Highbury, Saturday August 25th 2001
FA Carling Premiership
Scorers: Ljungberg 17
Wiltord 28
Henry 77
Kanu 90
Sent off: Vieira Wise
Booked: Adams, Grimandi, Sinclair, Delaney, Savage
Arsenal:
Seaman
Lauren Adams Campbell Cole
Pires Vieira van Bronckhorst Ljungberg (Grimandi 63)
Wiltord (Henry 67) Bergkamp (Kanu 75)
subs not used: Wright Keown
Arsenal dominated the match but especially the first half,
the decision to start with Bergkamp instead of Henry looking
wise as he produced 45 minutes of classic Dennis.
He nearly had the ball in the net in under 2 minutes. Vieira
started a move from the centre circle, and fed Pires on the
right who threaded a pass to the D where Dennis and Ljungberg
were making for. It was Bergkamp who picked it up and touched
it to his right before trying a gentle curler inside the
right hand post which just didn't curl in enough.
Pires and Vieira combined well again down the right,
with the latter recieving the square ball infield and
getting it through to Ljungberg deep to the left of goal.
Having controlled it he found himsefl with back to goal,
but did well under pressure to hang on and pass back to
van Bronckhorst. Gio's whipped-in cross was deflected through
to Wiltord in space on the far side, but he hit his volley
high and wide.
Pires found another good ball wide to the left wing this time,
putting Ljungberg free. Apart, that is, from Sinclair's late trip as
Freddie skipped past him, which earned the City defender the
game's first yellow card.
Bergkamp took the free-kick which looped to Campbell
at the far post. It wasn't a clear cut chance as
there was a defender jumping with him, and Sol could only
make the side-netting.
On 13 minutes Dennis won a free-kick a couple of yards outside the
box on the right. Arsenal asked for the wall to be moved back,
but Gio's free-kick was still deflected wide off it, and the
corner cleared after a bit of a scramble.
15 minutes gone, and Vieira & Lauren combined to set Pires
off down the right again. His excellent cross was cleared for a
corner just ahead of Ljungberg. The corner was headed goalwards
from deep then sliced wide by Vieira. Adams did brilliantly to
lunge after it and save the goal-kick, clearing the ball out
towards the right touch line. Pires kept it from going out again,
and played a 1-2 with Wiltord taking him into space going into the
box from the right. He hit it low towards the near post where
Ljungber beat keeper and defender to it and knocked it
past them for 1-0.
Vieira was justifiably aggrieved to be booked on 20 minutes,
as he seemed to get the ball first and came in from the side
not behind. The free-kick was headed across goal from
the left of our box, City new-boy Scowcroft looked to inches
away from getting a head on it but it safely past the far post.
As Arsenal broke Savage came in on Vieira with the nastiest foul
so far, but escaped a card.
Moments later van Bronco made a great tackle on the left wig,
only to be clattered by a body charge, again from Savage.
Then Vieira mad some telling contributions in defence,
twice clearing after a Wise free-kick.
28 minutes and Arsenal simply took the City defence apart
for the second goal. Pires started it, passing forward to
Wiltord on the left of the D and continuing his run on
the other side. Wiltord hit it first time along the edge of the
box,, continuing his run towards goal, and Bergkamp
helped the ball on it's way with a delighful first-time
backheel. Pires was clear on Flowers but unselfishly
squared it for Wiltord who side-footed into the empty net.
How it didn't get into Ally McCoist's top 3 goals of the day
that night is a mystery.
Dennis nearly made it three 5 minutes later, after another great
passing move finished with a chip into the box for him to run onto.
It went a bit wide to the left, and a bit too far, but
Bergkamp got to it and twisted his body to try a chip past
keeper and defender, but it cleared the post as well.
.
Bergkamp's superb turn and pass from the centre circle
on 33 put Gio clear on Flowers. It looked a 50-50 ball
but the keeper looked a lot more determined and won it easily.
A lovely run and cross from Cole went for a corner, and up the other end
Akinbiyi headed high and wide from a free-kick.
A Bronco corner from the left found Campbell at the far post again,
thsi time his header foced a save at the foot of that post.
In injury time at the end of the half, Vieira rode several challenges
then passed wide for Wiltord. He hit a good cross for Bergkamp in the box
but Dennis seemed to anticipate the ball a little earlier than it
arrived and scuffed the shot.
Arsenal started the second half well, but creating fewer chances
than in the first. Wise and Savage committed bad fouls on
Vieira and Ljungberg without being booked but then Wise did
get one for a foul on Ljungberg. City had a half-chance as
a Wise free-kick from their right hit their sub Delaney in the
face and bounced wide.
15 minutes into the half, and Delaney slid in late on Pires.
