Arsenal v Liverpool III: Incredible ecstacy followed by immense disappointment
The history books will say that on the 8th of April, 2008 Liverpool beat Arsenal 4-2 at Anfield to win a two-legged Champions League quarter-final affair 5-3 on aggregate. However, the scoreline does not reflect just how close Arsenal were to going through themselves on an unbelievably exciting night of football.
The key moments came during the 84th and 85th minute of the game. With the game poised at 2-1 to Liverpool, Arsene Wenger’s side were just seven minutes away from progressing on away goals when Emmanuel Adebayor tapped home to make it 2-2 after an absolutely amazing run by second-half substitute Theo Walcott. But just as it looked like Arsenal were heading for the semi-finals their hopes were dashed just thirty seconds later when Liverpool substitute Ryan Babel worked his way into the area and was awarded the softest of penalties after being adjudged to have been pulled down by Kolo Toure.
Steven Gerrard converted from the spot to turn the incredible ecstacy of Adebayor’s goal into immense disappointment. As Wenger’s side pushed in vain for a third goal it was inevitable that Liverpool would have chances on the break and the icing on the cake was added when Babel broke free to race pass an exhausted Cesc Fabregas and slot home to make it 4-2. Unbelievable, unfair, and utterly, utterly heartbreaking.
It is difficult to put into the words the feelings that went through my body during the minute following Adebayor’s goal and the Liverpool penalty award. I’m not exaggerating when I say that when Arsenal scored I was in tears of joy. My emotions were going mental, I was jumping around like a flipping idiot and pumping my fists like some sort of crazed boxer. Then came the confusion when Babel hit the deck.
The challenge looked so innocuous on first viewing that when the referee ran over to dish out a yellow card I thought he had given it to the Liverpool winger for diving. When I then saw that it had been given to Toure and a penalty had been awarded I literally felt sick. The boys had battled so hard and Walcott had produced such a moment of brilliance that for it to be taken away by a poor, poor decision by the referee seemed so unfair.
When Gerrard smashed home the penalty I knew it was over. In my mind there was just no way that Arsenal were going to come back again and when the fourth Liverpool goal went in I just collapsed on my bed, consigned to defeat, cursing to myself and wondering how it had all gone so wrong.
The man adjudged to have fouled Babel, Kolo Toure, had this to say about the penalty decision:
“The referee gave the foul against me, but I just moved away from him [Babel] and I think Cesc [Fabregas] caught his hand maybe, which was outside the area anyway - but that is the game and the referee has given the penalty. What can you do?”
As he says, what can you do? While I don’t want to blame the referee for Arsenal’s exit from the competition this one is really hard to ignore. It absolutely was not a penalty and when you consider the spot kick that was not given when Alexandr Hleb was pulled down in the first leg I think every Arsenal fan has every right to feel hard done by.
While the manager was also critical of the referee at the end of the match he too refused to put the blame for Arsenal’s exit completely on the officials. Quite rightly, Arsene Wenger pointed to the defensive mistakes that Arsenal made on the first two Liverpool goals as well as a lack of concentration for the penalty award. However, the manager was also quick to complement the mental strength of his side and their overall performance over the two legs.
“It was down to big mistakes defensively. We conceded the first goal on a corner, the second goal I feel we gave Torres too much room. But this team has plenty of talent and potential, they are mentally strong. We just lack maturity in some situations.”
I do think that while I can understand a lot of people are going to be upset about this defeat - heck, I’m still furious about it - a lot of positives can be taken out of this game as well as the season as a whole. I am now resigned to the fact that Arsenal will not be winning any trophies this season but I want to make it clear that I am still delighted with the progress that this side has made since last season. They have gone absolutely all the way in pursuit of the league and a step further in the Champions League and were just a few minutes away from a semi-final appearance in the competition, something I didn’t feel was possible at the start of the season.
While it is now clear that this Arsenal squad is just a little bit too small to cope with challenging for both the Premiership and Champions League, supporters should not lose sight of just how far the team has progressed. The temptation is there to suggest that Wenger sign a bunch of new players for next season but in my opinion I feel the team is around 90% of what it needs to be and just a couple of additions to strengthen the squad are what is required to add that final 10%.
I think that despite the result as supporters we should feel incredibly proud of the effort and performance that the Arsenal players gave last night and indeed the efforts they have put in over the entire season. Luck may not have been with this side very much lately but the endeavour and effort has never wavered and that should not be forgotten.
What do you think?
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I cannot explain to you how gutted I am right now…
…but this pretty much says it all.
So close but yet so far. I think I’m going to cry.
The last hurrah or a step towards greatness for this Arsenal side? We’ll soon find out.
Today’s Champions League game against Liverpool at Anfield is the be all and end all for Arsenal’s season as far as I’m concerned. Should they succeed then Arsene Wenger’s side will be just three games away from being crowned Champions of Europe, should they fail then the season is finally over and the silverware cabinet will be empty for the fourth season running.
The players must realise this and respond accordingly. It’s clear that there have been some tired legs running around on the pitch of late and guys like Cesc Fabregas and Mathieu Flamini have been worked well beyond their call of duty. But if the boys are too avoid the possibility of ending the season without a trophy then they are going to have to ignore the aches and pains in their bodies and give it absolutely everything against Liverpool tonight.
Tactics will play their part for sure, but the single most important factor in determining whether or not Arsenal succeed tonight will be the physical and mental effort that the players put in. Winning the Champions League has to be the main focus now and the manager must make that clear to his team tonight. The players need to forget completely about the trip to Old Trafford on Sunday and they must absolutely run themselves into the ground. Anything less will mean failure.
