Not our best performance of the season by a long way, but three points in a 2-1 win against a terrier-like Palace side on a pitch that looked like no-man’s land in 1918 are very welcome indeed.
Also, United lost and Chelsea drew. Fun times. Here’s how we thought the players rated.
Hurrah for the Arsenal Chippendales!!
If you though you know what a six pack looked like, behold Alexis, and think again 🙂
Well that’s a sentence that’s all over the place.
That sentence, grammatically speaking, was fine.
Jamie Carrager will surely go nuts when he sees this picture
confused.. I wanna fap all over his tits
And Giroud has his tongue in cheek, good luck to the man…. soft porn? Only kidding those guys are ‘fit’.
Liberace’s pool boys?
I can’t believe I am the only one who thinks some of these shots are beginning to look a tad dubious…
I know I probably shouldn’t belittle the comment section with their presence, but it’s days like today I’m stunned Manchester United sold us Welbeck. It seemed like a complete abdication of their club’s principals and alright, he hasn’t set the world alight with his goals, but he really does look an assured player. Not to mention he created the goal today and against Sp*rs too, since returning from injury. Hopefully he forces Walcott/Ox to step up and compete with him.
Many Man United fans still question the decision – his name raised again after yesterday’s Man United ‘European’ debacle. Not just the decision either but the fact he was sold on the cheap. Regarding the goals- it’s a slightly deceptive stat. He’s won two penalties which have been taken by Cazorla rather than Welbeck himself (no issue on his part). In the last match Giroud should have teed him up twice… What I love is Danny Welbeck and Oxlaide-Chamberlain is they have great work rates, fantastic pace and pull defenses apart creating chances for others. I also think the advantage… Read more »
I would love to see him improve his finishing and perhaps play with a bit more aggression. He was really fired up for England vs Scotland a few months back and I think it gets the best out of him. His all round game is great but at the end of the day you need your CF to put the ball in the net. I know you suggest he could have had better service but that’s not to say he would have scored anyway.. His goals:games (starting at CF) ratio isn’t good enough for us really. On the wing where… Read more »
I really want to see a more agressive Welbeck too. His problem isn’t his finishing imo. Rather, he doesn’t take enough risks with and without the ball. A more selfish Welbeck would dominate!
Santi, you peach!
Saved by the post, 3 points feel like 6, Arsenal sure does know how to keep you on edge.
2-0 up in the last two minutes and I still had a heart attack. Oh I love this club!
Also I give that pitch 10 Gerrard’s out of 10.
It’s a far cry from the invincibles days when they’d have the ball on a string for the last few minutes of the match & give the opposition no hope of salvaging anything. No sense of panic & dispiriting for the opposition.
I saw an apt comment on the Gauradian’s website –
Feet at Palace, heads at Monaco.
I’m so glad we got the 3 points but something tells me (in spite of knowing better) the team/manager thought this was going to be an easier game than it was. I’ll leave it at that.
No, we weren’t “saved” by the post. By definition a ball that hits the post and doesn’t cross the goal line has MISSED.
Three points and got outta there with no injuries , happy days !!
Radio 5 live going nuts over how both our goals should’ve been ruled out
they’ve got a point to be fair, but also, how many times did our players just get scythed down and CP didn’t even get a single card?
they just pile drived through Sanchez and Cazorla at least once every 5 minutes, and Fuckenshitforeyesberg just sat there laughing.
They also conveniently forget to mention Özil’s early onside goal that wasn’t given, too.
Same on MOTD. Özil’s “offside” goal wasn’t even shown or mentioned!
Clattercunt can really have no excuse if a player decides to clock him one day. What the fuck is with all the laughing? Like a little kid on helium. The weird-arse convo he seemed to be having in the tunnel should have been a clue that they’d dug into something backstage. Useless shitehead.
Oh come on, Ospina’s ‘pass the smelling salts’ fainting spell was comical.
They do not have a fair point.
