17 July 2010: Barnet 0-4 Arsenal, Underhill Stadium

Arsenal cruised to a 4-0 victory at Barnet on Saturday in their opening pre-season friendly of the new campaign.

The tone was set after just 90 seconds when Andrey Arshavin waltzed round home keeper Jake Cole before tapping home. Jay Simpson added two more before the break as the visitors dominated.

Laurent Koscielny made his debut in the opening period while Arsène Wenger's other new signing, Marouane Chamakh, made his bow in the second half as the manager changed his entire XI.

The alterations made Arsenal less potent as an attacking force. Samir Nasri capitalised on a defensive error to grab a fourth in the 75th minute.

That was the last hoorah in a game that had long since petered out.

This was a decent run-out for both sides but it was not much of a contest. As curtain-raisers go, it did its job.

Bearing in mind that Arsenal's World Cup stars have not yet returned to training, Wenger put out the strongest squad at his disposal this afternoon. Andrey Arshavin, Tomas Rosicky, Thomas Vermaelen and Jack Wilshere started the first half. Nasri, Theo Walcott and Kieran Gibbs were on show after the break. Although Manuel Almunia and Eduardo were named in the original 22, they were replaced on the day by Simpson and Wojciech Szczesny.

Barnet's Underhill ground has hosted Arsenal's first friendly for most of the Wenger era. It is always jam-packed, lively and sprinkled with talking points. Today was no exception.

The status quo would also be maintained in terms of the scoreline this afternoon. Barnet's best result in this fixture has been a couple of goalless draws. Today that was never an option.

In fact, it took less than two minutes for Arsenal to take the lead.

Arshavin darted in from the left and found Rosicky just outside the area. The pair then played a neat one-two in the tightest of spaces to send the Russian clear. He took his time, fooled the keeper and tapped home.

It was a ‘settling' goal and, as a result, Arsenal oozed confidence for the remainder of the half. Three minutes later, Emmanuel-Thomas cut in from the right and stung the hands of Barnet keeper Jake Cole with a rasping shot from distance.

Arsenal's control was complete. They grabbed their second goal in the 16th minute and, up to that point, Barnet still not mustered an attack worthy of the name.

The home defence afforded Jack Wilshere the luxury of time and space on the right of the area. A fatal mistake. He chose to find Simpson eight yards out, who slotted home with simplicity.

Shortly afterwards Vermaelen saw his shot booted off the line and, in the 35th minute, Wilshere hacked an effort wide from just outside the area.

Three minutes from the break, Arshavin teased his way into the area before curling a shot on to the bar with Cole beaten.

However, Arsenal would get a third before the whistle. The ball fell enticingly for Barnet midfielder Mark Byrne just outside the area but he could only produce an airshot. The ball eventually found its way to Arshavin, who broke quickly before feeding Wilshere in the left-hand channel.

His cross was low, immediate and straight to the feet of the unmarked Simpson at the far post. His tap-in was straightforward.

Wenger changed his entire team at the break. It made little difference to the tide of the game. In the opening minutes, Walcott burst through and his clip forced a fine save from Cole. A couple of minutes later Nacer Barazite tested the keeper once again.

Walcott went close once more on the hour but, in truth the sting had left the game. Just to prove the point, Arsenal took until the 75th minute to get their fourth and even that was handed to them. Barnet centre half Daniel Leach failed to control a lofted backpass on the edge of the area. Samir Nasri stole in, steadied himself and slotted home.

Byline crosses from Walcott on the right and Conor Henderson on the left threatened to provide a fifth. But there was never anyone on the end of them.

When the final whistle went, the game had been entertaining but, at the same time, far from even.

Source: Richard Clarke, Arsenal.com on 17 Jul 10

Gunners begin their pre-season at Barnet

After a World Cup that will be better remembered for the achievements of the organisers than by the performances of the players who participated in it, we can finally begin to look forward again to the new domestic season. Arsenal began their preparations today with their now-traditional leg-stretch and pipe-opener at Barnet.

On a sunny afternoon, where North London meets Hertfordshire, Arsene Wenger gave pretty much everyone who wasn’t involved in the World Cup a run out. The most notable absentee who didn’t spend the summer in South Africa was Eduardo and there were whispers around the stadium of a possible imminent deal that would see him leave Arsenal for Shakhtar Donetsk.

As you might expect from the very first pre-season outing, the game itself was nothing to write home about. The Gunners ran out easy 4-0 winners with most of the damage being done by the first half line-up. Andrey Arshavin grabbed the first when he put the finishing touch to an extensive passing move in the second minute. In the remainder of the half Jay Simpson converted two Jack Wilshere assists to make it 3-0 at the break.

