Match Review: Arsenal 2 Liverpool 1 - FA Cup - 16.02.14

What a difference a week makes. This time last Sunday we were still wallowing in the misery of a thumping on Merseyside. This time Liverpool came to us and revenge was taken on a chilly afternoon in North London. Lots had been said in the build up to the game; questions were abounding about how we would fare after being thumped by the same team so recently, would Wenger play a weakened team with an eye on Bayern, what would defeat mean for our season? In the end, it was indeed a weaker Arsenal team, but an infinitely stronger performance.

The big news building up to kick off was the inclusion of Yaya Sanogo in the starting line up, having recently returned from injury. Having had little involvement in neither first team or U21 games this season, it was quite a surprise move. It was the standout of a number of changes made from the midweek draw with United. Jenkinson, Flamini, Fabianski, Monreal, Podolski and Chamberlain joined Sanogo in replacing Sagna, Wilshere, Szczesny, Gibbs, Cazorla, Rosicky and Giroud. A bold move considering the FA Cup is a very winnable competition and we were so comprehensively beaten by Liverpool. So obviously there was a lot of criticism for the manager and accusations of prioritising the Champions League over the FA Cup. I have no doubt that the Bayern game is bigger for him than the game against Liverpool, but Wenger has always had faith in his squad and he believed the side he picked could win.

We didn’t start brilliantly. Much like the game at Anfield, Liverpool cut us open a number of times before we got to grips with the game. Sturridge was played in twice and should have done better both times. Once we got started though, we started to play some great football. What was really noticeable was the greater intensity with which we pressed Liverpool this time. It was something that was missing a bit against United too and it stopped Liverpool from bossing it. Sanogo was also showing why Wenger had put his faith in him, winning some good headers and showing a good ability to touch off passes and make runs. Unfortunately his composure let him down a bit when he had the chance to cross in the area, somehow managing to miss the ball, pirouette round it and then knock it out for a goal kick. We’ll put it down to rustiness…

Fifteen minutes gone and Sanogo made up for his earlier blunder by helping us gain the lead. We won a freekick just outside the right hand side of the Liverpool box. Arteta chipped the ball in and it was cleared, only to fall to Özil. The Liverpool defence tried to push out too quickly, leaving two defenders to try and cover Sanogo, Koscielny and Mertesacker. Özil’s cross was chested down by Sanogo and the Frenchman volleyed at goal, but saw his shot blocked by Gerrard. The extra numbers in the box told though, as the rebound fell to Chamberlain, who calmly fired past Brad Jones. I thought we deserved it too, we weathered the early storm and started to get a real foothold in the game. You just wonder what might have happened in the league game if we’d managed to do the same there.

I thought for the most part, we just shaded the first half. Oddly enough, Liverpool probably had the best clear cut chances, but I thought our fight and determination was magnificent and the team seemed hungry for a win. Fabianski made a great save when Suarez fashioned a chance out of a nothing ball over the top, but apart from that we were resolute and we showed promise going forward too.

I don’t know what it is about Arsenal at the moment, but we started the second half as sloppily as we started the first and Liverpool very nearly took advantage. Suarez fashioned an early chance and we generally looked a bit sluggish and in danger of giving Liverpool the initiative. It’s a good thing then that our slow start only lasted for just over a minute. From the goal kick after the Liverpool chance, Fabianski hit the ball towards Sanogo and although the youngster didn’t win the header, he did enough to stop Liverpool gaining possession. Jenkinson nipped in to poke the ball away from Sterling on the right sideline and into the feet of Chamberlain. The winger played a first time pass to Özil and then set off on a run past Agger. Özil’s through ball was timed to perfection and found Chamberlain at full speed having left Agger groping at thin air. The Ox looked up to see Podolski sprinting into the middle of the area and found him beautifully, allowing the German to sweep home and cap a breathtaking move. Although the move was a thing of beauty, I did think the goalkeeper could have made some sort of effort to save it, but if you play Brad Jones in goal you’re asking for trouble.

