Wenger - Keepers justifying my judgement

By Giuseppe Muro

Arsenal’s goalkeepers are repaying Arsène Wenger’s faith in them, according to the Arsenal manager.

Wenger was consistently linked with a move for a stopper during the summer but regularly reiterated his confidence in the keepers already at the Club.

This judgement seems to be paying dividends with Lukasz Fabianski producing the best form of his Arsenal career.

The Pole made a number of vital saves against Manchester City in the 3-0 win on Sunday and seems to be showing everyone what the manager claimed to know all along. Not that Wenger is resting on his laurels.

“I think yes [my faith has been justified] - one thing you cannot fault is my faith,” said the manager.

“It is not won and we have still to show consistency in the performances but it’s good that the keepers are showing they are as good as I think they are.

“My faith has been questioned and I wouldn’t like to go overboard too much on what some people said but you just hope that what you believe is right comes out and recently we have made progress.”

‘Nasri is all that you dream to have’

By Giuseppe Muro

Arsène Wenger believes Samir Nasri has everything.

The French midfielder has been one of Arsenal’s most consistent performers this season, scoring seven times in his last seven appearances including the opening goal in the 3-0 win over Manchester City on Sunday.

Wenger insists Nasri’s impact at important moments added to his obvious natural ability mean he has become vital to the Arsenal team.

“When you analyse Samir Nasri he has all the qualities and he now adds efficiency to his game and that makes him a great player,” said the manager.

“He scores goals, he gives assists, he can go one against one, he can pass, he is all that you dream to have as a football player.

“I am convinced [he is a better player than when he came here] because he is more efficient in creating chances, in the final balls, his vision has improved and he is quicker playing forward.”

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Manchester City 0-3 Arsenal Barclays Premier League, City of Manchester Stadium Sunday, October 24, 2010, 16:00

By Richard Clarke  

Arsenal climbed back to second place in the Premier League with a crucial 3-0 win at Manchester City on Sunday.

Goals from Samir Nasri, Alex Song and Nicklas Bendtner secured the points in a confidence-boosting afternoon for Arsène Wenger’s side. However the turning point of the game occurred as early as the fourth minute when Manchester City defender Dedryck Boyata was dismissed for a last-man foul on Marouane Chamakh.

The red card certainly affected the Sky Blues but a highly-effective Arsenal side made them pay. They took the lead, recovered when Joe Hart saved a Cesc Fabregas penalty, withstood Manchester City pressure and then pushed on for the three points.

Make no mistake, this game was massive for Arsenal. They had something to prove to themselves as well as others after the defeat at Chelsea earlier in the month.
Although this was not exactly the performance of champions, it was the type of result champions pull off. 

At this rate, Wenger’s side WILL be part of the title race until May.

The manager made three changes from the side that has won so handsomely against Shakhtar in midweek. Jack Wilshere started his three-game suspension so Denilson came into central midfield. The fit-again Bacary Sagna was back for Emmanuel Eboue while Andrey Arshavin replaced Tomas Rosicky.

This was not a traditional ‘Big Four’ game but you could argue Manchester City had taken over the position vacated by Liverpool over the course of the last 18 months. And, of course, Wenger's men had built up a poor record in recent seasons against direct title challengers.

That simply had to change.
For all their possession at Chelsea, they had left without the points – and it was only those that would keep Arsenal in the title race.

However while Wenger's men started wonderfully in West London that day, the opening stages at Eastlands would belong to the home side. Manchester City were lively and vibrant – the exact opposite of the way they would end the game.

In the second minute, Carlos Tevez tricked Djourou in to a mistimed challenge on the right. The Argentinean scuttled to the byline and cut the ball back into the heart of the six-yard box. David Silva’s backflick was instant and goalbound. Fabianski thrust out his right hand and clutched the ball on the line.

A couple of minutes later, Yaya Toure broke down the same flank and Sagna hacked the ball away.

