First, i want to apologize for not posting about the QPR game, but i only saw the first half of it and even though i taped the rest, based on what i saw and the final score, i didn't feel like wasting 45 minutes of watching us struggle to put QPR away.
I did watch today's game and the result is definitely very good for us. It was a must win game for both teams and the scoreline might suggest we easily trashed Wigan, but in reality i wasn't impressed with our play and the main reason the score was 4-1 were the bad defensive mistakes made by the Latics. Which is the main reason why they are getting relegated as well. They can play some good football (as Man City found out Saturday), but way too often they shoot themselves in the foot by horrible mistakes at the back and giving away easy goals.
We started the game well and dominated possession throughout the whole first half. Unfortunately we didn't create much in front of Wigan's goal and the real chances to score were missing. Our goal came after a corner kick and very bad marking by Wigan. The rest of the half we kept things under control, until Mike Dean decided to give an imaginary foul against Maloney, who scored a very good goal from the following free kick. I was a bit disappointed Szczesny didn't save it, considering Maloney had scored in the exact same manner against QPR a few weeks ago. Me and pretty much the whole stadium, knew where he was going to shoot and Wojciech still couldn't get there.
In the beginning of the second half the game was completely different: we looked a bit nervous and Wigan started playing with a lot more confidence. In the 47th minute Kone forced Szczesny into a great save and this time our keeper showed much more composure. This woke us up a bit and we started pressing again, Walcott set up Cazorla with a great cross, but Santi shot twice at their keeper. A few minutes later the Spaniard returned the favor and this time Walcott showed great pace and desire, to squeeze his shot past Robles and make it 2-1. This goal deflated Wigan and five minutes later they had another horrible mistake at the back with Scharner playing Podolski onside, the German's finish was great and the game was pretty much over. Ramsey scored his first Premier League goal four minutes later and i am glad that he did because up to that point he had played a very average game with two costly giveaways that could have been goals for Wigan. All in all, we did what we had to do - get the three points, but i feel that there are many issues that need to be addressed:
1. Cazorla should not be playing on the left wing. He is much more useful to us when playing through the middle, but Wenger stubbornly continues to make him play on the wing.
2. Podolski is not good enough playing as a striker. He should be playing on the left and i don't care if he likes that position or not, the three games that he played as a striker, he hasn't impressed me at all. He doesn't place himself well for Walcott's crosses; he doesn't make good enough runs to take advantage of Theo's pace; he is not strong enough to out-muscle defenders (same could be said for Theo but at least he has the speed to run by them).
3. We are still not decisive enough in the final third. We have a lot of possession with very little real chances to score. We need to get much better at creating and finishing chances.
4. If we don't play Giroud through the middle, Walcott should be the striker with Oxlade playing on the right wing and Podolski on the left, Cazorla in the middle. One player i would love to see us buy is Mario Gomez! The guy is a proven goal scorer and a big upgrade from Giroud. If we have someone like him at the top of the attack, Theo's crosses will be actually useful.
The defense today was pretty solid. Both Mertesacker and Koscielny had very good games. Koscielny made a great clearance in the 24th minute when Szczesny came out unconvincingly and Kone was ready to head the ball in the empty goal. Gibbs was very good and shut down McManaman for most of the first 45 minutes. Sagna was also solid and there weren't too many attacks going through his side of the pitch. Szczesny was average. He made some good saves, but he was at fault for the goal and as mentioned above, made some questionable decisions.
The midfield was average to good. Rosicky was very active as usual, even though he was having a hard time breaking Wigan's defense down. A lot of his through ball passes were stopped but he had a good game. Arteta was solid. Ramsey as mentioned earlier had a very average game and created some dangerous situations for us with his giveaways, but he did score a nice goal and he doesn't seem to get down on himself even when he is playing shitty, which is a good trait. Cazorla had a very nice game regardless that he is playing out of position. He assisted for the first three goals and if we can win our last game, these assists might be the difference between playing in the Champions League as opposed to Europa League!
I thought Walcott was by far our best player. He constantly tormented Wigan with his runs and kept sending great crosses in the box, even though more often than not, we couldn't take advantage of them. He also showed great hustle and good positional awareness to score our second goal. The run he made for his goal is a great example of how Podolski should attack the middle of the penalty area, when Theo is running on the wing. Podolski scored two good goals, but as i mentioned earlier I don't think he should be playing as a striker.
So, great result for us. I hope we can pull off one more win on Sunday and get the fourth spot, but beating Newcastle at St James' Park won't be a walk in the park. Hopefully we will play a good game and we will make it happen!
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