Thursday, March 28, 2024

Report: Arsenal 5-0 Burnley (inc goals)

Arsenal: Cech, Bellerin, Chambers, Mavropanos, Kolasinac, Xhaka, Wilshere, Mkhitaryan, Iwobi, Aubameyang, Lacazette

Subs: Ospina, Mertesacker, Mustafi, Monreal, Maitland-Niles, Ramsey, Welbeck

Arsenal played beautiful attacking football and gave Arsene Wenger the Emirates Stadium sendoff he deserved, dominating Burnley in a comprehensive 5-0 victory.

Emotional significance outweighed the football implications on Sunday, as Arsenal fans got a final chance to say goodbye to Arsene Wenger at the Emirates. Although the match had some bearing on whether Arsenal would finish sixth, and secure qualification for next season’s Europa League group stage, those ramifications were significantly overshadowed by the historic moment of Arsene’s final home game in charge of Arsenal. There were additional farewells for the club captain and big fucking German, Per Mertesacker, as well as kit man and former women’s team manager Vik Akers, who spent over 30 years at Arsenal. It was a day that truly marked the end of an era.

Arsenal lined up with a much changed side from the one that lost to Atleti on Thursday. There was another start for Mavropanos while Ozil missed out altogether. According to the manager, Ozil suffered a recurrence of a back injury that threatens to keep him out of Arsenal’s remaining games. His absence will certainly fill some column inches this week and lends unfortunate credence to Martin Keown’s explosive comments about the German after Thursday’s match.

The game kicked off following a guard of honor for Arsene Wenger. Arsenal started the game with good early possession but little in the way of penetration as Burnley defended well. Iwobi tamely bounced the first shot on target after some good work down the right flank. Xkaha pinged a nice cross-field pass to Kolasinac whose low cross was cut out for a corner just before reaching Aubameyang. It brought the first noise from the Emirates crowd.

Burnley continued to defend very deep while Arsenal probed for openings on the edge of the penalty area. Despite the significance of the occasion, the prematch excitement had given way to subdued atmosphere. As is often the case, it was going to be the responsibility of the players to lift the fans.

And in the fourteenth minute they did just that with the opening goal. Aubameyang started the move on the edge of the final third delivering a little dagger ball to Lacazette near the edge of the area. After Bellerin and Lacazette exchanged passes, Lacazette and Iwobi played a give-and-go in the box. It was a clever little chipped ball between two defenders from Iwobi to Lacazette and from the right side of the penalty area he delivered a perfect low cross for Aubameyang who tapped home to make it 1-0 to the Arsenal.

Just a few minutes later there was a strong shout for a handball on the edge of the box, but the replay showed that Kolasinac’s cross hit the Burnley defender on the hip before deflecting off his arm. At this point it was all Arsenal, with Burley looking shaky trying to repel waves of attack. Ashley Barnes and Xhaka collided contesting a ball in the air with the Burnley man having to come off with an injury to his arm. He was replaced by Sam Vokes.

Burnley enjoyed a little spell of possession without threatening to break Arsenal down. Arsenal tried attacking down Burlney’s right side. Kolasinac stumbled over the ball before Lacazette and Mkhitaryan nearly executed a nice 1-2 inside the area but Burnley were able to get the ball clear.

Considering the occasion, it was a remarkably flat atmosphere in the stadium. But in the 33rd minute there was nearly another cause for celebration. Mkhitaryan slid the ball to Xhaka in Burnley’s half and he was just able to poke the ball out wide to Lacazette. His cross into the box was volleyed well by Mkhitaryan but just over the bar.

There were a few more nearly moments with Iwobi arriving in the box but seeing his cross blocked. Then Aubameyang slipping the ball into the box for the ever-present Lacazette but the Burnley defender was able to get to it just ahead of the Frenchman. Iwobi got the ball out wide right to Mkhitaryan on the counter but his good cross to Aubameyang was cut out for a corner. The ensuing corner routine came to nothing.

