As the rhythms of the anthems of triumph rang out across the ground this afternoon a thought gripped me .’ How I wish I had some of the royalties from Free from Desire’ ! No I jest , it was how incredibly surprising football can be . This game was a marvellous case in point .
My football day began with a very pleasant lunch at our Ecuadorean eaterie in Holloway Road with the ubiquitous Countrymen . A look at Newcastle v City ( which we finished watching in the ground ). A short stroll to the ground, a friendly chat with Layth Yousif , editor of the Gooner, a pre-match pint of the ghastly and overpriced fizzy rubbish that Arsenal offer to supporters and then into the match .
Arsenal’s team showed nine changes from Wednesday night’s Carabao Cup win over Bolton. Raya returned in goal. Timber and Calafiori were the full backs, Partey returned in midfield and Trossard played the Odegaard role after a fashion interchanging with Havertz while Saka and Martinelli were out wide .
Martinelli needed a goal badly and missed a good early chance as Arsenal settled into a strong high press which suffocated Leicester who scarcely ventured into the Arsenal half in the first 45 minutes. Calafiori played the inverted full back role on steroids popping up in advanced positions to support Martinelli but sometimes appearing in central midfield well ahead of Partey .
There comes a point in a game where you start to feel ‘ we need a goal now’ and in this game it came around the twentieth minute , just as the murmurs were starting , when we scored a peach. Saka touched the ball back to Timber who played an immediate low cross to Martinelli in the centre and he swivelled to score . Arsenal continued to dominate forcing corners at will but finding the young Leicester goalkeeper Hermansen in lively form . Saka was facing double coverage whenever he got the ball but he was regularly able to find colleagues in space in the area . Just as we began to think ‘ wouldn’t it be nice to get a second goal before the break’ , we duly obliged as we moved into first half injury time . Martinelli went from scoring to assisting , pulling the ball back for Trossard to leave Hermansen helpless from about eight yards . Apart from yellow for Saliba and Calafiori the first half could scarcely have gone better
Half-time Arsenal 2 Leicester 0
Talk during the interval as people queued to drink the undrinkable( at great expense) was how soon we might see some of our young tyros in the game . The consensus appeared to be , ‘ get an early goal in the first 15 minutes and then throw the young lads on.’ Nwaneri’s performance had caught the imagination on Wednesday night and his entrance was eagerly anticipated . When he did come on it was in very different circumstances from those we had anticipated . Leicester had not had a shot in the first half but within two minutes they had a goal back. Buonanotte placed a free kick into the box from the left wing and Justin’s header deflected off Havertz’s shoulder past Raya .
While most of the crowd saw this as a minor incident in the course of an obvious cakewalk , the goal energised Leicester and their hitherto subdued and dominated players started to counter press more effectively, win 50:50 challenges and at least look like a team with some capability to extend Arsenal. Nevertheless a fierce Justin volley on the hour which flew past Raya and cannoned into the net off the left-hand post was a major surprise and created a very different match .
Arsenal were still dominant. In the total match they won 17 corners to Leicester’s zero. Over the match they dominated 75% of the possession and with ten minutes to go Arsenal had fired 29 shots and Leicester only two but the score was tied at 2-2 .
This situation was largely due to the brilliance and reflexes of Hermansen who made an extraordinary double block from a corner from Havertz and Gabriel. He inadvertently passed to Trossard and blocked his resulting shot at close range and then spectacularly turned a Calafiori header over . Trossard lashed a shot against the post after a Saka cutback.
But perhaps the effort that most deserved to beat him was a magnificent run and shot from Nwaneri in his first action after entering the fray in place of Partey after 70 minutes . He curled a left- footed effort from twenty yards which Hermansen tipped away. Could anyone beat him? Nwaneri regalvanised the team , upping our tempo and energy levels and taking pressure off the heavily marked Saka on the right flank . The clock ticked on and as we entered 7 minutes of injury time there was real concern that we might drop two previous points .
Just into injury time Saka whipped in a left-wing corner which evaded the pack of attackers and defenders in the centre . Trossard waiting to the left of goal stabbed it back left-footed and it entered the goal via Ndidi’s outstretched foot . Cue a mixture of relief and exultation . Leicester tried to rescue the game but in the last minute Arsenal counter- attacked after a Leicester raid . Substitute Gabriel Jesus broke clear and in my view took the wrong option to shoot ( weakly) across goal when company was arriving to his left . For once Hermansen fumbled the ball which Justin deflected on to Havertz who scored from close range. The goal was initially disallowed but the deflection off Justin rendered it legal and at 4-2 the game was over . Cue ‘ Free from Desire ‘ and a triumphant but relieved Arsenal crowd.