Arsenal had made a nervous start and needed a break.
In the fourth minute, they got one.

Fabregas sent Chamakh clear in the right-hand channel with Boyata in hot pursuit. The Moroccan poked the ball clear of the Belgian defender and was brought down just outside the area. As the centre back was the last man a red card was inevitable.

The sides swapped bookings in the minutes that followed. A tense affair was now becoming tetchy too.

Fabianski made a simple save after confusion in the Arsenal defence allowed Tevez a glimpse of goal.

In the 17th minute, Fabregas worked the ball wide to Sagna, whose cross was nodded over by the unmarked Djourou at the near post.

There was a feeling that Arsenal were settling down.

Something that was confirmed by the opening goal a couple of minutes later.

Nasri collected the ball on the right and played it to Arshavin before darting into the area. The Russian waited for his colleague to overlap then fed him the perfect pass. Nasri delayed his shot until Hart was committed and then lifted his shot over the stranded keeper. It was his seventh goal in his last six starts.

The game was now the polar opposite of the first minutes. Manchester City were nervous and inhibited, Arsenal composed.

However the home side might have been level just before the half-hour. James Milner’s ball sent Micah Richards clear on the right. The defender weaved inside and tried to curl a shot into the far corner. Fortunately for Arsenal he sliced his effort wide.

The chance was an anomaly. Broadly speaking the visitors were in command. And they had a chance to strangle the game six minutes from the break when Vincent Kompany clipped Fabregas just inside the area.

The Spaniard stepped up to take the spot-kick. His contact was decent but Joe Hart threw himself to his left to make a fine save. It was the third penalty Arsenal had missed this season.
It was also the shot in the arm that Manchester City had needed. Before half-time Kompany nodded narrowly over the bar from Silva’s corner and, just before the whistle, the Spanish striker miscontrolled a through ball when well-placed.
Both sides went into the tunnel with something to think about. Arsenal had the advantages of a goal and a man but, in reality, were not in complete control. Manchester City had limped through the first half after that double blow but they had created enough to feel they were in with a sniff.

However in the opening moments of the second half, that chance was almost extinguished. The visitors attacked with purpose down the left and, had the ball properly fallen at the feet of Fabregas or Chamakh, Arsenal would have grabbed an early second.

Mancini had made a change at the break – Wayne Bridge for Toure. Six minutes into the second half, he made another – Emmanuel Adebayor for the limping Tevez.
The latter move was guaranteed to shake up the match but it also heralded Manchester City’s best period. 

In the 57th minute, Silva darted into the area and, from an acute angle, let fly. It would have found the far corner but for a wonderful touch by Fabianski.

The Arsenal keeper was starting to be over-employed. A couple of minutes later, the Pole missed his punch and Adebayor nodded over the bar.

You sensed it was now or never for Manchester City. They had been chasing the game ever since the sending off and had to redress the balance at this point.

In fact Arsenal would double their lead.

In the 65th minute, Nasri and Fabregas combined on the right of the area and tried to slip in Chamakh. However Bridge got a toe on the ball and it turned into a perfect lay-off for Song, who fired first-time into the top corner.
The goal pretty much sucked the life out of Manchester City. They nearly got an immediate response when Adebayor’s header was brilliantly palmed away by Fabianski. Neither knew the chance had been flagged offside. Apart from that, the visitors were now exerting proper control.

Tomas Rosicky’s dangerous-looking cross toward Denilson was touched aside for a corner and Chamakh thundered a shot high over the bar.

Two minutes from time, substitute Bendtner raced clear on to Nasri’s through-ball and slotted his first goal of the season past Hart.

Fabianski saved wonderfully from Boateng to preserve Arsenal's first Premier League clean-sheet away from home for almost 10 months. In injury time, Sagna steered a shot inches past the far post. .

At the whistle, the home fans threw their anger at referee Mark Clattenburg. However this afternoon the official had got the key decisions right.

