Arsène Wenger could at last savour a Premier League result and, if the performance did not measure up, the Arsenal manager could be excused for not caring. His team collected their first three points of the season thanks, in no small measure, to a Swansea City defensive aberration. After what Wenger had described as the summer from hell, the club has something to build on.
The sense of unease, however, persisted and the crisis brought on by the 8-2 defeat at Manchester United would have deepened if the Swansea striker Danny Graham had not lifted a glorious injury-time chance over the crossbar from five yards. Arsenal, whose football was sluggish and undermined by frustrating decisions, had seemed content with their slender advantage as the second half wore on. Graham ought to have brought them to their knees.
Arsenal looked a long way from a team that will challenge for the biggest prizesin England and Europe. The anxiety that had accompanied them into the game appeared to affect several players, chief among them Emmanuel Frimpong and Kieran Gibbs – Frimpong struggled to make simple passes – and there was precious little spark further forward, despite Mikel Arteta beginning his full debut in fine form. The Spaniard faded.
Aaron Ramsey struggled to impose himself while Theo Walcott endured a difficult afternoon. With Robin van Persie firing only in fits and starts - he hit the outside of the far post in the 57th minute - it was, perhaps surprisingly, Andrey Arshavin who set the standard.
When the Russia forward excelled against the Republic of Ireland in Moscow on Tuesday, it was tempting to wonder where the performance had come from, given the paucity of many of his offerings in club colours. Yet he brought the assurance to the Emirates Stadium, probing with menace and playing a central role in the creation of Arsenal's chances. Moreover, it was his goal that proved decisive.
It does remain a disappointment that Arshavin rarely completes a full game and, just before his withdrawal on 63 minutes, he was rollicked by Frimpong for a failure to track back. He can sometimes resemble the ultimate luxury player.
There was also the curious moment when Marouane Chamakh came on for Van Persie and was passed the captain's armband. Overcome with self-consciousness, Chamakh looked for somebody to hand it to only to find no takers. So he wound it around his own arm. Wenger has always argued that he has 11 captains on the pitch. Chamakh went on to test the goalkeeper Michael Vorm with a header.
For Arsenal, though, a win was key and, if confidence in football can evaporate quickly and be reconstructed slowly, at least the club have started the process, ahead of Tuesday's Champions League tie away to Borussia Dortmund. "I thought we started quite well but the nerves took over," Wenger said. "We played with the handbrake on.
"We just wanted to get over the line and we didn't want to make a mistake. At 1-0, if you make a mistake, you don't win a game that we absolutely had to win. When you don't win, you have a deep problem and the longer it lasts, the deeper the problem becomes."
Arsenal's supporters had to hope that Arshavin's goal showed their luck is turning. Vorm had collected Walcott's deflected shot in the corner of his area, close to the byline, and he attempted to start a quick counter. Yet his throw hit the heels of his defender Angel Rangel and, when the ball broke, Arshavin had the relatively simple task of steering it into an empty net from a tight angle.
"People think sometimes that Arshavin does not care but that's not true," Wenger said. "He cares very much. He had just lost confidence but you could see that he was himself today."
Arsenal might have led by more at the interval only for Walcott to frustrate with his finishing. He saw one effort cleared off the line by the back-tracking Steven Caulker while Ramsey also missed a clear chance. Yet Swansea nearly scored themselves when Graham beat Per Mertesacker to Kemy Agustien's wonderful eighth-minute cross only for Wojciech Szczesny to save. Mertesacker was otherwise solid on his debut.
Swansea fought for their manager, Brendan Rogers, who was back in Northern Ireland following the loss of his father to cancer, and the Welsh club felt that they were worth a point. It was not only their organisation that caught the eye. Their pace in wide areas was menacing, with Scott Sinclair, in particular, a threat. He clipped the top of the crossbar with a 53rd minute free-kick.
Swansea continue to search for their first Premier League goal and they would have cursed Graham at the end. Arsenal exhaled in relief.
Source: David Hytner, The Guardian on 10 Sep 11
No comments:
Post a Comment