He heads when he wants

By Boris Mellor
April 17 2012

The result like the weather was bitter and cold, Arsenal had failed to open an eight point lead over their rivals, but a large number of Arsenal fans remained behind after the final whistle to applaud the departing Wigan team. They were right to applaud, forget any stats you may have seen, this was an excellent performance by a team that only a few weeks ago was facing certain relegation.

Wigan scored two goals in the first eight minutes, the second partly due to a Szczesney fumble on the ball. They then proceeded to play in an expansive spirit giving Arsenal ample chances. The Arsenal crowd got behind the team, after all they had seen their Gunners come back against better teams, or had they? Unfortunately Wigan proved to be made of sterner stuff than Arry’s Hotspurs, as the match progressed they got more men behind the ball.

Perhaps the real turning point was the injury to Arteta, a player that without Arsenal have never won a game. Arteta was off the pitch for the second Wigan goal, if not the first, I don’t remember where he was for the first. This was no excuse as Arsenal should have organised to ensure the midfield was covered. The point is that without him the midfield is poorer, Song produced very little of merit, and the boy Ramsey looked lost. The Little Mozart tried and tried, but nothing came off apart from Tommy’s header.

In the first half Arsenal produced a bucket load of chances, but apart from Vermaelen’s header, and a save from an RvP header, there was a lack of penetration by the Arsenal forwards. As the half progressed it became clear it would need more than the present personnel on the pitch.

My neighbour in the upper tier agreed that substitutions were needed sooner than later. And Wenger did substitute earlier than is usual for him at 60 minutes, unfortunately he took off Benayoun when there must have been half a dozen candidates better suited for the early departure. On came Gervinho, giving an ample demonstration of how poor the Arsenal bench is these days. Why not the Ox we all groaned? Well at least around me we did. The Ox came on with effectively 15 minutes left, no time to get into the game, and surrounded now by befuddled stumblebums running into blind alleys.

I can’t remember a decent Arsenal chance in the second half, without a Fabregas, a Henry, or, whisper it, a Nasri, there was no one who knew how to unlock Wigan’s packed defence. At least the Ox showed enthusiasm, even if he lacked guile.

With five minutes to go my neighbour groaned that Arsenal wouldn’t score if the match lasted all night, he was right, the ref allowing an extra five minutes to test the theory.

All credit to Wigan

Arsenal’s run of great form had ended with a whimper not a bang. A lot of Arsenal fans had been very bullish before the match, expecting to turn up and see a waltz to a three or four goal win. That was disrespectful to Wigan, I hope it was not for that reason that Arsenal players failed to cope. However this was a great result for Wigan, their first ever win at the Fortress Emirates.  They only brought two coach loads of fans, but what tales they will be able to tell back in their rugby heartland, this was their Agincourt. They have beaten two top three teams back to back, they would have beaten Chelsea but for some poor officiating.

If Arsenal had gone to Man Utd and won like this, a big if these days, we would still be glowing with pleasure, and praising a well deserved victory.

Can Arsenal recover

Could this be a blip? Possibly, but it is the second defeat in last 3 matches (correction that should read 4), and some players have been diffident. One of those victories was against the toothless Wolves. Chelsea now have the wind behind their sails but must play Barcelona twice either side of Saturday, an Arsenal victory may have persuaded them to concentrate on the CL, but now the race for third and fourth is wide open. If Arteta does not return the outlook could be bleak.

A week ago it appeared that Arsenal would sprint across the line, now fans may have to urge them to limp across it. Have Arsenal hit the wall? Fifty games, and some players have played most of them, for example RvP might explain fatigue, for there was certainly a sense of that in the second half. We should know more by 3pm on Saturday.

Wigan out play Arsenal Gunners hit the wall?

Discussion started by Arsenal Times , 17/04/2012 09:54

Arsenal Times
17/04/2012 09:54

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Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2012:04:20:11:40:32 by Padre Pio.

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hippogunner
17/04/2012 10:19

Same old same old. Some madman reckoned we'd win the league next year. Seriously some people are as deluded as that clown Wenger who really needs to be sacked as soon as the season is over otherwise it'll be another summer of plundering the French league for "gems" like the abysmal Gervinho.

Some amazing achievements by Jacques Tati this season: highest ever defeat in the EPL, highest defeat in Europe, ten defeats in the league, 43 goals conceded, only Spuds have conceded more in the top half of the league.

And people want this French fool to stay. I suppose if you love the repeat cycle of struggling to finish top four every season with no trophies then Wenger's the man for you.

But how many years are you prepared to put up with this bear in mind we've had seven years of it already? Would you all be happy with another seven years of the same?

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trustyrusty
17/04/2012 14:03

Again we Arsenal fans have been fooled to think the untouchables had returned maybe this defeat by WIGAN is a
good thing we might have just put another band aid on the
Arsenal PROBLEM and said next season we will win everything and Arsene Wenger for President.
No lets take off the SEVEN bandaids and look at the problem and lets start at the top the Arsenal management and board
how can they be serious when a manager doesnt perform in the transfer market and the board says he is here for as long as he wants to be how about the poor Arsenal fans who are getting NO throphies and nothing to boast about.Now the team its not their fault they know they are going to be picked every week why should they worry they will still be paid and take home the big bucks whether they they win or lose or give up talking about that does ARSHAVIN still play for us? So Arsenal fans DONT GET FOOLED AGAIN DEMAND MORE FOR NEXT SEASON-NEW MANAGEMENT-NEW BLOOD and maybe we can cure this SEVEN year wound and win a THROPHY......