Full time Arsenal 4 Leicester 2
Leicester seemed aggrieved that there was a foul in the build-up to our first goal and seemed to feel Calafiori had been let off a second yellow. I thought it ironic that for much of the second half the teams recereated the tableau that we saw last Sunday at the Emptihad as we passed the ball around the area and Leicester employed some ‘ dark arts ‘ of their own as players found reasons to delay almost any action on the field and Hermansen regularly went down for treatment . To be fair to Arsenal we created many more chances than C115y did last week but inevitably the second half was a nervy affair. Two points dropped from 2-0 up at home against a relegation candidate would have been disastrous. That such an outcome was averted was due to a combination of determined attacking play , the introduction of Nwaneri who looks an absolute gem and Arteta’s ability to make good substitutions. Sterling replaced Martinelli to good effect and Jesus’s impact was immediate .
Flowers should be extended particularly to Rice who in his quiet , dedicated way covered every blade of grass and put out fires all over the pitch, Timber and Calafiori who bring huge personality to their full-back roles and Trossard who took on the almost impossible job of replacing Odegaard and made a thoroughly good fist of it . This goes down as a narrow escape but an extremely entertaining and invigorating one. Roll on PSG on Tuesday !
Bravo, TTG, and lickety-split, too. We saw the same game, if from different distances. Nwaneri looks better with every outing.
Didn’t see the game, being out on a charity bike ride, so many thanks TTG for bringing me up to date. Three points won and deserved it sounds.
Thanks should be extended to Pangloss for his express service in,posting the report albeit putting at risk his viewing of Match of the Day. Much appreciated .
Having seen MOTD myself I thought both Leicester’s complaints were sadly legitimate . Calafiori could have gone and Vardy was fouled as I thought at the time . But we deserved some luck after our last two league games
Thanks TTG, a very fair report of a game that might have gotten away from us.
Leicester were 2-2 having done almost nothing but eventually the luck evened out.
I agree @3 Calafiori could have gone but I thought Vardy’s whining a bit much, an over fussy referee might have given the foul that Vardy was blatantly looking for but generally no. Also if you watch the replay it was a decision Vardy wasn’t that bothered about until we scored and suddenly it was a huge injustice, I suppose it must have felt like a sudden elbow to the head for him. Basically, he and Cooper shouted and screamed in the vague hope VAR would notice and save them. Unlucky lads.
Very pleased to see Gabi M getting on the scoreboard, he and Leo interchanged very cleverly.
Thanks TTG, that’s the match I saw, in Bilbao, in miniature on my I-phone on an intermittently frozen stream via South Africa on a VPN. The wonders of technology!
I thought Vardy could have been awarded a foul before our goal but it was one of those 50:50 situations where the referee is as likely to give the foul either way and is better to wave play on. On the other hand Vardy deliberately bought the free kick from which they scored by running across Saliba’s path and falling over.
Calafiori could have been given a second yellow (would have had it been Oliver or Kavanagh) but his first yellow should not have been flashed and I think the ref knew he had not deserved that. On the other hand I cannot explain why skip did not receive a second yellow on a couple of occasions, notably the stamp on Saka’s foot.
Onwards.
Watching Arsenal
C100@6, I saw that last night. Entirely accurate. And….nearly every time. Nowadays, I would prefix it with: “Good grief, the ballot has actually awarded me a ticket!”
On a similar theme:
The day began in bright autumnal sunshine, a pleasant change from a very wet week. Parked up in my usual place just off Holloway Road, it was a five minute stroll to El Rincon where the first GHF pre match lunch of the year awaited with TTG and his Kentish friend Alan, still playing football in an over 75 league (respect). I chose chicken a La Milanese, which comes with a pungent garlic sauce which I could still taste at 3am the following morning (sorry dear).
About an hour before kickoff we were off to the ground, still in bright sunshine. Layth Yousif, the editor of The Gooner(I assume you all subscribe, if not why not?), who had pulled rank on his sellers to stand in the sunshine on Bear Island. A vey pleasant ten minute chat then occurred, marked finally be a selfie which I reproduce below (from right to left, Layth, TTG, Alan, me and my son Aidan).
So, into the ground and the pleasure of watching a toothless City dropping two points at St James Park. Down into the sunshine, old friends greeted. TTG describes the game very well above. Just a few points from me.
1) I cannot describe how good the Leicester goalie was.
2) Their second goal was an utter worldie
3) We definitely got the rub of the green here. I called the foul on Vardy as it happened before our first goal. Viewing MOTD later, Calafiori was very, very lucky not to get a red card.
4) What a cameo by Nwaneri. Sometimes you are lucky enough to watch a young player truly announce themselves. For me it happened, in recent years, with Cesc, Wilshere and Saka. Young Ethan will have a stellar career.
