An energetic, feisty Palace drew with us on the back of two well-taken penalty kicks. They outshot us, had more corners, and fouled less often, so this was not a case of them grabbing a point against the run of play. It was a game of mistakes and narrow margins, the one shining moment being Xhaka's magnificent free kick from a tight angle. All four goals came from set pieces, three of them from stupid fouls and one off a corner scored when the ball crossed the line by 9mm (and Lacazette's fingers may have lightly brushed the ball first). It was an entertaining game, but not pretty.
I think we all knew that Xhaka at left back was a gamble. The penalty on him is one of those that always piss me off, because Zaha's sole intention was to draw it. But Xhaka cooperated and the whistle blew. Mustafi's was his typical diving in/going to ground for no good reason. Stand up and try to block any shot, Shkodran! And what was Lacazette thinking when with our whole team up and in possession he launched a looping ball to no one in particular towards our goal from the opposition corner? We were one up--kicking it out would have been smarter, knocking it off a Palace player for a corner smarter yet. The two points dropped had a lot to do with that error.
It is no secret that we got a lot of luck in that string of eleven wins. Today, luck wasn't enough, even though we got some: Palace hit the post twice, one of their attackers flopped and on another day it may have been (wrongly) whistled, and Lacazette's hand may have cost us the Auba goal that barely crossed the line. Palace has a right to feel that they were the ones who dropped two points.
If anyone played well in this game, I missed it. Holding and Torreira seemed effective, and Bellerin was pretty dangerous in the first half (I will be checking to see what his issue was). All in all, not a confidence builder.
...
Of course, the midweek game against Sporting may have had something to do with our lackluster performance today. That was not an easy win, but it was important to get the W against our strongest opponent away. If we can beat them at the Emery-ates, we win the group. Even a draw makes us odds-on to win it. It was the first time Sporting lost in Lisbon since Barca beat them more than a year ago.
Sunday, October 28, 2018
Monday, October 22, 2018
Arsenal 3 - 1 Leicester
I will admit that I was worried after the Leicester goal. We'd done little until that point, and the Foxes could have gone up by more than the one. I don't think Holding should have been called for handball; the forward collided with him and moved his arm onto the ball. (That's my story anyway.) But we did pick up a couple of yellow cards. Leicester's defense looked pretty well organized and we never looked like scoring. But the goal woke us up, I guess, because all of a sudden we were all over them and the equalizer came just before the half, a lovely assured finish from the captain Ozil, his having orchestrated the move.
It was mostly Arsenal all second half, though there was that header off a corner that crashed off our crossbar. The arrival of Aubameyang and Guendouzi (for the less than effective Mkhitaryan and for Lichtsteiner, who I thought did well) kicked us up into another gear, and Leicester was fortunate not to have shipped more than the two goals in the half by the whistle. Both were sweetly crafted, primarily by Ozil, and finished by Auba.
Everyone played his part. Leno made some important, difficult saves early on. Holding and Mustafi handled the big, fast forwards well enough. Bellerin and Lichtsteiner were sent bombing up the sidelines to provide width and were out of position when we lost the ball. But I was very impressed with the Barca style pressing that often won the ball right back. Xhaka didn't have his best game, though he had a surprisingly good shift filling in at left back. Torreira was fantastic, filling the holes and pinching the ball. He and Guendouzi are an awesome pairing, full of energy and inventiveness.
Ozil was the main man today. He really bossed things. He got space because he made space. He does the simple things so well, and every once in a while, he does the extraordinary things even better. The defense-splitting pass to Hector that set up the second goal was the best moment of many good ones.
But Lacazette and Iwobi were excellent as well. (Mikhi wasn't at their level today.) I love Laca's work rate. He chases everything, and keeps two CBs busy. Iwobi gets better and better. He tracks back too. (Laca and Alex had to cover for Mikhi and Mesut in this regard.) Ramsey came in late for Ozil and looked dangerous.
We didn't climb in the table but Chelsea's draw with Man U puts them ahead of us only on GD. Emery's post-match comments showed that he still considers Arsenal a work in progress. He's right. We may be exposed against Man U or Spuds next month. but it is beginning to look as though he has a team who can mow down inferior opposition when they get a head of steam. I believe we've scored about three quarters of our goals in the second half. Whether it's conditioning or Emery's tactical sense, it augurs well.
It was mostly Arsenal all second half, though there was that header off a corner that crashed off our crossbar. The arrival of Aubameyang and Guendouzi (for the less than effective Mkhitaryan and for Lichtsteiner, who I thought did well) kicked us up into another gear, and Leicester was fortunate not to have shipped more than the two goals in the half by the whistle. Both were sweetly crafted, primarily by Ozil, and finished by Auba.