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jon_sammels_lovechild
17/04/2012 14:10

Nice balanced article Padre. I have run it through my Enigma machine and I can report to Ed that there are no hidden messages about Walcotts performance. Quite a feat of restraint by you Padre considering it was not Theos finest hour, along with plenty of others. I didn't like RvPs reaction at the end when he refused to shake hands with one of the Wigan players. I don't know what was said but Wigan beat us fair and square without resorting to thuggery like many other teams have done. Match lost in two minutes when we failed to organise properly when Arteta got injured.

Hippo I think the pro and anti Wenger positions are now well entrenched. I asked a number of months ago what the anti Wengerites expectations for the club were and I got one response.....be better than we are now. So what are your realistic ambitions for the club over the next few years?

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tigerline
17/04/2012 14:11

I believe that those thick glasses that PHW wears must be for severe myopia, judging from his comments here:

Arsenal newsHill-Wood wants Wenger to extend deal
April 15, 2012
By ESPNsoccernet staff

Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood wants manager Arsene Wenger to extend his current deal at the club and silence the 'mindless' critics who think he should quit.

Arsene Wenger has always publicly received the support of the Arsenal hierarchy
Wenger is contracted to the Gunners until 2014 and has overcome some of the sternest criticism of his 15-year tenure at the North London club after a horror start to their Premier League campaign.

With Arsenal in third place and looking like sealing Champions League football again, Hill-Wood is keen to show the board's unwavering support in their French boss.

"For him to stay longer than that (2014) would be perfect. I can't think of anybody better to run the team," Hill-Wood said in the Sunday Mirror. "And he has shown how much rubbish people were talking earlier this season. We had a terrible run of injuries and that obviously had an effect.

"But a few mindless people were saying that he had to go, that Arsene was past his sell-by date. He has shown that is nonsense."

Hill-Wood added: "He has a young squad, with some excellent young players. He is building a young team with a great future and I am sure he would love to see them develop.

"I would want him to stay as long as he is happy here. He has been with us 14 years and has done a magnificent job. I want him to stay for the long-term and I see no reason at all why he should want to go."

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Padre Pio
17/04/2012 15:19

Thanks for the comments.i should have added that this was a continuation of the QPR form, that went uderground for first half of Wloves game, and then re-emerged in secodn half, only to continue for first ten minutes of last night's game.
Problem is that if you give Wign a two goal start you can expect the worse. I wasnt cocky before the game, but in my worst dreams I did not expect to be 2 down so early.

"When we had to suffer the team is a lion because they suffer together." 4 July 2020 at Wolverhampton Wanderers
Arteta on his team's first away victory at a club above them in the Premiership since September 2015 at Leicester.

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hippogunner
18/04/2012 07:49

@J Sammel's Lovechild.

Firstly I think we have to address our defensive problems. Every season we concede far too many goals. Have we a defensive coach? If we have he's a poor one.

We need a more creative midfield. And we need more than one excellent striker. Maybe Podolski will be the solution.

We also have to shed the surplus players who appear to have no function yet find themselves on the bench. Park, Chamakh and Squillaci. Pointless personnel who strike no fear into any opposition.

Stop plundering the French league for average players like Gervinho and spend money on quality. The teams that spend money win things, we don't.

Lastly Wenger needs to be got rid of. There'll be no progress with him at the helm.

I believe this club will win nothing under him. And whoever takes over I think we won't be winning the league for at least a decade. The caveat to that assumption being a sudden influx of money from one of our billionaires.

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karteta16
18/04/2012 08:51

people do really pick their targets, Rosicky did nothing but set up a goal

at least he weren't doing a bleep test like Walcott.

Theodore roosevelt - In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.

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younghansolo
18/04/2012 11:39

Rosicky was outstanding for the entire first half. Running at them commiting players and trying to make things tick. Second half was far quieter but he was head and shoulders above a lot of the other players

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Bergmars
18/04/2012 15:13

Players to shed
Djourou
Squillaci
Chamakh
Vela
Nik
Manone
Park(cos AW will never play him)
Sign some top rated replacments that gives us quality cover in all areas.

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tigerline
18/04/2012 15:23

Quote:

Bergmars
Players to shed
Djourou
Squillaci
Chamakh
Vela
Nik
Manone
Park(cos AW will never play him)
Sign some top rated replacments that gives us quality cover in all areas.

some more names to think about ...

~ fabianski is in unsettled territory - he might need to move to adavnce his career.
~ benayoun and almunia are already done.
~ we also need to formally drop arshavin and denilson.
~ I would think that lansbury and barltley are nearly out of options to ever make it to the big club.

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AJ The Gunner
18/04/2012 17:08

if i recall wigan outplayed utd so we should seen the warning signs.. pity we now rely on arteta... whatever the case, if you take things for granted you should expect such.. we all knew ramsey is doing beyond what should be expected of him.. for we bring on the next game... the season was over for me a long time ago..

Can We Now Trust The Process 🤔🤷🏿‍♀️ or Should We Still Remain Cautious 🙇🏿‍♀️

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