Ally
Active Member
“Ljungberg left it for Bergkamp! Ohh, yes!”
“It’s Henry ... It’s a hat-trick! A brilliant Champions League hat-trick!”
“Sylvain Wiltord, touch to control, and Gilberto! What were we saying. Arsenal will score, because they always score.”
Valencia 2 (Carew 34, 57) Arsenal 1 (Henry 49)
I feel I must apologise. What with all the doom-mongering I was coming out with before the game, maybe I’ve spoiled the moment. We played well, aye. But what does that count for? We were put out of our misery by the sparkling Spanish champions and one towering striker who proved too much for Pascal Cygan and Sol Campbell.
The truth was, I was expecting Arsenal to lose. From the frantic rumours over the involvement of Stepanovs to the killer blow of Wiltord’s needless overplay on the touchline, the Arsenal preperation and execution was sporadically farcical from the beginning to the pathetic end. This wasn’t like the hopeless naivety of 1998, the downright bad luck of 1999, the oh-so-nearly benchmark in 2000 or the miserable conclusion last season. We’ve played passably but we lack...actually, I don’t know what we lack. On paper we easily match anyone, possibly bar Real, and I don’t buy into the theory that we haven’t learned lessons crucial to qualification into the last eight (Thierry’s played 50 European games and goes at a strike rate of 1 in 2 - don’t tell me he doesn’t know what’s what.)
Still, I don’t intend to write a thesis on The Suggested Methods and Improvements to Technique Required for European Glory in North London. Doubtless some wag at Manchester University will do that, get on the radio and make some subtle quip about Arsène’s managerial credentials.
We knew about Stuart Taylor’s involvement, but what we weren’t banking on was a pretty drastic rethink of strategy, presumbly designed to cover the back four from the pace of Valencia’s hitmen. Kolo Toure was asked to step in for Gio to add pace on the left side, but what no-one had forseen was Pires’ role as a ‘shadow striker’ in behind Thierry - as it turned out, a nice enough idea on paper but one which hadn’t been logically thought out and only ended up causing another problem (Any success depended on Henry sticking rigidly to his role through the middle - if our ‘complete striker’ lacks just one thing, it’s the ability to do exactly that. Oh dear.) Pires (Not a natural finisher) ended up patrolling an area further up the pitch than his compatriot.
I mentioned something the other week about the absence of luck which seems to follow us about everywhere. Unsurprisingly it popped up again tonight - Gilberto thundered a header off an Henry corner straight towards the corner with Canizares away in the clouds somewhere - it smacked the completely bemused Albelda on the forehead, rose up ridiculously and cannoned to safety via the bar. You stop showing signs of emotion after a bit, sort of like violence on TV where eventually you become completely desensitised. Quite frankly, I don’t watch the Arsenal any more without consciously accepting that we are going to blow at least 2 or 3 blatant scoring chances due to deflections, handballs, the goalkeeper diving low to his left and saving a voley with his nose etc. etc. We shrug out shoulders and try again. Manchester United tuck the chances in the net and smugly ponce about in the media afterwards.
One point of focus was Pascal Cygan. And I’ve got to say he did well, except for the token headless farmyard animal moment which neatly presented the home side with the lead, not really deserved but beautifully worked. As Valencia pressed, Pascal came charging out to intercept Aimar (I think) in midfield, missed, and left a gigantic gap through the middle for the through ball to be played - John Carew strolled in and nearly burst Stuart Taylor’s net at the near post. Done in a flash, and a stark lesson in how to brutally punish opposition errors.
This left our hopes hanging by some variety of fragile material - but whatever was said at half time worked. The one and only occasion where the support of Pires managed to compliment the movement of Thierry ended up in a sublime goal to level matters and for seven minutes, give us all some foolish idea we might progress. No matter, this was one to savour - an angled pass right into the run of Henry left Titi running free towards Canizares - you expect him to score, but his curled, measured pass into the corner was exceptional even by our standards.