All Arsenal had done was take full advantage.
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Arsenal 5-1 Shakhtar Donetsk UEFA Champions League, Emirates Stadium Tuesday, October 19, 2010, 19:45

By Richard Clarke

Arsenal took an almighty stride towards qualification to the Champions League Knockout Stages with a fabulous 5-1 win over Shakhtar Donetsk on Tuesday night.

Alex Song, Samir Nasri, Cesc Fabregas, Jack Wilshere and Marouane Chamakh got the goals in a game that had been billed as Group H decider but turned out to be a cruise.

Shakhtar, who arrived on a run of seven straight wins, had endeavour early in each half but defensive frailties always undermined their ambition.

An omnipotent Arsenal plundered goals as and when they needed them. It was a pleasing night all-round.

Even Shakthar’s late consolation drew hearty applause. Eduardo half-volleyed home from close range and, as he had promised, did not celebrate the strike.

You could not have blamed him if he had, Shakhtar can take little else from this evening.

Arsenal have gathered nine points and 14 goals in their first three group games. They could secure top spot in Donetsk on November 3.
At this rate it is only a matter of time.

The main news pre-match was the return of Fabregas. The Arsenal captain had not been seen since injuring his hamstring in the act of scoring at Sunderland just over a month ago.

Wenger had spent last night mulling over the return of the Spanish midfielder. In the end, he decided against leaving him on the bench. However his inclusion left Abou Diaby among the substitutes.

Tomas Rosicky replaced Emmanuel Eboue numerically but actually played on the right. Samir Nasri took the Russian’s regular role on the left wing.
Before tonight, these two teams had taken six points out of six in Group H. And the first 15 minutes suggested both sides were facing higher standard opposition.

Shakhtar were as neat and tidy as their reputation had suggested. As a result, Arsenal lacked their usual incisiveness.

In fact they needed a bald-faced mistake to take the lead.

In the 18th minute, Nasri’s flashing cross was touched past the far post by the Shakhtar defence.

Chamakh nodded on the corner and, under little pressure, keeper Andriy Pyatov dropped a regulation catch. Johan Djourou stabbed the ball from under him and Song flicked the ball over the line.

Arsenal’s 1-0 lead had been not so much stolen as smuggled.

In the 25th minute, they nearly registered a much more authentic strike. Rosicky sand-wedged a ball to Chamakh, whose nod down was leathered goalwards by Nasri. This time Pyatov made the save.

Rosicky had a half-shout for a penalty soon afterwards. Had that been given and converted, Shakhtar might have been sunk. The Ukrainians seemed to lose their nerve after conceding the goal. Mentally they were there for the taking but Arsenal did not take charge.

Four minutes before the break Henrik Mkhitaryan’s deflected shot looped over the bar. It caused Lukasz Fabianski a worrying moment as did the subsequent corner. But given that is noteworthy, in reality, Donetsk were offering little.

And, a minute or so later, they were 2-0 down. Song exchanged passes with Emmanuel Eboue on the right and sent a deflected cross into the middle. Nasri cushioned the ball past Darijo Srna to create space for himself and then blasted home. It was his sixth goal of the season in only his ninth game.

Shakhtar made one change at the break but it was Douglas Costa and not the one for which the Arsenal fans were calling – Eduardo.

In the opening seconds, Mkhitaryan’s penetrative throughball released Luiz Adriano but Fabianski stood his ground to make a fine save.

There seemed to be more purpose about the visitors in the second half. And were just about to add to their firepower with Eduardo when Arsenal got their third.

Nasri curled over a free-kick from the right and Adriano tussled Djourou to the floor. Fabregas’ penalty was unstoppable – high and into the top corner. He then revealed a T-shirt wishing his mother a Happy Birthday.

The goal was the captain’s last meaningful touch. He was brought off for Denilson.

