Arsenal Mid-Season Review: Exciting Times Are Back

The 2007/8 season promised to be an interesting spectacle for Arsenal supporters and critics alike, long before the first match even kicked off.

Countless column-inches of feverish conjecture devoted to Thierry Henry’s sudden departure, the scant spending on new signings compared to many other Premier League clubs, doubts over Arsene Wenger’s future, and questions about the experience of the young Arsenal squad preceded the campaign and dominated the summer transfer window.

Wenger, however, remained characteristically optimistic. “If you ask me if we have the potential to achieve success this year then I say ‘yes, without a doubt’. It is important not to relate only success with money,” he said with a playful swipe at his West London rival.



The Gunners’ attractive, free-flowing style of football has certainly won them many supporters; Pele recently declared himself a fan, and Reading’s Dave Kitson, despite being a Spurs fan, said effusively: “They are without doubt the best footballing team on the planet right now.” In last season’s campaign, though, style triumphed over substance and failed to win trophies.

On August 12th, the first match of the season, Fulham visited the Emirates and it seemed like history could be repeating itself. Just two minutes in, Jens Lehmann gifted David Healy an early goal-scoring opportunity, which he just couldn’t miss.

Despite Van Persie leading a fluid counter-attack, Arsenal’s opener remained elusive. An 84th minute penalty restored the balance and now revitalised, Arsenal pushed forward. In the dying seconds of normal time a decisive shot from the silky Hleb sealed the win.



Where Arsenal had looked uncomfortable at home last season, this was just what was required – the perfect tonic – snatching victory from the jaws of defeat. “Cut out the fancy stuff and shoot!” a frustrated fan had been heard to shout early on in the match; the season now looked a lot more interesting as Arsenal had proved that they could.

Like December’s 4-1 away win over Everton, the victory at Fulham showed the current squad’s self-belief and hunger for success. A willingness to adapt the style of play and to go long when necessary showed a ruthless edge that Arsenal had previously been lacking. Above all it showed a growing realisation that beautiful football alone does not get results.

The Champions League results also mirrored much of what was happening at home. The 3-0 home victory over Seville, 1-0 away win at Steaua Bucharest and 7-0 home demolition of Slavia Prague complemented the domestic league results. Arsenal’s unbeaten run now extended to 28 matches in all competitions – a club record – and reflected the rising confidence of Wenger’s young side.



November, historically Arsenal’s worst month, started with a scoreless draw in Prague, which sealed a place in the knockout stage of the competition, but wasn’t enough to take the top spot in Group H. In Seville at the end of the month, Wenger took the gamble of rotating the team in order to rest players for a tough December.

At first it appeared to be paying off, as Eduardo controlled Bendtner’s probing cross and prodded it home from close range. After Keita’s equaliser midway through the first half, though, Arsenal looked rattled and the perennial problem of defensive composure under pressure reared its head again. Seville’s eventual 3-1 win left Arsenal with the runner-up spot, even despite their subsequent 2-1 victory over Steaua Bucharest at the Emirates.



The unbeaten Premiership run finally came to an end with a 2-1 defeat by Middlesbrough on December 9th. A wrong turn by the team’s coach driver led to a late arrival at the Riverside and little time for preparation. It seemed to be an apt metaphor for what was to follow. Without Fabregas, Flamini, Hleb and Van Persie, all of Arsenal’s chances seemed to be heading in the wrong direction, until Rosicky’s 93rd minute consolation goal hit the target. Shrugging off suggestions of a crisis in depth and experience, Arsenal went on to take 10 points out of 12 in the next four matches.



Now at the mid-point of the season, Arsenal are two points clear of Manchester United at the top of the table; through to the knockout stages of the Champions League, and with hopes very much alive in the two domestic cup competitions many of the pre-season criticisms appear to have been answered. Arsene Wenger’s optimism, it seems, could be well founded.

Throughout all of the ups and downs he has uncompromisingly and unapologetically stuck to his system of play. The method he has developed at Arsenal is based on the collective harnessing of individual talent into a cohesive team effort, to the extent that players who frequently feature for their home country often have difficulty making it into Wenger’s starting XI – a strategy which can lead to some bruised egos. Germany’s national keeper Jens Lehmann has often voiced his feelings at being left on the bench in place of the un-capped Manuel Almunia.



Yet the Spaniard has repaid his manager’s faith with a display of solid form this season. While many of his contemporaries have a tendency to parry the ball away – regularly leading to dangerous situations in front of the goal – Almunia’s preference for catching and holding onto it makes him an effective shot-stopper. In a few short months, he has become one of the Premier League’s top-performing goalkeepers.

French international Lassana Diarra, who arrived from Chelsea on the August 2007 transfer deadline day, has also expressed his frustration at not being included in the starting XI more often; however many feel that more time is needed for him to adapt his skills into Wenger’s style of play.

Entering the New Year with the first half of an already-turbulent season behind them, the Gunners appear to be in a strong position. The 2006/7 financial results place them firmly among the world’s richest clubs; the 2-2 grudge match with Manchester United, watched by an estimated 1.5 billion people, may not have produced the most beautiful or inspiring football, but it reaffirmed Arsenal’s position as a truly global football phenomenon, and demonstrated their ability to grind out a result when needed. Even Sir Alex Ferguson admitted that the North London outfit have a “massive chance” at the title.



But there are many more hurdles to overcome before Arsenal take their first title since 2004. Key defender Kolo Toure, the only player to be on the pitch every minute of every Premiership game, could miss up to eight fixtures for the Gunners if his native Ivory Coast go all the way in the African Nations Cup, which is a worry for a team that has had more than one defensive wobble this season.

The Champions League tie against AC Milan will also be a challenge, and the Gunners still have to face Manchester United and Chelsea at their respective home grounds. “We have belief, we have talent, we are ready to fight,” Wenger has said. All of the necessary components are in place, but only time and performances on the pitch will tell if this young Arsenal team has the mettle to lift the Premier League trophy in May.