Quick thinking by new skipper Cesc Fabregas created the winning goal in 87 minutes.
After a dropped ball, Fabregas flighted a killer pass beyond the Kiev defence and Nicklas Bendtner chested the ball beautifully, prodded it forward with his knee, and buried a fierce left-foot shot inside the near post. What a finish !
That goal keeps Arsenal two points above Porto, who won 2-1 at Fenerbahce, courtesy of a blatantly handled goal by Lucho Gonzalez.
Vela and Ramsey started. Bendtner came on for Ramsey in 68 He was shocking apart from the goal. But football is about goals and NB scored the one that mattered, that won the game, that put Arsenal back on track, that prevented them failing to score in three conservative games for the first time in three years, that puts them in better heart for the visit to Chelsea on Sunday.
Arsenal had scored nil against Villa, nil at Man City and they had scored nil for 87 minutes against Kiev. That’s too long without a goal
Fabregas is a winning captain. His first game with the armband was a home game and a victory. He rose to the challenge, as we knew he would. Arsenal qualified. They don’t have to go to Porto and win on Matchday 6. Captain Cesc beat Dinamo Kiev with a quick-thinking assist.
The rest of the game? Don’t even go there. It was competent in places. Arsenal scored and the rest is tedious detail. Gallas made a boob, striker Bangoura hit the side-netting. Then Gallas flicked in a slick goal Ian Wright-style, but was offside. William Gallas is a very good player who at times says and does things that he shouldn’t. But none of us is perfect.
The Bendtner goal was what mattered. How it was made, how it was scored, what it meant to the team, how much it lifted the supporters, who will soon forget everything about Matchday 5 except that goal.
BENZEMA was fantastic for Lyon in their 2-1 win at Fiorentina.
Top players like Benzema, Torres, Ronaldo, Fabregas, Messi and Eto’o are what make the Champions League so much fun to watch.
Arsenal used to have the best French players but now the best are Benzema, Ribery and Gourcuff.
Real Madrid’s Royston Drenthe is a left-footed powerhouse who is showing signs of becoming the new Roberto Carlos. Raul scored the only goal as they to give them a victory in Belarus against Bate Borisov. Madrid don’t defend well enough to win the Champions League, which will stay in England if Barcelona don’t win it.
Earlier, I got back from the gym in time to see Zenit St. Petersburg v Juventus at 5pm.
I feel very sorry for Zenit , who were Russian champions in November 2007. Their season puts them out of synch with the rest of Europe. They won the Uefa Cup in May 2008 and in August they beat Man United to claim the Super Cup in Monaco. But by the time they got a crack at the Champions League they were well past their peak and they’ve not won any of their five games. It’s a shame. They are better than their group results. The 2008 Russian season finished last weekend and Zenit were 5th, so they will not have another chance in next year’s Champions League. They were beaten by the calendar, by climate. Their team could now break up. Bayern Munich want anchorman-captain Tymoshchuck.
Having said all that, I was very impressed by the ruthless efficiency of Juventus, who hit the post twice in the first half of a watchable 0-0 that kicked off at 5 pm. Iaquinta’s elbow into Tymoshchuk’s face showed the vicious side of Italian football.
ARSENAL (4-4-2): Almunia; Djourou, Gallas, Silvestre, Clichy; Ramsey (Bendtner, 68), Fabregas, Song, Denilson; Van Persie, Vela (Wilshere, 77). Subs not used: Fabianski (gk), Gibbs, Hoyte, Merida, Simpson.
DYNAMO KIEV (4-4-2): Bogush; Betao, Asatiani, Diakhate, El Kaddouri; Eremenko, Ghioane, Vukojevic, Aliyev; Bangoura, Milevsky. Subs not used: Shovkovskiy (gk), Dopilka, Sabljic, Correa, Shatskikh, Cernat, Yarmolenko.
Referee: Alain Hamer (Luxembourg).
Group G results: Dynamo Kiev 1 Arsenal 1; Porto 3 Fenerbahce 1; Arsenal 4 Porto 0; Fenerbahce 0 Dynamo Kiev 0; Fenerbahce 2 Arsenal 5; Porto 0 Dynamo Kiev 1; Arsenal 0 Fenerbahce 0; Dynamo Kiev 1 Porto 2; Arsenal 1 Dynamo Kiev 0; Fenerbahce 1 Porto 2.
Matchday 6 : Wednesday, December 10th : Porto v Arsenal