RvP+Verminator, Captain Fantastic & Vice-captain Ballistic!

Some crazy game this football.It might just be the next thing after daily soaps to portray all kinds of emotions. We have been through hell this season, and the blazing form in the past five matches has seen us rise to the fourth spot and knocking on door for third spot. First time in the Premier League history that a team has four consecutive wins coming from behind. It's not the win alone, but the manner with which they have been achieved.Of course, when you hit rock-bottom, there's only one place you can go, and that is up.

We started the game with our regular passing game, but Newcastle looked comfortable too and apart from a close chance missed by RVP(yes, he's human too), there weren't any breathtaking moments. Newcastle got the lead on the half hour mark from a neat finish by Ben Arfa. It was TV who lost the ball cheaply and then Kieran Gibbs over committed himself defending against Ben Arfa, who came inside and slotted the ball, beating Szczesny at the near post. Though no keeper likes to be beaten at the near post, there was little Szczesny could do. Maybe he was blinded for a minute because of Gibbs, but credit to Ben Arfa for the finish.

If this match had been played by our dispirited side, in January, it would have been very difficult to get back into the game and the opposition could have easily rolled over us. But it has been a refreshing last month, the players have shown great spirit and tenacity to not let such situations drown them. Amazingly, after giving away the goal, even before I could say, "Oh no, not again!", RVP equalized at the other end. Rosicky laid a neat pass wide towards Walcott, who hit a low cross to RVP. RVP, as you would expect took one touch to disorient Williamson and another calm touch to get away from him and he equalised for Arsenal. If you think the two touches were brilliant, the goal was just phenomenal. The composure and balance in that finish was simply exquisite, no wonder it was RVP who got the goal.

Walcott and Rosicky were brilliant throughout the game. It was a testimony to Arsene's persistent belief in both of them. Rosicky has been scorching the pitch since the last five games and deservedly earned his contract extension. Walcott on the other end was just to hot to handle for, firstly Santon, and later on after he got subbed, Perch. Both of them just couldn't come in terms with his movement and the runs he made behind them. Almost every time he got the ball, it looked like it could end up in the goal. He must have given at least half a dozen crosses in the penalty area and it was surprise that RVP missed a couple of them and Rosicky one.

Ox was virtually non-existent in the first half but came around in the second. His shot on the volley, outside the box, after controlling the ball brilliantly on his chest, missed the goal by inches. It was glimpse of the talent that he possesses and all that is to come in the future. Arteta controlled the midfield nicely and played alongside Song very well.
Arsene praised his team for their "never-say-die" attitude,

Certainly the fact we have done it before helped us. Even when we were 1-0 down we just kept going and we feel now at the moment in the team we just have that complete and total commitment to do as well as we can and give absolutely everything.

We kept pushing Newcastle behind, and looked likely to score the second winner. Our first half ended with the scores leveled at 1-1. In the second half, we picked up where we left off. Most of our attacks came from the wings, either from the full backs or the wingers. Maybe that is why Newcastle couldn't put a string of attacks together. They tried to catch us on the break, but they were intercepted in most of their plays. Rosicky showed offered that extra creativity while attacking, and was equally tight while defending and winning back the possession. While assessing his own performance, he said,

I am very happy. I wanted to continue here and I am enjoying it very much so I am glad that I am staying. I am trying my best and enjoying the run of games that I am playing. Sometimes in the past it has been difficult when you play once in two weeks, sometimes it is not easy. You can see now that I have the rhythm of the games and that is what I needed. As you can see I think I am contributing well and I want to continue like that.

Arsenal got into the tricky period where it could have gone either way, but we kept up the tempo and offered very little to Newcastle. Krul tried to push the minutes, by prolonging his goal kicks, free kicks etc.
RVP tried to get him moving a couple of times and Webb had to interfere. But Arsenal were not ready to look at the things that were going against them. They were given 5 minutes of injury time to win 3 points, which was largely due to Newcastle's time wasting tactics.

