The Arsenal Column

Two own goals helped Arsenal on their way to an ultimately comfortable victory as Wolves tired from their early pressing to relinquish control.
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Alex Song gave a reminder of what is to be missed in January when he leaves for the African Cup of Nations as his introduction gave Arsenal renewed spark in the midfield.

Wolves hassled and harried the Gunners early on with their mix of direct football and high-intensity pressure but as Diaby departed under the Molineux lights through injury, Song’s entry brought a little sanity to proceedings. That’s not to say Diaby would not have settled because it was Wolves right as the home team to make Arsenal earn their right to play. But Song has added a little sophistication and expertise to the role as typified by his nonchalant flick to Fabregas early in the second half while Diaby is still learning, nevertheless making two interceptions in twenty minutes and three tackles.

Two own goals – the first from Zubar, helping a Cesc Fabregas corner into the net before Jody Craddock inadvertently headed Eduardo’s chip over Wayne Hennesey – allowed Arsenal to regain their composure and from the first kick in the second half, utterly dominated proceedings. Their superior technique took over as Fabregas finished a flowing move to make it three and Arshavin extended the lead with a opportunist half volley from the edge of the area following Hennessey’s punch out.

The Gunners obsession with keeping the ball has translated to being more efficient and direct. By stretching the play, Wolves had more ground in which to cover allowing Arsenal to slowly stamp their authority. It also meant the side could create more angles in the pass and zones for men to run into causing unpredictability. Cesc Fabregas was once again the master of time and space as he made full use of the pitch to manufacture openings. Aaron Ramsey also made a notable contribution with a high energy performance although his passing ranged from the superb to the erratic, still missing the decisiveness that experience will bring. But once again it was a strong team performance that set Arsenal on their way. “I think the most important factor is that we play for each other as we do, we focus on our performance, and that we continue to develop our style of play,” said Wenger. “To play at a high pace, our collective game,”

The late goal conceded to Craddock from a corner kick would not have pleased Wenger but accepts their may be at times leaks in the system due to their offensive style. “We have a style where everyone goes forward,” he said after all his defenders had more than forty passes each. “You cannot have everything in football, but I believe we have a good balance between offense and defence, and as long as we score as many goals as we do, we can accept that.”

Wolverhampton 1-4 Arsenal: Zubar (og) 28, Craddock (og) 35, Fabregas 45, Arshavin 66, Craddock 89.

Wolves: Hennessey, Stearman, Craddock, Berra, Zubar, Edwards, Henry, Milijas, Catillo, Ebanks-Blake, Doyle. Subs: Hahnemann, Mancienne, Kightly, Halford, Jarvis, Keogh, Maierhofer.

Arsenal: Almunia (6), Sagna (8), Vermaelen (7), Gallas (7), Gibbs (7), Diaby (Song Billong 7), Fabregas (8)*, Ramsey (7), Arshavin (7) (Nasri), Eduardo (7) (Rosicky), Van Persie (7).
Subs not used: Mannone, Senderos, Silvestre, Eboue.

Arsenal attacked AZ Alkmaar with speed and purpose to all but seal their place in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
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Whisper it quietly but this may be the real deal. Arsenal’s speed and incision cut apart Dutch champions AZ Alkmaar but the win was received with as much as a whimper across Europe.

They’ve been promising it for a while now and the manner in which they defeated AZ moves Arsenal closer to making it even more possible. The Gunners lost their interest towards the end and allowed Jeremain Lens to grab the Dutch side a consolation but for much of the game it was one way traffic, directed by Cesc Fabregas.

The skipper grabbed two goals, the first squeezing past Romero’s near post and his outstretched arm after a probing foray forward by the impressive William Gallas. His second and Arsenal’s third saw Andrey Arshavin bag a trio of assists as Fabregas made pay of Romero’s decision sleep on the job to wrong foot the ‘keeper. In between van Persie’s movement to the left flank found Nasri in the forward position and the Frenchman coolly sidestepped his man before guiding the ball in the net. Diaby wrapped up the win after a swift counter attack starting from an Eduardo flick and ending with the gangly midfielder’s precision finish.

