Wolves vs Arsenal, 1-4: Full time thoughts, analysis and player ratings
The Game
Was Diaby’s injury a blessing in disguise? That’s surely the question many are asking after seeing the Arsenal struggle for the first 10-20 minutes but come out and dominate after the introduction of Alex Song.
After that, it was smooth sailing for Arsene Wenger’s side who won both of this week’s game by four goals to one.
Match Video Highlights
Match video highlights will be published here as well when available.
Player Ratings
Almunia: 6 – A very similar game to the AZ one with the Spaniard having almost nothing to do but conceding in the end.
Gallas and Vermaelen: 7 – Were caught napping in the first half especially in one particular Wolves set-piece but recovered well.
Sagna: 7,5 – Another terrific display, full of energy from start to finish. Arsene Wenger’s rotation is paying off for Bacary.
Gibbs: 7,5 – I was skeptical about his defensive skills last Wednesday but he shut my mouth today as he did well in that department too.
Diaby: No Vote – I prefer not to vote Abou although if I would it won’t be more than 5. Let’s just hope his injury is a minor one.
Fabregas: 8 – He’s producing back-to-back convincing performances, glad to see.
Arshavin: 7 – Can we say quiet game for the Russian? I keep on saying he’s keeping the best for Chelsea, Andrey. Still managed to score a very good goal today though.
Ramsey: 7,5 – This time last season I wanted Aaron to start. Today he started and passed the test with flying colours. More of Aaron, please.
Van Persie: 6,5 – Three misplaced passes in the first half which could have set-up easy chances for his team-mates and a bit selfish up front in the second half, but was still very good throughout the game.
Eduardo: 7 – All in all a very good game by the Croatian. Involved in our first two goals and a constant threat to Wolves.
(Subs)
Song: 7,5 – At his usual best.
Nasri and Rosicky: 6 – Not much for these two although they went close to score, both of them.
![[Video] Emmanuel Eboue escapes injury curse after lucky goal for Ivory Coast against Germany](http://www.thegunninghawk.com/wp-content/themes/arthemia-premium/scripts/timthumb.php?src=/wp-content/uploads/emmanuel-eboue-1.jpg&w=80&h=80&zc=1)
Song, man of the match by some distance, complete game changing moment when he came on, he is the Makelele to our Madrid, Arsene forget adding another coat of gold paint, if we play without the engine we are stuffed.
Arshavin wasnt quiet if that’s what you mean?
I think you’re rating ramsey a bit too highly there. There’s definite promise, he has a great engine, but he still plays like a youngster at times. I’m not sayin he was poor, but he makes poor decisions at times, which of course you put down to inexperience. He’s certainly no worse than diaby in that position though, despite being a few years younger.
You could probably switch ramsey’s rating with arshavin imo.
Whether diaby’s injury was a blessing in disguise is perhaps a little unfair to ask.
Wolves came at us early on as you would expect, and I really dont think song would have been able to do much to prevent that. It was just a good home side working hard to deny us space with the crowd behind them. They werent so much building great attacks, as they were denying our midfielders time and counter attacking quickly. That isnt something song would be immune to as he can hold onto the ball too long at times.
Agree with most of the ratings, but was that a dig at almunia? what could he have done about the goal
The defence messed up a bit by not marking tightly enough, but again it’s right at the end once the game is over.
This was Aaron’s first “official” game for Arsenal. The Carling Cup and games where we have nothing to lose cannot be taken in consideration. Today he showed that if given a chance, he can be useful for the team.
Diaby was given ten, twenty chances to prove himself, I think it’s time for Aaron to be given the same chance.
On Almunia, well, let’s wait for a game in which he’s given some work to do, I believe Sunderland will be so.
Sure, but why dig at almunia today? It just seemed a little out of the blue.
I wasnt talking about ramsey’s carling cup performances when I said he makes bad decisions, I was talking about the game today. He did a lot of great stuff, but also looked a little unsure at times, particularly early on when we were under pressure. He grew as the game wore on though, when the pressure was relieved a bit.
