By Myles Palmer
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Fulham 1 Arsenal 3
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This was more like it.
Arsene Wenger again demonstrated that we think along similar lines by dropping Van Bronckhorst, starting Jeffers, switching back to 4-4-2 – and going top of the table on goal difference.
I doubt if the great man reads ANR, but we often have the same ideas about his team at the same time.
Manchester United lost 4-3 at Newcastle.
Surprise leaders Bolton were beaten 1-0 at the Reebok by Southampton, a late goal by Marian Pahars, a player I thought Wenger might buy as soon as he started scoring for the Saints three years ago. I always reckoned Pahars had more bottle than Overmars.
But Freddie Ljungberg also has more bottle than Overmars and it was the Swede who put Arsenal ahead after 17 minutes – and it was fiery Freddie who supplied Thierry Henry with the pass to make it 2-1 after Steed Malbranque has equalised.
The zippy Boa Morte had left the lumbering Campbell for dead on the left flank in 48 minutes to set up Malbranque.
After 82 minutes Thierry Henry played the ball forward for Ljungberg,raced through the middle for the return, and scored comfortably.
This was classic Arsene Wenger narrow football: a very high speed attack right down the middle of the field, slicing Fulham’s defence wide open.
Then Wiltord burst past Melville to the bye-line, cut the ball diagonally back to the edge of the box, and Bergkamp scored with a thumping sidefoot from 17 yards on 90 minutes.
The Bergkamp goal reminded me of my friend Danny Wright, who worked for Oracle in Paris with a Dutch guy who went to school with Bergkamp. The guy said Dennis spent a lot of time at school just kicking a ball against a wall again and again and again.
It’s just practice, and big feet. It was sidefooter from a long way out, but it was an instant half-volley,a perfectly-timed, heavy, accurate sidefoot shot which gave his mate Van Der Sar no chance.
Overall, this was the kind of Arsenal match I like.
The games I hate are the ones when Arsenal start off annihilating the opposition,score one goal, miss eight chances, and then concede a late goal for a 1-1. Or even, occasionally, lose the game 2-1.
Craven Cottage was a scenario which I hope they can repeat at least ten times this season.That is : battle strongly when the score is 1-1 and get on top and win it.
Arsenal started shakily,improved and made chances, scored, dominated, conceded an equaliser, bossed most of the second half, and brought on two powerful subs who combined for a goal that killed the game at 3-1.
With their experience, their professionalism, their athletic squad of international players, that is the way this fixture SHOULD have gone.
Francis Jeffers? He played 74 minutes and missed a couple of chances by a whisker.
Jeffers needs another three games. Goals will come.
Fulham was his first start and he needs more starts with Henry, so they can get used to each other. One game is worth 20 training sessions.
15th September 2001
PS. I’m nervous about pressing the submit button on this Upload report form. In case I print the headline twice. Which has happened a lot lately.
This rather silly situation puts me in mind of a Neil Young concert long ago.
I remember Neil once saying something when a microphone misbehaved onstage at Hammersmith Odeon.
It might have been the Tonight’s The Night tour, when he was hilariously out of his box, or maybe the Zuma tour.
Neil is laconic. He said, “Never was much with machinery.”
That’s how I feel now. In my mind I’m saying to myself : I never was much with computers.
But here goes. I will press submit and see what happens….