Two Dead Ties

At 7.45, an eagerly-awaited tie kicked off. At about 8.00 it was over.

Real Madrid 4-0 Spurs
Harry Redknapp picked an adventurous line up. Bale, Lennon, Modric, Van der Vaart and Crouch were all set to start. But Lennon felt sick and so, minutes before the start of the game, Jenas stepped into the starting eleven.

Maybe this late shift unnerved Spurs, as it took Real only four minutes to pierce their rearguard in straightforward fashion. Adebayor, so often the scourge of Tottenham in his Arsenal days, rose unchallenged to power a corner kick goalwards, and Modric could not clear the ball from beside the post.

A rotten start got worse courtesy of some jaw-dropping stupidity. Peter Crouch had already been booked for a late, reckless lunge, and when the ball broke loose in similar fashion minutes later, he amazingly launched into a reprise. Marcello got to the ball first and Crouch was off. On Sky Sports, Ray Wilkins moaned about Marcello's fist-pumping when he saw his opponent's fate, but there was only one thing worth complaining about, and that was Crouch's idiocy. Naivety had threatened to derail Spurs as early as the qualifying round against Young Boys, and although they seemed to have matured since, tonight they regressed.

In the first half, however, the home side seemed unsure of what to do with their numerical advantage. Madrid are more built for fast counters than patient probing, and with Spurs sitting deep, they struggled to find opportunities. For their part, the visitors were pretty wretched in possession, and Modric never found the space to prompt. But there were glimmers of hope as the half wore on. A quick, long throw from Bale caught out the Real backline momentarily, but as Van der Vaart chested the ball down and set himself to strike, Carvalho chased back to execute a last ditch challenge. Dawson's raking diagonal pass sent Bale racing behind the clueless Ramos, but the Welshman could only find the side netting from a tight angle.

The second half was an altogether different affair. Real came to terms with their advantage, attacked with conviction. Redknapp sent Defoe on for Van der Vaart, but, typically enough, the striker failed to involve himself in the game. To be fair to him, he was given little opportunity. Still, Spurs remained resolute for a while, and we were given a snapshot of why Barcelona are so much better than their bitter rivals. Where Messi, Iniesta and Xavi can find space in the tightest of avenues, Madrid looked blunt and predictable, until a quick corner from Ronaldo caught the Tottenham back line napping. Di Maria's cross was perfect for Adebayor- again unmarked- and Gomes could only stand and admire as the majestic header soared into the corner of his goal.

After that, the only question was how many. The answer, two more, was somewhat harsh on Spurs, as they were not often opened up. It suggested a ruthlessness on Madrid's part, and that may be vital in the event of a semi-final against Barca, who were amazingly profligate against Arsenal. First Di Maria whacked an unstoppable effort into the top corner from the edge of the box. Then, substitute Kaka found a pinpoint cross for Ronaldo, who volleyed on-target, and Gomes fumbled into the net to complete a miserable night for Tottenham.

The night's other game started with a surreal goal and ended with a surreal result.

Inter 2-5 Schalke
When Manuel Neuer raced from his goal to clear the ball to halfway, it seemed he had swept up to good effect. But it fell to Dejan Stankovic, and his exquisite first time volley sailed back over the keeper's head, and hit the net before even bouncing. A truly sensational strike, and not the first time Stankovic has scored a volley from ridiculous range.

The rest of the night belonged to Schalke. The score was 2-2 at half time, but after the interval Inter's defence went to pieces. Raul put the Germans in front to bolster his amazing goals record in the competition, with a typical piece of opportunistic forward play and a poked finish. An own goal from Ranocchia and a red card for Chivu later, an emphatic finish from Edu, his second of the night, killed the tie, and ensured that meaningless second legs will be the order of next Wednesday night. Man United and Chelsea could be forgiven for thinking that their tie is now effectively a semi-final.

Spurs Win Fourth(?) Place Play-Off

Mancini's Manchester City, as they showed in the recent game at the Emirates, are too negative to go and win a big game, as they had to lastnight. They need urgency, but from the opposition, so that spaces are opened up for fast breaks, and their quick forwards can exploit that. With Stephen Ireland injured- and even before that, neither in form nor favour- City are bereft of creativity in the centre of the park. Spurs comfortbaly repelled their predictable attacks. Andy Gray remarked fairly early that Tevez was dropping very deep just to get involved- the result of Nigel De Jong and the pointless Gareth Barry lacking the ability to make any kind of telling pass. Maybe I'm being harsh on Barry, because it was with his enforced withdrawal, making way for Patrick the Passenger Vieira, that Spurs decided to make their superiority tell. They battered City for the remainder, and should have scored on a couple of occasions before Crouch finally bundled in the winner.

