Bolton 2 Arsenal 3?
That’s a bit more like it !
The team that had forgotten how to win suddenly remembered and came back from the dead.
Arsenal played Bolton in a monsoon, went 1-0 down, lost Diaby to a red card for a dangerous tackle, came back and won 3-2 with a goal from a corner, a penalty and a pass by Fabregas which hit one defender, then another, and trickled in.
Cesc was trying to sidefoot a pass to van Persie !!!! If you were not paying close attention you might have thought Cesc scuffed the ball with the inside of his left foot but he hit the ball where he wanted it to go. But the ball didn’t go there. It went into the net off Andy O’Brien and JlLoyd Samuel.
The game started with an Arsenal eleven that had never played together, Toure at right back, Bendtner and van Persie up front. RVP is gradually regaining his match fitness, we hope.
Arsenal had three early chances.Then Matt Taylor got two goals. The first one was a header when Toure was ball watching and allowed Matt Taylor to get in front of him and head in a terrific cross by Steinsson.
Second goal, Taylor’s shot hit the heel of Gallas and deflected past Almunia. Clichy had made one of his risky infield passes to Flamini who was hustled by Gavin McCann and lost the ball and it went across to Taylor
You need a bit of luck in this game. Arsenal have not had much of that in the last six games.But they had some at the Reebok.
What was bizarre was playing 4-3-2 for all that time.
Arsenal’s style isn’t even effective in a 4-4-2 formation, let alone a 4-3-2 formation. They were outnumbered in midfield and it wasn’t because they had ten men. It was because they had too many at the back marking one striker.
When he brought on Adebayor and Walcott, and went 3-4-2, they scored, then they equalised, then they scored the winner. Start of the second half, when Arsenal were still playing 4-3-2, Bolton had six corners. Arsenal’s geometry was far too obvious because they lacked players to support the ball, so they kept giving the ball to Bolton.
When Arsene changed it, a different game started.
Gallas made a shrewd run and was unmarked to knock in it a ball that came from a Fabregas corner and flicked off the head of Campo at the near post. Hleb mugged the defender by reaching a 50-50 ball first and going over, RVP converting powerfully. Then came the jammiest, flukiest Arsenal goal of the season to complete the comeback of the season.
So that was it : 10-man Arsenal edge 5-goal thriller in Reebok monsoon.
The 2008 Arsenal is all about possession, patience, fitness, and late goals.
Three games against Liverpool? Arsenal only need to win one of those three : the league game on Saturday. A 0-0 draw on Wednesday and a 1-1 at Anfield will put them through.
What do Arsenal really, really need on Wednesday? Same again. A bit of luck. A goal from a corner, or a penalty, or a deflected pass by Cesc Fabrepass that hits two defenders and dribbles over the line