Johann is wily Wenger’s latest jewel

When Arsene Wenger allowed the bumbling Phillipe Senderos to go on loan to AC Milan at the start of season 2008-09, the obvious reason would of course be that it was prelude to offloading the big, shaven headed Swiss centreback. Senderos failed to impress at AC Milan and at the end of the season, he was back at Arsenal, unwanted by both the Gunners and the Rossonneri.

The latent and covert reason behind Senderos’s shuffling around though was another young Swiss defender  –  Johann Djourou. Wenger saw him as a much better player than Senderos and at that point in time, Senderos was higher on the team’s pecking order than Djourou. Notoriously faithful to his hierarchical system, Wenger is one of the few coaches around Europe who hardly tinkers with team line-ups match-after-match. Renowned for detesting buying sprees, he always prefers to run a tight ship; making use of a small, dedicated group of players all season and hoping for the best against things like injuries and suspensions.

In all his championship-winning teams, Wenger has always, always relied on a core of 15-16 first teamers who are entrusted with carrying the team throughout the season. Wenger has always invested a fanatical trust in his first teamers and only the emergence of a player with extra-ordinary ability can convince him to breach that trust and introduce such player into that core group of “special ones”.

A sports scientist wearing the garb of a manager, Wenger relies heavily on tonnes and tonnes of  technical mumbo-jumbo to assess his players before arriving at that core group on which his annual campaigns are entrusted with. Which is why he places a lot of faith in hierarchy.

With time on his hands and knowing he’ll never be fired if the team wins nothing at the end of each season, he concentrates on patient building and nurturing of players in an eternal process of erecting a jigsaw puzzle that the making of a team really is.

His hierarchical structure therefore is the be-all and end-all in his team building process. Gael Clichy was second to Ashly Cole for so long and only emerged as a first teamer after Cole left for Chelsea. Now, Kieran Gibbs is understudy to Clichy – preferred to another young hopeful, Armand Traore. Same applies to the right fullback position where Emmanuel Eboue is forever second-fiddle to Bacary Sagna. Manuel Almunia was also understudy to ‘mad’ Jens Lehmann for so long and Wenger was not prepared to alter the equation until season 2007-08 when the German started making blunder-after-blunder. That was the signal to promote Almunia over Lehmann and Wenger was faithful to the Spaniard despite heavy criticism of his performances.

It was only at the start of the current season, that he finally saw fit to relegate Almunia and promote his understudy, Fabianski.

Such methodical arrangement of course has its benefits because it encourages stability and disregards form which we all know can be fickle and fluctuates.

Heads I win...Djourou tussles with Arsenal's nemesis-in-chief, Chelsea's Didier Drogba

 Looking at the defensive side of things, though Wenger will not openly admit, but slowly he has promoted Djourou over and above Sebastian Squillaci despite the latter’s greater experience. It is a decision that may have a big impact on our season considering the performance of the young Swiss defender.

The starting line-up that filed out against Chelsea at the Emirates last Monday night, was the closest thing to Wenger’s first eleven. That is his dream team. The outcome of the game proved him right and confirmed his faith in those that started.

Djourou of course was part of that line-up and excelled as he has in all 12 games he’s played prior to the Chelsea game this season.After missing almost all of last season to a cruciate ligament knee injury, he seems to have come back with a vengeance to prove a point.

Three days later, when he was dropped for Squillaci, we saw how the defence gifted Wigan a goal that cost us two points. Guess who the scapegoat was? Poor Squillaci for the own goal he conceded under pressure.

Back at St. Andrews three days later, Djourou returned again and with him our first clean sheet in seven games! It wasn’t a coincidence. The youngman’s game has been on the up all season as his form has recorded a steady incline. In his first eight games for us this season, we never lost. I’m no way giving him sole credit for the team’s success in those matches, but a solid defence is always a reliable foundation on which wins are built.

