Leicester_City (0) 0 - 3 (1) ArsenalFilbert Street, Saturday 4th December 1999. kick-off 11.30amFA Carling PremiershipPreview
Leicester_City vs ArsenalFilbert Street, Saturday 4th December 1999. kick-off 11.30amFA Carling Premiership
scorers: Grimandi
Dixon
Overmars
Arsenal:
Manninger
Dixon Adams Upson (Vivas 14) Winterburn
Overmars Petit Grimandi Silvinho (Hughes 64)
Kanu Henry (Barrett 90)
Leicester's
home record this season so far had been exemplary:
with no losses and wins from the last 6. But today
they were takn apart by another great performance
from an Arsenal side
missing a few first-choice players. It nearly got off to a bad start though. On 4 minutes Upson did well to get across and block an Impey cross from our left after the wing-back had been given rather a lot of space. And from the corner Matt Elliott the Leicester captain rose to head powerfully just inside our right-hand post. But fortunately Manninger had opted for a man on each post and Lee Dixon was there to head it away. Dixon was involved at the other end shortly after. Kanu and Overmars linked beautifully down the left, the Nigerian's final ball setting Marc free down the side of the box. Dixon surged past into the box and Marc drove the ball low towards him. But Lee swung rather wildy at it and all he ended up doing was deflected it slightly as it went through his legs. On 13 minutes Upson went in for a challenge on Heskey, and twisted his knee nastily as he went over (in fact he apparently saiud later that he felt something snap inside). Vivas came on and took Upson's place (rather than dropping the taller and more regular centre-back Grimandi back, as one might have expected). Vivas's first action was to give a away a free-kick fouling Cotte on their left wing. It was flighted into the D and Elliott managed to get in under control but Petit blocked the shot. On 21 minutes Winterburn, Henry, and Silvinho combined nicely on the left wing, making space for Nige to cross. But he sent in a poor low ball which we were slightly lucky to get a corner from. Henry took the corner from the left and it was flicked on past the near post. Adams turned and went towards the corner to retrieve it. A defender came to block his way to goal but Tone flicked it over his head and powered along the goal-line towards the edge of the box, but Elliott came across to get the ball out of play for another corner. This corner, from the right, was met by Grimandi's head and rifled into into the net. As he hit the ball Gilles' arms were clearly on Sinclair's shoulders in front of him, but replays showed that Sinclair's jump was half-hearted in the first place, and the arms only came down on him because of that. So we were a little lucky in that while it was the right decision to allow the goal, it could easily have been ruled out. On 29, a lovely ball out of defence by Dixon sent Henry clear down the right. As he got level with the penalty area he drove a shot wide of the far post. It looked something of a waste since he wasn't undre any real pressure and could have waited for support, or tried to take his man on and create a better opening for the shot. Grimandi, proving once again an able deputy for his compatriots in the centre of midfield, went off injured after a clash with Izzet in the centre circle. It looked like it might be another bad leg injury but before long he was on again, just in time to head clear a free-kick. With 10 minutes to go in the half, Dixon tried a shot from distance, sending Flowers scrambling across his line to get to it. But it failed to turn and went a yard wide. Then Overmars tried a shot form a narrower angle which flashed wide of the same post by about half the margin. Overmars was roasting the Leicester defence time and time again down the right, and it was about this time that Martin O'Neill tried switching to a flat back 4, moving Sinclair to right back to use his "pace" against Overmars. Nothign much worked though, and Marc was causing problems for them all day. Petit tried a curler from outside the box but it went well over. Then Overmars played the ball out to Henry on the left. As he approached the box Winterburn ran past him into the box and Thierry tried to slip it