Should the players hold up their end of the bargain then the rest will be down to how Wenger gets his side playing. The tie is on a knife-edge after Liverpool’s away goal and I feel the manager will have to get his balance between attacking and defending just right to get the required result.
In my opinion the best way for him to do this is to counter the typical five-man Liverpool midfield with a five-man midfield of his own and utilising his freshest players as the primary attackers. That means draughting Theo Walcott and Abou Diaby into the starting line-up as the two wingers and using Alexandr Hleb as a floating support behind lone striker Emmanuel Adebayor. The fact that Wenger rested both the Belarussian and the Togolese forward on Saturday suggests to me that this is the way he will play and I’ll be crossing my fingers and toes that it is.
Some people may point to Robin van Persie’s return from injury and say that he has to start but I think that it would be best to hold the Dutchman back until the need for a goal becomes pressing. The same can be said of Nicklas Bendtner who has done quite well each of the three times he has featured against Liverpool. Indeed, Wenger should be instructing Adebayor to work Liverpool’s central-defensive pairing from pillar to post in an attempt to open up the game before introducing either van Persie or Bendtner. Considering that the game could go for up to two hours, this might not be the worst idea.
Effort and tactics aside, the thing that Arsenal absolutely must do tonight is take their chances when they come. Over the past three meetings against Liverpool Wenger’s team have largely been the more impressive side and have created enough chances to win all three games. Yet, as Bendtner has pointed out, had Arsenal taken the chances they created then the results would have been different.
If Wenger gets his tactics right and the players give it everything they’ve got and take their chances then Arsenal will get past Liverpool tonight. It sounds like a lot to ask - and maybe it is - but I have every confidence in this side to put in one final effort and get the result they require. I usually go for a prediction of some sort for every Arsenal game but it’s really not worth it this time around.
As I said, I am confident of the boys doing the job, but they really have to be at the top of their game if they want to succeed tonight. Let’s hope they can do it. Come on Arsenal!
What do you think?
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Arsenal boys must give it absolutely everything on Tuesday night
After the weekend just gone it feels a bit funny to be blogging today. As I said yesterday after the draw with Liverpool, the Premiership is now gone for Arsenal - a reality made worse by the fact that Manchester United dropped points for the first time in a number of games last night against Middlesbrough. Had Arsenal found a winning goal on Saturday then Arsene Wenger’s side would be just four points off the top and right back in it, so it’s all a little frustrating at the moment.
But while I have 99.99% given up on Arsenal chances of winning the league it’s fairly unsurprising to hear that the manager has not. Speaking in the post-match interview after the Liverpool game, Wenger was clearly frustrated by his side’s inability to get the three points but also stressed that he will not be giving up until winning becomes a mathematical impossibility.
“It depends on the results of the other teams. In my brain it’s not over because mathematically it’s not over.”
It’s a fair point, but at the same time I think the Champions League now has to be the main focus. Of course, that could be all over as well if Arsenal can’t get past Liverpool on Tuesday night, but should they do just that then I think the manager will have to rethink his approach to the rest of the season. Certain players will need to be at 100% physically and mentally for the semi-finals should the club make it that far, and that will mean rotating the squad from game to game a little bit more than the manager has done previously.
As I said though, a lot depends on whether Arsenal can get the result they require to knock out Liverpool and it’s far from certain that they will. The Merseyside club will start as favourites after grabbing a 1-1 draw at Emirates Stadium and resting key players like Fernando Torres from the weekend Premiership clash.
Two players who will be key figures for Arsenal - Cesc Fabregas and Manuel Almunia - have been talking about this week’s Champions League clash, with the latter hoping that Liverpool show a little less Jekyll and a lot more Hyde and the former expecting Rafa Benitez’s side to defend strongly and hit on the break.
“I think it is going to be very difficult because they defend very well. All they’ll want to do is defend and catch us on the break. We have to stick to our policy of playing good football, attacking and trying to create chances.”
I think the little Spaniard is pretty much spot on; I can’t see Liverpool playing any other way then by defending and counter-attacking and the Arsenal boys are going to have to put in an AC Milan-in-the-San-Siro-esque performance to progress to the semi-finals. With the league virtually gone and a decent rest for some of the tireder players surely on the horizon, Wenger will be wanting his team to give absolutely everything they’ve got to get past Liverpool. Let’s hope they can do it.
That’s about it for today so take it easy and try and keep a smile on your face. After all, there’s still a Champions League to be won.
What do you think?
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Arsenal v Liverpool II: Title dream finally over
Arsenal again outplayed Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium but were, for the third time this season, held to a 1-1 draw by Rafa Benitez’s side. But for a miracle of epic proportions, I feel safe in saying that Arsenal’s dreams of winning the Premiership this season are now over.
Despite trailing to Peter Crouch’s well-taken goal at half-time Arsene Wenger’s much-changed side had worked so hard to get back into it, pulling level through Nicklas Bendtner’s header early in the second period. And although the manager threw on Emmanuel Adebayor and Alexandr Hleb in the hopes of grabbing a winner it never came as Liverpool held firm.
I caught this match at the pub with a number of mates through a haze of beer and scotch and at the end of it I felt pretty gutted. The realisation that Arsenal have only the Champions League to play for this season is digging in pretty badly today and I’m none to happy about it. But that’s life and if the boys can get past Liverpool on Wednesday then the blow will be softened just a little bit.
I’ll have more tomorrow when I can organise my thoughts a little bit more. In the meantime, let me know what you thought of the game or how you’re feeling about things today by leaving a comment. Cheers.
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