Djourou so far this season has helped provide reassurance at the back. He has taken his chance with both hands since the enforced absence of the inspirational Thomas Vermaelen. The youngest of our four centre backs, he naturally would have been down at the ladder based on Wenger’s hierarchical stubbornness. But TV’s injury has opened a window for him and his performances have kept that window firmly ajar.

His composure and calm is in contrast to all around him. I particularly rate him in aerial battles where he uses his height well to intercept anything in the air. He, like TV, also loves bringing the ball out of defence and taking pressure off the backline. He hardly panics in any situation and unlike his departed compatriot Senderos, Djourou has anchored his style on reading attackers’ moves and nipping them in the bud before they strike.

Yet another jewel unearthened by the frugal Wenger? Surely yes and well polished too I daresay.

Birmingham 0 Arsenal 3

St. Andrews is a place where we’ve had nothing but grief in the past three seasons. A place filled with

bad memories for all Gooners. A place of frustration, anguish and broken bones – ala Eduardo Da Silva.

Saturday night finally, we banished all the years of pain and broken dreams on a rainy night at St. Andrews as we pummeled Birmingham before dispatching them 3-0.

As unfriendly as ever, the venue presented itself as a cold, miserable place with the rain turning the surface into a field of potholes.

Disregarding history and the elements though, Arsenal walked allover their hosts in a performance that oozed class as goals from Robin Van Persie, Samir Nasri and an own goal gifted us by the unfortunate Roger Johnson, enabled us depart St. Andrews with the three points for the first time since 2006.

It was a performance that restored pride after the same team that annihilated Chelsea was rolled out to do the business yet again.

We start the New Year on a very positive note with this win and as the league hits the home straight, the table shows us in third place – just two points behind leaders Manchester City and United – with our postponed game against Stoke in hand.

Yes, Man Utd as well have two games in hand, but who says we can’t overhaul them both with everyone fit and brimming with supreme confidence.

On a night that asked questions of the mettle of this team, they delivered – and with a clean sheet for once!

Target men...Van Persie and Nasri who both scored on the night

 Below are the ratings of our first game of 2011.

·         Fabianski (7/10) – Restored his reputation after the horror show at Wigan three days earlier. Clean sheets are a measure of how well the goalkeeper and his defence have performed and on this night, they recorded one in a long, long while. The Pole is now firmly established as our Number One after Arsene Wenger’s declaration on the eve of the game that Manuel Almunia could leave if he wanted. Baring any huge calamity now, the starting shirt is Lukasz’s to lose. He however did his case a world of good by blocking a goalbound Sebastian Larsson freekick in the first half and stopping everything thrown at him in the second half. I was particularly impressed with his punching and timing.

·         Clichy (7/10) – Was at his alert best all night and refused to allow Birmingham any leeway from his corner of the pitch. Didn’t do too much of his trademark overlapping runs but defending remains his primary duty and he performed without blemish.

·         Koscielny (8/10) – One of his better games since he joined us. Critics like to single him out for blame anytime we concede, but I rate him as a very good manmarker. He put every foot right on the night and frustrated the marauding Cameron Jerome all night, before the lone Birmingham striker was eventually substituted. ‘Kos’ is quite good in the one-on-ones and on this occasion, he was not found wanting.

·         Djourou (9/10) – My pick of the bunch in the defence. He outjumped the entire Birmingham attack and on a pitch which he called home some three seasons back, everything from the hosts was like meat and drink to him. Johann seems to enjoy a good partnership with the Kos and they clearly compliment each other far better than Squillaci does. Our young Swiss has matured in leaps and bounds so far this season and baring injuries, he will be a factor as we chase trophies. Picked up a knock late in the first half but recovered to marshall the backline and help silence the giant Nikola Zigic and another substitute, Alexander Hleb – remember him? 

·         Sagna (7/10) – Our tenacious French international is nothing if not a hardworker. Never gives anything less than 100% and Saturday night was no different. Ran his socks off as he tackled and shackled each of the Birmingham players that strayed into his territory. Found a lot of room as well to roam forward and deliver some tasty crosses. He is a handful indeed, this Bacary.

