Arsenal 3 Ipswich Town 0 (Carling Cup Semi’s second leg)

Arsenal are going to Wembley!!!!

Second half goals from Nicklas Bendtner, Laurent Koscielny and Fabregas dumped Ipswich out of the Carling Cup. The Gunners will now meet either Birmingham City or West Ham in the final.

Progression to the final didn’t come easy as Paul Jewell’s Ipswich defended and pressed well to keep Arsenal from scoring for the most part of an hour and the longer the match went on scoreless, the more the anxiety level rose. The only scant consolation was the United match against Blackpool, where they were down 2-0 for most part of the hour as well (which United won 2-3 by the way).

But Bendtner levelled the tie in the 61^st minute with a very smart finish and Koscielny doubled Arsenal’s lead a couple of minutes later when he headed in his first Arsenal goal.

Arsenal weren’t out of the woods yet as a goal form Ipswich and they would again have seized the upper hand (on away goal rules) in the tie, and it was Fabregas, who’d been trying to get things going all match long, who finally put the tie to rest with a goal of his own. Robin van Persie did also find the underside of the crossbar (in the first half) in what must now be the record for the number of times a player has managed to find the woodwork in a single season.

The only sour note of the match came early in the first 45 when Sagna and Szczesny collided and Sagna had to be taken off for treatment to be replaced by Eboue. Hope Sagna’s isn’t too badly hurt.

Up next, Arsenal welcome Huddersfield to the Emirates in the Fourth round of the FA Cup. Kick off is 1 am this Monday morning.

Arsenal 3 Wigan 0

Robin van Persie’s first ever Arsenal hat trick set the Gunners on their way to a comfortable win at the Emirates. The Dutchman gave Arsenal the lead in the 21^st minute from Song’s sublime pass. Van Persie was on hand to convert a Fabregas pass just before the hour mark to double Arsenal’s lead but also sky rocketed a penalty and hit the post soon after as Wigan struggled to keep pace with their hosts.

Some fine saves all through out the match from Wigan’s keeper Ali Al Habsi kept the scoreline at bay as Arsenal ran rampant.

With just a few minutes of regulation time left to play, van Persie completed his hat trick to lay claim to the match ball. One can only hope that Arsenal legend, Thierry Henry, has rubbed some of his goal scoring magic not just on van Persie but the rest of the squad and given them all the chin up as the fixtures pile up and the business end of the season fast approaches.

A full match report can be found here.

Up next, Ipswich Town come to the Emirates as the Gunners try and overturn the 1 nil deficit from the first leg of the Carling Cup semi-finals and as progress into the cup final is expected, nothing is guaranteed so another impressive performance, from all who take the field in the red and white, will be needed.

Leed 1 Arsenal 3 (FA Cup 3rd round replay)

Arsenal marched on into the fourth round of the FA cup after a comfortable victory away at Elland Road. If an epic performance was requested from the Gunners to overturn the disappointing third round result at home just under a fortnight ago, then this was as close as it could get bar another disappointing performance from Andrey Arshavin.

Nasri took just 5 minutes to silence Elland Road when he latched on to a Chamakh dummy and went past two Leeds defenders with consummate ease to bury the ball past Casper Schmeichel.

Schmeichel and Arshavin then proceeded to keep Leeds in the tie for much of the first half but then Sagna struck just after the half-hour mark with another one of his special thunderbolts to double Arsenal’s lead. Not to be outdone by Sagna, Leeds midfielder Bradley Johnson unleashed a cracker of his own that gave Szczesny no chance whatsoever, just three minutes after Sagna’s goal.

Both teams headed in for halftime with Leed’s knowing that they could still rescue this match and with Gooner’s over the world wondering if this was going to be one of those matches for Arsenal where their (more like Arshavin’s) profligacy in from of goal will haunt them in the latter stages of the match.

But with Arsenal defending commendably, Wenger brought on van Persie and Fabregas in the 71^st minute and the match was effectively over four minutes later when van Persie headed in Bendtner’s leftwing cross.