The ref blew up for the foul and Delaney started having a go
at Pires, who made faces at him from the ground. As several
other players came over to get involved, the ref spotted
Wise and Vieira squaring up to each other (Wise squaring up,
that is, and Paddy squaring down). There didn't seem to be a lot
in it, with both players pressing heads against each other
and no actually butting going on, but as well as booking Delaney
the ref sent both of them off (not sure whether they were
straight reds or second yellows).
Arsenal made the obvious substitution, bringing Grimandi
(Parlour wasn't on the bench) on for one
of the more attacking midfielders (Ljungberg, as it happens).
Wiltord's last contribution on 21 minutes was a shot straight
at Flowers from 8 yards out, after a Lauren's cross found
him in space in front of the keeper. Henry came on for
Sylvain, and before you knew it received a throw in
on the left hand edge of the box near the goal-line,
juggled it along the goal-line past 2 defenders
and winning a corner off the third. Campbell found space at
the far post again, but this time the header just cleared
the bar.
Seaman turned defence into attack on 25 mins, coming out to catch
a cross and finding Bergkamp just inside our half with a quick
throw. Dennis passed forward for Pires to run onto,
and hit a great first-time diagonal pass with the outside of
his right foot. Henry controlled it well and it took a
good tackle to stop him powering into the box.
Pires did a 1-2 with Bergkamp then squared for Henry again but his
quick shot was blocked at close range.
And Henry had the next chance too, as Bronco's pass found him
coming into the box at it's right hand corner. Flowers was coming
out of his box and Thierry appeared to try to lob him but got
it all wrong.
Then, with 15 minutes to go, Kanu replaced Bergkamp. Dennis had
had a brilliant game but was tiring, and Kanu had to be given a chance.
And it was nice to see him getting into the box a lot, and
playing a part on both the remaining goals.
The first came a couple of minutes later. Henry was understandably
annoyed when, after spinning around a foul challenge
and heading for goal, play was pulled back for the foul.
But Pires free-kick into the box for Kanu was only cleared to Henry
just ahead of where the kick was taken from, and his shot towards
the far post got a huge deflection of one of the defenders near
Kanu, and went inside the near post.
Kanu went on a great run down the right and forced a good save from a narrow
angle. Then Bronco had a shot from outside the box which hit the back of
Henry's legs. It came out for Cole whose shot on the rebound went well wide.
Adams hit a terrific long ball to find Henry on the left, but his cross
was intercepted before it could reach Kanu.
Pires was unlucky not to get on the scoresheet with a minute or so to go.
He started the move by laying the ball off for Grimandi, and making a
run forward. Grimandi found Kanu who helped it on to Pires now in the
box, but Flowers came out well to make a point-blank save.
The corner was cleared but then chipped back into the box. Henry had
managed to stay onside as players came out from the corner, and
hsi glancing header was parried by Flowers straight to Kanu. With
no defenders having been quick enough to spot the danger, he was
free to launch himself forward at it and plant a header inside
Flowers' right hand post.
No complaints from this one. Vieira was unlucky to be sent off,
and comes over as annoyed by not petulant. His performance had
been better than against Leeds, and as far as attacking goes
all of Wiltord Bergkamp Pires and Ljungberg were devastating in
the first half particularly.
It's going to be an interesting match with Chelsea, with Vieira
and Parlour both banned by my reckoning. Will Pires play with
van Bronckhorst (against Lampard & Petit?) or will Wenger
play safe and go with Grimandi? Another option, if Dixon's
fit by then, would be to bring Lauren forward.
report by Rupe.
See below for list of links to reports
on other sites.
Preview
- Arsenal team news
The pressure's on. If Bolton can beat them by 5 at Filbert Street...
But Leicester will be out for double revenge. They lost 6-1 at Highbury
last season, in a humiliating defeat which will still be hurting
almost as much as the Bolton debacle.
Tony Adams is a doubt with a knee injury picked up on Tuesday. But
Martin Keown has made good progress with his knee, and could be ready
to step into the skipper's shoes. If Tony does miss the game,
new vice-captain Patrick Vieira will take the armband.
I've now seen it reported that Dixon is "waiting to reach full fitness",
so Lauren will continue at right-back... for now. If we don't
improve defensively over Tuesday, we can probably expect Lee to be
back as soon as he's ready.
- Leicester_City team news
Striker James Scowcroft (bought from Ipswich in the summer)
missed last weekend's match with a thigh strain. Peter Taylor
is hoping he'll be fit in time to play Arsenal.
Darren Eadie has been ruled out for the season.
Influential skipper Matt Elliott could miss the match with
a throat infection. Former Tottenham shot-watcher Ian
Walker is unfortunately suspended. Callum Davidson and
Dean Strurridge are struggling with knee and hamstring
problems respectively.
- See also
Other reports
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