·         Song (7/10) – After his brilliant game against Chelsea on Monday night, repeating the same against Birmingham was like a walk in the park for him. He has really, really grown into one of the finest midfielders in the premiership and last night, he enhanced that reputation with another flawless effort. Tackled and harried the likes of Lee Bowyer, Barry Ferguson and Johnson with ease and still found time and space to spray some delicious passes. His all round game is very impressive indeed.

·         Wilshire (7/10) – His combo with Song is developing into a productive partnership. Jack, who turned 19 on Saturday has emerged as a force to reckon with in the heart of our team. He of course displays ability and awareness of a veteran and Saturday night was no different. Had the chance to mark his birthday with a goal after being teed up by Van Persie, but blasted wide.

·         Fabregas (7/10) – El Capitan returned from an enforced suspension to deliver yet another accomplished performance in a long, long list of accomplished performances. He was at the end of a hefty challenge from Johnson in the 6^th minute, but emerged to dictate the game with his vision and ball control. He looks happier now as we march on and results continue to fall our way.

·         Nasri (7/10) – Not at his brilliant best, but in whichever form he is, the little French maestro is still a handful for defences. His tandem with Fabregas may well be the key to our success this season as they both enjoy a telephatic relationship. They combined with delightful one-twos for the second goal in the 58^th minute, which Nasri scored to take his season tally to 13. At this range, it wouldn’t be out of place if he notches 20 goals by the end of the season. His endless movement and bag of tricks just puts him head and shoulders above anything Birmingham could offer on the night.

·         Van Persie (7/10) – Not back to his devastating best, but he’s getting there and such amounts of time on the pitch like against Birmingham surely helps. He scored a freekick for the first time in ages to give us the first goal and was involved in a lot of our attacks. His role as lone frontman on the night does not suit him perfectly but with the likes of Nasri and Fabregas providing support, he was never really alone. Did well all in all.

·         Walcott (7/10) – Didn’t score this time but wasn’t far from doing so. Troubled Scott Dann and  Liam Ridgewell with his blinding pace and in all modesty, he must be the fastest player in the premiership. It may just be that he has played his way into the starting line-up following his five-star showing against Chelsea on Monday night. Already, this has been a breakthrough season for him.

Substitutes

·         Arshavin (6/10) – Came on in the 76^th minute for Walcott as we looked to close up the game and introduce some fresh legs. Almost scored with a fierce shot which Ben Foster did well to stop.

·         Denilson (5/10) – Replaced Wilshire and slotted in beside Song as a bulwark against Birmingham’s last-minute attempts to salvage something.

Wigan 2 Arsenal 2

This wasn’t quite the encore we expected after that magnificient win over Chelsea on Monday night, but in view of our defeat at the same ground last season, it was a step-up of sorts. Too many changes to Monday night’s line-up clearly upset the team’s configuration and it showed last night. Only Fabianski, Koscielny and Sagna retained their places and it was a while naturally before we found any sort of rhythm.

We fell behind to a penalty in the 19^th minute after the pace of Charles Nzogbia unsettled our defence and forced Koscielny into a rash challenge. The setback woke us up though and we laid siege-after-siege on the Wigan goalmouth. An alert Andrei Arshavin scored the equalizer with a delightful volley after the Wigan goalie had parried a fierce shot from Bendtner. By the 44th minute, we were ahead after Arshavin (again!) fed Bendtner with a through ball and the big Dane slotted it past the goalie. 

We couldn’t build on our lead in the second half and despite the sending off of Nzogbia for a foolish headbutt on Wilshire, we allowed them to claw their way back into the game with a clueless own-goal from Squillaci off a cornerkick. Two minutes later, there was a strong appeal for a penalty of our own after Tom Cleverly handled Samir Nasri’s penalty in their box, but it wasn’t given.

