Tag Archives: Champions League

SSC Napoli 2 – 0 Arsenal

1 – 0 Higuain (74)
2 – 0 Callejón (90)

Sent Off: Arteta (76)

It seemed like a good idea at the time. A pastiche of Bjørge Lillelien’s commentary, evoking the spirit of famous Neapolitans, a city famous for its poets, composers, politicians and revolutionaries. Its footballers and other cultural icons such as Sophia Loren but from the darkness emerged the name that at once provoked amusement, bewilderment and the likelihood that this wasn’t such a good idea after all. I had entirely forgotten that Bud Spencer was Italian but never knew he was a Neapolitan. When your trip through names takes you from Fabio Canavaro to Sophia Loren to Pope Urban VI and ends at Bud Spencer, it is probably a good time to let that notion float into the ether.

That’s before you consider that Arsenal did not win. And by Christ it was a painful last ten seconds or so.

But does it matter? After all, the objective was to qualify, first and foremost. The second objective was to win the group. We can argue all we like about a goal more at home to avoid defeat to Dortmund but what of one more away? Having achieved the first and continued the European campaign into 2014, are there really any grounds for complaint, especially when failure to qualify was a predicted outcome as soon as the draw was made? That disappointment is registering reflects expectations, of the improvement in Arsenal this season over last.

Ultimately, we can think what we want now – and Monday’s draw for the knockout round allows plenty of time to ponder – but February and March are a long time away. Form now means nothing then; a dip here and now will rarely impact then – if form drops that long it is a slump or worse. If there is anything worse than a slump in form, of course.

So to last night. To be honest there was little between the two sides in the San Paulo. Did Napoli want it more or was necessity greater? The latter is closer to the truth and Arsenal were reluctant to engage in an expansive game, understandably since the onus was upon their hosts to deliver victory. And all the while Dortmund were being held, little incentive existed for Arsenal to become more open in their game.

And then Dortmund took the lead, challenging Arsenal and winding Napoli, upon the realisation dawned that one goal was not enough. More traumatising was to score a second only to hear the referee signal the final whistle almost immediately the game had restarted. It was the moment relief coursed through the veins, no joyous rapture at finishing top of the group but a sense of disappointment founded in the knowledge that a trip to the tournament’s top seeds awaited. Or, as Arsène forlornly hoped afterwards, a touch of luck and the ball of Atletico Madrid is drawn immediately after Arsenal’s.

Post-match, the manager did not hide the reasons for the lack of adventure on the pitch,

We prepared well and were concentrated but we were a bit in between ‘do we attack or do we defend’. It is difficult to cope with that problem. In the second half, I felt that our legs went a little bit and Napoli were sharper physically than us.

Arsenal defended well for the first hour without offering much by way of attack, the only real chance came with Olivier Giroud drawing a good save from Rafael Cabral; the resultant rebound came quickly and at a difficult height for Özil to capitalise on. Replays suggest that a cross from Giroud would have left a simple tap-in for Flamini; ifs, buts and maybes.

At the other end, Mertesacker and Koscielny marshalled the troops and contained the home side for more than an hour, Napoli rarely troubling Wojciech Szczesny. They had their moments, Pandev in the first half  and Armero in the second drew saves from the Pole. He will reflect on a slice of luck that he enjoyed as the ball flashed across the goal without an attacking foot applying the finishing touch but Higuain and his cohorts invariably lifted efforts high and wide, occasionally both. All the while Arsenal remained in top place and in truth not particularly in danger of failing to qualify.

That changed as the match entered the final fifteen minutes; Higuain spun and hit a low drive past Szczesny. The match changed with that goal yet surprisingly Napoli did not become more adventurous; perhaps they needed more encouragement? That came with the dubious decision to dismiss Arteta for his second yellow card of the game. An exaggerated reaction from Callejón ensured the referee paid more attention to the incident. That the Arsenal player made the challenge from behind, no matter how innocuous the contact, in this competition, it is the type of challenge which elicits a yellow card. Arteta is experienced enough to know that and in that sense, the dismissal was disappointing, the Spaniard lured into and springing the trap. Which is easy to say for the watching public; for players it must drive them to distraction – another inconsistent interpretation from referees around the world.

And still you sensed Napoli were listening too intently to events on the Côte d’Azur, too driven by Dortmund’s failure to take the lead against the group’s poorest side. And when that happened, they had left themselves too little time to become adventurous or make their numerical advantage count. Arsenal were shepherding the game into its single goal outcome when Callejón got to the ball to lift it over the onrushing Szczesny and into the net.

