Arsenal's new signing certainly made a positive impression against a decent Cologne side, in our most recent friendly. A much better impression than the club's online video recording on Arsenal Player, that failed to kick in before Monday!
Nevertheless, I was glad to see the boys in action for myself, as relying on Arsenal Player IPhone updates can be misleading. For instance, following the game on my IPhone, I was led to believe that Gervinho scored with his first touch of the game. The belated video footage revealed the Ivory Coast international contributed prior to his volleyed lob of the keeper for goal number one.
Arsenal Player's summariser, Stewart Robson, is usually spot on with his analysis, particularly so when talking about Gunners he's seemingly not too keen on. When his says Theo Walcott put in a good cross, you'd best believe it's true. And Theo did just that for Gervinho's second goal.
Robson has been honest enough in pre-season to highlight Arsenal's defensive frailties. When he was asked if he was 'worried' about this aspect of Arsenal's play there was a long silence before he diplomatically replied that Arsene Wenger still has time to address the problem. Robson's initial silence spoke volumes. Will Arsene Wenger address this problem? Perhaps, but our relative inactivity on the transfer front also speaks volumes.
Ratings:
Szczeny 7 - looked assured, couldn't do anything about the own goal.
Jenkinson 6 - his best game of the pre-season was marred by the own goal. He shouldn't lose sight of the good work he put it earlier. His passing was excellent. However, I still can't see him challenging Sagna next season for the right back slot.
Koscielny 7 - didn't make any major ricks.
Vermaelen 7 - seems like as natural a captain as Arsenal possess.
Gibbs 7 - looked solid and even managed a shot on target - Gael Clichy eat your heart out!
Walcott 7 - one assist and some good work down the wing . . . not bad for a striker!
Ramsey 7 - made one major mistake, giving the ball away deep with a poorly-taken free kick. Needs to retain his focus.
Song 6 - in the comfort zone really, didn't step out of a low gear.
Wilshere 8 - looked like Diego Maradona at times, with his mazy dribbles and incisive passing.
Gervinho 8 - two goals and a near perfect debut performance, apart from two misplaced forward passes.
Chamakh 6 - bereft of confidence and unable to make much impact. Ran a lot though.
SUBS:
Mannone 7 - good handling.
Fabianski 7 - a clean sheet, although had little to deal with.
Sagna 7 - got caught out of position a couple of times, but good going forward.
Squillaci 7 - could have got a red card for an incident with Podolski, but was solid and aggressive.
Djourou 7 - used his pace to snuff out attacks.
Henderson 7 - looked assured, it's a great shame he twirted his knee as he looks an excellent prospect.
Vela 5 - contributed very little, playing out of position on the right wing.
Nasri 5 - didn't seem that interested.
Frimpong 7 - broke up play well, but misplaced a few longish passes.
Rosicky 6 - spritely performance.
Miyaichi 5 - didn't get involved enough.
Arshavin 7 - looked dangerous.
Van Persie 6 - a couple of nice flicks, but little else from the second-half skipper.
Afobe n/a - not long on enough to judge.
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