Everyone played his part. Leno made some important, difficult saves early on. Holding and Mustafi handled the big, fast forwards well enough. Bellerin and Lichtsteiner were sent bombing up the sidelines to provide width and were out of position when we lost the ball. But I was very impressed with the Barca style pressing that often won the ball right back. Xhaka didn't have his best game, though he had a surprisingly good shift filling in at left back. Torreira was fantastic, filling the holes and pinching the ball. He and Guendouzi are an awesome pairing, full of energy and inventiveness.
Ozil was the main man today. He really bossed things. He got space because he made space. He does the simple things so well, and every once in a while, he does the extraordinary things even better. The defense-splitting pass to Hector that set up the second goal was the best moment of many good ones.
But Lacazette and Iwobi were excellent as well. (Mikhi wasn't at their level today.) I love Laca's work rate. He chases everything, and keeps two CBs busy. Iwobi gets better and better. He tracks back too. (Laca and Alex had to cover for Mikhi and Mesut in this regard.) Ramsey came in late for Ozil and looked dangerous.
We didn't climb in the table but Chelsea's draw with Man U puts them ahead of us only on GD. Emery's post-match comments showed that he still considers Arsenal a work in progress. He's right. We may be exposed against Man U or Spuds next month. but it is beginning to look as though he has a team who can mow down inferior opposition when they get a head of steam. I believe we've scored about three quarters of our goals in the second half. Whether it's conditioning or Emery's tactical sense, it augurs well.
DC United in the Playoffs
DC United looks very strong now. They're roaring into the playoffs, ripping off win after win. The most crucial was the 5-0 score over Montreal, but every point was important and now they've clinched a spot with a game to go, having beaten Dallas 1-0 and NYCFC 3-1 at Audi Field. In fact, they're sitting in 5th at present and could move up a spot or two if everything goes their way.
It's not all Wayne Rooney, either. He won the Dallas game with a spectacular free kick from way out, but even though he got two goals against New York, Luciano Acosta was the man of that match. He slalomed around four or five defenders before feeding Rooney for a tap-in for the first goal, then curled a beauty past their keeper from outside the box for the second (set up by some excellent holdup play by Rooney, of course). But Senor Wayne (as Acosta calls him) is the driving force, and has imparted belief to the team as well as injecting talent.
I'm actually very impressed by their defense these days, as well, especially the DMs Canouse and Moreno. Birnbaum is a rock at CB. And for my money, Hamid is the class of the league in goal.
Asad, Rooney, Acosta, Arriola, and Segura all look dangerous on offense in any combination, and they still have 10-goal Darren Mattocks sitting on the bench just in case. I don't think anyone would be shocked to see them hoist the MLS Cup after this run, though they're not the favorites.
Good times for DC United fans. I have got to get to some games next season.
It's not all Wayne Rooney, either. He won the Dallas game with a spectacular free kick from way out, but even though he got two goals against New York, Luciano Acosta was the man of that match. He slalomed around four or five defenders before feeding Rooney for a tap-in for the first goal, then curled a beauty past their keeper from outside the box for the second (set up by some excellent holdup play by Rooney, of course). But Senor Wayne (as Acosta calls him) is the driving force, and has imparted belief to the team as well as injecting talent.
I'm actually very impressed by their defense these days, as well, especially the DMs Canouse and Moreno. Birnbaum is a rock at CB. And for my money, Hamid is the class of the league in goal.
Asad, Rooney, Acosta, Arriola, and Segura all look dangerous on offense in any combination, and they still have 10-goal Darren Mattocks sitting on the bench just in case. I don't think anyone would be shocked to see them hoist the MLS Cup after this run, though they're not the favorites.
Good times for DC United fans. I have got to get to some games next season.
Monday, October 8, 2018
Fulham 1 - 5 Arsenal ... DC United 2 - 1 Chicago Fire
We didn't start the Fire. We stopped the Fire. Rooney again led the way as we overcame a feisty Chicago bunch that played pretty well for a team that was eliminated from the postseason some time ago. The play was going mostly our way in the first half, but a disallowed goal (VAR is going to change things) left it scoreless at the half. Then the Fire got a very nice individual goal to make our playoff chances dim a little. Wayne Rooney was having none of it. He was barely onside when he redirected a shot, causing the Fire keeper to fumble it. and he stuffed in the rebound. He scored a penalty when our relentless pressure forced a foul in the area. Job done, and we're in pole position. We still have to win three of our last four to guarantee a spot in the playoffs, and have tough opposition, but who would bet against us now? Nick DeLeon is back too to give us some depth. These guys are legitimate contenders for the MLS Cup--but first they have to punch their ticket.
