There are not a lot of happy Arsenal fans around after watching Swansea stage a smash-and-grab raid on Monday, especially as it was our old reserve keeper Lukasz Fabianski making our strikers look like schoolboys in a Man-Of-the-Match performance. But at least one Arsenal player, Jack Wilshere, was happy for the Polish shot-stopper.
Jack said after the game on Arsenal.com: “We dominated the first half but at the end of the day the only thing that matters is the result. We created chances and I thought Fabianski was brilliant tonight. We fell asleep for two minutes and at this level you can’t do that.
“When he was at Arsenal you could always tell that he was going to be special. I played with him for two years and sometimes with him it was maybe a little bit mental, but it seems like he’s sorted that out and he’s a top-class goalkeeper. Luckily for them he was on form tonight.
“I thought Fabianski was brilliant. In the second half we did create a few chances that we should be scoring but Fabianski was there and he’s been fantastic for them this year. I’m happy for him – he’s been my friend for a good number of years while we were at Arsenal. He’s grown as a player and seems to be growing as a person as well, and I’m happy for him.
Jack was then asked if thought that the Gunners should have come away with a draw at the very least. “I think we did.” he replied. “Maybe our first half performance warranted one as well. Fabianski was good in the first half and only seemed to get better as the game went on. We created enough chances and we should’ve scored one.”
Fabianski himself was obviously also pleased at Swansea’s second win over Arsenal since he left the Emirates, and Sky Sports asked him how he felt after getting in the way of everything Arsenal threw at him. “It looked a bit like that.” Fab said. “That’s something that you expect from your goalkeeper and I tried to help the team and luckily enough I managed to do it.
“It’s always nice to show yourself at the Emirates against your former team, you always try to – this is only my first game coming back – but you try to be positive in the game and stay focused to help the team.
“That’s what I’ve done today so I’m quite happy.”
“I was a little bit emotional before the game, but then when you step onto the pitch you just focus on the game,” he added.
“I’m just happy with the result. I think the whole team put on a massive effort to get a result and you could see Arsenal were more on the ball, but we always looked very dangerous on the break and we’re happy enough we managed to get one.”
Lukasz was frustrated for a long time as backup to Wojciech Szczesny at the Emirates, even though many Gooners thought he was the better player, but he is happy now, as he said after getting the MOTM award. “I spent seven years here and I have loads of friends here so to play against them was a strange experience, and sometimes it even felt like a training game,” Fabianski said.
“It was tricky. You never know how you are going to feel until you experience something. It was strange arriving at the ground and seeing all the people, but there was a game to play and I had to be focused.”
“I am past that frustration (at Arsenal). It has been a long time since I left Arsenal so I am just enjoying my position at the moment at Swansea.
“I am very happy with my decision to come here and I am really proud of the team’s performance.”
Fabianski definitely seemed much improved last year when he was called upon, and was especially great in the FA Cup games. Perhaps if Szczesny had been caught smoking last year it could have all turned out so differently….
We didn’t have a shot on target in the first 60 minutes! But you win some and lose some. I don’t think it was a bad performance and we shouldn’t go OTT every time we lose and start slating players!
Yeah, we fell asleep and got executed like that North Korean piggy dictator did his defence chief.
dynamic a player as jack is…hes turning into a hex for us. (easy u sensitive jack fans- i love him really)
i swear everytime we play i do mad rituals for good luck…someones undoing my good work
its hafiz
I put the defeat more down to poor finishing than class keeping. I think a fair few people are suffering De Gea syndrome, where they consider every save as magnificent even if it’s straight at the keeper. Bar the Monreal and Alexis saves, most of them would’ve taken a catastrophic error to concede. Their defence was well marshaled, didn’t allow us any space to shoot and credit must be given where it is due.
“I am past that frustration (at Arsenal). It has been a long time since I left Arsenal so I am just enjoying my position at the moment at Swansea.” Fabianski
I think we need to give our sub players more chances. We do have decent enough players on the bench (Gibbs, TR, Theo, Paulista, Chambers,)…and OX, Debuchy when get back…if we don’t rotate the squad these players are also (if not already) going to get frustrated and will follow Fabianski to get game time.
I understand the sh!t about why change winning formula, but 1/2 changes per game wont make such a big difference..also allows for rest time for players.
