asajoseph
Established Member
An incredibly disappointing match, though at kickoff, I suspect many would have taken the result.
Watched the game down at the 12 Pins, the atmosphere was great for the first half, but once Jens made his clanger, it was incredibly deflating. The ref kept a very strong lid on things in the first half, but let things get a little out of hand in the second, and Arsenal players seemed to be getting carded far, far too easily.
Feel incredibly resigned now, I have to say - our performance deserved more than a point, but we gift wrapped Blackburn‘s equaliser with a bow tied round it - Jens really let us down today..
Jens - 4 - Looked very uncomfortable under the high ball today, including one moment of terrible indecision that allowed the Blackburn forward a relatively free header. Made some nice catches, but his second absolute clanger of the season, palming Dunn’s shot that had been directly at him into the goal, was unforgivable. Cost us the match today - and any more creaky performances from him could quickly see Manuel Almunia taking his place.
Bacary Sagna - 9 - An absolutely outstanding, all-round performance from Sagna today, and already is beginning to look like a massive upgrade over Eboue at right back. Made some brilliant tackles, interceptions, and dealt with the ball equally comfortably in the air as he did on the ground.
Kolo Toure - 7 - Continues to look very weak and indecisive dealing with the ball in the air, but made up for it with some great covering challenges at the back. Seemed to leave the Blackburn forwards with a lot of room on occasion, but usually made up for it.
William Gallas - 6 - Didn’t really have a whole lot to do when he was on the pitch, but seemed relatively comfortable. A big blow for us if he’s injured, and letting Djourou go on loan to Christmas already looks like it might be a foolish move, if Gallas’ injury is anything but short-lived.
Clichy - 7 - A few tidy breaks down the left flank, and some nice challenges tracking back too. Often let Bentley get the ball in a little too easily though, which is dangerous against such an aerial side as Blackburn.
Theo - 7 - A really shocking ball for RVP on what really should have been a goal, and gave things away a little too easily on other occasions as well. However, I think the overall signs were much more encouraging, he played one or two really nice passes, showed great touch, skill, and pace on occasions, and really seemed to be giving Blackburn problems - though he faded a bit before coming off.
Flamini - 8 - A tidy, combative performance, looked much more steady than he has in the past, but my biggest complaint about him is still that he leaves too much space behind him in midfield, and get caught out a bit too often - which happened a few times today. He might have been lucky not to get another yellow for one of his challenges, but all-round it was good to see him sticking it to Blackburn, and he came out on top a fair number of times.
Cesc - 8 - Like Flamster, he really got stuck in, and clearly is not a player who’s going to be dominated this year. Showed some very nice tackles, looked strong, and isn’t going to let players walk all over him. Played quite a few very nice passes today as well, and even had a nice set-piece or two, but never really made much of it count.
Hleb - 8 - Looked very threatening, most of the time, and showed some nice touches, passes, and moved the ball very well. Might have shot a little sooner when Bendtner won the ball from Friedel, and he ended up on the edge of the area with the ‘keeper scrambling, but overall a very tidy, confident display.
Eduardo - 7 - Really liked his play today, and could have had an assist for Flamini with a clever nutmeg on the edge of the area. He’s a lot stronger than he looks, and is more than capable of holding his own against Premiership strikers. Maybe needs to pull the trigger a little earlier, and needs to realise he doesn’t have as much time in the Premiership, but an encouraging debut.
Robin van Persie - 7.5 - A smartly taken finish, and Walcott should really have set him up for a second. His overall team play has become far better than it has been in the past, and he worked hard for us - though perhaps, in such a heated game, he needed to be a little more careful about getting sent off, and he made me very nervous. Great movement today though.
Subs
Phil Senderos - 7 - A pretty good game, I thought, and dealt with pretty much everything that was asked of him. Should maybe have done a bit better with his header at goal, but it was almost strange to have a player offering a genuine aerial threat at the far post from set pieces. I’m relatively comfortable playing him whilst Gallas is out for however long.
Denilson - 6 - Not really sure what Wenger was hoping to achieve making this substitution, and I’m not really sure what Denilson really did when he came on. A bit anonymous, really.
Bendtner - 6.5 - Very well challenged on Friedel to set up Hleb / Denilson (after a few ricochets), but should maybe have placed his cut-back better. Still, looked able to physically dominate his opponents, and a reasonable showing.
