No Green Grass of Home

By Boris Mellor
January 25 2009

Arsene Wenger paid fulsome praise to Cardiff's defence after this big fat zero of a game where neither team were capable of finding the net, which was fortunate for Arsenal. But is it really the case that Cardiff's brilliant defending that explains the result?

I don't think so; indeed if Cardiff had kept their nerve in front of goal Wenger might have been discussing the brilliance of their attack. I don't want to take away from a good Cardiff performance, but this is an Arsenal fanzine that looks beyond the pleasantries that Premier League managers throw the way of lesser division opponents when they get an unsatisfactory result.

Wenger will need to look beyond his post match comments for a real explanation, and no doubt he will in private. However, the explanation is not rocket science and I doubt if I am telling anyone something they didn't know already. The fact that Arsenal didn't have a chance worthy of the name until the 21^st minute had more to do with the poor standard of the Gunner's midfield engine than anything the Cardiff defence did.

 Ramsey was overawed by the proceedings, and Song played like a defensive sweeper. Eboue was hopeless in the first half, and Nasri was isolated out on the wing. In short there was no creativity in the midfield. The midfield did little to stop Cardiff's attacking play, and even less to provide an alternative.

No Late Show 

Cardiff dominated the first half, and Arsenal was lucky to go in on equal terms at half time. Whatever Arsene says for public consumption he knew the reality when he took off Ramsey for Diaby on 60 minutes. Immediately the midfield improved and Arsenal dominated. However playing well for one third of a match is no guarantee of a win, and so it was the case on this occasion. Yes now Cardiff defended well for that 30 minutes, but an earlier onslaught might have succeeded. Arsenal have scored in the last quarter in the last three matches, but there was to be no late show this time.

To my mind the main lesson is that a midfield of Eboue, Song, Ramsey and Nasri, just isn't good enough. Yes players had to be rested, but the balance was just not right. When I saw the team sheet I knew we would have problems, it wasn't quite a suicide note, more a cry for help. Help better come soon, because this was a championship side away, not Man Utd.

To end on a bright note I thought Gibbs's tackling was good and some of his attacking play incisive. Fabianski also had a very solid game in goal.

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