Young Guns Go For It

Carling Cup Quarter Final
Blackburn Rovers 2 – 3 Arsenal

0 – 1 Diaby (6)
0 – 2 Eduardo (29)
1 – 2 Santa Cruz (42)
2 – 2 Santa Cruz (60)
2 – 3 Eduardo (104)

An excellent win in a pulsating cup-tie. The match will have done more for the young players’ football education than a season in reserves football can achieve. Out-passing, out-thinking, out-fighting their opponents, even when reduced to ten men allowed them to rightly progress to the semi-finals where they will face stronger opposition. For those who criticise Arsene for his choice in fielding inexperienced players in this competition, this is yet another finger raised in their direction. The record in recent seasons of reaching the last eight, four and the final earlier this year is better than any number of teams who field their strongest XI.

Two goals ahead in the opening half an hour meant that the gears shifted into cruise control. All three of the goals were ‘trademark’ Arsenal efforts. In the sixth minute, Randall and Hoyte performed a neat interchange of passes, the former releasing Bendtner on the right side of the area. The young Dane crossed to Diaby who showed great technique to control his volley past Friedel. Minutes later, Bendtner was set free on the left, strode away from Samba and curled an audacious chip onto the crossbar. The Blackburn defence was rocking and rolling in the aisles with no answers. The second arrived after a longer interlude than it seemed would be required. Denilson and Hoyte worked space for the Brazilian on the halfway line. He was allowed to run unchallenged and hit a pass that travelled one third of the pitch. Samba can have no excuses for failing to intercept; he did not though and Eduardo was given time to control it and set himself to slip the ball past the advancing Friedel. Two nil and it seemed that a rout would ensue.

That it did not arrive was in part due to poor officiating. Blackburn needed some luck to get the ball into the net. The Assistant Referee was a matter of feet away from the action and in line with the last defender so it is inexplicable how he failed to give Derbyshire offside. He did not and the Blackburn forward took full advantage, curling in a great cross for Santa Cruz to finish well. The lessons to be learnt? Diaby, Denilson and Senderos were too far from Traore to offer support and he was easily overloaded by Bentley and Derbyshire. Hoyte at the far post may well look at it and think he should have attacked the cross rather than hold his position so rigidly. He was looking along the flight of the ball, seeing that his centre backs had been taken out of the equation. Alas, these things can be viewed from the comfort of an armchair, are not so easy to see in the heat of the battle.

The goal allowed Blackburn back into the game and they pressed on at the start of the second half. Randall gave away a cheap freekick on the left. The ball was delivered well and Santa Cruz rose to head home powerfully. Arsenal could have capitulated but the reserves were welled and a fighting performance ensued. Sometimes within the laws, others outside. There can be no complaints about the dismissal of Denilson, it was a two-footed jump into the tackle and the automatic red means he misses, I believe, three games. Riley dealt with the aftermath calmly only really missing Dunn shoving Denilson in the melee, rightly booking Savage for reacting like a snarling yappy dog that seems to grow from the armpit of rich women.

If there is an ideal time to be reduced to ten men, then injury time is it. The break enabled heads to be cleared and the message to be put across that the players had enough quality to vanquish their foe. Despite the pressure and a few harum-scarum moments, Arsenal dealt with the added thirty-five minutes in relative comfort. Their reward came when Alex Song received the ball in the centre circle, sidestepped two tackles and strode in the Blackburn half, negating five Blackburn players in the process. His perfectly weighted ball allowed Eduardo to pass it into the back of the net.

It was a deserved win, one that Mark Hughes acknowledged immediately after trying to denigrate it, disingenuously claiming that Arsene had spent more money on the team he fielded than Hughes had available. Alas, such claims do not stand up to scrutiny. He is correct though to assert that the Arsenal players were excellent. Diarra may have sounded off at the weekend about his lack of first team opportunities but he had not particularly proven he merited inclusion with anonymous performances in the North East. Last night he showed what he could do when the team has a better balance in midfield. For the opening thirty minutes, he dominated midfield and when the going got tough, he put his foot in and mixed it with his opponents to produce a balanced performance overall. Should the unlikely scenario of Flamini leaving occur, he may find that his desire to fill his shoes in central midfield arrives sooner than he thinks. Indeed, if his compatriot procrastinates too long over signing a new contract, Diarra may find himself in the first team around Easter time of next year.

Fabianksi made some decent saves, particularly from Dunn, Bentley and Santa Cruz. There is still some way to go though before he is ready to take over the reigns in the first team, perhaps more command of his area is needed for the Premier League fixtures. This will come with time and no doubt, the domestic cup games will speed that process along. Last night’s performance also highlighted to Arsene the fact that retaining Jens Lehmann in January is perhaps more important that keeping, say, Gilberto which is where I think that Juventus enter the Flamini equation, using the media to implant doubts about his future and then coming in with an offer for the Brazilian to join immediately.

Song did well at centre back; having some Ruud Krol moments alongside some where his name could have been Stepanovs, thankful to Diarra for a goal line clearance after his header skidded towards the far post from a Blackburn corner. It did more to suggest that any Arsenal future is more likely to be at the centre of the defence as opposed to the centre of midfield. Traore, Hoyte and Randall worked the flanks well whilst Diaby showed he is becoming more accustomed to midfield on the left hand side, notionally. His goal was very well taken and more of that please.

Up front, Bendtner and Eduardo provided no surprises, their performance levels reaching the heights that we know of which they are both capable. If they were able to maintain these, it would be no surprise if they were challenging for a regular starting place by the end of the season.

An enjoyable win, one that boosts confidence of the whole squad and a tough semi-final draw await.

‘til Tomorrow.