The first four minutes saw 2 chances being defended by Newcastle. In the last minute of stoppage time, we got off on the break and RVP led the counter attack. Song took over and let RVP go forward. He passed the ball wide to Walcott, who made no mistake with the cross, but just when it looked to have missed everyone, including the keeper, TV had ran the length of the pitch and offered that extra body in Newcastle's penalty area and got the equaliser. He showed great commitment in making that run, especially, after a toiling 94 minutes. 10 goals from 50 odd games is a very good record for a defender!

Once again it was a last gasp winner from Arsenal and though my lungs don't appreciate such tense moments, I very well do. Strangely, this time there was a feeling that there was winner coming, with the assault that Arsenal launched on Newcastle in injury time. The celebration just showed how much Arsenal desired this. RVP and his international team mate, Krul, had a go at each other after the goal. Though the reason for that was not known, both of them got an yellow for their behavior.

The recent displays have shown burning desire in this team, that was missing in our poor run during January. But with our fullbacks out injured during that period, it was tough to get through the month. With Arsenal returning to almost full strength, things are looking very positive. I am glad that the team kept their momentum going and hope that they'll continue to fight in every game. We cannot afford any more slip up's in the season. Rosicky has warned his team against complacency,

If we take our foot off the gas then we will pay for it. Newcastle are a good side who are tough to play against, nobody will give you anything for free so we had to fight hard. It is what we are doing and I am enjoying playing in this side very much.

We have a good 10 days rest before we play our next game against Everton. The rest will definitely help in recharging the team and preparing for another spirited performance.

Gunners take on Magpies.

It was good long weekend and it gave enough time to recharge those batteries for what lays ahead. Though the beaches help you get your mind off anything, I simply couldn't miss this weekend's action and praying for some specific results. It was more or less adding on to my peaceful time, but all comes down to tonight.

Rottenham dropped points again, and apparently we kick started their downfall couple of weeks ago. They have not been able to get three whole points off a match since we beat them. Actually, they have been unable to conjure even a single point since then. That leaves a potential gap of one point between them and us. That is why a win today will certainly make us contenders for the third spot, not that we weren't already, however our position last month will tell you how far we have made it.

Chelsea had a close win over Stoke, so they too are knocking on the door for the fourth spot, and we definitely cannot abandon that position.Any result in favor of Newcastle will only get them closer to the fourth place. Although we might be the team with the best current form, however, Newcastle have surprised a lot of teams this season and have been pretty consistent.

Newcastle's defense is going to be tough to get through with Coloccini in very good form. A lot of teams have employed negative tactics against Arsenal this season, preferring to defend in their box and catch us on the counter attack. Many of them have been successful and it wont be a surprise if Newcastle do the same. But the defense isn't the only thing to look out, they have a pretty decent midfield and last year's 4-4 would not have been forgotten in a hurry. Not to mention the double barrel of Demba Ba, who has proven to be a wonderful bit of deal for Newcastle being one of the top scorers in the league, and, Cisse, who was bought in the winter window, has settled quite well and scored a couple of goals. TV and Kos will be kept busy by those two.

It is good to see that all of our full backs have returned back from injury. Andre Santos will be available tonight if required and so will be Ramsey and Arteta. Our midfield looked a bit light weight without these two and others were on the brink of exhaustion against Milan. But Wenger would love to keep the momentum going and he has called for more consistency at home. Our last 3 matches at home have seen us score 15 goals and 3 against us. Wenger says,

We can play at a pace that, at the moment, maybe nobody else can sustain. When we are on our roles that is good for the morale of the team. If you look at the times we have reversed games; Villa, Tottenham, Liverpool, Sunderland and now Milan, you would say there is something special in there.

It might sound like bragging and good banter, but it's the truth and also good to see him bragging about his team's recent successes, and why not, if he takes the blame for his team's failures and defends them, he has every right to brag about the success.

The display against Milan would have given the team a renewed confidence and the belief that there is certainly something in this team. We still have some players who have not scored or performed as much as is expected out of them. Gervinho is one of them and he certainly learned his lesson against Newcastle on the opening day of the league. Arsene says,

At Newcastle, he had a bad response to provocation from Barton. He was shocked because he felt he didn't do a lot. But I think he learned his lesson in the first game and it's better than learning after 20 games. It's better to know what you are facing in a new league. If you want to play abroad and work abroad then you have to adapt to the local culture.

