The goals are back but no-one’s home
It was perfectly understandable, as his side-foot volley was indeed a thing of beauty. In fact we’ve been so starved of goals at our place of late that all three against Burnley seemed like works of art.
It felt as if the Gunners had started to rediscover the dynamism and the energy that’s been on the missing list for much of our lacklustre season on our trip to the Hawthorns. Nevertheless, we badly needed to demonstrate this in a home game, because otherwise one might’ve begun to believe that the Arsenal actually benefit from playing away, liberated by the knowledge that every mistake is not going to be met with the collective groans of 60,000 demanding Gooners.
I certainly look forward to away days more, knowing that I’ll be surrounded by the sort of staunch travelling faithful who appreciate they’ve a part to play in getting behind the team and audibly expressing their support for the entire ninety, come what may. By contrast, despite the fact that Sunday’s encounter was the most enjoyable home game since Cardiff’s capitulation, we exited our place to the tune of the Burnley fans’ “3-0 and you still don’t sing” taunts.
Quite frankly, I find it depressing to think that I might be destined to a future where, instead of my season ticket offering me fortnightly opportunities to bellow the mighty Gunners on to further glory, I more frequently find myself sitting there wanting to scream at the whinging blowhards to put a sock in it!
Meanwhile, it was great to be back on the sofa on Sunday night, eagerly awaiting the highlights, after several weeks in which the dearth of entertainment has seen an ignominious slide down the MOTD pecking order. It was more like watching Invasion Of The Body Snatchers seeing Alex Song produce the precision pass to put the ball on a plate for Eduardo’s volley, and then follow this up with his artistic backheel for Eboué’s goal. Surely this wasn’t the same prosaic Song who’s been passing the ball sideways and backwards all season?
Theo Walcott’s return was a major fillip because we’ve sorely missed his scintillating pace and the resulting buzz of anticipation every time he receives the ball. Hopefully he’s back in the nick of time to leave Roma’s defence trailing in his wake in the Olympic Stadium tonight. Mind you, if the disconcerting list of Roman “don’t dos” that arrived with the tickets were all to be heeded, most Gooners wouldn’t dare step out of their hotel room for fear of upsetting the Ultras!
Now if only Theo could acquire some of the composure shown by Carlos Vela, in lifting the ball over Burnley’s lump of a keeper, he’d be the complete package. However with “Shava” finding his feet and beginning to pull the strings and with Fabregas, Adebayor and Rosicky still to be added to the mix, the Gunners are suddenly back to looking like a match for anyone, while Villa’s recent falter has put a completely different complexion on the race to finish in the top four.
Finally, I personally would’ve preferred Man Utd as potential FA Cup semi-final opponents — purely for the pleasure of being the team to put the kibosh on their prospects of monopolising all this season’s silverware.
