The FA Cup replay turned out to be a walkover.
Complete technical domination by Arsenal for 90 minutes.
The team selection was right and Arsenal took half their chances
They beat Cardiff 4-0, so it should be a turning point.Football is about goals and when you score them everybody feels good.When you don’t score, eveybody feels tense and worried.
Eduardo scored a classy header for 1-0 and a penalty for 3-0, after he had been shoved down by Gavin Rae.
It was a supercool penalty, as good as you’ll see.
Bendtner headed in a corner for 2-0.
Van Persie replaced Eduardo after 67 and scored with a shot through keeper Tom Heaton’s legs for 4-0.
The first goal was the best : Carlos Vela placed a short, floated cross well in front of Edardo, giving him time to place it where he wanted. Eduardo can time his headers with great finesse, unlike other Arsenal players. He nodded it sweetly into the net. It looked simple but it wasn’t as easy as people might think.
Cardiff froze. They were overawed. The Wow! Factor of the Emirates may have overwhelmed them, even before Arsenal’s skills took over the game.
Burnley is a winnable home cup tie. Then Arsenal can reach the FA Cup semi-final by beating Hull or Sheffield United.
Two conclusions, really.
(1) Eduardo looked quite sharp in his first game for a year. He will improve as February progresses, as Fabregas and Walcott come back, as Arshavin beds in.
(2) Arsenal play far more football without Adebayor and Eboue. They were much better without Adeaboyor and Eboue. The team was bantamweight without them but they played touch football with speed and accuracy. Adebayor and Eboue are clumsy and Adebayor runs offside far too much. If you don’t give the ball away, you don’t have to win it back. But, of course, Arsenal will never have more supine opponents than they had last night.
Wenger has done a fine rehab job with Eduardo. But he knows he still needs Adebayor’s power. So the next task for the manager is to get Adebayor’s head right. He needs him for the Roma games. Ade has been rubbish recently because his head isn’t right. It’s not a technical thing or a physical thing. It’s his attitude. Fans look at the way he is playing lately and think : Wenger turned down £19 million for THAT ?
Sunderland will be a harder game on Saturday. So will Burnley. Owen Coyle’s teams keep playing football and never give up.
ARSENAL (4-4-2): Fabianski; Sagna, Touré, Gallas, Gibbs; Nasri (Ramsey, 67), Song, Denilson, Vela (Bischoff, 74); Eduardo (Van Persie, 67), Bendtner. Subs not used: Almunia (gk), Wilshere, Clichy.
CARDIFF CITY (4-4-2): Heaton; McNaughton, Purse (Blake, 68), Johnson, Kennedy; Burke, Rae (Scimeca, 74), Ledley, Parry (Whittingham, 68); McCormack, Bothroyd. Subs not used: Sak (gk), Capaldi, Johnson, Comminges.
Referee: Mark Halsey (Lancashire).