Three Arsenal players who impressed during the first half of March by SE
Arsenal won all of their games during the first half of this month, a period during which they closed the gap between themselves and second-placed Manchester City to just one point on the Barclays Premier League table, while progressing to the semi-finals of this season’s FA Cup after defeating Manchester United in the quarterfinals at Old Trafford.
Those results were built on the back of some collective displays from the North Londoners, but it can’t be denied that three players, in particular, stepped up to the plate and made the difference in their team’s triumphs. Which were those three players who stood out during the first half of March?
Olivier Giroud
The French striker was in impressive goal scoring form during the first half of this month, scoring a goal in all three Premier League games against Everton, Queens Park Rangers and West Ham United. Not only did Giroud score the goals that set the Gunners on their way to victories in the aforementioned league fixtures, but he also created 8 goal scoring chances for his teammates to get on the score sheet. As Arsenal embark on a mighty crucial phase of their campaign, Giroud’s form in front of goal will be crucial to their chances of finishing in the top 4 come the end of this season.
Mesut Ozil
The German playmaker created the most number of goal scoring chances (12) during the first half of this month, proving his significance to Arsenal despite Santiago Cazorla’s impressive showings during Ozil’s time out with a knee ligament injury. Ozil also averaged a pass accuracy of 85%, misplacing just 24 of those passes. The former Real Madrid playmaker enjoyed a 67% success rate, as he completed 6 of his 9 attempted take-ons in close to 4 and a half hours of Premier League actions.
Francis Coquelin
Coquelin was instrumental in Arsenal keeping 2 clean sheets and conceding just 2 goals in 4 games in the first half of March. He won 16 of his 23 attempted tackles, including the 4 successful tackles he made in the FA Cup quarterfinal clash against the Red Devils, taking up good positions ahead of the backline and preventing the opposition from posing any real threat to David Ospina’s goal.
The French midfielder won 9 of his 18 aerial duels in three Premier League games, further indicating his significance in a defensive sense to this Arsenal side. In addition to his aforementioned exploits, Coquelin made 7 interceptions and 18 clearances, and attending to a potential danger at all times.
Final Thought
Wenger would be hoping that in addition to the aforementioned trio of Giroud, Ozil and Coquelin, more players step up to the plate during the rest of this month and until the end of this campaign, as Arsenal look to cement their place in the top 4 of the Premiership table and retain the FA Cup that they won last year.
Suhith Kumar