CL: Fenerbahçe vs Arsenal | 21/10/08

[SimplyFabregas]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

according to highlights...almunia saved 3 surefire goals... meaning he actually won us the game. wow.

You got the impression we could have easily scored at anytime if we wanted, for most of the second half we werent even trying.

 

[patrick42uk]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Fenarbache have fallen so far in a year.

 

[RocktheCasbah]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Agree with that James, btw, of course Biggus and Anzac will be telling us how lucky we were to get away with it soon enough, but it worked a treat. In an attacking sense, anyway.

It was definitely the case of Arsène going out with his stance of "we'll score more goals than you".

Well, he said he would!

Gotta be pleased tonight. No we didn't defend well, though I thought Clichy had another good game, but some of the passing was a joy to watch. And how fantastic to see Cesc picking his passes in such devastating fashion and Diaby play like that. I questioned Almunia's captaincy credentials in my blog earlier today, but if that's how he's gonna play with the band on, let him keep it I say!

Ade managing to stay onside long enough to score was a bit of a bonus too.

 

[Cruisio]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Responding to Patrick

To be fair I think Diaby certainly was told to stay forward, so I dont think you can blame him for that. I thought that Denilson, despite not doing anything specifically wrong, was a big reason as to why they were cutting through us like butter. He's not a DM and so many times tonight he was leaving us open in the midfield. I like Denilson but he's extremely raw at the moment

 

[GaelForce22]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

I felt myself that he and Diaby didnt work hard enough defensively. Denilson improved second half.

We dont look a team thats going to acheive anything although maybe thats an unfair comment considering we had our first choice cbs out.

Maybe it's an unfair comment to say that we dont look like we can achieve anything when we win 5-2 at Fenerbache with 3/4 of our defence out injured?

Maybe it is.

 

[RocktheCasbah]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

To be fair I think Diaby certainly was told to stay forward, so I dont think you can blame him for that. I thought that Denilson, despite not doing anything specifically wrong, was a big reason as to why they were cutting through us like butter. He's not a DM and so many times tonight he was leaving us open in the midfield. I like Denilson but he's extremely raw at the moment

Denilson seemed to give the ball away a lot too, I noticed.

 

[James]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Poor plug there earlier Paul

 

[Gooner_Stu]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

It was the kind of Defensive performance that made me want Gallas and Toure in defence. Maybe their not "That bad" together after all :?

 

[RocktheCasbah]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Thought maybe it needed plugging mate, that's all ;-)

 

[clockwork orange]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Great result. A homewin v Fener & we're into the the KO-stages.

Hard to draw any other conclusions from this match.

 

[AnthonyG]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Poor plug there earlier Paul

Maybe Al read it and thought 'Casbah/Paul? Who the **** is Casbah/Paul? I'll show him. Now where's me gel ..."

 

[hackajack]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Must have been a cracking match for a neutral. For us gooners erm...I guess we have a lot to "debate" about.

Lets have a quick mass 'debate' (we can worry about the back 4 tomorrow).

 

[Klaus Daimler]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Fröjdfeldt continued his long run of ****y behaviour tonight, by the way. He did okay for most of the game, but when Diaby scored and folded a little bit of the shirt over his head he got a yellow card. Laugable is what it is. The rules states that you're not allowed to take off the shirt or show hidden messages, but Diaby didn't even have a shirt underneath. Fröjdfeldt had a choice and decided to card him just to put himself in the center and showing everybody that it's his game.

 

[Kain]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Fröjdfeldt continued his long run of ****y behaviour tonight, by the way. He did okay for most of the game, but when Diaby scored and folded a little bit of the shirt over his head he got a yellow card. Laugable is what it is. The rules states that you're not allowed to take off the shirt or show hidden messages, but Diaby didn't even have a shirt underneath. Fröjdfeldt had a choice and decided to card him just to put himself in the center and showing everybody that it's his game.

Was abit of annoying but then he could of sent Song off early on after Carlos ran into him but he didnt buy it and booked Carlos for trying to con him for trying to get Song sent off. He is dodgy but thankfully he got that right.

