I am intrigued by Lansbury. He is the captain of the England Under-19’s side and was man-of-the-match in one of their recent games. The way he strikes the ball is eerily similar to a certain David Beckham – indeed, Lansbury’s affinity for changing his hairstyle

Match Review – Burnley 2 Arsenal 0 – Carling Cup

It’s strange, as I type his minutes after the full-time whistle I feel more frustrated and sad than I did after the *meaningful* defeats against Villa and City. The kids that captured our hearts and minds have crashed out, and it is a crying shame that they will not get a two-legged semi-final to strut their stuff – largely thanks to Burnley’s monster of a goalkeeper, Brian Jensen.

With Carling Cup stalwarts (!) Song and Djourou having played against the Chavs on Sunday, Arsene resorted to fielding a real odd couple in the centre of defence: Mikael Silvestre and Paul Rodgers; with the former taking the armband. The only other change saw Nicklas Bendtner taking the place of Homer Jay Simpson, who could feel unfortunate after having contributed a brace in the previous round against Wigan.

And it was Bendtner who was the first to suffer at the hands of Brian Jensen in the Burnley goal. Having been played in by Randall, our Big Dane could only hit it straight at their Big Dane. Had that gone in, we may be rejoicing in a comfortable Arsenal victory right now…

But we’re not, and Burnley took the lead sixty seconds later. Chris Eagles was borderline offside before he crossed it into the ‘corridor of uncertainty’. Fabianski spilled under pressure and McDonald rolled home the rebound.

Some would say that going a goal behind for the first time in the competition was just what the doctor ordered as it provided a different challenge for the kids, a real test of character. Could we come out all guns blazing whilst keeping our cool at the back?

We should’ve equalised immediately, and it was a carbon copy of the first chance as Bendtner was once again thwarted by Jensen. Going a goal down had not overawed the kids, and Jack Wilshere – the youngest of the lot – provided a beautiful moment of skill in the centre circle that should’ve seen Graham Alexander booked.

Burnley posed a real threat on the counter though and as we pushed for an equaliser they often looked to play the ball behind our defence. Fabianski was called into action on numerous occasions and his handling was far from safe, but it was good enough to keep the deficit at just one.

Two of our stars of the tournament thus far were not having their best of days, but the pair combined in the twentieth minute. Aaron Ramsey had given away possession a few times but managed to slip the ball through to Carlos Vela, whose snapshot was gathered comfortably by Jensen.

One player who has divided the opinions of Gooners is Mark Randall. I personally have felt that he is sometimes lackadaisical in possession and rash in his challenges, whilst others believe that he does the “Invisible Wall” job pretty well. Having plied his trade at Turf Moor last season, the boy was in the thick of the action with ten minutes of the half remaining. First he had long-range effort that sailed over the bar, and then a minute later he was on the end of a sumptuous move involving Ramsey and Bendtner. Through one-on-one, he was again denied by Jensen – who was proving to be quite an obstacle. The square ball to Vela was on, but you can forgive Randall for having a pop. That kind of thing will come with maturity.

Having missed so many one-on-chances, I was exchanging texts with my mates Dschin and DJ. The general consensus was that had any of the chances fallen to Carlos Vela, he would have buried them. Furthermore, he would have probably chipped the keeper each time. So when the Mexican got on the end of Bendtner’s aerial flick-on, my eyes lit up. He advanced on goal but fell into the trap of hitting it low. “FUCKING chip it!” was one of the texts I received.

So we’d squandered four glorious opportunities in 45 minutes as the home side went in with a half-time lead. Their keeper was looking impenetrable. Was it going to be one of those days?

It certainly seemed like it three minutes into the second period. Fran Merida picked up the ball on the wing, went on a mazy run that left two players for dead and then beat the keeper with a curled effort. The only problem was that his shot beat the far post too as it went wide by a whisker. Excellent play by Fran though, his quick feet were Wilshere-esque. The boy Jack himself was having less of an influence on the game though, perhaps finding it difficult against the touch-tight attention of the Burnley players.