Having said that, the Liverpool second-choice keeper did follow it up with a very good save to prevent Özil from putting the game beyond doubt. Just when you thought we might be able to take the sting out of the game though, up popped Luis Suarez to claw his side back into it. Not with a moment of supreme skill or a breathtaking bit of genius, but with a pathetic, embarrassing dive. Suarez was one on one with Monreal on the right side of the area, when Podolski raced back to help out. The Uruguayan felt the slightest touch on his ankle and flung himself to the floor, on top of the ball. It seemed clear to everyone in the stadium that it was a poor attempt to cheat a penalty and I think most people expected Webb to book the little shit for such a woeful dive. But then Webb pointed to the spot, to the disbelief of every sane football fan and therefore the delight of the Liverpool fans. In the words of Arsène Wenger, ‘I’m embarrassed for him.’ Steven Gerrard stepped up and as usual tucked away the penalty.

The goal made everything a bit dicey and for a while it looked like only a matter of time before Liverpool would equalise. Chamberlain was hugely lucky to get away with what seemed like a stonewall penalty as he got none of the ball and all of Suarez, but the Uruguayan’s dramatic tumble and the fact that he’d booted the ball out of play just before Chamberlain made contact seemed to weigh against him. I guess you could say that justice was done, in a farcical two wrongs making a right kind of way.

Sturridge was also sent clean through on goal, but Fabianski did brilliantly to get a hand on the ball when Sturridge tried to round him. At the other end though, Cazorla first missed a golden opportunity to secure the victory, ballooning the ball over when he should have taken a touch and finished more calmly. He was then denied a penalty when he and Skrtel went for a bouncing ball and Skrtel missed the ball and went straight through on Santi’s leg. Steven Gerrard was also more than a little lucky to still be on the pitch as he clattered Chamberlain when he had no hope of getting to the ball. The midfielder had already been booked and really should have received his marching orders. Just a bit more polish for the turd that was Howard Webb’s performance.

Although it was a bit nervy towards the end, we showed grit and fight to ensure that we made it through to the quarter finals. There we’ll face Everton at home, in yet another stinking draw for us. In the two cup competitions we’ve been drawn against five Premier League teams in six fixtures. Of those five, four have been from the top six. The only advantage we’ve had has been that five out of the six have been at home. If we’re to win it, we’ll most likely have to beat Man City too, meaning we’ll have had to play four of the five possible top six teams to do so. Add that to drawing Bayern in the CL and we’ve had a really crap time of it with the draws. Contrast that with City getting Wigan at home and other massive ties such Brighton or Hull vs Sunderland and I think we can feel more than a bit unfortunate to get such a difficult draw. Still, it’ll make it all the more sweet when we do win it!

Teams

Arsenal (4-2-3-1)
Fabianski, Jenkinson, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal (Y), Flamini (Y), Arteta, Podolski (Cazorla 69’), Özil, Chamberlain (Gibbs 76’), Sanogo (Giroud 88’)
Subs
Viviano, Sagna, Gibbs, Cazorla, Gnabry, Giroud, Wilshere

Liverpool (4-1-3-2)
Jones, Flanagan (Y), Skrtel, Agger, Cissokho (Henderson 62’), Gerrard (Y), Allen, Sterling, Coutinho (Y), Sturridge, Suarez
Subs
Mignolet, Toure, Aspas, Moses, Henderson, Kelly, Teixeira

Player Ratings

Fabianski - 9/10 - A superb performance, apart from one flappy moment
Jenkinson - 7/10 - Dealt with Sterling well and helped set the second goal in motion
Koscielny - 8/10 - Silenced Suarez yet again, running out of room in his pockets
Mertesacker - 7/10 - Rock solid as usual
Monreal - 7/10 - Given a tough time by Suarez and Sturridge but coped very well
Flamini - 8/10 - Heroic, brilliant to have him back and in form ahead of Bayern
Arteta - 7/10 - Did a lot of hard work today, perhaps more given his suspension for Bayern
Podolski - 7/10 - Was a little quiet, but put in a huge shift and scored a great goal
Özil - 7/10 - His ability to keep the ball under pressure is insane
Chamberlain - 8/10 - Hitting form at a time we need him most, brilliant performance
Sanogo - 8/10 - A 7/10 performance made an 8 because it was his full debut after barely any football, in a huge game too
Subs
Cazorla - 6/10 - Not sure what he was brought on for, unless to rest Podolski for Bayern
Gibbs - 7/10 - Did a good job helping Monreal out towards the end
Giroud - N/A

Image © Arsenal.com

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