Where do i start today? Let me first say that except for the 2nd and the 3rd sloppy goals that we allowed, this was our best performance in a long, long time!
We started the game very well, Oxlade had a good opening in the first minute of the game! After the initial pressure we put on Newcastle, the game evened out until our first goal. From there until half time we controlled the game, limited Newcastle to very few chances and we should have scored more. The way they equalized was pure garbage and Wilshere was at fault, all the way. Second half we started strong again, went ahead twice to only concede 2 sloppy goals back, but in the end our effectiveness up front today was too much for Newcastle and we deservedly won the game!
Normally i start with the defense, but today i want to start with Theo's performance. He had quite a game and not only made me happy by helping us win, he also helped my fantasy team get some pts. I thought his play today was very, very good and the scary part is that he could be better. All three of his goals were great: great finishing on all three, combined with pace and some dribbling when needed (3rd goal). He also had two assist from which, the first one for Giroud's first goal was simply a perfect cross. Where i feel he could have done better was his passing. We had a 3 vs 2 counter attack in the 39th minute where Theo had the ball and should have passed it to Cazorla, instead he waited too long and then when he did pass it, it was a bad pass. Similar situation in the second half: we had a counter in the 57th min and again Theo had the option to pass to Cazorla or Podolski and instead he took a bad shot at goal. If he can get a bit better at making the right decision/pass at counters, he would be close to unstoppable.
The defense today was up and down. Great first half, good pressing on the ball and very few chances for the opposition. And then, twice we allowed goals that were sloppy to say the least. Sagna had a tough time with Obertan today. The Frenchman has good pace and simply outran him to set up Newcastle's second goal. Otherwise Bacary was solid but if we weren't playing so well in attack his mistake might have cost us. I would love to see Jenkinson get some games and not because he is better, but so we have two guys that are rotating at that spot. Vermaelen was solid and had no fault for any of the goals. Koscielny had a good game except for the second goal. After Sagna got beat by Obertan, his cross went right by Koscielny who should have closed down the angle and never allowed him to cross that ball. Gibbs also had a good game, an assist and some great runs forward, but he fell asleep for Newcastle's third goal. Ba sneaked behind him and just tapped the ball in. So, a lot of positives for the defense during big parts of the game, and a few bad mistakes.
We started the game very well, Oxlade had a good opening in the first minute of the game! After the initial pressure we put on Newcastle, the game evened out until our first goal. From there until half time we controlled the game, limited Newcastle to very few chances and we should have scored more. The way they equalized was pure garbage and Wilshere was at fault, all the way. Second half we started strong again, went ahead twice to only concede 2 sloppy goals back, but in the end our effectiveness up front today was too much for Newcastle and we deservedly won the game!
Normally i start with the defense, but today i want to start with Theo's performance. He had quite a game and not only made me happy by helping us win, he also helped my fantasy team get some pts. I thought his play today was very, very good and the scary part is that he could be better. All three of his goals were great: great finishing on all three, combined with pace and some dribbling when needed (3rd goal). He also had two assist from which, the first one for Giroud's first goal was simply a perfect cross. Where i feel he could have done better was his passing. We had a 3 vs 2 counter attack in the 39th minute where Theo had the ball and should have passed it to Cazorla, instead he waited too long and then when he did pass it, it was a bad pass. Similar situation in the second half: we had a counter in the 57th min and again Theo had the option to pass to Cazorla or Podolski and instead he took a bad shot at goal. If he can get a bit better at making the right decision/pass at counters, he would be close to unstoppable.
The defense today was up and down. Great first half, good pressing on the ball and very few chances for the opposition. And then, twice we allowed goals that were sloppy to say the least. Sagna had a tough time with Obertan today. The Frenchman has good pace and simply outran him to set up Newcastle's second goal. Otherwise Bacary was solid but if we weren't playing so well in attack his mistake might have cost us. I would love to see Jenkinson get some games and not because he is better, but so we have two guys that are rotating at that spot. Vermaelen was solid and had no fault for any of the goals. Koscielny had a good game except for the second goal. After Sagna got beat by Obertan, his cross went right by Koscielny who should have closed down the angle and never allowed him to cross that ball. Gibbs also had a good game, an assist and some great runs forward, but he fell asleep for Newcastle's third goal. Ba sneaked behind him and just tapped the ball in. So, a lot of positives for the defense during big parts of the game, and a few bad mistakes.
So, today was a good day for the Gunners nation. Not only we got a very important win at home, but we actually played WELL! Considering that all of our games coming up in January and February will be pretty tough, it is a good time for us to start playing well. For a first time in a while i was excited about my post! C'mon You Gunners!
p.s. I still think that we need some players in January (left back, defensive midfielder) and i still stand behind my words that we need more squad rotation.
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