Match Report – Match Highlights – Post-Match Press Conference
There wasn’t total meltdown following the loss to Liverpool but the fan base of the club were in anguish following a terrible display at home ot Jurgen Klopp’s side. A game against the defending champions wasn’t on to look forward to but they also suffered a shock loss in the League opener against Hull City. The injuries to Aaron Ramsey and Alex Iwobi paved the way for Granit Xhaka and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to get into the side. There was also a shake up in defense as the new vice-captain, Laurent Koscielny, led his troops to battle, having cut short his holiday rest. Koscielny’s return to the side saw Calum Chambers resume his bench warming duties.
The game itself was fiercely contested encounter but kudos should go to Mark Clattenburg for not allowing himself to be fooled by the home side’s antics in the box. On another day, Mike Dean an official would have pointed to the spot for Koscielny’s invisible challenge on Danny Drinkwater or Hector Bellerin’s invisible touch on Ahmed Musa. You know, these things happen.
Still some players have to be mentioned for their outstanding performance on the night. Rob Holding is one of them, putting up a great shift after the torrid time he got on his debut. For a player so young, that lad is very solid, and with his performances from preseason up until this moment, Chambers deserves to spend some time on the bench. With Koscielny next to him, Holding looked very coordinated and tidy in possession. Another positive in my opinion, was the return to action of mercurial midfield maestro, Mesut Ozil and our alpha-dog in attack, Olivier Giroud. Alexis Sanchez is a great chap but he’s no center forward and these games have proved it.
Theo Walcott flattered to deceive yesterday, as he put up one of the frustrating shifts we’ve become accustomed to seeing, while I feel the Ox should have done better with his end product. The inconsistency we continue to face with our English lads. It was a game that could have gone either way, so in my honest opinion, a draw was a very fair result in the grand scale of things. Confidence isn’t as high as we would want, but at least the lads are doing what’s required of them – at least, some of them.
The clean sheet was vital at the home of the defending champions, and the Gunners can do their bit to get their first win of the campaign against Watford next weekend before the international break. Wenger waxed lyrical about Holding’s performance in his presser,
“I believe he had an outstanding performance for a young boy who has never played in the Premier League and played against top strikers today. So I can only reiterate that I am happy to speak about him because it’s good for English football that a young boy gets a chance in a big club in England and shows that he will be a quality player.”
He took a rather offensive demeanor when he was asked about transfers but it’s something we have come to terms with as fans. The club will never release its transfer secrets in public so we have to take a patient approach, even though we are aware that the transfer window closes in 10 days.
Do have a happy Sunday.
Sayonara.
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