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- Written by Will O'Doherty
When Arsene Wenger witnessed the rise of Spain and Barcelona he saw a sea-change. In his mind, and on the pitch, small, technically gifted, mobile players were playing 4-3-2-1 and passing and moving their way to domination of the sport. But what worked for the Iberians has never panned out in North London, and the Barca Lite tag was never meant as a compliment.
But if ever there was a game to signal a potential change in the way of doing things, it was last night’s demolition in Munich. Bayern are brilliant technically, and spend most matches dominating possession, but what stood out against Barcelona was the energy and discipline without the ball and the speed of ruthlessness with which they broke when they had it.
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- Written by Barnaby Merrill
I’m rather surprised the imminent lack of Olivier Giroud for Arsenal over the next three to four games hasn’t incited more anger. The fact he’s Arsenal’s only true centre-forward would normally be an excellent topic for complaint. Presumably he isn’t well regarded enough for it to be an issue. Which is a shame.
The more pressing concern is who replaces him through the middle of Arsenal’s attack. By my reckoning, five players have played that position for Arsenal this season.
Those players are Theo Walcott (arguably had his chance), Gervinho (likewise, also prone to horrendous losses of confidence after miscontrolling a football), Giroud (see above), Marouane Chamakh (currently playing second fiddle to Andy Carroll and Carlton Cole at West Ham) and finally, and the least often, Lukas Podolski.
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- Written by Barnaby Merrill
Or at least, he likely has. The Polish goalkeeper is out for an unspecified amount of time with a cracked rib sustained against Norwich City.
Arsene Wenger says it requires 'clinical' work, suggesting while it isn't incredibly serious, it could become a problem if not treated correctly.
For Arsenal this almost comes as a blow. The much maligned shot-stopper had been in excellent form since he was called in to replace Wojciech Szceszny, making a number of crucial saves to contribute to Arsenal's run of four wins on the trot.
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- Written by Barnaby Merrill
If you’ll recall, at the start of March Arsenal lost 2-1 to Spurs. That result left Arsenal 7 points off the LWCs, who at the time were in 4th position in the Premier League. (And I wrote this blog)
There were major questions to be asked about many facets of Arsenal’s current performances, and something had to be done. Fortunately (or unfortunately), Arsenal’s next game wasn’t for nine days, a potential dead rubber with Bayern Munich.
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- Written by Barnaby Merrill
It’s strange, but Arsenal’s defeat to Bayern Munich appeared to have an even greater effect on Arsene Wenger than the embarrassment against Blackburn Rovers did.
The Frenchmen, who kept his players inside for a 50-minute hairdryer on Saturday, sat alone in the dressing room for half an hour before facing the press after the 3-1 home reverse in the Champions League.
He looked haunted in the ensuing conference, and spoke with little conviction. It was as though he’d come to a realisation: Arsenal simply cannot compete with Europe’s finest at the moment.
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