The Gunners even had the luxury of bringing on Eduardo and Rosicky during the closing stages to complete what is probably the most exciting and deadly front line in Europe. But having such talent requires discipline and organisation to allow a certain amount of balance and encouragingly there was some improvements in this regard in comparison with previous games before they decided more goals were more important than the clean sheet later on.

Diaby and Song started closer to each other allowing Fabregas to play higher and that is a key difference to the Arsenal side of yesteryear. Rather than playing through sides, they are looking to advance past them by committing men forward and quickly so teams have less time to get men behind the ball. They have sacrificed that bit of possession that Barcelona have and converted that energy into being more direct, an area which the Catalan giants may lack.

Arsenal (4-3-3): Almunia (7); Eboué (6), Gallas (8), Vermaelen (7), Gibbs (7); Nasri (8), Fábregas (8) (Ramsey), Song (6), Diaby (8), Arshavin (7) (Rosicky); Van Persie (7) (Eduardo). Subs: Mannone, Sagna, Senderos, Silvestre.

AZ Alkmaar (4-3-3): Romero; Jaliens, Moisander, Moreno, Poulsen; Dembele (Lens), Holman, Da Silva, Schaars, Martens; Pelle. Subs: Didulica, Pocognoli, Ari, Wernbloom, Van der Velden, Swerts.

Referee: Alain Hamer (Luxembourg)

The standard of Arsenal’s goalkeepers has come into question but changes in the modern game mean there is more to the position than shot-stopping.
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If goalkeepers are crazy then imagine having to summon the sparse vestiges of your sanity to defend three of them. That was the situation that confronted Arsène Wenger at the recent AGM meeting where he was asked whether his goalkeepers were good enough.

This was after his third choice between the sticks; Vito Mannone made the error in judgment against Birmingham in deciding to catch instead of punch. And he didn’t help Wenger’s cause in the next game either as the Italian could only palm, an albeit wicked shot from West Ham’s Alessandro Diamanti, back into the danger area for Carlton Cole to head home. “Yes I believe we have [enough quality],” answered Wenger. “Goalkeeper is a very difficult position. Why? It is the only position where you have only negative stress. People speak only about you when you have made a mistake. A striker has positive stress – he has a pressure to score but if he scores he is always ‘a hero’, he is always ‘fantastic’. But a goalkeeper is only spoken about when he lets a goal in or when he makes a mistake and it is a difficult position.”

But it can also be said goalkeepers can have “positive stress.” Robert Green’s last minute save in the 2-2 draw against the Gunners had his manager laud him as the real ‘goalkeeper of the national team,’ disregarding the fact that his error led to the first goal while he could have been more assertive by trying to claim the second. Indeed Green’s actual performances in an England shirt have been riddled by bad decision-making and his most standout ability – shot-stopping – has been largely unemployed.

Two Swedish medical professors – Lars Peterson and Per Renström – argue in a research for FIFA that this is all part of the minimum requirements of a top-level goalkeeper and now cannot be judged on reflexes alone. “A goalkeeper can be uninvolved in playing situations for ten minutes, and then suddenly be thrust into the centre of the action,” they say. “One single error can result in a goal and give rise to major criticism even if he has made 15 outstanding saves prior to the one visible mistake. In a nutshell, one can say that being a goalkeeper is a major challenge requiring special talent combined with extraordinary athletic ability and an unruffled psyche.”

Arsene Wenger also agrees, citing the law changes in bringing more out of the goalkeeper. “Every [modern] rule that has come out in football has taken something away from the ‘keeper,” he said. “That means basically today he must be good with his feet, good with his hands, be very quick, be highly focused for 90 minutes, not make any technical mistakes and it makes the job very hard.”