We won't be seeing any of Barton tonight after his switch to QPR. So, I am hoping that it'll be a fair game where football could be played peacefully.

It was great to see Ox play in the midfield against Milan and perform like a pro. It was shame he had to limp off because of an injury. Although there is no news about the seriousness of the injury, Wenger has warned against exhausting him and says that he must be used wisely.
He says,

His feet are on the ground but we have to manage him in a responsible way as well. The problem when you have a talented player like that is that everybody wants him to play every single game. If you do that then he will be injured.

Maybe he is being a bit over cautious, but you can't blame Wenger after his recent bad luck with young players getting injured. I am sure Wenger knows how to handle him, and use him when needed. He has the whole future ahead of him, and who better than Wenger to shape that.

The official site reported this morning that Rosicky has signed a new deal. His contract was about to expire in the summer and the signing could not have come at a better time. He has been in fabulous form in the past month and restored that creativity in Arsenal's midfield.
He said,

The manager, my team-mates, the staff and the supporters - everyone plays their part in making this a great Club, and I feel privileged to be a part of it. I believe we have a really talented group of players and, together with the manager, the future looks bright. It's always been my goal to win trophies here at Arsenal, and I will fight hard to achieve my dreams here.

It's nice to see a player feel so much for the club and wanting to achieve success here itself. A refreshing change from players who have left the club for so-called success.

Three points will keep Rottenham on their toes, and Chelsea just out of the top four and put some more gap between Newcastle and us. Let's hope we keep the consistency at home and continue to score those home goals!
Go Gunners!
 

Peace and quiet!

Happy Holi to everyone! Feels quite peaceful after an amazing 2-3 weeks of great football and total success. We still have time before we start talking and speculating about the next game, the team have had enough of running around, it's time to relax those muscles and build up on that stamina again. While they are at it, I am going to enjoy a peaceful long weekend at the beach too!! Nothing on my mind, not work just plain bliss.

Just the usual rounds of news this morning. A.C. Milan are still trying to get their tail out from between their legs and Arsenal are still bragging about the win and the almost the famous comeback in Champions League history. As far as rumors are concerned, the Podolski one has increased a bit in size and now they are alleging that may be even Cologne have agreed upon a deal with Arsenal. Will just have to wait until summer to find out if it's true, won't we?

Other than, there are also rumors about Mancini revealing openly that he wants RVP to play for him next season, but, who doesn't want him. Right from Al Wasl and all that, to Real Madrid and Barcelona. Who wouldn't want the kind of striker who can score goals almost whenever you want him too? His record has been outstanding for the past one year, he is only the third Arsenal player in the last 40 years to score 25 league goals in a single season!

We don't play this weekend but late on Monday, so we'll have some news about the possible team that will play against Newcastle. Till then I am just going to chill and have a fun time, I suggest you do too!
Happy Women's Day to all the ladies, enjoy!

Keep it peaceful!

Miracles DO happen!

30+ ?? Naah..

Who said miracles don't happen? It was a miracle that A.C. Milan proceeded to the quarter finals, after Arsenal stampeded them in the first half to go 3-0 up. Most of us would have resigned to losing the stop in the last 8, but it was not so impossible after 45 minutes into the game. We just needed a goal to level with Milan, but it was so close.

The reaction of the team and the way they rose to the occasion deserved more than just a win. Having played just 3 days before in what was a very tiring game at Liverpool, it was a massive effort in the first half, but the team overcame that. It has been a very tough two weeks for the players physically and mentally and they have shown enormous mental strength to not let that shadow their spirits. Arsene demanded for a spirited display and the team gave just that.

We needed an early goal to spark things quickly and Kos gave us that just 7 minutes into the game. The players did not show any mercy and walked all over Milan.Their midfield looked a bit light weight and we did pretty well in winning the ball back again each time we lost it. The difference between our past performances and last night's was that, each time we got the ball, we looked to attack. There was seldom any pass that went sideways and most of that was due to some sparkling display's by Rosicky and Ox. Rosicky has looked great since his past couple of performances and has regained that magic touch after his goal against Rottenham. Every time he got the ball, it looked as if it might end up in the back of the net. Who says players beyond their 30's are past their peak!?
Ibrahimovic's post match interview says it all, he reveals,

It's a relief that we're through to the next round. Every time they attacked you started thinking: 'what if they score a fourth goal?'. We won't take anything with us from this game. We just have to learn from our mistakes.