Full match report is available here and the Gunners will now meet Huddersfield Town at the Emirates on the 1^st f February.

Up next we welcome Wigan to the Emirates. Kickoff is 4 this Sunday morning.

West Ham 0 Arsenal 3

Arsenal put in a clinical attacking performance to ease past relegation threatened West Ham United at Upton Park.

The Gunners started with Szczesny in goal while Eboue, Djourou, Koscielny and Clichy started at the back. Song and Wilshere again dropped in deep while Nasri, Fabregas, van Persie, Walcott manned the attack.

West Ham looked a team devoid of confidence as pre-match speculation was rife that their manager, Avram Grant, was managing his last game for the club, and his players showed every bit of that on the pitch.

It took Arsenal only seven minutes to test out West Ham keeper, Robert Green, when Nasri tried his luck but it wasn’t long after that that the Gunners did take the lead. van Persie got his first goal of 2011 (from open play) when he blasted Walcott’s pass past Green from inside the penalty area as the West Ham defence failed pick up on the lurking Dutchman.

Walcott had an attempt of his own saved by Green before van Persie hit the post on the half hour mark. Ten minutes later and Walcott did put his name on the score sheet when he showed quick feet to get to van Persie’s cut back and rifle the ball past Green to double Arsenal’s advantage heading into the break but there was still time for Green to deny Djourou and Nasri as the half came to an end.

Zavon Hines was the first West Ham player to fire a shot in anger at the Arsenal goal early in the second half but Szczesny was switched on enough to make the save.

With the hosts barely threatening, the Gunners seemed content to keep the ball and take their chances without switching into second gear as they probed for that killer third goal, which did come with 15 minutes to spare. Walcott was fouled by West Ham debutant, Wayne Bridge, in the penalty area just as the Arsenal forward tried to race clear and shoot. Ref Andre Marriner did not hesitate to point to the spot, which van Persie stepped up to convert. That was essentially the match all over as Arsenal shook off their cup disappointments to keep pace with the League leaders from Manchester.

The Arsenal man of the match without a doubt would have been van Persie and one can only hope that the two goals have done his goal scoring form a whole world of good. A close second was Eboue, who managed to not fall over as if he had been shot by a sniper hidden in the crown every time he was tackled, as he has so often done in the past. He gets the get up and get on with it award.

West Ham played like a team distracted by supposed events off the field but all credit to the Gunners to not let themselves down and play like the title depended on it and for the most part they did, bar some wobbly moments from the defence.

Up next, I have a feeling that a performance of epic proportions will be needed from the starting 11 that Wenger puts out when we travel to Elland Road to take on Leeds in the third round FA Cup replay. Kick off is 9 am this Thursday morning. I’ll start praying now.

Ipswich Town 1 Arsenal 0 (Carling Cup Semi’s Leg 1)

A nearly full strength Arsenal side were embarrassed by Championship strugglers Ipswich Town in the first leg of the Carling Cup Semi-finals this morning. A 78^th minute Tamas Priskin strike was enough to make this the only second time Arsenal, under the guidance of Arsene Wenger, in some 45 odd matches, have lost to a lower tier opposition. Some soggy defending and loose passing from the Gunner’s didn’t help but full credit to Ipswich, who put in the required shift to take a deserved advantage into the next leg.

Full match report, for anyone who dares to read it, is available on Arsenal.com.

Up next, we have a trip to Upton Park where another struggling team, in the form of West Ham, await. More reason to be worried then? Kick off is at 6:30 this Sunday morning.

Arsenal 1 Leeds 1 (FA Cup third round)

Cesc Fabregas showed nerves of steel to convert an 88^th minute penalty to earn a replay (I thought FA Cup replays were of thing of the past but I was mistaken) at Elland Road in a week and a half’s times.

The Gunners started with a much changed side as expected with Szczesny getting a start in goal while Eboue, Djourou, Squillaci and Gibbs completed the back four. Song, Denison and Rosicky started in midfield while Arshavin, Bendtner and Chamakh headed the attack with Chamakh the more central of the three.

