Arsenal News

Arsenal v Leicester review – Welbeck grabs last gasp winner

You could not really have asked for a more positive start from Arsenal, as we hit the ground running in this massive match against high flying Leicester City. Good work by Ozil and Alexis Sanchez and then the Ox down the right created a chance in the opening minute and then the Chilean headed a corner just wide.

The only thing wrong was that we failed to capitalise on our early domination and we nearly paid the price for that after 15 minutes, when Schmeichel rushed out and just beat Ramsey to the ball when he would have been clear on goal and seconds later Cech had to make a great save from a Vardy header.

Leicester then came into the game more and although we still controlled the ball more it seemed as though every rebound fell to them and while we kept getting close it was not quite happening. Giroud headed in a peach of a ball from Ozil but was just offside. Alexis had a goal bound shot stopped by a double deflected block and that was pretty much typical.

Then the referee effect kicked in against Arsenal again, as Martin Atkinson missed a clear and obvious foul on Ozil and seconds later gave a penalty against Monreal at the other end from what looked like a dive by Vardy. The in form striker made no mistake though and we were up against it at the break.

The ref made some amends though by finally starting to book visiting players and when their right back Simpson picked up a second we had over half an hour against 10 men. We were still messing up chances, however, until less than 10 minutes after he came on for Coquelin, Walcott showed the others how to finish after a great knock down from Giroud.

So we had 20 minutes to complete the turnaround but lots of chances came and went, with Ramsey, Alexis and Mertesacker the most guilty of spurning them. Giroud looked to have finally secured the win but was denied by an amazing instinctive save. So it looked like we would have to settle for a point, but no.

With the four minutes of extra time already up, Dany Welbeck on his first appearance of the season rose to slot home a superb header from an Ozil free kick. Wow, just wow!

Posted by

Tags Giroud vardy Walcott welbeck

147 Comments

        1. Probably olympic gold for diving, but I agree, Vardy should have been booked for diving, but it is very difficult for referees, hopefully in future they will be more reluctant to give Vardy penalties.

            1. OMFG i nearly had a heart attack in this game.
              i feel there’s destiny .
              welbeck rewarded for thousands of hours with physio.

      2. felt like i came 9 times in one moment.

        he really is dat guy…

        ive lost my voice and someone punched me by accident while celebrating..
        emirates – library?

        not today lads – not today

        camden here i come

    2. And özil the silent ‘assassin’..he was pretty quiet whole game and BANG a killer assist amd he sends arsenal to 2nd place!!!

    4. Forget Simpson. Drinkwater should have been sent off. He was given his “final warning” from the ref early in the game. He then committed many more yellow card offenses and a clear red card offense but he remained on the pitch.

      I notice Ranieri did not mention Vardy’s dive or Drinkwater’s repeated ugly challenges when he was whining about only having 10 men on the pitch. It should have been 9 players or fewer and the score should have been at least 2 – 0.

      1. i have totally justified leaving my missus on her own to go to the emirates today

        if i had missed that at home.

        i would have ryan shawcrossd her forehead

        F VALENTINES- ITS ARSENAL DAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

    2. Is ur name ‘vishaal’ or ‘vishal’, coz it looks very likely..mine is vishaal.. Not many of us here haha

    1. A lot of times his hard work is over shadowed by a miss (or a few). It needs to be said more often that he works incredibly hard and loves his team.

      1. MOTM in my opinion, great assist to Theo and was robbed by CS on that incredible, fingertip save in injury time.

        His heart and engine is what all Arsenal players should aspire 2

        Well done OG

    2. I love when he went face to face with their keeper. Great knock downs once to Theo for the goal and one to Danny. He could have had 3 assists as he found a trailing Ramsey who shot it wide.
      It’s funny the commentators were saying there was no foul in the red card he drew from Simpson until they saw the hold of OG’s arm. Really didn’t like the commentators today.

        1. Good one Twig! I wish this league though would help out refs with replay on penalties. It is just too important not to get calls right. Basically if you have the ball push it past the defender and then target their outstretched leg with your trailing leg you can get a game changing call. Happens all too frequently in all the games.

