Gunners come through tough challenge

Burnley 0-1 Arsenal

Arsenal showed a different side to their game on Saturday evening in order to defeat a stubborn, physical and well organised Burnley side.

A week previously, the Gunners had torn Liverpool apart with quick combinations, fast, flowing football of the highest calibre and exceptional skill. Against Burnley however, Arsenal were simply not allowed to get into any rhythm

whatsoever and were forced to show character, grit and determination to overcome their opponents and maintain their exceptional recent winning streak.

In recent years Arsene Wenger’s side have been seen as somewhat of a weak touch, one which succumbs all too easily when faced with a physical approach. However on Saturday, the Gunners showed that they are more than capable of overcoming such tactics. In the first half in particular, it would have been easy for the Gunners to become frustrated and lose their way, as almost every time an Arsenal player got away from his direct opponent and threatened to get in behind the home side, they would be brought down in the crudest fashion. In such circumstances, the referee should really offer more protection to the attacking team and issue several yellow cards if needed. Burnley’s players were clearly not playing the ball, with their sole intent being to stop Arsenal in their tracks. Therefore by issuing yellow cards, the referee would have discouraged these tactics as early as possible and enabled the game to flow, rather than allowing it to develop into a war of attrition.

In some ways, Burnley’s approach was understandable as the first time they allowed themselves to be caught out of position, they were punished. As goalkeeper Tom Heaton played the ball out to his central defender, Giroud immediately applied pressure on him, forcing the Burnley man to send an aimless pass into the central area of the field. This was cut out far too easily by the once again excellent Coquelin and with Burnley’s full backs both caught up field, having moved forward due to the fact they had possession, Arsenal suddenly found themselves with five players charging forward, against Burnley’s two centre backs. Having made the interception, Coquelin surged through the centre of the field before playing the ball into Sanchez. Unfortunately the pass was not the best and forced the Chilean to cut inside, providing Burnley with an opportunity to get players back. Sanchez’s shot was blocked but the ball was played towards the left hand side of the area, where Ozil was free, but his shot was saved by the goalkeeper, Sanchez had another effort blocked from the rebound before the ball fell to Ramsey and the Welshman powered home a shot high into the back of net. It was an excellent finish from Ramsey and just reward for his recent selfless work, out of position on the right flank.

Although the goal arrived rather early in the game, in the eleventh minute, and should have settled any nerves amongst the Gunners, the fact Burnley were making the match a stop start affair, prevented Arsenal from achieving any rhythm and therefore they struggled to get their passing game going. Burnley were refusing to commit men forward when the Gunners had the ball and therefore there was no space in which to play, while Arsenal’s central defenders didn’t really have any options when on the ball, other than to play long balls to Giroud, who was struggling to win the aerial battle this week.

In such situations, midfielders such as Ozil or Cazorla should drop deep to pick the ball up from the central defender, as Michael Carrick does for Manchester United, turn and use their superior passing ability to establish Arsenal’s passing game. As it was, the Gunners were in control of the game but couldn’t really pose a threat on the Burnley goal until the final 20 minutes, when they upped the pace and showed their superior quality.

In the post-match interviews, Wenger confirmed his side had been caught between attacking in search of a second and protecting what they had during the second half. In fact Burnley really didn’t threaten Ospina’s goal throughout the game, as they launched numerous aerial attacks but all were dealt with extremely comfortably by the Arsenal defence.  

In the end one goal was enough to secure a vital three points, against a side who although occupy the relegation zone, have made their home ground a real fortress, especially against the top teams, of whom only Liverpool and now Arsenal have managed to do the “double” over them.

This was a completely different challenge for the Gunners from the one they had faced against Liverpool, but the fact they managed to come through both games with victory, shows that this team has learnt from previous mistakes and has the character, belief and spirit to fight for one another in the pursuit of victory. Winning when not at your best is always a good quality to have and if only they can carry this form into the start of next season, it will stand them in good stead for a real title challenge in the 2015/16 campaign.

Next up now is a mini break from the Premier League as Arsenal look to secure a second successive FA Cup Final appearance on Saturday. Reading, as with Burnley, will be no push overs, with manager Steve Clarke sure to set up his team in similar fashion to Sean Dyce, making sure they are extremely well organised and keep the game as tight as possible. The Gunners cannot afford to take this game lightly as defeat in the semi-final would surely dent their confidence and sour their excellent recent run. As the final stretch in the league campaign approaches, Arsenal face tough challenges ahead, with their next league game against a Chelsea side who are not playing at their best, but somehow keep on winning nonetheless. As is much documented, Wenger has never managed to defeat Mourinho, but victory in Saturday’s semi-final, would set the Gunners up perfectly for this top of the table clash.