Steady Alex Song gives Arsenal their rhythm and exposes Birmingham

Always artful in attack, it is the forceful presence of the Cameroonian that has been at the heart of the Gunners' recent wins

Birmingham City began sharply after sticking with the same XI whose Trojan efforts had held Manchester United to a draw but faded in the second half against Arsenal's 11 victors over Chelsea. The home side started by pressing in the middle third of the field, determined to disturb Arsenal's rhythm. In doing so, however, they conceded free‑kicks which proved their early downfall when Robin van Persie fortuitously scored.

The threat of the pace of Samir Nasri down the left and Theo Walcott on the right restricted the Birmingham full‑backs' route forward. Despite Birmingham regaining their shape early when possession changed hands Arsenal were able to play from the back fairly comfortably in a below‑par first half.

In the second half Arsenal moved the ball with purposeful tempo around the front six – Walcott and Jack Wilshere, rich, improving youthful talent, and Nasri, Cesc Fábregas and Van Persie all subtlety and cunning. But this attractive quintet would struggle without the input of Alex Song.

Song has grown into the role. Originally a centre-back, he has developed into an accomplished, powerful and pacy midfielder who has flourished since receiving early criticism when asked to play there. He recognises where to challenge and is much quicker than similar Premier League players who play this way such as Mikel John Obi, Michael Carrick, Lucas Leiva and Nigel de Jong. Strong in the tackle, he can burst quickly with the ball to leave the man he dispossesses but his most important contribution is in setting the tone from the midfield third by giving his colleagues further forward the benefit of a quick pass before they get tightly marked. He rarely kicks it; he strokes it easy and early. Simplicity is genius.

In a one-sided second half Arsenal were irresistible in the attacking third, Nasri alternated positions and Walcott's pace and positioning dragged Blues defenders out of covering roles. Alex McLeish's team battled but lacked depth and the highest quality while Arsenal showed shades of the very best patterns of attacking combination play.

Source: David Pleat, The Guardian on 3 Jan 11

Song's high note sounds little off key to Wenger

The Arsenal fans are often accused of being some of the quietest in the country, but they found their voice after their 88th-minute winner, belting out the refrain, "We've only got one Song" in honour of their match-winner, Alex Song.

Arsenal themselves were slightly off tune, missing the invention of the suspended Jack Wilshere and with Cesc Fabregas not quite at his best. Yet they created more than enough chances to win the game by a distance and would have done so but for the form of the West Ham goalkeeper Robert Green whose performance almost earned his side an unlikely point. Almost, but not quite. Despite the array of attacking talent on the pitch for Arsenal, the game was won by two of their more defensive players. The left-back Gaël Clichy pushed forward and moved inside before laying an inviting ball across the goalmouth which Song converted with his head.

Their manager Arsène Wenger was mightily relieved, although he warned that Song gets forward a little too regularly for his liking. "We didn't do anything stupid and tried to be intelligent and that is why we scored," Wenger said. "Song had three good chances, he has added that to his game. He has got the taste to go forward, sometimes a little too much for a holding midfielder."

Arsenal, returning to the Emirates on the back of a pair of crushing away victories, 3-0 at Manchester City and 4-0 at Newcastle United, started brightly but lost their way.

West Ham stood up well to the task of keeping Arsenal at arm's length from their goal, with striker Victor Obinna asked to play wide on the left of a five-man midfield. With Scott Parker bristling with aggression and Mark Noble full of running, West Ham maintained their shape with a discipline that belied their position at the foot of the Premier League.

Green was the game's outstanding performer, providing evidence that he is moving on after his World Cup howler for England against the USA. He pulled off three quite outstanding saves in the first half to keep West Ham on level terms.

Green dived at full stretch to deny a shot from Fabregas which crowned an incisive passing move involving Song and Bacary Sagna. Minutes later he swooped low to his right for a one-handed reflex save in answer to Song's drive from the angle. And before the half was out Green had tipped away Sébastien Squillaci's arching header following a corner.

The match continued in much the same vein in the second half, as the level of Arsenal frustration began to grow. Samir Nasri struck the bar with a glorious swerving free-kick from 35 yards and Marouane Chamakh could do no better with a header than guide it straight into the arms of Green.

Wenger introduced Theo Walcott and the winger went close when he fired a shot across Green which struck the far post and rebounded into the arms of the grateful keeper.

Arsenal however did not panic and were rewarded with Song's goal that keeps West Ham rooted to the bottom of the League. Hammers manager Avram Grant tried to cling to positives. "We are not in a situation where we cannot do it," he said. "Even if we were in April it would not be the end of the world. We need to turn good performances into results."

Source: Mark Fleming, The Independent on 30 Oct 10

Alex Song's late header for Arsenal breaks West Ham's stout resistance

When you knock on the door as loudly as Arsenal did here in the second half, the law of probability dictates that it has to open eventually. But football does not always work like that and, for so long, it looked as if West Ham would deal another blow to the credibility of Arsenal's title challenge. The ghosts of West Brom could almost be heard to clear their throats.

Rob Green, the West Ham goalkeeper, was ready to take the acclaim as the afternoon's hero. He made a string of excellent saves, most notably from Cesc Fábregas, while the woodwork came to his rescue on a further two occasions.

At the very death, however, just as tempers and nerves were fraying intolerably among the home support, Green's resistance was broken. Whether he ought to have come for Gaël Clichy's tantalising cross was a moot point. What was indisputable was that Alex Song had sensed his moment and nothing was going to deny him. Having arrived at speed, he plunged low to guide a diving header into the net and, at a stroke, spark wild scenes of delight and relief.

"It's always a relief when you score late on," said Arsène Wenger, the Arsenal manager. "But you can see we have matured. When it does not work for us, the players remain calmer. We have a good chance of the title but we have to show consistency first. We still need to step up a gear. I feel that Song has the taste to go forward, he has added that to his game, even if it's a bit too much for a holding midfielder. But that's our game."

West Ham prop up the table going into November, which is never a good omen in the battle against relegation. Avram Grant, the manager, said that history did not interest him, that there was plenty of time to turn fundamentally decent performances into points. He was particularly pleased with the "fighting spirit" of his players, which was epitomised once again by the captain Scott Parker, who was magnificent.

But there have to be deep concerns in the East End. Despite a bright start, in which Mark Noble featured prominently, West Ham never looked to have the ammunition in the final third to hurt Arsenal. Lukasz Fabianski did not have to make a serious save.

At the other end, meanwhile, they were played through too easily, particularly on their left side, where Herita Ilunga was exposed on a number of occasions. Arsenal sleepwalked through the first-half but they still looked the more threatening team and Green needed to make three smart saves.

Wenger said that he almost took off Fábregas at half-time, as the captain had some tension in his hamstring which will need to be monitored, but he saw his players show greater urgency in the second period, when they swept forward in waves. The in-form Samir Nasri rattled the crossbar with a 35-yard thunderbolt of a free-kick while the substitute Theo Walcott hit the inside of the far post.

The thought that it might be one of those days for Arsenal gathered pace when Green kept out Walcott's deflected shot and then brilliantly repelled Fábregas. Song, though, had other ideas.

Source: David Hytner, The Guardian on 30 Oct 10