As the Brazilian waited to come on he shared a brief hug with Eduardo. The Croatian replaced Adriano seconds later and was greeted with rapturous applause.

It lightened the mood of the home supporters but did nothing for the lethal ambition of the team they were supporting. In the 66th minute, Wilshere raced onto Chamakh’s touch, exchanged passes with Rosicky and lifted his shot over the advancing Pyatov.

Shakhtar were now shell-shocked. They had been punished punitively this evening and it was not over yet.

In the 69th minute, Nasri scooped a pass over the visiting defence to the unmarked Chamakh. The Moroccan was so clear he could not believe he was onside but replays proved that was the case.

He gathered his senses – and the ball – before slotting home his sixth goal of the season.

Arsenal were now in party mood. Substitute Theo Walcott, seeing his first action since August 28, tried to arrow one in the top corner.

Eight minutes from time, Shakthar grabbed a goal.

Jadson hooked a high ball into the area from the right wing and Eduardo beat Fabianski from close range. It was a quality finish, the type that had first attracted Wenger's attention back in 2006.

He kept his word and did not celebrate the goal. The Arsenal fans repaid respect with respect.

The strike also threw up a notable question – was the first player to score at Emirates with three different clubs?

Costa tried a curler at the end. But the game had long since been lost.

Eduardo took time out to applaud the fans at the final whistle. Again, they responded in kind.

His smile suggested he was happy to be ‘home’ even though his new side had been swept aside on the night.

GROUP H

Pos.	Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
1.	Arsenal	3	3	0	0	14	2	9
2.	Shakhtar Donetsk	3	2	0	1	5	5	6
3.	Braga	3	1	0	2	2	9	3
4.	Partizan Belgrade	3	0	0	3	1	6	0

Match Highlight Arsenal vs Birmingham City 2-1

By Richard Clarke    

Arsenal are back to winning ways.

They recorded their first Premier League victory in more than a month by squeezing past Birmingham on Saturday.

The visitors took a shock lead in the 33rd minute when Nikola Zigic converted Keith Fahey’s left-wing cross with a towering header.

However the key moment of the game came four minutes before the break when Scott Dann was adjudged to have brought down Marouane Chamakh and Samir Nasri slotted home from the spot.

The Birmingham players were angry with the decision but replays proved there had been contact.

The Moroccan kept his cool and would sidefoot the all-important winner two minutes after the break.

Jack Wilshere saw red in the dying seconds for a tackle on Zigic. It made for a nervous finale but Arsenal were worth their win.

Wenger’s men are often accused of ‘softness’ but this afternoon they scrapped their way to a vital three points.

Wilshere take the headlines but Chamakh's contribution was key. He epitomised the mixture of steel and silk that Arsenal displayed.
The 26-year-old has become very important very quickly.

And this was arguably the most important result of the season so far. One that saw Wenger's men move up to second in the table.

Light rain started falling as Arsenal kicked off this afternoon. There had been a chill in the air all day. The last sunshine of the summer was gone and so had that ‘early season’ feel. The campaign was fully underway.

Wenger had been bruised by back-to-back Premier League defeats against West Brom and Chelsea. He had also lost a couple of players from the game at Stamford Bridge before the international break – Bacary Sagna (thigh) and Laurent Koscielny (back). But, in the same period, he had gained three.

However Kieran Gibbs, Nicklas Bendtner and Theo Walcott only made the bench this afternoon.

Cesc Fabregas (hamstring) and Manuel Almunia (elbow) were very close to returning today. However Robin van Persie (ankle) and Aaron Ramsey (leg) will not be seen till November.

Birmingham had Alex Hleb, who left Emirates Stadium in 2008, in support of beanpole striker Zigic.

The Midlanders had not won at Arsenal in 53 years – a considerable period. But then West Brom had ended a 27-year barren spell at Highbury and Emirates Stadium three weeks ago.

History could not be allowed to repeat itself this afternoon.

