Arsenal lost to Chelsea 2-1 at Stamford Bridge and are now six points behind Manchester United with only 7 games left to play. That about sums up the utter misery Gooners are feeling right now. Drogba scored two ugly goals in ten minutes to put the game away, but the result was ultimately a fair one. It's been almost a month and a half now since Arsenal beat Blackburn at Emirates, the last time we played a convincing match, and while the Gunners are still within striking distance of the top, the team looks totally incapable of striking for the following reasons...
Arsenal doesn't create shooting chances anymore.
During the first two months of the season Arsenal scored goals in bunches because they scored early in games. Even when teams were intent on keeping the Gunners in front of them, we were able to get down the wings effectively and cut the ball back to the support midfielders for shots on goal. The bulk of our early chances came from this type of play, and Fab, Rosicky, and Hleb scored goals. After scoring first Arsenal is capable of cutting a team to ribbons by exploiting counter attacks and using possession to create numbers coming forward.
Against Chelsea Arsenal played well in stretches of both halves but failed to create clear-cut scoring chances. V. Persie wasted a shot after Hleb danced through the defense in the first half. Toure whiffed on a header that should have been a goal. And Adebayor could not set his feet on his half-chance from the six. Apart from those opportunities, which were all slightly messy anyway, we had almost nothing to show for our build, as Chelsea repeatedly stood us up around the 18 and thwarted shooting opportunities.
Arsenal doesn't shoot anymore.
Now even if we do get all the way to the touchline and cut passes back to the 18-yard box, we don't shoot. That is partly due to the absences of V. Persie and Rosicky, who look to shoot first. And it is partly due to the loss of confidence evident in Hleb and Fabregas. The result is that teams can stand us up and create a shell, forcing us to work the ball around for less dangerous opportunities, which are often crosses from overlapping fullbacks sent into a very crowded area.
Against Chelsea, Arsenal repeatedly played the ball back in front of goal and wound up being stood up by Chelsea's defense and then switching fields anemically. Carvalho and Terry were very good in the middle, but they never had to contend with players running at them or behind them. Because our players don't shoot anymore, defenders can give them larger cushions and play passing lanes.
Arsenal is still dicey in the middle at the back.
It is no secret to anyone that Gallas and Toure are a shaky pair together at the back. I'm usually inclined to blame their delicacy on Gallas, who relies on smoke, mirrors, and reputation on most of his plays, but Toure deserves some blame too. They get caught by early balls over the top on a consistent basis, and neither man seems to have the knack of being the last guy in the line. Both take huge risks and often miss on must tackles.
Carvalho and Terry showed how two at the back can cover all sorts of failures and on the other side Gallas and Toure, flanked by superhuman Clichy and Sagna, showed how easily it is to break through a defense with no middle. Chelsea lost in the midfield to Fab and Flam but were able to distribute directly from the back, as Drogba and later Anelka won every high ball and held up the play for the wingers to enter into late.
On the other side, Adebayor was utterly incapable of holding balls and rarely ran at the defenders. The only way to beat Carvalho and Terry is to run at them or behind them. If you try to play in front of them they are too good at cutting out passes and running up your back.
The Verdict
Is there any hope, then, for the Gunners to win the Premier League? Yesterday was Easter and hope springs eternal, but Arsenal will not win without regaining their scoring touch, because they will keep giving up goals. Adebayor was invisible against Chelsea, as he has been, it must be said, against most of the tough sides we've played. Rosicky has barely played this year and we miss his shooting badly. He keeps defenses honest because he can cut in and fire at any time. Only Hleb routinely forces more than one defender to commit on him, creating the number imbalance that sets our passing into motion.
I suppose the big hope is that V. Persie will regain fitness and form and take on such a role, but the evidence against Chelsea is that he is out of shape mentally and physically. His only shot was a wild slice that showed how fast the game most look to him right now.
