Arsenal had a massive 87% possession of the ball after the first 5 minutes, quite amazing I thought to myself, I then started dreaming about keeping that up for 90 minutes, that would be fun

Match Review – Arsenal 0 Fenerbahce 0 – Champions League

It is a strange feeling when you are happy to play against a team in the Champions League rather than a side who face relegation in our domestic league, but hey that has been one of the main problems with this Arsenal team over the last few years.

I scratched my head continuously before the game thinking about what team would be sent out with Manchester United in mind on Saturday.

Van Persie has to play as he has three matches off for a silly foul against the Stoke goalkeeper. But would he play on the left of a 5 man midfield or would he partner someone in attack?

There were other questions about Abou Diaby, Johan Djourou and Sami Nasri. Would they play and where would they be plonked in.

I was expecting the usual match day shock selection somewhere in the team and as usual I got just that. Fabianaki replaced Almunia in goal with young Aaron Ramsey playing on the right of midfield. Denilson partnered Cesc in central midfield.

Luckily Arsene played Van Persie alongside Bendtner instead of playing Robin in midfield.

I was expecting to see Djourou playing at right back and keep Toure in the middle for continuity purposes, so I was shocked but pleased. It was about time Djourou got a chance to play as I feel that he did not put a foot wrong at the start of the season alongside Gallas, He is the one player who has an ariel presence about him. He is also very good with the ball at his feet.

After the away match in Turkey I felt that they had pretty much no chance against us at our home at Ashburton Grove. But what I was hoping for was another entertaining attacking show of football, especially from us.

The game started pretty well, we looked sharp in possession of the ball and our shape looked very good. I smiled when I noticed that Ramsey’s first real contribution was to snap into a tackle on our right hand side of the pitch. We have been missing that so far this season and the more experienced players should take a leaf from the Welshman.

Arsenal had a massive 87% possession of the ball after the first 5 minutes, quite amazing I thought to myself, I then started dreaming about keeping that up for 90 minutes, that would be fun, then I came back to reality and concentrated on what was in front of me.

Roberto Carlos gave the ball away in 7 minutes, Cesc Fabregas drove forward and spotted Van Persie’s diagonal run across the box. The Spaniard chipped a curled pass into his path, an exquisite effort but the pass was a little ahead of the Dutchman who managed to get a toe poke on it which went wide of the far post as well as being clattered by the goalkeeper for his troubles.

A few minutes later Fabregas picked out Aaron Ramsey who managed to work an angle for himself and got a right footed strike away which Volkan the Fenerbahce goalkeeper held onto.

Ramsey did not look overly comfortable playing as a right winger and he looked very static and kept coming drifting inside. Arsene made a tactical change during the first half with Bendtner pushing wider on the right with Ramsey having more freedom in the middle.

Arsenal were having a lot of joy in between Roberto Carlos and their center back. Robin Van Persie slipped through in that channel once, his cross was deflected back to Nasri who could not get control of the ball and the chance was gone.

Robin Van Persie was presented with the best chance of the game on 31 minutes. Nasri worked space on the left and chipped a lovely pass into the feet of Cesc who made a run into the box. Cesc lifted the ball across the box trying to find Bendtner but the keeper got there first his punch landed at the feet of Van Persie who volleyed onto the foot of the defender and the ball flew over the bar from close range.

Arsenal were passing the ball very well and created chances but the problem was the front pairing. Robin Van Persie and Nicklas Bendtner are two deep strikers who need pace and movement ahead of them. With both Adebayor and Theo Walcott out injured we were severally lacking outlets.

Bendtner was not having his best game in an Arsenal shirt, misplacing his passes on too many occasions and will have to improve on Saturday.

Denilson had a fantastic game in the middle of the park, I was very impressed with the way he pressed the Fenerbache players and won the ball back countless times to start attacks.

Johan Djourou had a flawless game at the back, he was strong, good on the floor and more importantly won everything that came his way in the air. The Swiss international did not put a foot wrong at the start of the season and should not have been swept to one side when Toure came back after injury. He deserves a run in the side but with Gallas back for the weekend he could be out in the cold once again.

Sami Nasri had a curling effort exaggeratedly palmed away by Volkan on the 38th minute.

Robin had another effort that hit the bar after good feet earlier in the half, the keeper managed to get fingers on the shot. It just wasn’t happening for Arsenal in the final third.

Half time 0-0.

The ball ended up in the net on 52 minutes but it was ruled out as Van Persie pushed Carlos before he headed into the net.

The performance levels dropped from the players in the second half. Our passing got worse as the second half went on. Nasri kept giving the ball away and was not influencing the game the way he can do. Cesc Fabregas was guilty of many misplaced passing. It may have been a good time to rest Cesc for Diaby as he is the only one who hasn’t had a breather and has looked out of sorts in the last few weeks.

Diaby did make an appearance along with Carlos Vela on the 60 minute mark. Ramsey and Bendtner were the ones to be replaced. Nasri switched to the right with Diaby playing on the left. I personally think that Diaby’s drive would have been needed in the middle of the pitch as we were having so much of the ball without creating anything.

On 64 minutes Diaby produced a fantastic drag back on the left hand side of the box but his cross was cut out. Diaby is an amazingly talented player who still cannot find a place in this Arsenal team. Playing him wide is not the long term answer for him.

The rest of the second half was very scrappy with Arsenal not really creating any clear cut chances. Sami Nasri looked more direct on the right and had a bit more purpose about him but he was still giving the ball away on a regular basis.

Kolo Toure playing at right back was causing problems for the Fenerbache defence, he was powering past players and opening space but his final pass or cross let him down time after time. A bit of composure from Toure could have resulted in at least 1 goal during the 90 minutes.

On 83 minutes Mikel Silvestre received a swung arm from captain Semih. Silvestre went down in pain and was finally taken off with a broken nose. It would be a personal shame for him if he is to miss the game on Saturday. Alex Song came on to replace him.

I still assumed that we would find the winner and normally I am not that confident if we haven’t scored during the first 70 minutes. It wasn’t to be, the final whistle blew and discontent resurfaced around the Emirates.

There were some positives to take from the game. Our first half showing was good, we passed the ball well and should have taken one of our chances. The two D’s, Denilson and Djourou played very well in their positions. The side also kept a clean sheet which seems to be a rare thing these days. The not so good were the lack of goals and misplaced passes from our most creative two midfielders on the pitch.

So next up we face Manchester United which could vital for the season even at this early stage. The chance to jump 3 points on a rival is always a good thing and at any time.

We should welcome back Capi Galli and Theo Walcott who may have a tough time against the speed and experience Evra.

But hopefully we can find some more cutting edge. If there is one team that can shake this side into life it is Manchester United.