Wenger The Real Hero Of Madrid
Arsenal produced a quality team display and ran out deserved 1-0 winners against Real Madrid in the Bernabeu last night.
What a result! Who would have predicted that?! Makes you proud to be a Gooner.
Henry scored the only goal, a brilliant individual goal on 47 minutes.
Arsenal were dominant and Real's insistence of playing 'their game' for 90 mins proved to be a hinderence and aided Arsenal's own adventure.
Real Madrid are a funny side, they play their own game, believing that is the key to victory. Essentially. 'We will score more goals than you'.
They don't play their opposition.
Arsenal battled man for man, won their individual battles and as a result were given the time and space to play their expansive brand of football, which embarrassed Madrid at times.
Arsenal bullied Madrid out of it, like has happened to us on so many occassions this season, not only were we physically superior but the quality of our play was also on a different level at times.
In all honesty we probably could and should have killed off the tie. The energetic Reyes, instrumental Ljungberg and irrepressable Henry missing good chances in the first ten minutes.
Arsenal's team ethic was key and we worked hard for the win. That is the key to victory, especially in Europe.
Every player can hold their head up high. However, special praise for Arsene Wenger is also due, he picked Hleb which was a little out of the blue and he took advantage of the space offered and performed. He workd hard and impressed.
Wenger got the tactical side of it spot on and the players did the rest. But you need that confidence to base anything on and so credit Wenger for taking a risk and it paying off.
It was a very young team, with the experienced players chipping in. Toure and Lehmann creating an excellent relationship and defensive team in the absence of Sol Campbell.
The young players, Eboue, Flamini, Senderos, Fabregas, Reyes and even Hleb to a certain extent will take great confidence from this performance and rightly so. But the tie is by no means dead. We will need another perfomance like this in 2 weeks time.
Let's hope this is the kick start our season needs and we can improve in the league starting at Blackburn on Saturday.
Without a win the progress will yet again be dampened.
Come on you Gunners!
posted by JoeBoni @ 1:24 PM
15 comments
15 Comments:
What a win boys - this is sensational stuff - Toure and Senderos had Ronaldo in their back pocket. Flamini subdued Beckham and Eboue was simply awesome. Another rock solid display by Jens as well. Reyes was also outstanding. Thierry looked interested especially when Reyes and Freddie gave support. You can't ask for much more than that! We could well have won 4-0 and deserved to. Real Madrid 0 Arsenal 1 (ONE) Cheers, Richard Godden
Big shout out to Cesc who will definately get the call for Spain after the performance of his career. Cheers, Richard Godden
"Boom, boom, boom, let me hear you say Reyes, Reyes. Boom boom boom let me hear you say Reyes"
Real let Arsenal play a little too much and they won't make that mistake again. If they do, no one else in the champion's league will. They definitely don't in the premiership. So the arse need to show that type of commitment every match, but that is physically impossible, and mentally improbable. Big stars come with baggage - Henry mopes, pires runs hot and cold, after last night Gilberto has gone from being a liability to merely unpredictable, Bergkamp is hot and cold over an entire season, even our goal keeper is inconsistent. Especially our goalkeeper, unless it's a world cup year. Arsene still needs two or three dedicated season-long ball breakers between 24 & 26. I would have said 3 or 4 until Eboue returned from Africa with his tail up.
I mean Hleb as a young player to a certain extent as he hasn't got that much experience with the club. NOt that he didn't play well. Just for clarification!
Yes still alot of work to do and it WILL be harder at Highbury now. But what ever happens in the 2nd Leg no one can ever take last nights performance away from us. Given the inexperience of the side, given this seasons form and troubles, and given that one gave us a hope hell, the result and the manner of the victory were simply awesome!! If only Reyes played like that every week (but unfortunately we don't play Spanish teams every week). Best game from Gilberto for ages, becuase he had a set job (just protect the back 4) and kept it simple. From minute 1 to minute 95 we excuded belief and confidence - WELL DONE ARSENE!! Can't remember being so proud to be Arsenal as last night. Just need to produce the goods now when Northern hackers are trying to kick lumps out of us!!!