Lacazette and Aubameyang exchanged passes on the edge of the Burnley area but the move was easily snuffed out. However, the Burnley defender was slow to clear and Lacazette was able to take the ball off him in the box before the keeper eventually was able to fall on it ending the threat.

Arsenal were comfortable and seemed to have at least another gear if required. Burnley weren’t posing any threat. Arsenal were able to pass the ball through the midfield with ease. Xhaka picked out Mkhitaryan with a lovely line breaking pass through midfield and he exchanged passes with Aubameyang on the edge of Burnley’s penalty area before unleashing a strong deflected shot that was well saved.

Burnley missed a good chance to level the score when a nice cutback through the Arsenal penalty area from the right flank just missed 2 Burley attackers. An equalizer would’ve flattered Burnley but hardly surprised anyone at the Emirates. Just before injury time, Aubameyang attacked down the left before being cynically hacked down by Long. The crowd wanted a card but nothing was given.

Then on the stroke of half-time, Arsenal doubled their advantage. Three minutes into four minutes of injury time, the excellent Granit Xhaka found an influential Iwobi in right half-space. Iwobi slide the ball to an overlapping Bellerin who cut the ball back into the penalty area from the end line. Lacazette, who had a brilliant first half, arrived just in time to squeeze the ball into the net at the near post with a deft volley. It was the fourteenth Premier League goal for Lacazette in a possibly under-appreciated first season at the club.

Shortly after the goal the referee blew for halftime with Arsenal leading 2-0. All in all, a perfect 45 minutes in front of a pleased but quiet Emirates crowd.

Both teams returned from halftime unchanged. The second half nearly got off to the perfect start. Aubameyang cleverly got himself free down the left touchline and carried the ball into the box. His little cutback found Wilshere arriving on the edge of the six yard box but he was only able to stab the ball over the bar.

Xhaka pinged another perfect long ball out wide to Aubameyang. He slipped the ball to Kolasinac on the overlap but his cross from the end line was cut out for a corner. Unfortunately the corner delivery was poor and it was easily claimed by the keeper. Burnley’s ensuing attack brought their best chance of the game. A lofted cross from the left found Vokes who rose above Mavropanos but his header down was straight into the arms of Cech. It was the first concerning moment of the game for the young Greek defender.

Arsenal were getting sloppy and Burnley had a good attack end with a Cech punch. This time it was a cross from their right hand side that caused the danger after a poor Mavropanos clearance went back to Burnley on the edge of the final third.

Mkhitaryan started a one-man counter attack and had the chance to pick out Lacazette who was making a good run, unmarked down the left hand side. Instead he attempted to slip in Iwobi through the middle. It was the wrong decisions and the difficult pass was poorly weighted allowing Burnley to easily get the ball clear.

In the 54th minute, Kolasinac made it 3-0 after a Jack Wilshere run that turned back the clock. Wilshere picked the ball up deep in central midfield before tricking his way past his marker and surging forward to the edge of Burnley’s area. From there he picked out Kolasinac in the left channel and the full-back unleashed a forceful, straight shot across the goal and into the side-netting. It was a lovely finish started by a Jack Wilshere move that was reminiscent of the player he was before his injury problems began.

Arsenal’s tails were up and Mkhitaryian nearly made it four. His run to the edge of the penalty area resulted in a curling shot from top of the box that just flew just past the left goal-post. Hendrick unleashed a shot from outside the box that was blocked by Mavropanos  out for a Burnley corner. Arsenal dealt with the resulting set piece comfortably enough.

After some nice Arsenal possession, Burnley worked the ball down their right side and delivered an excellent early cross that Chambers did well to head out for a corner. That corner fell to Burnley on the edge of the area where Burnley worked the ball around before having another cross deflected out for yet another corner. Arsenal cleared and were able to start a nice counter attack. And from that move, Arsenal made it 4-0.

