Stoke City 1 Arsenal 1

Asked if the draw against Chelsea was a point gained or two points dropped after the London derby last weekend, Arsene Wenger answered that it could only be found out at the end of the season. Is the draw against Stoke a point earned or two points dropped? Thanks to Newcastle's heavy defeat at Wigan, the point kept us in control of our fate. If we win the remaining two games, we can still secure third place regardless of other results.

We needed all three points to consolidate our place for a top-three finish, which has more significance after Chelsea had sealed their place in this season's Champions League final. However, games at the Britannia Stadium have always been tough, as the stats (P4, W1, L3) showed, while other big clubs also dropped here this season. Although the run of three games without win hurts, a point from the Britannia Stadium may not be too bad. Certainly it could have been worse, especially considering the fact that we were 1-0 down just in 9 minutes.

There are positives to take from this game. Firstly, RVP scored his 28th goal of the season to extend the gap to Wayne Rooney on the top scorers table. More importantly for the team, it was his first goal from open play in seven games.

Secondly, our performance in the first half was quite encouraging after the lacklustre display in the last two games. We saw Arsenal's trademark one-touch passing and the game was entertaining with high tempo, intensity and commitment. When Vermaelen said prior to the match that the team's focus would be on playing their own game with quick passing, we doubted if Stoke would allow it. It was a pleasant surprise that Stoke was more open than expected, certainly a lot more open than Wigan and Chelsea were in our last two games. During our attacking spells in the first half, we created a lot of chances with a number of good inventive ideas and link-up play. This was refreshing after the last two matches, in which Arsenal's attack appeared to have lacked cohesion.

Thirdly, we showed our resilience again. Stoke's early goal didn't damp our spirits. Within just 6 minutes of conceding the goal, we got a deserved equaliser, ending the first half in ascendancy.

Also, our defence didn't look intimidated by a physical Stoke side, looking solid in set-pieces.

However, despite all the encouraging signs in the first half, our second-half performance was rather disappointing. We couldn't maintain the tempo and intensity we demonstrated in the first half. Also, our players made things too complicated unnecessarily both offensively and defensively. They passed around or tried little one-twos, when they should have simply taken a shot. On the defensive side, they tried to do too much with the ball in the dangerous area, when they needed a straightforward clearance.

An interesting fact is our passing success rate was a mere 79.8%, well below our average of around 84%, despite their flowing football in the first half. Is this the result of the contrastingly sluggish second half performance? Incidentally, our overall possession was 62.9%.

We felt Stoke fans' jeers at Aaron Ramsey unacceptable. He was the victim of a horrendous tackle, which could have ended his professional career and certainly put his career back by two years. Any football fan should only be pleased to see a player, who has overcome such a horrific injury, back on the pitch, playing as if nothing had happened on the very same ground. We are glad that Alan Hansen condemned Stoke fans' behaviour on the Match of the Day. They should be ashamed of themselves.

Talking about Aaron Ramsey, how wrong we were about team selections. After Arsene Wenger had ruled out Abou Diaby from the starting line-up due to his illness during the week, Ramsey's inclusion in the starting XI was widely expected. Actually, this turned out to be one of Ramsey's better games. He upped the tempo of his passing in line with the rest of the team and showed his commitment in tackles, which was brave of him, considering what happened here two years ago. As Rosicky emphasised the importance of the balance in midfield before the match, he and Ramsey shared attacking and defensive responsibilities very well. Upon the introduction of Diaby in Ramsey's place, which was probably written in the script before the kick-off, the tempo of the game seemed to have dropped. At this moment in time, improved Ramsey appears to be a better option as Arteta's replacement than rusty Diaby.

We were not happy with Wenger's decision not to bring on Oxlade-Chamberlain. The Frenchman might have relied on the experience of older players in such a tight game, but we want to see more of the promising 18 year-old.

The next two fixtures will be absolutely must-win games for us to secure third place. With the trickiest game of our run-in now out of the way, let's hope that our players will get the job done. It would be nice if RVP can add more goals to his tally and maintain his position at the top of the Prem top scorers table in that process.

Player ratings

Szczezny: 7
He looked solid after conceding the early goal. Made a good reflex save of Jerome's powerful shot.

Sagna: 7
Although he was guilty for Stoke's goal by allowing Etherington a space to put in a cross, his performance was solid otherwise. Made a crucial clearance just a couple of yards off the line. He also put in an excellent cross, which Gervinho's famous forehead failed to make a contact with.

Koscielny: 7
Solid.

Vermaelen: 7
Solid.

Gibbs: 7
Often involved in attacking, going forward. We were worried that he might be caught out, but he was quick enough to get back.

Rosicky: 8
Our Man of the Match. Delivered a few brilliant crosses, one of which set up RVP's goal.

Ramsey: 6
His decisions to have a shot were good, but his finishes left much to be desired.

Song: 7
Covered the back-four very well, while dominating in midfield.

Gervinho: 6
Missed a couple of glorious chances. His adaptation progress is agonisingly slow. He was a regular starter and looked to be becoming an integral part of the team before the African Cup of Nations, which hampered his progress largely.

Benayoun: 7
Had some chances and made good runs to get in dangerous positions. His link-up play with Rosicky was a part of the build-up to RVP's goal.

van Persie: 7
Back in some form. Scored a winner. Unlucky not to score a goal, when his header was denied by Begovic's fine save.

Subs

Diaby: 5
73rd-minute substitute for Ramsey. He still looked rusty.

Chamakh: 5
Came on the pitch in the 78th minute to replace Gervinho. He did a good job of holding the ball against physical Stoke defenders, but unfortunately that was all he did.

Santos: 5

83rd-minute substitute for Benayoun.

Referee

Chris Foy: 4
He was poor on the following three key moments: (1) Benayoun should have had a penalty, (2) a free-kick should have been given just outside of the box, when a Stoke player forming the wall handballed Vermaelen's free-kick, and (3) Whitehead should have been given a yellow card, which would have seen him sent off, after Christ Foy had played advantage.

Arsenal 0 Chelsea 0

Under the normal circumstances, a draw against Chelsea wouldn't have been too bad, but Saturday's result was disappointing for a couple of reasons: (1) we should have been able to beat a weakened Chelsea side and (2) all three points would have cemented our position for a top-three finish.

Not just the result, but our performance was frustrating as well. Again, too many players were not at their best. Arsenal started the game in a cagey way. Passing was negative, going either backwards or sideways, and the pace was slow. After the defeat by Wigan, their aim seemed to have been not to concede an early goal rather than to score one. Apart from the last five minutes of the first half, we never found our rhythm. However, overall, we had better chances, hitting the woodwork twice and dominated the game with 56.7% possession. Unfortunately, both sides lacked quality in the final third on Saturday (I cannot believe I said this with RVP playing upfront) and it wasn't an exciting game.

We are surprised to hear that Wenger had expected an open game, based on his assumption that Chelsea wanted to win as much as Arsenal did. It was widely known that Roberto Di Matteo would be resting a few key players with the priority given to the Champions League and Drogba was reportedly injured (Surprise, surprise. He is now fit for Tuesday night's clash with Barcelona). It was obvious that Chelsea would park the bus in front of goal and look to attack on the break, just like they did and will do against Barcelona.

We were not happy with Wenger's decision to replace Rosicky at the time as he looked the only person that could offer a creative spark. However, after the match Wenger revealed that the Czech Republic national team captain woke up sick that morning and played through illness. Wenger had no choice but take him off as the midfielder conceded at one stage that he could not run any more.

Another talking point among the fans is once again the inclusion of Ramsey in the starting line-up. He was often caught in possession as he tended to dwell on the ball too long. Obviously he wasn't comfortable playing in Arteta's place.  However, we have to admit that he worked hard to track back and win the ball back. He played better later when he moved to a more advanced position after Diaby's introduction. Ramsey is so out of form. To keep playing him out of position does not seem to do him and his confidence any good at the moment. As soon as Diaby or Coquelin has regained their full fitness, they should take Arteta's place, with Ramsey used as a sub for Rosicky.

On the more positive note, our defenders, particularly Koscielny, played well. He is easily our Man of the Match. Keeping a clean sheet was one of few positive results coming out of this game.

The gap to the fourth-placed Newcastle has now diminished to only three points and we have played a game more, which means we have to keep an eye on other results, as well as winning all the remaining three games (Wenger reckons we need to win at least two). However, with Newcastle still to play against Manchester City, depending how the title race pans out after next week's Manchester derby, there is a strong chance of Newcastle dropping points. Also, Newcastle and Chelsea will have to play each other. Great news over the weekend was Tottenham's loss to QPR, which meant the gap to the north London rivals slightly extended to six points. In this context, a point taken from Saturday's Chelsea clash may look more like a point gained rather than two points dropped.

Our next game is against evil Stoke, whose sole mission is to stop their opposition playing football (What's the point of having Stoke in football?). We have failed to break down the stubborn opposition defence in three games (against QPR, Wigan and Chelsea) recently and haven't been at our best for the last two games, which is a worry. Wenger told his team to relax and play their football, but Stoke will do everything to stop us playing our football without doubt. Although the next game is unlikely to be an exciting one, we just have to get the result we want this time.

Player ratings

Szczezny: 7
With Chelsea registering only two shots on target and their finishes not clinical enough to threaten our goal, he had little to do, but he was pretty solid.

Sagna: 7
Solid.