The second forty-five minutes saw an entirely new eleven players and was a more muted half. Samir Nasri helped himself to a goal when one of the Barnet defenders stood on the ball leaving the Frenchman with only the goalkeeper to beat - which he did with aplomb.

Other observations from the day:
The team looked magnificent in their new kit. At last, a return to a proper Arsenal kit with proper white sleeves. We can go into next season with opponents knowing they are facing Arsenal Football Club instead of wondering if Charlton Athletic had turned up by mistake.

The summer’s two new signings made their first public appearances this afternoon. It is impossible to pass judgement on them at a game like this but early impressions are that Marouane Chamakh showed signs of playing very much like a classic English centre-forward. He is tall, played a lot of the time with his back to goal and looked adept at bringing others into the game. Not much came his way in terms of chances so there wasn't much to go on in terms of knowing what his finishing is like. He did look a little heavy-legged but he is bound to be short of fitness at this point in time.

Laurent Koscielny didn’t have much to do defensively during his first-half appearance. Most notable though was the slightness of his physical build. He is virtually the same height as Thomas Vermaelen - who is not exactly the tallest - but looks nowhere near as muscular and strong as the Belgian. Whether Arsene Wenger sees him as Vermaelen’s first-choice partner remains to be seen but, from today’s evidence, the manager ought to still be looking to add some genuine height to the middle of his back four.

Of the youngsters that turned out, most eyes were on Jack Wilshere. He had a patchy 45 minutes but did do some good things and his two assists for Jay Simpson showed composure and accuracy. The most impressive of the Young Guns on display though was Emmanuel Frimpong. His performance as the anchor in midfield was a major contribution to Arsenal’s dominance during the first period. Even at this early stage of the season, he showed tenacity, competitiveness and made more tackles than any other player all afternoon. He is built like a tank and those who have watched him come through the youth team ranks already know about his physical presence and strength but they also know he can play too. If Arsene Wenger was looking to mould a young player to be a successor to (or even competition for) Alex Song in the role of midfield enforcer, then Frimpong looks the most likely candidate to make that step up from within the youth ranks. Time will tell as to whether that will happen this season or next.

So, Arsene Wenger takes his squad off to their Austrian training camp on Monday night and the business of preparing for the new season starts in earnest. There is still much talk about potential new signings and it is hard to believe that there won’t be more new additions before the big kick-off in August. However, the one thing Arsenal supporters want to definitively know before then is whether Cesc Fabregas will be captaining the team next season.

The Gunners have maintained a dignified silence on this matter over the weeks of the World Cup. Their position is crystal-clear - Arsenal want Fabregas to stay and he is not for sale at any price. It is a shame that Barcelona are not hearing that and their players have not been able to keep their mouths shut. Carrying on where they left off at the end of last season, throughout the World Cup, all we have heard is Barca players talking about Cesc and his DNA. On and on and on and on they have droned all summer long, culminating in the grotesque spectacle of Puyol and Pique pulling a Barcelona shirt over Fabregas’s head at Spain’s victory parade.

Reams have been written online and in the media about the way Barcelona, their players and the Spanish press have acted with regard to trying to sign Cesc. It has been sordid, classless and is nothing more than tapping up by proxy. Arsenal fans ought to be proud of the way our club has conducted themselves through this onslaught. The club might have risen above it but feelings of Arsenal fans were perfectly summed up by a banner erected at the north end of Barnet’s ground today: “Barca, F**k You”.

All that said, no matter how much Arsenal might not want to sell him and however much Xavi, Puyol et al might keep talking to the press, only one man has the answer to how all this is going to turn out - and that is Cesc himself. Ultimately, if he wants to leave then, despite his contract, there will not be much Arsenal can do except try to take Barcelona for every Euro they have got - or rather, every Euro they can borrow at the moment. (If he says at Arsenal, at least he knows he will get paid at the end of every month.)

Following the Barnet match Arsene Wenger said that all the speculation about Fabregas needs to stop. The only way it will stop is if Cesc comes out and states his intentions clearly as to whether he is staying or going. And the sooner that happens the better. If Arsenal have to plan a future without him, then he ought to extend them the courtesy of giving as much notice as possible of that. Better though, would be for him to tell Barcelona, “thanks but no thanks” and commit himself to the Gunners for next season. Either way, absolute clarity on this matter is needed soon.

It’s make your mind up time, Cesc.

Source: David Young, ESPN Soccernet on 18 Jul 10