Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby Inchpräctice » Wed Dec 19, 2007 4:22 am

Blackburn came into this game looking to restore some pride after some recent poor performances. Consequently Hughes put out his best 11 with McCarthy on the bench in case things got rough.
Arsenal on the other hand arrived up North on the back of an impressive win against Chelsea. Brimming with either confidence or madness Wenger fielded a side containing none of the starting 11 who featured against the blues.
On paper this seemed like a very bold move. We were up North on a cold winter's night playing against a physical team. Three things we were supposed to bad at coping with.

Despite all that Wenger fielded a team who's average age was n-n-nineteen and included players who had never played a single minute of a Premiership game (Fabianski, Randall).
Randall in fact, has never started so much as a CC match.
None of this would matter too much if we had Toure or Gallas at the back but that was deemed an unnecessary luxury by Arsene. Nevermind I'm sure they'll be on the bench along with RVP or Adebayor I thought to myself.
I wasn't even close. With the bench being made up of Barazite, Gibbs, Mannone and Gavin Hoyte many fans would be forgiven for thinking that we could be in for a proper spanking. Even Walcott was missing from this one.

As usual Arsene knows better.
Right from the kick off the 'kids' showed their intent and displayed the beautiful one-touch pass and move that we've become accustomed to watching the first team display.
It was only six minutes before Diaby opened the scoring much to the delight and disbelief of the fans.
Some lovely one-touch passing followed by another superbly measured cross from Bendtner found Diaby in space on the opposite side of the penalty area. Diaby chose to hit it first time with his left foot and the ball curled over the keeper and into the corner. 1-0.
Coming from a player who supposedly has no left foot that was a seriously sublime finish - how much of it he meant is debatable.

The flowing wave of attacking moves continued as Bendtner dropped deep to draw his defender off the back line, a quick one-two with Diaby then he used his pace to create space for himself and carve out a chance in which he chipped the ball over the keeper.
It was a beautiful shot but came back off the bar with no-one there to slam it home. A classy shot though and if it was a couple of inches lower....

Seconds later Diaby threaded a curled ball through the Blackburn defence that almost reached Eduardo and resulted in a corner. Two things were clear at this early stage: Diaby was on fire, and Blackburn were being roundly humiliated by a bunch of kids.

They didn't let that get to them however, and started some slick attacking moves of their own, the second of which forced a superb save from Fabianski. Lord knows how he got down so quick.
The gunners then took charge again with more ball retention resulting in a superb long distance through ball from Denilson which found Eduardo who slotted the ball past Friedel, cool as a cucumber. 2-0.
"He just DOESN'T miss does he?" was the commentators reaction and I thought that summed it up perfectly.
When Eduardo gets through on goal there seems to be only one outcome. This is a proper finisher with an impressive strike rate. One that puts some of our other strikers to shame.
Friedel was left swearing in disgust at his players.

2 - 0 up with less than half an hour played?! Were we dreaming? This was an incredible start and definitely not in the script. What happened to that spanking everyone was talking about?
The Arsenal crowd started singing "Aaaaare you Tottenham in disguise?" and I was joining in at home.

Minutes later Eduardo had another chance from a tight angle after another great cross from Diarra.
Seconds later, Bendtner then cued up Denilson who had a crack but his effort went over the bar.
Blackburn were still under pressure.
Their response was swift and decisive as Derbyshire (offside) whipped in a dangerous ball for the in form Santa Cruz who prodded it home from close range. 2-1.
As in the Chelsea game we were not getting the best of the ref's decisions so even more mental strength was required.
Was Traore at fault for that goal? Occasionally he does come forward a bit too much which can result in him getting caught out of position. Too late to worry about that now though.

Half time score 2-1.
This took the shine off of our first half performance somewhat and didn't really reflect the run of play. We completely dominated that half and although the stats said that we had 60% possession it felt more like 90% as Blackburn couldn't get near us.

After the break Blackburn came on the attack again as Savage pumped a long high ball forward to Santa Cruz which left our back four stranded. He only had the keeper to beat so a goal looked inevitable but Fabianski did just enough to put him off and then somehow palmed the ball away from him.
The ball didn't go far though and Song had to get back to make a superb last ditch clearance resulting in a corner.
Song and Senderos seemed totally unaware of Santa Cruz's position and they were lucky not to have been punished.

They kept up a sustained period of pressure but we defended well and kept them at bay.
Not satisfied to sit on the lead we turned defence into attack and set Bendtner up with another shot on goal which was blocked this time.