    3. Have to say that was the worst Ozil game so far,but only he can take that free kick like that, as well Sanches still not there yet. Glad Walcott came back and getting on before Campbel and Oxy getting better hope he plays in Cup game with Welbeck Walcott and Ellerny. Sanches needs to start and rest Ozil Giroud, keep Chambers in at back with Mertisaker and Gabriel if fit on for Mert in 60 th min. Awobi on for Sanches 60 th minute. Arsenal 4 Hull 0. CB

      1. LUKO , ??

        Worst game for Ozill? They marked him out the game and he still managed an assist and Mert should have scored so he could’ve had two assists.

        2. I disagree, he was caught in possession to much and did not release it quick. His ball control was off it happens but he should have released the ball early to combat his off day not hang on and fiddle with back heals. Remember Leciester are very fast at break when we lose possession. Sanches work rate is good but if he did not dribble to much and his movement is always same so easy to read, he wouldn’t have to keep running back trying to get it back, he should watch Piress games could learn a bit. Great day but again it’s our goal tally to small let’s hope now with Danny and Walcott back its game on and points to decide the winner CB

    4. Sanchez worked really hard as well. But hez not offering us what he should be in attack. Keeps on running into left backs. N hez cut in n shoot has lost its effect. Come on coaches. Spot it, work on it n get him ready for the title run in. #NotGoodEnuf

  7. Amazing game, nail biting stuff. We went one nil down due to poor refereeing. Some of you can curse Wenger all you want, but it was because of his decision to bring on Theo and Welbeck we came back and won the game. Yes the red card helped, but Leicester were asking for it.

    A true reflection should have been 4 – 1, Leicester were lucky most of the second half. Great result Arsenal let’s push on to the title!

    1. He’s had 6 pens this season already more than any other entire club on his own, it’s obviously something he looks for. Yep. Cheat

      1. He’s not a cheat, he’s a pure striker. A striker’s job besides scoring goals is to force the opponent into offering penalties, United were infamous for having decisions go in their favour and look how many titles they won because of that. Likewise Ronaldo and Suarez win at least 3 penalties a season.

        1. It’s funny how we slate him cos he is an opponent, had it been Giroud, we will all be applauding his effort. Yes he dived but that’s what modern day strikers do to create opportunities for their team.

  8. DAT GUY!!! What a way to announce your return.

    Thought on the whole our team put an incredible shift in today, always trying to go forward, always pushing the tempo. They’ve certainly earned their win today, what a dramatic way to go and get it though!

    Absolutely buzzing right now!

  11. What a game. Perhaps only the 7-5 Arsenal versus Reading game was crazier. Sanchez, Monreal, Walcott, OX, Cech and of course Dat Guy all with top top class performances. Maybe we could win the league? 🙂

    1. Ox? Another very poor performance from him, IMHO. Wenger better sort out the situation with Campbell, because I feel he offers not only more offensively, but also defensively. Ox scores one goal, and all of a sudden he’s a starter. Very unfair, I think.

      1. He’s had 6 pens this season already more than any other entire club on his own, it’s obviously something he looks for. Yep. Cheat

        1. ox should’ve taken a shot in min 1 when instead he had no good crossing options. walcott on RW now. ox has to win it back (or theo has to lose it). walcott offers now more on RW.

  15. So equestrian got the win? Still AW needs to go end of. O G is not top class how many chances did he yet again have. They are on a great run but let’s be honest we have great players and them players won’t stay with this club if we don’t buy what we need. BFG on today WHY GP is so much better then BFG but AW keeps picking him. We need a captain on the park so our players can look up to. This club needs a good clean up top to bottom and let’s face it we have missed the trick with pep and kloop and we still have this old fool in charge.

    1. how about taking a day off and enjoying a brilliant win? you can get back to complaining tomorrow.

      2. i know man: what kind of arsenal supporter watches that game and then goes on about negatives. take a break.

      1. for all my complaints about AW: today he earned his money.
        OG worked his a** off ; lucky not to score AND had an assist. Ozil had a bad day by his standards and yet he still managed to assist for a super important winner. sanchez will surely get back to his level. just needs time.

    4. You don’t even bother to know your facts when whining about Wenger. Gabriel was not fully fit but you are still whining about BFG getting the start. I think maybe some whining fans’ brains are really what needs a good top to bottom cleaning.