Overall, a good performance ruined by another horrific error.
Watched the game down at the 12 Pins, the atmosphere was great for the first half, but once Jens made his clanger, it was incredibly deflating. The ref kept a very strong lid on things in the first half, but let things get a little out of hand in the second, and Arsenal players seemed to be getting carded far, far too easily.
Feel incredibly resigned now, I have to say - our performance deserved more than a point, but we gift wrapped Blackburn‘s equaliser with a bow tied round it - Jens really let us down today..
Jens - 4 - Looked very uncomfortable under the high ball today, including one moment of terrible indecision that allowed the Blackburn forward a relatively free header. Made some nice catches, but his second absolute clanger of the season, palming Dunn’s shot that had been directly at him into the goal, was unforgivable. Cost us the match today - and any more creaky performances from him could quickly see Manuel Almunia taking his place.
Bacary Sagna - 9 - An absolutely outstanding, all-round performance from Sagna today, and already is beginning to look like a massive upgrade over Eboue at right back. Made some brilliant tackles, interceptions, and dealt with the ball equally comfortably in the air as he did on the ground.
Kolo Toure - 7 - Continues to look very weak and indecisive dealing with the ball in the air, but made up for it with some great covering challenges at the back. Seemed to leave the Blackburn forwards with a lot of room on occasion, but usually made up for it.
William Gallas - 6 - Didn’t really have a whole lot to do when he was on the pitch, but seemed relatively comfortable. A big blow for us if he’s injured, and letting Djourou go on loan to Christmas already looks like it might be a foolish move, if Gallas’ injury is anything but short-lived.
Clichy - 7 - A few tidy breaks down the left flank, and some nice challenges tracking back too. Often let Bentley get the ball in a little too easily though, which is dangerous against such an aerial side as Blackburn.
Theo - 7 - A really shocking ball for RVP on what really should have been a goal, and gave things away a little too easily on other occasions as well. However, I think the overall signs were much more encouraging, he played one or two really nice passes, showed great touch, skill, and pace on occasions, and really seemed to be giving Blackburn problems - though he faded a bit before coming off.
Flamini - 8 - A tidy, combative performance, looked much more steady than he has in the past, but my biggest complaint about him is still that he leaves too much space behind him in midfield, and get caught out a bit too often - which happened a few times today. He might have been lucky not to get another yellow for one of his challenges, but all-round it was good to see him sticking it to Blackburn, and he came out on top a fair number of times.
Cesc - 8 - Like Flamster, he really got stuck in, and clearly is not a player who’s going to be dominated this year. Showed some very nice tackles, looked strong, and isn’t going to let players walk all over him. Played quite a few very nice passes today as well, and even had a nice set-piece or two, but never really made much of it count.
Hleb - 8 - Looked very threatening, most of the time, and showed some nice touches, passes, and moved the ball very well. Might have shot a little sooner when Bendtner won the ball from Friedel, and he ended up on the edge of the area with the ‘keeper scrambling, but overall a very tidy, confident display.
Eduardo - 7 - Really liked his play today, and could have had an assist for Flamini with a clever nutmeg on the edge of the area. He’s a lot stronger than he looks, and is more than capable of holding his own against Premiership strikers. Maybe needs to pull the trigger a little earlier, and needs to realise he doesn’t have as much time in the Premiership, but an encouraging debut.
Robin van Persie - 7.5 - A smartly taken finish, and Walcott should really have set him up for a second. His overall team play has become far better than it has been in the past, and he worked hard for us - though perhaps, in such a heated game, he needed to be a little more careful about getting sent off, and he made me very nervous. Great movement today though.
Subs
Phil Senderos - 7 - A pretty good game, I thought, and dealt with pretty much everything that was asked of him. Should maybe have done a bit better with his header at goal, but it was almost strange to have a player offering a genuine aerial threat at the far post from set pieces. I’m relatively comfortable playing him whilst Gallas is out for however long.
Denilson - 6 - Not really sure what Wenger was hoping to achieve making this substitution, and I’m not really sure what Denilson really did when he came on. A bit anonymous, really.
Bendtner - 6.5 - Very well challenged on Friedel to set up Hleb / Denilson (after a few ricochets), but should maybe have placed his cut-back better. Still, looked able to physically dominate his opponents, and a reasonable showing.
Overall, a good performance ruined by another horrific error.