There is little argument that Napoli deserved to win, they were the better team in the second half with Benitez responding to the stalemate. It is hard (harsh?) to criticise Wenger for his approach to the game. His defence held firm in the first half, carrying out orders as the midfield passed the ball around quickly but without real attacking intent. The difficulty in that balancing act became evident when Higuain scored but in truth, had you been in Wenger’s shoes why would you change anything until that point when the point was all that was needed.

Ultimately, that is inconsequential as Arsenal progressed and move onto Saturday’s trip to Manchester. The Champions League can wait, the Premier League takes precedence for the next couple of months, the small matter of the FA Cup’s North London Derby a distraction between now and February’s knockout stage.

’til Tomorrow.

A point might not even be needed but frankly, nobody wants to rely on Marseilles with their wretched European form. It might be the night when they spring to life, taking advantage of Dortmund’s descent in recent weeks, a spiralling of results with which Arsenal are all too uncomfortably familiar at this time of year.

That is probably the opening paragraph to the post had last season’s autumnal form been replicated but it hasn’t which says encapsulates the changes of the past twelve months. Arsenal travel to Naples for a decisive Champions League safe in the knowledge that they are in control of their own destiny and comfortable that Arsène can rotate the squad yet still put out a side that is capable of taking the point they need to qualify for the second round. Times change indeed.

I don’t think much rotation will take place. It is the kind of match ripe for Theo Walcott to return, his pace will force his markers to be less adventurous as well as offering Arsenal a snap outlet for counter-attack. Wenger has used the England international sparingly in recent weeks, ensuring his comeback has been measured and not risk-laden; planning for tonight as his first start, perhaps? Rotation, of course, is not half the squad in one go but managing fatigue and injuries, certainly in midfield where his talent pool is deep. Some occasions permit changing half the team, testing Wenger’s maxim that two or three is the maximum permitted before the stability of the side is negatively impacted.

And the settled side, no matter how forced the situation, is one of the reasons for Arsenal success this season. A settled back four and midfield has been crucial, especially the former which Wojciech Szczesny pinpointed as the key plank upon which the top of the Premier League and Champions League has been founded. Knowing what teammates are going to do, where they will be, that they will support has bred confidence in passing and scoring, manifesting in the ultimate team goal by Wilshere or Sunday’s snaffled by Özil; support and movement. And plenty of that will be required tonight, Napoli have their own motivation, knowing a heavy win will put them through at Arsenal’s expense. A hard working team performance by the visitors will be needed to ensure that they are not pushed onto the back foot too soon.

It is always a tricky situation for a team, knowing a draw is good enough. To play for that seems an inherently risky strategy, one where a defensive bent to a performance is necessary at the expense of the attack. Fall a goal behind and the balance shifts, equalise and revert to type. Perhaps it is why that policy has been on Arsenal’s part not to do so; the side which won in Istanbul, Marseilles and Dortmund was not set for a draw; it was sent out not to lose which is a different mentality and a point Laurent Koscielny underlined,

We showed some good character and were very strong in defence, then had the opportunity to score, which we took. “Tomorrow it will be like that again

For this evening, it would be easy to look back at the match between the two sides at The Emirates and think slotting Flamini into midfield would be enough of a change. Wenger has noted there are no “major” signs of fatigue, a subtlety that notes some players looked knackered on Sunday hence the triple substitution midway through the second half. Flamini will no doubt return to the side tonight and it is a move that Kevin Campbell believes the Frenchman is crucial to any success this season,

They’ve always been good going forward – it’s always been in transition, when they lose the ball, that it’s been difficult but Flamini prides himself on being that defensive shield

It is going to be a busy evening; Napoli have to score three times and will look to put early pressure on, probing for weaknesses with a fervour that would make aliens blush. Crucially, Arsenal have to avoid a repeat of the Milanese collapse and are more than capable of doing so. Wenger used to speak of resilience a lot, as if he was trying to convince the players that they possessed that characteristic when in truth, it was sporadically shown at best. Now it is displayed regularly, it is barely mentioned. Interestingly, Campbell thinks the best is yet to come,

They went to Dortmund and won and Dortmund made the final last year. Why not? A lot of it is belief and hitting form at the right time, I don’t think Arsenal have hit their top form yet either.

