Well that was a roller-coaster of emotion... a roller-coaster that you get on, start building up some speed and then the person next to you is sick on you... all over you. But then the sick flies off you in the wind and you start to think "actually this is going to be ok" until right near the end of the ride when the roller-coaster implausibly and without sense crashes and you're horribly maimed... and then Paul Scholes starts kicking you. I've never been very good at metaphors.
We dominated possession early on and just as we were starting to build up some confidence we were hit by Swansea's first meaningful foray into our half. An excellent but unchallenged cross from deep by the Swansea left-back Neil Taylor was met high and powerfully by Wilfred Bony who rose above Thomas Vermaelen. It was the last thing we needed and potentially a damaging blow to our confidence.
The score stayed level until half-time as the players struggled to make any inroads through the Swansea back-line. Mertesacker headed into the side-netting, Oxlade-Chamerblain fired well wide after making some space for himself and Cazorla had a decent effort saved but we didn't really look like scoring. We did work the ball out to the overlapping full-backs a few times but no players were making decent runs into the box and really giving them anything to aim at.
Wenger saw the need to make a change early in the second half and brought on Lukas Podolski for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Podolski offered very little defensively but was decisive going forwards. In the 73rd minute he equalised from close-range after Gibbs beat his man brilliantly and pulled the ball back to him. And just a minute later he delivered a sensational low cross into the pass of Olivier Giroud to fire Arsenal into the lead.
What happened at the end of the game was farcical; freakishly bad fortune really. Mertesacker challenged Leon Britton in the area only for the ball to bounce off the on-rushing Szczesney's leg and then off Flamini into the open net. It was as cruel as it was ridiculous. Had it not have happened we would be savouring three crucial, hard-earned points but in the end we are left swallowing sadness and regret.
"The result is very disappointing but the spirit we put in and the effort we put in was great and we have to take it on the chin." - Arsène Wenger
It's a hard one to take on the chin to be fair. Arsène bemoaned the way we tried to shut up shop rather than keep attacking but I don't really agree; I just felt we needed to shut up shop more effectively and not concede a hideously unlucky goal.
Paul Scholes had some choice words for Arsenal following the match and while on the one hand it felt like being kicked while you're down, on the other I think he raised some fair points. He labelled this a typical week for Arsenal and there was a sense of familiarity after our thumping at Stamford Bridge and that very Arsenal-esque own goal last night. He also said that Jack Wilshere has not developed since he was 17 because of a lack of role-models however I do think this is a little unfair as he has had serious injuries and Arsène Wenger's record of nurturing young players is still very good, taking Theo and Ramsey as recent examples.
As well as highlighting Arsenal's lack of physical strength and leaders he also criticised the discipline of Arsenal's midfield and I think this is where he speaks with real authority and reason:
"It's like they go out with no discipline. It's almost as if it's 'OK, you four, five midfielders, you go out there, do what you want, try to score us a goal, play some nice one-twos, a bit of tippy-tappy football, don't bother running back... Sometimes, as a midfield player, when you're up against it you just have to say 'look, come in beside me for five, ten minutes', try and stop the flow of attacks... And these [players at Arsenal], they go 2-0 down and they just carry on what they're doing. 'I'll have a wander up front, try a one-two, lose the ball'. Nobody bothers sprinting back. You wonder why they're in the position they're in?" - Paul Scholes on Sky Sports
That's pretty tough to argue with and is a damning indictment of how the manager sets up his team and coaches them.
Kim Kallstrom came on and did fine; played one good long ball. Given our injuries, Oxlade-Chamberlian's unreliability in a deeper position and Arteta's fatigue, he maybe needed but I doubt he can significantly improve us. The title was of course gone on the weekend and now the only relevant section of the league table is below:
Those next two games are hugely important and we will not have any key players back for them so we will need to regroup and improve quickly or "our Champions League spot" will be there for the taking...
Man of the Match: Kieran Gibbs - This is not to say he was flawless. He needs to be more disciplined defensively. I remember Tony Adams complaining that Arsenal's fullbacks play like wingers and he has a good point but it certainly worked out well for us when Kieran made an excellent assist for Lukas Podolski.
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