  16. That wasn’t luck that was hard work. Now we been made favorites lets push on from here, no more sleepy performances. But for today well done Arsenal. btw, never a penalty. Only sad note, the look on Ranieri faceafter the late goal. But hey that’s life. COYG!!! Now to watch what that man loads of Arsenal fans wanted at the Emirates does against Villa.

      1. i just hope our forwards find their shooting boots. if they do, we’ll beat Tottenham. and we’ll beat MU even if they dont.

  18. So equestrian got the win? Still AW needs to go end of. O G is not top class how many chances did he yet again have. They are on a great run but let’s be honest we have great players and them players won’t stay with this club if we don’t buy what we need. BFG on today WHY GP is so much better then BFG but AW keeps picking him. We need a captain on the park so our players can look up to. This club needs a good clean up top to bottom and let’s face it we have missed the trick with pep and kloop and we still have this old fool in charge. Ccc

    1. Im a vocal critic of AW and the squad but come on man let it go for a minute and celebrate an incredible match and much needed W.

      The lads played with purpose and conviction today, they should be applauded

      1. Hamstring, that usually takes three weeks. Kos is only a dead leg and maybe because of Gab is why he didn’t risk him playing through it. Atleast Chambers/Mert looked ok and even though lei were down a man their set up and style is built around springing quickly towards CBs.
        Lets just see how we go against Hull and not think too much on this because it is a beautiful day.

  19. Valentine is white and red. Arsenal is red and white….

    When Danny came on, I told a friend watching with mi that Welbeck will score the winning goal.. I screeeeammmmed when he scored. Amazing Valentine gift!

    Shout out to Leicester for fighting real hard, we just had to do the ‘double’ on you guys.

  20. My voice is officially horse from all that celebrating shouting at the top of lungs at both goals and esp Welbz winner. Had said at HT was Leicesters to lose and still is, they have an easier run in with a 2pt gap still, but just absolulty buzzing.. 1st of all that we came back from a goal down and 2nd, that we didnt stop until the last kick of the game.

    Everton in 2weeks, FA Cup v Hull next weekend followed by the big one in UCL v Barcelona.

    This win should give the team a HUGE boost. COYG

  21. NICE Performance,3 points,17 assists and 1 goal to welcome Welback coming with a goal to make them 2.!

  23. stupid Vardy looks like you are dead mate after that abysmal dive and thanks to the ref your team was only 10 men down otherwise it would have been 9 down and ask kicked sideways and backwards.

  24. I get the feeling Martin Atkinson saw the penalty and all the fouling at half-time and redressed the balance in the second half. We certainly shouldn’t have been 3 yellow cards and a penalty down at the end of the first half. I have a different view of Leicester now – thought they played cleanly before. God – retribution feels good!!!!!!

    1. My feeling after half time was the same, ref appeared to be trying to make amends by doling out yellow cards to leicester players. Shame he did not see tackle on ramsey which looked a straight red.

      1. Yes – thought Ranieri had a bit of a cheek to bemoan their red card … you could see Rambo’s leg bending in the replay. Very dangerous, especially after he’s suffered the same previously.

        1. refs (and their assistants) just cannot keep up with the speed of the game nowadays. let’s start by allowing each team to ask for up to 1 video review per game. it’ll probably only take a few seconds- we already have lots of breaks in play that are longer than that.
          its criminal how many wrong decisions the refs make and how much impact their decisions have on players’ reputations and outcome of the league.

  25. Hello Danny Drinkwater, I hope you go home and drink enough water to digest this defeat to Arsenal.

    While the Arsenal Danny gave us joy, the other Danny will Drinkwater for the rest of the day.

  26. The game of the decade what an amazing win COYG FA Cup wins don’t matter this was the game……OZil you are forgiven….. Welbeck you are DAMAN I will even give credit to WENGER you old coon…..Lampost well something for you too for assisting WALCOTT now start scoring some gooaalls what a beautiful Valentines day might even take the missy out

    1. Thought so too. He looks for a positive pass most of the time. He will be a big part of the club for years to come!

  29. Wenger was spot on with his subs today.
    Great game from Giroud. Credit for him.
    That has to be Özil’s biggest assist of his career lol.
    Fairytale return and finish for Welbeck.
    Hoping for a City – Spurs draw.
    Happy Valentines from the team in Red and White.