So we dropped two vital points in what is turning out to be a cut-throat race at the top of the ladder;  thus leaving us in third spot behind the two Manchester teams.

Pick it up...Fabianski does the ball-picking routine twice on the night

Below are the ratings

·         Fabianski (5/10) – His inconsistency came to the fore once more as he failed to deal with the corner that resulted in the own-goal from Squilaci for their equalizer. He was actually called into action much more in this game than against Chelsea the other night, which was a direct consequence of the myriad of changes in our side. Fabianski has to share the blame for the outcome of this game. Not good enough on the night.

·         Eboue (5/10) – Didn’t impress at all, all night. He could be spared some stick given that he was played out of position on the left flank, being not a left-footed player. Someone of his experience ought to have been able to cope better with Nzogbia, but he did not as the Frenchman skinned him over and over all night.

·         Squillaci (5/10) – Very poor game all round by the French veteran. He is surely the weakest link in our defence and there is now no reason for him to be considered ahead of the calm and younger Johann Djourou. He was caught out of position so frequently you would think he hadn’t played a game in England before. Was targeted by the direct running of Nzogbia and Hugo Rodallega as well and he couldn’t cope. The own goal he scored simply summed up his horror-showing on the night.

 Clearly now, it must be apparent to Wenger that Squillaci must always play second and third fiddle to Djourou and Vermaelen when the latter returns. End of story.

·         Koscielny (7/10) – Didn’t put a foot wrong apart from the foul on Nzogbia that drew the penalty in the first half. He recovered well though to put in a fine display and help keep the tepid Wigan at bay. I recollected at least five one-on-one tackles he made to stop them coming face-to-face with Fabianski. Can’t wait for his partnership with Djourou to return as the season unfolds.

·         Sagna (7/10) – He was his usual bucaneering self. Credit to Bacary; he hardly ever has a bad game. Gives 100% always and last night was no exception. With him around, the likes of Eboue will always sit on the bench. Keep it up, tough guy.

·         Denilson (6/10) – After being frozen out of the team for so long, Wenger clearly wanted the likes of him to get a game and do away with the cobwebs. Initially he struggled, but as the game progressed he found his feet and dished out meaty tackles. He is no Alexander Song, but at least he isn’t found wanting either.

·         Diaby (4/10) – Did nothing of note for the 20 odd minutes he was on the pitch before he succumbed to his latest injury and departed for an early bath.

·         Arshavin (7/10) – On account of his superb volley and the assist that allowed Bendtner to score our second goal, he deserves creditable mention. He upped his game for this one and ran at their defence at every opportunity. Second half though he suddenly reverted to his now-familiar disappearing act and went missing. Was substituted unsurprisingly late in the game and he looked angry about that decision. The Russian is gradually losing his first team place.

·         Rosicky (6/10) – The Czech stepped in for the suspended Fabregas and in fairness to him, he tried his best. Put in a hardworking shift and his exquisite pass to Arshavin in the 7^th minute was a delight for all purists of the game. Was prominent in our attacks all through the first half but like Arshavin, he faded badly in the second half.

·         Bendtner (6/10) – He, along with Arshavin are almost now definitely squad players and it showed why. He lacked control and his snail-like movement slowed things down upfront. Took his goal well and I stand to be corrected, that ought to be his first of the league this season. Completely fell apart in the second half and it was his lack of form that contributed largely to us not increasing our lead. Surprised that he lasted the entire 90 minutes. I can’t see what his beef is about for not making regular starts. He doesn’t deserve to start and the earlier he’s shipped off as he often threatens, the better indeed.

·         Chamakh (6/10) – Did his best on the night and though he didn’t score, I believe the multiple changes also affected his rhythm. No reason why he shouldn’t start against what should be stronger opponents, Birmingham, next Saturday.