Koscielny: 8
Impressive performance. His tackle to deny Sturridge's shot was well timed and proved to be crucial.

Vermaelen: 7
Solid.

Gibbs: 7
Worked hard, going forward and as well as coping with Chelsea's counter attacks.

Rosicky: 7
He was the only player that could offer some creativity. Replaced by Diaby due to illness in the 65th minute. Hope he can recover by the next game.

Ramsey: 5
This was his 100th game for Arsenal. Considering the fact that he spent 10 months on the sidelines and he is only 21 years old, it is impressive, indicating Arsene Wenger's faith in him. He scored 9 goals in 100 games (to put it another way, during the course of his 100 appearances for Arsenal, nine unfortunate celebs have died).

Song: 6
He battled hard and won the ball only to give it away. His defensive display was impressive, but his passing let him down.

Walcott: 5
Replaced in the 60th minute. Apparently, it was him who insisted to stay on after he sustained a hamstring injury. His season for Arsenal is almost certainly over. Losing a player at this stage of the season is always a blow without doubt, but not as big a blow as the loss of Arteta. He has been very inconsistent of late and we have the Ox, Gervinho and Benayoun (and Santos as seen in this game) as wingers.

Oxlade-Chamberlain: 5
Made occasional runs, one of which led to a free-kick, but other than them, he was almost anonymous.

van Persie: 5
Hasn't scored from open play for 7 games. After scoring against Wolves for the first time in four games, he stated that the goal "drought" hadn't bothered him at all because he believed that goals would eventually come as he had had chances to score during those four games. Now it is a worry that he cannot score when he has chances. In this game, he had a few chances to score, which he would have buried a few weeks ago. With his chief assist provider, Walcott, now sidelined, RVP's goal scoring form is in serious doubt. Wayne Rooney has closed the gap on the top scorer table to just a goal after his double strikes this weekend. Hopefully, RVP will add more to his goal tally and end the season as the Premier League's top scorer.

Subs

Gervinho: 6
60th-minute substitute for Walcott. Made an impact when he came on. Some good link-up play with RVP.

Diaby: 5

Came on in the 67th minute for Rosicky. His display appeared to be somewhat rusty. He was booked and some of his passes were poor. Hopefully, he will step up his game over the next three games and fill the void Arteta left. 

Santos: 6

Made an impact, by making runs on the flank.

Referee

Mike Dean: 4
He brandished too many yellow cards. We should have been given a penalty for Cahill's push on RVP in the box.

2012 End-of-the Season Beach Party

We have made the front page of the Post newspaper.

Please click on the photo below to enlarge the image

Alternatively, you can read the article on the Post website.

Arsenal 1 Wigan Athletic 2

With the defeat at Loftus Road still fresh in our memory, it is easy to compare this game with it. Both opponents are fighting for survival. The scoreline was the same. They took a lead as a result of our defensive errors. However, we think Arsenal actually played better this night than in the QPR game, but Wigan played better than QPR and us.

Obviously, the most damaging factor behind the loss was the two early goals conceded within a minute of each other. They were the result of a series of mistakes. The build-up to the first goal started with RVP's poor corner. Wigan's clearance was then met by Sagna's loose header, on which Wigan did not fail to take advantage. Arsenal defenders, who were high on the pitch, ready to receive the corner, were totally caught out of position. Arteta may have been the deepest player on the pitch, but he could not even walk, signalling for a substitution. Szczesny made a right decision to come forward to the edge of the box, but he was beaten to the ball.

Sagna was unable to stop Moses from crossing for the second goal. Djourou did nothing to prevent McCarthy stubbing a shot, which Szczesny failed to gather and allowed Gomez to tuck the ball into the net.

These mistakes were "horrendous" according to Arsene Wenger, but we were also unlucky because during these minutes we suddenly found ourselves playing with 10 men after Arteta had succumbed to injury. We didn't see the incident in which Arteta sustained an ankle injury, but the subsequent events, including two goals, happened so quickly that we didn't even realise Arsenal were one-man down until the camera showed Arteta having a treatment off the pitch.

The early two goals had a detrimental effect on the deat without doubt, but we should still have been able to outscore Wigan. We think the real decisive factor lied in our attack.

We started the game very well, but Arteta's injury changed everything. In the post-match interview, Wenger explained that Ramsey wasn't ready when Arteta took himself off the pitch and as a result, the team had to play with 10 men much longer than they had liked. Ultimately, it cost us dearly.

Being a natural central midfielder, Ramsey was an obvious choice for Arteta's replacement, especially with the urgent nature of the substitution, but he is an attack-minded central midfielder and often plays in a more advanced position. He was hardly an ideal replacement for Arteta. In fact, he didn't seem to understand his role. The Welshman didn't possess Arteta's fluency and accuracy in distribution. Perhaps he played his usual role, but that upset the balance of the team set-up.

If you remember how well Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain played in midfield against AC Milan alongside Rosicky and Song when we had mini midfielder crisis, he could have been an interesting option instead of Ramsey, but we would never know.

We still looked to be able to win the game or at least take a point at the end of the first half, especially just after Vermaelen scored a goal. We created enough chances to score another goal and had momentum to do so. The team's desire to win the game was embodied by Vermaelen. At the same time, Wigan's defence showed a gaping gap we could have capitalised on. After the break, we had very bright moments and could have scored an equaliser, but it was jut not our night. How Satos' deflected shot missed RVP and then went through between Walcott's legs is beyond our belief. Wigan had tightened up their defence afterwards.

It's always disappointing and disheartening to see our team outplayed by the opponents. We don't think we lacked urgency. Wigan just defended so well that we could not get through their defensive wall. Too many Arsenal players were below-par to beat a good Wigan side as well.

We would like to mention the referee's appalling decisions. They were inconsistent and even one-sided. He blew the whistle so often he interrupted the flow of the game, especially when Wigan players went down. On the other hand, he didn't even give us a free kick against Figueroa's challenge on Walcott, even though it was clear that the Wigan defender made no attempt for the ball. Also, Andre Marriner took too long to penalise Al Habsi and Wigan for time-wasting. Such behaviours should have been stopped much earlier as they had started it in the first half.

Arsene Wenger called the defeat by QPR "an accident" and we have seen how Arsenal responded to it in the Manchester City game. Hopefully, we will see a similar kind of reaction this time around in the Chelsea clash on Saturday. We have Koscielny back from suspension, which is a massive plus. Although Arteta's injury seems to be serious and he could be sidelined for quite some time, fortunately, Diaby and Coquelin started full training this week. They should present more suitable options as Arteta's cover than Ramsey. Although it sounds a little feeble just after the home defeat, we are still on a decent home form. We always play better against top teams than lower-table clubs.

Obviously the loss to Wigan is a big blow for our bid for third place as we were looking to cement our position by extending the gap to Tottenham and Newcastle to eight points. We are still five points ahead of them, having played a game more. Yet, a top-three finish is still in our hands.

We have to see how Chelsea's Champions League game against Barcelona on Wednesday turns out and how it affects Saturday's league game physically and mentally. Let's hope the mid-week game will take some energy and sharpness out of the Blues for Saturday, but the result will be just good enough to keep their hopes alive for the second leg so that they may be tempted to rest some key players against us ahead of next Tuesday's clash with Barcelona.

Player ratings

Szczezny: 5
He could have done more to stop Wigan's second goal. Made a good save to stop the game going beyond our reach.

Sagna: 5
He had trouble coping with Moses all night.

Djourou: 4
Unconvincing defensive performance. Nearly scored, though.

Vermaelen: 7
He showed his determination to win. Scored his sixth goal of the season. Not a bad record for a defender who missed two months of the season.

Santos: 5
Typical Brazilian defender's performance. Good going forward, not reliable defensively.

Rosicky: 7
He was all over the pitch in the first half. Set up Vermaelen's goal via a brilliant cross. Faded in the latter stages of the second half.

Arteta: N/A
Suffered an ankle injury early and was replaced in the 8th minute by Ramsey. If he was rated by the impact he could have made had he stayed on the pitch, it could be 8. His impact on the team was obvious by his absense. He could have kept the whole team together by keeping the shape. He was sorely missed.

Song: 6
Tried those incisive passes of his with no success. Played a central defensive role after the Ox replaced Djourou in the 74th minute. Not at his best.

Walcott: 5
Very quiet. Couldn't get behind Wigan defenders.

Benayoun: 7
Made two very good headers, which forced two excellent saves from Al Habsi.

van Persie: 6
Not his best game. He fired a powerful long-range drive, which was a good effort, but too straight at the keeper. Although his goal drought ended in the last game, it is a worry that he seems to have lost his magical touch which have saved us from dropping points a quite few times this season.

Subs

Ramsey: 5
There is a superstition or conspiracy theory, whatever you call it, going around among some Arsenal fans. When Ramsey scores a goal, a famous person dies within a couple of days. Apparently, those famous people include Osama Bin Laden, Michael Jackson, and Whitney Houston. Whether they are major celebs or minor ones, sadly people die everyday whether Ramsey scores or not. With the latest news about the health of a certain pop legend grabbing the headlines for the last couple of days, it wasn't too difficult to imagine what those fans would have said if Ramsey had scored on this night. Fortunately for the pop legend, and unfortunately for Arsenal, Ramsey didn't score.

Gervinho: 5

60th-minute replacement for Benayoun. Had a quiet game. He didn't have cohesion with the rest of the team, but in the latter stages of the second half, none of Arsenal players seemed to have it, as Arsene Wenger described it as "we dropped our level, lost our team play, our cohesion and tried too much individually".