This attention to detail may be the reason why the Frenchman has spurned the chances of signing those keepers felt more established. He wants his men between the sticks to be all-round as it is said universality brings fluency to a team’s play. The 3-0 victory over Tottenham had his first choice Manuel Almunia rarely tested in terms of making saves but in a couple of instances, had to make sweeper-like interceptions by rushing out of his area to clear the ball. Indeed the research by the two Swedish professors highlights the reason why ’smaller’ teams may get away with goalkeepers of a confined ability as their involvement is usually limited to a smaller set of skills.

In 1958, Brazil realised the importance of goalkeepers and went to the World Cup with specialist keeping coaches, not to mention doctors and a sports psychologist. They acknowledged that there is more to goalkeeping than shot-stopping but even still, have carried the unfair stigma of being at an inferior level to other nations. Nevertheless, their concentration on all-round keepers has seen them enter the coming World Cup with enviable pool of goalkeepers, including current best in the world Julio Cesar of Inter Milan.

But for some, this over-analysis is merely just complicating things and finding the best goalkeeper is more clear-cut. In 1977, Peter Taylor – Brian Clough’s  assistant at Nottingham Forest – identified the need in signing England goalkeeper Peter Shilton as he felt he was the best around. Clough obliged and the East Midlands club proceeded to embark on their most successful era.

Times are more complex and cosmopolitan now but with shot-stopping becoming almost as marginalised as goalscoring has in recent years, could it be that Wenger’s best interest is to adopt the more pragmatic approach of Taylor and Clough?

Arsenal’s use of the whole pitch created space and angles to open up the Spurs defence as two goals inside a minute set-up a comfortable win.
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A period of forty-nine seconds in the first half typified what Arsenal are about this season as Arséne Wenger’s Catalan-inspired reinvention has given the Gunners an explosiveness and unpredictability that was beginning to seep away from the side.

First Robin van Persie nipped in between Ledley King and Sébastien Bassong to poke the ball past Gomes and while the inquest between the pair was still on-going, Cesc Fabregas intercepted a pass from Palacios and preceded to tip-toe away from three challenges before firing home. The skipper has been criticised at times for being too slow but showed great power and mobility to burst past the Tottenham defence and his sheer determination to get the ball back quickly created the goal.

Indeed Arsenal started the game with good intensity but started to fade away during the middle period of the first half as Tottenham were quicker to close them down and hurry Arsenal’s men on the ball. It was Harry Redknapp’s tactic to restrict space in the centre and when the ball was won, play it quickly to Peter Crouch who’s presence would allow the wide men to get involved. And for a while the tactic worked and were it not for a fantastic last-ditch tackle from Alex Song on Robbie Keane, the Gunners could in all reality have gone a goal down.

But Arsenal’s ability to stretch the pitch meant there was always going to be space to be exploited and angles in the pass to play the ball. The wide men of Arshavin and Bendtner were looking Arsenal’s best threat as the pair had a couple of chances to test Gomes by cutting inside to support van Persie and Fabregas while the space vacated allowed Bakary Sagna in particular to capitalise from. The French full back made it a week to remember, ending the game with two assists following the one at West Ham as his cross for van Persie wrapped up the third. As ever Cesc Fabregas was the instigator of most Arsenal’s attacks and much of his passes in the opposition half were directed diagonally towards the two flanks. Wenger’s ploy of having one flank more direct and the other more intricate allowed the side to set-up a series of triangles though slightly elongated to the right.

The change in style means this season’s Arsenal are a different team than from yesteryears. The beautiful football is still there but possession won’t exactly be their specialist trait, just better than most. Robin van Persie’s role as the false nine is crucial to Arsenal’s build up play as is the means to get the ball deep quickly. “He is a mixture,” said Wenger of the Dutch striker. “He is less of a runner with the ball than Thierry Henry and he is not completely Dennis Bergkamp because he plays higher up the pitch. With the type of game we have, he is vital because, when you play the ball to his feet, his first touch is always perfect and it allows [others] to join in. And, in the box, he is intelligent.”

