Friday 5 January 2018

Hectic game ends all square

Arsenal 2-2 Chelsea

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Arsenal were left to rue yet more dropped points on Wednesday night following yet another manic game in which poor defensive play undid the Gunners excellent attacking play once more. It was the same situation against both Manchester United and Liverpool with Arsene Wenger’s side appearing to be unable to learn from their previous errors.



Against the big sides, you simply cannot afford to make mistakes at the back as more often than not, these errors will be punished. Fortunately for Arsenal, Alvaro Morata left his shooting boots at home as he squandered a number of chances which would have otherwise seen Chelsea take a considerable and most likely unassailable lead. The defensive mistakes from the Gunners were simply unacceptable and points to a real issue at the club. With Wenger having been forced to field Chambers and Holding either side of Mustafi in a reshaped back three, following injuries to Monreal and Koscielny, it would have been reasonable to assume they would be instructed to assume a safety first approach to the game. Yet instead, the Arsenal defence invited pressure on themselves time and time again by attempting to play out from the back. Such a tactic requires great skill and confidence and even then, one error can prove costly.

Yet this was not the only issue. The positioning of the Arsenal defenders left a lot to be desired too. With Mustafi deployed in the central, sweeper role, the German found himself out of position far too often and therefore could not provide cover for his inexperienced colleagues. On one occasion in the first half a simple ball over the top caught Chambers out on the half way line and with Mustafi having failed to take up the correct position and therefore out of the game, Morata was allowed a free run on goal. This was repeated once again right at the end of the game as Arsenal were inexplicably opened up once again by a clipped ball over the top, having just equalised, but once again Morata fluffed his lines with Mustafi having found himself in no position to offer any cover whatsoever.

The German was also at fault when Marcos Alonso was afforded far too much space in the box to flick the ball beyond Cech and send Chelsea into a 2-1 lead, raising questions once again regarding his ability to lead the defence without Koscielny. Mustafi appears to be one of those players who epitomises Arsenal perfectly. On his day he can be outstanding, as he was against Tottenham earlier this season, but unfortunately he lacks the consistency to be an exceptional player and therefore he cannot be relied upon as there is the feeling that there is always a mistake in him.

Although the performances of the back three left a lot to be desired, Arsenal’s two wing backs did provide bright points, despite both being at fault for Chelsea’s two goals. Hector Bellerin unfortunately made contact with Hazard’s foot instead of the ball and although the Belgian did greatly exaggerate the contact, Bellerin had given him the opportunity to do so and the referee therefore had a decision to make. It was one of those calls that could have gone either way, unlike Mike Dean’s ridiculous call against West Brom, unfortunately for Arsenal Anthony Taylor also decided to point to the spot. With Petr Cech in goal, a penalty decision against the Gunners is as good as goal as the former Chelsea man is yet to save one in an Arsenal shirt and in fact it is difficult to remember a time he has even dived the right way in an attempt to save a penalty. Nevertheless Bellerin atoned for his error with a fantastically well taken goal in stoppage time to secure a draw for his side and Gunners fans can only hope the strike will also bring renewed confidence in the Spaniard’s game following a poor season so far.

At left wing back Ainsley Maitland-Niles once again produced a performance of great class. The youngster was outstanding, showing great poise on the ball, confidence and technical ability, proving that he has everything in his locker to succeed at this level. His great potential is highlighted all the more given the fact that he is a right footer playing out of position at left wing back and performing so well. Unfortunately he was caught out by Zapacosta for Chelsea’s second goal, but this can happen and Wenger will hope that the youngster will learn from it and continue to improve his game.

For all their defensive frailties, Arsenal were excellent going forward, with their attacking play outstanding at times. Antonio Conte declared himself disappointed with the draw at the end of game, citing the numerous chances Chelsea had squandered during the game. The Italian must have forgotten the sheer number of opportunities Arsenal created as the Gunners were just as entitled to the same emotions at full-time. Chief amongst these opportunities was the first half chance when Courtois denied Sanchez with a fingertip save to divert the ball onto the inside of the post, with the ball then travelling along the goal line and against the opposite post. But Lacazette, who is experiencing somewhat of a goal draught of late also had several chances to score but failed to convert any of them, in similar fashion to Morata.

One man who did convert his opportunity however was Jack Wilshere. The Englishman’s performances are simply improving with each game that he plays and he was outstanding once again. Every time he steps out onto the pitch Wilshere makes a mockery of the fact Arsenal have yet to resolve his contract situation. At the end of the game he declared that there was still no progress regarding his contract talks, which is quite frankly ridiculous. He is the only player in the middle of the pitch for Arsenal who has the passion, hunger and desire to dominate proceedings. His passing ability is excellent and the way he glides across the pitch as he carries the ball is simply sublime. The way Wilshere took his goal only served to highlight his talent and confidence. He ghosted into the box and latched onto the loose ball thundering a first time effort past Courtois high into the top corner of the net, leaving the Belgian clutching at air as the ball whistled past him. If Wilshere is allowed to leave in the summer, Wenger will surely have a mutiny on his hands.

The Frenchman was however more concerned with berating the referee at the final whistle. Although his grievances are justified at recent refereeing decisions, Wenger would do well to address the defensive frailties of his side. On their day Arsenal are excellent as an attacking unit, but their ability to shoot themselves in the foot from a defensive point of view remains unabated and continues to threaten to undermine their season. With the race for the top four more competitive than ever it is difficult to see Arsenal being able to secure Champions League qualification with such defensive frailties.

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