With his foot in the air on the way into the penalty area he catches Welbecks right leg, then, as they both move forward he takes out Welbecks left leg within the penalty area…all in one motion.
I’m guessing that in all of the ranting about Welbeck being marginally offside for the 2nd goal, there isn’t a single word about Özil being a foot or two onside in the 3rd minute when his goal was disallowed.
I think ozil has been quietly brilliant lately. Im just waiting for him to absolutely explode and be absolutely brilliant in one of our upcoming games
Ozil is magic. Low key magic. Not flashy, but magic non the less.
6 for mesut? Something’s wrong with you man
I love him but I think was reasonable considering the overall performance and his contribution to it.
You got it wrong blogs!
What % or number of Xs do you need to have your comments hidden on your own blog 🙂 ?
I always thought that if a comment had 50 more thumbs down than thumbs up, it would be hidden for having low rating.
Unless you own the the whole site and give yourself immunity, hehe 😉
I’m immune 😉
How does any Arsenal player deserve more than a 6 or 7 today? Great result. But the performance was a 6. Palace wanted it more and we were fortunate to get 3 points.
Palace are a different team with their new manager. Really gained some belief in themselves and with it they;ve gained an extra bit of pace too. They aren’t the pushovers they were.
Atleast it seems like we don’t need the last game to assure our champions league spot #COYG#
Watched the game at the away screening. I did love Mesut shielding the ball out for a goal kick to relieve the pressure. No defensive side? Pah!
Seriously mesut is the most talented player in our squad and reminds me a lot of Bergkamp minus the goals.
Özil is my favorite player, so I’m always biased when he’s involved. But no way Mertesacker and Coquelin shouldn’t rate higher than Chambers. IMO
It’s great that you have an opinion, but using a double negative and a bit of ambiguous conditional probably isn’t the best way to express it.
Manure lost! Hohohoho #Get in
I feel like Chambers was no challenge on the right today. So many crosses from that flank and none blocked! Beginning to see why Bellerin is first choice now! Any one of those crosses could have been converted and we would be talking about how Chambers isnt that great after all.
He was at least shadowing them to the point whereby all those crosses were pretty poor, I agree he could have done better on a few but he defended it decently enough.
Would be pretty harsh on chambers considering he had a great start to his arsenal career at CB and is mainly getting turned over since his move to right back. If someone like koscielny was under performing playing at right back you would argue “he is playing out of position” so the same should apply to chambers. The guy will come good just give him some time in CB or maybe even in CDM(I doubt it though) and we’ll see why wenger chose him.
Chambers has potential, but imo Bellerin is first choice.
Don’t think I’ve seen ratings that are so close for all the players, but have to agree with them for the most part. Nobody was awful and nobody was outstanding, tough match against an inspired opponent on a crappy pitch with a frenzied crowd. Certainly were under fire throughout, but did what we needed to and got 3 incredibly valuable points (thanks some luck too). I think this match showed that although Coquelin is certainly an improvement over Flamini and does many good things that we really could do with an upgrade in that position (at minimum someone to compete… Read more »
Funny, you say, how when we brought on two defenders to give us more defensive stability, we immediately conceded a goal. Nearly two goals actually, but I’m surprised you’re surprised. This has been going on for over a decade. I used to call it Senderos-time and would cover my eyes when I saw him warming up. Why does Wenger never learn that bringing on extra defenders is fatal? First because they get in each other’s way and cause confusion. Second, because it’s like raising a white flag to the opposition and inviting them on to us. We’d have done better… Read more »
You’re so right.
Apart from Napoleon’s being French.
I gave Mert a 9! He may not have been great on the ball today, but no one was. What he did do was get under every damn ball they pumped in, and it was a lot. People may call him slow, but when the crosses come in there’s no one I’d rather have in the box
Agree. The defence coped well under huge pressure today. Lots of set pieces. They deserve higher, apart from Monreal who struggled a bit against Zaha.