Substitutes

·         Wilshire (7/10) – Came on for the injured Diaby in the 20^th minute and held his own despite all sorts of intimidation and harassments. One of those strong-arm tactics by Nzogbia in form of a senseless headbutt, led to the latter’s dismissal in the 77^th minute. He was himself substituted in the dying minutes.

·         Nasri (5/10) – He was thrown on after they got their equalizer but it was too little too late to weave his magic and salvage anything. Ought to have won a penalty though after a Wigan defender handled his freekick inside the box.

·         Walcott (5/10) – Came on for an ineffective Arshavin but time was against him.

Two things that changed our season on Monday night



End of an era? Drogba, Lampard and Terry ponder the future after Monday's capitulation

A big, big win like the one over Chelsea will always do wonders for any side. It will change the dynamics now both in the heads and minds of all Arsenal players and in the English premiership. Of greater concern to me though is the state of mind of Arsenal as a team. The psyche of this great, great club.
A huge win like this not only takes the monkey that Cheslea has become this past five years off our backs. It broke a hoodoo that has shrouded the club like a dark mist for the past five seasons. It does wondees for the spirit.
The fact that Arsenal has not been able to sniff the premiership title since we last lifted it in 2004, has been due largely and significantly to the emergence of Roman Abramovich’s supremely , richly assembled coalition of stars at Chelsea. Man Utd has also played their part in denying us, but the role of Chelsea has been much more pronounced.
All the while, the likes of Frank Lampard, John Terry, Wayne Bridge and that man, Didier Drogba took turns to dish out punishment and humiliate us. It was a simple, straightforward case of “might is right”. Drogba in particular was always like a bull in the ring, stirred by the sight of a red flag anytime we lined up against them. His record of 13 goals in 12 games against us was a banner of derision, waved in our faces at every slight chance. But like all good things, they ultimately come to an end.
Well, last night changed all that. The missing ingredients in Arsene Wenger’s perennial youth project – belief and pressing – emerged Monday night to complete the brew and deliver a resounding victory that by all ramifications, has severely damaged Chelsea’s interest in the title race
Remember those two words – belief and pressing.
It was belief in the first place that laid the foundations of our game on the night. As the match kicked off in front of a boisterous full house at the Emirates, it was apparent what Chelsea’s gameplan was. Their tactic, which has served them so well against us in the past, was to soak up all the pressure we could offer and then hit us on the counter at the slightest chance. With Drogba on the pitch and prowling around our defence, it was a tried and trusted approach.
Remember again. Belief and pressing.
As the match unfolded and the intial opening skirmishes settled down, we gradually exerted control which wasn’t too different from what Chelsea expected. Their chance for a breakaway counter attack came in the 24th minute when someone - I think it was Lampard – hit a long ball upfront for the dangerous Drogba to chase. Surely he did and engaged Koscielny in a mad sprint for the ball. The younger Frenchman took him on and actually won the race inside the 18-yard when he edged ahead to kick the ball from the boots of the Ivorien. First blood? Yes indeed but this time it was to us.
Rewind back 21 months ago in March, 2009 when the same Drogba was hit with a long pass out of midfield against us at Wembley in the FA Cup semifinal – the game where Wenger left in-form Andrei Arshavin on the bench until the game was eventually lost.
Back to the Drogba pass. He duely chased the ball down and almost casually brushed aside the half-hearted attentions of Mikael Silvestre. After just five strides, he was face to face and alone with a hapless Fabianski in goal. With all the time in the world, he coolly picked his spot before shooting sweetly into the net for what was to be the winning goal.
Then, as had been the case in all games against Chelsea and Man United, we lacked belief and pressing.
On Monday night, the equation changed at last and to good measure.
By the midway point in the first half, it was becoming clear that we wanted it more. Players in red were flying into tackles and refusing to be pushed off the ball. Song, Fabregas and Wilshire stood up to John Obi Mikel, Michael Essien and Lampard, while though starved of service, Robin Van Persie kept plugging away and switching positions. It may have been Fabregas’ words last week that our problems in big games were psychological and mental. Whatever it was, there was a zip and determination not to yield to Drogba and Chelsea this time around.
Which was what gave Song – of all people – the conviction to roam forward in the 44th minute (a period in games when players’ minds are already in the dressing room) and switch passes with Nasri and Wilshire before receiving the ball and blasting it past Cech. Belief did that to him.
Belief and pressing also gave Walcott the strength and presence of mind to chase down the ricochet from Essien and lay it on for his captain for the second so early in the second half. A minute later, pressing allowed Walcott to intercept and nick the ball from Essien before feeding Fabregas, who, a master of such situations, calmly waited for Walcott’s timed run to return the ball to the Englishman who gracefully blasted the third goal that knocked the stuffing and the fight out of Chelsea.
For all the careful and painstaking planning that Wenger has put into his ‘youth project’, the two ingredients of belief and pressing remained the missing links for so long. They were qualities that no coach can teach any player as they are basically mental. Has the coin finally, finally dropped in the minds of our players?
Fabregas himself explained it after Monday night’s game by declaring that the difference between a good team and a great team is actually very, very small. It’s all in the head.
For all his glittering goalscoring prowess against us, Drogba found no space or time to weave his magic on the night. All the years and years of pain inflicted on us at will and often with arrogance came to a fiitng end because on the day and on the occasion, our players threw away their fear and trepidation of their hoodoo and forced the hand of history.
Belief and pressing have added something new and formidable to Wenger’s youth project. He himself put it in the best words possible by stressing cheekily that, “it is no longer boys against men”.
About time too.