Oxlade-Chamberlain: 5

Made a good run, but could not get through Wigan's defence.

Referee

Andre Marriner: 4

Poor.

Wolverhampton Wanderers 0 Arsenal 3

Despite what the scoreline might suggest, we felt that it wasn't one of Arsenal's best performances. We were disappointed because after we watched Arsenal commit themselves in the whole 90 minutes and put in an impressive performance against Manchester City, we expected a similar display this night. With two goals inside 11 minutes and a numerical advantage, we were looking forward to goals galore. One may say that Arsenal controlled the game, but at Las Mimosas bar, we didn't feel totally comfortable until Yossi Benayoun scored the third goal to seal the victory in the 69th minute as Wolves threatened our goal. If their finishes were more clinical and had it not been for Szczesny's two brilliant saves, we could have ended up surrendering a 2-0 lead. It was disappointing to see Arsenal taking their foot off the gas when they could have pushed further to score more goals.

However, the more important thing than the performance was the result. After the costly lessons learned from the defeat by QPR, there was no sign of complacency seen in Arsenal's performance. They started brightly and executed the game plan (i.e., getting an early goal) precisely. Three points put us firmly on course for a top-three finish, opening up the gap to Tottenham to five points.

There is a discrepancy in possession rates. BBC believes the Wolves/Arsenal possession split was 50:50, while Sky Sports thinks it was 28.1% against 71.9%. We feel that Sky Sports figures are more credible. According to Sky Sports, Arsenal's passes totalled 828, a whopping 90.1% of which were successfully completed. Perhaps based on these stats, most of the media seemed to have rated Arsenal's performance as solid.

There were some positives from this game which looked like one of Arsenal's routine wins. Arsenal claimed the fourth clean sheet in five games. As Koscielny started a two-match ban, Djourou came in in his place to form a central defensive partnership with Vermaelen, which worried us prior to the match. With another game left for Koscielny to serve his suspension for, a clean sheet was encouraging for our back-four.

RVP's goal drought ended after 444 minutes of the Premier League games, which was a relief, but without a goal from our goal-scoring machine, we have managed to win three games—not bad for a so-called one-man team. His first goal in five games also marked a goal against a 17th different opponent out of 19 Prem sides this season. Only three players, including our own Ian Wright, had achieved this remarkable feat before him. He could have established a new record if he had scored a goal against Manchester City on Sunday.

In-form Wigan awaits us in the next fixture. Some may say that it is a bad time to face them on the back of their defeat of Manchester United and their spirited performance against Chelsea. However, Man U's defeat is likely to serve as a warning for us. It is a good example to show that anything could happen in football and how important it is to keep producing a consistent performance till the end of the season. One slip-up can suddenly change the whole picture of the title race. The same thing can happen to the top-four finish battle. We need all our players to play at their potential in the next game.

If we beat Wigan on Monday night, we will be 8 point clear of Tottenham before they play their next Premier League game on Saturday 21 April or the gap could be as massive as 12 points if we beat Chelsea earlier on that day. It will put a huge pressure on the top-four finish rivals. But let's look at only one step ahead each time.

Player ratings

Szczezny: 8
Made two excellent saves. Especially, the one that denied Kevin Doyle's close-range header was out of this world. Wenger praised the young keeper for his alertness.

Sagna: 7
His crossing was not at its best this night, but a reliable display by our most consistant player.

Djourou: 7
A few clearances were dubious, but he did his job OK.

Vermaelen: 7
Solid.

Santos: 6
Lost his mark a few times.

Ramsey: 6
Missed a few good goal-scoring chances.

Arteta: 8
Dominated the midfield.

Song: 8
Provided an assist for Benayoun by cutting the ball back, after latching onto RVP's pass.

Walcott: 8
He used his pace well and posed a threat to Wolves defenders all night. Earned a penalty and scored a goal.

Benayoun: 8
He was always in a dangerous position. A well-taken goal from the edge of the box.

van Persie: 8
It was an untypical penalty for him, who usually smashes the ball into the back of the net. It is nice to see him try something new. It was a very cool penalty. Played good one-twos with Walcott: one that led to the penalty and the other that set up Walcott's goal.

Subs

Oxlade-Chamberlain: 6

76th-minute substitute for Walcott. Made little impact.

Jenkinson: 5

Replaced Sagna in the 84th minute. Jenkinson's involvement was somewhat expected as we had heard Sagna was doubful. We were saying that we didn't mind him before the match, but we weren't very impressed with how much space he allowed Wolves players to have in and around the box at times. Perhaps he needs more playing time.

Referee

Neil Swarbrick: 5

Apparently this was the young referee's 10th Premier League game and the first Arsenal match to take charge of (no wonder he didn't look familiar to us). His penalty decision was spot-on, but even for us, Arsenal fans, the sending-off of Bassong looked too harsh.

Arsenal 1 Manchester City 0

This game presented Arsenal a perfect opportunity to demonstrate how they could respond to the previous week's disappointing defeat to QPR and they did it in an impeccable fashion. Arsenal kept their concentration and urgency almost through the entire game. This match didn't turn out to be a goal fest as RVP expected (in the Arsenal matchday programme, he wrote it might end up 5-5!), but it was a quick and intense game. Overall, it was a very good match from the Gooners' point of view. In a way, I was a little bit disappointed as a football fan, as Manchester City's attack was toothless. It could have been a more competitive and better game, but all credit should go to the Arsenal players, who kept the possession well with complete determination and commitment and didn't let City play their football.

All stats showed that it was Arsenal's comprehensive victory, despite what the scoreline might suggest. We had a 64.3% overall possession, 5 shots on target vís-a-vís City's none and an 81.6% passing success rate (slightly lower than Arsenal's average) against City's 74.9%. If all the chances that we had had been converted, it could have been a goal fest as RVP predicted, albeit lopsided.

Luck looked like a more likely spoiler for us rather than Man City's attacking players, when RVP and Theo hit the woodwork and Vermaelen inadvertently cleared RVP's goalbound header off the line. No such luck as Manchester United and Chelsea enjoyed earlier this weekend came our way. Man U, Chelsea, and Arsenal all had offside goals, including Chelsea's both goals against Wigan, but ironically enough, the closest of all was disallowed, while the blatant ones stood. However, this resilient Arsenal had already gone to win the games from similar situations quite a few times. And they kept going until the final whistle was blown. Even after they scored the precious goal, they didn't take foot off the gas.

City's dashed title hopes and Balotelli's behaviour dominated the headlines, but here we focus on Arsenal's performance. We totally outplayed an expensively assembled City side in all departments. Especially our midfield excelled. The ultimate goal came from Arteta's solo effort, but all the players worked hard and produced an inspired performance as a team, which made a difference from a Manchester City side on that day.

There was just one change in the starting XI from the side that faced QPR. Benayoun came in for Ramsey. Although I disagree with the aggressive criticism targeted by many fans at Ramsey, I thought Benayoun should have been considered as a starter against QPR in Ramsey's place as he has often played on the left flank (certainly more often than Ramsey) and can be relied on defensively. After his gutsy performance against Tottenham, he deserved another start.

When Arsenal had finally found the net through Arteta's exquisite strike, Las Mimosas bar, our usual venue, erupted in cheers, followed by "1-0 to the Arsenal" and other Arsenal songs. It was just like being at the Emirates. We were looking for the figures of our members on the TV screen, who were actually at the Emirates on that day. They must have thoroughly enjoyed their opportunity to watch one of Arsenal's greatest performances this season first hand.

We have the last mid-week fixture of the season on Wednesday, facing a struggling Wolves side. With 6 games remaining and our sights firmly set on third place (i.e., an automatic Champions League qualification spot) and finishing above Tottenham, we cannot afford to repeat such a below-par performance as seen against QPR. We look forward to another excellent display on Wednesday night.

Player ratings

Szczezny: 7
Some poor distribution, but his decision was spot-on when he dashed out of his area to kicked the ball out of Balotelli's path. Made a fine save of Aguero's close-range effort. With Man City registering no shot on target, he had a relatively quiet afternoon in comparison with Joe Hart at the other end of the pitch.

Sagna: 8
Defended bravely despite two nasty challenges by Balotteli.

Koscielny: 8
Solid. Along with Vermaelen, he kept Balotelli and Aguero quiet throughout the game. The 10th yellow card of the season he picked up this afternoon means he will be suspended over the next two games against Wolves and Wigan, which is most inconvenient for us. We would probably have to do with Djourou for those two games. The only consolation is that Koscielny will be available for the big London derby in two weeks' time.

Vermaelen: 8
Solid. Didn't put a foot wrong defensively in this game. Missed a great chance to score.

Gibbs: 7
His crosses were disappointing on this day. Replaced by Santos in the 56th minute.

Rosicky: 8
Maintained his excellent form.

Arteta: 9
"One of Arsene Wenger's August panic buys" showed his class through his sublime shot, which followed a deft interception and a wonderful run.

Song: 8
Carried on after Balotell's dreadful challenge and battled hard as usual. His lofted pass which is becoming his trademark this season, found unmarked RVP, whose header unfortunately hit the base of the post.

Walcott: 6
Had a quiet game.

Benayoun: 8
Missed a few glorious chances, but got involved in most of attacking moves. Made an important block in the box as well.

van Persie: 8
Unlucky not to score. His effort was denied by the woodwork for the seventh time this season. Stats show that he is the second unluckiest player to hit the woodwork most often after Suarez in the Premier League this season.

