opinions, perspectives, ideas on the beautiful game

-by M

1. What an absolutely brilliant game to watch if you’re a neutral. Alright, the defending wasn’t great from both sides but who can argue against 90 minutes of end-to-end action with 8 goals? Certainly not me. At the end, its probably the Chelsea fans who feel frustrated with what was undoubtedly the most entertaining 90 minutes of football the Premier League has served up this season.

2. Arsenal are ticking on nicely now aren’t they? A couple of scrappy wins in the bag and now a 3-5 win to remember against the neighbours. The crisis seems to have been averted and obviously they still have a lot of work to do to challenge for the title (such as learning how to defend), Wenger must be breathing a whole lot easier after Saturday’s result

3. Speaking of defending, it was an absolute horror show by both sets of defenders. As mentioned previously, it was entertaining stuff but both Andre Villas-Boas and Arsene Wenger must surely do something about their defenders. Andre Santos and Johan Djourou are clearly not up to standard. Djourou is a poor excuse for a defender and Santos was abysmal in the first half although his goal in the second half did boost his confidence.

4. Per Mertesacker is not and never will be the answer to Arsenal’s defensive problems. Culpable for Chelsea’s first and second goals, he made Koscielny look class. Not that many Arsenal fans will remember though given the scoreline.

5. How important is Van Persie to this Arsenal side? The man is sheer class.

6. Also, how good was Ramsey? The Welsh captain has stepped up to the plate in Wilshere’s absence and Fabregas’ and Nasri’s departure and was brilliant in midfield alongside Song and Arteta. His carefully threaded through pass to Gervinho for Arsenal’s first equalizer was an absolute gem. A midfield of Ramsey, Wilshere and Song should serve Arsenal well for years to come.

7. Worryingly for Chelsea fans, who have been so accustomed to see their side being rock solid in defence, it is that particular aspect of their game that requires the most work now. Gone were the days of scrapping 1-0 or 2-0 wins under Mourinho. While it is undoubtedly entertaining from a neutral perspective, Chelsea fans must be hoping that AVB does something about the situation quick. Terry is no longer the man mountain he once was and Cech is a poor shadow of his former self.

8. Speaking of Cech, he was at fault for at least 2 of Arsenal’s goals. For a goalkeeper of his calibre, he should not be beaten at his near post twice (or three times if you consider Van Persie’s 3rd goal). It might seem harsh but AVB might do well to purchase a goalkeeper in the coming January window either as competition for Cech or even to replace the Czech international.

9. In a game with high stakes and bragging rights, Torres has once again failed to deliver. Granted, he has had a spell on the sidelines but nothing he tried pulled off. Abramovich must be wondering if Liverpool delivered Torres’ twin brother in January instead of the real Torres.

10. It may be harsh but from the 10-15 minutes of what I’ve seen so far, Romelu Lukaku is NOT Didier Drogba V2.0.