Arsenal 3 Chelsea 1

This game can be best described as a watershed; a changing of guards; a statement of intent; a marker. This clash of titans in all honesty was decided in the space of nine minutes. It repaired years and years of hurt inflicted on us by ‘big, bad’ Chelsea and last night’s response was not only fitting but very well-deserved. So many positives emerged from last night’s win that it is safe – almost – to conclude that if sustained, we would surely be coming to the end of our prolonged and much-hyped trophy drought.
Arsene Wenger rung the changes as we filed out to kickstart our hectic holiday programme. All of those four of those changes truly gave us a much-needed adrenalin shot that laid the foundation for this big, big win.
Back to the nine minutes that changed our season. Alex Song started it in the 44th minute when he began and completed a sweet move that involved him, Samir Nasri, Jack Wilshire and marginally, Cesc Fabregas. Song’s left footed shot into the corner of Petr Cech’s net was no less than we deseved after steadily revving up our control and domination of the match.
Eight minutes into the second half, it was game, set and match. Fabregas combined with Theo Walcott to first score the second and lay the third on for the marauding Englishman. Cue delirium at the Emirates as all Gooners must have been pinching themselves just to make sure they were really witnessing us stuffing the Chavs and leading them by three goals!
Ivanovic’s headed response brought us a bit back to our senses but we did a professional job all round and denied Chelsea up onto the final whistle.

Lift off time..Song leaps with ectasy after smashing the opener

Below are the ratings on a night to remember for all Gooners.