Randall then added to our expanding yellow card tally with a late challenge on Warnock which resulted in a free kick.
Ex-gunner Bentley curled it into the box and up popped Santa Cruz again to head past Fabianski. 2-2.
All the fabulous work from the first half was undone and we wondered if this signalled the beginning of the end.

Song was having none of it though and began a one-man revenge attack which saw him rushing towards Friedel chasing a back heel by Denilson. Song bearing down on goal was not a sight I thought I'd ever see but a good sign of his fighting spirit.
Then came the succession of yellow cards as NewBolton took a leaf out of Villa and Newcastle's book by deliberately fouling whichever Arsenal player happened to be at the spearhead of a promising counter attack.
A shrewd and infuriating tactic which never seems to backfire as the carded player is always careful not to pick up another yellow, and the ref is always reluctant to issue it.

Denilson then picked up a yellow closely followed by a red and we were down to ten men with time still on the clock. Things were going from bad to worse.
The resulting pushing and shoving got Savage a yellow card which was the least he deserved. He did well to confirm his reputation as a complete twunt.

End of normal time 2-2.
We now faced the prospect of playing extra time with one man down and the possibility of penalties if the score stayed the same.
Shortly after the restart the talented substitute Nacer Barazite went down injured and was clearly in pain as he appeared to have dislocated his shoulder. He was stretchered off wearing an oxygen mask and was replaced with midfielder Kieran Gibbs. The poor showing of Blackburn fans politely clapped him off the pitch.

The brief rest obviously did us some good as Song came running confidently out of defence looking for a useful pass. Eduardo sensed his intent and began an intelligent run across the defenders, Song seemingly having the game of his life threaded a perfectly weighted pass through their back four and Eduardo took the ball on confidently and once again slotted the ball past a hapless Friedel. 3-2.
The Crozillian surely now has nothing left to do to prove his finishing ability to the delighted Arsenal fans.
Adebayor and Walcott could learn a thing or two from this guy whose calmness and composure in front of goal is simply epic.

What came next was Blackburn's strongest and most sustained period of intense pressure. McCarthy came on to strengthen their attack as they repeatedly crossed dangerous balls into the box.
A goal mouth scramble with 2 shots on goal was closely followed by a Pedersen cross which found Samba at the far post. His header came back off the bar as Arsenal were helped by divine intervention.
Possibly the two most criticized players, Song and Senderos, managed to somehow keep Blackburn at bay for the tense twenty minutes after Eduardo scored, thus enhancing their reputations quite considerably.
When the final whistle blew the gunners punched the air with delight and relief as they had somehow achieved what on paper was impossible.
What a game! What a rollercoaster ride! What a performance!

For me the standout performances came from Song, Diarra, Diaby and Eduardo but I won't give player ratings as I'd only end up giving everyone a 10. :1: :1: :1: :1: :1:

Sky Sports asked Wenger after the game:

"Whoever you face in the next round will you keep playing these kids?"

AW: "You know my answer."
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Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby SE13 » Wed Dec 19, 2007 4:51 am

Top report!!

Thanks for doing it.
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Please note that my comments are my own view, and not that of GoonersWorld. Everything I write is subject to © 2007-2013, and is my own work unless quoted otherwise.
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby Fordy » Wed Dec 19, 2007 4:57 am

nice one mate its was a good match and a good report
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby Git » Wed Dec 19, 2007 6:50 am

Nice report mate.


:1:
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby highbury1913 » Wed Dec 19, 2007 8:07 am

My Player Ratings and Match Report

Lukasz Fabianski
Played well in goal. A few of his throws weren't too good but overall performance was good, made some good saves especially that one-on one against Santa Cruz.
Rating: 6.5

Justin Hoyte
Played well, got forward and was among the few players to still have pace in extra time,very good stamina.
Rating: 7

Alex Song
From the player that everyone made fun of to one of the best CBs in the squad. Sure he is 4th choice but he played like a star and looked like a regular starter. Was calm defensively and added some into attack when needed. Alex Song, from laughing stalk to Man of The Match.
Rating: 9 *MOTM

Philippe Senderos
Played well enough, no mistakes which is always good when it comes to Senderos' clumsy defending. Had to good chance to score once but was offside.
Rating: 7.5

Armand Traore
According to Adebayor the fastest player in the squad and you wouldn't be surprised by the way he ran all over the pitch. Like his senior Clichy, has to work on his crossing. A little more polish in defending and we could have a world-beater on our hands.
Rating: 7.5

