4/25/2005
Just another North London derby
No long match report...The Scum really aren't worth it in the end.
The big story is that, a few amazing misses aside, Jose Antonio Reyes seems to have broken out of his stretch of poor form. Sure, those misses were almost comical in scope, but he tucked away his chance when he really, really had to. His pace and skill kept the Scum off-balance the whole game. I still don't like the guy, but if he can play well enough to tack on another 5 or 10 million to his transfer fee from Madrid, then hey...good on him.
Other than that, any Gooner has to love how the Arsenal defense held, especially in the end. We all hate the Scum, but let's be objective here for a second. This isn't your older brother's version of Tott'numb. Whereas they used to have The Shell of Les Ferdinand and not much else, this version of their squad has a pretty fair assortment of offensive talent (and once in a great while, they even live up to their potential). Every single member of the defense, including Jens Lehmann (maybe even *especially* Jens Lehmann) were brilliant today. Senderos was a titan again, Cole and Lauren controlled the wings with imperious ease, and Toure won every single key header that came his way. Kinda brought back a few memories with this performance.
In the end, this could and probably even should have been a far more comprehensive victory than it was. But, now that the final whistle has gone and the nerves have abated, I'm kind of glad it finished 1-0. That was a fun little match, and of course, the happy ending made it all better.
I think we're getting hot at the right time, in terms of the one match this season that will likely mean anything (because really, on this form, are the Red Scum catching us for second? I doubt it).
The big story is that, a few amazing misses aside, Jose Antonio Reyes seems to have broken out of his stretch of poor form. Sure, those misses were almost comical in scope, but he tucked away his chance when he really, really had to. His pace and skill kept the Scum off-balance the whole game. I still don't like the guy, but if he can play well enough to tack on another 5 or 10 million to his transfer fee from Madrid, then hey...good on him.
Other than that, any Gooner has to love how the Arsenal defense held, especially in the end. We all hate the Scum, but let's be objective here for a second. This isn't your older brother's version of Tott'numb. Whereas they used to have The Shell of Les Ferdinand and not much else, this version of their squad has a pretty fair assortment of offensive talent (and once in a great while, they even live up to their potential). Every single member of the defense, including Jens Lehmann (maybe even *especially* Jens Lehmann) were brilliant today. Senderos was a titan again, Cole and Lauren controlled the wings with imperious ease, and Toure won every single key header that came his way. Kinda brought back a few memories with this performance.
In the end, this could and probably even should have been a far more comprehensive victory than it was. But, now that the final whistle has gone and the nerves have abated, I'm kind of glad it finished 1-0. That was a fun little match, and of course, the happy ending made it all better.
I think we're getting hot at the right time, in terms of the one match this season that will likely mean anything (because really, on this form, are the Red Scum catching us for second? I doubt it).
