A big HI to all you gooners,
Happy happy days seem to have come upon us at last. The dark clouds over the Emirates stadium gave way to some sunlight, at last, with a comprehensive 3-0 thrashing of Sheffield United. A fantastic day for us, barring the only disappointment that Chelski won, but still, the Spurs lost, and Manchester United drew with READING 1-1!!! I doubt it could get any better. Read on for ESPN's match report.
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Arsenal 3 - 0 Sheffield United
At last the Emirates Stadium had something to shout about, as Arsenal recorded their first Premiership victory at their new home.
A second-half strike from William Gallas, an own goal by Phil Jagielka and a header from Thierry Henry - who else - gave them a victory that took longer than it should have done to become a formality against an under-strength Sheffield United side who have yet to earn an away point this season .
But after last week's morale-boosting win at Old Trafford, Arsenal's stuttering start to the season is becoming a distant memory as they begin to get into full flow, with a Champions League fixture at home to Porto on Tuesday .
Yet it was far from easy in what started as a scrappy and bad-tempered match. Neil Warnock's side were weakened by injuries but held their own comfortably in the opening hour. True, they rarely threatened to score, but Arsenal had few clear chances either.
Henry had a 15th-minute header brilliantly saved by Ian Bennett and Gallas put a good chance well wide, but that was the sum of Arsenal's serious attempts on target in the first half.
United actually got the ball in the net, when Mikele Leigertwood shot home from 25 yards, but referee Alan Wiley had already awarded Arsenal a free-kick for a foul on Kolo Toure by Rob Hulse.
That was the least of the clashes. Cesc Fabregas was booked for a late tackle on Jagielka and then suffered a bloody nose from a flying arm, Alan Wright and Hulse had treatment for head injuries and both teams became increasingly irritated by the rash of flying challenges.
Surprisingly, Mr Wiley made fewer bookings than another referee might have done and the game eventually settled down into a proper footballing contest.
Once that happened, there was only really going to be one winner, of course. Gallas opened the scoring in the 65th minute after Fabregas had obligingly controlled a chipped pass from Henry, allowing the defender to smash a volley past Bennett from close range.
That set the Arsenal celebrations in motion, with both sets of fans realising that there was unlikely to be any way back for the visitors. Within four minutes, the unfortunate Jagielka got a thigh to Henry's cross from the left and inadvertently diverted it past Bennett to make it 2-0.
Ten minutes from time, Henry finally got on the scoresheet with a simple goal, heading home unmarked from close range after a good run and cross from the right by Emmanuel Eboue.
There were more chances, with Henry denied twice and Bennett making a couple of important stops. United had their fi rst decent opportunity in the closing minutes, when the previously under-employed Jens Lehmann made a terrific reflex save at close range to keep out substitute Steve Kabba's header.
But even if the ball had gone in, it would have been no more than a consolation for Warnock's men, who are finding out the hard way that life in the top flight is as tough as they could have expected.
No goals or points on the road and precious little luck either; it is going to be a long, hard struggle for United. But for Arsenal, the only way is up.
Man of the match
Thierry Henry
Never gave up hope of scoring despite being denied a number of times by United's stubbornness. He provided the crosses for the first two goals and scored the other himself - a good day's work.
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A very good one, an excellent game which SHOULD put any worries about form or luck behind us. We've managed a convincing victory, and the seemingly unbeatable Red Devils have gone 2 matches without a win. Just shows it ain't all about luck. And Gallas, my goodness, is he turning out to be a blessing in disguise or what? He just seems to be improving with every game, and i'm sure he's going to play a major part in our future campaigns. And we finally got to see more glimpses of the real Thierry Henry today. What a game!! I was literally hopping around when i saw three goals being scored in quick succession!!
And Arsene Wenger is relieved a their first home win at the Emirates Stadium, something to remember, especially when you've won 3-0. He admits that after we didnt score in the first 15 minutes, the players had a sense of deja vu. They had it on their faces, the fact that they hadnt won their last two games here. They became nervous, and weren't clean enough tactically. Thank goodness Gallas and Henry had different plans. And i was even more relieved to see that Henry played a major role in all three goals, scoring one himself. Its nice to see him among the goals, someone whose achievements require more superlative to be described, than i know. Great man he is, and we're happy he scored. Great going, Thierry. Complete highlights below. I'll update with a better quality version, if i manage to get my hands on one.
Other news now. The biggest disapointment of the day was Chelsea pulling one over Fulham 2-0, a Frank Lampard double setting them up. This means Chelsea goes to the top of the table with 5 wins from games. Aarrghh!!! But thats okay, considering the Spurs were THRASHED 3-0 by a determined Liverpool side, which, much like Arsenal, are working their way up the table. Second-half goals from Chile winger Mark Gonzalez, Dutch striker Dirk Kuyt and Norway's John Arne Riise condemned Tottenham to their fourth defeat in six league matches. Just has a nice feel to it, the previous sentence :-D Now i can't wait for the 2nd of December when our men take on the Tottenham kids. ARE YOU WATCHING, TOTTENHAM??
In another fixture, Manchester United were held to a hard fought 1-0 draw by a determined Reading. Reading struck first in the 48th minute off a penalty, conceded by Gary Neville, a rather harsh decision, in my opinion. An intentional handball inside the area, and Reading were off. And God knows what might've happened if it weren't for Cristiano Ronaldo's heroics, as usual. The lad is playing very well and has been givin consistent performances. Lets hope Mourinho keeps his eye off him.Ronaldo produced a fine solo effort, racing toward the middle, eluding defenders and setting himself before firing a bullet past Hahnemann. He'd saved the Reds quite some blushes and salvaged a point for them.
A very good day to y'all..
God Bless..
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