Iwobi picked the ball up in the defensive half and carried into the Burley half. He gave the ball to Aubameyang on the left wing and Iwobi continued his run into the box. Burley gave him the freedom of their penalty area and when Aubameyang slipped him the ball, Iwobi took one touch with his right then blasted into the roof of the Burnley net with his left. A deserved goal for him on the day and some much needed end-product for a talented player who has often disappointed in the opposition penalty area.

By now the Emirates crowd were in a festive mood, lifted by the performance and the occasion. Arsenal tried to give them more to cheer with another penetrating move into the Burnley penalty area that resulted in a Kolasinac shot from close range being blocked into touch.

A Bellerin foul gave Burnley a free kick from a dangerous area but the in swinging delivery was headed out for a corner. That corner was taken poorly by Burnley and the ball went all the way back to their keeper.

When the ball went out for a throw in the 71st minute, Arsenal made two changes. Wilshere was replaced by Ramsey and Danny Welbeck came on for Lacazette who turned in another good home performance. Burnley also took off some Burnley players who were replaced by some other Burnley players.

A comically poor Burnley free kick resulted in some Burnley possession that ended with a terrible shot off target. Then Cech saved another long range shot comfortably down to his left. Then, in the 75th minute, it was 5-0.

Ramsey drove through the midfield, poked out wide to Bellerin, and the Spaniard delivered another good cross, this time to Aubameyang, who slammed it into the back of the net from close range once again. Another typical center forward’s goal from a man who would’ve been a helpful addition on Thursday night.

On 77 minutes, it was time for some sentimentality. The BFG gave Arsene a hug as the board went up and Arsenal’s captain came on for Calum Chambers. The crowd gave a lusty rendition of Per’s song. The chorus was cut short however when Aubameyang had a chance to make it 6-0. He worked his way into the box but his attempt to find a teammate rather than taking the shot himself was cut out by a defender.

There was a nice moment in the 78th minute as the crowd cheered a flurry of Mertesacker touches in the defensive third, the last of which set Arsenal off on a counter attack that resulted in a wayward Bellerin shot. The crowd continued to cheer the captain’s every touch as the game wound to a conclusion.

The game opened up in the final few minutes and Aubameyang had several opportunities to show his pace and quality on the counter attack. He just missed Ramsey running into the box for a good chance to make it 6. Then Mkhitaryan setup Welbeck on the edge of the area and his powerful shot cannoned off the far post. Mkhitaryan continued to setup teammates, this time finding Ramsey running beyond the last Burnley defender but he shot directly at the keeper from an acute angle.

Then, on the stroke of 90 minutes, the referee blew for full time, ending Arsene’s final game in charge of Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. There would be post match festivities and a lap of appreciation before bringing the special day to a conclusion. It was a five-star performance on a day when the football paled in significance to the historic nature of the occasion.

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C.B.

Great home send off for our greatest (cleverest, most attacking, most innovative etc) manager. Magnificent memories he has given us, we have been blessed.
Good luck to him in all he does in the rest of his life.
Merci beaucoup Arsene.

C.B.

Magnificent memories: Arsene Who?, Invincibles season, Bergkamp, Henry, Vieira, Pires, CL entry 20 years in a row, record FA Cup wins, Sol signing, two doubles, more top division trophies than Sp*rs have ever won http://www.haveyoueverseentottenhamwintheleague.com/ , new stadium, Adams summing it all up. Please add more fantastic memories…

Too Drunk To Be Offside

I have been very critical of Wenger, however that is in the past. He delivered 3 Premier Leagues and 7 FA Cups and thats all the matters today. The rest of it is in the past.

Remember how when Wenger won his 1st league they said its all down to the defense and Wenger just inherited that. They will be saying exactly that about the attack and the guy who comes in.

Wenger will leave behind a great attack force for the new guy to build on, and one that will rip most defenses apart.

Martin

Remember he also created another great defence at the time of the Invincibles

GraeB

Love him. Love his heritage. Love his class.

Do think this event should have been after 20 or 21 years though.