Leeds have Premier League aspiration and showed a lot of energy in the opening minutes but lacked that incisiveness where as the Gunners needed time to gel. When they did, Arsenal should have had the lead in the 11^th minute when Rosicky’s brilliant pass found Arshavin who just couldn’t find a way past Leeds goalkeeper Casper Schmeichel, son of Peter Schmeichel. Leeds incidentally had Alex Bruce in their defense, who of course is the son of Sunderland manager Steve Bruce.

Just after the half hour mark, Squillaci’s header has cleared off the line after Arshavin and Denison both had unsuccessful attempts on the Leeds goal.

Schmeichel made saves off Chamakh and Bendtner as the first half ended.

The second half was pretty much the same as Arsenal just couldn’t get things going and then Denilson fouled Max Gradel in the Arsenal box as the winger cut in. Ref Phil Dowd pointed to the spot and Robert Snodgrass obliged to put Leeds ahead.

Things could have got a lot worse for Arsenal in the 63^rd minute when Luciano Becchio met a corner with a firm header but only Szczesny’s fine reflex save kept the score at 1-0.

Arsenal brought on Fabregas for Song (59^th minute), Walcott for Chamakh (68^th minute) and Vela for Rosicky (79^th minute) to try and turn things as time ran out.

But as Arsenal looked odds on to be the biggest casualty of the round, Walcott was pulled back in the Leeds box by Bradley Parker and again Down did not hesitate to point to the spot. No doubt Gooner’s watching around the world were praying for a miracle and this was as close to it we could get. Fabregas stepped up and took the responsibility of ensuring that Arsenal did not crash out of the Cup as home and he backed himself up, saving the tie and securing a replay.

There was still time for Denilson to nearly redeem himself but his long-range effort was met well by Schmeichel.

A replay is not what Arsenal needed but is better then crashing out in the third round to championship opponents. Should the Gunners manage to navigate past Leeds at Elland Road, they can expect to face Scunthorpe at the Emirates in the fourth round.

Up next, we travel to Ipswich Town for the first leg of the Carling Cup Semi-final. Kick off is at 8:45 this Thursday morning.

Arsenal 0 Man City 0

It seemed as if only one team turned up to play football as Arsenal took on Man. City in the battle of the second (Man. City) and third (Arsenal) placed teams in the League. For their part, City were happy to “park the bus” in from of their goal and defend all match long as they did their best to not lose the match. Arsenal however, were up for a battle (that never came) as expected and started the way they did against Chelsea last month.

If it wasn’t for the post, Arsenal’s relentless pressure on the visitors could have paid off in early as the seventh minute when Song dispossessed Teves to setup and quick attack at the end of which van Persie fashioned himself some space and shot from outside the City box. Van Persie’s rasping shot had the beating of City keeper Jo Hart but not the upright as the attempt cannoned off the post.

Wilshere should have done better a few minutes later when he found himself with a bit of space in the City box, but he seemed to be caught in two minds and opted to pass to Walcott when shooting would have been the better option. Walcott himself didn’t do much better as he shot straight at Kolo Toure.

The Arsenal defence and Song mopped up whatever little the two most forward City players, Carlos Tevez and Yaya Toure, could muster with consummate ease but luck wasn’t with the Gunners as the post again came to City’s aid. Another quick attack from the Gunners caught City out and Fabregas showed good feet to create some space and his shot too had the beating of Hart but not the post and the ball cannoned off the upright again and fell to Walcott this time who also managed to find the framework with his drive. Walcott’s goal, if he’d scored, wouldn’t have counted anyway as he had already been flagged offside.

Fabregas found Walcott just before halftime but the England international took a bit too long on the ball and when he did shoot, Walcott was foiled by Nigel De Jong who seemed to have used his hand in the process. Walcott’s subsequent claims for penalty were swiftly brushed off by referee Mike Jones, a decision that was justified by replays.

The half ended with both teams locked in at nil all and the Gunner’s feeling a bit unlucky to not have opened the scoring.

In the second half, City pulled Yaya Toure back in to a deeper role to cover their exposed midfield to effectively kill off the game as they were happy with the point.

