11 Points From United v Chelsea, Champions League Quarter Finals

1. Heroes: My first thought after the game was: what a good football match it was. Yes, Chelsea were off their scoring form, but never a weak team. And despite the history and the high octane environment, the game was played in good spirit with plenty of friendly exchanges and respect. Vignettes of Rooney and Cole exchanging a smile, or Terry and Giggs, an appreciative handshake can be seen in the many photographs of the game. There were no bad tackles, no malicious intent, and even the red card for Ramires was for 2 technical fouls rather than a rash challenge. Chelsea fans might feel that the team was too well behaved, perhaps and a little anger might have been useful to fire them up more. The ebb and swell of the game itself, however, were enthralling. Chelsea did manage a significant number of shots, though most of them didn’t trouble VDS – it shows they had their chances.

2. Midfield Energy: The obvious stars of the game were Giggs and Rooney and the media are justifiably salivating over them – but it’s hard to pick out a poor performer on the night on either side. Torres has become the fall guy, but he worked hard in the first half and was in the game. Of course, Giggs was inspirational and who would have thought that Giggs and Carrick against Lampard, Essien and Ramires could end in anything but misery for United! A part of the reason for that of course was Rooney’s rampaging role, taking in both midfield and offensive duties, coupled with Park’s bottomless energy supply. There was a point when the commentator asked “are there 2 Parks on the pitch?” – It was a valid question as he was at the time tracking back to stop Ashley Cole.

3. The Unsung Park: While on Park, everybody is going on about the fabulous passes Giggs made for the goals, but the real flashes of genius in the goals came not from Giggs but his team mates. Giggs’s pass to Park was a 10 yard pass to an unmarked player. It was well spotted and calmly executed but hardly requiring genius. But I wonder how many players, outside of centre-forwards, at that stage of a Champions League quarter final, would have the presence of mind to receive the ball cleanly, drop it at their feet and smash it in with their wrong foot as though they were seasoned strikers? Big-game Park did. And embellished his already legendary status amongst the United faithful.

4. Understanding is Priceless: John O’Shea didn’t have a happy evening defensively – as he found it hard to cope with Malouda on the wing. But O’Shea is another player who rises to the occasion and often plays beyond his capability. And while his runs down the flank (and crosses) were willing but unspectacular, his reverse pass for Giggs, almost looking the other way, was inspired. And in that instant, you understood why expensive teams like Chelsea and Man City have struggled against well drilled units. That moment of understanding, of trust, for Giggs to make the run and for O’Shea to find him with the pass, cannot be bought. It has to be earned through familiarity.

5. Pain? What Pain? Rio was hobbling after 10 minutes and in some distress. You wouldn’t know it to see him through 90 minutes. Either it was a miraculous cure, or he endured some discomfort to play through. Either way, it was the kind of gutsy decision that every team needs, to fire them up. He’ll probably miss the next few games but the job was completed on the night.

6. The Deposed King: Hard to not feel sorry for Didier Drogba. Arguably the most magnificent centre forward of our times, the warrior supreme, has had to endure an ignominious season, first thanks to his own form and then due to Chelsea’s struggles to fit in Fernando Torres. I’m sure that at a club like Man United, Drogba would have been backed to the hilt, nurtured, protected, allowed to regain form and unleashed on hapless opponents at the business end of the season. For those who doubt that, I have just 2 words. Wayne Rooney. There are so many ways in which Torres could have been inducted into the team. Maybe ask Drogba to go all out for 70 minutes, and then let Torres loose against tiring defences? Ancelotti is up there with the best managers, but right now he has two demotivated strikers and Chelsea’s most prolific goal scorer is one Daniel Sturridge.

7. The Treble: won’t happen. Quite apart from the fact that Man City could easily win the semi final if United turn out to be flat after tonight. And Arsenal could conceivably catch up in the league. Or Raul and Schalke have a surprise in store for United. Then of course there’s the matter of the insurmountable Barcelona. Unless… United get past Schalke and Barcelona have the kind of off night they endure once a year. Unless… United play out of their skins and are absolutely irresistible. Unless… Unless…

8. Strange Season: So a season which started with most United fans resigning themselves to relative failure and a rebuilding process now stands within touching distance of greatness. United may still win nothing. But this team’s redemption is now complete. They may lack the sex appeal and fantasy quality of past teams, according to many pundits, but it strikes me that they’re peaking at the right time. Unusually, many players have actually returned to fitness or form in the last 3rd of the season. Rooney, Valencia, Carrick, Park and Ferdinand have all put their troubles behind them to give United momentum at a time when typically teams are struggling to maintain it.