  30. wheeeew……………….Holy Jesus.i didnt check to see who scored.still celebrating here.
    Man u should watch out

  31. Great win today, poor referee.
    In terms of goal scoring
    1. I thought giroud was ok, scored but offside, fantastic shot denied by keeper and a lot of difficult headers which he perhaps could do better with.
    2. Walcott was good, made a big difference when he came on.
    3. Ramsey and sanchez were poor, lots of shots or shooting opportunities but cannot recall keeper having to make a save.
    4. Welbeck, not on long enough to assess overall performance but awesome because he scored.

    Note – above comments relate to goal scoring/shots on goal, not overall play.

    1. wonder how we’d do with 2 CFs? giroud + welbeck maybe. giroud is good with heading down to set it up for the other CF.
      hope to god that our CFs find their shooting boots.

  33. OT,

    Villa and Newcastle possibly relegated in the same season. Ashley and Lerner would be wise to beef up security or forever stay away from the UK.

    How the once might have fallen

  34. Asene Wenger got all right today, he proves fans wrong that Per can play against Leicester n any team. The team played so well today. Giroud worked his heart out, sorry Moreal for dat stupid ref decision. Cech u r too much. Am so happy for our two goals, Theo n webek winning goal. Our three guys Ozil, Sanchez, n Ramsey, kudos. Couquline mark dem out guy, lolzz. Up gunners

    1. looking fwd to FA cup: hope elneny plays and scores one from outside the box. we need an outside shooter. and we need to shoot more! too much passing (u especially ox!)

  35. This was a make or break game for us, am so happy happy about the 3 pts regardless of how we got them.. i just really hope we can cross more in games when Giroud is playing coz the one-two passes become so predictable if the other team is sitting back….. Also terrible refereeing leicester cud hav easily had 3 red cards…Kante what a beast!!!!!

  37. Great win but some users on this site should NOT call themselves arsenal fans, absolutely shocking comments I saw today hoping that we LOSE ? What kind of fan in their right mind would want their team to lose, especially a game of this magnitude, what just so you can say ‘I told you so wenger is cluseless ? smh. Even Wenger got it spot on today with the line up and the subs, Ox was surprisingly good I must admit and giroud played his socks off, could have been at LEAST 4 if sanchez and ramsey had their shooting boots on, but looking at the comments during the match they were still people being negative ? I dont understand what thats supposed to achieve when your team is trying to win the titile tbh but i digress. The boys defo answered their critics today and who else but Dat guy Welbz to get the winner, absolutely buzzing COYG!

  38. man we fans sure suffer a lot. what a game. so happy.

    the reff was aswfull today, but in the end of the day we are back in the title race and i hope that we do everything to bring the crown home

  39. Thrilled to be a gooner! Total gutsy performance, and, man, Chambers put in a solid performance at CB when called upon. But Danny! So glad he’s back. And still thanking the day that mastermind LVG chose Falcao over Welbz! This should give us solid confidence as we head back into CL play next week. Bring on Barcelona!

  40. That amazing feeling when you pluck a win from the jaws of defeat ..amazing stuff. A draw would have felt and looked like defeat …big thanks to the lads.

  42. This must be Welbeck’s song

    Go,Danny, go, go
    Go,Danny, go, go
    Go, Danny, go, go
    Go,Danny, go, go
    Danny B. Goode

  43. Paging Konstantin… paging Konstantin… come out, come out wherever you are… I hope you’ve got something to say now, as well as all the other idiots who were criticizing our team, our manager, and blaming everyone else for their own misfortunes.

    To the game – Ozil, Giroud, Theo, and Dat Guy all had fantastic games. I was slightly worried when I heard that Gabriel was injured, and Per will be in his place. But our back four stayed focused and composed for the most part, and played well. BS penalty in my opinion (not to mention that there was a foul before that), and Lester were rightfully denied the 2nd one. As for the red card – Simpson has no one else to blame but himself – two blatant fouls both deserved of yellow cards. Cech saved our bacon a couple of times, but it was our offense that got us the 3 points. Up the Gunners!!!

    1. Well Im one of those distinguished idiots there champ and Im thrilled with todays result, collective effort and passion from the lads. Tip of the cap to the entire Arsenal outfit.

      My lingering question and probably one shared by the rest of the non Wenger loving IDIOTS on this board is why does the passion and conviction from this team surface on such an inconsistent basis?

