Arsenal Liverpool. The story for the defence « Untold Arsenal: Arsenal News. Supporting the Lord Wenger; coach of the decade
by Arvind
I somehow missed the time of the game and tuned into it 15 minutes late only to see Koscielny hobble off with a terrible looking injury. Hope its good news.
We lost the game though with a desperately unlucky goal, I thought. Not counting the second goal as that was always coming 1-0 down and being vulnerable on the break.
The defender tables (15 minutes onwards (I’m sorry)) are here. I however thought Emmanuel Frimpong deserves a word for a quite stunning 70 minutes before he was rather harshly(Walter?) sent off for a second yellow. Till then he held his own in our midfield and was driving things offensively and defensively in a way I have not seen any Arsenal player(not even Song) do in the last 3 or 4 years [Yes Diaby did it at times..but really not too many times]. I’m sure the manager will have a kind word for him in the dressing room while telling him to also be careful next time.
Back on topic, let us look at Untold Defenders for Game 2. Here are the tables:
| Player Name [Keeper] | Sczesczny |
| Catching | 1 — 2 |
| Punching | 1 — 1 |
| Long range shots | 2 — 2 |
| Reaction Saves | NA |
| Near Post coverage | NA |
| Ball distribution | 2 — 2 |
| Goal kicks | 1 — 4 |
| Box coverage | 6 — 7 |
Right so this table tells us Liverpool did not shoot much from inside the box for one. He loses 1 point for catching as he luckily palmed over a shot from the left side which went over the far corner. There is some improvement that is needed on his goal kicks as well. But by and large I thought he had a great game and is a wonderful calming aggressive (2 contradictory words in the same line but that’s how it is 
) presence in the box. He will only get better. I just wish our supporters believe in every young player the way they do with the young Pole.
| Player Name [LB] | Sagna |
| Recovery Pace to get back into position | 0 — 2 |
| Interceptions all over the respective wing; the further up the better | 4 — 4 |
| Width while attacking | 3 — 3 |
| Kick starting a counter attack | 1 — 1 |
| Tackling | 3 — 3 |
| Beaten down the wing | 1 — 3 |
| Crossing | 1 — 1 |
Bacary had to play left back today due to a huge number of injuries to players everywhere and did well. The numbers show he couldn’t get back twice in time, but that does not tell the full story. Both these were very late on and when we were looking for a goal and down to 10 men. But yes, the second goal was on his side which was vacant. He intercepted multiple times and helped Jenkinson out once with a great intercept in the box. He won 3 crucial tackles (contact tackles) but had a bad moment (Ancelotti anyone?) when he seemed to juggle the ball towards his goal and then tried to clear, failing to do so. It didn’t cost us though. He was beaten twice down the wing where a pass or a cross came in as well from his side..but the team overall took care that this didn’t result in a goal. Offensively his crossing can improve, that has dropped a bit over time.
| Player Name [RB] | Jenkinson |
| Recovery Pace to get back into position | 3 — 3 |
| Interceptions all over the respective wing; the further up the better | NA |
| Width while attacking | 2 — 2 |
| Kick starting a counter attack | NA |
| Tackling | NA |
| Beaten down the wing | 0 — 5 |
| Crossing | 3 — 5 |
Talk of a baptism by fire for the young RB. He showed good energy and recovery pace to get back after he was caught upfield. He didn’t read the game that well as is seen with no interceptions, which is strange for an Arsenal defender, it will come with time. He got forward to be available for a pass during an attack. He was beaten multiple times on the wing though and his fellow defenders had to cover up for him. He had a tough time IMO but will learn from this and improve.
| Player Name [RCB] | Vermalean |
| Set piece clearances | 3 — 3 |
| Second ball anticipation | NA |
| Dealing with the long ball over the top | 4 — 4 |
| Intercepting crosses/through balls Open Play | 5 — 5 |
| Tackling | 2 — 2 |
| Goal Scoring from set pieces | 0 — 5 |
TV5 is an absolute freak. He played at RCB today and not LCB (Can someone explain if this makes a difference? I’ve always wondered about this). He won almost everything in the air against Andy Caroll and I laughed out loud when Caroll didn’t even jump up for a header at the end of the first half. I think we have addressed our defensive issues to a degree, although its too early to say this. His tackling also was immaculate and excellently timed, getting him out of tough situations twice in the box. He ensured Miquel wasn’t exposed too much as well. A close second to Frimpong for MOTM for me.
| Player Name [LCB] | Miquel |
| Set piece clearances | NA |
| Second ball anticipation | NA |
| Dealing with the long ball over the top | 2 — 3 |
| Intercepting crosses/through balls Open Play | 2 — 4 |
| Tackling | 0 — 1 |
| Goal Scoring from set pieces | 0 — 5 |
The kid was a little nervous frankly but passed it around well. He won 2 out of 3 long balls and had a 50% rate of interception. But with TV being so dominant he hardly had to do anything more than what he did. He needs game time though and is a very similar player to Koscielny, albeit much rawer. He missed a tackle that he could have made and overall had an averageish game IMO.
Overall? The goal was offside as well as it turns out. And its desperately unlucky. Its easy to say – “He should have put it out for the corner” . He wasn’t under pressure and had time, so the downfield punt is fine. Ramsey in the way and Scszenzy off his line is a combination you rarely see. Not blaming anyone. Defensively, overall thought we were good..offensively we need a spark.