Wenger did show one moment of frustration as a problem in communication saw him throw his jacket down in fury in trying to translate his tactics to his players. But he needn’t to worry as his side looked to be learning from the mistakes of the past two games and showed a marked improvement in concentration and discipline to see out the match.

Arsenal 3-0 Tottenham Hotspur: van Persie 42, 60, Fabregas 43.

Arsenal (4-3-3): Almunia (7), Sagna (8), Gallas (7), Vermaelen (7), Clichy (7), Fabregas (8), Song Billong (7), Diaby (7), Bendtner (7) (Eduardo 6), van Persie (7) (Ramsey), Arshavin (7) (Eboue).
Subs not used: Mannone, Senderos, Nasri, Gibbs.

Tottenham (4-5-1): Gomes (4), Corluka (6) (Hutton), King (6), Bassong (5), Assou-Ekotto (5), Bentley (6), Huddlestone (5) (Bale), Palacios (5), Jenas (6), Keane (5) (Pavlyuchenko), Crouch (5).
Subs not used: Button, Dawson, Kranjcar, Woodgate.

Referee: Mark Clattenburg (Tyne and Wear)

The Gunners will have to find their way through the midfield shield of Wilson Palacios and Tom Huddlestone in the North London derby.
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He wasn’t able to find away to stamp his quality over Arsenal’s midfielders during a trial with the club two years ago but Wilson Palacios now has a chance to do just that for the Gunners’ biggest rival.

Recommended by Wenger to Steve Bruce, he followed the manager from Birmingham to Wigan, where he made his name as an aggressive box-to-box midfielder with a touch of skill as well. That convinced Harry Redknapp to splurge £14million on the Honduran after a money fight with Chairman Daniel Levy and Palacios has now become a key figure in Tottenham’s midfield. His early season partnership with Tom Huddlestone has been impressive as the pair create an imposing physical barrier in front of the defence. Indeed it was as early as the first match where the duo shone, as Huddlestone dictated their play in their 2-1 win while Palacios’s tactical nous ensured Steven Gerrard’s influence disappeared into thin air.

This was made the even more impressive as Palacios was better known in his country for his progressive, all-action style and not in a disciplined role. But his movements and actions in that same match were reminiscent of Arsenal old boy, Mathieu Flamini which allowed the attacking players to play with more freedom. “Palacios is giving us that, they know he is going to be in there putting his foot about and as strong as anybody. That is important,” said Harry Redknapp. He is a powerhouse. If you were a midfield player, he would not be top of your list to play against because I don’t care how good you are, he ain’t gonna let you play. When he is after you, he really is after you – not in a nasty way but in an aggressive way.”

And in the upcoming North London derby, Harry Redknapp will no doubt be having his man of Cesc Fabregas watch to prevent the Spaniard exerting any influence on the free-scoring Gunners. West Ham packed the midfield and remained discipline forcing Fabregas to drop deep in the 2-2 draw at Upton Park and expect to see Huddlestone and the Honduran create a midfield shield to protect the defence. Arsenal’s task will be to create many angles and options in the pass to counteract Tottenham’s discipline but will also have to be wary of the movement of Robbie Keane, if the Irishman does start, playing in between the lines. Alex Song had gone from strength to strength and it will be his job to patrol this area and watch the running of Keane.

Abou Diaby will also have a crucial role to play in to doubling up and to impose his stature on the midfield which should allow Fabregas to dictate. But the key man in attack for Arsenal could be Robin van Persie who is hoping he can continue his good form as the ‘false No. nine’, dropping into space and disrupting Tottenham’s marking.

