Happy Saint Totteringham’s day

West Brom 2-3 Arsenal

Let's all laugh at Tottenham!!

It may have arrived later than usual this season, but Arsenal supporters world-wide could yesterday celebrate Saint Totteringham’s day once again. This is the beautiful day which each season marks the point at which Tottenham can no longer finish above their illustrious North London rivals. That’s right, such is the dominance enjoyed by Arsenal and the sheer gulf in class between the two clubs that the Gunners’ fans have actually created a patron saint to celebrate the annual event.  This year’s feast day was probably celebrated as vigorously as any other due to the several trials and tribulations which Arsenal have had to face throughout the season.

Tottenham fans despair at yet another year below Arsenal

Before a ball was kicked in anger, the Gunners were shorn of their three most creative midfield players as Nasri and Fabregas left for pastures new while Jack Wilshere, their natural heir, suffered an injury which would keep him out for the entire season. Due to the transfers of Nasri and Fabregas being drawn out for the entire summer, Wenger was unable to quickly recruit replacements and consequently Arsenal endured their worst start to a season in over 50 years, sinking as low as 17^th, with many believing this to be Wenger’s poorest side. Several red cards in the first few games, led to suspensions which further depleted squad numbers and morale was at an all-time low when Manchester United ran riot and humiliated Arsenal 8-2.  Then for two whole months the Gunners were forced to play without any fullbacks as Sagna, Gibbs, Santos and Jenkinson were all out injured. Meanwhile in the other half of North London, Tottenham were enjoying their best season in almost 25years as thanks to their best side since 1961 (when they last won the league) Spurs opened up a large gap over the Gunners. Tottenham’s delusional fans, never slow in having ideas high above their station, even began to talk about winning the league as they mocked Arsenal with the chant of “mind the gap.” A gap which on 26^th February seemed destined to extend to thirteen points,
as Tottenham visited the Emirates and raced into a 2-0 lead. But Arsenal’s phenomenal comeback that day to eventually win the game 5-2, set the wheels in motion for the inevitable to happen once again. While the Gunners enjoyed a strong winning streak, Spurs did what they do best and slumped, winning only one game in eleven (hardly title winning form!). And so it was that on 13^th May, the fans with the sorest necks in football were forced to look up once more to see the mighty Gunners sitting above them for yet another year.

Yesterday’s final whistle at the Hawthorns was greeted with cheers of joy and relief by the Arsenal faithful as their side had put their hearts to the test once again, throughout a pulsating game. In a mirror image of the home game against Norwich, the previous week, Yossi Benayoun gave the Gunners an early lead, as he pounced on a horrendous mistake by Martin Fulop in the West Brom goal, to walk the ball into the net.

Benayoun profits from Fulop's mistake

However Arsenal’s defensive frailties threatened to undermine their hard work yet again, as first James Morrison was allowed to walk through the Arsenal midfield and play the ball through to Shane Long, who appeared to be in an offside position. The former Reading man made no mistake with his finish as he guided the ball past Szczesny to restore parity. Five minutes later and the game was turned on its head as Arsenal’s Achilles heel, a simple long ball, found Graham Dorrans, between two Gunners’ defenders. Not only was he allowed to win the initial header, he was also able to get his shot away to give the home side the lead. It was this second goal which finally stirred Arsenal into action, as the tackles finally began to fly in, with the Gunners defence no longer standing off their opponents. Going forward, Gervinho constantly appeared to be a threat but as so often happens with the Ivorian, his approach play was excellent only for him to make poor decisions when in the final third. Luckily for Arsenal, Fulop was having a nightmare and was at fault again when the Gunners won the ball back, as West Brom attempted to play out of defence, the ball falling to Andre Santos, who unleashed a powerful shot which Fulop could only palm into his net.

Nine minutes into the second half and Fulop was at it again, when attempting to punch clear a Robin Van Persie corner, he inadvertently sent the ball back towards his own goal, for a grateful Koscielny to prod home. Arsenal then decided to sit back and protect their lead, however with such poor defending from the away side, this was an extremely risky tactic and West Brom could have easily scored an equaliser, as first Van Persie cleared a Jonas Olsson header off the line and then in the second minute of injury time, Billy Jones was through on goal, only for Gibbs to arrive out of nowhere and produce a fantastic block to protect the lead. It was not surprising that the final whistle was greeted with huge relief.

Koscielny celebrates Arsenal's third goal

Finishing third, considering the numerous hardships the club has had to endure throughout the season, is actually a great achievement. The fact that we will not have to go through the qualifying round to gain entry to the Champions League group stages enables the club to build over the summer, as potential new signings will know that joining Arsenal will mean playing in Europe’s top competition. In addition the club is now in the best possible position to enter contract negotiations with Robin Van Persie, who we all hope and pray will sign a new contract. In an ideal situation, the captain would team up alongside Podolski next season to form one of the most dangerous attacking line-ups in the Premier League. One thing that is certain is Arsenal cannot afford to rest on their laurels and must recruit new players of a high enough standard to significantly improve squad strength. The reshuffle in Arsene Wenger’s backroom staff, following Arsenal legend Pat Rice’s retirement, should also freshen things up slightly on the training ground and hopefully see a vast improvement in the defensive aspects of Arsenal’s play, particularly how the players react when they lose possession.

This season will go down in history as the craziest of crazy seasons. There were several twists and turns and ups and downs but ultimately one thing remained constant, Arsenal finished above Spurs; they always do! Long may it continue!

The Arsenal squad give Pat Rice a fitting send off