Ramsey shines but Gunners leave it late

THE last time Arsene Wenger lifted a trophy was the FA Cup in 2005 and realistically the Frenchman knows that with Manchester United now eliminated, the famous old competition has suddenly become his side’s best bet for silverware this term.

But typically – stubbornly some might say – Wenger wishes to view this otherwise: his sights remain on the Premier League or the Champions League, baubles that are worth far more than the ancient jug-eared pot but consequently far harder to obtain.

And already he has a problem. United are out so United can give their full attention to those two competitions, in which they also possess a much better recent track record of course. Although United have the little matter of a Carling Cup semi-final with neighbours City, Wenger believes the list of remaining fixtures has already confirmed his worst fears.

Asked whether he would have preferred Alex Ferguson’s side to have avoided defeat to Leeds before his side came back from behind to win at West Ham, Wenger confirmed that this was indeed so.

“It’s not so much for the title race that Man United has an advantage, it’s more in the Champions League that it’s a little bit conflicting with the FA Cup,” he explained. “When you look at the fifth round, it’s just before a Champions League game.”

Wenger’s team selection was further proof of the way he struggles to make up his mind about the FA Cup. Half the side was firmly in the inexperienced category, with Jack Wilshere, Fran Merida, Carlos Vela and Aaron Ramsey all starting. But behind second-choice goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski was a Premier League-strength back-four and Wenger included Abou Diaby and Samir Nasri on the bench on a day when nine first-teamers were absent through injury or international commitments.

This was no Carling Cup runaround for the kids therefore but something short of full blast from his Gunners.

It showed in the first half too, with Alessandro Diamanti’s goal in stoppage time giving West Ham a lead they probably just about deserved, although Gianfranco Zola also has more important issues on his horizon, most notably avoiding relegation, and gave starts to two youngsters of his own in Fabio Daprela at left back and Frank Nouble up front as a result.

Though West Ham goalkeeper Robert Green had been by no means a spectator in the first half, the introduction of Diaby and Nasri with 25 minutes remaining meant Green suddenly became the game’s busiest individual. He made an impressive double stop to deny first Diaby and then Alex Song on the follow-up.

Zola’s players were running out of juice and Ramsey, having played a quick one-two with Vela on the left of the box, took advantage, producing a finish to match the approach play that gave Green no chance.

Five minutes later Vela turned provider once more, this time crossing for Eduardo to rise above Matthew Upson and head past Green, who got a touch, for his third goal in the last four games.

With Cesc Fabregas injured and Song now on African Nations Cup duty, Ramsey knows a lengthy run in the first team can be his. “He was one of the few in the first half who played at a high pace,” Wenger said. “I set him a target at the start of the season to play between 15 and 20 games this season and it looks like he will get that very quickly.

“He is physically very strong, is quick, has good stamina and can shoot. He can play in a number of positions but his best is central midfield because he is a goal-scorer as well.”

West Ham manager Gianfranco Zola had no complaints about his players’ contribution. “They gave everything and I couldn’t ask for anything more,” he said.

“In the last minutes I knew we would go down physically because we had worked so hard. Their first goal was a killer really because we didn’t have the energy or the strength to pose them a threat again.”

Arsenal’s reward is a trip to Stoke in the fourth round. The Potters are Wenger’s least favourite Premier League also-ran outfit, a legacy of a game last season that saw the Frenchman accuse the Potters of deliberately trying to injure his men. Tony Pulis’s side are also famed for their long throws of course. “I hope it won’t be windy,” Wenger quipped.

WEST HAM (4-3-3): Green; Faubert, Upson, Tomkins, Daprela; Kovac, Behrami, Jimenez; Diamanti, Nouble (Sears 79), Stanislas (Edgar 88).

ARSENAL (4-3-3): Fabianski; Sagna, Vermaelen, Gallas, Silvestre; Merida (Diaby 65), Song, Ramsey; Wilshere (Nasri 65), Vela, Eduardo.