Subs

Santos: 7
56th-minute substitute for Gibbs. Did his job, but it was a bit disappointing that he wasn't as effective going forward as expected. Made little difference to Gibbs, hence the same rating as Gibbs'.

Ramsey: 6

Replaced Benayoun in the 78th minute. Some compare him with Chelsea's Sturridge in terms of selfishness in front of goal, but it's unwarranted. So far Ramsey's decisions whether to pass or have a shot haven't been wrong. If any, he is guilty of not having a shot like the other Arsenal players. His problem is composure in front of goal and clinical finishing, which he is fully aware of. That said, in this game, he may have made a mistake to take a shot himself, when RVP was screaming for the ball in the middle of the box. Did he know that RVP could have been the fourth player to score 17 different Prem clubs in a season if he had scored against Man City? (This can be still achieved if RVP scores against Wolves) On the other hand, he could have justified his decision if his finish had been more clinical. However, people tend to forget that he is only a 21 years-old whose progress was severely hampered by a horrific injury and yet to have a full season as an Arsenal first-teamer. There is no doubt about his talent and potential, if you look at his goals before the injury and his movement this season. He wasn't made Wales captain before Gareth Bale for no reason. It is too soon to say that we should sell him.

Oxlade-Chamberlain: 6

Came on the pitch in the 86th minute for Walcott. Too little time to make an impact.

QPR 2 Arsenal 1

Arsene Wenger's post-match analysis summed up the game: "It is very frustrating because they left us the ball and waited for our mistakes. We took the ball, did not do a lot with it and made the mistakes. At the end of the day that made the result." We had plenty of the ball (with a 67.6% overall possession), but we didn't do very much with it. Especially, watching Arsenal pass around away from the box was very frustrating.

As Arsene Wenger said, it is difficult to single out any reason behind his side's poor performance. It is still a mystery to us why this team played so badly against AC Milan in the first leg and Sunderland a few days after that in the FA Cup tie. However, we try to discuss what may have been behind Saturday's below-par display.

We felt that the players didn't look like they wanted it and Wenger seemed to agree with us by admitting that his side lacked commitment. However, it is difficult to put a finger on what was the exact reason behind it. Going into this match, Wenger refused to kindle the media notion of his side being favourite for finishing third or envisage the possibility of overtaking Manchester City. He was fully aware of the difficulty of facing a side battling for survival in the top-flight football. He may have thought he had prepared his team properly for this game, but players did not seem to be quite as focused on this game as their manager was. In his later interview, Wenger admitted "Maybe we sensed it would be easier than usual and once you have that in your heads it is difficult to come back to reality." So, complacency may be the culprit.

The players had had a week break since the last match, including two days off from training. Fatigue and heavy legs were no longer excuses. Instead, now the gruelling schedule including mid-week fixtures is behind them, the week-off might have taken the edge of their competitive spirit.

We are a bit surprised to read Wenger's post-match interview because he didn't blame the pitch. We were arguing that probably the narrow pitch helped QPR keep their defence compact and led to our players struggling with judgement on long passes, a few of which went astray. However, asked about the pitch in his post-match interview, Arsene answered that the pitch is not smaller than any other pitch, although he acknowledged that the pitch was bad. We saw our players slip quite a few times, including Vermaelen's unfortunate one that led to QPR's second goal. However, Wenger did not blame anything else other than his side's disappointing performance for the loss, which was refreshing and good to see.

There were two changes to the starting XI from the last game. Fit again Koscielny came in for Djourou, which was great news for us. The other change was Ramsey in place of Gervinho. Wenger seemed to have expected the same kind of game as at Goodison Park and relied on the central midfielder's all-round, defensive in particular, capability rather than the winger's pace. Some criticise Wenger's decision but we can see his intention. The difference from the Everton game was that we made mistakes and were punished for them.

However, what we couldn't understand was the reason Arteta was subbed. In our view, he was Arsenal's best player on the afternoon. Every ball went through him just like when Fabregas was playing. He was the hub of the team. We understand Arsene desperately wanted to add more attacking power in the shape of Oxlade-Chamberlain at 2-1 down with 9 minutes left to the end of normal time, but he should not have done that at the expense of Arteta. When we won a free kick on the left-hand side a few yards outside the box in stoppage time, how much we missed Arteta on the pitch!

We don't know which hurts us more, the result or the performance. The result was a big blow as it has ended our fantastic run of wins and the league table has suddenly started looking very tight around us, with Chelsea, Newcastle, and Tottenham all bagging three points and narrowing the gap. Saturday's performance crashed our belief in the consistency that the team have built up over the recent months. Let's hope it was just an off-day and it will not happen again for the rest of the season.

We shouldn't overreact to the defeat. Yes, our performance was disappointing because we know by now that our players have qualities to beat any team when they play to their full capacity. We wouldn't say that we deserved a win because we were the second best side, but we don't think we played as badly as some fans slag off. In fact, we were quite confident at half time that we would be able to win this game just like we had done four times in a row recently. The way Arsenal finished the first half, with Theo's equaliser from seven minutes from the break, was promising. Unfortunately, the second half didn't really pan out as we hoped. It is silly to speak doom and gloom now. These things happen and with seven games left to play, maybe it's better to happen now than later. Hopefully, the players have learned how important it is to commit themselves to each game.

The next game is a massive one against second in the table, Manchester City. We have been producing better performance against top five/six this season and our home form is fairly decent with only two league losses to Liverpool and Manchester United (on both occasions, we were unlucky), while Manchester City's away form is on the patchy side. Hopefully, all the players will be well prepared for and fully focused on this big game.

Player ratings

Szczezny: 6
Many seem to believe he had little to do with QPR's two goals, but he didn't even move for the second one. He didn't leave the line to claim the ball in order to make his defenders life easier. He is a good stopper, but he needs to dominate in his area.

Sagna: 7
Maybe not his best game, but he was still a consistent player.

Koscielny: 8
Did a hard job reasonably well alongside hapless Vermaelen.

Vermaelen: 5
Had a terrible game.

Gibbs: 7
Although our left-hand flank was exposed a few times, he did OK. He went close to score his second league goal in a row with a header, which went just past the far post.

Rosicky: 7
Nearly set up a goal for RVP. Made a good effort for a goal.

Arteta: 8
He had a tough treatment by QPR players, but battled for the ball bravely.

Song: 7
Unlucky with some passes, each of which could have been one of those killer passes of his, with a fraction of difference in weight (This is the example of what we are talking about by "we didn't play that bad"). His vision was good.

Walcott: 8
Scored the equaliser. Made some good movement, but we don't think he was as effective as he should have been.

Ramsey: 6
He was taken off in the 69th minute for Gervinho, but we believe that it was part of the game plan.

van Persie: 7
He wasn't given much space and under such circumstances, he sometimes dropped a bit to play other players in. He made a beautiful move to prod Walcott into space just inside the box. Unlucky not to score from the one-on-one situation with Paddy Kenny, who denied RVP's chance with a brilliant save. Our worry is that he hasn't scored for three games. Has he gone off the boil? As Rooney has crept up in the top-scorer table of late, we hope he will start scoring goals again, although goals coming from other areas are welcome.

Subs

Gervinho: 6
69th-minute substitute for Ramsey. Made little impact.

Oxlade-Chamberlian: 7

Replaced Arteta in the 81st minute. Lively. Earned a free-kick in the dangerous position.

Chamakh: 5

Came on the pitch in the 82nd minute for Gibbs. Santos might have been more of a goal threat to QPR than him. Poor substitution. His first contribution was to give away the ball (this was the same as Santos last week, though). He is clueless as to where to play or which space to go into. Although we appreciate that he saved the first half of our season last season when RVP was injured, unfortunately, there is no space for him in this team.

Arsenal 3 Aston Villa 0

We arrived at Las Mimosas earlier than usual in order to catch the latter stages of the Chelsea-Tottenham match, thinking which result would be ideal for us: Chelsea beating Tottenham to ensure we finish above Tottenham, Tottenham beating Chelsea to dent Chelsea's hopes of a top four finish, or draw so that both of our nearest rivals in the table drop two points? All of these were based on the assumption that we would win our game later on. In the end, Chelsea and Tottenham played out a goalless draw, which suited us fine.

Arteta's post-match interview for BBC gave us an impression that the players were aware of the result of the early game and perhaps they thought three points would do just the job. Arsenal's controlled second-half performance, which seemed to be a little bit flat at the same time, probably came from this notion. After difficult periods that they have been through this season, they seem to be more focused on results rather than the style. They have probably learned how results can affect confidence through experience. We used to play beautiful football, but could not get results.

Koscielny's absence from the starting line-up was a big mystery to us as the settled back-five's performance has been impressive recently and up till Saturday morning there was no news of fresh injuries. According to Arsene Wenger's post-match interview, Koscielny had tendinitis in his knee when he woke up in the morning. He tried the warm-up, but he couldn't carry on because of pain. Let's hope it is not too bad.

Djourou filled the void Koscielny had left in the central defence, which was much of our worry. To make it worse, even the stand-in Djourou suffered an early knock. There was no recognised center-back on the bench and using a substitution this early is always a disadvantage. However, our mood quickly changed at Las Mimosas bar as Arsenal got into the rhythm of their free-flowing attacking football.

