Arsenal kept up the pressure on their Champions League rivals after recording a 2-1 win over relegation-threatened QPR at Loftus Road. Two quick-fire strikes from Olivier Giroud and Alexis Sanchez put Arsenal in command, but Charlie Austin's thunderous strike gave Chris Ramsey's side late hope. However, Arsenal closed out a crucial win to retain third spot. What did we learn from Arsenal's derby win?
Coquelin key to Arsenal’s League resurgence:
Francis Coquelin’s re-emergence at Arsenal has been quite remarkable. He was seemingly cast into the wilderness after being loaned out to Charlton Athletic earlier in the season, but a midfield injury crisis forced Arsène Wenger to recall the Frenchman prematurely from his loan spell at the Valley. This was a blessing in disguise because Coquelin has been superb since returning to the Emirates. Although the Gunners are smarting from their first leg Champions League defeat to Monaco, their league form has been very impressive. The Gunners have won 10 out of their last 12 Premier League games; only Liverpool can boast a better record in 2015.
Coquelin’s performance away at Manchester City in January demonstrated how important it is to have a naturally defensive midfielder, who can sense danger. The statistics show just how influential he has been since returning in December. He has the most interceptions and has won the most duels in the Premier League since December; he has won 39 tackles and only Pablo Zabaleta has won more.
His performance against QPR typified his tenacious and battling approach. He suffered a broken nose against Everton on Sunday, but played with a protective mask and delivered a superbly disciplined performance. In a very physical contest, Coquelin constantly retrieved possession and initiated counter attacks, whilst providing invaluable protection to Arsenal’s back-four, who are rather fragile in confidence at present. Wenger may have found his defensive-midfield solution in the form of Coquelin.
Arsenal must be more ruthless:
Arsenal’s second half performance against QPR was as dominant as you could wish to see. The first-half was a scrappy affair; the hosts were compact and the visitors failed to create many chances. However in the second period, Arsenal played with more dynamism and pace from the outset.
Olivier Giroud and Alexis Sanchez gave Arsenal a commanding 2-0 lead; Sanchez had spurned a great chance with the score at 1-0, whilst Mesut Ozil came within a post’s width of making it 3-0 following an exquisite turn. The Gunners were in cruise control and should have increased their advantage, but Charlie Austin’s thunderous late effort made the last 10 minutes an uncomfortable affair.
Although The North Londoners saw the game out reasonably comfortably, they are tending to switch off in the later stages of games, giving the opposition unnecessary chances. Against Crystal Palace a fortnight ago, Arsenal were seemingly cruising to a 2-0 victory, until Glen Murray grabbed what appeared to be a 94th minute consolation goal. Just one minute later, Murray almost snatched a dramatic equaliser, hitting the post with a header. It’s the classic case of almost snatching defeat from the claws of victory.
Arsenal are surrendering control of matches, which they cannot afford to do, particularly against top opposition. With the fight for a top four spot so competitive, any slip could be fatal to their Champions League hopes, so Wenger’s side must be more clinical and see out matches in a more professional manner.
Walcott in the wilderness:
The Theo Walcott situation is rather peculiar. After returning from a 12-month layoff in January, Walcott was inevitably eased back into the fold and while he lacked match sharpness, he still made vital contributions, scoring goals against Brighton, Aston Villa and Leicester. However, since then Walcott has not started in the Gunners’ last five games, making just one substitute appearance against Monaco. Considering Walcott’s quality and attacking threat, it’s a surprising fact.
Wenger has opted to rotate some of his defenders and midfielders, so with a player of Walcott’s pedigree on the bench, the game against QPR would appear to have been an ideal opportunity to start the 25-year-old. QPR struggled to cope with Kieran Gibbs and Hector Bellerin’s pace on the overlap, so Walcott could have terrorised them, however Wenger deployed Tomas Rosicky on the wing.
Danny Welbeck has been the preferred option from the bench when Wenger has made an attacking substitution; the former Manchester Utd striker certainly isn’t as prolific as Walcott, but he’s very diligent and tracks back well, something Walcott admittedly doesn’t. Perhaps the former Southampton man must improve his work-rate to secure a regular starting berth?
Mertesacker responded positively to critics:
Per Mertesacker had a horrendous evening against Monaco in the Champions League first leg. His pace is an obvious concern, but he makes up for his lack of mobility with his superb reading of the game and positioning. He has amassed over 120 international caps for Germany, the World Cup winners, so talk of his demise is perhaps slightly premature, although his display against the French side was very disappointing. For the second goal, he was almost playing as a central midfielder, leaving Laurent Koscielny completely exposed on the counter-attack, whilst he failed to close down Ferreira-Carrasco for Monaco’s third. Mertesacker was subsequently dropped against Everton and replaced by Gabriel Paulista.
Overall, Gabriel performed well in his first Premier League start. He made a number of crucial interceptions and one stunning tackle to dispossess Romelu Lukaku. After a shaky opening, he grew into the game and looked particularly assured alongside Koscielny. Wenger opted to rest Koscielny at Loftus Road, pairing together Gabriel and Mertesacker. However, the Brazilian limped off after just 31 minutes with a hamstring problem. The veteran Arsenal manager believes he will be out of action for three weeks.
Mertesacker dealt well with the upheaval caused by Gabriel’s injury and produced a commanding defensive display. QPR’s offensive game-plan was very direct, with Bobby Zamora and Charlie Austin leading the line. Koscielny and Mertesacker limited the supply to Austin, with the German winning a number of key aerial duels against Zamora.
This is the sort of encounter that suits Mertesacker. When sufficiently protected in the midfield and sitting deep, the German looks composed and assured. However, when up against pace and trickery he looks particularly unsettled. Nevertheless, with Gabriel now side-lined, the Arsenal vice-captain must step up and produce these sorts of performances consistently. There are still major question marks over his future, but in terms of his response yesterday, the signs were encouraging.
The mystery of Ospina:
After Wojciech Szczesny was dropped following his calamitous performance and attitude against Southampton, David Ospina was given a chance to claim the number one spot and it appeared that the Colombian was a much-needed calming presence. He appeared a solid shot-stopper and despite his lack of height, he commanded the area very well. Nevertheless, as the weeks have passed, he has produced some puzzling performances and some Gunners’ fans remained unconvinced.
For example, against Tottenham, whilst he made a number of decent saves early on, he also created a great deal of danger, which eventually led to the equaliser. Ospina has the tendency to parry a lot of shots straight back into the danger area, which is extremely concerning.
Against Everton, Ospina was excellent. He dispossessed Lukaku, who was through on goal after an error from Gabriel, whilst he made fine second half saves from Lukaku and Aaron Lennon, with the score at 1-0.
Yet against QPR, Ospina looked less convincing. He pushed out Matt Phillips’ dipping cross into danger, but Kieran Gibbs reacted quickly to spare his blushes. Charlie Austin’s 82nd minute goal was a fine strike, but the Colombian’s positioning and reactions were questionable. The ball had virtually hit the net whilst the former Nice 'keeper was sprawling across his goal.
Ospina has not made any major errors in an Arsenal shirt that justify him being dropped, with Szczesny being notoriously error-prone, but Ospina’s handling does leave a lot to be desired. He does seem to instil more confidence in the defence than Szczesny, but that’s because he is more decisive. Ospina is unquestionably a talented keeper; he has made some superb saves since gaining a regular starting berth, but he’s an enigma. The jury is still out, although he still deserves to retain his number one spot as it stands.