An absolutely brilliant performance from Arsenal against Man United yesterday lifted us up to second in the Premier League table, and broke our duck against our great rivals in the League. After flying into a 3-0 lead with two brilliant goals from Sanchez, including a back-heel that reminded me of a Gianfranco Zola goal that was once Goal-Of-The-Season, and an easy Ozil finish after being set up by Walcott.
The Gunners sat back and defended strongly in the second half, and my only regrets were that Aaron Ramsey couldn’t break his duck with a great chance on the volley and Oxlade-Chamberlain hit the bar with an excellent chip after replacing Sanchez. WE could have scored a hatful and let United off the hook, while Cech showed De Gea that he may not be the best keeper in the League.
Wenger was pleased with the performances in both halves and he said after the game: “We won our last Premier League game 5-2 and we won here 3-0 so in the Premier League we have scored eight goals in two games against two difficult opponents. Overall it was a convincing performance. It was a strong response against Manchester United following our disappointment on Tuesday night. It shows the group is very united and very strong as well and from goalkeeper to No 9 everybody played very well, which is what you want.
“Everybody was very good today. Alexis was very efficient on top of that.
After losing to Olympiakos on Tuesday, Wenger was looking for a response that proved his team could answer the criticism and get back to winning ways in the League. He continued: “That is what you want in games of that stature. I believe in the [first half] we started very strong and decided to press very high and play with great pace, and we did that very well.
“After in the second half we decided to be disciplined, control the result and we did that very well. We had two aspects in our game that was pleasing and we were convincing today. It gives us a strong answer to all the questions raised in the week.
“I’ve been at the club for 19 years and I know what you want is a strong response in a big game when you have a big disapointment. But we [took it in] perspective and focused on what it is important. It’s us and not too much what was said and we focused on what is important in the game and that is part of being at the top level. The pressure on any disappointment today is massive and it’s maybe a little bit more difficult to deal with it but we did well.”
And deal with it we did! Now we can all go into the international break in a positive mood and look forward to a much easier game against Watford on our return. I have a feeling Wenger will put out some reserves in that game to prepare for the massive game against Bayern Munich to follow….
Onwards and Upwards!