Partizan Belgrade 1-3 Arsenal; back to winning ways.

Morning all,

A very incident-packed game. 3 penalties, 2 saved and a red card.

Last night's game was very important, due to Saturdays blunder. Anything other than a win would be a bit of a failure in my eyes. We needed to get back to winnings way sharp, with a massive game at Chelsea on the horizon.

Fabianski started in goal, and by all means play excellently. More on him later. Gibbs replaced Clichy at left-back, and despite conceding a clumsy penalty, looked assured. Denilson came in and did what does with minimal fuss. One sliding tackle early on was brilliant. Rosicky was a bit hit and miss, but provided an assist. Arshavin, although missed a penalty, was also superb. His understanding with Jack Wilshere was a joy to watch.

Classy double act

It was that combination that started the game. Arshavin received the ball from Song, charged towards goal and his pass found Wilshere lurking outside the box. Wilshere evaded the defenders challenge with an exquisite touch and backheeled wonderfully to Arshavin who promptly fired home the opening goal.

In truth, we should have been 3-4 up before we conceded the equaliser. Arshavin could of have a couple, and Rosicky could of had one had it not been for some fine goalkeeping.

I have sympathy for Denilson regarding the penalty, the ball was swerving and I genuinely felt he attempted to chest the ball. Nevertheless, the striker stepped up to slot calmly past Fabianski.

1-1 it was. And a test of our character awaited. After half time, it took us a while to get going. We were generally dealing with the rough and tumble tactics of the Belgrade players reasonably well. The game opened up once again when Arshavin released Chamakh who cleverly got infront of the defender and buckled under the pressure from the defender. It was a definite foul, but Chamakh did somewhat exaggerate. The defender received a red card as he denied a goal scoring opportunity. Arshavin, brimming with confidence (surely), smashed the resulting penalty against the goalkeepers legs. Deja vu perhaps? Not this time.

Plan B?

The extra man at this point told, with Arsenal playing keep ball. The second finally arrived from Chamakh. A fantastic cross from Rosicky found Chamakh, who powered a header against the bar, the ball rebounding nicely for him to nod into the net.

It's pleasing the difference Chamakh is making. He work's gloriously hard off the ball, and with the ball, he is very solid and keeps it simple. When our intricate passing isn't breaking the opposition down, we have a genuine goal threat in the box. He has the experience to play at this level, and in this competition especially, is going to be a huge asset. One problem I do have is as a striker, he needs to be more demanding to score. He should've grabbed the ball when we conceded the penalty, but cannot fault his commitment.



The third came courtesy of our new boy Sebastien Squillaci. Substitute Samir Nasri whipped in a delicious corner which was glanced in by the compromising centre back. 3-1. And game over, you'd think. With just a few minutes remaining, a third penalty was awarded. This time, Gibbs, allowed the attacker to get the other side of him and fumbled over under Gibbs' challenge. What happened next was a very pleasing sight for Arsenal fans.

Fabianski produced an outstanding save from the penalty, and from the resulting corner, claimed the ball confidently. Without showering the keeper with unnecessary praise, this is what is expected. I've been very annoyed over the criticism Fabianski receives. He's Arsenals goalkeeper, support him. How is criticising him going to make it better for himself or Arsenal? Same goes with the likes of Diaby, Song, Denilson and Clichy. They are Arsenals players. Do your job and SUPPORT them. If you like managing Arsenal, stick to Football Manager. Fickle fickle bunch!

Alot of positives to take from the game, not least Fabianskis performance. Before his penalty miss, I thought Arshavin was outstanding. Wilshere had another brilliant game. Gibbs look comfortable on the whole and Denilson put himself about.

This picture is excellent...

Roaaaaaaaar!

Just what Lukasz needed. Perhaps this is the making of him? Who knows. One thing is for sure, he's here to stick around. Get use to it.

A win on Sunday, or a draw, will set us back on our way. Last night's performance was more like the Arsenal we know and love. More of the same please.

Keep the faith!