Zaha is a slippery bugger though, give him enough space and he’ll knock it into space and run past you, get tight to him and he drops to the ground looking for a foul; guess he learnt something at Old Trafford after all.
Chambers did not do too badly. Welbeck gives you plenty of industry. I suspect if played through middle, plenty of goals too. He’s still only 23yrs so he’ll get good. Surprise we did not rest Koscielny but perhaps influenced by the pace tactics Wenger likely realised Pardew was going to employ against us. The thing about adding defending assets to close out the game with a tenuous 2 goal lead is it could work both ways. We tend to sit too deep when it happens and invite trouble IMO. I feel we should add one more defensive minded player maybe… Read more »
happy for the 3 points, but i hope the players got an earful from wenger afterwards. that’s not how you close out a game.
Goin To Be Important Points! wondering What Result Is Going To Be Best Tomorrow Between the Mugs And Southampton…Liverpool Out Of Sight or Pegged Back Saints? (Sorry For Weird Capitals, Phone A Bit shite)
Why is Giroud tweeking his own nipples…..and why do I like it?
I think he might be a Blood
Don’t know, why don’t you tell us?
Thought ozil worked well going forwards, running back and covering, shielding the ball. Monreal better in second half when stand up zara rather than getting tight. Chambers has a good fighting spirit and is strong. Like ozil looking very strong physically. Coquelin I prefer it when he plays it first time passes as he did against city.up the gooners
Our players need to make a sexy leg calendar. Am I right ladies?
Now a west ham win and a southampton draw= perfect weekend and I thought BFG was fantastic…an 8 atleast..plus OOOOssssspina needs to calm his t*ts..not much difference between him and Sir Chesney atm imo (ikr :P)..remember Szcez has terrific shot stopping and long range handling too…may be he will start in the UCL..Martinez seems the most composed in the box though!!
I can’t be the only one who thinks Chambers just isn’t a right back in the Arsenal mould. He’ll be a much better CB in time thoughthough.
You’re right.
I thin bellerin was not risked today because of the vital match we have on Wednesday against monaco, and it clearly visible that Chambers is not a RB he is a CB, but wenger plays him RB when is neded and other players on that position aren’t available, i think he is preparing him in the long haul as a CB he will learn much more as RB and when he is moved to center will be a better player, i remember that wenger did the same with Kolo Toure. But yeah our first and second choice Rb’s are debuchy… Read more »
Chambers is not a great RB right now, but remember how young and inexperienced he is. He is also not nearly as quick as Bellerin, but certainly did not get overrun as he did (and Bellerin did) early in the season. He was given a tough task with the strategy of Palace and speed of their wings. If you remember when Sagna was with us he would often get beat to the end line in 1 v 1 situations, it’s the nature of defending a fast attacker that decides where he wants to go. Teams will often give up the… Read more »
I would agree. Chambers gets caught for pace and at the very top level that cant be good. Hope the lad proves me wrong.
If he were a Right Back I’d agree with you, but he isn’t is he?
Mertesacker and Giroud. Top performances.
Let’s just say I don’t agree with blogs.
The first thing that came to my mind when I saw the pic was ‘SPAAAAAARRRRTAAAAAAA!!!’ 😉
Well, it has been pointed out already the shot has a certain homo-erotic quality to it.
Homo-erotic is in the eye of the beholder.
Arseblog´s comments on Coquelin look like he deserves at least a rating of 6.5 (he was one of the better Arsenal players today-not that many played that well to be honest). Does he go down to 6 due to his almost orange card?
I think Ozil deserves a higher rating than what he’s been given – he’s pulled off at least one sublime potentially game-changing move every match since he’s returned from injury. Starting to become a believer. I hope Palace do well in the remaining part of the season – always impressed by the atmosphere at Selhurst Park.
They got Sanogo and Chamakh.. they’ll be fine ^^
EVERYONE 6 to 6.5? In my football manager head 7 to 7.5 feels “right” for a 2-1 away win but it’s purely subjective and I didn’t see the game.