Agree 100% players like Gabriel should start, why doesn’t Wenger give him more playing time? The dude is a classy defender
Its because of Pers passing ability which he uses to keep possession and start attacks. Since Gab arrived Per has looked good within a good Arsenal unit. Before he arrived i would have been screaming for him to play but credit where its dued.
I don’t think fabianski was brilliant, all our shots were right down the middle of the goal, he never made a world class save. I still think shezney is a better keeper
I’m happy that jack is happy. It’s all about Jack.
I agree with Fabianski, the game felt like the tempo was set at training level. To me the mistake in this game was tactical, swapping Coquelin for Wilshere and Walcott for Giroud was poor judgement from our manager. We kept on trying passing through the middle and our attacks on the flanks were predictable, we lacked tempo.
I wrote an article some seasons back suggesting Fabianski should replace Szczesny in our return fixture against Bayern Munich (he did anyway, as Szczesny for injured). Many of you ridiculed the idea at that time.
So i guess its………………. i told ya so.
You seriously think Fabianski was brilliant?
All our shots were hit straight at him with next to no power.
i’ll give credit where its due but Fanianski was, is, and will always be below average.
Fabianski was not brilliant. WE made him brilliant!! None of the shots made him anxious or challenged. Even with the time to shoot, the shots were not good enough.
I know we win some, we lose some and we cant win every game. But this philosophy i abide by during the first 33 games of the season. You cant lose in the last 5 games if you are challenging for the title. You just cant. Imagine Barca losing one-two matches at this juncture. They might have lost title. We are not fighting for the title. I know but we are fighting for the 2nd place. And that is why it is imperative to win every damn match now. And if we cant and lose out on 2nd place, it will be called choking. The choking that we seem to do every year. If we are allowed to follow”You win some you lose some” in the last 5-6 matches, then say goodbye to PL title for ever because if we ever come close to winning it would not be like winning with 4 games in hand. It will go down to wire and we MUST not choke.
You do have a point, if we cant fight teams off for second place what chances do we have at first place.
I do feel we will be more mentally prepared for next season and with an excellent signing or two i believe we should challenge, sort of feel and hope.
Che this season werent really anything special its just nobody put it up to them, but now that they have gotten themselves over the line they are a different animal. Hopefully the FA cup will have a similar effect for us fingers crossed, i know we won it last year but two seasons on the bounce with a couple of great signings could have us look a different animal.. legs crossed.
Chel were good very good.
But no one challenged them
till we did post Feb but it
was too late by then.
I really just can’t see this as a 1 off. To me a 1 off is losing to them the first time in their backyard but for them to do the league double on us by beating us in OUR backyard is unacceptable. We should have been more mentally prepared for this game as for any return game which we lost the first. Did anyone notice the winning goal was scored and assisted by the same too players in the same exact manner as the first meeting? Say what you want but that’s embarrassing and sad. Only a victory at Old Trafford will erase this feeling for me…
With a static manager like Wenger on the touchline we cannot win these kinds of crucial games when it matters. This has been the difference between him and Mourinho. It was the difference between Wenger and Sir Alex. Now Monk has entered the fray — as one of the only three managers who can box Wenger and he would have no response. Remember he said he does not know what a plan B is but he’s committed to what he does! As long as we cling onto Wenger whose thinking, tactics and style are in steep decline, Arsenal will not win the EPL title anytime soon.
Well if taking Coq off for an attacker and changing static Giroud for a nippy Walcott isnt considered different tactic… ???
The great barca lost the title last season on the final day, real Madrid with all the stars dropped points at home when were supposed to be putting pressure on barca!
Is it just me or did Fabianski not just do what every PL GK would be expected to do, if one of those shots had of beaten him he would have gotten panned.
All the same his hands do look safer because in our colours for some reason whenever he tried catching ball his hands would wobble.. a little like Szcz from time. I can only assume it is the pressure of playing for a big club, at lesser clubs they keep busy which must help with confidence and also you cant really point fingers because then there would be finger pointing all season long.
@Seancali, Fabianski is better than Szczney. fab got injured and szcz came on when he had no ego and worked hard to get favour of the maxim ”dn’t change winning squad’. LeProf made mistake for too long, but it was intentional for his philosophy. when 2012/13 top four was threatened by szcz, faby kept goal till end of season and secured 4th at newcastle. he won fa cup for us last may2014. szczney could not win carling cup,rusty obagol tapped in for a relegated birmingham win carling cup, so how better?