This was well and good, but the suspicion that 2 goals were necessary for a draw was borne out on 57 minutes. Even before the killer blow, we had been reliant on Taylor diving to his left and saving one handedly from Carew superbly. The young keeper is as good as any I’ve seen at his age - surely there’s no reason why he can’t take over from Big Dave? The word is that Wenger will invest in a more experienced stopper when Seaman decides to turn in - as far as I’m concerned there’s no need.
Wiltord received the ball on the right touchline, tried to dribble his way out of trouble and was dispossesed by Vicente - his delivery was very, very good in truth, and was met with a cracking downwards header by Carew again, the one striker we never got any measure of during this campaign. He’s unorthodox, and you’d hardly expect Valencia to be playing target man football. Ironically, they don’t. They use an eight-foot striker and incorporate him into their ground-based game immaculately, the same way Dortmund use Kohller - such a rarity that we looked a bit lost as to what to do, really.
I don’t remember too much else of note, save for a sickening injury to Canizares necessitating the introduction of the world class deputy Palop, and Pires diving in depseration in the area deep into stoppage time, a sign that our time was finally up. We’re Arsenal after all; we simply don’t score last minute winners.
There’s no point wallowing in self-pity here. So I don’t intend to. What I do know is that this campaign was simply not good enough. Two astounding results (In Eindhoven and Rome) were red herrings, and nothing more. And I don’t like to end on a downbeat note, but that’s life, that’s football and that’s Arsenal.
Man of the Match
True unsung hero stuff, but Lauren policed the right back zone, combined immaculately with Sol and worked with Wiltord as well as he could possibly have done. Excellent.
Moment of the Match
Thierry’s goal. I can only hope that we never, ever take this man for granted.
Moan of the Match
Kanu should have been on 20 minutes earlier. Jeffers should have been on from the start.
Ally Winford
*After the final whistle, I turned the TV off, sat for 10 minutes and thought about what could have been. Then I got up, made a big mug of coffee and put a CD on.*
“It’s Henry ... It’s a hat-trick! A brilliant Champions League hat-trick!”
“Sylvain Wiltord, touch to control, and Gilberto! What were we saying. Arsenal will score, because they always score.”
Valencia 2 (Carew 34, 57) Arsenal 1 (Henry 49)
I feel I must apologise. What with all the doom-mongering I was coming out with before the game, maybe I’ve spoiled the moment. We played well, aye. But what does that count for? We were put out of our misery by the sparkling Spanish champions and one towering striker who proved too much for Pascal Cygan and Sol Campbell.
The truth was, I was expecting Arsenal to lose. From the frantic rumours over the involvement of Stepanovs to the killer blow of Wiltord’s needless overplay on the touchline, the Arsenal preperation and execution was sporadically farcical from the beginning to the pathetic end. This wasn’t like the hopeless naivety of 1998, the downright bad luck of 1999, the oh-so-nearly benchmark in 2000 or the miserable conclusion last season. We’ve played passably but we lack...actually, I don’t know what we lack. On paper we easily match anyone, possibly bar Real, and I don’t buy into the theory that we haven’t learned lessons crucial to qualification into the last eight (Thierry’s played 50 European games and goes at a strike rate of 1 in 2 - don’t tell me he doesn’t know what’s what.)
Still, I don’t intend to write a thesis on The Suggested Methods and Improvements to Technique Required for European Glory in North London. Doubtless some wag at Manchester University will do that, get on the radio and make some subtle quip about Arsène’s managerial credentials.
We knew about Stuart Taylor’s involvement, but what we weren’t banking on was a pretty drastic rethink of strategy, presumbly designed to cover the back four from the pace of Valencia’s hitmen. Kolo Toure was asked to step in for Gio to add pace on the left side, but what no-one had forseen was Pires’ role as a ‘shadow striker’ in behind Thierry - as it turned out, a nice enough idea on paper but one which hadn’t been logically thought out and only ended up causing another problem (Any success depended on Henry sticking rigidly to his role through the middle - if our ‘complete striker’ lacks just one thing, it’s the ability to do exactly that. Oh dear.) Pires (Not a natural finisher) ended up patrolling an area further up the pitch than his compatriot.