We are very pleased to see goals come from the players who have been the subjects of criticisms. Gibbs, whose positional sense has been constantly criticised, showed how he can be an attacking threat to the opponents. Walcott, whose decisions in the final third have been questioned, took the goal very well with great control, composure and precision. Then, the third goal came from Arteta's free-kick. He has been doing a great job for Arsenal as a midfielder linking defence and attacking, but his set-pieces have been rather disappointing this season. In his post-match interview, the Spaniard said "I used to be good at it". Yes, we remember some of your great free-kicks for Everton, Mikel. We are glad to see such a sublime free-kick by him again, this time in an Arsenal shirt. This goal just shows you what confidence can do to individual players, when the whole team is playing well. He also had a long-range stinging shot in the first half, which forced a powerful save from Shay Given.

At 2-0, the scoreline wouldn't have been enough for the old Arsenal to settle with because if they had conceded a goal they could have started to panic and let the lead slip away. On this day, we kept concentration and didn't make a mistake. The third goal to kill off the game completely didn't arrive until the last kick of the game, but we kept the calm and had the game under control.

All in all, it was a comfortable win, which took our winning run to seven Premier League matches. Apparently, this was the Club's best run since October 2007. Not bad for "the worst Arsenal team in the recent years"! The convincing team performance and comprehensive victory surely did further good to our players' confidence. Bring on QPR!

Player ratings

Szczezny: 7
With Aston Villa registering only one goal attempt with no shot on target (according to Sky Sports, although BBC thinks Villa had 3 shots, of which 1 on target), he didn't have much to do, but looked solid.

Sagna: 8
Again good link-up with Walcott, overlapping with him often. Solid defensively as well.

Djourou: 7
Did his job. Made a crucial tackle.

Vermaelen: 9
He showed his determination and desire to win at the both ends of the pitch again.

Gibbs: 8
Scored his first goal in the Premier League. His smile on the pitch is rare as his goals, so the goal has an extra value in that sense.

Rosicky: 8
Maintained his red-hot form. Displayed his class and skills.

Arteta: 8

Passing success rate for this day's Arsenal side was 87.8%. As the second best passer in the Premier League with an average of 90%, only second to Yaya Toure, his individual passing success rate must have been phenomenal this day. His stunning goal wrapped up the very enjoyable afternoon for Gooners nicely.

Song: 8
The lofted pass to Walcott was another killer pass by him, which resembled those that set up for RVP's legendary goals against Everton and Liverpool this season.

Walcott: 9
He was a constant threat to Villa's left flank. Took the goal beautifully.

Gervinho: 7
Covered Gibbs well defensively, tracking back and keeping Albrighton at bay.

van Persie: 8
We have scored three goals and none of the goals came from him, but he still led the attack.

Subs

Ramsey: 6
68th-minute substitution for Gervinho. Got involved in the late charge and fired a shot wide.

Santos: 5

Replaced Gibbs in the 68th minute. His first involvement in the game was giving away the ball to Weimann in a dangerous position, but he got away with it thanks to Weimann dragging a shot wide.

Oxlade-Chamberlain: 7

Came on in the 78th minute for Walcott. Made a few runs and nearly earned a penalty.

Referee

Phil Dowd: 7

He is definitely not our favourite referee after staging the Premier League's biggest comeback drama against us at Newcastle. He was nearly hated even more by Arsenal fans after he had decided not to give the OX a penalty, but it is widely believed that replays showed Mr Dowd made a correct decision as Ireland was first to the ball. We let him off this time.

Everton 0 Arsenal 1

The major pre-match talking point was the team selection. Now we have a number of players back from injury, there is a healthy competition in the squad. While RVP, Walcott, Arteta, Song, Vermaelen, Koscielny, Sangna and Szczesny were believed to keep their starting places, the big questions were who would start at  left back, in the remaining place in midfield, and on the left flank: more specifically, whether Gibbs or Santos, Ramsey or Rosicky, and Oxlade-Chamberlain or Gervinho. Arsene Wenger's answers turned out to be Gibbs, Ramsey and Rosicky. It was an interesting choice to play Ramsey on the left side, considering the fact that Wenger was once very reluctant to play Ramsey on the flanks as he had an inclination to drift into the center. Although he missed a few good chances and lacked clinical finish, it seemed to have worked.

Arsenal started the game with great intensity, which was great to see because it reminded us where they left off 9 days ago. They took a lead within just 8 minutes with Vermaelen's header from RVP's corner, the lead Arsenal thoroughly deserved. However, they should have been more than one goal up. They created chance after chance in the first 30 minutes. Typically, Arsenal would have regretted such wastefulness big time, come the end of the game, but the new tenacious Arsenal protected their narrow lead for the remaining 82 minutes through solid defence.

Some claim that Arsenal have been lucky in their recent winning streak. Luck played no role in their demolition of Tottenham and AC Milan. The victories were the result of their sheer determination to win the game (If any, the luck was on Tottenham's side in the shape of Saha's deflected goal and the penalty awarded for Bale's dive). Against Liverpool, we might have been lucky as Liverpool hit the woodwork twice, but we didn't miss the opportunity to snatch a late win. As for the Newcastle game, many questioned where the 5-minute stoppage time came from, but it reflected Newcastle's time-wasting free-kick/goal-kick taking (especially by Krul) and it was fair of Mr Howard Webb to slap it on the added time. Besides, Arsenal deserved the win as they threw everything forward to grab the all three points. They would have been extremely unlucky if they hadn't won that game.

In this game, we might have been lucky as Drenthe's goal was ruled out for offside, which replays proved a wrong decision. In fact, the assistant referee had a few other dubious decisions, including one against us. We may not have been as unlucky recently as we had been for the last few seasons, but the current good run of form is attributed to more than just luck.

Arsenal's resurgence coincide with the return of a settled back five. Apparently, we have never lost this season when Sagna, Koscielny, Vermaelen and Gibbs all started. The return of Sagna brought the best out of Walcott as the Englishman has less to worry about cover for defence. Fit again Gibbs meant Vermaelen's return to his familiar central defensive position and forming a stable partnership with Koscielny. On top of the newly found defensive robustness, Rosicky's rediscovery of the form is another factor behind our recent fine run of form. We have finally found a much-needed creative midfielder in him.

The three points from Goodison Park, where all Manchester City, Chelsea and Tottenham dropped points earlier this season, saw us move above Tottenham by a point to the third in the table after they had only managed a draw against Stoke at White Hart Lane. With other results from last night also going our way, we are now 6 and 13 points clear of  Chelsea and Liverpool, respectively (Shame about Newcastle's result at the weekend). Our recent climb in the table has reflected the other clubs slipups coincided with our favourable results. We often failed to capitalise on these occasions before this season.

Before the match, our captain emphasised the importance of winning ugly. I think this win qualifies as that. Arsenal just had to withstand pressure from Everton for some while and eventually managed to keep the clean sheet to seal a 1-0 win. We are beginning to like winning this way.

Player ratings

Szczezny: 6
Although he made some good saves, he had a hairy moment by kicking the ball straight to Jelavic's head.

Sagna: 7
Strong performance.

Koscielny: 7
Together with Vermaelen, he weathered Everton's aerial threat from crosses very well. For the single goal of the game, he took a couple of Everton players onto himself in order to create space for Vermaelen to come around in front of him. He had a thrusting run forward as well.

Vermaelen: 8
Looked solid alongside with Koscielny in the heart of Arsenal defence. Scored a winner. A Man of the Match performance.

Gibbs: 7
There has been criticism about his positional sense, but he looked OK in this game. Now he appears to be a part of a solid back five. I was convinced that he would start this game as the left-back, but I was considering Santos against Aston Villa this weekend. It is interesting to play Santos in the next game as the Aston Villa game is expected to be more open, but it's difficult to drop Gibbs to the bench, given the current form of the back four as a unit.

Rosicky: 7
Made a few good attempts at goal, good tackles to win the ball back. Solid performance.

Arteta: 7

Worked hard. Did his job well.

Song: 7
Although his passing left a lot to be desired, he worked hard, often dropping deep to help defenders.

Walcott: 6
Had a quiet game.

Ramsey: 6
Unusual role on the left side. His movement was good, but lacked clinical finish. Missed some glorious chances. He has to improve his finishing. Overall, considering the fact that the game turned out to be a defensive competition, playing a midfielder where a striker would have been fielded in the usual formation seemed to have been a good decision.

van Persie: 7
Had a relatively quiet game by his standard. Missed a couple of opportunities and hit the post.

Subs

Gervinho: 6
79th-minute substitution for Walcott. Made a good interception and run only for van Persie to plant a shot high.

Djourou: 4

We didn't understand why Wenger wanted to make a change with 2 minutes remaining in normal time when we were defending so well. Obviously, an additional defender could help shore up the defence, but the substitution could have upset the balance and distracted concentration or Djourou being Djourou, he, himself, could have become a distraction. Perhaps, Wenger wanted to give Djourou a runout, but it was a pointless substitution. 

Arsenal 2 Newcastle 1

It was only a little over two weeks ago when Tottenham supports were taunting us ahead of the north London derby by saying that the gap between the two old rivals could widen up to 13 points after the derby. Two weeks on, we are just one point behind them. The momentum has completely changed in the recent couple of weeks. Arsene Wenger's tone was different before going into the Newcastle clash. He was already talking about the importance of securing a top three spot which does not require qualifying for the Champions League Group stage. We are no longer in the four-way battle for the top-four finish (with Chelsea, Newcastle and Liverpool), finding ourselves now in the middle of a three-horse race for the third and fourth places with Chelsea and Tottenham.

