Morning guys, it was a much needed welcome to competitive football again for us courtesy of the Emirates Cup. Many antagonists had dismissed our Asia Tour results as insignificant and predicted we would be tested by Napoli. They were right. As i adjusted my self at my Favorite gooner Pub to see the game,my first consternation was why on earth were we sporting our away strip on our home turf? I don't believe it was due to any colour clash as both teams normally wear distinctly contrasting colors... All the pre-game hype was centered around Gonzalo Higuain. Would he score? ,would he be booed? only time would tell. We began the game lethargically in the first half, completely off-pace,and Vulnerable. Yet it would be Arsenal who would go close to scoring first through Serge Gnabry. who sent his close range effort wide when he ought to have scored. Podolski was uncharacteristically wasteful even on his favorite left foot as he went close twice and then later had a penalty saved. Either side of that penalty miss saw the Italian side take a shock two-goal lead that i'm pretty sure left the fans in the stadium feeling sick inside. In one of the Napoli goals, Jenkinson found himself in centre-back territory whilst covering for Mertasacker . In an attempt to head a high ball to safety , he unwittingly managed to cushion it for the striker Insigne to slot past Fabianski.. That passage of play indicated to me that Wenger was right not to have dispensed with Sagna on the grounds that Jenkinson is ready to step up. He clearly is not ready yet, and much as i like Jenkinsons' zeal and drive, his starting shirt is still some distance away on the basis of yesterday's performance.
The 1st half was quite terrible from an Arsenal perspective as the passing and cohesion was off to be honest. it seemed like nerves were at play, because in the 2nd half,we saw a much better performance.The midfield trio of Jack Wilshere, Aaron ramsey and Rosicky were hardworking but the absence of a holding midfielder kept leaving us exposed when we lost the ball. Jack didn't appear 100% fit to me, as he looked a little slow in his decision making and missed a Golden chance to pull one back early in the 2nd half. The ageless Rosicky was a delight to behold, always sliding in tackles, never shying away from wiping his backside on the turf for the team and constantly running at opposition dangerously. The introduction of Arteta immediately plugged the hole in midfield where Napoli kept breaking from on counterattacks. Even though i'm sure he will say its for the team, Arteta deserves commendation for being a model professional the way he shoulders this role.it is better suited to a much younger, physical player but Mikel delivers it well. With Jack in the team, we usually possess drive and attacking nous, however the drawback is when he looses the ball we tend to get caught out by swift teams. When he and Gnabry departed, it was evident how balanced the midfield became. With Arteta in the deep midfield role ,Ramsey just ahead of him, and rosicky behind the the front 3. It was only a matter of time before the pressure on Napoli began to tell, as Podolski and Giroud really peppered Reina ( no pun intended) in the Napoli Goal with shots. Loved the way Giroud took his goal, although with a little stroke of luck..his athleticism has never been in doubt, for me it was always about his conversion rate.Which i think wasn't outstanding last season. And when Koscielny drew us level, no one watching could say we didn't deserve it.
So in summary not much has changed, we are still that side from last season that creates chances but can't put them away, has great fighting spirit and would not give up easily. We still badly need a striker,our defense is still gifting cheap goals and our keeper still leaves you largely unconvinced. Wenger called for calm from the media over their hysteria for transfer news, saying the clubs policy on confidentiality must be respected. I posted a few days ago that some managers don't employ our Gestapo habits over transfer matters and yet do their business successfully.. in what looked like a reply to my position , he said other clubs where perfectly free to do what works for them. While we do things our own way..He also gave feelers that Suarez may yet be our next signing saying Arsenal's current moves on the Uruguyan will not be made public for sake of due process. So its on to day two and Galatasaray next. Below is a short player by player ranking:
Fabianski: (7) Cant be blamed for any of the goals per se, handled the ball well and did the basics ok. My only grouse is he still doesn't command his box strong enough. I guess that's just something he may never have at this stage of his development.
Jenkinson: (5) Not his best game, guilty of giving away the 1st goal. Maybe needs to go on loan to get games. but our lack of cover might not allow that.
Gibbs: (8) Really good player, excellent as always..hope he stays fit. his Defending and attacking are flawless
Mertasacker: (7) Per may be slow but he is invaluable to our back 4. The cliche description for his style is calmness but there isn't anyway else to describe him..
Koscielny: (9) Another masterclass from Kos. Fantastic man-marking, Predictive defending and of-course that knack of scoring crucial goals make him perhaps our most important player.
wilshere: (6) Jack like i said didnt look is best in this game, but still had all those traits that make us love him. still needs to add goals to his game to truly become a world great.
Ramsey: (7) busy as always, Aaron did his bit of closing down runners and marked spaces. he works best with Arteta. however we need him to work on his ball retention, still gives it away a bit to cheaply for my liking
Gnabry: (5) Now Serge is a guy im hoping big things for.i have seen some games where he has really impressed but not this one. he seemed a tad nervous. consistency is an issue with him. he is getting his chances, i hope he grabs it.
Rosicky: (8) this guy brings a smile to my face, at his age you wonder what might have been had he been fit over those years he was injured. his commitment to the cause is great to see. He had a very influential game, excellent passing and dribbles.
Podolski: (6) Poldi was getting into good positions but didn't have his shooting boots on. his first touches weren't good and that robbed him off good opportunities. on his day, he is a goalkeepers nightmare, but not yesterday.
Giroud: (8) Olivier is never gonna be Van persie. but what he is, is a hardworking striker ready to put his body on the line for the team. He defends well on corners and freekicks and tracks back to dispossess unsuspecting opponents. Scored a very nice goal, and does look like he is ready to proove a point next season.
Walcott: (7) walcott came in and did his thing, kept their fullback in their own half and was putting himself about. whipped in good crosses and looked sharp.
OX : (6) OX's game can be frustrating at times, and he looks like a guy whose confidence has taken a bit of a hit.we know there is great player in there and this is just pre-season, but i want him to take the game by the neck sometimes and stop worrying about messing up. just play.
Chuba: (6) i like this kid. he looks the part, lively and skillfull..didnt get to play very long today but we'll be seeing him again soon.
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