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Showing posts with label Andrey Arshavin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Andrey Arshavin. Show all posts

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Watch: Titus Bramble Push on Arshavin - Penalty?



Arsenal may count themselves unlucky after being unable to break through the Sunderland defence. In a game like his, the perfect opportunity to score would have been from the penalty spot, and in the video above, Arsenal and Wenger will be furious that this wasn't given.

The referee was miles away, it must be said, although probably would have hoped his linesman would have seen it.

Read Match Report Here

Arsenal Will Rely on Suarez & Carroll for Tomorrow

Arsene Wenger Manager Arsene Wenger shows his frustration during the Barclays Premier League match between Arsenal and Sunderland at Emirates Stadium on March 5, 2011 in London, England.Arsene Wenger's stony expression pasted on his appalled faced was clear for all to see as he trudged down the tunnel at the Emirates, knowing his side had wasted a glorious chance. The chance to close the gap to just one point on United had been fought for fiercely, but against a resilient Sunderland defence that United's own Steve Bruce had organised, the Gunners could not break through.

All they needed was a goal, but it just wasn't to be. It was just one of those days- all teams have them - when that goal simply doesn't come, and it is unfortunate for Arsenal that it came today, at a crucial time in their season. Five goals in midweek against Leyton Orient meant nothing against a Sunderland defence which was in a different class to that of Orient's.

Wenger may count him and his side unlucky with some of the officiating as two crucial calls in particular will possibly be questioned. An offside decision late on in the 87th minute was called up for Andrey Arshavin, whilst replay's show that although very borderline, and very close, the little Russian was probably onside and would have been clear through.

A little earlier too, there was a penalty shout for the Gunners, which was denied, as Arshavin went down from a push from Titus Bramble in the box. Arshavin's subsequent shot was an unbalanced one as he hit it wide of the post as a result of the push. Arshavin was clean through, only for Bramble to fall into his back with arms outstretched. This went undetected and the chance was gone.

In the absence of two of Arsenal's best in Fabregas and van Persie, the other players had to step up and fill in. Nasri, Wilshere and Bendtner helped Arsenal to a total of seven shots on target, but none found themselves go beyond Simon Mignolet in the Black Cat's goal, as the away side held on for the point.

Arsenal were never going to overtake Manchester United through a win in this game, obviously because it was mathematically impossible but they would have expected a win against a side who have been struggling recently since the departure of Darren Bent to Aston Villa. A win would have been a significant stride towards their first League title since 2004, especially considering United's tough trip to Anfield tomorrow.

Arsenal’s strikers may have misfired today, but they do have two aces up their sleeve, or rather Kenny Dalglish's sleeve which Arsenal will borrow. Manchester United travel to Anfield with a weakened defence, and will face a Liverpool front line which has recently been boosted by the additions of Suarez and Carroll. Wenger will be hoping the penetrative power of Liverpool will be greater than United's defensive abilities in the absence of Vidic and Ferdinand. If so, the disappointing draw to Sunderland won't look to bad, and rather a point gained than to points dropped.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Arsenal 2 - 1 Barcelona: Brilliant Comeback Does Gunners Proud

Andrei Arshavin
When Arsenal went behind to a David Villa goal, it looked as if some impressive Arsenal play would count for absolutely nothing as Barcelona looked to keep possession and settle, as they capably do, with the 0 - 1 result. They may not have expected then, that Arsenal, in front of their brilliantly supportive fans who stayed on their side all night would bravely fight back for a memorable win at the Emirates - their first ever win against Barcelona.

It is hard to pick out an Arsenal player who had a bad game. Every one of them did themselves proud, with the young Jack Wilshere doing particularly magnificently among some of the greatest central midfielders on the planet. He was brilliant at knocking the ball around as well as getting out of some tricky and tight situations, portraying a footballing age years beyond his own 19.

The Arsenal defence, often questioned and exposed as their main weakness, was resilient and made very few mistakes - only falling asleep a couple of times, with only one of those instances being punished. Koscielny was very good at the back and coped with the explosive attack of Barca very well.

The game was a fantastic spectacle, and it did fly by, with the football from both sides being typically technically wonderful, and at times was end to end football. The entertaining game was constantly competitive, with Arsenal being spurred on by their excellent fans who played a very big part in the comeback, giving the players the belief that they needed to pick themselves up after some rocky spells.

A blasted Van Persie shot from an impossible angle caught Victor Valdes on his near post as he occupied himself with the prospect of a flashed cross. The Dutch striker caught everyone out with the shot, and it took a moment to sink in for the fans that the back of the net was bulging.