Predicted teams:
Arsenal (4-3-3): Almunia; Sagna, Gallas, Vermaelen, Clichy; Song, Diaby, Fabregas; Arshavin, Bendtner, van Persie. Subs: Mannone, Silvestre, Gibbs Ramsey, Nasri, Eboue, Eduardo.

Tottenham Hotspur (4-4-2): Gomes; Corluka, Bassong, King, Assou-Ekotto; Bentley, Huddlestone, Palacios, Krancjar; Keane, Crouch. Subs: Cudicini, Hutton, Dawson, Jenas, Bale, Giovanni, Pavlyuchenko.

Goals from Fran Merida and Nicklas Bendtner saw Arsenal edge past Liverpool in an entertaining encounter in the Carling Cup.
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Arsene Wenger was reluctant to let Fran Merida go out on loan and the Spanish youngster repaid his manager’s confidence by turning out a magical performance against Liverpool.

Playing as a “half winger” on the left side of the forward three, Merida’s movement was a constant thorn in Liverpool’s backline as he pulled out and dropped into space. And for the opener, he popped up on the right hand side, taking full advantage of Andriy Voronin’s lax pass to powerfully lash home from the edge of the box. Nicklas Bendtner hit the winner five minutes after the restart, nipping the ball away from Skrtel before firing under the roof of the net.

Arsenal’s movement at speed was particularly breathtaking and for the first half hour, Liverpool seemed like they had no answer. A swift attack involving Ramsey, Eduardo and Bendtner saw the Dane fail to provide the final touch to a flowing breakaway. Merida could have got a second towards the end of the first half in an attack which started from Kerrea Gilbert at right back ended with the Spaniard chipping over Diego Cavalieri.

But Liverpool also sought to punish Arsenal for leaving such gaps through their expansive style and when the Gunners did push forward and pressure the defence high, the full backs found space to get up the pitch. And indeed it was Emiliano Insua who found himself outside the box with little to no pressure and the Argentine left back struck a dipping volley over Lucasz Fabianksi. Degen on the other side had similar joy as he got forward with much frequency, creating much danger with his unmarked runs. The wide channels are the areas where the battle is increasingly won and lost and Liverpool’s attacking play certainly owed much to their adventurous full backs.

The way Arsenal coped with the pressure from Liverpool after going in front  showed their real character and Eastmond and Gilbert in particular came out with flying colours considering the pair’s differing situations. As was the case last Carling Cup campaign, the defence was the basis for a strong attacking show and Phillipe Senderos and Mikael Silvestre did to their best to provide a calming assurance to the young custodians in front of them. “I believe that the experience of the two centre-backs was important at vital moments of the game,” said Wenger. “And of course going forward we had some good players as well up front and that made a difference.”

Arsenal 2-1 Liverpool: Merida 19, Insua 26, Bendtner 50.

Arsenal (4-1-2-3) Fabianski (7); Gilbert (8), Senderos (7), Silvestre (7), Gibbs (7); Eastmond (8) (Randall); Ramsey (7), Nasri (7); Bendtner (7) (Watt), Eduardo (6), Merida (8)* (Coquelin).
Subs not used: Szczesny, Bartley, Frimpong, Sunu.

Liverpool (4-2-3-1) Cavalieri; Degen (Eccleston), Skrtel, Kyrgiakos, Insua; Spearing, Plessis (Aquilani); Kuyt, Voronin, Babel; Ngog (Benayoun).
Subs: Reina, Darby, Dossena, Ayala.

Referee Alan Wiley (Staffordshire)

Arsenal surrendered a two goal lead against a spirited West Ham side who did well to deny Arsenal much fluency in central midfield.
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At 2-0, Alan Hansen said Arsenal could only beat themselves and as it was, the Gunners contrived to concede two late goals. But without taking anything away from West Ham, it would be difficult to say for certain whether it was two points dropped or not. Arsenal had amassed what should have been a comfortable lead but the Hammers were always knocking on the door despite their three shots on target.

