arsenal

90 seconds into the match, Eduardo had demonstrated why he deserves a starting place in the Arsenal 11. He had also all-but sealed West Ham's fate. West Ham, the only team to beat Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, never looked like winning today. Instead, it was just a matter of how badly they were going to lose.

As it turned out, West Ham managed to lose by only two goals, both of them brilliantly taken by Eduardo (off a wonder-pass from Fabregas, man of the match for me) and Adebayor (deftly headed past West Ham's goalkeeper, Green, to put the ball in at an impossible angle). The scoreline could have looked much worse. Arsenal didn't lack for attempts, but it did fritter away a goalscoring opportunity or two with passes that should have been shots (Hleb's pass to Rosicky in the final 15 minutes being a case in point).… Read more

Watching the first half of this match, it would have been excusable to write off Arsenal's title hopes. They looked as shaky as they have for the past six matches or so, with Everton going up 1-0 and pushing Arsenal off the pitch.

But in the final few minutes of the first half, Arsenal finally got forward and put pressure on Everton. I was confident they'd start the second half strong, and they did with Eduardo scoring in the first 90 seconds. Not long after he doubled his tally with a beautiful maneuver around the Everton defender. Sheer class, both goals. Perhaps Eduardo will now finally get his chance to start for the club.… Read more

Full credit to Portsmouth: it's a good side. It should be, given that the core of its team is ex-Arsenal (Kanu, Campbell, Lauren). It's just unfortunate that today's Arsenal didn't bother showing up for the match. I thought I was watching the Arsenal of last season with lots of dithering around the penalty box and few clear chances on goal.

Rosicky had the two best chances on goal: one he took well but David James made an excellent save. The other? Well, let's just say he had a beautiful feed from Bendtner (who should have started alongside Adebayor - why must we persist with this cautious 4-5-1?) that he squandered by hooking the ball wide to the right. I forgive Gallas for missing from within the six-yard box but Rosicky really needs to do better.… Read more

This was not Arsenal's best win of the season. In fact, they arguably earned a draw, given Robbie Keane's missed penalty and the few chances created by the Gunners. But a win is a win. I'm not planning to give it up.

Fabregas and Hleb were quiet. Adebayor looked good and moved well but didn't get much service from the midfield. Probably the only really strong showing was from Arsenal's defense, with Clichy making the speedy Aaron Lennon look a bit daft. Clichy continues to impress and make it easy to forget that Cashley Cole ever played for the Arsenal.

Anyway, a win is a win and a great way to go into Christmas. To all Gunners fans, here's to a great season. To Spurs fans, sorry about the lumps of coal.… Read more

Arsenal's young guns refused to capitulate to Blackburn's heavy-handed tactics and pulled out a 3-2 win at Ewood Park. Arsenal really should never have let Blackburn get close, having gone up 2-0 in the first half, only to allow Blackburn to pull back a goal before the half.

Blackburn is a team that I loathe with an unrighteous passion, so seeing them knocked out of the only competition they had any hope of winning did my heart good. Not very Christmas-y of me, but that's OK.

Interestingly, Arsenal moved the ball really well, something it hasn't … Read more

In a clear sign of divine approval, Arsenal pulled off a 1-0 win over Chelski today at Emirates Stadium. It was a scintillating affair, with Cole getting clubbed by both Adebayor and Fabregas (fitting, given that Cole criticized Fabregas in his book, which sold all of two copies, one he bought and the other picked up by his darling Tweedy). The most fitting moment, however, was in Gallas putting Arsenal ahead. Gallas, the former Chelsea man.

Sweet, sweet revenge.

Unfortunately, Manchester United took out Liverpool earlier in the day. A tie would have given Arsenal more daylight between it and the other members of the Big Four. But perhaps this win gave Arsenal more incentive to come out kicking.… Read more

Arsenal have been looking very shaky these past few games. Call it a lack of Fabregas or something, but they've been pushed around the pitch and taken off their game. Despite taking the lead in the fourth minute on a brilliant goal from Adebayor, Arsenal rarely threatened after that. Yes, Adebayor deserved a penalty in the closing minutes, but if you can't win in the full 90, I have little sympathy with the need for favors in stoppage time.

It was a very frustrating match to watch. Arsenal never controlled the game. I'm not sure if they'… Read more

Alfresco had an employee Christmas party this morning which caused me to miss seeing most of the first half of this game. Watching the second half made me wish I would have seen the first half, as i spent most of the 45 minutes cringing and praying that Arsenal would pull through. It wasn't pretty.

Aston Villa is a good side, so full credit to them. Every time Young brought the ball down the left side to take on Sagna and, usually, make a cross to Carew, things didn't look good for Arsenal. Almunia kept inching his way out to take on the crosses, but mostly looked solid between the posts. There were a few times that I thought he was going to gift the game to the Villains because of his inability to completely hold to his goal, but he proved me wrong.… Read more

It's a sad day here in Whoville. Arsenal didn't need to win today's Champions League match. They're already through to the Group of 16. In many ways, the only thing they were playing for was pride and to maintain their unbeaten run.

Well, they got their tails kicked, and deservedly so. Senderos was amazingly fragile at the back; Gilberto leaked the midfield like a sieve; and Fabregas may be injured. There was no fluency to the Arsenal side, much of it stemming from a dormant midfield. They were lucky to leave Seville with only three goals … Read more