 

[Mbaki Mutahaba]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Well the defense was ****..but credit to Fene..they always come forward and they always create chances at home. Of course with a more solid defense they would not have created as many today. I wont point any finger at any particular player..with the way Fener..played our lineup had to be in sync and we got exposed because the lineup has not played together for a while.keep that line straight was gonna be a battle with the way Fene was coming forward. I believe a line up that has played together for a while would have handled it better. Everrton never tested us this much. However playing with a 4-5-1 formation..its amazing the holes that were being creatd in the middle. I wont point to Denislon as the regular scapegoat this was just poor marksmanship from all the midfielders.including cesc and of course Diaby.. My diaby..playing as the second man forward is probably his best position for Arsenal.because his commitment to defend will never be that strong..i have accepted that now. He can never be the Vieira and rightly so..cos he offers more as a supporting midfielder in a 4-5-1 then anyone else.

But all in all that was a very young team..and being piggybacked was just norm for such an inexperienced squad. We did well going forward. A lot of talk about Fene.being sh* at the back.. Well they are..but props to our team. We still did create chances. Fene are mostly sh* at the back cos of their gungho go forward system of play and not necessarily bad defenders.

A very goo result and props to the young team.

 

[ken_75]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

A rollercoaster ride of a match this was! Exceptional play from Arsenal going forward most of the time. However I agree with everybody who said that our defence was not at its best(ok really it was a shambles) at the centre. i think Song is more suited for midfield but it seemed we had no other choice with Kolo & Willie out injured. and Silvestre? no comment.
what a game by Manuel! Cesc was very good as well.
No prizes for answering correctly this question but then again how many times was Ade offside? At one point the stats on the screen showed 4 offsides for fenerbahce and 7 for us. I reckon they were all his! totally frustrating...

 

[Klaus Daimler]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Fröjdfeldt continued his long run of ****y behaviour tonight, by the way. He did okay for most of the game, but when Diaby scored and folded a little bit of the shirt over his head he got a yellow card. Laugable is what it is. The rules states that you're not allowed to take off the shirt or show hidden messages, but Diaby didn't even have a shirt underneath. Fröjdfeldt had a choice and decided to card him just to put himself in the center and showing everybody that it's his game.

Was abit of annoying but then he could of sent Song off early on after Carlos ran into him but he didnt buy it and booked Carlos for trying to con him for trying to get Song sent off. He is dodgy but thankfully he got that right.

I was afraid for that one as well. You just never know which way he's gonna go with decisions like that, but he made the right one today. I'm not so sure that Song would have stayed on, though, had the numbers been level with Fenerbahce going for a leading goal.

 

[nidza7]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

yup,our defence was crap.

Every time the ball gone towards our box I stopped breathing...

 

[AnthonyG]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

Well, yeah, but Fröjdfeldt got it right with the Song call. Normally we have to hear all about the decisions that went against us and how they cost us this and that, again and again and again. Let's not add correct decisions that favoured us to that list and start to imagine if or how it might have gone another way. It would seriously do my nut in. :wink:

 

[Klaus Daimler]

Re: Champions League: Fenerbahce v Arsenal | 21 Oct 2008 19:45

No prizes for answering correctly this question but then again how many times was Ade offside? At one point the stats on the screen showed 4 offsides for fenerbahce and 7 for us. I reckon they were all his! totally frustrating...

He was wrongfully flagged a couple of times at least. Which was annoying, because he would have been one on one with the keeper. But Güiza was found offside a number of times as well. It's not about the offside per say, it's about what he's doing when he's flagged off. In Ades case it's because he's constantly pushing the defence back. They can't afford to play with a high line against a striker that runs as much and does so much work off the ball as he does, and it reflected back negatively on their game when they lost the connection between defence and midfield. Overall I thought Ade was one of our best players today. He didn't have a easy role but he played it very well.

Anthony: The point was that it was a very obvious situation where any referee at this level would be expected to make the right decision :wink:
Not saying I'm not happy that he did see through Carlos' attempt, but it still doesn't change the fact that the card on Diaby was laughable.