The 2nd goal was very fortunate for him as we had a 2 on 1 situation, and he played the ball poorly to eduardo. No big deal, even van persie and fabregas mess up that sort of thing up at times as well, but it seemed to sum up his difficulty getting to grips with the game early on.
Agree that ramsey deserves a chance in the 1st team, absolutely. I was pleased to see him starting the game. He needs to be playing some matches to gain experience, and he will be needed when song leaves for the ACN. Just think you gave him a little more than he deserved today.
Aaron may have looked a little unsure at times, but diaby looks unsure MOST of the time. Diaby’s play also affects aaron and cesc’s play as well. Know the have a rock solid def. mid behind them allows them to go forward and attack. With diaby, they know that they will have to make up for his shortcomings and it hinders them attacking and orchestrating the offence. Almost in the same minute diaby went off, we regained our shape, maintained possession, and too the game to wolves.
His analysis of almunia was spot on as well…he didn’t deserve a higher rating because he didn’t have to do anything. If he can rip the ball out of the air with Kenwyne Jones flying at him, then he’ll have all the respect in te world.
That’s not what Im trying to say. Im not saying almunia deserved a higer rating, the comment Chris gave seemed like an unnecessary dig at almunia seeing as he didnt do anything wrong today. He did take a difficult cross at one point, but that was probably the only difficult thing his was faced with all game.
Im not trying to compare diaby with ramsey, or say that ramsey was poor. He had a solid game overall. Im saying I thought Chris was being a bit generous in his praise of ramsey in this particular game.
To say we sorted ourselves out once diaby went off is a little unfair. It was when we got the goal that wolves backed off. That’s what you would expect. To say song would have prevented wolves from attacking us so effectively early on is wishful thinking imo. He’s a great player, and our best DM, one of the best in the league, but he does give away free kicks, and he does like to hang onto the ball. If he’d done that early on in this game he would probably have been tackled a couple of times at the start of the match, just as the other midfielders were.
Spot on Davi.
I dont see why past performances should have anything to do with how a player is rated in this last game.
Almunia didn’t do much, so doesn’t deserve a high rating, but on the few occasions he was called into action he performed admirably. The dig wasn’t necessary.
I also agree Ramsey’s rating was rather high. He made some poor passes and lost possesion on a number of occasions, especially in the first 25 minutes.
I think Arshavin had a good game, he had a good work rate and it was good to see him actually running again.
To put the teams increased performance after 25 minutes or so down to solely Diaby’s injury is more than unfair, its simplistic and wrong.
Arsenal continued to be weak until our goal, and only started to really control the game after our second. The teams poor performance at the start was a result of good pressure from wolves and the lack of a propper holding midfielder. Song deserves some credit for bringing some stability, but we still would have been under pressure even if he was on from the start.
The most important thing I take out of this game is that we have no adequate replacement for Song. Diaby certainly isn’t up to the task and is too inconsitent for such a defensive postition. Unfortunately Rambo is still a fair way off being ready to fill Alex’s shoes as well. I think he needs at least another year or two.
I was not having a go at Almunia, it’s Davi who thinks I have something against him, I wasn’t even watching when Wolves scored the 4th goal.
I now saw the highlights of the 4th goal and can say that yes, he could have done better as he came forward and then straight backwards.
If you’re saying you dont have anything against almunia, yet still think he was at all at fault on the goal, I don’t know what to say.
I’m sure he thought about coming out for the cross, but obviously realised he couldn’t get there. So he stayed.
If he had come out, there’s no way he could have beaten craddock to the ball, so we would have conceded anyway AND almunia would have looked foolish.
Basically vermaelen either tripped or was knocked off balance and couldn’t get off the ground to offer a proper challenge, and that’s why we conceded.
I’d say that defending set pieces is still a major weakness in our side. Vermaelen is an excellent CB, but his signing hasn’t significantly addressed that problem (he has clearly helped to strengthen our defence overall however).
We still have two short CBs and as a side, the players dont seem to take enough responsibility when marking at set pieces. No one ever seems to get annoyed when their marker loses them and makes a chance.
Why use the words “having something against”, as if my opinion will not change even if he saves 10 penalties and makes 20 match-saving saves in a row?
