Arsenal 1 Bolton 1
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Why can’t Arsenal score first any more?
Because first-goal Freddie and poacher Pires are not there.
Because Thierry Henry doesn’t play in the first half these days. He doesn’t really want the ball. He just floats around and waits and waits and waits for others do it, and never makes a run across a defender to reach a ball at the near post. He prefers to hide at the far post, knowing the ball will not come to him, cannot come to him.
On Sunday in the FA Cup 4th Round, Henry was virtually invisible for 40 minutes and then he nipped onto a headed back-pass from Gardner, and tried to backheel a goal, which was cleared off the line.
Going to the game I was thinking how remarkable it is that Arsene is developing so many youngish players, and how important Adebayor has become in allowing the team to mix it up.
When the game started the atmosphere was good and of course thousands of gullible punters, who swallow Sky’s daily hype, cheered when the ball went out to Theo Walcott, as if he was gonna be Garrincha or Jairzinho or Cristiano Ronaldo.
If you wondered why the first half was so pitiful, here are four reasons : Walcott, Adebayor, Flamini and Henry.
And Rosicky was poor as well, right through the game. Very disappointed with him.
Really, Arsene should be more pro-active in a home FA Cup tie. He left Theo Walcott on for 85 minutes when the lad was having a nightmare. Ricardo Gardner, a formidable opponent, was toying with him.
They missed Hleb because he holds the ball and links Hoyte and Fabregas, so a lot of their fluency and rhythm depends on Hleb. When he’s not there, they stutter.
As a spectacle the first 45 was terrible, painful, depressing, boring, with all of Arsenal’s limitations on clear display. I was cold and wondering whether I’d ever go to a football match again.
Second half, Bolton scored straight away and you could see it coming as Anelka nipped nimbly past his man and spread the ball wide to Kevin Davies,whose low cross reached Nolan at the far corner of the six yard box. How can people say that cross was a shot? They must be blind ! Davies looked up, saw Nolan, and passed to him.
Kevin Davies is a method player, a percentage player, who would never shoot from that position.
The ball came slightly behind Nolan, who reached back and killed an awkward ball and buried his shot neatly past Toure on the line.
The Arsenal defence was a shambles because both fullbacks had gone AWOL – they didn’t mark zones or men. And you have to mark men because men score goals.
Moments later, Campo put Nolan clean through but he didn’t have the skill to dribble round Almunia, who saved bravely by diving at his feet.
Last weekend, Rooney scored the first goal against Arsenal.
On Wednesday night, Spurs took a 2-0 lead.
Now, Nolan had put Bolton 1-0 up in the FA Cup.
Inevitably, Bolton sat back on their lead, every player wasted time, and they relied on the counter-attacking threat of Anelka, who was imperious, improvising with authority, which his old mate Thierry conspicuously failed to do.
Maite, possibly the best strategic player on the field, fouled Fabregas, who hit a free-kick which Gary Speed reached with his head, deflecting the ball to the far post, where Toure headed down and in over the body of Jaaskalinen, who dived to cover the post.
So it was 1-1 after 77.
Then sub Baptista missed the best chance of the last 25 with a header that flew well wide.
The squad that seemed big when Arsenal beat Liverpool 6-3 looked threadbare on a wintry afternoon when Bolton scored an Arsenal goal and Arsenal equalised with a jammy Bolton goal. First goal, a good move. Equaliser, a flick-on to the far post.
I reckon this flop puts Arsenal out of the FA Cup, a trophy they were capable of winning. They’ve stepped out of the FA Cup room and shut the door on themselves.
I’m not too interested in the replay or the 5th Round because, right now, I don’t see them winning at the Reebok.
TODAY’S DRAW for FA Cup 5th Round features three unromantic all-Premiership fixtures :
Arsenal or Bolton v Blackburn
Fulham v Spurs
Man United v Reading
Chelsea v Blackpool or Norwich
Watford v Ipswich
Preston v Man City
Plymouth v Derby
Bristol City or Middlesbrough v WBA