And so the curtains fall on this year's Emirates cup with Arsenal on the wrong end of a 2-1 defeat to Turkish champions Galatasaray. In a game which at half time you really didn't see us loosing, we somehow allowed the presence of one man throw us into a panic influenced spiral. With the 46th minute introduction of former Chelsea man and Arsenal Tormentor-in-chief Drogba, we simply threw out the window our composure and organisation. It was like the arsenal players allowed themselves to get sucked into this Drogba blackhole instigated by the needless attention the fans were according him with all that booing...i'll come back to that issue later, because it has got to a level now where i think fans at the emirates will boo just about anything.
We began the game brightly unlike yesterday, and in 45 secs should have been ahead when the OX stripped a galatasaray defender, passed it to new boy Sanogo who could only fire a tame shot that was well saved. The next clear cut opportunity fell for Theo Walcott in the 20th min, whom after being picked out by a nice Ramsey long ball, failed to hit the target despite bringing down the pass expertly. A bad miss though, but i'd rather have him miss them now and find his mojo in full season. The game remained largely uneventful for the most part of the 1st half with both teams providing few exciting moments. Sanogo obviously looked like he would need time to understand how we play, he does seem to have a natural strikers' instinct. The kind no manager can teach you. which was good too see. It wasn't until the 43rd minute that Arsenal found the breakthrough, an intended cross from the left side of the Galatasary box by Theo saw the ball elude everyone and beat the keeper at the farside. Lucky goal,but they all count.
In the 2nd half, the departure of Ramsey and the slightly portly looking Carzola meant we suffered a little as the midfield lost a bit of creative spark. In came the young Zelalem and Olivier Giroud as Arsenal chased the Goal that would end the match as a contest. Inspite of decent attempts by Giroud the scores remained the same, also Galatasaray defended well knowing they only needed to get one goal to be right back in the contest. By now Drogba was already making himself seen.Challenging unfavorable calls from the ref, falling over at the slightest contact and just being Drogba. i'll say this about him, yes he's a quality player, always has been,but i strongly believe he engages in some funny tactics aimed directly at causing distraction, so as to wind up the crowd and cause a tense atmosphere that unnerves defenders. The guy wants to win and if his antics on the field enable him do that, he does'nt care. He tapped into his resovoir of tricks again to earn the penalty that drew his team level in the 78th minute. After being adjudged to have been pushed in the back by the inexperienced Miquel going for a cross, Drogba fell over in a heap. The ref bought the act and blew for the spot kick, which he scored himself. From my position, it looked a dive, although you may also say Miquel was outfoxed by a more seasoned and experienced veteran. However, its just typical Drogba. He has been doing that to us for a while now and there isn't any analysis to add there. His second though was the kind of Striking quality you cant help but admire, 1 touch to set himself up the second to give his team the lead. 2-1 and with that the Emirates cup was won and lost.
There isn't much crying to do over this result, as i think its not worth it. The game was basically a friendly and stiffer tests await us in the UCL qualifiers. It however wasn't fun loosing to Galatasaray again after that painful 2000 UEFA cup final, where we lost painfully via penalties.Its up to us now to fix our weaknesses and work out how to mentally zone out tricks from characters like Drogba during games and just concentrate on the job. The boo boys in the terraces also need to exercise decorum with their boos. im fine with booing refs who make dodgy calls in games or opposing goalkeepers who waste time with goal kicks, but Booing Higuain yesterday and Drogba today was for me stupid. In regard to Higuains' case,what was the point? yes we didn't sign him,big deal! It just makes Arsenal fans look like a Sad bunch who's trophylessness is starting to make them act like people with an inferiority complex. Would united Fans boo Cesc if they happen to meet Barca any time soon?i doubt that. In my opinion the boos probably just made Drogba that more determined to make an impression. *Sigh* this bloody trophy drought can't end any sooner for me seriously, we simply need to get our pride back. it is fast dissipating.One more friendly in Helsinki, against City and then its the real business of the EPL. Below is a brief player rating of the performances...later folks
Szcesney: (7) No blames for the goals can be placed on him. he did his job well enough without any fuss.
Gibbs: (7) As relaible as he always is..got subbed later on. Hopefully not injury related.
Sagna: (8) Very assured game by Bacary. Looks to be back to his best. Extend his contract now Arsene!
Mertasacker: (6) Wenger said in his post-match conference that Per was feeling tired before going into the game. while he didn't have a particularly bad day, he did look a bit fatigued. could do nothing about stopping Drogba's 2nd goal, but not many defenders could have.
Jenkinson: (6) Slightly better than the Napoli performance, but still unconvincing to be honest. Needs to seriously work on his game and cut out the dodgy back passes too...
Ramsey: (7)Guilty of overplaying it sometimes after doing some piece of good work..but still his attitude and work rate are invaluable to this team
Carzola: (6) In his first game back, Carzola looked like he joined the team straight from the beach..Looked no where near match fit..and needed to be subbed after running out of steam.
Arteta: (5) Quiet game for Arteta, who didn't seem to have his usual passing boots on. Was guilty of giving the ball away and getting caught in possession once too many
Oxlade Chamberlain: (4) while he scores marks for effort, it was yet another frustrating outing for the young OX. He seems completely incapable of holding on to the ball. Loves to run at defenders but i can't remember him beating one successfully. if the sale of Gervinho is to create opportunities for him...he needs to improve.
Walcott: (7) Lucky goal aside, Theo didn't do much to impress. He had that very good chance from Ramsey's pass which he fluffed and managed to put in few good crosses. however, did'nt do much defending to help out Sagna.
Sanogo: (6) Newboy Sanogo should have registered a debut goal when gifted a chance on 45 secs with only the keeper to beat, but overall he showed why Arsene signed him up. kept on being offside, but mixed it up well for a guy playing with his team for the first time.
Zelalem: (6) young sensation Zelalem,came to the fore with eye catching performances in Asia. He showed some flashes of brilliance in this game when brought in, twisting out of tight spots with skill and confidence. He's definitely one to watch.
Akpom : N/A
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