Five minutes later, and the breathtaking comeback was complete with an Andrei Arshavin winner. He popped off the bench late on and in a counter attack which saw the surprise starter Samir Nasri (after injury) roll it back almost in slow motion, the little Russian stroked the ball past Valdes for a second time. He wheeled away to the delight of the Arsenal fans who mustn't have believed the astonishing sight, as Barcelona players held their heads in their hands.

Arsenal should enjoy it while they can. Yes, they have beaten one of the best teams in the world for the first time in Barcelona. Yes, they showed excellent character to come back from behind. Yes they take a lead into the second leg. But, the second leg will be far higher task for them to complete. The atmosphere will be hostile, the players will be up for it, and Arsenal will be desperate to cling on to their win.

It would be absolutely fantastic for English football and Arsenal if they could pull off an aggregate win over Barcelona at Camp Nou. But it will be, as they undoubtedly know, a very tough task. Even if they do not, they can take great solace in the fact that they have improved from last year and shown great character to come from behind and win. They should use this as a spring board for better things, and finally come of age.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Watch: Arsenal 2 - 1 Everton


Arsenal came from behind against Everton to keep their chase with Manchester United for the Premier League top spot going for another week. The Gunners had to rise above a blatant offside decision that went against them which put them behind in the first place, and in the last 20 minutes, they did just that - rise above the controversy with goals from Andrei Arshavin and Laurent Koscielny.

I won't go into too much detail on the goals scored, because you can see them above, but here is a quick summary:

Louis Saha scored the opener while standing in a clear offside position when the ball was played to him by Seamus Coleman in the 24th minute. Despite uproar from the Arsenal players who all raised their arms simultaneously as the ball floated over, the goal stood, and the Toffees held onto their fragile away lead until the 70th minute.
A beautifully chipped ball from Fabregas opened up the Everton defence with apparent ease, for the previously out of sorts Arshavin to poke past Tim Howard for the equaliser.
Five minutes later, and a corner was floated into the box for Koscielny to head home for the winner and run off in hysteria to celebrate with his delighted fans.

David Moyes, the Everton manager, was not happy. At all. In fact, the Scot was disgusted. But not at his teams performance, rather, he was disgusted at the Arsenal captain, Cesc Fabregas' behaviour towards the referee in the tunnel. Moyes explained:
"Fabregas should have been sent off in the tunnel for his comments about the officials. It was disgusting.
"I won't be repeating them, but maybe someone will."
When he was asked to explain what he meant by this, Moyes said:
"No I won't. I'll just say that he should have been sent off for his comments to the officials coming up the tunnel."
Nevertheless, Arsenal were victorious, and continue to put pressure Manchester United at the top of the League, despite the Red Devils comfortable 3 - 1 win over Aston Villa. The gap remains at 5 points, but will the fact that neither Arsenal or United added to their squad in the January transfer window, while their title rivals did play any part in the title race? Not too much I suspect. Both have bee strong from the off.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Arsenal Demand £17 million for Arshavin.

Andrey Arshavin Andrey Arshavin of Arsenal in action during the Barclays Premier League match between Arsenal and Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium on January 5, 2011 in London, England.Andrei Arshavin could be heading off to Italy, as his agent confirmed that there is a possibility that he could sign for Juventus.

The little Russian has been frustrating the Arsenal fans of late with his questionable on-field decisions, and a few small mistakes that have accumulated into heavy sighs and rolling eyes around the Emirates when the 29 year-old carelessly gives the ball away. It was only mid-2009 that Arsenal legend Dennis Bergkamp said that Arshavin had  "every chance of becoming a favourite of the London fans".

The former Zenit midfielders agent confirmed that a move could me on the cards,
"There's a possibility of Andrei's move to Juventus. But there are two things that can prevent this deal.
"First, Arsenal can win the Premier League this year. The gold medal of the English league is a dream of any footballer.
"Second is the financial ability of Juve as Arsenal are demanding no less than $26 million [£17 million] to release Arshavin.
"It's difficult for me to comment on certain items because he is a player who still has two-and-half-years on his contract with Arsenal and there are no formal offers.
But before we get carried away with the comments, lets just remember that Arshavin is most probably just in a dip in his form. Every player has them, and when you are low on confidence it takes a little while to get out of them. With the support of his manager, team mates and fans, Arshavin should be fine, after all, he is a quality player with impressive ability that caught Arsene Wenger's eye in the first place. His agent continued,

"In any case I think it's just speculation. Juventus could have taken Arshavin two-and-a-half years ago, but they didn't want to.
"The player is happy in London. There could also be possibilities to move in January but, I repeat, we are talking about a player under contract and for which currently there is nothing concrete."