This time though, it's vulgar for a good cause.
FUCK ME, ARSENAL KEPT A FUCKING CLEAN SHEET.
In my previous post it was rather gloomy. But yay, I was right. Desire. Desire is all it takes. Nevermind the height disadvantage. Desire. It gets you there.
Rory Delap came at us at every opportunity with ling throws to get balls into the box. If the boys learnt well from last season's game at the Britannia Stadium, it was to always go for the first ball. The way Stoke gets the ball into the net is built on a Stoke player winning the first ball and then flicking it anywhere in the sea of players for another teammate to stab it in.
And everyone all back defending that nasty throw-in went for it.
DESIRE. THAT'S ALL IT TAKES.
We took 3 points. That's all that matters now. Wenger has been talking up Arshavin and trying to get him focused on Arsenal instead of him missing out at the world cup and what a response that was. Eduardo suffered a set back just before the game, and it allowed Arshavin to slot into that lone striker role and he has done immensely well today. Who knew, that Robin's replacement, wasn't another striker but Arshavin. I don't quite know what he is. An attacking midfielder? He's just brilliant running at defenders. He has the pace and the intelligence and he had several chances for one-on-ones with the keeper, only to be denied by his first touch or his delaying of the shot.
When he didn't screw it up though, it resulted in a goal. That chance that became the goal was arguably the hardest of all the chances that were presented to him all night. He once again exhibited his zero backlift to fire the shot into the bottom corner. Brilliant.
Thomas Sorenson did pretty well in goal but was pretty powerless to avoid defeat. With Robin out, it sure looks like we've lost a penalty taker as well. Kudos to Cesc though. A penalty miss like that could destroy a person's confidence but he still manage to carry the team and get stronger and stronger. He never gave up and neither did the team and the second goal duly arrived, save for us who should have been 3-0 up at half time.
Vela came on for Rosicky and I hope it wasn't for an injury because I would most seriously flip. Vela did really well and when Fuller came on for Stoke, he was causing some problems and at one point, Traore looked to have too much on his plate and Vela came right back and swooped in a brilliant tackle to take the ball and then get back on his feat. Lovely.
Ramsey came on for Eboue who was struggling a bit and to be honest, I didn't think he would have featured as much if Eboue could continue. If we do lose Eboue though, it'll be a great shame. He was doing a really good job and is maturing a lot as a player. He was good going forward and provided good cover at the back too, providing support to Sagna, who too had a good game. I can't help but think that Eboue and Sagna link up really well, probably from their off-field relationship.
Ramsey stole the night at the end with his very well taken goal. He's always looking to score and he has and it was a fantastic strike to say the least. He's such a hottie.
If Rosicky, Eboue and Traore have injury concerns, this probably sucks a lot. Gallas looked to be struggling too. I hope the official site didn't put a hex on Rosa and Gallas by announcing that their contract extensions are imminent.
Midweek, it's Olympiacos and since we're all but assured top spot, it should be a Carling Cup team out there. They've got much to prove, especially after the defeat to Man City. Last chance for first team action before they get shipped out on loan.
All in all, a good shift put in by the boys. Desire beats the lack in height. Brilliance over brute force.
Labels: Aaron Ramsey, Andrei Arshavin, Carlos Vela, Emmanuel Eboue
A Little Drunken Madness @ 1:00 AM
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