A rapid counter-attack saw Robin play in Theo with an inch-perfect through ball that nearly resulted in Ade extending our lead but the defender intervened. 4-1 would have been harsh on plucky Everton; 3-1 was just about right

Match Review – Arsenal 3 Everton 1 – Premier League

Friday morning, I wasn’t going to the game. Not out of protest or any such crap, but simply because I forgot to book tickets. Then Friday evening my mate DJ rang me and said he had a spare. Would I be up for it? HELL YES! I hadn’t been to a game since the kids’ drubbing of Sheffield United – which seems like an age ago now – so I’ve had the fortune to miss out on the results against Hull and Sunderland in the interim. My restoration to The Emirates coincided with the team’s return to winning ways. Coincidence? Probably. But if anyone wants to give me their season ticket to test the theory out, I’m more than willing to participate 😀

Oh yeah, the game. Having met DJ and his missus, I got into a resplendent Emirates some 15 minutes before kick-off. Bathed in glorious autumnal sunshine, it truly was a sight to behold. Any Gooners who have yet to make the trip to The New Home Of Football MUST do so. We took our seats just in time for Elvis, which is now accompanied by a video of the Club’s recent happy memories. A nice touch and long overdue.

Injuries to Gallas, Djourou and Sagna had severely limited our defensive options. There was no doubt of the personnel, just the positions. We knew Silvestre would start, but alongside who? Would Song play there, shifting Kolo out wide? Or would Kolo stay in the middle with Eboue dropping to right-back and Song in midfield? In the end, Kolo and Eboue stayed in their normal positions of centre-half and right-midfield, respectively. A wise move, I felt, as it limited the positional changes and the only man out of place was Song.

Remember our first year at the Emirates where we always conceded first? With retro being all the fashion these days, it looked like the players wanted to join in too. No more than 10 minutes of nothingness had elapsed before we conceded. A failure to win the ball in midfield eventually saw Osman play in Pienaar down the left before prodding home the return ball. In my eyes, two players were at fault. Song was caught out of position, unsurprisingly; and Denilson didn’t track Osman’s run. As the players resumed their stations for the kick-off, I looked around and could not see a single player cajoling his team-mates. A lack of leadership was the last thing we needed at one-goal down.

However (and this may sound ludicrous) I was not overly upset. Why? Firstly, we’re all used to seeing our beloved Gooners concede first. Secondly, the goal came in open play so cannot be blamed to shoddy set-piece defending. Thirdly, it wasn’t a screamer: when we concede from 30-yards it always makes me feel that the Gods are against us. And fourthly, it came mighty early so we had plenty of time to turn things around.

I spoke to Mean Lean before the game and the general consensus was that if the players’ attitudes were correct, then we’d win. Whilst I wouldn’t put the goal down to poor attitude, there was no doubt that the players needed something to shake them out of their stupor. Le Boss used the phrase “a tentative start” in his post-match interview, which is pretty much correct. However, the players were still semi punch-drunk after the goal and couldn’t grab an equaliser before half-time. I bemoaned this fact to DJ, saying that we never equalise early and always leave to the last minute, after which there is no time to grab a winner.

That said, we really should have squared things barely five minutes later. A raking long-ball from Cesc was controlled superbly on the chest by Robin, and having got across Lescott he was one-on-one with Howard twelve-yards out. His finish was sorely lacking in quality, however, as he simply hit it straight at the keeper. The thing with Robin is that he is not a natural finisher a la Eduardo or even Vela, so he cannot just produce it out of nowhere. He needs a run of games, form and scruffy goals to find his confidence and tune his radar. Good thing he grabbed a goal in the second-half, hopefully he is now in the groove.

Goalscorer Osman was proving to be the dangerman down the other end. Strong running from Yakubu ended with Osman nearly doubling the Toffees’ lead. It was straight from the Frank Lampard Book Of Flukey Goals, a medium-paced daisy cutter taking a wicked deflection to send the keeper sprawling. Thankfully Silvestre’s intervention was strong enough to send the ball wide of the post, as opposed to inside it.

Although we weren’t playing at full throttle, chances were still being created. Both Nasri and Ade were unable to get any purchase on their efforts from inside the box due to pressure from the Everton defence. Ade too sent a header over the bar, whilst Robin hit one high and wide following an Eboue-led counter. The Dutchman provided a greater threat from dead-ball situations as his fizzed free-kick was fisted away by Howard. Cesc arrowed a long-range effort wide before doing the same with a cross-shot from inside the box. The Spaniard’s general excellence masks the fact that he is currently not on top form – an average performance from him is akin to a world-beating one from Jermaine Jenas.

Amongst all this, two issues raised their ugly heads. Ade went down cheaply in the box looking for a penalty and was rightly booked, whilst our old set-piece flaws nearly saw the impressive Lescott grab a second but Gael Clichy calmly cleared it off the line. Almunia argued that he’d been blocked off, but his obstacles were red shirted as well as blue.

