That’s what happens when you have a front line of Arshavin, Rosicky, van Persie and Fabregas!

Arsenal shaded it in a glorious first half for the neutrals after our gung-ho approach found us totally exposed at the back on a number of occassions.

The visitors opened the scoring when goalkeeper Robinson punted the ball like Percy Montgomery into Arsenal’s box, and N’Zonzi beat Vermaelen to the header, looping it backwards over Vito Mannone.

The evil-eyed Belgian was about as much to blame for the goal as Mannone – the keeper floundered off his line while it was Vermaelen’s header to win, but defenders won’t win every single header in a season.

Yet the goal sparked Arsenal into some kind of goal-seeking blood lust as they frantically zipped around the park in search of the equaliser.

And find it they did, through, of all people (again), Vermaelen, who took one look when receiving Fabregas’ pass, and rollicked the ball into the bottom left corner from distance. A stupendously great goal that induced muffled screams from yours truly.

It was a case of sit-down-shut-up, though, when Blackburn broke from an Arsenal foray, with the retreating defence not covering David Dunn on the left flank. He took a step in on Gallas before shooting in – the deflection off Gallas’ trailing boot frittered past Mannone, who had anticipated the shot too much, but 2-1 it was.

Never mind that, said Robin van Persie. The ball found its way to Cesc Fabregas, who hit a perfect pass to the Dutchman, who broke clear and finished with aplomb, not three minutes after Dunn had scored.

And three minutes later, it was 3-2. An almost identitcal move saw Fabregas on the left feed in Arshavin, who scored in carbon copy format to give us the lead, having trailed not seven minutes prior. Awesome stuff.

The Gunners looked shaky in the second half whenever Blackburn attacked, but a diving Mannone save and Vermaelen’s header onto the bar kept our noses in front. Walcott made his first appearance for Arsenal as he came on for Rosicky, who had a smashing game.

But Arsenal grabbed control when a disjointed move saw Rosicky play the ball over his head to Fabregas on Rovers’ box, who chested down, and hit the goal of the game from distance, the ball floating serenely past Robinson for 4-2. It was a thing of beauty, and his celebration was all the more poignant, given the constant Barcelona links.

The captain is staying, with a contract that will last until 2014, so Barcelona “We won’t pay over the odds” FC can take their tapping up and go home. What a player, who is now surely back to his best.

And then the floodgates opened. The defence continued to insist on not clearing the ball, but Fabregas got it on the edge of his box, fed Arshavin on the left, who sprinted clear down the flank. Towards Blackburn’s box, van Persie had drawn the defence away from the centre, leaving space for Fabregas – he collected the ball, padded it onto Walcott, who finished well. An amazing team move that took 13 seconds to pass.

Ramsey and Bendtner then came on for Arshavin and Fabregas, who received a standing ovation for a peach of a performance. It was Ramsey who floated in a cross that Alex Song nearly headed in, only to be thwarted by the surprisingly excellent Robinson.

In the very same play, Sagna picked up the ball, looped it to Bendtner on the left flank, who strafed across goal and fired in a rasper that went in off the bar. 6-2, what a game.