In attack Arsenal were laboured, which has been the theme since the international break while at the other end could not deny pressure on the backline either by keeping the ball for extended periods or through resolute organisation. That could due in part be to the way West Ham’s midfield diamond worked to prevent Arsenal any space to play and with the introduction of Alessandro Diamanti as the trequartista, gave them added dynamism and directness. And up front, in front of the watching eyes of Fabio Capello, Carlton Cole did his best to show the Italian that he is a better version of Emile Heskey as he bullied the Arsenal defenders about and gave his side a direct outlet when in possession.

But he saved his best Heskey impression until last as a slight clip on the heels by Song in the penalty area sent the striker tumbling, this despite fending three defenders at once for most of the game. Diamanti converted the resulting spot kick and had a hand in the first or rather Vito Manonne, as his devilishly whipped free-kick was too quick for the goalkeeper who could only palm back across goal for Cole to head in. The comeback should have been improbable and Arsenal may have felt hard done by in regards to the decision to award the free-kick for the first and then the eventual equaliser from the spot. They took the lead however through Robin van Persie who capitalised on an error in judgement from both Tomkins and Green to head from a Bakary Sagna cross, the French full back dusting off the cobwebs off his boot after the assist. And Gallas’ header made it two as he powerfully leaped above Cole to meet the ball. Indeed Arsenal’s movement was particularly troubling early on for the Hammers but that became a premium as the Gunners failed to exploit what has been a leaky defence.

Arsène Wenger was quick to dismiss the comeback as a deep-rooted problem within Arsenal’s ranks but there is no doubting the correlation.”There is no lethargy, the team wants to win and it focused,” the Frenchman maintained. “There’s no lack of concentration. When you lead 2-0 away the game is never one. West Ham fought for their life, they never gave up. When a team never give up you know they can come back.” If anything, there seems to be a lack of tactical understanding in the players as highlighted by a chance from Zavon Hines which was blocked by Gael Clichy as Fabregas and Diaby were too far to get back in the eagerness to kill the game off. Song has been mainly isolated by his midfield partners this season and the lack of organisation can only attract more pressure on the defence. The 4-3-3 demands the squeezing of space when not in possession while distances have to be exact. The manager was right in criticising the decision-making as crosses abound were off target at a time where Arsenal should have been more ruthless.

Cesc Fabregas was squeezed out of any space by West Ham’s diamond men in the first period and as a result was forced to drop deep to get the ball but in the second half as West Ham tired, worked almost exclusively just inside their half. In fact Alex Song was probably the main beneficiary of Fabregas dropping deep as the Cameroonian was 100% accurate in his passing in the first half and it arguably gave the side more balance. Robin van Persie’s influence also dropped massively after the two goals but still came closest to getting Arsenal the three points in the closing moments but his header was somehow stopped by Robert Green. Whether it was two points dropped will become more certain come the end of the season but Wenger’s “sickening” feeling indicates that moment is now.

West Ham United 2-2 Arsenal: van Persie 16, Gallas 37, Cole 74, Diamanti (pen) 80

West Ham (4-1-3-2): Green, Spector, Tomkins, Upson, Ilunga, Behrami (Kovac), Parker, Noble (Diamanti), Collison, Cole*, Franco (Hines).

Subs not used: Kurucz, Faubert, Da Costa, Stanislas.

Arsenal (4-3-3): Mannone (5), Sagna (7), Gallas (6), Vermaelen (6), Clichy (6), Eboue (6) (Bendtner), Song (6), Fabregas (6), Diaby (6) (Eduardo), Arshavin (5), van Persie (6).

Subs not used: Almunia, Nasri, Ramsey, Silvestre, Gibbs.