through to him. It was intercepted, but came to Overmars in the D and he set it up for a good shooting chance for Silvinho but he could only hit it tamely at Flowers. Leicester started the second half with a great move from the kick-off. Izzet picked the ball up and beat Vivas to get into the box on their left, and cut it back for Lennon on the edge of the box whose shot forced a great save from Manninger - stretching to turn the ball to his left. There were a couple fo blue shirst lurking dangerously there but the whistle went for offside and it wasn;t clear if they'd have been able to get to it anyway. A few minutes later they had another good chance when a punt from Flowers was headed on by Heskey to Cottee on the edge of the box. But Petit shepherded him sideways to his right, deciding wisely against risking a penalty with a challenge, and Cottee ended up blasting wide. And then on 51 Henry raced onto a ball into the left corner, kept it in and looked up to see Savage in front of him. Savage, in an unfamilair right back role, showed Henry too much of the goal line and the Frenchman burst past him and along the line towards goal. He saw the run of Dixon, charging into the box again, and Lee nudled the low cross in with (a little) help from a deflection off of Guppy. A nice ball from Grimandi on the half-way line set up Overmars clear on Flowers down the right, and his first-touch shot trundled past the far post again. Good play from Izzet abd Gippy down their left ended with a Guppy cross which Winterburn got a head to but could only direct on to the far side of the box. Impey was there in loads of space but his first touch took it too far ahead of him. Manninger seized the chance and rushed out to smother. Another nice ball from Grimandi put Overmars clear again, but the linesman wrongly waved for offside (his second of the half, Henry had been wrongly flagged earlier by the same man: Mike Reid. Possibly trying to make up for a famous refereeing mistake when he gave Chelsea a dodgy penalty against Leicester). Manninger came out for a ball he probably shouldn't have, as Adams and Heskey chased for a ball flighted into the box on the left. It went clear and Hesky hooked it across goal dangerously but Adams managed to get a foot to it to intercept. Leicester played the ball back fromt he corner, and ended up giving it awya to Petit who burst through a tackle and towards the penalty area down the left. He passed cleverly inside to Overmars but Sinclair did well to pressurise Marc which meant his pass further right to Henry was diffcicult and Guppy got back to clear. Stephen Hughes came on for Silvinho om 64. he got into a good position on the left and cut it into the box where Henry was under too much pressure from a crowd of defenders. Manninger did well to come out and hoof clear from Cottee after a blind back-pass nearly put him in, and then he saved from another Elliott header. It popped up off the keeper's chest but he reached out a hand to pluck it away from the onrushing blue shirts. 15 minutes to go, and Winterburn fed Hughes down the left. He cut it back to Overmars whose low shot from the middle of the D flashed past Flowers' diving left hand. Petit struck wide of the near post after a great passing move had put him clear on the left of the box. Then Overmsr went on a tour of the pitch, beating most of the Leicester team at least once as he ran from right wing to left and then up the left wing and towadrs the box. He cut it back to Hughes in the D who slipped it on to Kanu and he struck a toe-poked blast which skimmed the outside of the right hand post. Henry passed to Overmars who broke into the box and appeared to have his shirt tugged as he tried to break thorugh. Full credit to Marc for staying on his feet and not making too much fuss after it wasn't given. Marshall came on for Leicester and forced a good save from Manninger, who tipped his long-range strike round the post at a stretch. With a minute to go Reid made it a hattrick of dodgy offside decisions, pulling Overmars back unjustly after he'd been put through by a Leicester clearance charged down by Grimandi. Then Barrett came on for Henry (the 4th debut of the week!) and Reid made it 4.