Man U has-in Nani, Rooney, C Ron, Tevez-four players who can commit multiple defenders on any give play. Arsenal, currently, has one and a half in Hleb and Adebayor. I would like to be more hopeful, but it's very hard to see where the goals will come from against Liverpool and United in the coming weeks. They will have to come from Hleb and Fab, as they mostly did early in the year.
Clichy and Sagna are heroes.
During the first two months of the season Arsenal scored goals in bunches because they scored early in games. Even when teams were intent on keeping the Gunners in front of them, we were able to get down the wings effectively and cut the ball back to the support midfielders for shots on goal. The bulk of our early chances came from this type of play, and Fab, Rosicky, and Hleb scored goals. After scoring first Arsenal is capable of cutting a team to ribbons by exploiting counter attacks and using possession to create numbers coming forward.
Against Chelsea Arsenal played well in stretches of both halves but failed to create clear-cut scoring chances. V. Persie wasted a shot after Hleb danced through the defense in the first half. Toure whiffed on a header that should have been a goal. And Adebayor could not set his feet on his half-chance from the six. Apart from those opportunities, which were all slightly messy anyway, we had almost nothing to show for our build, as Chelsea repeatedly stood us up around the 18 and thwarted shooting opportunities.
Arsenal doesn't shoot anymore.
Now even if we do get all the way to the touchline and cut passes back to the 18-yard box, we don't shoot. That is partly due to the absences of V. Persie and Rosicky, who look to shoot first. And it is partly due to the loss of confidence evident in Hleb and Fabregas. The result is that teams can stand us up and create a shell, forcing us to work the ball around for less dangerous opportunities, which are often crosses from overlapping fullbacks sent into a very crowded area.
Against Chelsea, Arsenal repeatedly played the ball back in front of goal and wound up being stood up by Chelsea's defense and then switching fields anemically. Carvalho and Terry were very good in the middle, but they never had to contend with players running at them or behind them. Because our players don't shoot anymore, defenders can give them larger cushions and play passing lanes.
Arsenal is still dicey in the middle at the back.
It is no secret to anyone that Gallas and Toure are a shaky pair together at the back. I'm usually inclined to blame their delicacy on Gallas, who relies on smoke, mirrors, and reputation on most of his plays, but Toure deserves some blame too. They get caught by early balls over the top on a consistent basis, and neither man seems to have the knack of being the last guy in the line. Both take huge risks and often miss on must tackles.
Carvalho and Terry showed how two at the back can cover all sorts of failures and on the other side Gallas and Toure, flanked by superhuman Clichy and Sagna, showed how easily it is to break through a defense with no middle. Chelsea lost in the midfield to Fab and Flam but were able to distribute directly from the back, as Drogba and later Anelka won every high ball and held up the play for the wingers to enter into late.
On the other side, Adebayor was utterly incapable of holding balls and rarely ran at the defenders. The only way to beat Carvalho and Terry is to run at them or behind them. If you try to play in front of them they are too good at cutting out passes and running up your back.
The Verdict
Is there any hope, then, for the Gunners to win the Premier League? Yesterday was Easter and hope springs eternal, but Arsenal will not win without regaining their scoring touch, because they will keep giving up goals. Adebayor was invisible against Chelsea, as he has been, it must be said, against most of the tough sides we've played. Rosicky has barely played this year and we miss his shooting badly. He keeps defenses honest because he can cut in and fire at any time. Only Hleb routinely forces more than one defender to commit on him, creating the number imbalance that sets our passing into motion.
I suppose the big hope is that V. Persie will regain fitness and form and take on such a role, but the evidence against Chelsea is that he is out of shape mentally and physically. His only shot was a wild slice that showed how fast the game most look to him right now.
Man U has-in Nani, Rooney, C Ron, Tevez-four players who can commit multiple defenders on any give play. Arsenal, currently, has one and a half in Hleb and Adebayor. I would like to be more hopeful, but it's very hard to see where the goals will come from against Liverpool and United in the coming weeks. They will have to come from Hleb and Fab, as they mostly did early in the year.
Clichy and Sagna are heroes.
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