I mentioned something the other week about the absence of luck which seems to follow us about everywhere. Unsurprisingly it popped up again tonight - Gilberto thundered a header off an Henry corner straight towards the corner with Canizares away in the clouds somewhere - it smacked the completely bemused Albelda on the forehead, rose up ridiculously and cannoned to safety via the bar. You stop showing signs of emotion after a bit, sort of like violence on TV where eventually you become completely desensitised. Quite frankly, I don’t watch the Arsenal any more without consciously accepting that we are going to blow at least 2 or 3 blatant scoring chances due to deflections, handballs, the goalkeeper diving low to his left and saving a voley with his nose etc. etc. We shrug out shoulders and try again. Manchester United tuck the chances in the net and smugly ponce about in the media afterwards.
One point of focus was Pascal Cygan. And I’ve got to say he did well, except for the token headless farmyard animal moment which neatly presented the home side with the lead, not really deserved but beautifully worked. As Valencia pressed, Pascal came charging out to intercept Aimar (I think) in midfield, missed, and left a gigantic gap through the middle for the through ball to be played - John Carew strolled in and nearly burst Stuart Taylor’s net at the near post. Done in a flash, and a stark lesson in how to brutally punish opposition errors.
This left our hopes hanging by some variety of fragile material - but whatever was said at half time worked. The one and only occasion where the support of Pires managed to compliment the movement of Thierry ended up in a sublime goal to level matters and for seven minutes, give us all some foolish idea we might progress. No matter, this was one to savour - an angled pass right into the run of Henry left Titi running free towards Canizares - you expect him to score, but his curled, measured pass into the corner was exceptional even by our standards.
This was well and good, but the suspicion that 2 goals were necessary for a draw was borne out on 57 minutes. Even before the killer blow, we had been reliant on Taylor diving to his left and saving one handedly from Carew superbly. The young keeper is as good as any I’ve seen at his age - surely there’s no reason why he can’t take over from Big Dave? The word is that Wenger will invest in a more experienced stopper when Seaman decides to turn in - as far as I’m concerned there’s no need.
Wiltord received the ball on the right touchline, tried to dribble his way out of trouble and was dispossesed by Vicente - his delivery was very, very good in truth, and was met with a cracking downwards header by Carew again, the one striker we never got any measure of during this campaign. He’s unorthodox, and you’d hardly expect Valencia to be playing target man football. Ironically, they don’t. They use an eight-foot striker and incorporate him into their ground-based game immaculately, the same way Dortmund use Kohller - such a rarity that we looked a bit lost as to what to do, really.
I don’t remember too much else of note, save for a sickening injury to Canizares necessitating the introduction of the world class deputy Palop, and Pires diving in depseration in the area deep into stoppage time, a sign that our time was finally up. We’re Arsenal after all; we simply don’t score last minute winners.
There’s no point wallowing in self-pity here. So I don’t intend to. What I do know is that this campaign was simply not good enough. Two astounding results (In Eindhoven and Rome) were red herrings, and nothing more. And I don’t like to end on a downbeat note, but that’s life, that’s football and that’s Arsenal.
Man of the Match
True unsung hero stuff, but Lauren policed the right back zone, combined immaculately with Sol and worked with Wiltord as well as he could possibly have done. Excellent.
Moment of the Match
Thierry’s goal. I can only hope that we never, ever take this man for granted.
Moan of the Match
Kanu should have been on 20 minutes earlier. Jeffers should have been on from the start.
Ally Winford
*After the final whistle, I turned the TV off, sat for 10 minutes and thought about what could have been. Then I got up, made a big mug of coffee and put a CD on.*
ee
