The Thin Red Line
Aug 26th, 2007 by 'holic
Don’t you just hate people when they say ‘I told you so’? When Johan Djourou was allowed to join Birmingham on loan there was a general sense of surprise around the blogs that Arsenal were effectively down to three central defenders. Within days William Gallas fell foul of his tender groin, and yesterday Philippe Senderos was unable to start. To compound the issue Bacary Sagna had to be replaced after just nineteen minutes of the game against Manchester City.
It will be a day or so before the medical reports start to surface but there must surely now be a concern that a very good start to the season is in danger of being undermined. To put my fears into context both Sagna and Senderos may be fit for Tuesday, according to the official website. Yesterday ended with midfielders filling two of the back four berths, which made the clean sheet against a rejuvenated Citeh quite an achievement.
It was not the only positive to be drawn from the not-so-usual ‘one-nil to the Arsenal’ scoreline. There was a time when we would have expected to grind out that result against confident and motivated opponents, but that is not a quality we have come to associate with Arsenal in the last couple of years.
These young Gunners are clearly growing up, and when Arsene Wenger makes mention of his side being “ready to fight until the last second” you sense he has genuine belief in what they can do.
They certainly had to fight every inch of the way yesterday. Comfortable for the opening half they found themselves penned back by City at the start of the second-half. When Van Persie failed to break the deadlock from the penalty spot there was a real chance that a couple of home points may slip away.
Cometh the hour, and all that, Cesc Fabregas finally broke City hearts and resistance as he latched onto a through ball from Alexander Hleb and smashed it in at the near post. The goals from midfield thus far are really encouraging. Let’s hope they keep it up.
It would also be wrong not to mention the performance of Manuel Almunia. His contribution to the clean sheet included a couple of very smart stops in the area where previously he has looked vulnerable. Keep it up fella.
I also had the misfortune to watch the Chelsea game in its entirety yesterday. We are currently three points behind the new leaders with a game in hand, and they did not impress against Pompey. It may be early days but I’m beginning to savour the way this season is shaping up!
Enjoy your Sunday people.
6 Responses to “The Thin Red Line”
we need a centre back or we are in all sorts of trouble………….curtis davies is quick and good in the air. but if wenger signs anybody i will probably grow a second bell end!
It was another pleasing result. So far I’d say we would have drawn this, lost to Blackburn and probably drawn with Fulham if these games were played last season. It’s looking good, another defender would do nicely!
Indeed: last year’s first 2 home and 1 away game in the league = 2 points.
This year: 7. Could have been 9, could have been 3, but it’s good to see these boys never let their heads drop.
Its still a little early to worry about the defensive situation. Wenger knew he was taking a risk when he sent Djourou out on loan, and I think its a bit of a gamble. However, we still have Sagna who can cover CB, Hoyte who can play RB/LB, and Gilberto put in such a solid performance at CB. Senderos will also be back on Tuesday.
If we have some serious injuries, then we are in for a lot of trouble, not just with the defence, but with the squad as a whole. Lets just hope for the best.
I agree with prits that the Arsenal are most likely going to be fine in defense. I agree with Arsene’s decsion to loan out Djourou. I like Djourou and I don’t want him getting depressed with lack of playing time. He should be raring to go for the second half or the season.
Almunia was great against Man City. The squad’s looking good, but we need Eduardo and Adebayor to get into a good patch of form.
Good point about playing time 433 (Like the site by the way). Looks like Senderos is back for the Sparta game so let’s hope he and Toure stay fit.
Good to see everyone so positive. Thanks.