Arsenal 4 (Rosicky 43, Fabregas 52, Vermaelen 65, Arshavin 85) – Bolton 2 (Cahill 7, Taylor pen 28)
Match Report | Highlights
Manuel Almunia – Decent showing, nothing he could do about any of the goals. He commanded his area a little better than he has in recent weeks, and did the simple things well. His distribution also showed a marked improvement, as he often played shorter passes and kept the ball on the ground. 7
Bacary Sagna – Solid today, if a little unspectacular. Didn’t try anything too fancy but was there when he needed to be, providing defensive stability and an extra outlet on the right. His crossing must be improved though, as he works hard to get into some great positions and then throws posession away. 7
William Gallas – Very, very lucky to get away with the foul on the lead-up to the second goal as it was a poor tackle. Other than that he was solid for the most part, however Kevin Davies did get the better of him on more than one occasion. 6.5
Thomas Vermaelen – Also struggles to cope with the power of Davies. Was not as troubled as Gallas, however he was often on the back-foot. Won most of his aerial duels and showed great instinct in the box to let the ball come across his body and drop before unleashing a fierce volley for the third goal. 7
Gael Clichy – You can tell he’s been out for ten weeks. Clichy was decent for the most part however did look a little rusty, particularly in the latter stages. His pace and energy on the left flank was useful, however he did seem to run out of it rather early. Did what he had to do, but that was about it. Good to see him back. 6
Denilson – Poor tackle to give away the penalty for Bolton’s second, but other than that his tackling was probably the best aspect of his performance today. His passing, on the other hand, was sloppy and he gave the ball away too much. Denilson improved greatly in the second period and looked dangerous in the latter stages. 6.5
Abou Diaby – Played a deeper once again, shielding the back four in Alex Song’s absence. It was a solid performance and about as good as we can ask from Diaby in that position. Although his attacking game did suffer (he wasn’t his usual explosive self) he was solid in defence. His build was a big bonus and his tackling game was on point. 7
Cesc Fabregas – Absolute genius. He was at the heart of everything positive today, and showed great skill and tenacity to open up the Bolton defence for the equaliser. His passing was accurate and he always wanted the ball. Trademark showing from Cesc Fabregas, a performance the captain can be proud of. 8.5
Tomas Rosicky – Growing ever dangerous with every game he plays. The cobwebs seem to be well and truly shaken out. Yet another effective performance today, providing a good link between the midfield and the forward line and scoring a spectacular goal. 7.5
Andrey Arshavin – Didn’t expect much from Arshavin as he was once again played out of position, however today he put in a good showing. He was able to provide more of a focal point to the Arsenal attack than usual, and gained more possession by dropping deep to get the ball. His goal was a fine example of how he can make something from nothing. 7
Eduardo – Solid performance even if he failed to trouble the scorers. Good movement and great interplay in and around the eighteen yard box once again. Still loses the ball a bit too easily for my liking, but worked his socks off and earned his pay cheque this evening. 7
SUBSTITUTES
Eastmond – 6
Vela, Walcott – N/A.
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Almunia got his hands to a poor penalty and let it slip by. If that’s not being culpable I dpn’t know what is. To say there was nothing he could do with it is wrong. Furthermore the first goal could be attributed to the lack of confidence the defence has in him because they never know whether he is coming for the ball or not.
Sagna seems to be struggling with his shoulder. He runs with a right hand held close to his body and has not been throwing balls in either! whats up with him, any idea?
Also Denilson and Diaby seem to be very sloppy in passing which is not the usual pattern. Are they getting too pressurized over the defensive duties?
@ potter: Poor old Manuel. He can’t win, can he? After a victory-from-the-jaws-of-defeat win, that has us top the table on goal difference, you still want a moan. This time because he didn’t save a penalty. Get real.
great ratings!
maybe diaby could get even better. he was maybe a little invisible but did anyone notice the amount of headers he won. i think he won more headers in this game than he has won in his whole career. his tackling was superb as well.
arshavin seemed to just starting when the game ended, what a lovely skill it was that released him one-on-one, maybe he should’ve passed it to walcott but anyway he seemed to enjoy the game a lot.
denilson was pretty poor in the first half, agree. he gave the ball away far too easily and made the silly foul that caused the penalty. but in the second half he improved a lot in the second half.
great comeback gunners! lets beat stoke in the f.a cup and we’re ready for the season-deciding games.