The half-time whistle blew and boos engulfed the stadium. The negativity had permeated into my thinking and was exacerbated by news of Chelsea’s five-nil hammering of Boro away. I jokingly remarked that we should stop worrying about Chelsea, Liverpool and Man Utd; instead our attention should turn to the likes of Man City, Villa, Pompey and Hull in the race for fourth place. Although it was said in jest, deep down I suspect many Gooners were feeling the same at the break as we stared down the barrel of another defeat.

News that Kolo had picked up an injury is always a negative. But his withdrawal had a positive spin as it forced Wenger’s hand early. He brought on Theo who would have a full 45 minutes to effect proceedings as opposed to the token 15 minutes he would have usually got. With Kolo off, I mistakenly assumed that Cesc would take on the captain’s mantle. There and then I loudly proclaimed that I had a good feeling about the upcoming 45 minutes, and that if we scored early we’d go on to grab three. How right I was, even if I say so myself!

Yakubu nearly put paid to my theory ASAP as he got in behind but Almunia was quick off the mark. And then the comeback began on 48 minutes. Everton cleared a corner but Denilson won the second ball before Silvestre exhibited a deft touch and presence of mind to lay the ball off to Nasri, who fired home from 20-yards. Alex Hleb he is not. The ball went through Lescott’s legs – something which always makes it harder for keepers to save. All of a sudden the moans and groans of the first period had transformed into a cacophony of noise. The Emirates was rocking.

We began to build a head of steam but then came the flashpoint moment on the hour. Nasri and Denilson showed excellent tenacity to emerge with the ball before Hibbert came in with a crunching (albeit fair) tackle. This got Gael’s goat as he politely enquired just what the fuck Hibbert was playing at. Hibbert proceeded to raise his hands and grab Gael by the throat. The result? A yellow card each. “You’re not fit to referee” suddenly became a popular chant around the Grove; the bile all the more vitriolic due to the non-award of a penalty some two minutes earlier.

Gael might not have had the armband in the second-half (who did?) but he certainly acted like a skipper in that moment as he rushed to defend a mate. And although the break in play saw our momentum briefly wane, we took the lead with twenty minutes left. Ade thought he was Kanu as he dillied and dallied in front of goal before deciding to square the ball to Cesc, whose point-blank effort was palmed by Howard onto the forehead of RvP. The Dutchman made no mistake in nodding it home from six-yards. It was no less than we deserved on the strength of our second-half performance. The players had pulled their fingers out and got their just rewards.

The flashpoint had moved from the pitch to the stands. I was sitting in the North End and had a clear long-distance view of a ruckus developing between Everton fans in the South End and the stewards. Knowing what I now know, it is clear that this was provoked by some members of the Arsenal faithful in the upper tier hurling objects at the opposition fans below them. Is there really any need for that, guys?

With the Everton fans’ attentions focused on the goings on around them, their team posed little threat in grabbing an equaliser, although with this Arsenal team you sensed that we needed a third before they grabbed a second. That clincher came in injury time and was from a most welcome source. The man who set it up was Abou Diaby, back in the squad after a long injury layoff. The goalscorer was a certain Theo Walcott, who for all his plaudits on the international scene had only scored once in the red and white of Arsenal thus far this season. The two linked up well down the right as Theo fed Diaby before sprinting onto the end of the lanky Frenchman’s cutback to ram the ball between Howard’s legs and into the bottom corner. It was a far-from-easy angle so his finish should not be underestimated. I was most definitely a fan of Theo’s celebration too as he sprinted to the fervent Red Section and slid on his knees.

A rapid counter-attack saw Robin play in Theo with an inch-perfect through ball that nearly resulted in Ade extending our lead but the defender intervened. 4-1 would have been harsh on plucky Everton; 3-1 was just about right.

So in the end a deserved win. It’s a shame that this team needed a wake-up call, but then again they have just come back from an international break so maybe a slow start was to be expected. With no international disruptions on the horizon, one hopes that, like RvP, the entire team can now get into the groove and start firing on all cylinders from the off. Lord knows we’re gonna have to because Chelsea and Man Utd look ominously strong while the Scousers are emulating our fast start to last season.

One final word before I sign off. Mikael Silvestre. Unlike some Arsefans, I personally don’t have a lingering dislike for him. Sure, he was part of that cunting ManUre side which cunted us up every so often, but I am more than happy to look past that if he can shore up our defence. And by the sound of the reaction his name game got in the pre-game announcement of the lineup, I think most fans are also ready to forgive and/or forget. As far as debuts go, I think this was a pretty strong one. He may have made the odd error, but pobody’s nerfect. Yakubu is no easy player to make a debut against, but I thought Silvestre kept him in check pretty well. I loved the fact that he was mentally willing and physically able to challenge for the ball in the air and am hoping that he can dovetail with either Kolo or Gallas. While he may not be in the echelon of Ferdinand, Vidic, Terry or Carvalho in terms of aerial dominance, he is definitely a step-up from our existing incumbents.

Up next is Fenerbahce away on Tuesday. Hopefully we get a few players back from injury by then, especially at the back.

P.S. who the hell was captain in the second-half???? I first wrongly assumed it was Cesc and then Gael. Are you telling me that we came from behind and scored three goals without a skipper? Now that’s impressive. Away with the notion of a captain methinks. All for one and one for all, let the mascot handle the pre-match coin toss 😉