In the same article, the spirit of Copenhagen in 1994 was evoked by Alan Smith; the odds that night were more heavily in the Italian side’s favour, Parma were I suppose, the Napoli equivalent of that era. Arsenal are a level or two above the team which won that night. Perhaps that is the cautionary note for this evening? Arsenal are favourites to progress but nothing is impossible.

Whatever line-up Wenger fields will be good enough on paper to achieve that aim and I would expect it to be:

Szczesny; Jenkinson, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Gibbs; Arteta, Ramsey Flamini; Walcott, Özil; Giroud

Enjoy the match wherever you are watching it.

’til Tomorrow.

The day before the night before the day before kick-off arrives. Thank God, women were invented otherwise another word for Eve would have been needed. OK so that’s the creationist vs evolution argument started, the entrée to the theology debate. Or we could just do what the squad don’t and talk about titles. We know they don’t talk about it because Carl Jenkinson told us they don’t talk about the table. Which is tough on Per Mertesacker who has spent all that money in Ikea and has no-one to tell…

This coming fortnight ought to have a title, the number of matches coming up which ‘big’ preceding them. For once, the media are not overplaying the next fourteen days or so – before a ball has been kicked at least; hype and over-reaction will be comfortable bedfellows once the first ball in the next three games has been kicked in anger. Focus is the key message the players are putting across, ensuring everyone knows that Napoli are the first and only thoughts at the moment. Mathieu Flamini fired the first salvo,

It is going to be a busy period for us and we just have to focus. What would be good for us will be three victories, but we know it is not going to be easy because we will be playing three big teams with a lot of quality. This busy period is also going to be important for the players, that we can recover as soon as possible because we play already on Wednesday, but it will be interesting to see what happens after these three games.

These are all big games, the ones you want to play in, and everyone is excited to be playing in them. It will be an interesting period for everyone and hopefully a good one for us.

The midfielder might get his chance in the San Paulo. The combative style allied to Arteta’s more cerebral passing forced the Neapolitans onto the back foot in the match at The Emirates. It is too much to expect a repeat of that performance but anywhere approaching that level will be good enough to progress to the knockout phase. A point is enough to finish top and Arsenal do not want to put themselves into a position whereby they are relying on Marseilles for any help. As poor as Dortmund’s recent form has been, the French side have been even staggeringly worse in Europe. When the draw was made, nobody predicted the three-way battle at the top would result in the former European Champions failing to register a point.

Jenkinson added,

It is going to be a tough game — they are going to be battling because they want to qualify just as much as us. We will work hard and go out there with the confidence that we have from our recent results and, hopefully, come back with the result we want.

The visit of Everton on Sunday will have done the team the world of good. Recent matches had seemed too easy, the victories had been too straightforward which undermines how well Arsenal had played; it was that level of performance which made games seem routine. It is that level of performance which is hard to maintain and dips such as Sunday, when opponents are better in quality and more disciplined in their tactical approach, are welcome in the sense that it reminds the players how hard they have worked to put themselves at the top of the Premier League table. A gentle nudge every now and then does no harm. The tactical fouling will have served as useful preparation for tonight’s encounter, to drop in a casual stereotype about Italian football.

No doubt Arsène will rotate one or two tomorrow; Santi Cazorla, for instance, appears to be suffering with the volume of football and the mileage accumulated with the Spanish national team probably does not help. Fifa as with all their posturing, do nothing to cut the level of football being played with meaningless and spurious international tournaments puncturing summers when there should be complete rest. Clubs are no better; English football could well do without the League Cup for the top flight and relegate that to the status of The Football League Trophy. It is little better thought of. Equally, a Premier League with two less teams involved is preferable and more in line with the rest of Europe.

But that is some way from happening. For all of its global appeal, parochialism still rules the roost in football.

’til Tomorrow.

Arsenal 2 – 0 Olympique de Marseille

1 – 0 Wilshere (1)
2 – 0 Wilshere (65)

The performance didn’t matter, the result did. Three points was required on an inconclusive evening for this season’s Champions League Group of Death. As it happened, the performance was good; tidy, professional and of such authority that the result was rarely in doubt. Yes, more goals would have been nice, They were not a necessity because if as expected Dortmund win in France in a fortnight, Marseilles contribution to this season’s competition is irrelevant. It all rests on Arsenal not losing by three goals in Naples in a fortnight’s time.