And it's true, they never looked comfortable in the first half. RVP's penalty and the third goal must have definitely made them shiver in their pants. The credit goes to Ox for his brilliant run into the penalty box when the two defenders stop him in his tracks and fouled. He was brilliant throughout the first half and already looks a player heading for the legends list. Pity that he got injured in the second half and had to be substituted. He looked a bit tired and just couldn't give his 100 percent. RVP thumped the penalty into the top corner and not a keeper in the world could have stopped that.

At the end of the first half, the score stood at Arsenal leading 3-0 and there was every reason to believe that we could make it to 4-0 or probably 5-0 too. We started the second half with the same swagger but the Milan players looked a bit organised and tough to break through. The Gunners also got tired, it must have been a pretty exhausting, playing the last few games in a tight schedule. Apart from some chances there wasn't much spark. One such moment was when Gervinho had the ball in the penalty box, he took the opportunity to shoot only for Abbiati to parry the ball at RVP's left foot. He was just a few feet away from goal and had very little time to react and still tried to chip the ball over the keeper. Unfortunately, Abbiati raised his arms in an attempt to make a save and was lucky to stop it from going in. Nobody could believe that RVP didn't score, such has been his form off late that everyone expects anything flying off his foot should land at the back of the net.

After that, we just couldn't recreate the magic, we were losing the ball a bit more than the first half and the exhaustion began to show. Chamakh was substituted to replace Ox and later Park was called on in place of Gervinho, who looked a bit out of touch throughout the game. Besides a couple of runs forward and the shot in the penalty box, he was mostly absent. Our defense did pretty well to keep the Milan attackers away from the goal. They got some pretty good opportunities towards the end of the game but we defended well and kept us in the game till the last moment.

If you would have asked any Arsenal fan before the game, if they'll take a win, they would have happily taken it. But it was disappointing, even after a win, not to go through to the quarter finals. That kind of performance definitely deserved much more, but their was immense pride to be taken from the game. They might regret for not getting an away goal in Milan, but it was lesson learned.
Rosicky said,

I am proud of my team-mates because what we produced today was great football, but it's sad because obviously we are out of the competition. We can go out with our heads held high but we blew it in Milan.

But the performance has given the team new hopes and confidence that they can still do better in the premier league and qualify for the Champions League next season. They will know their capabilities much better and with it will just give belief that they can fight till the end of the season. Last year it was a very forgettable defeat in the Carling cup final that made them lose that confidence and they just collapsed. Last night's match, along with the recent performances, might just do the opposite of that.
Afterwards, Sagna said,

We are fourth now and we have a bit of an advance on Chelsea. We want to put Arsenal back in the Champions League and we are only four points behind Tottenham now. We know we can do it and now we have to win the next game against Newcastle, which is as important as the one against Milan. If we want to qualify for the Champions League we cannot let it go now.

TV reiterated what Sagna said,

It's really important because Arsenal is a team that belongs in the Champions League. We will try to achieve that in the next games and get into the top four. At the moment, after the way we played in the first half against Milan, I am really confident. It's hard to be consistent in top-level football. The team that is the most consistent will win prizes, I believe in that. But we have to be confident that we have the quality in the team and that is what we showed against Milan.

The role of Rosicky is going to be very important in the season ahead and what a time to have discovered his lost form. It was good to see players other than RVP getting on the score sheet, though I would have loved to see him score a couple more yesterday. But there won't be any regrets after this performance. If anything, the fire will be burning more fiercely and I am sure that the team is raring to take on the next opposition. Whatever, fear our reservedness they might have looks certainly gone. Let's hope for a brighter end to this season because God knows that they deserve it!

Do miracles happen?

Arsenal vs A.C. Milan - Emirates Stadium - 7th Feb 2012, 0115hrs IST

We won't try to get into statistics of how AC Milan have squandered their first leg lead and let themselves down in the second leg. Although, it might serve as a good tonic to relax your nerves and give you that extra hope, it's not a good idea to lay your hopes on those kind of numbers. The fact that almost everyone from our team is talking about wanting to win tonight's game is good enough.