Mannone – 6.5: At fault for the first goal but made a great save from a Blackburn shot from distance to keep the scores at 3-2.
Sagna – 6: Mopped up well in advanced positions to keep attacks going, once which led to Fabregas’ goal, but was caught out down his flank by David Dunn a few times.
Clichy – 6: Just clear the ball, Clichy! Caught out a number of times and didn’t quite make up for it with any attacking dribbling today. But to be fair, he is exposed quite a bit by Arshavin who doesn’t have much defensive graft.
Gallas – 6.5: Could have done better for David Dunn’s goal. Had a chance late on in a scramble in the second half and things calmed down when the scoreline ballooned. But both he and Vermaelen have a lot to work on to reduce the amount of times we’re exposed to fast counters.
Vermaelen – 7.5: A smashing goal to make up for his missed header early on, and then headed a goal-bound shot onto his bar and out to save our skins once more.
Song – 7.5: His screening job was okay but he gets points in my book for how beautifully his passing has come on. Keeps things ticking over in a Denilson-esque way and nearly got on the scoresheet with a point blank header.
Diaby – 7: Quieter than the rest of his more heralded team-mates but played some good dummies, passed well and got the job done today. People are yet again finding fault with him for the small, non-existent things, which is upsetting, given he is an Arsenal player, in case the fans didn’t notice.
Fabregas – 10: Perfect. A smashing goal and four assists. What else does someone have to do to get 10? Was the heart, brains, kidneys and thyroid gland of the team today. An immense performance.
Rosicky – 8.5: Happy 29th birthday, Thomas – usually we spoil the birthday boy on his big day, but he decided to turn the tables with a performance full of pace, trickery, amazing passing and intelligence. Seems to have a determination to make up for lost time.
Arshavin – 8.5: A real goal threat and Blackburn had problems whenever he dribbled at goal. Finished brilliantly for 3-2 and played a really lively part in the match.
van Persie – 8: His amazing scoring record against Blackburn continues. Took his goal fantastically well for an immediate equaliser at 2-2 and his corners were consistently dangerous.
SUBS: Walcott – 6.5: Impact sub extraordinare. Great finish for his goal, though lacked a bit of his greyhound pace. That will come as full fitness finds its way.
Ramsey – 7: Has a really quick intelligence, finds passes and got into the flow of the game immediately. Really talented kid with a big future in this side.
Bendtner – 6: Deserved his goal after Song and Gallas contrived to miss. Real thumper of a shot and did what you ask of a substitute.

Sam Allardyce continued his whingeing reputation with a dig at the referree after David Dunn went down in the box in the second half.

Having looked at the replay a number of times, it’s a real mixed bag but at the same time was never a penalty. Vermaelen made contact with Dunn, but Dunn never had any control over the ball at any point in time, and to say he was going to score if left unabated would be indicative of having whatever drugs are in Allardyce’s chewing gum.

Also, a big shout out to the Emirates crowd, who were really good today, I feel. I’ve been critical in the past and will continue to be if there is reason for it, but I also want to point out when things go well. Ashburton Grove was vocal, bouncing, and never once went quiet despite the early set backs. It may just be indicative of some belief in this team.

As for the game, it was a great spectacle with loads of goals, but the defence remains a real worry. Usually I’m one to say ‘good win, lets enjoy it’ – don’t worry, I’ll be oggling over the highlights for a long time to come – but the defence left genuine room for concern.

The times we just simply did not clear the ball can, and must, be sorted out. Open the valve, punt the ball away, release the pressure. The aspect of our defending that is a little more complexing is the fact that neither of the centre backs had a bad game, yet still were made to look bad. On the break, Arsenal have been constantly exposed this season, none more so than against Manchester City.

It’s really the flipside of a very attack-minded 4-3-3 that sees everyone up on their half way line.

Buying another defender is not the answer – the pace and recovery of Gallas and Vermaelen are perfectly suited to the job they’re given – it’s just going to rely on the midfielders putting in more graft to protect their back line.

Song and Denilson do a good enough job at this and Cesc does his bit, but Arshavin will have to at least show some kind of greater emphasis on this part of his game. He could do well to model Rosicky and Bendtner in this regard. In isolation, that might be the most bizzare thing anyone could say of the Russian.

But criticisms aside, that match just showcased everything that is wonderful about Arsenal right now. A bit of that schoolboy naivete mixed in with a new found ruthlessness in front of goal. Against the right team and with the right attitude, we might hit 10 one day.

As for our title chances, I’d say we’re in with a shout as much as anyone. But again, its not just the backline, but the whole team and manager, that have to figure out the defensive aspects of our new formation.

More tomorrow – but in the meantime, let’s just bask in Sam Allardyce’s whingeing. And of course, three points!

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Filed under: Arsenal, English Premier League, Match Reports