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Arsenal takes a stand
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With their backs against the wall and the Premier League campaign starting to look shaky, the Gunners delivered a nice little statement to the EPL on Saturday afternoon at the Emirates.
Game on.
Given all the injuries and the awful stretch of play lately, this game against Manchester United easily could have been the latest headache for Arsenal. But despite the lack of a striker, they managed to take advantage of their opportunities and hang on for dear life as the final stoppage time minutes ticked down.
With only Nicklas Bendtner up front, Samir Nasri was a stud in the midfield and ended up with two goals to show for it – although the first was pure luck off Gary Neville’s deflection. But the Gunners were able to utilize their midfield to exploit United with superior spacing several times and counterattack whenever possible. They certainly didn’t control the game, but given the lack of presence up front it was the way they had to win.
And while Arsenal capitalized on their opportunities, United was left to wonder how Ronaldo missed a point-blank volley or Rooney skied a great first-half opportunity over the bar. While playing at the Emirates is never easy, the Reds have come out with just one point in the three away matches to Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea. A sublime chest-control volley from Rafael Da Silva in the 90th minute gave them a lifeline, but it was all the missed chances earlier that will be remembered.
From a neutral’s perspective, this was a top-class display of open, attacking football that had few dull moments. Up, down, up, down all game long. Perhaps the biggest surprise was that more goals weren’t had when the defenses appeared porous throughout the contest. United will now have to regroup and figure out why they continue to struggle during the big-time fixtures this year. In addition, the thought of more Da Silva and less Neville has to be going through Sir Alex Ferguson’s head.
The Gunners, meanwhile, should be able to use this victory as a mid-season jumpstart. The one worry will be that they couldn’t keep things from getting interesting at the end. The two-goal collapse against Tottenham is still fresh in everyone’s mind, and until the Gunners show themselves able to finish off these games consistently, the doubts about their Premier League campaign will continue.
What did you think about the game? Any big conclusions to be drawn? Do you see the Gunners making a legitimate run at the league title?