9. The Warhorse: What is it with Ferguson? He once said that “success brings power, not the other way around”. How does he do it? It can’t be luck that Chris Smalling turns up just when Ferdinand’s body is showing signs of wear and tear. That O’Shea returns to fitness just when Rafael suffers an injury. Or that Carrick starts performing like a star just after signing a new contract. How far can he take this “average” team?

10. Second String: to appreciate the Man United team’s capability, remember that the weekend game against Fulham took in 8 changes from the first leg against Chelsea and won at a canter. Not counting anybody who actually made the field yesterday, leaving out long injured players (Fletcher, Rafael, Hargreaves) and questionable signings (Bebe, Mame Diouf), United’s “second string” team would look like this: Berbatov, Owen (Wellbeck), Obertan (Cleverley), Scholes, Anderson Gibson, Brown, Smalling, Evans, Fabio, Kuszczak. It’s not a team to make anybody cower in fear, but more importantly, any 2-3 players from this team could come into the first team and we would still expect to win.

11. Hernandez and Bebe: It’s better to win a game and lose one, rather than have two draws. (50% more points). Similarly, it’s better to have a star signing and a dud, rather than 2 average ones. The jury may be out on Bebe (let’s wait till next season, shall we?) but Hernandez’s 18 goals this season, many of them critical ones makes the Bebe punt worthwhile! Bottom line, while a lot of clubs buy cautiously like professional managers, Fergie behaves like a Venture Capitalist. A successful one, apparently.

Beating The Blues!

I doubt there is much I can add to the considerable mix of praise, awe, criticism, cynicism, sarcasm and other ‘-isms’ that have already crowded cyberspace and newsprints even before Mark Clattenburg blew the whistle at the Emirates Stadium on Monday night.

Christmas has come a bit late to North London but I am sure that none of the Gooners will be complaining about that. Two days late pales in comparison to a wait of more than 2 years. I remember November 30, 2008 in minute detail. It was the day I ‘inaugurated’ my prized Arsenal shirt – Number 4, Fabregas. It was also the last time (well, before yesterday) that we won against the mighty Blues. That it was at their stronghold of Stamford Bridge, was icing on the cake to say the least. A Robin Van Persie brace and a Johan Djourou own goal were responsible for our 2-1 victory. It took 2 years and almost a month for us to repeat that feat, albeit with a 3-1 scoreline. Both the above mentioned players were involved in yesterday’s win, and Djourou’s performance was especially heartening.

That is all in the past now. As is, to an extent, Monday’s win. Like I’ve said, a lot has been said and written about it already, and I’m not inclined to repeat or reiterate any of that. Or add more fuel to the fire. What I want to try and do is bring a little perspective and objectivity to the win, and what it means for the team we all love so much in the new year.

Let us go past all the accolades and the praise being heaped on Arsene Wenger’s “Boys” for defeating Carlo Ancelotti’s “Men”. Yes, they do indeed deserve it. Let’s put Chelsea’s current bad form aside for a minute. It is not possible to analyse or discuss Arsenal’s performance without taking their opponents into consideration. But let’s imagine we can. I’ll come to the effect of Chelsea’s perfomance in a bit.

With the exception of the sorely missed Thomas Vermaelen, it was after a long time that Le Prof was able to field a near full strength side. RVP still looks rusty in front of goal but it’s nothing that some more game time won’t fix. His footballing instincts and thinking and reflexes are as sharp as ever and it won’t take long for him to become his trademark lethal self. Fabregas showed why we miss our ‘El Capitan’ when he is absent, especially in the big games. His presence in the hole behind the lone striker was crucial and his passing visionary. And though it was only a glimpse of his potency, and Chelsea afforded him far too much space at times, that should not take anything away from the best game he has had in a long time. (Goal and assist were well deserved!)

Theo Walcott’s inclusion in place of the underperforming Andrei Arshavin was unexpected but hats off to him for not making Wenger regret the decision. I wouldn’t say his was a stellar performance, but if every start or sub yields a goal and an assist, I will take it for now! And statistically speaking, his well-struck goal showed presence of mind and good instincts, and was his 8th goal in 9 starts for Arsenal this season. Not bad for a guy who was brushed off for “not having a footballing brain.” Same goes for Arshavin. I am among the Arsenal fans who are equally rapturous and exasperated about this diminutive Russian. But if statistics are supposed to be a benchmark, then he is one of our best players of this season.