Almunia should have stopped the penalty. Anybody who sais different didn’t see it. It was a weak shot, he guessed right on his dive, but it went right thru his hands. He deserves a 5 rating at best, and that’s being generous as hell. Almunia is our weakest link.
Stop hating on Almunia, he actually held us in the game. He’s good at stopping shots, but has to work with what to do on corners and set pieces..
and crosses n stuff :p
Well said that the penalty was a poor one and Al could ‘ve taken it out but you werent standing btw the sticks nor did you take the kick;give him a break pls.Penalties are 60/40 in favour of the kicker and not the goalkeeper.Blame him for not commmanding his area well, communicating with his CBs, timing his jumps ,etc, but not a penalty save.Getting his hand to it should be commended as effort and intention to save as he did a couple of games back.He’ll get better so let’s cheer him,ok?
Denilson had a rush of blood that led to the penalty and which wont happen again anytime soon and thank God it was against Bolton and we were at home and could fight for a comeback. Half full glass if you ask me…now let’s go take out another Boltonesque side at Stoke.
As I said somewhere else, the resistance to football thuggery(barring the Gallas ‘horror’ tackle though I know it was unintended) must now be a part of our game from here on as the media WILL instigate the rest of the league against us and the physicality from here on, will only get worse and never better until the end;in a way now, we are MARKED MEN.
But Bolton, credit to them, gave us the most important prelude in our season with these back-to-back games. No more moaning about thuggery;if you want to win the league Wenger, get your palyers mentally and physically ready for THUGGERY RESISTANT FOOTBALL.Period.
Well done guys!
I’m really happy with the result but I can’t believe the gloss that is being put on the demise of Eduardo. I have just finished watching the game for a second time as everyone keeps telling me what a great contribution he makes. I’m sorry but it just isn’t there and all I can see is someone who has minimal impact upon the game and is evading criticism based upon lingering goodwill from the injury.
As a forward for a top team it can’t be acceptable to lose the ball almost every time he is challenged by a defender, have no physical impact, absolutely no pace and hit feeble shots when it is laid on a plate by team mates.
I genuinely want to see the guy succeed and feel as much sympathy as the next guy – but I challenge anyone to watch that game again and say that there is any sign whatsoever that this is the guy who is going to drive us to the title.
It’s great to be happy when we win, but the writing is on the wall for Eduardo. When the best thing you can say about a goalscorer is that he makes good runs (not seemingly when he has to beat someone for speed) then you know you are clutching at straws. Cesc must be getting fed up with feeding him passes just to watch him get left for dead for pace or brushed off like a wasp by the defenders.
Ideally we get someone new, but if that doesn’t happen I can’t believe Walcott or Vela wouldn’t stretch defenses or get on the end of some of our moves better than a guy who just can’t cut it for us.
Hey potter , I think perhaps you are letting your hatred cloud your vision.
On Eduardo, I think he holds the ball up really really well and gets into great positions. He also gets lots of assists too. There is no need to buy another striker in my opinion. He will return to his usual pre injury form soon. Remember the same happened to van persie in the last 2 seasons, he started slowly on the scoring front but once he got going, he became prolific. Same will happen with Eduardo as long as he doesn’t get injured
Denilson doesnt deserve to b on dis team! duno hw wenger can view hm as a 1st team player! wil neva replace song! da guy tackles like a nancy wtf!
Andy P – I think if you check the record Eduardo never actually had a great pre-injury scoring record. He never scored that many although he was showing lots of promise before the big break. I can’t help thinking that this is one of those cases where his reputation was enhanced while he was out of the team rather than the reality of being in it.