Wenger praised the team's relentless effort throughout the game, but in my opinion, the team lacked urgency in the first half after their good start. They looked comfortable in possession, but they did not make a good use of it. There were more backward passes than we have recently seen and some players were slow to move the ball. Vermaelen's sloppy pass led to Newcastle's counter-attack. Gibbs didn't close down Ben Arfa, giving him time and space to take a shot, which beat Szczezny on the near side. However, I must say that Arsenal did exceptionally well to equalise in less than a minute, which was vital. In the second half, they totally dominated the game and kept mounting the pressure.

In the previous two league games, the opponents were open sides, which didn't test Arsenal's ability to breakdown stubborn defence. Newcastle probably learned lessons from their 5-0 defeat at White Hart Lane. They had their tactics right for this game and didn't allow us much time or space. Arsenal may still not have a plan B, but this game proved if they keep pressurising the oppositions, a crack may eventually appear in their defence. Alan Pardew rued not having been able to replacing Danny Simpson, who was playing through injury, as Newcastle had already used up all three substitutions. The half-time substitution to replace Santon, who had trouble containing Walcott, proved to cost Newcastle expensively. On the other hand, unlike the Champions League match against AC Milan, we had luxury of having fit midfielders on the bench.

Arsenal set a new Premier League record by registering the 4th consecutive win battling back from losing postions, which is an impressive record, showing their character and determination. And in the three games out of those four, the winner came at the death of the game. We like our players' resilience this season, but we hope that they do not make it a habit to give away the first goal. Although now the team and fans alike have belief in the team's capability to overcome an adverse situation with a goal down, it would be nice if they can avoid such a situation in the first place.

Player ratings


Szczezny: 6
With Newcastle registering only two shots on target and committed to defence, he had little to do. However, he shouldn't be beaten at the near post, should he?

Sagna: 8
Convincing and energetic performance both offensively and defensively. His overlapping and link-up with Walcott were excellent.

Koscielny: 7
Didn't put a foot wrong. The yellow card was too harsh.

Vermaelen: 8
Showed his determination to score the late winner.

Gibbs: 6
Although he was good going forward, he was guilty for Ben Arfa's goal.

Rosicky: 8
Another good performance from the veteran player. We are glad to see his contract extended.

Arteta: 8

He was always where his team-mates wanted him to be, keeping the shape.

Song: 7
Battled hard as usual, but his passing was not best.

Walcott: 8
Caused all sorts of problems for Santon and a substitute left-back, Perch, through his runs. Set up RVP's equaliser through an inch-perfect cross and his cross led to Vermaelen's winner. Many think he was the Man of the Match and he had his best game in his career at Arsenal so far. Stephen Hughes, an ex-Arsenal player and commentator of Arsenal Player on the night said "Funnily enough I didn't think Theo was outstanding when I was at the game but, having watched it again, it could be the best game he's played for the club". I totally agree with him. Maybe I should watch the game again.

Oxlade-Chamberlain: 6
Lacked penetration on the left flank. It wasn't his best game, but he showed a glimpse of his talent.

van Persie: 7
Although he scored the equaliser, he also missed several good chances. As well as Arsene Wenger, we were also relieved that he didn't get sent off.

Subs

Gervinho: 6
67th-minute substitution for Oxlade-Chamberlain. Lively, but missed a sitter.

Ramsey: 7

Came on for Rosicky in the 76th minute and carried on Rosicky's job OK.

Arsenal 3 AC Milan 0 (Champions League Round of Last 16 Second Leg)

As we said in the previous post, this game was all about restoring the pride and keeping the momentum we have built through the last couple of league games. We didn't expect a miracle to happen or the 4-0 deficit to be overturned. However, as the game started, our players gave us hopes. The way they started was sensational. In the 6th minute, we got an early goal we wanted. Before the match, all our players were talking about this early goal. They believed that if they could get early goals, they could overturn the four-goal deficit. I must say that Arsene Wenger did a great job to make them believe after the heavy defeat at the San Siro and the subsequent mountainous task to undertake. Our players were in the absolutely right frame of mind.

At half time, we were buzzing at Las Mimosas bar. 3-0 up at half time. At this rate, scoring two more goals to see us through the tie did not look impossible at all. For most of us, except for those extremely optimistic ones, this tie was already over 3 weeks ago, but Arsenal's sublime performance in the first half allowed us to dream again about making progress in the Champions League and gave us exciting 90 minutes.

Arsene Wenger blamed fatigue for his side's failure to find an illusive fourth goal. Our midfield was so thin even before the game kicked off. On top of Jack Wilshere's long-term injury, Diaby (hamstring), Benayoun (virus), Arteta (head) and Ramsey (ankle) were out, while Coquelin was still four weeks away from fitness. Rosicky (groin) managed to pass a late fitness test, which was a big relief for Wenger, who earlier admitted he wouldn't know what to do if Rosicky was not available. The Ox took an unfamiliar central midfielder role to fill in the void Arteta left. Arsenal have been unlucky this season with injuries, which tend to concentrate on one particular position and this time it was midfield. When the intensity of the first half started taking its toll, Arsene Wenger had no option for freshening up the midfield. If he had had a couple of fresh pairs of legs to bring on, Arsenal may have completed a miracle comeback. Arshavin would have been hailed by all the fans on this occasion, if he had come off the bench to replace The Ox, who were struggling with a knock.

As well as scoring five goals, keeping a clean sheet was equally important, so the attack-defence balance was vital in this game. With little choice available in the midfield, our defensive players, including Song, put in an impressive performance to keep Ibrahimovic at bay.

Some players described the dressing room afterwards as "dead". Being knocked out of the Champions League after such a brave fightback must be devastating for them. However, all the media praised their heroics the following morning. Nobody was worried about the downfall of English football and the changing landscape of European football any longer (at least not until both Manchester clubs get knocked out of the Europa League) as Arsenal demonstrated that an English club still have qualities to beat the current Serie A leaders comprehensively if they play to their full capacity.

Although the exit from the Champions League may have been heartbreaking, at least the players can take heart from their performance and the 3-0 defeat of Europe's elite club. Hopefully, after 6 days' rest and with players to come back from injury (Arteta, Ramsey and hopefully Benayoun as well), they will be raring to continue their fight for a top-four finish.

A major talking point at the moment is the signing of Podolski. He has been linked to Arsenal for some time, but this time it looks very promising. The experienced Germany international will be a great addition to the squad. He can play up front with RVP just behind him, which will give a whole new dimension to Arsenal's game. Most of all, his signing will send out the right message that Arsenal have a serious ambition to compete for the title next season to the inside and outside of the Club, including RVP.

Liverpool 1 Arsenal 2

It was not our best performance, but we had all three points, which matters most. Earlier in this campaign on this Blog, we asked which is better, excellent performance without winning the game or getting the result without playing well. Now we are sure which we prefer: winning regardless. We have to make sure that we finish top four this season in order to attract world-class players so that we can rebuild the team and keep RVP for the next season.

The result was massive, sending us 10 points clear of Liverpool. With Chelsea losing and Newcastle only managing to draw, we have secured solo possession of fourth place, 3 points clear of Chelsea with a better goal difference than them, and with a 4-point cushion over Newcastle. Even before the Liverpool clash, I was surprised to hear some pundits claim that the fourth spot was between Arsenal and Chelsea. How many times have they written off Arsenal for a top-four finish before? Now with the defeats of Tottenham and Liverpool, we are in an even stronger position. Some have even started talking about Arsenal finishing third. After Tottenham's defeat to Manchester United, the gap was reduced to just four points, which makes it look increasingly likely that we will finish above Tottenham.

Talking about the media fickleness, Arsene Wenger was last week shocked to learn that he was selected as the Premier League Manager of the Month. It seems that the award reflected Arsenal's impressive league form in February: 3 wins and 1 draw scoring 14 goals. February was supposed to be the lowest period of Arsene's entire carrier, according to the media.

Arsenal may have been lucky to snatch a win in the injury time, but we think our players deserve credit in many ways. Arsenal goals may have come against the run of play, but they constantly looked dangerous on the break. Their defence may have been all over the place in the first half, but they withstood the pressure and limited the number of goals conceded to only one, which we scored for them. In the second half, they dealt with Liverpool attack very well, keeping Suarez quiet. Mikel Arteta's serious-looking injury did not led to capitulation. In fact, the dynamism of the game changed in favour of Arsenal immediately after the incident. I don't know if it was due to the introduction of Abu Diaby or Liverpool affected negatively by the incident. This game showed some untypical aspects of Arsenal's game and we don't mind them at all.

Liverpool did not take chances in the first half when they could have won the match and it came back to haunt them. We have been often at the receiving end of the same criticism, so it was good to see somebody else getting stick for a change. After the match, Dalglish said Liverpool have to learn how to win ugly. A couple of weeks ago, we heard exactly the same expression coming from Samir Nasri about his old club. This game convinced us that Arsenal can win ugly.