Where did that performance come from? Is this the same team that capitulated to the scouse and Fat Sam's Army? How come Hleb looked like a totally different player [does he have an identical twin who takes turns playing?]. I agree - Eboue was awesome, so was Flamini and Freddie played out of his Calvin Kleins! Jens is just amazing at the moment. Toure never disappoints. But we must maintain this form for the Premiership.
everyone was fantastic! hleb, fabregas and ljungberg controlled the expensive real midfield! and gilberto became the 5th defender! i agree that ljungberg played out of his calvin kleins! he looked like the ljungberg that scored for fun and fashioned pink hair that we all knew and loved!
btw, visit my blog!
highbury1913.blogspot.com
icey> celebrate the clubs success rather than banging on with the same pointless debate. Now is not the time for introspection: nor is it the time to carried away (still 5 more games before a final appearance).
Wenger has continued to have faith in his players when all else seemed to have lost theirs. And last night, it paid back. Big.
Noone had a bad game- and there were several exceptional performances.
Eboue (the best perfomance by any of our full backs in an looong time), Fabregas (hello Spain squad), Reyes (if he ever learns to finish.. oh boy), Camp-Freddie (thats how you close down a midfield!) and Toure (a defensive captain, I think) were stand out for me.
And Hleb had his best game yet.
Yes, it could all go pete-tong at Highbury. But I dont think it will. And even if we dont win it; we saw enough talent and guts to go into next season with optimism.
I must admit that I was only worried about damage limitation before the game started last night. What a nice surprise!
Defenders love strikers who play in front of them and try flicks and flashy step-overs, players who don't close down and who drift wide and whinge and moan. What defenders hate are strikers with strength, pace, desire and the ability to lead from the front and set an example to younger team mates.
Thierry Henry - it's over to you, which is it going to be?
THE TWO WINNERS LAST NIGHT WERE WENGER AND HOULLIER - CLOSE FRIENDS AND ACTED ON ADVICE FROM EACH OTHER. LYON HAD ALREADY BEATEN MADRID EARLIER IN GROUP STAGES AND ARSENAL HAD BEATEN PSV. THAT INFORMATION WAS PRICELESS, EXPECT A FEW MORE PHONE CALLS IN THE NEX TWO WEEKS
Yesterday I remembered why I fell in love with Arsenal back in the day. It was not Henry's magnificent goal. Not Fabregas bossing Zidane around. Not Eboue making a mockery out of Robinho. Neither was it the fact that at the end Real were frustrated out of their minds by being outplayed at home.
No, to me the key moment that put everything in percpective was the third minute tackle by Roberto Carlos in the area on Freddie. It was a tackle from behind in which he took the man. Penalty nine out of ten times! Nine out of ten! What happened then reminded me why Arsenal are special. Why they will always represent that characteristic called integrity.
As the ref waived play on, Freddie got up without as much as whimper or a gesture of disgust. He went on with it. Every one on the Arsenal team saw a penalty but played on.
There were
No complaints.
No waving of hands.
No Rooneyesque "F**k o*fs"
No Robben like faking.
No Italian shrugs of innocence.
No attacks on the ref (even after the game)
Nothing. There was only respect for the game. There was only integrity and honesty. There was only the purity and love of the game that engullfs the entire Arsenal organisation.
I still love football and I love the fact that it is still practiced the right way.
I for one would rather lose and be right than "win" the Chelsea way.
Now let's show Blackburn how it's done.
Go Gunners!
With football optimism
Gus J.
All great Arsenal teams have been built on defensive rocks. Messrs McLintock, Adams and Campbell. Come on in Mr Toure! Does he ever have a bad game nowadays? Does he lead by example? You bet he does. It feels like he's been there for years, the fans have developed an affinity with him and he's really starting to command our back four along with the excellent Lehmann who has realised how important his role is given all the youngsters in the team. I'm trying my best not to get carried away of the back of just one result, but is it me or are a few players starting to stand up and be counted??
i thot i read somewhere in a comment by a certain someone, saying that lehmann is inconsistent...for god sakes, r u really following this season of ours ?? if u are, then i guess u r certainly ain't aware that our most consistent player this season has been lehmann !! yea mad jens and not king henry has been an example to follow !! guiding a 22 year old defence is no small thing to do !! hail jens !! lets give it out loud for the player of the season, "mad" jens lehmann !! oh sure i miss him punching off some1 or ranting off at the ref;) but so far so good ...
Sorry Jose, I didn't quite catch that, did you say - How do you say sour grapes in Catalan? Cheers, Richard Godden
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