Our squad condition puts us in an uncomfortable position due to the injuries we face. Arteta has been ruled out and needs rest to play on Monday against Newcastle. Rosicky is still doubtful because of a groin strain, and Benayoun is not keeping well, which is a refreshing change from our regular injuries. Add to that, even Gibbs has a groin and calf problem. Worse comes to worst, we might not see, Rosicky or Gibbs, either of them on the pitch. Which means that our formation will have to change and that means including attackers, because I don't see any more midfield cover that we have. We still have Song playing as defensive cover but we will be missing the lynchpin in the midfield.

Wenger has accepted that he might need to shuffle his formation, and experiment with the formation. Given the task on our hands, it might not be a bad idea playing four attackers upfront including, RVP, Walcott, Gervinho and Ox. It will be interesting to see Walcott play behind RVP, but I am not sure if he can spray passes in front of him, he might act more like a second striker. With Gervinho and Ox, we certainly have the width, but the thing is that the defensive cover, in shape of Song, NEEDS to be steady. I won't complain if he repeats the kind of assist he produced against Liverpool, but his main job will remain protecting his defense and linking between them and the attack.

It might not be an ideal scenario but the timing is right. We are having a great run, and who knows what we might achieve with the right attitude. It has been long time since I have seen Wenger so excited and charged up to win the game. Just a month back we were looking to win the fourth place trophy and here we are talking about 5-0 and the third spot and so on. Maybe that's what couple of good games and a "Manager of the month" trophy can do to you.
Arsene says,

It is not an argument for us. We want to have a real go tomorrow, we want to make it possible. I would not be very credible to tell you we want to score five goals and then leave Robin van Persie out.

Wenger said that he might even try to use six strikers if needed. Frankly, I don't see them playing all at one time, but you never no, if the need is absolutely there, why not? But at least a win here would add to our already boosted confidence. The thing is that, even Milan are on a good run especially Ibrahimovic after his hat-trick in the Serie A. If you remember the first leg, he didn't exactly play as the lone striker, which means our defense will have to keep an eye on him. I don't think there is any need for them to play high up, considering we will be having lot of attacking options.

Arsene reminded of the times when this has been done before, he says,

Sometimes when you made a big score, the difficulty is always psychological problems. When you have made a big difference you think you just need to turn up and make sure you defend well. And the other team has nothing to lose so they just go for it.

The point is that, we have not much to lose. Of course, we will miss out on a quarter final berth, but then look at the positives. We could concentrate more on our league games and about the third spot, so that we ensure Champions League for next season. We have seen this team, more precisely RVP, do unbelievable things this season, and no one can blame them for believing that we could go through. A win would be the minimum requirement, but we need to make sure that even if we don't go through, the manner of the win should do our confidence enough good. If anything, the criticism has only brought the team closer and if our main players react positively, it will definitely reflect on others.

My prediction and formation for the team would be..
          Szczesny
Sagna - Kos - TV - Gibbs
               Song
   Walcott - Rosicky
Ox - RVP - Gervinho

There we go, nothing to lose, everything to gain. Maybe I am too optimistic, but a goal each from our front five would do just fine!

-Ryo wins Bolton's footballer of the month.

Time to stand up.

Good times!

 Just one more day to go before we entertain Milan at home. Before that, we have some good news and some bad, but we are used to the bad getting worse so no surprises there.  Let's start with the bad first, you are the judge if it is bad or worse. Not so surprisingly, we have some injuries, having played meaningless international friendlies and league games within a gap of three days so it's understandable. Gibbs and Benayoun, both are injured, but it still remains to be seen if they are fit enough to play tomorrow. Diaby, after making his annual appearance, is back to his hamstring problems, again, it remains to be seen if he will be fit for Milan. Arteta was injured against Liverpool, but survived the onslaught by Henderson and it is not as bad as it looked on the pitch when he was stretchered off.
He says,

It must have looked very serious to everyone as I left the pitch on a stretcher, but I'm pleased to say that I'm fine now and hope to be back on the pitch very soon.