Defensively speaking, we are still leakier than a bucket with a million holes, and don’t inspire confidence at the best of times. The conceded goal was highly unnecessary and ensured that even a 2 goal cushion did not make me feel comfortable. However, I was pleased with the way we defended as a unit, and did not let the famous Chelsea ‘physicality’ overpower and overwhelm us as we have on numerous previous encounters. All ten players committed themselves to the task of defending when we didn’t have the ball, showed impressive hunger to intercept and tackle to restore possession, and generally showed no fear or hesitation in physical challenges. If I had to single out players, Johan Djourou put in a superb performance and completely paid off the faith put in him by Wenger on such a big occasion. Equally impressive was Alex Song. It is good for Arsenal that he can play as a proper defensive midfielder, and along with Jack Wilshere, add the necessary bite that was missing in our midfield. This stability, while helping our defence, also allows Fabregas and the two wingers more freedom and space to work their magic.

Okay, now brace yourselves. I am warning everyone beforehand that no blame can be rested upon my shoulders for spoiling or tarnishing the current upbeat mood surrounding the Emirates and all the Gooner community. Let me rush right into it without further fanfare or ominous background music.

Yes, Monday night’s win is something I am going to treasure. I couldn’t have got (and I am sure all Gooners will agree) a better holiday gift. It still feels surreal. A dream. If it is, it is a dream I sure don’t want to wake up from. Yet. The wait only made the victory sweeter. But I have never been one to be swept up in all the wonderful emotion of the moment for too long. Yes, it will definitely help boost our psyche and put some water over the ‘chokers in big games’ tag that we have been rightly saddled with for a while now. But yesterday was only one game. Three points that may turn out to be equally significant or insignificant at the end of a season that has just only reached its middle point. Consistency is what is going to matter. We have an average of two games per week for the next few and winning all of them will put us in the ‘potential title challengers’ category.

It definitely broke our ‘voodoo’ of games against Chelsea (Let’s hope this transfers to our game against Man Utd in the new year). But whether it was a turning point in the larger scheme of things, for this group of talented players remains to be seen. It pains me to say this but far too often have Arsenal threatened to be a team on the brink of greater things. Far too often have they had false starts, and flattered to deceive. And far too often have they been inconsistent and showed all the signs of a flawed genius, always a few small steps away from the pinnacle of greatness. It is definitely within reach.But it has been within reach for a few years now. “A team in transition” , “The team of the future”, “Wenger’s Young Guns” are tags we have been saddled with for far too long. It is time for us to finally live up to all the potential. Building a team takes time, and patience. We have had both of them. Now it looks like the boys are ready to finally become the men that they have shown the promise to be.

Is it yet another flash in the pan? Only time will tell. Will I keep believing in my team? Without a doubt. Good performances and 9 points in the away games against Wigan and Birmingham, followed by the visit of Manchester City to the Emirates, will be the best possible start to 2011. There are promises to keep and miles to go before they sleep.

Come on you Gunners!!!!

Squad Erat Demonstrandum

As football fans may know, the EPL has introduce squad rules this year. Each club gets to register 25 member teams/squads for the EPL. The 25 must have 8 home grown players, but “home grown” is defined as having spent 3 years before the age of 21 at the club. So Fabregas counts as homegrown, for Arsenal.

Squad Numbers

A quick look at the registered squad numbers under the new rules, by the “top 6”

Arsenal – 20

Chelsea – 19

Liverpool – 21

Man United – 24

Man City – 25

Spurs – 25

The first 3 look a bit light, but this is not the whole story.

U-21s

Looking at the under 21s gives you another layer of detail. Arsenal’s U-21s include Walcott, Wilshere, Ramsey, Gibbs, Traore and Vela. All regular first team players. Squad wise, Arsenal are well set, but as we all know they have a surfeit of creative and attacking midfielders and are worryingly light on most other positions.

Chelsea’s team is a sign that of the belt tightening at Stamford Bridge this season. The 19 named are all of frightening quality but the U-21s are mostly unknowns with the exception of Kakuta and Bruma. Chelsea might struggle with injuries to key personnel and the Goalkeeping understudy is still a challenge for them from the last season.

Liverpool are struggling financially, and have had no recent history of bringing youngsters through. This is reflected in their U21s – with Ngog, Shelvey and Pacheco the only recognizable names and none of them really established, although Ngog has had his best start this season. Liverpool’s secret weapon will be Hodgson, of course.