We have no player ratings for this game. Man of the Match is a close call between the defensive hero and attacking hero, Szczezny and RVP. Szczezy's double saves from Kuyt among other numerous stops and saves were as important as RVP's two goals. RVP expressed his appreciation of the goalie's heroics by handing over his Man of the Match champaign to the 21 year-old Pole. It is nice to see our captain appreciate his team-mates' contributions. He kissed Alex Song's right boot during the celebraton of his injury-time winner. He also tweeted his gratitude to Sagna and Song for their superb assists. (Sagna's cross was inch-perfect, while Song's lofted through-ball was just like the one he set up for RVP's exquisite volley against Everton.)

The result of tomorrow's Champions League match is now irrelevant. We are not expecting a miracle to happen and the 4-0 deficit will be overturned. We just hope that our players will deliver decent performance, give AC Millan a good game and not let down the home crowd. The next league game against Newcastle will be far more important. It's a home game against a club who are still in the mix for a top-four finish. Now we have dented Liverpool's hopes for a Champions League spot, we have a chance to do some damange to another contender's aspiration Monday week.

Arsenal 5 Tottenham 2

We are still in dreamland. The emphatic win over the north London rivals after the incredible comeback should deserve at least a three-day celebration, especially when it was watched somewhere special. This game was selected as the centrepiece of this year's Arsenal Playa Flamenca Supporters Club Benidorm trip. Needless to say, the trip was worthwhile. The same weekend last year, we were there to witness Arsenal winning their first trophy in 6 years, but it wasn't to be. What a difference the results made to our trips! The victory certainly made our weekend. We even gave Tottenham the two-goal lead to make our win even sweeter. This game will be remembered by all the Arsenal fans for years to come, with the vivid memory of where they were at the time.

We went into this game as an underdog after the back-to-back defeats, which led to our exits from the two major competition (although there is still a very slim chance left in the Champions League). Even optimistic Arsenal fans, like me, wouldn't have expected such an emphatic scoreline. When I saw Chelsea beating Bolton 3-0 on the previous day and overtaking us temporarily, I thought we might be able to grab a win against Tottenham, but not by a goal margin that can match Chelsea's goal difference. I was just hoping the north London derby would be a good game of football and I wasn't disappointed.

The team's performance on the day responded to many criticisms; some of them are relating to their lacklustre display for the last couple of weeks, some arising from more persistent problems over the recent seasons.

(1) Mental strength: Arsenal could have capitulated after conceding the two unfortunate goals so early in the game, but instead they continued their attack. With Rosicky's header saved by Freidle and RVP's effort deflected unfavourably for us (in contrast to Tottenham's first goal), the team could have succumbed to the thoughts that it was just not their day. I thought earlier this season this crop of the players had more mental strength than last season, which was proved by the number of comebacks they have made this season. In the same fixture last season, we surrendered the 2-0 lead at half time to lose 3-2.

(2) Determination to win: Arsenal Wenger highly praised his side's determination not to lose. Especially, our midfield was always first to the 50-50 ball, showing their strong will to win the game.

(3) Urgency: when the two sides met earlier this season at White Hart Lane, Arsenal could have won the game, if they could sustain the pressure after they equalised through Ramsey's goal. Urgency was also something that lacked in our two latest defeats. Pulling two goals back within 3 minutes spoke the volumes for the urgency and intensity. It was absolutely imperative to make it level at half time.

(4) Quality of the players: this was a big doubt over the last couple of weeks (or this season after we lost key players). Our players showed that they have enough quality to outplay and beat comprehensively the good side who are currently third in the League and thought to be playing the best football in England at the moment.

(5) Slow attacking: Arsenal's attacking has come under criticism, particularly lately, for the lack of speed and its distinctive style of passing around. Our fifth goal reminded us of the good old days when Arsenal were feared for their quick counter-attack from deep on the pitch.

(6) Cohesion: Some have claimed that Arsenal were playing three different teams against Sunderland in the FA Cup, with no cohesion among the three departments. In this game, they defended as a unit, while their attacking was seamless, with the both full-backs overlapping with the wingers and the midfielders running from the box to box.

One of the criticisms Arsenal still have to answer is how they can break through the opponents' stubborn defence. Tottenham are an open team and so were Chelsea on the day when we beat them 5-3. We seem to play better against the bigger clubs who try to play their football, whereas the mid-table clubs tend to sit back and try to attack on the break with their sights for a draw or a lucky win. The next opponents, Liverpool, are expected to come out to play, especially in front of the home crowd. Hopefully, Arsenal will take their game to Anfield in the similar style to this weekend.

Arsene Wenger pointed out after this match that the condition of the pitch played a big role in the previous two defeats (Thank God, we have already played Wigan away this season), but the lack of a plan B is another problem. Even when we cannot play our style of football, we have to get results we want in order to finish in the top four.

One win does not mean that all the problems have been solved. However, after the weekend's result, finishing above Tottenham and securing a top-four spot have started looking more achievable.

Player ratings


Szczezny: 8
Tottenham's first goal was unlucky as he would probably have had it covered, had it not been for that wicked deflection. We don't blame him for conceding a penalty, which should have never been a penalty. Made some good saves.

Sagna: 9
Outstanding both defensively and offensively. He was energetic going forward, while he kept Bale quiet most of the afternoon. Scored his first goal of the season with a bullet header, setting up a goal for Rosicky after a quick one-two with him.

Koscielny: 7
Saha shouldn't have been allowed that much time and space when he netted Tottenham's first goal via deflection. After that, he did fine.

Vermaelen: 7
The two centre-backs may be blamed for Arsenal's shaky start, but after we had taken control of the game through relentless attacking, they looked solid.

Gibbs: 7
Went forward well. Did OK.

Rosicky: 9
His best performance since his return from injury a couple of years ago. Scored his first goal in two years deservedly. He showed that he still have a lot to offer for the team. The Man of the Match for me.

Arteta: 8
Worked hard as usual. Set up a goal for Sagna with a perfect cross.

Song: 8
Battled hard as usual. Made another killer pass to set up a goal for Walcott.

Walcott: 8
Used his pace very well and kept his cool in the finishing. Scored two great goals. Glad he was not subbed at half time. He can offer a defferent dimension in our attacking, directness, which his team-mates cannot. Also, he can be very effective, when RVP is tightly marked and surrounded by defenders. He showed what he could do. What he needs now is consistency.

Benayoun: 8
His inclusion in the starting XI came as a bit of surprise. In the mid-week reserve game, he pulled the strings for Arsenal's attacking and also scored a goal for himself. Probably his solidness in defence compared with Gervinho earned his place in the starting XI. He didn't disappoint the boss. A great, gutsy performance from him.

van Persie: 9
He led the team to the victory as captain with great determination. He knew what this game meant to the fans and was totally committed to making us proud. His goal was the work of art.
Subs

Jenkinson: 7
75th-minute substitution for Gibbs. The north London derby was his first game with the first-team in more than three months. As a life-long Arsenal supporter, he must have enjoyed the occasion. Good defending.

Oxlade-Chamberlain: 6

Came off the bench in the 81st minute to replace Walcott. Little time to make an impact.

Gervinho: 6
Came on to replace Benayoun in the 88th minute. 

Referee

Mike Dean: 4

Most of the media seem to agree with us on the view that the penalty decision was wrongly given. A yellow card shown to Koscielny was harsh as he had no option. It was as accidental as Scott Parker's handball in the area, which he got away with. I wasn't surprised when I heard the stat that Arsenal had never won the last 10 games Mike Dean was referee prior to this match. Incidentally, the ref's alleged celebration of Tottenham's first goal is going viral at the moment. We won this game, but not thanks to Mr Dean. We beat Tottenham with five superb goals.

Sunderland 2 Arsenal 0 (FA Cup 5th Round)

First of all, we didn't post our view on Arsenal's 4-0 defeat to AC Milan, simply because I missed the game. After what I have heard and read, I couldn't bring myself to watch the repeat on TV or the match video on Arsenal Player. However, our aim is to post as many match reviews as possible, no matter how badly we have played. Especially when the world looks grim and cruel for the Gooners, we would like to present more positive points of view for them as an official Arsenal Supporters Club.

The starting XI were just as we predicted. This game had a much more significance than just a FA Cup tie. It was to show how Arsenal would respond to their poor display and the massive disappointment of Wednesday night and to forebode how the rest of their season would pan out. Arsene Wenger fielded his strong side against Sunderland, who proved a week ago that they were a difficult side to beat. RVP led the line, with Gervinho and Oxlade-Chamberlain on the flanks. Ramsey, Arteta and Song consisted of the midfield. Vermaelen and Djourou formed the central defensive partnership. Personally, I don't rate Djourou, but we had no choice after Mertesacker and Koscielny sustained injuries. Fit-again Sagna took his familiar right-back position. The question was whether Gibbs, who played his first game since October, would play again, but he wasn't even on the bench (I haven't found out the reason yet). Instead, Coquelin started as the left-back.

We were unlucky to concede two goals, one with a deflection and an own goal, and to lose as many as three players to injury in the same game. Coquelin's injury so early affected Arsenal's game as he started the game brightly. Also, his withdrawal meant the introduction of dreaded Squillaci. However, we cannot blame the luck alone. Our performance was far from the best. Last week at the same venue against the same side, we came from behind to win 2-1. It wasn't our best game, but we showed real urgency in the last 20 minutes, which eventually earned the victory. In contrast to that, the second half of this game was flat. Arsenal played with no urgency as if they had been winning 4-0. The last kick of the game, a back pass to our keeper, epitomised the lack of urgency and the desire to win, as well as the team's cluelessness. In the post-match interview, Wenger attributed the poor performance in the second half to the tough schedule and its resultant heavy legs, but surely the players could have done better than that if they were desperate to win silverware.