If I believe Almunia is not good enough to represent us in goal, it doesn’t mean I have something against him.
It’s an opinion.
I also believe Mannone and Fabianski are not good enough for the role as I believe Diaby is not good enough for the midfield. It’s just an opinion, nothing personal against them.
Yes I know what your opinion is, that’s fine.
You dont seem to give objective comments at times though, like saying almunia made a mistake for the goal.
Btw, maybe I took the almunia comment in your article as a dig at almunia when you didnt mean it that way?
Exactly right on the late consolation. Vermaelen either made a complete mess of it or got tangled up somehow so it was a free header into the top corner. Most goalkeepers would have missed that. And Cesc was on the line we could just as easily blame him for the ball going over his head.
Anyway I thought most of the ratings were fair. If anything I agree with Almunia’s rating simply because he didnt’ have a decent save to make all game. And he didn’t keep a clean sheet. Arshavin had a pretty good game and Ramsey got some needed premiership experience.
But in fairness the whole team was sort of off their game. Sanga and Gibbs played well for sure but it was the win we’ve been craving: convincing yet disjointed at times, ugly yet emphatic.
The ANC worries me. Song is brilliant and Diaby doesn’t have the guile and restraint to be the only DM yet. But he and Denilson should be a fine stand-in partnership come January.
In closing, Arsenal definitely have the most talented and determined side in the prem other than Chelsea (and I think talent wise we’re superior to Chelsea) so Berbatov (and his lethargy) can chill on “the title’s between us and Chelsea” bull shit. Man U are only slightly better equipped than Liverpool but they always seem to get results so I wouldn’t count them out. It’s shaping up to be a three horse race as crunch time is certainly in full swing.
Chris I definitely agree about Ramsey being given a chance. He had a decent game yesterday and was miles better than diaby was in that position although their approach is probably different.
Is it just me or was Ramsey trying to be way more fancy than he needed to be with all the back flicks?
i thought ramsey had a few too many poor passes and lingered on the ball at times but was overall very good. if he just ironed out half those mistakes it would be really great. song was great, yeah, only cesc was playing at a similar level today. as for diaby, i hate to wish badly on players and i don’t want him to be injured, but if it takes an injury to get his inconsistent performances out of the team and can be replaced with ramsey/nasri/rosicky even denilson who i am quite critical of then i think for now our team would be stronger for it.
I always watch Ramsey closely when he’s involved with the regular team and yes, he always tries to do fancy things as a way to show he’s good.
But today, I think he was very disciplined although yes, he did have moments where inexperience was clear such as when he had to pass the ball to Eduardo just minutes before the move repeated itself and Eduardo scored.
But oh well, it was his first important game …
My thoughts:
(1) Arshavin has a very good game, IMO
(2) We’ve gotta be worried about the loss of Song, not just during ACN, but injury wise. I hope and pray nothing happens to Cesc or Song (injury wise)
(3) I don’t think Ramsey had a very outstanding game. Yes, he needs games to get to that level
(4) I think RVP deserves a 7. He was full of running and dropped deep a lot of times
(5) I hope we can rest Arshavin soon, perhaps during the CL game against Liege. He’s going on Int’l duty and he deserves a rest. Sad Theo got injured when Arshavin was rested. Same as Cesc, Gallas and Vermaelen (hopefully will rest if Belgium are not playing useless friendlies next week)
Another match where we were slow to get things started, but showed our class as the game wore on. We should have put some more goals away, but still lead the league in goals scored by a wide margin. Just need to stop conceding those late goals that we have recently.
Song definitely was the MOT as we finally started to settle down when he came in there. Nobody else covers the middle defensively like he does. He allows those like Ramsey and Diaby to play with him and have the freedom they do, but we are really lacking without him. Hopefully Denilson will be fully healthy when Song leaves for the ACN (which I am dreading!).
In terms of players that we can not lose my ranking would be:
1) Song – nobody can give us what he does at this point
2) Fabregas – we showed last year we can do well without him with the players we have that can go there (Nasri, Ramsey, Arshavin, etc.). I would hate to lose him to injury, but at this point I think Song is less replaceable based on our team.