Result : Leicester (0) 0 Arsenal (1) 3
Scorers: Grimandi 23, Dixon 53, Overmars 75
Arsenal: Manninger, Dixon, Winterburn, Upson, Adams; Petit, Grimandi,
Silvinho, Overmars; Kanu, Henry
Subs: Vivas (Upson 12), Hughes (Silvinho 65),
Barrett (Henry 89), Suker, Lukic
Booked: Grimandi
Leicester: Flowers, Sinclair, Taggart, Elliott, Impey,
Izzet, Lennon, Savage, Guppy, Heskey, Cottee
Subs: Marshall (Impey 67), Oakes (Savage 76),
Zagorakis (Cottee 82), Walsh, Arphexad
Att: 20495
Ref: Dermot Gallagher (Banbury)
The early kick-off on Saturday morning seemed to suit Arsenal better
than their hosts, and what might have been a difficult match turned out
to be probably the most comfortable and comprehensive away win of the
season. Against a team unbeaten at home this season who'd won 8 of their
last 10 games, on paper Arsenal looked to have an uphill battle, missing
as they were nearly half the usual first choice team, Seaman, Keown,
Vieira, Parlour and Bergkamp all out through injury or suspension.
However, after having slightly the better of a somewhat scrappy first
half, and weathering a brief spell of Leicester pressure early in the
second the Gunners romped away and should have won by more than the 3
goals they did score.
In fact, despite missing 6 first team regulars, it was still quite a strong looking team which started the game for Arsenal, with Upson and Grimandi deputising for Keown and Vieira, Silvinho coming in on the left wing with Overmars switching to the right, and Henry partnering Kanu up front. And indeed the Gunners started well, hardly allowing Leicester a touch of the ball in the opening 2 or 3 minutes. However, the home team eventually settled and it was they who came closest to an early goal when Elliot got on the end of a corner, but his thumping header was cleared off the line by Dixon who was guarding the far post. Dixon then popped up at the other end a couple of minutes later and should really have put Arsenal in front. A lovely Kanu pass sent Overmars away down the left and his low cross into the area found Dixon unmarked in the middle but he embarrassingly totally miskicked as he swung a right foot at the ball. Soon afterwards, Arsenal were further disrupted when Upson badly injured his knee, appearing to twist it was he tried to tackle Heskey. It was clear straight away that he'd have to go off, and Vivas came on, suprisingly as a direct replacement, taking the youngster's place alongside Adams at the back. Soon afterwards there was a 2nd significant change when the assistant ref running the line in front of the Arsenal fans went off to be replaced by the 4th official, Mike Reed who received a predictably vociferous welcome from both sets of fans. Arsenal coped well with the team change and midway through the half took the lead, through what these days is the unlikeliest of routes, a goal direct from a corner. After one corner had been half cleared, Adams won another with some flambouyant wing play, flicking the ball over the surprised Taggart's head. Petit swung the resulting flag kick over to pick out Grimandi making a creditable impression of a salmon, albeit with the aid of Sinclair's shoulders to aid his hang, to head home from 8 yards. Leicester now increased their efforts to press forward, but succeeded mostly in giving Arsenal more room on the break. First Henry got away down the right and tried a difficult shot from an acute angle which screwed wide of the far post. Then Dixon continued his all action display by getting on the end of a loose ball about 25 yards outside the Leicester area, but his well hit shot flashed just wide of Flowers' right hand post. Overmars completed a trio of near misses a couple of minutes later after being sent clear by Kanu's pass, but he too hit an angled shot just wide of the far post. The only other real Leicester chance I can recall in the half came when Petit uncharacteristically gave the ball away on the halfway line, and Impey got away down the right, but his angled attempt from long range drifted wide of the far post. Arsenal then had the last clear cut chance of the half when a good break down the left ended with Silvinho having a clear sight of goal from the edge of the area, but he hit a shot straight at Flowers. Martin O'Neill presumably had a few words to say at half time, and Leicester came out and very nearly equalised straight from the kick off. Izzet went on a long run past 2 or 3 players before laying the ball back for Lennon on the 18 yard line, but his shot was palmed away at full stretch by Manninger. A couple of minutes later Arsenal failed to adequately clear a long punt forward and Cottee fastened onto the loose ball. He got past Vivas and Adams but under pressure from Petit put a 15 yard shot into the side netting. A few minutes later