Referee: Chris Foy (Merseyside)

A late goal from David Mendes Da Silva earned AZ Alkmaar the share of the spoils as Arsenal relinquished two points they could have done without dropping.
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AZ Alkmaar entered the game promising to expose the Arsenal weaknesses they had amassed from watching the Gunners’ 6-2 thrashing of Blackburn Rovers but it took until the 93rd minute for the Dutch Champions to finally retreat from their shells and revealed a chink in Arsenal’s armour of which everybody already knew. A free-kick played deep towards Pelle akin to how Blackburn scored their first in that game was headed back to the unmarked Mendes da Silva to smash home. “They have thrown everything forward and felt they could only score on a set-piece, and that is what happened,” said Arsene Wenger. “We were largely in control, but as long as you are not two goals in front, that is the problem. We feel frustrated because we felt we were superior to this team.”

AZ was indeed cautious and on the whole tried to remain calculated because as the game against Rovers showed; if you give Arsenal space you’ll be punished. As it was, a mistake from the centre back Niklas Moisander gifted Arsenal the opener as the Finn mis-controlled a pass from one of AZ’s less successful attempts to bore Arsenal to death with their patient game. Arshavin seized upon it, played in van Persie and the Dutchman unselfishly passed across goal to Cesc Fabregas to shoot into an empty net.

Arsenal was in control but not quite themselves. Maybe it was the way AZ matched Arsenal in closing down space in a slightly different 4-3-3 formation. Australian Holman was detailed to get close to lone striker El-Hamdaoui when in possession and when not, could make a three in the centre. Ronald Koeman’s side were supremely disciplined but not that all ambitious, choosing to stroke the ball about impotently in the first period. Dembele on the right flank gave Clichy a tough test and if the winger continues playing as impressively will surely be plying his trade at a bigger club should AZ’s financially troubles deepen.

Robin van Persie was Arsenal’s best player but found chances to play men in limited. Staying up was also a problem on the greasy pitch as Arsenal time and again were off target in their passes in the final third while others failed to time their runs. A second-half change saw a brief cameo from Vela and the forward was involved in a strong penalty shout which on another day would have been given. Andrey Arshavin then assumed the main forward role for the last ten minutes and had a couple of opportunities to run at the defence. But in the end it was Arsenal’s eagerness to kill the game off that contributed to the surrendering of the three points as an offside decision gave AZ the last minute free-kick to steal an unlikely draw.

Alkmaar (4-4-2): S Romero, K Jaliens, N Moisander (sub: P Wernbloom, 84min), H Moreno, S Poulsen — B Holman (sub: G Pellè, 73), D Mendes da Silva, S Schaars, M Martens (sub: J Lens, 69) — M El Hamdaoui, M Dembélé.

Substitutes not used: J Didulica, R Klavan, N van der Velden, G Swerts.
Booked: Lens.

Arsenal (4-3-3): Mannone (6), Sagna (6), Vermaelen (6),Gallas (6) Clichy (6) —Song (6), Fàbregas (6), Diaby (6)— Eboué (6) (sub: A Ramsey, 83), van Persie (7) (sub: C Vela, 75), A Arshavin (6).

Substitutes not used: M Almunia, M Silvestre, J Wilshere, K Gibbs, F Merida.
Booked: Van Persie, Clichy, Vela.

Referee: M Hansson (Sweden).

Arsène Wenger’s quest for attacking perfection sees his two centre backs playing with more than a hint of libero.
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In Arsène Wenger’s first match in charge of Arsenal, the French manager deployed a three man defence but despite a convincing 2-0 win over Blackburn the set-up was never to be seen again in red and white colours in the subsequent seasons. (Wenger only persisted with the 3-5-2 for the remainder of the campaign because of his freshness in the job and the players’ insistence on keeping it that way). It was easy to understand Wenger’s dissatisfaction; he was a sweeper in his playing days and a backline featuring a threesome of stoppers had no real long term benefit especially with the style of play he wanted to implant in the team. (That is not to disrespect the defensive abilities of the legendary back four, as Wenger has been quoted saying, “the back four were all university graduates in the art of defending. As for Tony Adams, I consider him to be a doctor of defence. He is simply outstanding.”)

