. But, while we can point the finger of blame at the ref to some extent, we ourselves failed on two basic fronts: cover the central defense and play to the whistle. Monreal was nowhere to be found, Flamini gave up too easily.

But did we respond? Hell no. We seemed deflated and completely disinterested. The only player who tried hard and made things happen was Sanchez. Even with him and third- choice stopper between the sticks (Harper got subbed for Jakupovic) we failed to trouble the keeper from 43rd minute to 86th. Needless to say, we didn't get anything out of the first half.

The second half

I was late for, like, twenty seconds and the first thing I saw? Right, Hull's goal. In a typical Arsenal fashion. A cross from the flank (Gibbs, where was Gibbs?!), Mert lost Abel Hernandez and the guy headed home. 2-1 down in a game we should have been comfortably winning. In front of our own fans.

But did it fuel our inner rage and spark us into life? Hell no. It felt like we were going through the motions, right up till the 86th minute.

It was the minute Monreal said to himself "F*ck it, I'm not losing it" and, not giving Gibbs so much as a cursory glance, bombed forward down his beloved left flank. He crossed, and it was our first dangerous cross of the game. Alexis met it with a thumping header, but Jakupovic saved.

Thankfully, we found that equaliser in the 91th minute. And Alexis was the man who did all the work. He danced his way through 3 players and played a perfect pass into Welbeck's path. The Englishman's finish was composed.

We could have probably nicked the win in the dying seconds, but both Monreal and Oxlade failed to connect with the ball properly on the volley, while Cazorla and Gibbs saw their respective efforts blocked by Jakupovic. 2-2 it finished.

The aftermath

I haven't seen our fan base so dissatisfied since our home loss to Villa last year and they have every reason to be: our performance was so much below expectations. The worst thing was how it was obvious we lacked passion and desire going forward in the second half. No one (apart from Sanchez) seemed to care we were on course to lose the game and this is genuinely scary.

This inability to break down defenses (whatever the reason), coupled with our make-shift back four led to yet another draw. In a game we should have won comfortably.

The sticking point was how unmotivated the team looked and this is the instance where the buckle stops with the manager. It's Arsene's job to ensure the players produce and if they don't, it's his fault and his alone.

Unfortunately, I see no immediate way out, no rescue. Can Arsene leave? He surely can, but if he steps down right now, we'll be in a real mess. A new man will need time to adapt and we cannot afford to lose any more points because of yet another transition period.

Can Arsene step down at the end of the season? He can, but will he, even if the team underperformes? We all know how Arsene stays till his contract expires, something that'll happen in only three years time.

The way I see it, Arsene has to stay and do his best to get the maximum out of this group of players. Because I genuinely think that this crop is capable of far better results. We played some great football last year and we were without Sanchez, Welbeck or Chambers back then. So Arsene should try as hard as he can to fuel this side to better achievements this year and if he fails by the end of it, he should step down. The boss always said how he will leave when he understands there's nothing more he can give to this team and I hope he keeps his word.

That's it for today. Back tomorrow with a preview for the game against Anderlecht.

Until then

Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)