However that never really looked likely. Arsenal showed more invention and creativity in the first half-hour than they had displayed in the entire 90 minutes against Roberto Di Matteo’s side. But for a spiky 15 minutes just before half-time it would be their day.

In the fourth minute, Wilshire and Chamakh exchanged a pair of passes before the Moroccan let fly from the edge of the area. Stephen Carr threw himself into a fine block.

Diaby, who made an eye-catching start, peppered keeper Ben Foster with shots in the minutes that followed. But it was two of Arsenal’s other Frenchman who combined to put the ball in the net midway through the half.

Nasri fired over a free-kick from the left and Sebastien Squillaci powered home a header at the far post. The centre back ran off in celebration of the second goal in his Arsenal career. However he had not spotted the assistant referee’s flag, presumably for offside. Replays cast doubt on the call.

In the 19th minute, Diaby span away from Scott Dann and cleverly fed Arshavin, who was sprinting into the left-hand channel. Foster raced out to smother the Russian’s shot.

A couple of minutes later, Gael Clichy latched onto a stray backpass from Seb Larsson and fizzed a low shot just past the post. It would have been the left-back's second goal in 230 games at Arsenal.

The home side were starting to look ominous. Up to this point, the only real threat to Lukasz Fabianski’s goal came from his own team-mate. Eboue inadvertently headed Larsson’s free-kick towards his own goal but the keeper snatched the ball out of the air.

However, the game would be turned on its head in the 33rd minute when the visitors scored.

Birmingham won a throw by the left-hand corner and played it short to Keith Fahey. The former Arsenal trainee spotted that Zigic, all 6ft 7ins of him, had pulled away towards the diminutive Clichy. The ball was excellent but the header was pin-point – across the keeper and into the far corner.

It was a well-finished strike but utterly against the run of play.

Arsenal struggled to get the goal out of their heads in the minutes that followed and it nearly cost them the game.

Carr took a free-kick quickly and found Johnson down the line. He nodded the ball into the heart of the six-yard box. Lee Bowyer and Fahey both went for the ball and their combined effort flew over the bar from close-range. Had it been a solo strike then surely Birmingham would have doubled their lead.

It would prove to be a critical miss because four minutes from the break, Arsenal were level.

But although Nasri’s penalty was clear, the decision less so. Dann definitely made contact with Chamakh’s leg but the Birmingham defender thought he had made the most of it.

The ill-feeling would linger until half time.

However two minutes after the restart, Arsenal would enjoy a very different emotion. 

Wilshere chested down Song’s flick just outside the area and sent Chamakh through. He ghosted past two defenders and then the keeper before slotting home. It was his fifth goal of the season but none had been celebrated so gleefully.

Now it was Birmingham’s turn to sag in response to conceding a goal. The Arsenal of the first half-hour returned with avengence.

Diaby had a drive blocked and, just past the hour, Wilshere roared around the visiting defence before rifling his shot over the bar. Midway through the half, Arshavin prodded a shot towards the near post and Foster made a sharp save.

The visitors seemed to have little left but, as the game wore on, Arsenal lost their edge. They needed another goal to make sure and, despite battering on the Birmingham back door, could not find a way through.

Eleven minutes from time, Wenger withdrew Chamakh for Bendtner. The outgoing player got a standing ovation and a handshake from his manager. The incoming player got a wonderful welcome for his first appearance of the season.

He nearly killed the game with his first touch. However Tomas Rosicky’s left-wing cross was inches away from his outstretched foot.

With six minutes left, the Czech midfielder forced a flying save from Foster. In the dying seconds, the England keeper made a more fumbling stop from Nasri’s drive.

Deep into injury time, Wilshere was sent off for a tackle on Zigic.

It heralded a couple of hail-Mary crosses into the area but Fabianski’s handling was superb all afternoon.

It had been far from a perfect afternoon but Arsenal had got what they deserved.

Info From www.arsenal.com