5) How good a buy was Leo Trossard?
6) The crowd were very loud and supportive when Leicester fought back. The scenes when the winners went in in injury time were off the scale.
This was a hugely entertaining game. Somehow we got the job done. Three home games in a week, next up PSG.
Superb spot in Emirates Airlines box from which to watch the match. Excellent three course meal with unlimited quality wines and beer before kick off and half-time pasta to revive the energy stockpile. First time ever I’ve been in the front row and able to rest on the wall there. That’s the way to do it and I commend it to the house! Most likely a complete one-off for me, but a fun day nevertheless with some great company.
On a more serious note, this was a game that should have been completely put to bed by half time. Our inability to but the boot on the neck of a floundering Fox was disappointing as were the lapses in the second half. It’s still quite difficult to believe that at one point the scoreline was 2-2.
I thought Saliba’s challenge on Vardy was fine, that would have been a super-soft foul had it been given. Calafiori’s first yellow was a nonsense. @6 an excellent representation of my emotional state during the game, C100.
Fine job, TTG – that keyboard of yours must be running hot these days.
@6 and @8 sums it up for me.
Special thanks to C100 for much more than we needed or wanted to know about your nocturnal regurgitations ……… poor Mrs 100 😱
C100@9: I agree with your six points, save for number three. The Saliba-Vardy tussle will get blown for a foul no more than three times out of ten, especially when it happens where it did. As for Calafiori, if Skipp’s studs-up tackle on Martinelli wasn’t worth a yellow, then even less so was Calafiori’s tackle. Refs are creating a rod for their backs by giving soft yellows early on.
In separate news, Carl Jenkinson, formerly of this parish, has returned to these shores. The Corporal has signed for League Two Bromley.
ARSENAL VS. LEICESTER MATCH STATS
Possession: Arsenal 75%-25% Leicester.
Shots: Arsenal 37-5 Leicester.
Shots on target: Arsenal 17-3 Leicester.
Corners: Arsenal 17-0 Leicester.
Fouls: Arsenal 11-6 Leicester.
United are so poor. Red card for Bruno. Couldn’t happen to a better bloke.
Trev,
I had Chicken Milanese and had no complaints from the Management !
C100
Thanks for the stats which tell a story very clearly .I used them when writing the blog , I hadn’t realised until then that Lesta didn’t get a corner but I have ‘ an xG man ‘ behind me who pointed out the disparity between the teams.
I was over on the Isle of Sheppey this morning watching my grandson ( once the subject of a blog on Goonerholic ) star in an Odegaard like role in a 4-0 win against Sheppey United . I met a couple of Dads who were Gooners and we agreed a genuinely fair score would have been 7-0 to Arsenal. Which shows how good their keeper was and how profligate we were in front of goal .Defensively I would attach no blame to us at all. They got a deflection and a worldie . End of story .
Agree re Nwaneri in fact he and MLS are both special . And Trossard has paid back his fee several times over
United six points from seven games.
Who had Ten Hag in the tin tack race?
Sorry seven points from six games.
I see Kavanagh was reffing the Manure Spuds game. Any bookings for kicking the ball away to prevent free kicks?
SP
No but there were two United players who did it without sanction
But he’d already given them a harsh red !
Football is strange . Last week Martinez perpetrated an incredibly dangerous potential leg breaking tackle and got a yellow. This week Fernandes lost his balance and got a red . Didn’t seem right
C100@16: there were three nominations of ten Hag for the tin-tack.
TTG@19: the lack of consistency in carding is staggering. Maybe the refs have a magic eight ball app on their watches, and they go with whatever it comes up with.
If we are tossing around stats from the Leicester game, the xG says we should have won 4-0. They racked up 63 clearances to our eight and managed four crosses to our 38. Their keeper’s save rate was 81% (13 out of 16 shots on target).
I’ve just seen the tackle that resulted in Fernandez’s red card – never a red card tackle in a million years. The red card can only be rationalised as the result of a cumulative series of reptilian offences of simulation, fouling and whining over the season to date. Kavanagh is an idiot. I expect that red card to be overturned on appeal.
I’ve now seen the MotD highlights from our match on a proper TV rather than on my I-phone though probably not as big a screen as that reported by our late regular Oskar the Dog. I now agree that Saliba probably did foul Steptoe in the lead-up to our first goal though he did not foul Steptoe for the free kick that led directly to Lesta’s first goal which Vardy bought in one of his classic moves.
I now also agree that Calafiori was fortunate not to get a second yellow but I think the referee was minded to be lenient as the first yellow card was extremely harsh. Putting that decision in context Skip was far. far luckier not to see a second yellow.
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