Man United have 24 named but they include Hargreaves, Bebe, Anderson and Ferdinand and it’s unclear at present how much first team football these 4 will play (or Neville, for that matter). However, a strong suite of U21s, including Cleverley, Obertan, Wellbeck, the Da Silvas, Macheda and Smalling, all of whom have enough first team experience to manage a stint in the starting 11.

Man City, needless to say have 25 and counting, as Mario Balloteli is listed in the U21s. The rest of the youngsters are not names that would ring any bells, outside of the eastlands.

Spurs, similarly, have a full squad of 25 and are able to include Gareth Bale, Bostock, Dos Santos and Rose (remember his goal?) in the under 21s. I’d say that is a strong squad as well. The question is, is it strong enough to handle the Champs League and the EPL? Recent experience suggests there’s some learning to be done there.

Desipte all the worries, it’s only Man City and Spurs who’ve really had to choose. Jonathan Woodgate has been cited this morning as a player who missed the cut because of the arrival of Van Der Vaart at White Hart Lane. (on which note, look out for headlines like “White Vaart Lane” soon, if VDV has a good game, and any number of stink jokes).

Pre-season Winds Down – Community Shield Ahoy!

And before you know it, the Community Shield is next week. The official curtain raiser. Back to battling Chelsea. The brief breath pause after the world cup is over. In fact for pre-season teams it’s been going on for a month already.

Man United have had a typically tough pre-season. I say tough not because we played top teams, because we didn’t. But Ferguson’s strategy in recent years has been to start by playing fitter teams rather than other European giants who are themselves limbering up. And in the US this year, as with Korean or Japanese teams last year, there is no doubt that the team would be put through their paces physically.

This year, it was Celtic at Toronto, followed by Philadelphia Union, Kansas City Wizards, MLS All Stars and finally Chivaz Guadalajara. Followed up by a game in Dublin against the Irish “Airtricity” League 11, before the first showdown of the season with Chelsea.

A quick word on the American teams. We know now that the US are no longer the minnows of International football, and the MLS teams are reflective of their growing strength. They played like good Championship teams – full of running, very direct, and very pacy with a lot of intent. Also, with the MLS running from March/April onwards, the American teams are all mid-season and are well oiled and firing on all cylindars. The games against Kansas City Wizards and Philadelphia Union were both telling. United scored just one goal in each game, and lost 2-1 to a Philadelphia Union who played with 10 men for an hour. United also lost 3-2 to Chivaz, with Chicharito playing and scoring for the Mexican side.

Let’s get the Chicharito excitement out of the way then. 3 goals in 3 pre-season games for a player coming off a world cup campaign is quite heady stuff. But what I like is that he doesn’t hang around for his goals. No last minute stab ins for him. So far his goals have come in 20, 8 and 1 minute of being on the field, with the last one being his first touch of the game. Clearly not a guy who needs to miss a few chances before scoring.

Long term injury concerns have not really gone away. Owen Hargreaves continues to suffer. Ferdinand is still out as is Anderson. And things haven’t been made better by stories about Anderson’s horrific car crash or Rooney’s bender. But by and large there’s a large squad of fit players available for the season start, with plenty of youngsters who I spoke about the last time.

The transfer window still has 3 weeks to go, and if the most persistent rumours are to be believed, Wellbeck and Cleverley will go out on loan with possibly a midfield player being brought in. Lassana Diarra and Mesut Ozil have both been in United’s sights, and hopefully one of them will come in to bolster the central midfield which is United’s weakest suite at present.

And the game against Chelsea will surely bring this into sharp contrast. Chelsea have suffered a series of defeats in pre-season, with the latest coming against Hamburg. So it’s fair to say that they are still getting back to full form. But make no mistake, come the weekend and pre-season will be just another historical footnote as the games begin, in earnest.

What’s Wrong With Chelsea?

One of the biggest debates of Mourinho’s time in Chelsea was: was Mourinho was the great manager he insisted he was, or was it Abramovich’s millions, that were behind Chelsea’s success. Isn’t it great when football’s most difficult questions get answered unequivocally?

Inter Milan have never been off top spot in the second half of the season for the last 4 years running. Mourinho’s been there for over 2 of them. Meanwhile Chelsea are on their 4th manager since Mourinho and have one FA Cup win to show for their efforts.

