The 2-1 defeat to Louis Van Gaal’s injury plagued Manchester United side, signified once again how parsimonious Arsenal have sadly become. This has been evident for nearly a decade now, however Arsene Wenger has only been able to rectify this in the past two years. The Frenchman has been under deserved scrutiny as it seems he’s lost desire for the club he’s been so loyal to. This season so far and in big games, Arsenal have lacked structure & composure with the killer instinct in key parts of the game. The game vs Manchester United was just a perfect example of the reality of where Arsenal stand at this current moment of time; naive.
Saturday night football. 60,000 tickets sold. Arsenal vs Manchester United. Massive game. The scene was set for both sides who are equally sharing the pain of an injury crisis. United were travelling to London knowing they would be playing with a makeshift back four. This would include 19 & 20 year olds Paddy McNair & Tyler Blackett. In previous years, United under Ferguson would arrive with Champions League & Premier League winning duo Rio Ferdinand & Nemanja Vidic. A defence that explosives wouldn’t be able to breach. Van Gaal was forced to go with his youthful defence and this was seen as potentially handing Arsenal the points.
Alexis Sanchez had been in sizzling form before hand and was seen as the main man to guide Arsenal forward in this game. Danny Welbeck was facing his old side and you’d expect him to be more motivated than ever. The ‘El Injurio’ wasn’t named this for no reason. Arsenal weren’t exactly blessed with a plethora of options in defence either, and had been forced to play the mediocre left back Monreal at centre back in the recent games. This game was blown wide open before hand and no one knew what to expect. Goals were to be expected none the less.
Arsenal dominated early spells of the game firing shots at the resilient De Gea. The United goalkeeper was absolutely superb, once again illustrating his magnificent progress as one of the best keepers in the league. Danny Welbeck flashed a few chances away but Jack Wilshere had the best chance. A rushed kick away from De Gea fell to Ramsey, who passed it to Welbeck who slipped it into the space for Wilshere to shoot. Wilshere’s shot was saved and the game went by.
Later into the second half, United’s simple football resulted in their first goal. Ashley Young got down the left and whipped in a challenging ball aimed at Fellaini. Szczesny came out to contest but injured himself in the process as Gibbs was pushed into him by Fellaini. The ball pounced away to Valencia who fired a shot which took a touch off Gibbs on the way in. Unfortunate, Clumsy but avoidable. The story of Arsenal’s season so far. Utd’s second came through captain Wayne Rooney. Arsenal pushed numbers forward to try find an equaliser, however Rooney capitalised on the counter-attack eventually looping it over the defenceless MartÃnez.
Arsenal clawed one back against the laughable United defence through a stunning Olivier Giroud strike. The Frenchman unleashed a shot of real venom that beat the immovable wall that was De Gea. The game ended Arsenal 1-2 Manchester United. In all fairness, Arsenal were hard done, however that’s football and there’s no sympathy for the losing side.
In the big games against the better, tactically superior footballing sides, Arsenal have tended to shine away. They have always had that bit of quality that would bully the little sides, but never that punch, that drive in big games. Arsenal lack a LEADER of men. Someone who is mentally & physically ready, to grab the game by the scruff of neck and fight for the full ninety minutes. Forget Mikel Arteta because he’s no Patrick Vieira or Tony Adams. The Spaniard holds no physical prowess that Vieira & Adams had in abundance. Arsene Wenger & Arsenal need to find a leader with quality or they will continue to falter.
As an Arsenal fan myself, I struggle come to terms with how the club are accepting mediocrity. I feel for Alexis Sanchez who runs endlessly for the team, only for them to pass on chance after chance. The issue is the lack of spending in the right areas. Arsene Wenger decided to go into the season with 2 experienced centre backs. This season was once again a chance to fight for the title and to avoid the countless errors made in last season’s quest. Has Wenger lost it? I am bewildered myself by his decision making, but I will back him till the day he eventually departs.