Jack Wilshere grabbed the headlines with a brace of well-taken goals crowning an excellent outing but there were several candidates for Man of the Match, not least Nacho Monreal who gave a commanding performance at left back. The Spaniard dropped seamlessly into the side, offering reassurance to his manager that had has nothing to worry about ill-fortune striking that side of the defence. Context is all and the French side were as poor as any that has been seen in the competition over the years, surprisingly so given they sit fourth in Ligue Un. Thankfully, Arsenal do not have to rely on them to get a result to qualify; their final standing in the group will be as a result of their own efforts.

Afterwards, Arsène struggled to find reasons to dampen enthusiasm – perhaps temper expectations is a better phrase – left instead to ponder if it would have been nice to score a few more. It would apparently so it was left to other as rows simmered with Andy Townsend‘s exhortation of Marseilles efforts waiting to be passed off as him wanting the viewer to be entertained rather than being acknowledged as the latest addition to ITVs catalogue of woeful behaviour toward the club. Mathieu Flamini meanwhile is not being allowed to play with scissors any more as the media sought to build up a mutiny over shirt sleeves. It is all window dressing, a sideshow to distract from a routine European win.

There is a rigidity in thought about the tactics employed as the manager sought to explain. Just because Jack Wilshere is notionally on the right of midfield does not make him glued to the touchline. Indeed, “drifting inside” paid dividends inside the first minute as the England international found ample space to gallop toward the Marseille penalty area, look up to see no-one waiting for the cross so took the ball inside and neatly curled it into the net. Twenty-nine seconds on the clock and the fastest goal by an Englishman in the history of the Champions League. Whether that encompasses the Champions Cup, I know not. As good as the finish was, it contained a hint of what was to come from the visitors with Mandanda beaten too easily and the rest of the defence seemingly unaware that Wilshere was left-footed; there can be no plausible explanation beyond that for the space they afforded him and the manner he was shepherded into the middle. Such generosity from a team which can ill-afford it.

There was much to admire in the second as well. Arsenal ceded possession a couple of times before finally making the telling pass to Mesut Özil whose curled pass into the middle of the area was gleefully slotted home. Poor marking again but Wilshere concentrated and made sure that he stayed onside in a position where all to often wide players fall foul of the linesman’s flag. For the German it was redemption of sorts having taken one of the worst penalties from an Arsenal player. Not quite in the league of Pires and Henry but not far off it. Typically Arsenal you might think, to sign the only German international who makes England look good at spot kicks.

Redemption might have come sooner had the referee had the courage of Mark Clattenburg at the weekend, missing his second penalty incident of the night. Arsenal could – should – have been comfortable in victory by then. Rosicky was priming with energetic movement as Özil and Wilshere roamed freely. Ramsey ought to have done better from close range as Wilshere teed him up for the sort of chance that he gobbled up earlier in the season. With all the talk beforehand, it was no surprise his mojo went missing; the football gods are like that.

Other chances came and went, before and after Wilshere had completed the win. That they were not scored is not a cause for concern, Arsenal were barely out of second gear whilst Marseilles rejigged side offered little. When they did, Wojciech Szczesny was alert and sharp in his reactions, in particular from Thauvin as the second half wore on. That the chances for the visitors were so few and far between highlights the cohesive performance between the back four and midfield. Had his sleeves not been so ragged, Flamini would surely have rolled them up as readily as he did metaphorically with his pressing and snapping at the visitors when they ventured into mildly threatening positions. If that barrier were by-passed, Per Mertesacker provided as big an obstacle as you might expectt. BFG indeed.

Twelve points, so the mantra goes, is enough to qualify in previous years. It might well be this time also but that relies on the efforts of others, something Arsenal have steadfastly avoided thus far. It highlights how costly the moment of naïvety in the home match against Dortmund might be. Yet the performances aside from that game suggest Arsenal are more than capable of achieving the result they need in Naples. Explosive atmosphere or not, you sense not much is knocking the side out its stride at present. The international break, for once, seems to have done them no harm at all.

’til Tomorrow.

Borussia Dortmund 0 – 1 Arsenal

0 – 1 Ramsey (62)

Arsenal added the scalp of Borussia Dortmund to their list of impressive victories on European fields. Looking at the names of Juventus, Real Madrid, AC Milan, Internazionale and Bayern Munich, it seems that Barcelona is the glaring omission. Arsenal have put themselves to within four points of having the opportunity to hand out that invitation in the later rounds of the knockout

Dortmund had the greater possession, they had as many clear chances, they ran more; they were the dominant side until Arsenal scored. And with Aaron Ramsey’s strike, they rocked and rolled as quick-fire chances came Arsenal’s way to finish the job. It was music to Arsène Wenger’s ears, enjoying defensive diligence which laid a solid base from which the evergreen and ever-impressive Rosicky, Cazorla and Özil could orchestrate attacks.