Given their luckless Champs league record and a spotted history of refereeing, this might be a bit unfair to Chelsea. But I’ve always maintained that there is really no reason given their players, their funding and their management strength to not have won every Premier League title since 2004.

Chelsea have shown a remarkable consistency in getting close but not close enough and despite being very much in the race, seem to have accepted that this season has also been a “failure”. The indignity of being dumped out of the CL by none other than the special one must have hurt, but surely can happen to any club at this level. There is talk about a player clear-out, and whether Ancelotti’s job is safe next season, and what Abramovich thinks about about the performance.

A comment was also made recently about how Ancelotti has looked unable to make a positive change or impact the performance from the bench. Others have pointed to the fact that he is too even tempered. Good when you need to prevent panic, but also a hindrance in being able to rouse the team.

Last year, Ferguson made a casual comment that created much controversy – he said that Chelsea were an ageing team and there wasn’t much scope for improvement. He didn’t say that they were too old to win the league, but that was how the Chelsea hierarchy reacted – and yet, that might just be the truth they need to face up to. AC Milan may have made a miracle or two happen with their ageing players, but Chelsea have struggled to get mileage out of their experience or, it seems, the capability from their younger players.

Michael Ballack has often seemed like a waste of space, Mikel has never been able to truly make up for Essien’s absence. Lampard’s engine has not been as indefatiguable as Chelsea might have wanted. Terry’s distractions have weakened both him and the team. Cech has been error prone for a few seasons now. Joe Cole has been anonymous when given a chance and Anelka shone briefly but seems like he’s lost again. Drogba is still the battering ram that keeps knocking down doors for Chelsea. Ashley Cole, till his injury was along with Evra probably the best left back in the business. Ivanovic and Alex have been competent. Florent Malouda has arguably been their best player especially in the second half of the season. But as a unit, Chelsea have only occasionally hit the kind of scintillating form that Arsenal display week in and week out and Man United whenever they have really needed to.

What’s worse is that they seem to have run out of steam. There doesn’t seem to be enough role clarity between players on the pitch. There is a sameness about Chelsea’s play that is analogous to Arsenal’s but much less watchable. There doesn’t seem to be a plan B. To be fair, this team is not built by Ancelotti, but he certainly has struggled to orchestrate them to hit title-winning form.

There is some method to Ferguson’s madness, in the way that United have made a science out of peaking in the second half of the season. Chelsea’s age makes this an even bigger necessity, but you wonder if they’ve paced themselves. And the lack of top young players has exacerbated their problem. Sturridge, Zhirkov & Kalou are the only regular first team players apart from Mikel, who are under 27, and none of the 4 make the starting 11 when everybody is fit.

Here’s a thought: this is a world cup year. It will be the last world cup for Ballack, Lampard, Anelka, Drogba and many others. How much is this playing on their minds? How much is this reflected in their effort expenditure? How much are they holding back in reserve for summer glory?

Another problem Chelsea has faced is the player-power syndrome. There are clearly players who wield a lot of power in the club, Terry key among them. Players who have been instrumental in ousting past managers are obviously influential on a day-to-day basis. Terry has often been Chelsea’s spokesman – critising referees or talking up their chances. Something you will rarely find at Arsenal or Man United is the spectacle of a player coming out after the game and complaining about the quality of refereeing. Wenger and Ferguson take that role on themselves, and there is a clear disciplinary code in place at both those clubs.

The problem is partly created by Abramovich who has backed his players at the expense of his managers. He has given Terry a massive wage hike, overpaid most of the other players and created millionaires and probably a millionaire culture. Chelsea’s salary costs are 70% of their turnover compared with 44% and 33% at Man United and Arsenal.

A clearout has been predicted, but it will need Abramovic to dip into his pocket, as very few of the stars can expect to fetch a huge price given their shelf life. And a ham-handed and indiscriminate buying of players will not do the trick.

Chelsea have thrashed Portsmouth, thereby burying the curse of the ex manager.  But hardly something that can be considered a turnaround – given that Grant’s Portsmouth have been bankrupt, relegated and trodden on by owners, administrators and debtors alike. Even so, the goal difference has improved and a convincing win over Villa at home might just set them on their way towards the title again, and they still have it in their own hands – win every match from now (including at Old Trafford) and they will win the league.

All is certainly not lost for this season. But win or lose, you have to suspect that the Chelsea team are on the verge of a Milanesque precipice – with urgent need of rejuvenation and a long term plan, with youth development and a consistent run from a manager even if it means a couple of trophyless seasons.