Harry Redknapp was rewarded for the kind of positivity even managers like Wenger rarely exhibit: in a big game, he put out a 4-4-2, without a recognised "holding" player (Palacios was benched), entrusting the leisurely Huddlestone and the diminutive but wonderful Luka Modric to win the midfield battle. It should not be forgotten that Modric was long linked with Arsenal before he moved to Spurs, and Wenger ratherly sourly stated since that the Croat was too lightweight to play in the Premiership. You'd hope he doesn't really believe that. I'm not sure where Modric would fit into Arsenal's team right now, but he's certainly a better player than Nasri, or it seems Arshavin, or any number of equally lightweight players on our books.

Note also that Spurs are clearly capable of performing with a discipline that has long since deserted their North London neighbours. Entertaining football is well and good, and in fact Spurs have arguably played the best football in England this season, but games like lastnight's are tight and tense, and Arsenal consistently fail in those battles, where in bygone days, they would produce a performance to fit the occasion.

Third place and, vitally, automatic Champions League qualification should still be ours, provided the team wakes from its collective stupor long enough to at least draw against a distracted Fulham side on Sunday. In light of my recent rantings, it's worth pointing out the Sky Sports statistics shown lastnight, with the net spending figures of the big clubs. Arsenal are the only one who have made a profit from transfers in recent years. City have spent a grotesque amount on largely average players who are only good enough for fifth. Spurs are a distant second, having spent heavily to get where they are today. But they have got there.

Perhaps some day the critics will all be made look foolish as Wenger is replaced by another great manager who gets the benefit of his predecessor's frugal nature. We will all marvel at how Arsene Knew all along. Still, I can't help feeling that there have been missed opportunities, because Wenger failed to find a middle ground between stability and maintaining a squad worthy of the name Arsenal. Those figures are a victory for idealism but that victory is hollow without a good team on the pitch. So let's hope that those figures are not an end in themselves, but a means to put us where we are this summer, in a position to spend some fucking money on some fucking proper players.

Just When I Thought I Was Out...

THEY PULL ME BACK IN!

Arsenal 1-0 Liverpool
09/10 continues to defy convention. I'm happy we won a game- it seems like ages- but this recurring trope of crushing disappointment followed by nagging optimism is starting to seem a little cruel. Every time people start to write the season off, the door creaks back open. And yet the definitive sensation one feels is that it ultimately won't matter that much. But I guess it keeps things interesting, at least.

A relatively poor game at the Emirates lastnight, certainly a slow-burner. While some teams tend to fly out of the traps after a disappointment, Arsenal under Wenger have always had a tendency to get bogged down in adversity, especially in recent years. Disappointing results seem to breed a lethargy that borders on self-pity. So it was against Liverpool in the first half. We weren't helped, on the face of it, by Rafa Benitez' usual plan of containment. But then again, his team's negativity was such that there was little threat of the sucker punches we habitually walk into against the more aggressive United and Chelsea. Thus, despite a listless 45 minutes, Arsenal made it to half-time unscathed. Thereafter, there was an improvement in tempo, and the game opened up as Liverpool finally became attuned to the benefit that a more adventurous policy might bring them. In the second half, we had our only real counter-attack alarm, when Willy G chased back to execute a heroic challenge on Ngog just as his fellow Frenchman pulled the trigger. Generally, there was a sense that painful lessons might finally be sinking in. At one point, Andy Gray remarked that Arsenal kept five players back while on the attack (and with the scoreline goalless). Song and Diaby ensured that Liverpool were not granted the ocean of space that others have exploited in front of our centre-backs.

In an attacking sense, it wasn't the most cohesive performance but the result was paramount after recent setbacks. Bendtner gave us a focal point, an aerial target, things that have been missed in his and RVP's absence. That said, it's hard to escape the suspicion that he's just not a particulartly good footballer, although this was hardly the night to judge him, having only just returned from a lengthy enough layoff.