3) Either Gallas or Vermaelen. Senderos would be my first choice to replace Vermaelen, but if we lose Gallas I would move Song back (if Denilson is healthy)
4) Van Persie (while Bentdner and Walcott are out)
The game was very tense until we scored. I’m glad that everything turned out fine for us. Ramsey performed well. Sagna was very solid( Wenger should not sell him to Juventus).
Arsenal starting line-up worried me. I didn’t rejoice over Diaby’s injury( we already have too many injured players). But he should not have started the game. Our defensive midfield is not particularly reliable with Diaby and Ramsey playing together and Song on the bench. So, I felt a certain relief when Song replaced Diaby.
Who’s gonna replace Song, one of our most important players, during the African Cup of Nations? I don’t think Denilson is the right choice. He is not ready yet. Wenger should buy a quality defensive midfielder and replacements for Gallas and Vermaelen. I don’t want to imagine what it will happen if they get injured.
I agree we need more depth in def mid and central def. However, the problem I see, esp in central def, is that Wenger does not rotate his central defenders (nor should he I feel) so it is going to be tough to find a top flight defender who wants to come here and only play in meaningful games if Gallas or Vermaelen go down. The best option there is someone young with potential that is willing to play sparingly now with the prospect of replacing Gallas next year or the year after (not sure when his contract ends and what the long term plans are there, he’s playing great now so would imagine he has at least another good year in him).
For the first 15-20 minutes Wolves worked very hard, closing us down quickly & not giving us
a chance to settle. Although Song had a great game I don’t think that it was his introduction that turned the game..Wolves just couldn’t keep it up.
Van Persie had an assist. Why is he being called selfish for today’s game?
i agree… he is not selfish… he is a striker, he has to take chance at times. I’m sure he is one of the top goal-assist strikers in EPL so far…
he WAS selfish.remember when he got the accidental through ball from zubar? he couldve given it to a teammate anytime, but he chose to go around and around to find a space for him, which didnt quite happen for him. he wanted to score so badly therefore he’s losing his teamplay. the assist, though, was a beauty.
I watched the last half hour of the Wolves match (a bit early for me) so I missed the goals but what I saw was impressive. Before Wolves took that final corner I said to myself, “this ones going in” and it did. That`s how predictable Arsenal are in `set pieces` only the coaching staff know why.
I`m certainly not alone when I say the defence still needs some attention, not that they played badly but from the point of injury, we don`t have players in the pipe line as we do in mid field or in attack. So, if a quality defender came on the market in January I`d be inclined to cover my bases. No comment on goalkeepers, they all look alike to me, lousy job.
i agree, mate. when i saw the corner coming i was like this is gonna get in the net and it did. vermaelen didnot even jump at all….it was a free header. one of the first mistakes of him imo
Although we have conceded as usual on set pieces this year on the bright side at least we are scoring many, many more goals on our own set pieces which has been key for us in many games.
The match just shows why idiots like Diaby should be shipped off.We moved into top gear after he was replaced.How useless idiots like Diaby starts week in week out is the biggest mystery of the world.
I know it’s slightly off subject, but I’m copying this to a few Gooner blogs because it’s hilarious and I’m sure all Gooners will be rolling around on the floor when they read it. Below are a couple of comments copied from a Citeh blog and trust me, there are also many more like these on Citeh blogs:
Quote – “Adebayor looked off the pace and lazy today. I hope those Arsenal fans weren’t right about him.”
Quote – “I was screaming at the screen today…Adebayor just didn’t want to move, it was infuriating!! I just wish he’d shut up, he talks in the media all week about Arsenal then performs like that again. He needs to get over Arsenal and focus on us.”
Arsene Wenger really does wear a magic hat – the man is a genius.
I’d also like to comment that it seems the only way teams can match us initially in games is to sprint around like mad closing the space, but no one can keep that pace up for long and we seem to be scoring regularly in the last 15 minutes before half time. Ramsey also looks very good and with a run in the team, I’m sure he’ll improve and be able to cover for Song in Jan/Feb.
