Van Persie dents Arsenal's top four hopes

Arsenal 1-1 Manchester United

Arsenal had to accept a point yesterday from a game which they could look back on full of regret at what might have been. The Gunners couldn’t have started the match any better, racing into a 1-0 lead within the first two minutes, but failed to significantly build on that momentum and ultimately gifted Manchester United an equaliser right before halftime. Arsenal never really recovered from this crushing blow and struggled to create chances in the second period, with the match ending all square.

Despite all the wild speculation in the build-up to this encounter, Arsene Wenger’s side did form a guard of honour for the newly crowned Premier League champions, as they entered the field. However the show of respect ended there as from the very first second, Arsenal’s players flew into challenges wholeheartedly, hard but fair, winning the ball each time. After the game Alex Ferguson proclaimed his great surprise that the Gunners had adopted such an aggressive approach. Had he expected Arsenal to simply smile and wave them through? The Manchester United manager was clearly feeling delusional as he also professed his displeasure at the reception the returning Robin Van Persie received from the Arsenal faithful. Let us not forget this was the same player who one minute claimed he would always be a Gooner, only to then state the little boy inside had told him to sign for the Red Devils. Regardless of what he did in a red and white shirt, for every Arsenal supporter the name Robin Van Persie will forever mean traitor.

The Gunners were excellent during the first twenty minutes, as they rushed and harried their opponents, refusing to give them an inch. In the heart of midfield, Thomas Rosicky and Aaron Ramsey were simply everywhere as they dominated the battle for midfield supremacy. Rosicky’s desire and commitment to throw himself into tackles was extremely impressive, as was Ramsey’s exceptional work rate. The industrious Welshman has often been lambasted during recent seasons, but during the second half of this season, he has really come to the fore. Unfortunately his passing does sometimes let him down as Ramsey often seems to force a pass and therefore ends up mishitting it, rather than going for an easier option, enabling his side to maintain possession. If he can work on and improve this aspect of his game, Ramsey could become a very important player for Arsenal in the future.

It was as a result of their constant pressing that the Gunners took the lead in only the second minute of the game. As Van Persie slipped when attempting a cross field pass, Rosicky was on hand to take full advantage, seizing possession and driving forward, before unleashing a perfectly weighted through ball to Theo Walcott on the right hand side of the box. The Englishman collected the pass before firing beyond David de Gea, the ball squirming through the Spaniard’s outstretched arm and leg. This was the perfect start for the home side, especially when considering their notoriety this season for beginning the big games in sluggish fashion. In fact the Gunners could have been 2-0 up a few minutes later as Santi Cazorla’s long range effort seemed destined for the top corner but was just palmed away by de Gea.

Arsenal were playing with great intensity, not just in midfield but also in defence. Kieran Gibbs was fully committed as always and Per Mertesacker also performed well, but Laurent Koscielny, in particular, was magnificent, expertly marshalling Van Persie. The Frenchman made sure he was first to every ball, setting the tempo for the rest of his teammates. Unfortunately, the Gunners just could not maintain this high level of intensity and slowly but surely, Manchester United began to get themselves back into the game. Phil Jones should have scored, but headed just wide of goal, before Van Persie’s header was blocked by the outstretched Szczesny’s face.

The visitors were building momentum but ultimately Arsenal could only have themselves to blame for the concession of an equaliser just before halftime. Sagna’s poor pass back towards Mertesacker was mishit and easily intercepted by Van Persie. As the Dutchman raced into the penalty area, Sagna threw himself into a needless tackle and took the former Arsenal man out. Phil Dowd had little choice but to award a penalty. Although the crowd did all they could to put Van Persie off, as did Szczesny, the Dutchman rifled his effort right into the corner of the net to restore parity.

This was a huge blow for Arsenal to take. Not only had the strike arrived just before half-time but it was also self-inflicted and avoidable. Had the Gunners managed to hold onto their lead, as the game wore on, Manchester United would have been forced to pour forward in search of an equaliser and Arsenal would have been able to hit them on the break. Unfortunately with the concession of the goal just before halftime, it was Arsenal who had to surge forward in the second period. However, apart from Rosicky’s effort which flew just wide of goal and Cazorla’s low curling shot, Arsenal didn’t really manage to create any real goal scoring opportunities.

Lukas Podolski’s performance was disappointing yesterday. The German international had the opportunity to prove he can play in the lone striker role, but failed to impress. He didn’t win one header against Rio Ferdinand and his lack of pace meant he struggled to get in behind the Manchester United defence. Yet although his replacement, Gervinho, has an abundance of pace he too was also largely anonymous when he came on. Podolski’s lack of influence on the game may also be down to the fact that the team is not used to playing with him up front and need to learn to play to his strengths.

This is a major problem for Arsene Wenger’s side. They do not have an abundance of attacking options and seem to have lost that spark in the final third to open teams up. The Gunners no longer possess a player who can conjure up a piece of magic and produce something out of nothing. They arrive on the edge of the opposition’s box, but then there seems to be a lack of movement and a distinct lack of ideas. Ultimately they end up passing the ball square and in front of their opponents, never really hurting them. As a result, Manchester United were able to invite Arsenal onto them in the second half, safe in the knowledge that the home side would not be able to break them down, while also leaving themselves open to the counter attack.

At the end of the game, a draw was a fair result, but Arsenal must surely consider this to have been a missed opportunity. Manchester United were really there for the taking yesterday, especially after the early goal. Had the Gunners managed to maintain their high intensity game and not conceded right before half time, they may well have been celebrating a crucial victory at the final whistle. Nevertheless, the race for a top four finish continues and as Wenger declared after the game, Arsenal cannot afford to drop any more points. Whether they have the necessary fire power to win their last three games of the season remains to be seen.