And I really hope that he is back for the Champions League, without him, the midfield just looks to light-weight.

The good news is that, Chelsea dropped points against West Brom and we are three points clear from them now. Apart from that, Rottenham also lost their home game to Manu and the points gap is reduced to four points and we can start aiming for the third spot now. Funny, just two weeks back they thought that they are running the title race and here they are 13 points from Manc. Well it takes more than half a season of good run to win the league, doesn't it? Maybe it was over confidence or maybe the oppositions played better, I know we did, but the fact remains that the title is a far fetched dream now and they'll want to hold on to their third spot. There is an interesting article that might some up "there" season in a sentence.

We clearly have the momentum and after our last five games, we must back ourselves to get to the third position. Chelsea are on our tails but after AVB got sacked after their last night's defeat, it just looks a bit more difficult. Arsene had mentioned a couple of weeks before that the bad luck is like a forest fire, today you might be in it but it no one knows when it'll change direction and catch someone else. Let's hope that it doesn't come back to us.

There have been heaps of praises for Szczesny and deservedly so, from AW. His performance against Liverpool was top class and that was exactly what was needed to prepare for the Milan game. He won't forget in a hurry the blunders against them in the first leg, but this performance will go a long way in doing his confidence some good. Arsene says,

I believe in him, that's why he plays. He is young, talented and gave a good performance. The target is to give another good performance on Tuesday because we need it again.

Deducing from the above statement, does it imply that the players who don't play regularly is because he doesn't trust them? Let's not go too deep into it, we are hard at a luxury to bench players just because they are not performing well. The fact that our best option to replace Arteta on Saturday was Diaby, who has been out of the game for considerable time, shows the state of our decimated squad.

Arsene has insisted that he'll not rest players for the Champions League, or rather, it's not an option to rest players. Yes they have been through a trying period and it is tough to manage a schedule with the size of our squad. But it is also important not to give up on your chances. If there is a chance for success, we have to go for it. Again, our task cannot be explained in more simpler terms, we have to score five unanswered goals and if that has to happen we cannot afford to rest RVP. We have had some goals from other parts of the pitch in recent games, but if we have to get any closer to that 5 goal target, RVP has to get going.
Arsene says,

It is not an argument for us. We want to have a real go tomorrow, we want to make it possible. I would not be very credible to tell you we want to score five goals and then leave Robin van Persie out. We will not accept going out of the Champions League because we want to stay in. We will give it our best shot tomorrow.

We have had a very tough season till now, but the resilience and the confidence with which this team has rose to the challenge is commendable, throwing away any of this would just be a pity for the team. People have criticised and added to Arsenal's agony, they have complained about lack of signings, about quality of signings, about Arsene's decisions about his inability to make important decisions any more, but the fact remains that we have come a long way, from being a team at 17th position in the table who got beaten 2-0 by Liverpool, to 4th position having beaten Liverpool 1-2, at Anfield, and still going. Before going for Wenger's neck, you might want to think about what he has achieved this season when the odds were against us and this proves his achievement with the team.

We will have a clear picture about the squad that will feature tomorrow night, so  I won't get into that right now. One thing is true, there is not a bad thing now, that can surprise the team and we cannot get of. I am sure, good times are here.

Rottenham, Liverpool out; Milan next?

RVP celebrates the winner by kissing Song's studs.

We wanted three points and that's exactly what we got, nothing more nothing less! I said yesterday that I don't care how we get it, if it's an injury time goal or the ball pin-balls it's way into the net. One thing that RVP cleared yesterday, he scores when he wants. Surprisingly, I didn't see a hint of him being low on fitness when he got those two goals.

We started off a bit slow and continued that pace throughout the match. Liverpool continued to climb on our backs and we allowed them too much time on the ball. They had a flurry of shots throughout the game and would have scored if it wasn't for Szczesny. The penalty early on was a bit unlucky to have gone against us. The referee was in no position to make that decision and even he got help from his assistant, it was a bit touch and go. Suarez proved he is ready to take the dive for his team when they want. Clearly the Arsenal players were crossed with the referee and had a huge protest turned down. But justice raised it's beautiful head and Szczesny made an amazing double save from the penalty taken by Kuyt.