Sycophancy has been a key feature of this double-header. The media have fawned over Klopp, some of the Arsenal fanbase likewise. Those diametrically opposed have poured scorned over his theatrics, taking them too much to heart. Arsène got on with preparing his side in one of minor rings, allowing the circus to take centre stage. And after the performance, when the plaudits fell, there was something genuine in the Dortmund coach’s assessment of the victors,

Arsenal have the quality to win the Champions League. They are young, healthy and good technically. They were clever enough to get a result tonight.

Of course they can win the final if they don’t play against Bayern Munich

The odds would be in the Bavarians favour but a one-off match? Anything is possible but that is to get ahead of ourselves. I am not sure that this was a better win than in Munich, Arsenal are certainly in better form and it was a fixture where victory was never ruled out. Indeed, a lot of us were oddly confident of winning this one. Bayern in contrast to Dortmund’s visit to The Emirates, had dominated from start to finish and unarguably, Arsenal were in far poorer form. The win last night serves to reinforce recent stumbles as relatively minor.

A clean sheet was crucial last night and the cohesion of the first half performance made that possible. Mkhitaryan aside, Dortmund assumed the ascendency without creating genuine opportunities. The second half was different, Reus should have scored but missed woefully with his header whilst a goal was rightly chalked off for offside. A signal of Arsenal’s confidence that they were prepared to throw the offside trap into their defensive repetoire. As the match progressed, it seemed that Mikel Arteta’s booking would be a millstone and a red card seemed inevitable. The Spaniard gesticulated, his frustration grew with the theatrics designed to reduce Arsenal to ten men but he concentrated, focussed and epitomised the performance. Forced onto the back foot, he grew stronger throughout negating the calls – based on the understandable concern over finishing the match with a reduced compliment – for Vermaelen to replace him.

It is hard to single individuals out; you genuinely would need to run through one to eleven or one to ninety-nine or whatever the highest shirt number was on the pitch. The team worked together, a continuation of Saturday and it lasted for the whole match. As well-drilled as Dortmund were – and again they filed diligently into their banks of four, close to each other – when Arsenal had the ball, they were themselves hassled and picked off by the visitors. That was the crucial change and the energy was there for the whole of the game; there was no flying start, there was a performance level which never dropped. It was epitomised in the second half by Rosicky’s robust challenge, the fall from Lewandowski hardly needed theatrics such was the ferocity of the Czech’s challenge.

When the goal came, Arsenal could have had more. Ramsey followed in Giroud’s header from Özil’s chip into the box. It was typical of the Welshman’s tenacity this season, his confidence to follow the ball and anticipate the knock-down. It also signalled a time for Dortmund to reel, Ramsey, Giroud and Mertesacker might have doubled the lead with the Germans barely knowing how they had denied all three opportunities. Arsenal’s calm vigour effortlessly knocked their hosts out of their stride, exposing the brittleness of their game plan. It was the same in the first leg but Arsenal had learned their lessons. Counter-thrust was covered in the middle of the park, more emphasis placed on positioning and support than simply appearing in numbers. And it worked. Inevitably Dortmund’s moment came but it was spurned by Lewandowski and with it the embers of salvaging a point extinguished. It was quite simply Arsenal’s night.

And the three points leaves the top of the group under their control. Napoli have to visit what will be a determined Dortmund; any sort of positive result for the Italians, coupled with similar for Arsenal as they entertain Marseilles, puts last season’s Champions League runners-up into the Europa League. Similarly, any Arsenal victory over Marseilles, whilst not rendering the match meaningless, eases the pressure on the trip to Naples, especially if the Neapolitans lose in Germany. It would require capitulation for anything to go wrong and at this moment in time, there appears little chance of that.

Arsène took the view this result was as important for the weekend,

I just hope that it strengthens the belief of my team that we can put another great performance in. You know we have another massive game on Sunday, and we want that kind of performance again.

On a day when Wayne Rooney cast aspersions on Arsenal’s durability – as much as to deflect attention from United’s own shortcomings as anything – the manager has summed it up. There is a different pressure building around the squad, one that comes with being at the top of the table. At the moment, they seem to be thriving on that success.

’til Tomorrow.