A little bit of van Persie magic just on the hour mark nearly unlocked the City defence and his shot from just outside the D was headed for the top corner but only for Hart to make a smart save. The rest of the half was basically the Arsenal’s attack being cancelled by City’s defending. Try as they might, Fabregas and Nasri and the rest of Arsenal’s attack force were unable to unlock the City defense and and at times the visitor’s play was like watching 200 million pound painting (an not the good type of painting too) dry.

Bacary Sagna seemed to get a rush of blood to the head in the 88^th minute as he took exception Pablo Zabaleta’s challenge and proceeded to head but the City defender. The pair needed to be separated and the ref proceeded to send the pair off. At first glance there wasn’t much wrong with Zabaleta’s challenge and only god knows what came over Sagna, especially since he resisted the urge to react to Lee Bowyer’s stamp, twice during the Birmingham match during the weekend. Bowyer by the way was cited for his actions and has been suspended for three matches.

Sagna will now serve a three match ban as well for his indiscretions but with the F A Cup tie at home to Leeds, a Carling Cup semifinal away to managerless Ipswich Town and a away trip to West Ham to come, this would have been the ideal time to get some rest.

So, what was expected to be a highly competitive encounter turned out to be anything but as the match ended goalless as the winner on the night was clearly Manchester United, who now find themselves sitting pretty at the top of the table with a two point lead and two matches in hand on their fiercest rivals, Manchester City and a four point lead and a match in hand on Arsenal.

Man of the match would have to be Alex Song who seems to be finally managing his defensive duties better and is now starting to pick his moments to venture forward.

Up next, Leeds United travel to the Emirates for the first time for the F A Cup. Wenger is expected to ring in wholesale changes and even Aaron Ramsey, who has just returned from a month long loan to Nottingham Forest, may feature. Also expected to feature in this match is Young Gun Sanchez Watt. Watt of course is out on loan at Leeds and was given special dispensation by Arsenal to participate in the match. This being a cup tie with no replays, expect Leeds to be up for it, so the Gunner’s that do get a chance can expect a stern test. Kickoff is 1:45 this Sunday morning.

Birmingham 0 Arsenal 3

Arsenal cruised to a win at St. Andrews, punishing a lackluster Birmingham City 3 nil. The trip to Birmingham City of late has been arduous, with points dropped in some bruising encounters to say the least and with both Manchester teams above Arsenal in the League also winning and the Wigan result, the Gunners simply had to win to maintain pressure on the league leaders.

It was no surprise to see Birmingham setup to deny Arsenal possession through the midfield so Arsene Wenger started with the first 11 that did so well at home against Chelsea.

The pace of Walcott was sure to be used to navigate a packed midfield and it only took Walcott three minutes to power past Birmingham defender Liam Ridgewell, when found by Fabregas, but unfortunately Walcott’s attempt was just wide with both van Persie and Fabregas in the Birmingham box, waiting in vain.

Fabregas was then fouled 25 yards out from goal but van Persie’s resulting freekick was straight into the wall before Fabregas was on the receiving end of a shocking studs up tackle from Roger Johnson in the seventh minute, that left the Arsenal skipper writhing in pain and Johnson in the ref’s book. Dare I say it, replays show that Fabregas was very luck not to have been seriously hurt as Johnson’s tackle was reminiscent of THAT tackle on Eduardo that effectively ended his career in English football  a few seasons back. But thankfully Fabregas recovered and carried on with the game.

Nasri then showed great composure to wriggle past two Birmingham attackers just outside his own box, a move which would not have pleased Wenger too much but such is Nasri’s form that he can be forgiven.

Birmingham keeper Ben Foster then picked up a back pass and the referee awarded Arsenal an indirect freekick. van Persie again tried his luck, this time getting his curling attempt past the Birmingham wall but not past Foster, who saved and gathered the ball at the second time of asking.

