Sunderland at Arsenal

Sunderland v. Arsenal 

Oct. 16

Come back off the International break Arsenal has been hit by the injury bug again. This time, by far their best two way defender Sagna, goes down for “astleast the new year.” Hopefully this will not play into this game as Arsenal should still have enough star power to overwhelm the lowely Sunderland. However, in the long run this does not bode well for a team that was already burdened with a weak defense, especially now that arguably their two best defenders, Sagna and Vermailen, will be out together for several months. 

It took seconds for Arsenal to exploit their advantage in talent. Off the opening kickoff Arteta took possession and attempted a pass that was  blocked by a defender. Fortunately for the Gunners, the ricochet made an over zealous Sunderland team jump forward, but the ball landed right back at Arteta’s foot who then nailed a second attempt at a long ball to a streaking Gervinho who stalled the defense, allowing Van Persie to gain position and then an easily converted pass to the Dutchman for goal from 10 yards out. 

Arsenal dominated for the entire first 30 minutes. Van Persie was on fire for several chances in the first 10 minutes alone, yet Arsenal was still only up one when Arteta received a dubious penalty call in a Sunderland push. From 20 meters out, the Swede Sebastian Larson kicked a twisting shot that curved around the right side of the wall, then darted up the left side of the net. It was a beautiful strike that Szcyensy had absolutely no shot saving. 

This shot seemed to act as a shot of adrenaline for Sunderland. For the remaining of the 1st half, Sunderland pushed even in possession, but pushed forward in solid chances. In the 34th minute, Koscielny allowed a drive onside then was caught in no man’s land as Mertesacker got blown off the ball, allowed a pass and open header that, if not for a phenomenal save by Szyciesny, would have certainly gave Sunderland a lead going into the half. 

Arsenal started the 2nd half well. They held possession creating a Walcott chance in the opening few minutes. Two Jenkinson pushes led to chances as well. In fact, Jenkinson did well all afternoon recoiling into counterattacks after any Sunderland charge. Despite Arsenal dominating possession and play for 25 minutes, there was still no change in score. At the 65th minute, Gervinho was subbed in by Andrey Arshavin, this was a good move in my opinion, as Gervinho had really done nothing since coming on like lightning in the first 10 minutes. 

Arshavin came very close to making Wenger look like a genius in the 73th minute. Arshavin single handedly weaved through 4 defenders then took a low shot that just missed the right pocket of the net. Arshavin seemed to push the pace for the remainder of the game. 

Arsenal looked frustrated going into the 80th minute. They had several drives thwarted and continued to try different faces at free kicks. Starting with Arteta, then Walcoot and then in the 80th Van Persie. The 3rd choice was the charm as the left-footed Van Persie curled a kick around the right side post. Arsenal 2-1 Sunderland

That should have quelled all fears of a Arsenal dominated performance ending in a tie, yet the Gunners continued to play sloppy for much of the remaining 10 minutes. Sunderland was able to create several chances, one being a goal called offside. Arsenal didn’t help themselves by losing possession several times carelessly, well in their own zone. 

Arsenal was able to hold on for a win. Albeit with much trepidation for their fans. They dominated enormous chunks of the game, a win was well deserved. However, their play was laxidasical at times. They have still not solidified their defensive woos and it seems that the loss of Sagna will only exacerbate these problems. Jenkinson did look good at times, especially pushing up on counters. Mertesacker looked how he has always looked, his size is an advantage getting headers forcing people off the ball, but it is also a disadvantage as he lost his man a few times and was beaten off the ball a few more times. Gibbs looked good in that he wasn’t that noticeable, but was taken off the pitch for Santos who did look very strong. 

All in all Arsenal dominated possession, but often couldn’t finish. They could have scored several goals in the first 20 minutes and when they didn’t the pressure only grew. Larsson’s goal was unstoppable, but it shouldn’t have led to a tying goal. Even with Van Persie’s brilliance, and he definitely showcased it in this match, they are still in need of a finisher.