Wow. That was the Arsenal we all know and love. Thierry Henry is ridiculous. He literally ran through and around the opposition.
Kanu showed how skillful he still is. Pires was terrific. Ryan Garry looked very comfortable at the back. Oh, yeah, Jermaine Pennant bagged a hat trick, too (as did Pires).
Lots of positives tonight. Totally lifted my spirits. One interesting thing to note. Because we’ve got the automatic Champs League bid, we won’t be using the FA Cup route. Which means Southampton are automatically in the UEFA Cup, even with a loss. Perhaps on some level, subconsciously, that will dull their edge a bit, knowing they don’t have to win to get into Europe.
Our defense was soft at times tonignt and Stuart Taylor made a couple of nice saves. Ray Parlour is still pants by the way. He simply can’t pass the ball.
7 Responses to “Arsenal 6 - 1 Southampton”
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May 7th, 2003 at 10:51 pm
Does your comment about us not using the FA Cup route mean that if Southampton win they get into the Champs. League? If so, I’d say they have a hefty incentive to win. Our incentive, also hefty, is that a total lack of siverware would be a disaster.
Disagree with you about your assertion that Parlour is pants (even though his distribution is so so). He won the ball all the time in midfield and from what I saw did not give it back that frequently. I’ve always been impressed by the fact that he understands his limitations and usually plays within them.
I was lifted by this performance too, but let’s be under no illusion that Southampton will be a different side on the 17th, and we still have central defensive problems. Beattie will be a handful and is a potential match-winner. But we have one or two of our own so it should be a good contest.
Dave Connick
May 8th, 2003 at 8:24 am
Southampton are automatically in the UEFA Cup, no chance at Champs League.
Full disclosure: I don’t like Ray Parlour. That being said, three things stick out in my mind regarding him and the game. Being dispossesed once; starting a nice break upfield but then passing it behind Kanu, thus killing the break; and generally running around giving his best effort.
I don’t count understanding your limitations and playing within them a quality I want in a player at Arsenal.
May 8th, 2003 at 12:34 pm
Personally, I think Ray has been one of our better players lately. Even in our losses, he’s been winning balls and and marshalling the troops. With PV4 out, he’s had a lot of responsibility in the midfield and I think he’s handled it quite well. While you might remember things like him being dispossessed, I recall him taking a couple of mighty shots, including one that the keeper could only parry thus letting Pires put home the rebound. I like Ray. I think he’s one of our players who is prepared to get stuck in and work hard in gritty games to grind out results. Sometimes I think some of our “finesse” players aren’t ready to do that all the time and sometimes that’s what we need.
I thought Ray made a better case for his inclusion than, say, Kanu or Toure last night. Toure was caught out of position several times and managed to send several passes astray. Kanu, as far as I can remembered, was constantly being dispossessed in the far third of the field. Poor Henry was setting up goals left and right but nobody was supplying him in the box. A couple of times Kanu got the ball and then failed to move it anywhere, bouncing it off of defenders or losing it at their feet.
May 8th, 2003 at 12:48 pm
True, Ray did take a couple of strong shots, including the one that set up the first goal.
I thought Kanu did several good things. His beat two defenders to get the ball to Henry, starting the play that led to a Pennant goal.
May 8th, 2003 at 5:02 pm
I forgot about this game. I guess I just felt the season was over. Last night I hit Foxsportsworld with Arsenal playing someone and leading 6-1. It was late in the game, and I couldn’t remember us beating anyone 6-1 this year so I started to think it was an old game. Then I saw all these players I didn’t recognize and I was like “yup, this is a couple years ago or so”. Then I saw the big O on the jersey and did a second take. Talk about being mentally out of it.
May 8th, 2003 at 5:17 pm
True, I think Kanu did do some useful things. My point, perhaps a little more, was that personal bias sometimes affects what we see a player do. I’ve been less than convinced by Kanu this season, so it’s easy for me to see what he does wrong. Maybe the same for you and Ray.
That said, if I had to choose between letting Kanu go or letting Ray go at the end of the season… bye bye Kanu…
May 8th, 2003 at 5:44 pm
What did you guys make of our central defenders last night?
I think Oleg could have marked Igors ALOT BETTER!!