They say that the third time is a charm as Scott Dan fouled van Persie 20 yards away from goal and by this time, van Persie should have had his bearings all set as he again stood over to take the resulting freekick. And so it was that van Persie did give Arsenal the lead albeit with the aid of a massive deflection off Lee Bowyer that gave Foster no chance. It was 1-0 to the Arsenal regardless in as early as the 13^th minute as the travelling fans celebrated and the home fan, especially the ones chanting Martin Taylor’s name to despise the Arsenal fans, rather subdued.

Ex-Gunner Sebastian Larsson nearly levelled the scores five minutes later as his well struck freekick was headed for the top corner, only for a fantastic save from Fabianski to keep Arsenal ahead. A couple of minutes later, Fabianski nearly undid all his good work as he came half heartedly for a corner and hashed things up. Luckily van Persie was alert enough to clear the danger.

Larsson was at it again in the 23^rd minute when he floated in a freekick conceded by Djourou which the Arsenal defence again failed to deal with but luckily, that didn’t come to much.

Van Persie should have doubled Arsenal’s lead in the 27^th minute, when he found himself with just the keeper to beat after a quick counter thanks to Fabianski and Nasri but the flying Dutchman’s otherwise immaculate touch deserted him and the chance went begging.

Walcott only just failed to get to the end of Fabregas’ through ball before Djourou was cautioned for bringing down Cameron Jerome, who was looking to speed through on goal. Koscielny’s presence at the back covering his central defence partner meant that it was only a yellow for Djourou . The resulting freekick, taken by Larsson, was shrouded in controversy as van Persie was said (according to the Birmingham players and fans) to have handled the ball. Replays show that van Persie did handle the ball but it was unintentional and the referee had a clear enough view not to award the incident as a penalty.

Again van Persie should have doubled Arsenal’s lead, this time on the 36^th minute when again one on one with Foster but for some reason the Dutchman seemed to think that he was offside and proceeded to scoop the ball right into Foster’s hands.

Van Persie’s wastefulness was nearly punished just before halftime by Johnson as he somehow managed to fire Larsson’s delivery just over the bar, just!

The first half ended with Arsenal still protecting their narrow lead and if it wasn’t form some slack play and hesitation  around the Birmingham box by the likes of Walcott, Nasri, Wilshere Fabregas and van Persie again, the Gunner’s could have gone to the break with a much more comfortable lead.

Better play was expected around the box if Arsenal were to take all the points away but in the early stages of the second half, Walcott was guilty to wasting another chance as his horribly miscued shot inside the Birmingham penalty area ended up being a pass to Nasri that he failed to control.

Fabregas then fouled Stephen Carr and just as I thought to myself, watch out Fabregas, Carr will be after retribution for that, Fabregas was being picked up off the floor. No prizes for guessing who committed that foul on the Arsenal captain.

Scott Dann was then cautioned for impeding Walcott as he was about to race clear before Bowyer escaped a straight red card for, what replays confirm, a blatant stamp on Sagna.

The Gunners again should have doubled their lead, this time Wilshere the guilty party. The Arsenal number 19, on his 19^th birthday, somehow managed to shoot over from a few yards out in the 53^rd minute after being found by Walcott. The more the chances that kept getting missed the more the feeling that Birmingham will soon realise that the match is still there to be taken and catch Arsenal out.

Yet another chance went begging a minute later when Fabregas played Nasri clear and just when it seemed that it was a given that Nasri would score, he gave Foster too much time to compose himself and make a comfortable save in the end.

But unlike before, Fabregas and Nasri did combine again just before the hour and this time Nasri picked his spot and doubled Arsenal’s lead with a sweet strike. Finally, some breathing space and things only got better as eight minutes later it was 3 nil. Fabregas and Nasri were at it again, exchanging a succession for passes before Fabregas this time shot at goal. Though Foster did save Fabregas’ attempt, the ball first bounced off Dann and finally off Johnson, in what seemed like slow motion, and into the Birmingham net.

And that essentially was the match all over, with half an hour to spare but there was always that feeling that if Birmingham were to get a goal back, that may unsettle Arsenal.