*Fabianski (6/10) – He was largely untroubled and despite facing the ‘dreaded’ Didier Drogba and the returning Frank Lampard, he endured a very hitchfree night. It must have been a measure of how well our tactics worked, because Fabianksi – apart from Ivanovic’s headed goal – hardly made any save of note all night. Nonetheless, it was clear that his confidence levels was much higher and we are now seeing a very different goslkeeper from last season’s nervous wreck.
* Clichy (6/10) – I witnessed for the first time what most fans have been bleating about all season long – Gael Clichy’s patchy form. He was caught out a few times with poor positioning and indecision. Thankfully, his mistakes didn’t prove costly as his co-defenders were up to their very best on the night. Clichy hasn’t suddenly become a bad player. Mehtinks its just a mental thing.
* Koscielny (7/10) – I still rate this guy very much inspite of all the barbs that have ben directed towards him in his very short Arsenal career. Critics seem to conveniently forget that he’s been with us for just five months. Last night though, he was ontop of his game and that largely involved keeping the feared Drogba quiet. Thankfully there was no fear in his approach to the task as he shackled Drogba comfortably and kept the big Ivorien under wraps all night. The only time Drogba managed to escape, he did it from a deadball, where he fed Branislav Ivanovic to head home a riposte in the 57th minute. All in all, Koscielny passed his big test in flying colours.
* Djourou (8/10) – The more I see of this bloke, the more I love him. He has truly emerged as a class act in defence for us this season. His huge, domineering presence works wonders and belies a sharpnes and high mental alertness. He bossed things at the back with panache and the adjectives are just endless in describing his performance. Personally, I see no reason why he shouldn’t be an automatic starter. He’s matured; he’s focused and I lost count of the number of headers, tackles and blocks he made all night. He particularly was the big reason why Fabianksi had so little to do in goal. Keep it up Johann.
* Sagna ((7/10) – Did his usual bit on the right side of defence. Handled anything Chelsea could conjure and pocketed his compatriot, the slippery Florent Malouda. Malouda’s 60th eventual substitution was a consequence of Sagna’s dominance of him as the Chelsea man was clearly not firing at all. Sagna’s overlapping runs also kept Ashley Cole in check and denied the Chelsea fullback any space for his trademark surge on th wings. Very steady work from Bacary.
* Wilshire (6/10) – Didn’t enjoy the latitude to showcase his repertoire of talents, but Jack wasn’t overawed either. Did his best on the night and never tired of running. Gave as good as he got.
* Song (8/10) – Did a yeoman’s job on the night. Apart from his goal, he ticked all the right boxes as he tackled, blocked and kept up a very high standard of play in the middle. It was nice to see that against the combined strength of Essien, Mikel Obi and later Ramires, Song wasn’t out of place at all. He has become very spinal and vital to the way we play. And for his goal? It was borne out of tenacity and it came at a very crucial time of the game, which forced Chelsea to come out of their shell in the second half. It won’t surprise me at all if he ends up with double figures at the end of the season. What a turnaround his game is going through!
*Fabregas (7/10) – El Capitan was in the mood last night and alot of the good stuff we did went through him. On such nights, he is almost unplayable and for someone so young , it is frightening and mindboggling what he will be at the apex of his game. What a fine player he is! What an astute leader of men! It was such a relief to see the smile back on his hairy face.
* Nasri (7/10) – Didn’t score this time, but he was a threat all night long. Never afraid of running at their defence and gave Ashley Cole, Ferreira and later Bosingwas a torrid time. Almost scored with a beautiful chip in the 40th minute which Cech had to stretch to punch clear. He will always be a good outlet for our attack for sure.
*Van Persie (5/10) – Led the attack in the absence of the rested Chamakh and it was good to see that we have options in the team when needed. Didn’t get any room to do his stuff but got involved a lot. It was also apparent to see why he gets injured so often as he still puts himself around recklessly and often needlessly. Hopefully he stays injury-free for rest of season. Hopefully.
* Walcott (8/10) – Along with Song and Fabregas, he was among our men of the match. Troubled the Chelsea defence with his running and bravado. Despite being marked by arguably the best left fullback in the world in Cole, he still skinned the Chelsea man to first set up Fabregas for the second goal and a minute later, scored a beauty himself. Full of goals already this season and he justified Wenger’s decision to start him.


Substitutes
• Chamakh (5/10) – Came on for Van Persie and held up our attack as the game petered out and Chelsea were throwing everything at our defence.
• Diaby (5/10) - Made his entrance to replace Walcott and almost scored as he got on to the end of fine, Wilshire pass. It was his first game in almost three months and as we head into a hectic period, his versatility will come in handy.
• Rosicky (5/10) – Replaced Fabregas and did nothing else expect hit the post late in injury time.