Arsenal v Ipswich: The Carling Cup Semi Final (2nd Leg) Experience
Like many other gooner blogs and news websites out there, I'd like to reflect on what was ultimately a successful night and the end result being Arsenal's first major final for four years. But I also want to talk a bit about the before match happenings.
Myself and my wife got the tube from Liverpool St around 6 O'Clock after I finished work and travelled to Holborn. As it happens, when we got off the central line, we were following behind a group of Ipswich fans. The Tractor Boys supporters then proceeded to behave in a manner which was more becoming of our North London neighbours (f**k off to Stratford, North London is ours!) on derby day. "Wenger (pronounced Wenger rather than Venger) is a paedo, Wenger is a paedo" was the first chant out of them as they headed up the stairs to the Picadilly line. There were a lot of non-football people around us who looked distinctly unimpressed, though not as unimpressed as we were.
Unfortunately they were just getting warmed up. When we got onto the Picadilly line we hit another group of Ipswich fans who, aside from the two old guys who seemed to be running shepherd over the rest of the group, were complete and total dickheads, for lack of a better expression. There was a black man with a large suitcase who tried to get off the tube at the next stop at Russell Square, so four or five of the Ipswich fans started chanting "Al Al Al-Quieda" at the poor guy. It carried on like this all the way to Arsenal tube station and left me in no doubt as to why Norwich fans speak of their rivals in such low esteem, it was all totally un-necessary and goes beyond the "a bit of banter" excuse that has been heard in various corners of football this week for various reasons.
Enough about that, on with the match. There was a very good atmosphere generated inside the ground by both sets of supporters, with no such stupid chanting from the Ipswich fans, who instead chose to take the piss out of Cesc Fabregas's remarks about them being a Rugby side by singing Swing Low Sweet Chariot on and off all through the first half. Wenger showed how seriously he was taking the game by naming a strong side including Cesc and Robin Van Persie, leaving only Song, Walcott and Nasri out of the current first XI. We lost Bacary Sagna to a nasty clash of heads with Wojech Szczensey early on, hopefully he recovers quickly. Chances came and went, RvP hit the bar with a header from another good Bendtner cross, Cesc had a shot well saved and missed another opportunity and Ipswich held firmly fairly well up until half time. Denilson regularly gave the ball away (what else is new) but worked hard to win the ball back when he did lose it, and Arshavin displayed some good touches, though the errors of recent weeks were still there.
15 minutes into the second half, the awesome Jack Wilshire launched a long diagonal ball over the top and Nick Bendtner momentarily morphed into Thierry Henry, taking the ball out of the air matrix style, changing direction with a side-back heel, cutting in and burying it in the corner from 20 yards. The Emirates went understandibly batshit. If Bendtner did that more often he would be the world class striker he thinks he is, as he's clearly got the ability because goals such as that, the header against Stoke last season and the goal at Eastlands against Man City show, he just needs the consistency (same as Theo and one or two others).
From that point on, I honestly didn't doubt the game would be ours and the second came almost instantly, Koscielny crashing in a header from an Andrey corner after the generally reliable Martin Fulop had come to collect the corner and not got there. Koscielny was mobbed in the corner by the whole team, including various subs and Arsene Wenger was on his feet. It might only have been the Carling Cup, but unlike other times in the last few years, it seems the lads were determined to grab this chance to win something with both hands.
Cesc put things beyond doubt a few minutes later after being slipped through by Andrey (two assists showing a marked improvement) and he slid it under Fulop to give us the comfort to play the game out. Since the game several players have talked a) how it would be important and good to win a trophy again and b) how that could boost us for the rest of the season. They are completely right on both accounts - lets just hope they do the business against Birmingham at the end of next month.
Anyone got a spare for Wembley?
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Carried away
:)
Doesn't every club suffer from this?
First Experience