There was still enough time for Bowyer to pull off another nasty, off the ball stamp on Sagna, and again still remain on the field to carry on with the match. Bowyer was substituted with 20 minutes to go in favour of giant striker Nikola Zigic and an aerial bombardment into the Arsenal box was expected from Birmingham to try and take advantage.

Fabregas and Walcott both had unsuccessful attempts before Arshavin and Denison were brought on for Walcott and Wilshere respectively. Arshavin nearly scored with his first touch when teed up by van Persie but for Foster to make a smart save.

Carr managed to get himself far into the Arsenal third and fired in a dangerous cross that needed the slightest of touches, but was deflected behind by Koscielny for a corner, which came to nothing. Van Persie had another two chances to add to Arsenal’s lead but he failed to convert either as he showed that he is still to find that killer touch in from of goal.

There was a scare, more to Arsenal’s clean sheet than anything else, when Zigic used his huge frame to win the ball in the Arsenal box, but his header was against the bar and Arsenal managed to clear.

The match ended with a vital win on what has proved one of the toughest of grounds, not only for Arsenal, to gain 3 points from.

All in all, 3 points at St. Andrews, where just less than a week ago Man United dropped 2 points, is a fantastic result. It has also to be mentioned that this was Birmingham’s only second home defeat of the season, which puts even more gloss on the win.

Up next, we welcome Man City to the Emirates and an cracking encounter is expected with both teams still in the title race and City wanting to put to rest the mauling Arsenal gave them when the two teams meat earlier in the season. Kickoff is 8:45 this Thursday morning.

Wigan 2 Arsenal 2

Arsenal were held by ten-men Wigan at the DW stadium in what was a dour display after the dizzying heights reached during the match against Chelsea. Arsene Wenger made eight changes in all with only Fabianski, Sagna and Koscielny keeping their places as Squillaci and Eboue completed the back four. There were also starts for Denilson, Diaby, Arshavin, Chamakh, Bendtner and Rosicky (captain).

With last season’s shock loss still at the back of the players’ minds, the Gunner’s started slowly and Wigan seized the opportunity to apply pressure from the get go. But it was Arshavin, who again was at his not so best mood, wasting a glorious chance that came about from a Rosicky pass in the fifth minute.

Wigan’s main threat was from Charles N’Zogbia who seemed to have all the freedom to roam and attack at will and he did. N’Zogbia had an attempt saved before Arshavin wasted another chance.

Then just like that, Wigan were awarded a very controversial penalty. N’Zogbia was fouled but the main contact was made way outside the box but then the unfortunate Koscielny came across to cover, only to fall foul of a clear dive from the Wigan attacker. Ref Lee Probert acted on instinct and pointed to the spot but replays clearly showed that it was anything but a penalty. Ben Watson stepped up and fired Wigan into the lead.

The nerves jingled and the blood pressure rose but the match went on. But then Arsenal’s big little giant awoke and scored one of the goals of the season as the half drew to a close. Bendtner’s attempt from inside the Wigan box was saved by Ali Al Habsi and all seemed lost but Arshavin acrobatically volleyed in, giving the Wigan keeper no chance at all.

Arshavin wasn’t finished yet as just five minutes later, he released Bendtner who somehow evaded a couple of Wigan defenders and gave Arsenal the lead. So it was 1-2 to the Arsenal at the break.

But sadly, Arshavin could carry that short burst of form into the second half as the match went into a lull. Then N’Zogbia decided to head butt Wilshere, who was a first half replacement for the injured Diaby, and was rightly sent off.

With Arsenal still in the lead and with Wigan’s most potent threat removed and only 12 minutes remaining, this match was a gimme, right? Wrong, as just two minutes after the sending off, Wigan were level as Squillaci scored an own goal from a corner. Queue painful memories of the last season.

Arsenal were then denied a stone wall penalty of their own as a Wigan defender deliberately handled the ball, inside the box, from a freekick. But none was given and the match ended 2 all.

Overall, the draw was an improvement from last year’s loss but with United being held at Birmingham, one would feel that this was two precious points dropped.

Up next, there another potential banana skin as we travel to St. Andrews to take on Birmingham City. Kickoff is 6 am this Sunday.