The decisive moment came with twenty minutes or so to go. Rosicky, having fluffed his lines when presented with our most clear-cut opportunity, reasserted his class. The Czech maestro provided what is known in the industry as a "goal ball", daring the profligate head of my pal Diaby to even try and miss. He didn't, and thus began the familiar spectacle of a jittery Arsenal ceding ground and seeming to invite disaster. One of the things that annoys me about this team is the way that their possession football is lauded, and yet deserts them in these situations. Surely possession football is most effective when there is a lead to protect. Teams laugh in the face of our fannying around on the edge of the area, but those guffaws would turn to tears if we used that ability while they were chasing the game. I think of Barcelona's utter mastery of the ball and the game after Eto'o's opener against United in May. But I guess efficiency just isn't in our DNA. Quite the opposite. Strange things seem to happen when we're defending a lead- lastnight we were granted the spectacle of Vermaelen charging forward looking for a killer second, and Theo Walcott, when presented with the ball near the corner flag, effectively back-passing it to Pepe Reina so that Liverpool could launch another attack.

For neutrals, it's part of the charm, but I could do without that stress.

As alluded to earlier, there was food for thought elsewhere. United dropped points at Villa- and it could have been worse if Martin O'Neill's negative streak hadn't infected his team after Nani's red card in the first half. You can really tell by his reaction to Wenger's supposed "long ball" jibe that there is some truth in the apparent accusation- why else would he get so worked up about it? Villa are surely too one-dimensional to finish in the top four this season. People talk about Arsenal's inability to adapt, but at least OUR one dimension is an entertaining one. As far as I can tell, Villa just play like the away team, wherever the venue, whatever the circumstance. Lastnight, United's ten men made most of the running but it finished 1-1 and so the momentum they have ominously threatened lately is now somewhat hindered.

Speaking of momentum, Chelsea's apparent inability to build much of it may yet prove fatal to their hopes. Whatever their current strengths, they are not the relentless machine we saw under Mourinho. After their drubbing of Arsenal at their Emirates, they succumbed to a come-from-behind Man City at Eastlands; there was a sense of deja vu lastnight as Florent Malouda's early opener was consigned to memory by a fine Louis Saha double. Once again, Chelsea failed to build on a win against Arsenal, and their season has been littered with poor performances and results away from home.

A nice night overall was rounded off by Spurs' capitulation to Wolves, a rousing response to their manager's assertion that they can overhaul Arsenal, and should already be third themselves. Our 'Arry reckons that Spurs have thrown away leads that should have seen them to a much stronger position. Presumably, these include 0-0 leads against Wolves (twice) and Stoke. Fack off 'Arry. Now we know where Jamie gets his brains from.

A word also for Steven Gerrard, who subjected Arsenal to another diving masterclass. An irony seemed to pass unnoticed during the recent John Terry furore- few seemed bothered that one of the supposed candidates to replace him in the "hallowed" role of England captain was a cheating hypocrite who beat the shite out of a DJ for not playing a Phil Fucking Collins record. I'll say no more on that.

And finally, what do we make of this:
1. Chelsea 58
2. Man Utd 57
3. Arsenal 52
With twelve games each left to play?

I say, don't get your hopes up, it's a two-horse race.
It is not beyond the realms of possibility that the top two could lose a couple more games each, or at least drop enough points for Arsenal to again scent blood. But does anyone really see the killer instinct in this team? Actually, can anyone even IMAGINE Arsenal as champions, especially after the last couple of weeks? I certainly can't.
For one thing, we'd have to win almost every remaining game to stand any chance. I know we went on a decent run after the first Chelsea tonking, but to repeat that at this stage of the season and with the major prizes in sight is a different proposition. I still think that Wenger missed a trick (or four) in the last couple of transfer windows, and Saha's impact against Chelsea, if you're looking for negatives, can be seen to reinforce that. He made Terry look like a chump on a couple of occasions, simply by being a very decent forward player. Something that Arsenal have shown themselves to lack. To be brutally honest, I think that if this set of Arsenal players were somehow presented with a genuine chance of winning the title, they would contrive to mess it up. That's not pessimsim, but my considered opinion.

Basically: it would be ridiculous, after all I've written here, if I were to now state that I truly believe Arsenal can win the Premiership.