Mark Randall
Started out well and played his part in the opener. Did start to look nervous when Blackburn started attacking and gave the ball away a lot. He is still a young kid though and has the time to get better.
Rating: 5.5

Denilson
Plays the Cesc role with less of him joining in attack which is understandable since he was actually a DM at Sao Paulo. He sprays the ball all around the field well and if he didn't get that red card (which he deserved), he'd be right up there with Alex Song in the ratings.
Rating: 8

Lassana Diarra
Was excellent in the DM role. Got himself out of trouble more than once with pace and good dribbling. Didn't offer much in attack but that's not really his job.
Rating: 8

Abou Diaby
He was outstanding in the first half but gave the ball away a lot in the second half. Very good in attack and was OK in defending. And he scored another fantastic goal to add to his collection.
Rating: 7.5

Nicklas Bendtner
He could replace Adebayor very easily. In fact in some aspects he is already better and today he showed he has pace, strength and a very good passer of the ball. Didn't really test the goalkeeper much but he played largely as the 2nd striker.
Rating: 7.5

Eduardo
He is still settling here in England and you can understand that with the weather and speed of the game here being much higher but one thing a striker has no matter where you put him is an eye for goal. His finishing is outstanding, if Adebayor could finish like him he would be the complete player. He was largely quiet throughout the game but popped up with 2 goals that sent Arsenal through today. In the end when you are the main striker in a side, this is what you want, GOALS. And he delivered.
Rating: 8.5

The substitutes didn't really have that much time to make an impact so I wont rate them. Barazite was on the longest but got injured before he could get into the game. Gibbs and Merida came on too late to do much.
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby Cheese » Wed Dec 19, 2007 11:04 am

Top top report Inchpractice.

Fantastic stuff :1:
“What a great day for football, all we need is some green grass and a ball.”
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby rachel83 » Wed Dec 19, 2007 1:32 pm

Excellent report.
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby Trina » Wed Dec 19, 2007 2:02 pm

Great report Inchpractice.!

It's good to see you back aswell highbury1913, blogs looking great as always :D
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby CLS » Wed Dec 19, 2007 2:06 pm

nice one ,great report :1:
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby Inchpräctice » Wed Dec 19, 2007 9:16 pm

Thanks guys, couldn't sleep last night. :5:
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby Reverend Gooner » Wed Dec 19, 2007 10:38 pm

Brilliant report Inchpractice, i missed this one but it sounded like an absolute cracker! I am shocked we managed to dominate them so blatently at their own ground.

Hopefully now Eduardo can get some prem time up front to help our league campaign.
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby absolutely_fabregas » Wed Dec 19, 2007 10:41 pm

Inchpractice wrote:Thanks guys, couldn't sleep last night. :5:

either could i, it took me all bloody night to read it!!

;)
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (very long)

Postby Inchpräctice » Wed Dec 19, 2007 11:07 pm

absolutely_fabregas wrote:
Inchpractice wrote:Thanks guys, couldn't sleep last night. :5:

Neither could i, it took me all bloody night to read it!!

;)


Yeah it was really long wasnt' it?
I read it again after I'd written it and tried to find something I could edit out to make it shorter but so much happened in that match that it would be a crime to leave anything out.
It was a very long game too.

Reverend Gooner wrote:Brilliant report Inchpractice, i missed this one but it sounded like an absolute cracker! I am shocked we managed to dominate them so blatently at their own ground.

Hopefully now Eduardo can get some prem time up front to help our league campaign.


That's a shame as the game was easily one of the best of the season. It had everything, drama, plenty of goals, controversy, spirited fightback the lot.
We wazzed all over them in the first half it was a joy to behold. :3:
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (very long)

Postby absolutely_fabregas » Wed Dec 19, 2007 11:11 pm

Inchpractice wrote:
absolutely_fabregas wrote:
Inchpractice wrote:Thanks guys, couldn't sleep last night. :5:

Neither could i, it took me all bloody night to read it!!

;)


Yeah it was really long wasnt' it?
I read it again after I'd written it and tried to find something I could edit out to make it shorter but so much happened in that match that it would be a crime to leave anything out.
It was a very long game too.

it was a good read, had both quality and quantity :1: :1:
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Re: Blackburn 2-3 Arsenal - 10 boys v 11 men (long)

Postby iSzC » Thu Dec 20, 2007 8:17 am

nice one!great report! :1:
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