One match at a time, but it’s clear that AW’s long-term plan is starting to bear fruit.
No Steve, no off-topics, you’re banned
Seriously, yes, I was watching the highlights of the City game and when 3-2 up, they crossed in the path of Adebayor but he was stuck on the spot, didn’t anticipate the run and the chance went begging.
He’s lazy, I thought the same thing.
I remember some similar posts regarding Arshavin on this very website a couple weeks back…
I think that the first own goal, rather than the introduction of Alex Song, took the wind out of Wolves’ attack. I also think Ramsey didn’t disappoint during his time in the hole.
Time for my 2 quid. Totally agree with the ratings today Chris.
A solid performance once Song came on for diaby and stabalized the midfield. It was almost as though the team had let out a collective sigh and started to play their game. As much as i don’t want one of players injured, the diaby injury i think will be a blessing in disguise (i said as much as soon as he went down in the comments section
He is lost on the pitch and for a guy as tall as him, he can’t head for nothing. Our back four looked solid including gibbs, who i was worried about. Song was a beast as usual. Fabregas is showing every game that he is the best midfielder in the WORLD. Better than Fat Frank and Stevie G. for sure. Arshavin did his thing quietly today, but was glad to see him dish out some punishment as well. He’s a tough little Russian. Eduardo still isn’t back to his clinical self, but its obvious he is getting there. RVP was a little off most of the game, but his one-touch pass to cesc off the volley was a piece of pure class. A good solid win, but it would have been nice to have kept a clean sheet. Our only concern should be our set piece defending. Against Chelsea, those mistakes will result in goals…guarenteed.
Bask in victory fellow Gunners!!!
I do not think Ramsey perform great in the 1st 30 min before Song was substitute in. He played the holding mid field but the defense was shaky. When Song came in, Ram move on to be involved in the offense. I think he is more suitable to play as a offensive mid field rather than a holding mid field.
I am just worried when Song is away for the African cup. We need a cover for him.
Ramsey is good but imo he should not start against chelsea… =P
Diaby’s injury is a blessing!! Full stop, undisguised!! He gave a away a terrible simple ball early on which led to at least 5 minutes of unrelenting pressure form the Wolves attack.Diab-bollical!!At least now,Wenger may be forced to see that there are others in the “group” that can do a better job passing and tackling back.Denilson,Ramsey,Wilshere are younger and more talented.If your “experimenting” with Diaby anyway,you have better options!
We did improve after Diaby left the field in that area,immediate proof which will be heightened as the season develops.Diaby is a fine PSG player!!
Guys….
song is on 4 yellows.. and if he gets another against sunderland, he would be out for the Chelsea game. I believe all of us understand Song’s importance for us. If Song is out for that game, and Denilson is not match fit, then we are literally left with Coquelin, Frimpong and Eastmond.
Therefore, though I dont like Abou Diaby at all, I hope he comes back and take more punishments on behalf of song, so that song can be rested ahead of the Chelsea match.
Hopefully Denilson comes back sooner as well. AT least even without song we would have denilson, whom had a year’s experience as a DM previously.
The best would be both Song and Denilson playing against Chelsea, and that way our team would have the right balance. Both Denilson and Song are defensive minded and will stay their ground to keep out those chelsea punks. Unlike diaby, whom would run forward everytime to attack even though he is the worst attacker.
Lets cross our fingers and pray that Song is rested for the Sunderland game, Diaby has recovered to take on Sunderland and gets kick instead and Denilson would be match fit by the Chelsea game to partner Song in defensive midfield.
Best would be that denilson would be match fit by the sunderland game so that he can play that game alongside diaby to guide him along.