Obviously, we were all disappointed and disgusted with another poor display from our players. One of the members argued that we needed changes in system and style. The argument has been cropping up from time to time for some time. We need quicker and more direct attacking. Also, the current 4-3-3 system was introduced in an attempt to make most of Fabregas' ability. The system allowed Fabregas to initiate attacking movements deep on the pitch and finish them in the box. I don't see the reason why we should stick to this system now Fabregas has gone.

Interestingly, Arsene Wenger seemed to have deployed the 4-4-2 formation in this game with the introduction of Walcott, who took up a forward position with RVP dropping behind him. It might have worked if Henry had played in place of Walcott. Another repeated criticism against Wenger has been the lack of a plan B. He has never changed his side's game according to the condition of the pitch or the opposition's style.

Martin O'Neill said two defeats do not make a crisis. How many time this season have we seen a headline, "Crisis, what crisis?", after Arsenal had suffered blows. I still believe that Arsene Wenger will turn the things around as he has done several times this season, most notably at the beginning of the season. Having the hope of winning any silverware dashed within a week is heartbreaking, but our top-priority of this season has always been to finish top four. Remember where we are now after the last week's results. We are still in the driving seat in the race for a Champions League spot. We cannot deny that there are many problems to be addressed to, but most of them are long-term issues and cannot be rectified until the close season.

The good thing about this game was at least we have avoided a replay, which could have been a disaster as it was scheduled to be played only five days before Tottenham match. The exits from the FA Cup and Champions League competitions mean there will be no fixture congestion for the rest of the season. This should protect our key players from injuries. Koscielny is supposed to be back this weekend. Carl Jenkinson will start full training today. Jack Wilshere could be back in a month, while Andre Santos is expected to be back in March (he's already back in London, reunited with the rest of the squad).

Good news this weekend came from outside Arsenal. Ryo scored his first goal for Bolton in the FA Cup tie against Millwall. Owen Coyle assured earlier this month that his January loan-signing would be ready for the top-flight football next season to get straight into Arsenal first-team. This looks extremely likely.

Player ratings (Once again, we don't do 1s and 2s.)

Fabianski: 5

As Sunderland registered only 1 shot on target, he didn't have much to do. Could he have done better for Sunderland's second goal?

Sagna: 4
Poor game by a usually consistent player.

Djourou: 3

He was lucky to stay on the pitch for that two-footed tackle. He was booked for his crude challenge, needless to point out that AC Milan's fourth goal was the result of his clumsy challenge. Although he was our best defender last season until he sustained a dislocated shoulder in the FA Cup tie against Manchester United, since his comeback, his defending was calamitous. We think he is not up to Arsenal standards. A week or so ago, Sky Sports reported that he was set to sign a long-term contract with Arsenal. Hope Arsenal will give it second thoughts.

Vermaelen: 6

Started as the centre-back and moved to the left-back following the injury to Coquelin. Although his header went straight into Mignolet's hands, at least he showed some willingness to get a goal.

Coquelin: N/A

He only played 10 minutes before he seemed to have pulled a hamstring, which is a shame as his emergence as a versatile first-teamer has been one of a few bright spots in this disappointing season.

Ramsey: 4

Struggled after he suffered a knock early in the game and was replaced by Rosicky in the 58th minute. His progress in this season has been agonizingly slow.

Arteta: 6

His free-kick missed the target narrowly. Although he had some wild shots as well, his free-kicks were better than before.

Song: 6

He made a superb pass to unleash van Persie, which resulted in Arsenal's unsuccessful penalty claim. After Squillaci was replaced, he took a central defensive role and did relatively well compared with other players.

Oxlade-Chamberlain: 5

It was unfortunate to put the ball in his own net inadvertently, but it started from him being robbed of the ball. Again, he was not very effective against stubborn Sunderland defence. Hope his confidence didn't suffer from this game as he is a bright future for us. I was surprised to see him come second with 16% of total votes for the Man of the Match on Arsenal.com site, despite his own goal. Incidentally, Alex Song was selected as the Man of the Match with 19%, including my vote.

Gervinho: 6

Made a couple of good runs in the first half and had a shot, which forced a good save from Mignolet. Faded badly in the second half.

van Persie: 6

Had a relatively quiet game.

Subs

Squillaci: 3

Why is he still with us? Came on in the 10th minute to replace injured Coquelin. His defending didn't look convincing at all. Sunderland's first goal took a deflection on him. Got injured and replaced by Walcott.

Rosicky: 4

58th minute-substitute for injured Ramsey. Did not make an impact.

Walcott: 3

Came off the bench to replace Squillaci in the 58th minute. Had a good chance, which was ruled out as an off-side before he tried to make a shot.

Referee

Howard Webb: 4

For the decision not to give a penalty in favour of Arsenal, there seem to be mixed views. Arsenal.com says "Replays suggested John O'Shea had got his toe to the ball before he brought down the Dutch striker", while Sky Sports reports "the striker certainly had a case with the Irishman getting no more than the faintest of touches on the ball." We would not go further on this issue, but the referee should have done more to protect Arsenal players in the early stage. A yellow card or two should have stopped Sunderland players blocking their opponents blatantly.

Sunderland 1 Arsenal 2

We all knew this was going to be a very tough game. Sunderland were on a run of good results since Martin O'Neill turned things round for them. Shortly after the emphatic win over Blackburn last weekend, Arsene Wenger said that he would be delighted if his side beat Sunderland 1-0. Scorelines may be irrelevant (although the 7 goals proved to be very useful as we have slotted into the 4th spot after this match ahead of Chelsea only on goals scored), while points are all important.

If you watched Match of the Day, you'd have thought Arsenal were the second best side in the first half with a goal-scoring opportunity limited to only one shot by Walcott, which went past the far post. I must agree with a number of the members who felt the first half was pretty much an uneventful affair. However, we weren't any worse than Sunderland, although they may have had a better chance or two. In fact, we controlled the most of the game. Statistics proved that with Arsenal's overall possession of 69.5%: 66.2% in the first half and 74.5% in the second half.

Sunderland's only goal was unfortunate. Per Mertesacker collapsed to the floor and they made most of it. According to the post-match interview, Wenger reckons that Mertesacker may have damaged his ankle ligament. But Arsenal did not capitulate after this misfortune. They came from behind and went on to win the game.

If we can chose a coach for the Man of the Match, Arsene Wenger deserves it. His substitutions were spot on in this game. He took off Oxlade-Chamberlain, who worked hard but did not pose a big threat to very organised Sunderland defence, and brought Thierry Henry on in the 66th minute. When we had conceded a goal and lost a defender to a serious-looking injury, he replaced Mertesacker with Ramsey, moving Song to the central defence, instead of opting for a like-for-like substitution, such as bringing in Gibbs and moving Vermaelen to the central defence. And this more aggressive option paid off. Ramsey netted the equaliser 3 minutes after he came on. In injury time, one of the other substitutes, Arshavin, set up the winner for the other.

The victory was the result of team effort. Especially, we were really happy to see the urgency coming from the team in the last 20 minutes.

When Henry decided to join Arsenal for the second time, RVP praised his bravery, which could have cost him his legendary status. The Dutchman must be eager to do everything to make sure that Henry's loan spell would only consolidate his iconic image, not tarnish it. Our captain looked so happy to see Henry score the mighty winner.

As posted before, our initial view on Henry's loan deal was wait and see, although we were sure that his off-the-pitch influence would be tremendous. Our verdict now is that it was a success. Henry helped us with an important winner once again following the FA cup tie against Leeds. Three goals in 6 games are not too bad for a 34 year-old striker (considering that Torres hasn't scored for 18 games). Let's hope he can do it again for the very last time in this loan spell against AC Milan on Wednesday.

Player ratings

Szczeny:8
Made some match-deciding saves, including a superb save from Gardner.

Sagna: 7
Reliable.

Mertesacker: 5
He seemed to have struggled with the condition of the pitch more than any other players did. In the first half, he slipped in the area and the ball hit his arm. Fortunately for us, the referee didn't regard it as a deliberate handball. Then, he looked to have caught his studs in the turf, which may be the cause of the ankle injury. The pitch did not seem to have affected Arsenal's passing game, though, as their passing success rate was an impressive 88.8% according to Sky Sports.

Koscielny: 6
Some unconvincing moments.

Vermaelen: 7
Solid.

Rosicky: 6
I thought I had seen him dispossessed too often in the first half.

Arteta: 7
Did his job well.

Song: 8
Worked hard to keep Sessegnon quiet. He took the central defensive role after Mertesacker was stretchered off.

Walcott: 5
He had a poor game. His effort in the first half was good, but other than that, he was asleep.

Oxlade-Chamberlain: 6
Worked hard but not too much impact.

van Persie: 7

He had a quiet game by his standard as Sunderland defence did not give him much space.

Subs

Henry: 8

Came on in the 66th minute to replace Oxlade-Chamberlain. He humbles himself to say that he was only in the right place, but the goal took some brilliance as the ball came in at awkward height.

Ramsey: 7
72nd-minute substitute for Mertesacker. Made an impact 3 minutes after he came on the pitch. Good to see him have a shot from the edge of the box.

Arshavin: 7

Came off the bench in the 87th minute to replace Walcott. Made two good crosses to create chances and put pressure on Sunderland, one of which found Henry and resulted in the winner.