That was not an impressive performance at all, but at least we got the 3 points which is pretty much the only thing that matters at the moment. If we did that in every game until the end of the season i think we would all be happy, although i don't know how healthy our hearts and finger nails would be by the end of it.
Wenger put out the strongest team possible with the exception of a recognised left back and potentially Ramsey instead of Rosicky in midfield. The team did alright but we never really looked like creating anything and with Walcott and the Ox having below par games it was always going to be difficult to create clear cut opportunities. There were so many times when the Ox cut in and i would have loved to have seen Santos marauding up the left flank to provide width. Vermaelen doesn't do this at all and it severely hampers our style of play.
I think the injury Mertesacker got will be a good thing for the team, providing Gibbs is fit and roughly ready to start and doesn't break down again straight away. It will mean that Vermaelen can go back to central defence with Koscielny, which is something we have all wanted to see. Their goal which came from the Mertesacker injury was an absolute freak of nature and as Wenger said, you can't plan for it and you can't expect Sunderland to stop the game, it was just one of those things. Luckily we managed to get two goals as Sunderland offered absolutely nothing going forward at all.
I thought Henry was awful and i have actually thought he has been pretty appalling his whole time since his return, but at the same time he has now got 3 goals, 2 of which have won us games. I think there are three main problems with his return, 1) He doesn't actually do anything when he comes on the pitch, against Sunderland he did nothing for 25 minutes until the goal 2) He looks as if he wants more time on the ball, something which the premier league doesn't offer. I kinda get the feeling, that he feels he deserves more time because of who he is 3) Somehow after points 1 and 2, he is better than our other options and he is only a stop gap solution that will have to leave after the Milan game.
I think it will be interesting to see who lines up against Milan on Wednesday after the Ox had his first poor game where he really was in the pocket of the Sunderland right back all game. Arshavin played well when he came on and his cross for the Henry goal was sublime. Whether he will get a chance to start against Milan i don't know as the defensive side of the game will be so important.
I thought the pitch looked awful and it probably didn't help our passing game at all, whether that is all down to the cold weather we have had recently or whether Sunderland just can't look after some grass, i do not know. I would say it is the later though as i am sure Arsenal's pitch is looking immaculate still. Hopefully they can sort it out by next week when we travel up their again for what will be a even tougher game and one that is just as important.
Last of all, Ryo Miyaichi played 45 minutes for his loan club Bolton on the weekend and from the highlights he looked like he did alright for his debut. Drifted in and out of the game but looked confident running with the ball and was never shy at taking a player on. Hopefully it will be the start of a good loan spell, where he can get some decent playing time and really develop as a player. If he can really progress, then our options for next season are not looking too bad on the wings, with Walcott, Gervinho and Chamberlain providing the other options as i assume Arshavin will leave. I would say that we would still need to buy a winger though....Hazard anyone? i think wishful thinking.
That is it for today, we have started our tough week well and got the first result we needed which has moved us into the top 4 after Chelsea lost 2-0 to Everton, Liverpool lost to Man Utd and Newcastle got an absolute battering from Spurs. Lets hope we get some good news on the injury front before Milan and that we won't be too tired
Have a good Monday everyone.
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