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Date: Sat 3 April 2010
Teams: Arsenal v Wolves
Venue: Emirates

Arsenal: Almunia, Sagna, Campbell, Vermaelen, Silvestre, Eboue, Song, Denilson, Walcott, Eduardo, Rosicky

Wolverhampton: Hahnemann, Zubar, Craddock, Berra, Elokobi, Foley, Henry, Mancienne, David Jones, Jarvis, Doyle

Match Review:
After a difficult midweek Champions League match against Barcelona, it was always going to be interesting to see how Arsenal performed this afternoon. The Barcelona match would have resulted in a number of heavy legs and it also claimed three victims, with Gallas and Fabregas out for the season and fears that Arshavin will also be joining them on the sidelines for the remainder of the campaign. With one eye on the return leg at the Nou Camp in a few days time, Wenger also elected to rest a few players with Denilson, Campbell, Rosicky, Walcott, Eduardo, Silvestre and Eboue all coming in to the side.

Arsenal started much the brighter of the two sides, and it was clear that Walcott was causing the Wolves all sorts of problems down the right. After only five minutes, Walcott cut down the right and squared to Eduardo, who saw his shot saved by a diving Hahnemann. A few minutes later Eduardo had another chance after a great piece of overlapping play between Rosicky and Walcott, with the former finding Eduardo unmarked in the middle of the box, but the Croatian fluffed his shot when he really should have scored.

Walcott again played the role of provider a few minutes later when he ran at the Wolves defence which opened up space for Sagna who collected the ball from Walcott but was denied by Hahnemann’s feet. From an Arsenal corner, Walcott then tried his luck at shooting when the ball fell to him, and he struck it well on the volley but Hahnemann held on to the ball well.

Arsenal continued to pour on the pressure in the second half and their first real chance fell to Eduardo. Sagna crossed from the right and Wolves defender Zubar headed the ball up in the air and Eduardo was first to the rebound but he could only manage to volley just wide. One of the turning points came about midway through the second half when Karl Hendry slid through the back of Rosicky and was shown a straight red card. It was a tough challenge but a red may have been a bit harsh. After shaking off the effects of the challenge, it was Rosicky that almost gave Arsenal the lead after a miss hit Walcott shot feel to Rosicky but again Hahnemann managed to keep it out.
Realising the importance of the match, Wenger made three offensive substitutions bringing on Bendtner, Nasri and Vela. As Arsenal continued to press forward it looked increasingly like it just wasn’t going to be Arsenal’s day. While the fourth official lifted 5 minutes of stoppage time, I think most people thought we had missed our big chance when Nasri put Walcott through but the speedy winger wasn’t able to set his feet and he pulled his shot wide. Then, in the fourth minute of stoppage time, Nasri passed the ball to Walcott on the right who then laid the ball back to Sagna who tossed in a fantastic cross and Bendtner was first to the ball to power a header into the back of the net. Cue mayhem at the Emirates. The next minute saw a couple half chances for Wolves, with Rosicky clearing off the line, and Arsenal blow a four on one, but the final whistle blew and Arsenal’s title hopes lived another day.

90′ [1 - 0] N. Bendtner

Player Ratings:
Almunia – 7
Not a lot for Almunia to do on the day, which I am sure he would have been happy about after his busy evening against Barcelona. He did have a few shaky passes, which frustrated the supporters. He will play a big role again at the Nou Camp.

Sagna – 7.5
I thought Sagna was very positive going forward today. He had a couple chances to get only his second goal in an Arsenal jersey and it was his fantastic cross to Bendtner which led to the winner. I think he is learning to play effectively with Walcott as the two of them linked up well all afternoon.

Vermaelen – 7.5
I think Vermaelen will become the real leader in the squad now that Fabregas is out. He performed his usual perfection on the defensive end and contributed to the pressure going forward as well.

Campbell – 7
Wolves clearly tried to isolate Campbell on a couple occasions to take advantage of his slower pace but Campbell did well. Overall he had a solid game and I suspect we may see him against Barcelona on Tuesday. It was great to see his passion after the Bendtner goal.

Silvestre – 7
Silvestre gave Clichy a rest on the left. He wasn’t really put under much pressure all afternoon. Showed a real piece of skill in the second half on the offensive end.

