On Sunday afternoon, we went into another must win game – a
game against a struggling Sunderland side that was looking for an opportunity
to bounce back. And what better team to do that against than Arsenal? Let’s
face it. We have had the worst start to a season in more than 50 years. We are
playing a particular brand of football where we typically score a goal, concede
one or two as a result of very questionable defending, and finally lose or, if
we are luck, draw. Yes, yes, the team is practically brand new, we are without
some of our best players, the panic buys need time to settle in, etc etc. The
painful truth is, however, that football is cold and cruel. If you don’t play
well enough, you don’t get into the top four. As simple as that. All the
excuses can be thrown straight into the garbage can. We had the summer to
rectify the mistakes from last season and improve the squad. We didn’t. Once
the season starts, we have to put that behind us and do whatever we can to stay
up there with the big guys.
This was an important game – both in terms of confidence
building, and getting points on the board. We fielded a starting eleven that
was probably the best we possibly could. Jenkinson started at right back, and
Rosicky replaced Ramsey in central midfield since the latter had slight muscle
fatigue.
We got off to the best possible start, with van Persie, that
Dutch wizard, put us in front with a great finish from Gervinho’s pass. With
his right foot, too. The captain had justified his program notes, where he
claimed to be completely committed to the club, and also made it clear that,
despite media implications, he was indeed NOT living on the streets, and had a
roof over his head. Thank goodness for that.
The first 20 minutes were all Arsenal, and one caught not
only glimpses, but the entire image, in distinct colors, of the Arsenal we have
all grown. We should probably have been 2 or 3-nill up during that period.
Captain Vantastic (yes, that was terrible, but I wanted to use it!) was robbed of
a goal by the football gods when he took Arteta’s pass exquisitely while
turning on the edge of the box, and then attempted the most delightful of chip
over the keeper, only for the ball to hit the inside of the post and out. It
was as though the spirit of Bergkamp was throbbing inside Robin.
After that, we realized that we weren’t supposed to be this
good. The passes started getting slower, less accurate, and Sunderland started
to grow into the game. Of course, we were still controlling the game in terms
of possession, but well, when do we not? The second goal that everyone could
sense coming was not to come in the first half. In fact, Arteta gave away a
free kick outside the box about 25-30 yards from goal. It was an improbable
distance, but Larsson had other ideas. He unleashed a curler that bent into the
top left corner. Szczesny could do nothing about it. Rosicky didn’t even bother
to turn and look if it had gone in or not. It was top, top drawer and Becks
himself would have been proud of it.
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