      Not complaining, just curious.

      F#&$%!G Spurs

      1. Some anti Wenger people I understand much more so than a great many others. With them (the former) I think to myself well yeah he’s not happy with what he’s seen so that is his perogative. The others however, well they simply come off like those people who don’t know how to do anything but complain. Its just their nature, even on a very happy day for all Gooners they will not be comfortable with that so they will quickly turn the topic round to a negative viewpoint as that is their comfort zone. And look, some are already twisting.

        1. i’ve become anti-wenger in the last 2-3 years but today was just priceless. i’m anti-wenger; not anti-arsenal. we used to play champagne style, but today was all grit. just buzzing.
          i’ve also wished we had someone other than giroud, but he does work his azz off for us and that i admire. i wish him luck and hope all arsenal CFs find their shooting boots.
          welbeck’s fairytale ending is such an inspiration to all those that get injured for long terms.

  45. So glad Danny scored at the start of his comeback.
    Also happy Theo scored. We need his goals.

    Giroud worked really really hard today but I hope Theo and Danny scoring today and ox (scored a couple of goals recently) will make Giroud improve and score more.

    BTW how many assists for Mesut? I’ve lost score lol.

    Seriously, this is a HUGE win. We needed this win desperately. Not just to narrow the gap with Leicester but to restore belief in ourselves

    I was so happy, I screamed so loud the whole neighborhood heard me lol.

    Now with only 3 months left we need to continue winning

    Coyg

  46. This was a well fought, hard earned victory. To me any victory is victory. A win is a win, but I salute our lads for the way they played

    Also, I salute Leicester too. If we don’t win it, I hope they do. I think almost everyone would prefer Leicester to City, United, Chelsea lol.

    But now I’m starting to believe again. January was a horrible month for us. I admit my belief decreased. But this win is super big for us.

  47. Top result! The dream lives on.

    Didn’t seem gam but looking forward to a stress free an enjoyable MOTD2!

  50. Atkinson should be banned 4 life… hopeless refereeing at both ends… liked chambers contribution… although we have to be more clinical plz – no shot on goal 4 first 25 or more mins even wid all dat possession… nwz feeling awsum after de win… hope sanchez finds his form soon… nd somebody shud go nd shout to ramsey be less selfish… if he is not getting ne assists den his position shud cf not mf… chech bring de title plz… he was real gud again…

    1. not shure i understood your words garg; but i do wish ox had shot in 1st minute. btw: we’re all trained to recognise english words so when u use other words, its too much trouble to read your comment.

  52. Absolutely buzzing!
    Danny Setbeck is well and truly back,
    He described his goal as a beautiful feeling and I couldn’t agree more. .. It was close to orgasmic ???
    Danny Showed Giroud how it’s done,
    2 attempts… 2 on target. .. 1 Goal…
    Well done Danny Boy! & Welcome back Son.

  53. Gotta say that ozil had a poor game compared to previous but with the last chance if the game he stepped up player of the season in my option coyg

  54. Great win today, we are still in the race for the title. Will need to show great committment and determination in the coming games to win the PL.

    The away games with manc and tottenham will be critical. Away games with everton and manu will be difficult.

    I have just watched the first half of manc tottenham game, tottenham are looking good, manc do not seem to have any spark, i think manager changing is affecting them..

    In terms of our rivals to the title I think it is tottenham, leicester, manc, in that order.

    1. we need 1 vid challenge per team per game. too many games are being decided on dodgy calls by refs.

  58. We are still suffering from poor refereeing decisions, tottenham awarded a penalty for hand ball, very harsh, lets hope manc can get one back. Tottenham win is worst result for us, i see tottenham as bigger threat to us than manc.

  61. After spuds win we need to win ALL the games.No room for any draw.All or nothing,nothing to lose.No more “playing for a draw”.Wenger,do u hear that?