Andy Mack

He inherited a back 5 which had been bang average for the preceding 2 seasons where they’d had a hand letting the team drop to 14th (IIRC) position in the league and then looking rather uninspiring for Rioch. They weren’t bad players but their age and lifestyle would have seen most managers replace them all. AW managed to rejuvenate them instead, and then replace them in time for the invincibles season.

leroy

i know most have already read it, but if you haven’t, the arseblog from a couple days ago is an absolute must read for magnificent memories:

https://arseblog.com/2018/05/no-european-trophy-no-happy-ending-but/

georg

absolutely, but no Eboue!

moonie

What a story. Thank you Arsene for the football, the values, the memories, all of it. Not even on his last home game did he talk about himself. The class and values this man has is something we can learn from. We will miss you too Arsene. Thank You.

Dennis

Good point. Imagine replacing that with Brendan ‘I love myself’ Rodgers!
Good luck for the future Arsene

GunneRon

There’s only one Arsene Wenger !

RedCurrant

Kudos to the Burrnley fans who sang that in the second half. A bit of class on a day things didn’t exactly go their way…

cygan'sbaldspot

what a beautiful and truly sad day

MrSweaty

A performance to be proud of and a manager to be grateful for. Merci Arsene!

shokim

A fitting farewell for a great manager. What a classy farewell presentation by our club too! #MerciArsene

Ya gooner

*claps for mavropanos*

Jack

First time in ages we’ve played really well and it wasn’t even on telly! Typical!

Arsene's Coat

First thing he mentioned in his acceptance speech was to wish SAF well.. just reminds us what an absolute gent he is and has always been. Pure class. Merci Arsene

GraeB

Absolutely. I hope though that AW notes that and enjoys a proper retirement instead of working on.

GoForIt

Echo this — “Pure class”

And among the other great signings mentioned above he also stole Freddie “He’s Got Red Hair” Ljungberg for a song too.
Remember the title run in when Freddie seemed to score every game?

Merci beaucoup pour ces bons souvenirs Arsène.

A Kick in the Debuchy

: ‘(

leroy

Thanks, Arsene. L E G E N D

Evang. Simon

#MercieArsene

True gunner

Wenger, am going to miss you. You’re the only intelligent manager left in the sport. Au revoir.

K9ine

Why am I so sad. Good bye Arsene. Lovely man. Great performance today. Mavropanos is a fem

ramgooner

5-0. Another day of Wengerball……Oh Wait:'(

A-Boo-Car

The tears just kept rolling down as I watched the post match festivities. Merci Arsene!

Tony Hall

And who said grown men don’t cry … Thanks gaffer for all the wonderful memories, it’s not just about the trophies, you revolutionised English football when you came here, you unleashed Thierry Henry (the finest striker ever to grace the premier league), you oversaw the building of a brand new stadium and despite the financial constraints of that and the injection of crazy money into rival teams from 2004 onwards, managed to keep the team in the top 4 and CL for 19/20 years in a row. I just wish the team could have won you the CL because you… Read more »

Goforit

He also signed and unleashed Patrick Viera, the greatest midfielder the premier league has ever seen.

Edzo

Helluva an offensive team mr wenger has put together. I, for one, am sad to see him go. I wish our club could spend hundreds of millions on players and then if they don’t perform just spend hundreds of more millions on new players. There’s a reason we buy holdimg, chambers and the Greek, plus a fullback on a free, when others can spend gazillions. And the teams of the century with the greatest managers, all of whom prove wenger has supposedly lost the plot, are now in a fire fight for 4th place. When spursl win 3 fa cups… Read more »

Magneto

People like Arsene Wenger don’t come along every day, and we have been lucky to have had him. I will miss his intelligence, leadership, vision and class. I will miss the quality of his insights and observations, as well as the quality of his wit and humour too. I will miss the ways in which he was prepared to stand up and fight for what he believed in, and the countless demonstrations of his resilience in dealing with savage attacks & mind boggling pressure from various quarters, over many years, that would have destroyed a lesser person. Finally, I will… Read more »