His vision required all-round defenders, players in the vein of himself even – sweepers. But the libero (from the Italian word meaning “free”) in it’s classic incarnation, the director of the team with the freedom of the pitch, had practically died out.

Some say the sweeper was once and for all confined to the coffin by Arrigo Sacchi’s revolutionary tactics although the changing of rules had also made it difficult to play. His all conquering AC Milan side played a high-pressure game, zonal marked aggressively, and essentially incorporated the libero into the four-man defence however it could be argued he did so for all positions as Franco Baresi implicates. “With Sacchi, we focused on creating rather than breaking down, defending spaces rather than marking men,” he said. “The secret? At all times you must know your position, where you are standing, and you must participate in the action – even if you are far from the ball.” Baresi’s role was particularly revolutionary as the ‘centrale staccato’ (a detached central defender), as it effectively done away with the need for a sweeper.

But perhaps overall what Sacchi indicates is that the traits of the libero should lurk inside every player – the ability to play the ball and see danger and opportunities should not be confined to specialist players It is a view very much held in regard by Arsène Wenger where in the first team we’ve seen the gradual phasing out of the stopper. The argument is not whether the stopper has its use or not as clearly it does, as seen by the success of Arsenal’s English back four. But the thinking is that ‘universality’ brings fluency and if the Gunners are to play an expansive style then the centre backs must also be equally adept.

He wants his centre backs to essentially play like liberos, albeit slightly stripped down, while altogether remaining in a zonal defence. Call them advancing centre backs if you will.

Wenger wants attacking perfection, constantly looking for different ways of opening up teams and his latest development is to have his defenders engaged in forward play. By involving them in the build up they can effectively become an extra midfield, getting into unmarked space and causing more unpredictability. This variety and change in points of attack also allows the side to break from the monotony of packed midfields and deep defences which has been the scourge of Arsenal in recent seasons. Thomas Vermaelen has already added two goals this season in such a manner against both Blackburn and Wigan. It is  important to notice the amount of space afforded to the Belgian as he broke from the back as a result of the opposition not having the means to predict the charge.

“With the ball he’s really good,” said Cesc Fabregas on Vermaelen. “He’s like one more midfielder. These days, to have a centre back that can play, you know, these balls on the ground, between the lines, and past players, for players like me in midfield it’s really good because it gives you so much time and so much space on the ball. It’s really good.”

The upshot of this progressive manner is that the team must play a high line which requires the centre backs to have a good technique, highly mobile and read the game well so as to keep the ball circulating and also be on guard for a swift counter attack.

However giving license to your centre back will only be more effective if the opposition play with one less forward than you have central defenders hence allowing the space to get forward. In the Confederations Cup, USA made sure to station both their forwards up the field at all times so as to keep the modern advancing centre back of Gerard Pique busy and deny him the chance to get forward.

In that sense the role of Alex Song in front of the back four is very important and many would argue that the spirit of the libero is mostly alive in that position. “There are trends in football,” says former Roma manager Carlo Mazzone. “This is a time of between-the-lines players. From a classic 4-4-2, we now have a 4-1-1-1-1-3-0 as we have at Roma. That first man in midfield – Daniele De Rossi at Roma – is the modern libero. His movements are similar, but he starts ahead of the defenders and retreats into the shell if needed. But he gets the ball all the time and is the main distributor.”

And if Italy is the country of trends then we may see the comeback of the libero due to the increase in the three-man defence in the league. But on the other hand, the use of a holding midfielder in front and the liberalisation of the offside trap and professional fouls complicating things, it may mean there is no need. But what has become increasingly apparent is that modern centre-backs will be required to have more skills most possibly resulting in the upsurge of the ball-playing, advancing centre-back. And it is Arsène Wenger’s Arsenal who lead the way.