      1. Let us not forget that Spurs will play:
        Liverpool, Stoke, West Ham, Chelsea AWAY and
        Shampton, Man United, Arsenal HOME

        All of these teams will fight for the title or European football. And Leicester will have an easy run from now on but still their last 8 games or so, are:
        Watford, C Palace, Man United, Chelsea AWAY
        Shampton, W Ham, Everton HOME

        City will probably have the easiest run but they are already 6 points behind the leaders:
        Shampton, Liverpool, Chelsea AWAY
        Arsenal, Stoke, Man United HOME

        One thing they all have in common is they are all playing Chelsea at the Stamford Bridge.. Know that we have already faced them twice, I can’t believe to say this but I hope Chelsea will go in for hell of a run for Europa League spot so they something to fight for…

        That is if we can just keep our composure. Wins at the Etihad, Old Trafford, Upton Park and Fart Lane are not something we haven’t done in recent years.

        1. we need to start shooting more from outside i think. otherwise teams just sit really deep when they defend against us. also, when u shoot, it causes chaos in goalmouth and you can get a second or third chance. as long as the shot’s on frame, i dont mind if it is shot from outside the box.
          elneny is good at longer range shots.

  62. Another note altogether. I heard some people say – how could Arsene not have spotted Marhez, French second division and oh yeah did I mention he’s French. Well I heard someone read out his stats and I can honestly say that Leicester got extremely lucky with him. In the second tier even for a second tier type player his stats where awful, like really bad. I presume they noticed how he could be very unpredictable and that is what they were looking for. I highly doubt they expected him to succeed in the goalscoring and assisting department as well as he has done.

    The reason I bring this up is because of how G Lineker mentioned – I love how AFC went and got the wrong scout. (I wonder why he didn’t say that to tott who went first and must of got the wrong one also)

    Like I said, I bring this up because maybe it’s not the scouts who should be receiving all the credit. Marhez basically couldn’t hit a barn door before he went to Leicester. So, I’m thinking what about their goalscoring and final third training. Who is teaching or working with the forwards, maybe these people should be getting more credit than they deserve. Vardy, I’m sure he wasn’t banging the goals in so frequently either, something to consider I reckon.

  63. The reality is that we have the hardest run in, all those missed opportunities earlier in the season have made things difficult for us. We can do it but I think the most likely winner is tottenham, they are playing so well as a coherent unit with no sign of bottling it as in previous seasons.

    We need total commitment from the players and more composure in front of goal from players like sanchez and ramsey. A bit of luck on the injury front would be good as well

    1. As painful as it is to say, yeah tott have a real shot at it. We do to as does lei but I hate that tott could win it. City, ffs when we play you I bet you’ll have your bloody confidence back. Sick that they couldn’t even draw. We have had per usual a bad run of injuries, it’s only fair now that the other two above us get a taste …come on lady luck.

  64. Giroud was awesome in this game, my man of the match for me, ran all through the game tireless, great weekend for me

    1. I thought giroud was good, unlucky with shot being saved and took offside goal well. Good knockdows etc. My only reservation were a number of headers, difficult chances but I felt he could have got some on target and at least forced a save.

  65. Giroud was awesome in this game, my man of the match , ran all through the game tirelessly, great weekend for me

  66. What if Spurs win the title? They look solid and very composed. Lots of energy and confidence. It will be an embarrassment.

    1. If Tottenham win it will be upsetting but at least they are a real club who would owe their sucess to support from their fans. As opposed to clubs who are a billionaires toy or a marketing/advertising mechanism for abu dhabi.

  67. It’s a great win for us. today we should savor the victory but by tomorrow we should forget all about it and prepare for the war that awaits us. We have won the battle but have not won the war. And what a dream come back for Welbeck

  68. What a peach of a free kick!! Ozil’s free kick was just too good. As he kept the ball down to take it – you could see on his face; the frowns of immense concentration and attention. A short run and then he delivered the beauty. Very few in premier league could do that. As the ball moved in with a curve, suddenly they were 3 Arsenal Players lining up for a header (queueing) – no LC defenders within the path of ball. The 3 lining up were Welbeck then Chambers and then Giroud! Anyone of them could have scored. But it had to be Dat Guy. What a peach of a free kick!!!

  69. Vardy Dived -> Vardy Cheated.

    He ‘Created Opportunities for his Team’!!!!!!! Anyone who thinks that DIVING is an ‘acceptable’ way to ‘create opportunities’ for their Team should be ‘Shot at Dawn’!!!!

    ALL Divers are Cheats – ANY Team – NO EXCEPTIONS.!!!!!!!

Comments are closed

Top Blog Sponsors