Arsenal went two up. Henry collected Kanu's pass wide on the left, and then nonchalantly left Savage for dead, running past him along the byline before playing the ball across the 6 yard box. There in the middle was none other that the renowned goal poacher Lee Dixon, and with the help of a deflection off Guppy he forced the ball home. Soon afterwards the Gunners should have been 3 up. Grimandi played a delightful pass forward for Overmars to run clear onto, but with only Flowers to beat he sent an early shot woefully wide of the far post. He might have regretted the miss barely a minute later when Arsenal were caught short at the back and a cross from the left reached Impey in space just outside the area. Fortunately his first touch was poor and allowed Manninger to come out and make what was still a great block. Thereafter it was pretty much all Arsenal, and they should really have added more than the 1 further goal, mainly being denied by poor finishing and some dreadful offside decisions by Mr Reed. Overmars first forced a good save out of Flowers with a shot from the edge of the area, and then a couple of minutes later did get Arsenal's 3rd goal. Henry again got away down the left and held the ball up before rolling it inside to pick out Hughes' run into the area. He looked up before laying it back to pick out Overmars on the edge of the area, and the flying Dutchman finished with a crisp left foot shot into the far corner. Petit was next to go close, playing a lovely exchange of passes with Hughes I think, to get clear in the area wide of goal on the left, but his shot from an acute angle went into the side netting. Overmars was then again sent clear down the right, but with only Henry in support cut back across the pitch, eventually getting away down the left hand touchline having beaten about 7 players on the way. He eventually passed inside to Hughes, who in turn passed the ball on to Kanu just outside the area. The Nigerian feigned also passing the ball on to Henry who was in space on his right, but instead toe-poked a shot which fizzed inches wide of Flowers' left hand post. In between times Leicester briefly threatened, first when Manninger dashed off his line but was beaten to the ball by Heskey. The striker was forced wide though and Adams got back to put his cross behind for a corner. Manninger did somewhat better later when he got fingertips to a shot from Marshall, just deflecting it past the post. At the other end Overmars was denied what looked a clear penalty when he was pulled back by the shirt as he got free in the area, and finally in injury time Grimandi had a decent half chance, but sliced a right foot volley from 16 yards wide. All in all a highly satisfactory result and performance from Arsenal, the only downside being the injury to Upson which could leave us somewhat short of cover at the back for the next couple of games. With the number of first choices out it was a match which went some way towards proving that we have the sort of strength in depth which will be required to win the league again this season.
Manninger 8.0 3 good saves, and otherwise only a couple of minor
blemishes.
Dixon 8.0 Seemingly here, there and everywhere. Certainly lost
none of his enthusiasm going forward.
Winterburn 8.0 Not outdone by his partner, despite apparently
carrying a knock which he probably sustained in a
thunderous 50-50 tackle with Sinclair in the 1st half
Adams 8.0 As imperious as ever, though Heskey did beat him once
or twice in the air to get flick-ons.
Vivas 7.5 Had a somewhat shaky start I thought, and I wasn't
the only one surprised that Grimandi didn't get put
back into central defence, but grew into the role and
played superbly in the 2nd half particularly.
Petit 8.0 Majestic in midfield once again, despite apparently
suffering from flu.
Grimandi 8.5 Fully justified Wenger's decision to keep him in
midfield with possibly his best game for Arsenal.
Overmars 8.0 Once again looked very lively and dangerous, though
his final ball a couple of times was poor.
Silvinho 6.5 The only slightly disappointing aspect of Arsenal's
performance. He tried hard but his touch and
confidence doesn't look as good as earlier in the
season.
Henry 7.5 Worked hard and made a lot of good runs again, though
he too wasted a couple of good positions with bad
final passes.
Kanu 7.0 Some nice passes and touches again, but still not
quite at his earlier level.
Hughes Did pretty well I thought, and looked reasonably
sharp apart from giving the ball away once or twice.
Barrett Only on for a few minutes but didn't look overawed,
and was denied the chance to score on his debut by
Reed's offside flag when I could see from the half
way line that he was clearly onside.
Derek
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