...
Fulham actually tried to play with us, and as pretty much anyone could have predicted, it backfired in spectacular fashion. Laca and Auba's strikes were beautifully taken, but Ramsey's delicious backheel at the end of a gorgeous lightning team goal in which he played a role three times will almost certainly be a goal of the season finalist. What a magnificent performance. Let's hope everyone plays us this open.
The international break means Emery can continue to work with most of our players to fine tune a system that they all have confidence in. It's a new start for Iwobi, who has graduated from "promising" to "pretty damned good". Torreira is every bit as valuable as we expected. The center back situation is still worrying, and Koscielny can't be expected to fix that when he comes back. If we can't acquire another quality CB, we'll have to bring Chambers back sooner rather than later. I still don't know why we loaned him out. If Kolasinac can't learn to handle his defensive duties better, we have insufficient cover for my man Nacho. On the right, the Bellerin-Lichtsteiner consortiom seems more than adequate, and maybe Jenkinson can revive his career here. Stefan is near his expiration date.
I have always liked Elneny and we're not getting a lot out of him now. He doesn't really suit Emery's style, so he doesn't play much. Mkhitaryan seems in decline to me. Otherwise, we seem in reasonably good shape in midfield. It looks as though Aaron is intent on leaving. (If he does go, that means the currently injured Carl Jenkinson will be the last of the vaunted "British core." Ox is laid up for a year on Liverpool's dime, Theo is having a very respectable run in Everton's attack, Keiran Gibbs is in the Championship with West Brom, and Jack Wilshere has taken his dodgy ankles to West Ham.) I hope he stays; he's real class and still has an awesome engine. Ozil isn't going anywhere. I hope he starts playing to his potential; he's far below it now. Iwobi has arrived, and Smith Rowe is waiting in the wings to feature more regularly. Welbz has turned into a reliable winger who provides defensive cover and a scoring threat.
Up top, we have two of the more dangerous strikers in the league, and they are working really well together. While I would have said last year that our team was "top heavy" because of the offensive threats, Emery has changed the character of the team. This is who we are now. Unai said it himself early on: he'd rather win 5-4 than 1-0. I don't know if the crowd was right when they sang "We have our Arsenal back" yesterday, but I really like the Arsenal we have now, whether we got it back or it's a whole new version. Long may it continue.
...
Fulham actually tried to play with us, and as pretty much anyone could have predicted, it backfired in spectacular fashion. Laca and Auba's strikes were beautifully taken, but Ramsey's delicious backheel at the end of a gorgeous lightning team goal in which he played a role three times will almost certainly be a goal of the season finalist. What a magnificent performance. Let's hope everyone plays us this open.
The international break means Emery can continue to work with most of our players to fine tune a system that they all have confidence in. It's a new start for Iwobi, who has graduated from "promising" to "pretty damned good". Torreira is every bit as valuable as we expected. The center back situation is still worrying, and Koscielny can't be expected to fix that when he comes back. If we can't acquire another quality CB, we'll have to bring Chambers back sooner rather than later. I still don't know why we loaned him out. If Kolasinac can't learn to handle his defensive duties better, we have insufficient cover for my man Nacho. On the right, the Bellerin-Lichtsteiner consortiom seems more than adequate, and maybe Jenkinson can revive his career here. Stefan is near his expiration date.
I have always liked Elneny and we're not getting a lot out of him now. He doesn't really suit Emery's style, so he doesn't play much. Mkhitaryan seems in decline to me. Otherwise, we seem in reasonably good shape in midfield. It looks as though Aaron is intent on leaving. (If he does go, that means the currently injured Carl Jenkinson will be the last of the vaunted "British core." Ox is laid up for a year on Liverpool's dime, Theo is having a very respectable run in Everton's attack, Keiran Gibbs is in the Championship with West Brom, and Jack Wilshere has taken his dodgy ankles to West Ham.) I hope he stays; he's real class and still has an awesome engine. Ozil isn't going anywhere. I hope he starts playing to his potential; he's far below it now. Iwobi has arrived, and Smith Rowe is waiting in the wings to feature more regularly. Welbz has turned into a reliable winger who provides defensive cover and a scoring threat.
Up top, we have two of the more dangerous strikers in the league, and they are working really well together. While I would have said last year that our team was "top heavy" because of the offensive threats, Emery has changed the character of the team. This is who we are now. Unai said it himself early on: he'd rather win 5-4 than 1-0. I don't know if the crowd was right when they sang "We have our Arsenal back" yesterday, but I really like the Arsenal we have now, whether we got it back or it's a whole new version. Long may it continue.
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