I hope you are right about him (as I don’t think we will sign anyone) but having spent most of his career in the Croatian league, it is a bit of a stretch to point to his past record at the top level as proof he will “come back”!
Eduardo made his Premier League debut on 19 August 2007 in Arsenal’s 1–1 draw at Blackburn Rovers. Ten days later, he netted his first competitive goal for the Gunners in their UEFA Champions League qualifier against Sparta Prague, which Arsenal won 3–0. Eduardo scored his first group-stage goal in the Champions League on 19 September 2007 against Sevilla. While still fighting to find his place as a regular in the Premier League for Arsenal, Eduardo continued to display his goalscoring abilities in the Carling Cup, scoring two braces in two consecutive matches for the club, against Sheffield United and Blackburn Rovers, and helping them to reach the semi-finals of the competition. Eduardo found more playing time in all competitions due to Robin Van Persie’s lengthy injury and found himself partnering Emmanuel Adebayor more often.
Eduardo finally managed to find his place in Arsenal’s starting line-up in the Premier League over Christmas and New Year period, scoring his first two Premier League goals in a 4–1 win at Everton on 29 December 2007, first levelling the score and then putting Arsenal 2–1 up in the opening 15 minutes of the second half. On New Year’s Day 2008, he opened the scoring after only 72 seconds of the match against West Ham United; Arsenal went on to win 2–0. On the first weekend of the new year, he had a successful FA Cup debut as Arsenal faced Championship side Burnley on the road, first scoring the opening goal early on, and then setting up a second for Nicklas Bendtner midway through the second half. In the following three matches in January, he set up three more goals, providing two assists and winning a penalty. He went on to help Arsenal to return to the top of the Premier League in early February, scoring a skilful over-the-shoulder flick in a 3–1 away victory over Manchester City and assisting Philippe Senderos for an early goal in a 2–0 win over Blackburn at the Emirates.
read that “eddie norton”
Chris Norton – I agree with Andy P – Eduardo keeps putting in a shift and has a good record of assists. Yes we can all see he is half a yard short on pace but we are seeing glimpses of brilliance together with a good contribution in every game now.
Also I think it is you who should be checking the records – Eduardo had an excellent pre-injury scoring record (better than Van Persie) when you take out the appearances as a sub coming on with minutes to go.
I expect if we look back you were probably one of the ones knocking Van Persie, Song and Diaby a while back.
Don’t just slate the guy – have some patience and always remember -
In Arsene We Trust
Its easy to drop back on the In Arsene we trust mantra and assume I hate Eduardo – I don’t. You are citing a record of some goals against mediocre opposition not a proven player. Read the timeline yourself, he played well for a bout 6 weeks. He looked to have great potential but we never really found out before he was chopped in half.
Don’t get me wrong, I genuinely like the guy but watching him and no I didn’t slate Diaby or Song, who are both great young players who had tremendous chances of improvement, even if it was hard to believe at times. Eduardo is not like that, he is more like Michael Owen – a player who has many gifts but without the physical presence relies almost entirely upon that extra yard of pace to put himself in the position to score. When the pace isn’t there the defender gets there first and the player is nullified.
Is it not possible to have an honest debate about an Arsenal player between Arsenal fans without turning it into a them against us fight? Silly me I thought that was the point of comments and message boards!
By the way – is this patience we are supposed to have going to have to last through the next 4 weeks that will define our season? Is him “recovering his sharpness” by April (when RVP comes back and he gets dropped) Ok with you?
Last year our season disintegrated in less than a week. You don’t get paid $3 million a year in base salary and get to ask for patience. You either do or you don’t. Having watched last nights game twice, it is clear he doesn’t. Watch it for yourself and tell me that someone with an extra yard of pace today, not a some mythical point in the future, wouldn’t have got on the end of some of our moves and made more of an impact.
The role he plays is to finish things. If he isn’t doing that then there is nothing wrong with questioning whether he is the right man for the job.