Liverpool were clearly determined to score and looked like they had more desire to win the game than Arsenal. Arsenal on the other hand were without juice, and understandably, having played international matches just 2 days ago. Finally they were rewarded although off a Kos own goal, but they were on top. That was a rare mistake from Kos, having been brilliant throughout the season and he couldn't find a place to hide his face after that. But he left that behind and defended well after that.

Arsenal equalised just 8 minutes later from a brilliant pin-point cross from Sagna, which was finished in the net by none other than RVP. He did pretty well to keep out Carragher and get in front of him. It looked like we would repeat last weeks heroics after the equaliser, but the spark just wasn't there. There were some sporadic plays which may or may not have ended up as goals. Benayoun and Walcott looked out of place for most of the game. They were struggling to have the ball at their feet and thus resulted in the reduced supply to RVP.

Into the second half, it still looked the same but the fight continued and none of the teams were looking to give up. Liverpool clearly had the majority of the chances but couldn't convert, they were either too unlucky to miss or came across the Pole and the pole. Szczesny looked as if he could have done without the defenders too! The game mostly continued in the mid-field and just when we were looking to have some control over the game, Arteta looked to have been elbowed by a blind Henderson. To be fair, it was more of a coming together than foul play, but Arteta had to be stretchered off the pitch. Diaby replaced him and his first touch on the ball was a weak shot off his left foot. His absence from the game was evident, but still he carried on alright without looking too much out of place.

Diaby got substituted after having complains of some injury, and was replaced by Ox. Benayoun was replaced by Gervinho but Arsenal just couldn't find that end product to finish the game and neither could Liverpool. Ox brought some spark to Arsenal's attack. Just when the game looked to be heading towards a boring draw, Song, once again, came out with an amazing lobbed pass which landed straight at RVP's left foot and he side footed the volley at the near post into the net. He just doesn't look like he could miss anything and Reina's frustrated expression just showed that it was a very tight angle. He just couldn't believe that it could have gone in from that kind of angle. RVP might remember that expression quite well having stumped Valdes last year in a similar fashion. Many have compared this goal to the one against Everton, which featured the same set of players.

I don't think that any Arsenal fan or even the team, will complaint about the manner in which we won the game, it was still three points. After Chelsea lost their away game against West Brom last night, Arsenal kept their fourth place in the table, and ahead by three points now. Now it's just 4 points away from Rottenham who play hosts to Manu tonight, if they slip there we have a very good chance of getting to third. The Arsenal players might not have a lot left in their legs after the international matches but the tenacity was there to see and that was what won us the game. Maybe it's enough for us to carry into our next game, against Milan. Arsene seems very positive going into that, he says,

We will give absolutely everything to win. We know the statistics are against us, but you can realise the impossible when you don't know it is impossible. Let's ignore that and just go for it.

That's a tough statement to unwind, though we can understand what he means. I have said it before too, the first leg is over but we have yet to play the second leg and that too at home, where we have been smashing in the last few matches. Like Arsene says, by all means, we are not out of Europe yet. If we go with that belief, who knows, we might be able to see beyond that, if not we can move past it. We moved past the first leg and the FA cup exit after that and came back pretty well. The only problem is that the players won't be getting too much rest since the match is just 3 days later, but if we want to be playing in Europe, then that is the kind of schedule we have to face. We are going through a testing period, oppositions wise, and done quite well till now. Let's carry that momentum further.

I just wanted to mention Song somewhere and didn't want to cramp him up in between anything. You have to give the guy a lot of credit, we have had some very crucial goals and he has supplied for most of them. He seems to have that ability to see and make a pass at the right moment. Maybe he doesn't look like a creative guy, but he has some vision, definitely and yesterday's assist to RVP was a perfect example of that. RVP showed his appreciation quite well by kissing Song's studs. RVP may have hit 2 very important goals but he couldn't have done without the supply, and to give that kind of performance when Song had just returned a day before from international duty is just marvelous.

Let's bask in the glory of our successes, and even though RVP was modest enough to accept that we didn't deserve to win after that kind of performance, but I think we have had our share of bad luck and have lost many games when we did not deserve to lose, so I call it justice well done!
To the Gunners!