It was an away game. Those ratings should get a little premium for that. People marking it with “it’s only Palace” mindset a little bit perhaps. They aren’t “only Palace” now. They are a team with belief in themselves and some speedy wingers to boot, and they’re pulling away from the relegation zone… when we aren’t beating them 😉
Isnt coquelin on 5 yellows now?
Suspensions are automatically imposed for accumulating 5, 10, or 15 cautions in a season. There are cut-off dates for receiving a sanction as a result of accumulated cautions. They are:
CAUTIONS/CUT OFF DATES (Inclusive)
5 31 December (Premier League only)
5 30 November (FL to Step 4 only)
10 2nd Sunday in April
15 End of Season
For example, a Premier League player earning their fifth caution of the season on or after 1st January would not earn any ban. However, if they received ten cautions by the second Sunday in April, a ban would apply.
Read more at http://www.thefa.com/football-rules-governance/suspensions#0axOz06D4cApxF8f.99
He has 4 to date.
I won’t know..
Terrible pitch and awful refereeing…. Glad we didn’t snatch a draw from the jaws of victory.
Brooklyn Beckham’s new chant: “Where Brooklyn at!? Where Brooklyn at!?”
Dear God let this happen. Off topic but still.
Very good 3 points despite the poor performance. Hope we can at least finish 3rd now.
On an unrelated note, this is a very interesting piece and answers the accusation that “Wenger pays no attention to the opposition.” http://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2015/feb/21/arsenal-arsene-wenger-scarred-monaco-marseille
The breakaway by Ozil was unreal. He lobbed the ball over the defender a d chased it at full speed…Sanchez was running to support him at full speed….but somehow when he held the ball for that second or two before laying it for Sanchez was like suddenly it was in slow motion and like he had all the time in the world. Unbelievable. The third goal should have ce from that sublime move!!
was telling my wife that is a real footballers goal. fast counter and one on one with the keeper. would have been another special Arsenal goal.
Got to love the banner from the Palace fans. ‘5 billion in the trough yet supporters still exploited. Share the wealth, pigs.’
#winugly
What? No rating for that dreadful pitch?
Got out of jail at times but a nice six pointer that. Not many teams will like to go there.
And did Alain Pardeu get the pitch watered extra. almost cost us the points.
No one could play football on that pitch.
Chalk it off to experience and move on.
I thought Ozil was our best player bar the defence, which he actually helped out with quite robustly, hmm I sense a new strength in Ozil’s game… And Welbeck wasn’t really that great (as in kinda clueless) besides his involvement in the goals, I thought Coq was solid again but just short of Ozil. Chucking on more defenders was a bit dumb and more like old Arsene… just encouraging the opposition to pile on the pressure (remember Spurs?!?!?), not fun for the defence or the fans. Another obvious thing for me was that we didn’t start our two quicker full… Read more »
You guys are lame, well except the one liker who obviously has a brain. Well done to you.
Adrian Clarke as usual seeing it pretty much as I do, love his breakdowns. http://player.arsenal.com/player/6019-the-breakdown-crystal-palace-a
Just had a little look at the name of the ground staff at Crystal Palace following comments of 1918 wartime conditions and the grounds person name is Sam Cannon…..Just saying.
Is 4th spot still sufficient if Liverpool wins the UEFA cup?
Yeah…..If they come 3rd
Europa League winner qualifies for next season’s Champions League, genius.
You didn’t ge the joke did you, genius?
From wikipedia: The previous limit of a maximum of four teams per association will be increased to five, meaning that if the Champions League title holders or the Europa League title holders are from the top three ranked associations (but not both from the same one) and finish outside the top four of their domestic league, the fourth-placed team of their association will not be prevented from participating in the tournament. However, if both the Champions League title holders and the Europa League title holders are from the same top three ranked association and finish outside the top four of… Read more »
Thanks for the clarification – much appreciated.