I AM ARSENAL

”Football like Arsenal” is probably his biggest achievement…Having our name as a byword for good on the eye and at times down right outrageous football..No team has scored the goals we have scored in the last 20 years. Absolute gentlemen and in a way he is almost too pure and idealistic for the current game. Exceptional from Mavrapanos again. Thought Mhki and Jack showed some nice touches ..But i was really pleased firstly for Xhaxa who has been rightfully criticised all season..I think he has been pretty good for a couple months now and Iwobi who looks alot better in… Read more »

Laudgunner

Together with Bergkham, Arsene made me fall in love with Arsenal. Wished we enjoyed so much success but it couldnt happen. Anyways, thank you so much for guiding this club for 22years. Life goes on, Once a gunner, always a gunner!!! Merci, Arsene. Danke Mert.Thanks Vikers. COYG

Hantal

A lot of unfair criticism towards henry not being there but he was working, David seaman’s twitter feed shows him, adams and Dixon on a beach somewhere. Really disrespectful

Bob's Mexican Cousin

Everyone has priorities.

Martin

He rushed to the Emirates after working on the Chelsea match.

A Different George

He was in Manchester for Sky and the trophy presentation. Guardiola told him he should become a manager–there wasn’t too much subtlety about what he meant.

RealGooner

I would love to see Auba and Lacazette play in a quality arsenal side, not one that finishes 6th. Imagine amount of goals they could score, two real talents. Lets hope we get in a manager that can bring this club to this top. #MerciArsene

KoyGun

Merçi Arséne. What an absolute absolute legend. Fighting back tears here.

Goonerboy53

Football fans are so fickle. You all make me laugh.. Same people telling Wenger to leave now after Atletico singing his praises today, be consistent.

Ausdrexler

Big difference to wanting the manager to leave vs respecting and appreciating the work he has done in the past, on this his final game in charge of Arsenal at home.

I AM ARSENAL

May be wrong but im sure Burnley have not been thumped like that all season

Twatsloch

And they were lucky to escape with only 5 goals against them. Could easily have been a couple more.

Matt P

Typical Arsenal of recent times.play well when the pressure is off

Twatsloch

Thank you Arsene Wenger. We shall never seen your like again!

Clock-End Mike

You didn’t mention the farewell for retiring women’s team captain Alex Scott. She deserves all the tributes too.

Clock-End Mike

It was a huge tribute to a great manager, and true class from the club, to present Arsène with the golden trophy presented by the FA for the Invincible season.

I wonder if the club have had a replica made to keep in our trophy cabinet?

I h

I was there today and i couldnt agree less about the crowd. Everyone was behind the team and wenger from the first to the last. It has been a rarity to get an atmosphere like that at the emirates for a long time, but today they were in full voice from the off. Great send off for a man i will always respect.

Der Kaiser

Merci Arsene! Total commitment for 22 years. Best boss you could ever have. Total gent and so humble. Deserves all the accolades. He also would accept constructive criticism but hey the abuse from some, Arsenal ” Fans” TV and Piers Morgan, he never deserved. Of course he never reacted because he was above that and just put the club first. Total comittment! Let’s hope his successor whoever that may be gives total commitment puts the club above their own ego and that the supporters give total support. In most jobs all, you want is everybody to give 100 per cent… Read more »

Clock-End Mike

I could thumb this up repeatedly. My sentiments exactly.

bdotm

#OneArseneWenger

afan

once again pure class from wilshere, ran the midfield, pulled all the strings, and the assists, got to be player of the season

A P

Once again in how long?

santori

Well, we don’t have the europa to cap it but at least the lads put out a superb display today to suggest the latent quality that Arsenal has entrusted in them with. Wengerball. And it was all dictated by midfield. Sure the press were suggesting before that Burnley were our equal then when they did not ‘show up’ the story turned to the fact that they had ‘slim hope’ of catching us anyway. I believe when the match started we were seperated by 3 points? Something about already qualifying for europa then got suggested. I think the key to our… Read more »

Mpls

I’ll be sharing my photo with Arsene’s statue outside the Emirates with pride.

Merci indeed monsieur.

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