Doesnt Diaby’s form make all gooner appreciate the value of Denilson?I for one is a very big fun of Denilson,I just cant seem to understand why gooners dislike him.If you look at his stats it is surprising that he averages less misplaced passes than even Fabregas.He doesnt hold on to the ball unnecessarily like Diaby,he is full of running and does put in quite a number of succesful tackles.He had one of the best Stats last season for the DM position.Somehow i was wishing for this moment,(when all gooners can appreciate the value of Denilson after witnessing Diaby take his position).That said,whoever doesnt think Song changed the game for us is surely sick,I for one was glad to see Diaby’s back.Honestly the guy is just crap,coz i can remember a time when he gave away the ball in our own third of the pitch and did not even bother to try to retrieve it,Ramsey had to put in a tuckle though dangerous,to win us the ball just on the edge of the box.I would like to commend Ramsey for his performance but he still needs abit of polishing.I think he is good but should learn to look over his shoulders for opponents coming from behind.One good example is when he was well placed for a shot just on the edge of the box but had it stolen because of that.He should look at how Cesc looks in every before recieving the ball and also whenever he has possesion,Ramsey should learn that,coz that has cost him quite alot of possesion in recent times.Otherwise glad to see Gibbs improve today though i still insist Traore should be our man in the absence of Clicky.
yes. i used to hate denilson so much, because i kept comparing him with fabregas. now i love and miss him so much, hope he would come back soon so diaby wouldnt have to play again..ever. =]
A good win away but only one slight worrying sign ..
Arsenal owned abt 80 % of the second half and was just clearly dominating but only managed 1 goal when at least another 2 or 3 were achievable.
The worrying sign here being that we tend to sometimes play over fancy football in the final third instead of just getting the job done. We dont truly know how good we are yet till we face better opposition.
Why and/or how do me always manage to give away goals in the last few minutes? Is it something psychological? Don´t we have good enough defensive coaching staff?
Chris, what exactly did Diaby do in this game to deserve such a low rating?
Sorry mate, I didn’t even rate Diaby.
For not doing what song was doing when he came on the pitch …. clear the ball and distribute clearly in the midield
Ramsey was in Song’s position, not Diaby.
Neither him or Fabregas were doing anything to control the midfield in the first 25. It was actually Diaby and Arshavin who created the first move which almost opened up the scoring – pretty much the only time Arsenal got seriously forward during the opening spell.
Another fine dispatch from the Gunners. This is the type of game – 3rd tier team pressuring high – they lost or drew in the last few years.
I understand everyone is frustrated by Diaby but the guy is 23 and we need to give him a chance to improve. I remember when many fans wanted Song “dead or sold” last year … Same for Denilson. Maybe he is not very physical but his pass rate at Xmas time last year was the highest in the EPL… Same for Gibbs.
I was very impressed by RVP. He spends a lot of time holding the ball and distributing. Most strikers would not think twice about hitting straight. His pass to Cesc was fantastic. Eduardo is making great progress although it would have been nice had he tried to pass back to Ramsey on what became a lucky second goal. Ramsey made too many straight passes to Wolves but it is good for him to get exposure. Looking at the bench and seeing Rosicky and Nasri I was telling myself for the first time in a LONG time that we have great depth. I would like to give a special praise to Bacary. What a work rate. When we have him and Clichy both playing, it’s like having 2 booster rockets helping the team surge forward.
My day was not the Wolves game but seeing Man City getting a reality check. These rich wannabes spent too much money talking to the press about being great before producing anything. You don’t buy great results, you earn them and they are FAR from being credible. Their team is a hodgepodge and if any of us have had the money available to buy, I doubt we would have made the same choices as Mark Hughes …
I think Almunia has actually got off very lightly in the ratings. When you go away to somewhere like Wolves if you get through the first 20 without conceding class will then tell. And the fact is if you look at Berra’s header again it was practically an open goal & there is absolutely no reason for Almunia not to have come out & claimed it. Could have been yet more points he would have cost us. He’s a decent keeper but good enough for a Championshio winning team ? Abslutely not.
That’s insane. That was poor marking, but again, its just any excuse to attack almunia. You can really imagine any other keeper coming and claiming that ball? ridiculous.
If he’d tried to come out, and berra had timed his run properly, almunia would have ended up very embarrassed, and you’d actually have a valid reason to attack him.
I think there’s a lot of better keepers out there which I would love at Arsenal, but in this instance, there were 6 or 7 bodies in Almunia’s way and not even Cassias would have claimed that corner.