Chris Norton – I hear what you’re saying about his pace at the moment and his strength. But you said Fabregas must be fed up giving him the ball. From what I’ve seen since Fabregas return is wonderful little combinations Fab and Dudu have. It seems to me Fab looks mostly to pass to Eduardo cos of their understanding of each other’s game. Arsenal’s game is all about little 5 yard passes and opening up a defence in tight situations. We’ll hardly ever stretch our opponents defence or get behind them cos they’re always sitting really deep. So for our style Eduardo is the best option.
Adiiii83 makes another good point – Cesc and Clichy have both spoken out about the unselfish contribution of Eduardo recently.
I am amazed there are still some people out there who just don’t get what Eduardo is about – I guess in a way that could be a good thing if the opposition underestimates him too.
And where is the problem exactly with the team scoring 23 goals in the last 10 games – oh yea I know they are all ‘mediocre opposition’!!!! I’m not going to do a google search to see which top teams he has scored against because that would be a bit sad!
Oh and Chris – if you dont get to ask for patience I suppose we should sell Eduardo on the cheap and anyone else who doesnt play at there absolute best for a few games or recovering from injury – then buy in expensive replacements who as soon as they have a bad game we get rid of them at a loss. And while we are at it we should get rid of Wenger as he hasnt won anything since 2005.
Listen I hear what you are saying that you like the guy and all – but if you come out with stuff like that you are bound to touch a nerve with any fans who watched him break his leg, then the comeback, the dive controversy for which he took a ton of stick etc – only for him to come under pressure from a minority of fans who havent got any patience and dont see the wider picture.
I am a realist and I think there is a good chance we will drop points over this crucial period – I for one wouldnt panic if we did – as long as we stay very close there is a fair way to go yet.
Lets see if Eduardo can score against a top team eh?
Gunner D, I agree with you mate. The point I am making is that maybe we all need to just ask ourselves how much of the affection is based upon the impact of the injury and how much of it is based upon what he really does for the team? I keep hearing about all these little 5 yard passes and to a degree it is true, but to a greater extent it is because we don’t have someone up top with any pace that we get squeezed into these little boxes.
Watch any team with real pace in their forward line and you see defenses drop back so that defenders give themselves a chance. his actually opens up the space in midfield more, meaning more space for our better players. Over the Wenger period, Ian Wright, Anelka and Henry have all done that, as to Ade in his early days when he wanted to try. Now we don’t have that and my concern is that it may end up costing us. If Eduardo was doing the real thing he was supposed to do for us, i.e. taking chances set up by others, then I wouldn’t be complaining, but he isn’t. How long do we wait is my main point. In the big games, that like it or not will decide our season, we won’t get 15 chances (and we won’t score 4 goals), we may only get one. Our center forward has to be able to take it.
I find it surprising how much projection goes on whenever anybody has an opinion other than so and so is “the best in the world”. According to Gunner D, my request to put someone faster upfront somehow gets rapidly upgraded to bankrupt the club and sack Wenger. That’s a bit off a jump isn’t it? If you read my posts, in my opinion, the contribution of Eduardo is being over estimated by people who understandably feel great loyalty to him. It amazed me how people can establish any significant difference between Eduardo and Vela, as they both do exactly the same thing. Of our available options, Walcott is probably the only one who changes the nature of the game and gets the defenses to have to accommodate his pace, but as ever Theo comes with some other issues (composure and staying fit for longer than 10 minutes). Bendtner gives us more physicality but still no pace, so it is not an unreasonable question to ask if we have the tools for the job.
Clearly Wenger is looking for a striker (see today’s quotes) but can’t find one right now that he can get on his terms (which is another discussion). Let me ask you this then, would Wenger be looking if he really believed that within the squad we have the right answers?
Chris – OK perhaps I went a bit over the top! – I understand your frustration with his lack of pace and physicality and I agree we could do with a big fast technically brilliant goal machine to be added to the squad and I am sure Wenger is looking – as he himself says he is always looking but will only buy if a player (in his opinion) will make a difference and is not overpriced.
Cheers mate – I look forward to some interesting debates soon!