Eboue – 7.5
Eboue’s versatility really is a great asset for Arsenal. He slotted in the midfield today and his driving runs helped to open up space in the Wolves midfield. I think we will definitely see him start on Tuesday as we can use his defensive presence as well as his offensive creativity.

Song – 7
Strong and decisive as usual. He wasn’t required to do as much in a defensive midfield role as usual as Wolves only threatened on occasion.

Denilson – 7
A relatively efficient but quiet match from the Brazilian today. I think he knows that he will have to step up in the absence of Fabregas. His goal scoring threat can also be a big plus.

Walcott – 8 (Man of the Match)
Although it was probably a Man of the Match performance, it was a bit of a mixed bag from Walcott today. His pace and movement caused problems all afternoon. I only wish that Walcott could learn to be more effective with his final ball. A couple times this afternoon he made weaving and darting runs and then looked up to try and find a teammate cutting in but on too many occasions he just put his head down and ran towards the touchline before firing in an aimless cross towards nobody.

Rosicky – 7.5
I thought Rosicky was creative and lively today. He is so strong on the ball and holds off defenders well. He was subject to a couple heavy challenges so hopefully he is okay to play against Barcelona if called upon.

Eduardo – 6.5
Eduardo has really struggled so far this season. It is not for lack of heart but he had a couple really good chances today and just failed to really threaten. I unfortunately think he is lacking a bit of confidence right now but hopefully the goals will come.

Substitutes:
Bendtner – 8
Came on for Eboue. What a big goal by the big Dane. As frustrating as he can be at times, he does manage to score big goals for us and gives us an option in the air that we sorely do miss at times.

Nasri – 7.5
Came on for Song. Made a big difference when he came on and added some creativity. Should have had an assist when he found Walcott in extra time and his run helped to start the play that led to the Bendtner goal. I think he will need to have a big match against Barcelona.

Vela – 7
Came on for Eduardo. Vela looked sharp when he came on and he always looks to do something positive with the ball at his feet. Hopefully he will get more chances coming up with Arshavin likely out for a while.

Supporter’s Review:
There seemed to still be some exhaustion amongst the supporters following the rollercoaster ride against Barcelona, and I think most supporters were expecting Arsenal to easily deal with Wolves, even with a few changes in the squad. As the match progressed, the tension grew as it looked increasingly unlikely that Arsenal would find the back of the net. The big change this year is that supporters seem to try and rally the side rather than get on the backs of individual mistakes. When Bendtner’s header found the back of the net there was a mighty roar at the Emirates, which I think was among the loudest I have heard.

Manager’s Review:
Not for the first time this season, Arsene again had to change his squad both due to injuries and to rest some tired legs against the important match against Barcelona coming up midweek. I thought Arsene shuffled the team around today well and he used his substitutes well to bring in more offensive power when we were searching for that all important goal.

Even though Arsene would admit to the Barcelona match being very important, he also knew that anything but a win would almost definitely end Arsenal’s title hopes this year. “It keeps us in the title race, yes. First it was important to forget Barcelona for 24 hours and focus on today’s game, and that was not easy. But we did it well – I think we had a good focus. We were a bit jaded physically but we kept going and we were serious, we didn’t make a mistake at the back. In the end we got a deserved victory against a resilient Wolves team who had a great goalkeeper. At the end of the day we kept it late as with many times but overall we deserved to win the game.”

Conclusion/Final Thoughts:
It was another gritty performance by the side today which shows how much these players enjoy playing for the club and for each other. The passion on the bench and from the players on the pitch when Bendtner scored the late goal was fantastic to see. Despite the victory, the effects of the absence of Fabregas and Arshavin were clearly on show today in terms of the lack of composure and creativity around the box at times. The one advantage is that some of the other players, such as Walcott and Nasri, will now have a chance to step-up but they will all have to do their part if we continue to push this season.

While a draw in the Chelsea and Manchester United game would have been the ideal result, a Chelsea victory, which was what happened, was clearly the second best option because Arsenal are now a point back of United and three back of Chelsea, although Chelsea have a much better goal difference. There are some tough matches remaining for all the clubs so anything can still happen. The spirit is definitely there with the players but you have to worry about all the injuries.

Next up is the return leg of the Champions League at the Nou Camp. Arsenal definitely goes into the match as underdogs, but I think the players can respond. Come on you Gooners; we believe!

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