With Merida and Jack both having a penchant for coming infield, the change at half-time to bring Lansbury on at right-back was a welcome one. I am intrigued by Lansbury. He is the captain of the England Under-19’s side and was man-of-the-match in one of their recent games. The way he strikes the ball is eerily similar to a certain David Beckham – indeed, Lansbury’s affinity for changing his hairstyle is also similar to Goldenballs’. He is clearly not a right-back but did his defensive duties okay and got forward often, delivering some decent crosses. In a team full of tricky little speedsters, Lansbury offers something different.

The next goal would crucial. Were it to go in our favour then you felt that the momentum would carry us to victory. Against us, and it was pretty much game over.

And unfortunately it did go against us. Burnley won a throw in an unthreatening position in the 56th minute. It was taken quickly however and beat the sprawling Silvestre. Randall had shown good defensive instincts to track the runner, but having seemingly won the ball he was outthought and outfought as McDonald pounced to swerve it beyond Fabianski.

Changes were afoot as Homer came on for the quiet Wilshere to give us more directness down the flanks. But as we pressed for a goal we were left wide open at the back and could have conceded a third midway through the half were it not for a point-blank save from Fabianski following a Paterson header.

It truly was end-to-end stuff as barely seconds later Vela was clear at the end but Jensen smothered his low shot. To echo the words of my mates DJ and Dschin: “FUCKING CHIP IT SON!”

A plethora of changes by both sides killed the game’s flowing momentum. For us, Amaury Bischoff came on for Mark Randall in the centre. That Randall’s last act was to be muscled off the ball came as little surprise. Both central midfielders had found it difficult against Burnley’s high-octane pressing game and were often harried off the ball or gave away possession under pressure.

The final chance came with five minutes remaining, and it was a predictable duel. Vela capitalised on slip down the right flank and fed Bendtner, but he was once again bettered by Jensen in goal. It certainly wasn’t Nick’s night, and not just in terms of finishing either as he looked lethargic on the ball throughout the 90 minutes (see below). The last act of the game was a booking received by Fran Merida for frustration as Simpson looked to be impeded when running through on goal. It was never a foul, but I was glad to see that Fran obviously cared so much.

So that’s the end of that then. I am downhearted, but not disappointed. Instead I am massively proud of our Young Guns and thankful for the moments of light they have provided in a topsy-turvy season. Who can forget the flowing football when we demolished Sheffield United and Wigan? Who will ever forget Vela’s impudent chips in both those games? Who can say “I was there” to their grandchildren when talking about Arsenal legend Jack Wilshere’s first goal for the club? Awesome memories, and ones that I will forever cherish.

As usual there is the fallout from newspapers and blogs. The standard over-reaction bullshit. In any game where the opposition keeper is the outstanding player, you know you’ve been dealt a harsh hand. And what do you expect of players who are barely out of their teens? World-beating performances every time? No. And if you do, you are setting the bar unrealistically high. Sure the likes of Wilshere, Vela and Ramsey had an off-night, but in time those off-nights will be massively outweighed by the good nights. And for those three in particular, I think that time will come sooner than we expect.

My only real gripe is with Bendtner. Although the rest of the players were not at their best, at least they were committed. I have fought Bendtner’s corner these last few weeks, but I felt his performance smacked of arrogance. And it comes as no surprise. Of all the players, he is the one who knows that he is on the verge of first-team football and therefore has nothing to prove. Surely it would’ve been better to field the hungry Homer? But alas, you live and learn.

As for the immediate future for these youngsters, where next? Seeing as we’re out of the competition before January, it might be wise shipping some of them off on loan. I’m thinking the likes of Gibbs, Randall, Lansbury, Hoyte and Simpson. As for the more “developed” ones, will they feature heavily in the FA Cup? I personally would like to see it, but with the Carling Cup another trophy to cross off the wishlist, I feel Le Boss may properly go for the FA Cup this season and field our strongest team from the off. The aforementioned trio of Ramsey, Wilshere and Vela can at least expect some gametime from the bench.

So, to paraphrase a commentator I once heard:

“Arsenal sad, sad, sadly are out.”

But think of it this way. After we beat Sheffield United and Wigan, the senior players promptly went on to fuck up the feelgood factor around the Club by crashing to defeats against Hull and Villa, respectively, at home. Up next is Wigan at The Emirates. Cesc Fabregas, William Gallas, Emmanuel Adebayor, Robin van Persie: the baton is now in your hands. Let’s get some momentum going. COME ON YOU GUNNERS!