teams:
Arsenal: Seaman, Dixon, Keown, Adams, Winterburn
Campbell, Jensen, Schwarz, Merson, Smith, Wright
subs: Dickov (Merson 83), Linighan (Adams 88)
Blackburn: Flowers, Berg, Gale, Hendry, LeSaux
Ripley, Sherwood, Wilcox (sent off 54), Slater, Shearer, Sutton
subs: Warhurst (Ripley about 75)
att: 37,629
Weather: heavy rain 1st Half, drizzle 2nd
Arsenal started the game with some purpose, attacking the clock end, with Blackburn's defence dropping deep. Concerns over Tony Gale's ability to cope with the Arsenal attack seemed justified early on, as Ian Wright turned him inside out in third minute. Unfortunately for Wright, he was unable to drag the ball with him as he headed for the gap between two covering defenders, and the attack was smothered. Arsenal sought progress mainly from the flanks. Winterburn, who played superbly, was overlapping down the left; Merson mainly cut in trying to feed short passes into Wright or square to Schwarz, but little went right for him. Dixon got forward on plenty of occasions down the right. Campbell had gone into indecisive mode and made scant progress in any direction. His only contribution of the first half was to punch the ball in the net of a corner and get booked for it. The two best chances came from crosses from the right. Smith got underneath Wright's to head over tamely. Wright crashed his head into a Dixon cross, but lacked direction, so the ball rocketed into the stand. Blackburn gained in confidence as the half went on. Their only slack defending came as Hendry was off the pitch receiving treatment for a cut head; as he went to clear the ball for a throw on the touchline he was caught by a stray boot from Smith. The barometer of Arsenal's fortune, Wright's temperament, sank towards frustration and brought about his needless booking for a late tackle/slip on Gale. Blackburn had chances of their own, particularly near half-time. Seaman made a comfortable tip over the bar from a dipping volley from Ripley (?) who had got in unmarked behind Merson. Had Shearer been on target with his effort as he tried to convert Ripley's pull-back, he would have had less of a chance.
The second half opened brightly enough, building up to a sending
off near the hour mark. Dixon slid in to partly dispossess
Wilcox near the dugouts, but did so fairly recklessly and
he may well have hurt Wilcox had the Blackburn player not lifted his
foot away from the ball. It did not, however justify Wilcox
treading (maybe stamping) on Dixon's thigh as he passed him.
Wilcox received his second caution of the evening.
Blackburn reorganised by putting Sutton as a third centre back,
and drawing Slater and Ripley in slightly from the flanks.
Warhurst replaced the tiring Ripley to shore up the midfield,
as Dalglish's men prepared for the inevitable onslaught.....
......that never came. Arsenal had two shots of note on target
after the sending off (as did Blackburn) The second was in the
last minute from Andy Linighan, 35 yards out, and it was straight
at Flowers. Merson had the other, tame as it was. LeSaux flashed
in the only dangerous effort, but straight at Seaman, while
Shearer's dipping far post header was under powered.
Jensen had a shot.
(just ask the North Stand Upper Tier)
Arsenal did look lively down the left, mainly due to Winterburn, but no more than lively. Passes to feet around the box were nothing short of woeful; Jensen was particularly at fault for this. Schwarz was quiet, and has already stopped making forward runs both with and without the ball. Whether this is due to tiredness, or instructions, it is hard to tell. Smith was lacklustre, Campbell sluggish, Merson uninterested and Wright was isolated. In the end Arsenal spent the last twenty minutes placing the ball into the right wing channel, holding it up, laying it off, passing square inside passing it back, and back into the right wing position. Round and round, until they lodt possession. Two crosses of quality aside (which Smith and Campbell failed to reach) there was little end product.
Arsenal clueless against ten men.
And then, when it was all over, a cheerful man on the tannoy excitedly introduced the highlights.
Adams went off with blurred vision near the end. He had mouthy Shearer in his pocket all night, and got a bang on his head for his trouble in the last quarter of an hour....
Report by Elliott Austin.
Comments by Dave Cockrell
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