Cesc Fabregas will be out for the remainder of the domestic season. Sigh. Pic via Guardian.
Arsenal 2: Walcott 69, Fabregas 85 (pen)
Barcelona 2: Ibrahimovic 46, 59
It was a bizarre night in North London for the Gunners, who were thoroughly outplayed by their Catalan opponents for significant stretches, suffered three major injuries, and still escaped, somehow, with a 2-2 draw.
For the first twenty or so minutes, Arsenal appeared to fail to realize that there was a match being played. Barcelona seemed to be playing a large scale game of keep-away and the Gunners were quite content to sit back and watch for very long periods of time. Also, hey, who was that new goalkeeper we had for the first half? Because there's no logical reason why the sentence "Manuel Almunia is the only reason Arsenal was still in this game" should ever be written, especially after his display in stoppage time. Arsenal had all of two chances in the first half (compared to Barca's six hundred and forty seven). Nasri whipped a shot just wide of the far post from the left side and Bendtner shot once right at the keeper but pounded the rebound off the woodwork, then ended up offside.
A key aspect of the first half was the injuries: Arsene Wenger took a gamble on starting William Gallas, who was still not back to full fitness. The gamble failed as Gallas left injured on a stretcher, shortly after Andrei Arshavin limped off. The injuries forced Alex Song from midfield to center back, bringing Denilson and Eboue off the bench (while leaving Sol Campbell sitting.) Final notes on the first half: how in God's name was it still nil-nil and how in God's name was that a yellow card to Fabregas? Mind boggling stuff from the officials at certain points in this game as it seemed like any slight wind would knock Barcelona's players to the ground. That leads me to believe that Barca would struggle in the Premier League against the likes of Bolton and Stoke.
As soon as the second half started, regular Almunia returned and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, played onside by an out-of-position Alex Song, charged up the wing and Almunia, indecisive as ever, came out to challenge, inexplicably stopped, then had the ball lofted easily over his head and into the net. This match was stunningly scoreless at halftime and it was 1-0 22 seconds later.
And then Ibrahimovic scored again thirteen minutes later, again beating an indecisive Almunia after being played onside by Song, and the match and the tie felt like they were slipping away.
Then, Theo Walcott came on the pitch. And just a few minutes after the substitution, it was 2-1. I've noticed that Walcott plays spectacularly whenever the TV cameras show that Fabio Capello is in the crowd watching him. Suddenly, Arsenal was in control. My first instinct at this point was that Arsenal sat back and allowed Barcelona so much time and space with the ball so that they'd have fresher legs for the final twenty minutes or so. It's more likely that Barca got complacent with their lead.
Cesc Fabregas won a penalty in the 84th, having been pulled down by Barca skipper Carles Puyol, who was sent off for a last man foul. In the process, Fabregas cracked his right fibula and will be out for the rest of the domestic season. With a broken leg, he took the spot kick anyway and brought Arsenal level, then played the rest of the match because Arsenal had already used all three of their allowed substituions. How bad ass is that?
So, it's all even going back to Camp Nou, though the Gunners are in trouble if away goals come into play. Arsenal will be without Fabregas, without Gallas, and without Arshavin. But both of Barca's center backs (Puyol and Pique) will be suspended. Tuesday should be as much of a roller coaster as yesterday was for us Gooners, but let's all remember, we still have Wolves first.
For the first twenty or so minutes, Arsenal appeared to fail to realize that there was a match being played. Barcelona seemed to be playing a large scale game of keep-away and the Gunners were quite content to sit back and watch for very long periods of time. Also, hey, who was that new goalkeeper we had for the first half? Because there's no logical reason why the sentence "Manuel Almunia is the only reason Arsenal was still in this game" should ever be written, especially after his display in stoppage time. Arsenal had all of two chances in the first half (compared to Barca's six hundred and forty seven). Nasri whipped a shot just wide of the far post from the left side and Bendtner shot once right at the keeper but pounded the rebound off the woodwork, then ended up offside.
A key aspect of the first half was the injuries: Arsene Wenger took a gamble on starting William Gallas, who was still not back to full fitness. The gamble failed as Gallas left injured on a stretcher, shortly after Andrei Arshavin limped off. The injuries forced Alex Song from midfield to center back, bringing Denilson and Eboue off the bench (while leaving Sol Campbell sitting.) Final notes on the first half: how in God's name was it still nil-nil and how in God's name was that a yellow card to Fabregas? Mind boggling stuff from the officials at certain points in this game as it seemed like any slight wind would knock Barcelona's players to the ground. That leads me to believe that Barca would struggle in the Premier League against the likes of Bolton and Stoke.
As soon as the second half started, regular Almunia returned and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, played onside by an out-of-position Alex Song, charged up the wing and Almunia, indecisive as ever, came out to challenge, inexplicably stopped, then had the ball lofted easily over his head and into the net. This match was stunningly scoreless at halftime and it was 1-0 22 seconds later.
And then Ibrahimovic scored again thirteen minutes later, again beating an indecisive Almunia after being played onside by Song, and the match and the tie felt like they were slipping away.
Then, Theo Walcott came on the pitch. And just a few minutes after the substitution, it was 2-1. I've noticed that Walcott plays spectacularly whenever the TV cameras show that Fabio Capello is in the crowd watching him. Suddenly, Arsenal was in control. My first instinct at this point was that Arsenal sat back and allowed Barcelona so much time and space with the ball so that they'd have fresher legs for the final twenty minutes or so. It's more likely that Barca got complacent with their lead.
Cesc Fabregas won a penalty in the 84th, having been pulled down by Barca skipper Carles Puyol, who was sent off for a last man foul. In the process, Fabregas cracked his right fibula and will be out for the rest of the domestic season. With a broken leg, he took the spot kick anyway and brought Arsenal level, then played the rest of the match because Arsenal had already used all three of their allowed substituions. How bad ass is that?
So, it's all even going back to Camp Nou, though the Gunners are in trouble if away goals come into play. Arsenal will be without Fabregas, without Gallas, and without Arshavin. But both of Barca's center backs (Puyol and Pique) will be suspended. Tuesday should be as much of a roller coaster as yesterday was for us Gooners, but let's all remember, we still have Wolves first.
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