Never said it wasn’t bad marking but he should have come & claimed it. It was fairly clear to me.Might not be to you but it was to me & everyone I was watching the game with.
‘insane’ ? cos I have a different opinion of an incident than you ?? Seriously mate that’s just ignorant.
No need to go at each other friends, there are a number of players who “divide” us when we analyse their performances.
Only time will tell of course.
Why would you take that to heart so much? Im not calling you insane, Im saying that of your view on the incident. Ignorant?
Ok, fair enough. I didnt see any hint that almunia should have claimed it, neither did anyone I spoke to or heard on the tv, but I disagree with them all the time anyway
I was quite shocked to see both Diaby and Ramsey in the starting line-up. Both dont have the confidence to hold onto the ball and build an attack (like Alex Song). When Song came on we had that base to build the attack and players like arshavin can go forward and not play deep in our own half. I don’t understand where Daiby fits into our team. What is his ROLE? He’s not defensively good enough to protect the back 4 and he’s not a big offensive threat either. Ramsey is young more games will give him confidence and experience in midfield. He will play with more freedom and wont get caught on the ball or give loose pass. Above all, yesterday’s game highlighted the fact that we need to get defensive midfielder to replace Song (when he needs to be rested, injured or when he goes to African Cup next yea).
1. Wolves cracked because of game strategy not because Diaby came off. When the goal came it was just about time that their naked defending, all out big-mouth-attacking-early-strategy falls apart, to a far superior and more experienced team despite of young age . Our team was concerned with defending as a whole… let the suckers fall for our quick counter attacks… did the wolves manager think his exposed defense would outrun Fabs, Andre, VP, or Eduardo on a fast break? Our boys played very good quick response critical football.
2. We just won a game with FOUR goals. Yes we let in a stupid goal towards the end but we had a great game.
3. Feedback about the game should not take away the fact that we are celebrating!
4. Is picking on Abou Diaby really helping the team or his morale? I mean especially after a win like this one (don’t tell me you weren’t slightly nervous before the match) I really don’t see the importance. Whether Abou Diaby would have had a bad game if he didn’t get injured is hypothetical – and unfair- considering he had a very good game last weekend.
5. Is Diaby really that useless?
Is he a liability? I don’t think so considering how much he brings to the team (despite his imperfections) with his strength, scoring ability, good crosses.. he is a versatile player but still needs experience which is helping him mature as a player. I really believe he will shut everybody up this season. I really hope your injury isn’t bad Abou… you have an important place on the pitch.. especially when Song is gone for the Cup of Nations in Africa.
6. I love how many players on our team are maturing…. as the team itself is maturing. Learning to seal the deal was a lesson well taught this season. Now it’s the issue of NOT conceding these silly silly goals near the end: when we’re about two or three goals ahead.
7. We’ve come a long way… our team is lovely… how many of us had 100% faith in Denilson last season? or Bendtner? Should I mention Song??! The depth in the team this season is great because of the maturity that hese players have achieved. Now the squad has so many players to call upon, and many recovering from injuries; different kinds of players from are available at Arsenal. This makes our team flexible and adapting to each match very well this season.. getting better day after day. Same thing Abou Diaby.. he’s also growing as we speak… even with his injury he’s learned something. Arsenal is PURE GENIUS.. it works…. the system really works. It has been a slow construction but a well rounded and strong one.
8. Let’s try
The trial is to see how we play against Sunderland if Abou doesn’t play next week.
There’s no football next week.
Arsenal will be back on Saturday, November 21.
You’re right… you think he’ll be ready?
Yes, he’s only “doubtful” for the France play-off so he will more than ready.
Honestly…. I’m glad.
My view of the Wolves goal, it’s Vermaelen’s man but he is nowhere near him to start with and then as he does move towards him he is blocked by Gallas who has let his man get in front of him – ironic both our centre backs lose position on their men because everyone else has good position on their opponent. Vermaelen then at the last moment bends over, I assume because he thinks his keeper is going to come over the top of him, if he did not get a call from the keeper then that was a very big assumption to make on his part, only the players themselves know whether a call was made.