Match Report | Match highlights | Wenger’s thoughts | Credits: Ghana Soccernet
Arsene Wenger’s lineup was expected… …and it would be hard to hold that against him. Players like Petr Cech, Laurent Koscielny, Francis Coquelin and Alexis Sanchez are the spine of his team, its heartbeat. They are his lieutenants who do the job on the pitch when needed. Even removing one of them distorts the balance and risks failure in the easiest of games.
Perhaps it’s a sign of increasing reluctance on them, but to be honest, every successful team have them. Barcelona cannot live without Sergio Busquets and their marquee front three, while Chelsea won’t manage without Thibaut Courtois, Gary Cahill, Diego Costa and Eden Hazard. Our team is full of good players, but the sprinkling of talents like Mesut Ozil and Sanchez are what make them great.
Mustafi’s injury is a warning… Despite acknowledging the above, it’s important to remember that players need to be budgeted throughout the season. Yes, the core of players we have at our disposal are absolutely vital to the team, but they will find themselves sidelined for long periods if they are run into the ground in the short-term.
Shkodran Mustafi started every game (apart from the English Football League ones) and found himself injured. Similarities can be found in Hector Bellerin and Aaron Ramsey. How long will it be until Koscielny, Ozil and Alexis become unwanted casualties?
Granit Xhaka needs to be careful… I love the man. I love how he’s aggressive off the ball and uncharacteristically composed on it. However, his elbow on Joe Allen simply wasn’t warranted. We’ve signed players like Xhaka to unhesitatingly contest for 50-50s and ‘earn’ tactical yellow cards, not chin people with his elbows.
And look, I know it’s Stoke City. I know their team is comprised of Neanderthals and Thenns who would prefer eating roosters without boiling them. And when you would look at a picture of Charlie Adam stamping on Alexis before Alex Iwobi scored, a part of you might applaud Xhaka for what he did. But that’s just not what football is about. We became the enemy to fight the enemy, and that’s not cool.
Walcott’s goal was important… It was his hundredth goal for club and country, and a well-taken one too. It was starting to feel like the malaise was starting to creep into the Arsenal players. We’re guilty of second-guessing our character and ability once things start going wrong, and it was important to mitigate that. Walcott’s goal was necessary in steadying a ship that – had things not changed for ten more minutes – was in danger of sinking.
Ozil, what a man… What struck me more beautiful than the header he planted past a stranded Lee Grant was his typical nonchalance about it. It was Zidane-esque, a sign of ridiculous top quality and a tearful throwback to the days when Thierry Henry shrugged his shoulders casually after scoring a worldie.
What a player he has become. The fears in his initial days at Arsenal that he would be a flop have been well and truly forgotten. The guy is the dream attacking midfielders. I know Alexis gets a lot of praise (and rightly so), but to my mind, Ozil deserves more for adapting his physique and style of play to conquer the English league. Fine-tuning Ozil might have been the most successful thing Wenger has done in the last two years at Arsenal.
We’ve gotten ourselves back into the mix… Not long ago, we were two points away from the top three and it was already beginning to look like we would be playing catch-up for a good number of weeks. However, such is the topsy-turvy nature of the Premier League that three wins on the trot have seen us leapfrog Liverpool and a dismal Manchester City. Chelsea are still three points above us after their 1-0 win over West Bromwich Albion, but time might catch on to them as well.
The halfway point is approaching, and with it, the Christmas fixtures. Antonio Conte has overplayed his key men for far too long and hopefully, might lose them to injury. Knackered players put points at greater risk, a fact we should know more than most. To usurp the top of the league by the turn of the year, it is crucial we maintain our mini-winning streak and heap pressure on the Blues. Time will tell if we can.
-Santi [Follow me on Twitter @ArsenalBlogz ]
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