Last Season: 15th, 10-11-17 (41 points, -20 goal differential)

Recent Form: LDWLW

Away Form (last season): 4-4-11

Last Meeting: Arsenal 4-Blackburn 0 (3/14/09)

Back in league action early tomorrow against Blackburn. Coming off of a surprisingly strong 7th place finish in 2007-2008, Blackburn plummeted back to earth last season after Paul Ince replaced Mark Hughes as manager. Flirting with relegation for most of the season, Blackburn bounced back to safety once Ince was sacked and replaced by Sam Allardyce and his patented brand of anti-football.

So far this season, Blackburn have picked up right where they left off. Woeful away, tough at home, playing very ugly, but just tough enough to avoid the drop. They’re currently sitting 15th, but have struggled with 2 losses away to Sunderland and Everton.

Arsene Wenger has made no secret of his distaste for how Allardyce’s teams play over the years. There is no mystery about it–they will come out looking for the 0-0 draw. They’ll keep everyone behind the ball, kick Arsenal’s players up in the air, and kick the ball down the field when they do get the ball. Their goal is merely to frustrate.

But their mission will be made a bit more difficult due to injuries. Captain Ryan Nelson and Chris Samba, Blackburn’s two center backs, were both injured in their last game and face late fitness tests. Fullback Gael Givet is just returning from injury, and midfielder Steven Reid’s achilles may be healthy enough for him to make his first start of the season. Center midfielder Vince Grella is out through suspension after being sent off last week against Aston Villa.

Once again, this is a game from which we should definitely be taking 3 points. Spurs dropped points today against Bolton. Chelsea plays Liverpool and Aston Villa plays Manchester City tomorrow after we play, which means that there’s going to be a lot of teams at the top of the table dropping points, so we need to take advantage. I think it’s going to be all about pushing up and breaking down Blackburn’s defense and finding a way to put the ball into the net. As is always the case in these types of games, scoring the first goal will completely change the course of the game, because it will force Blackburn to come out of their shell and actually play football, which plays directly into our hands by opening things up a bit and allowing our guys to find space on the attack.

In injury news for us, Eduardo is out with a recurring thigh problem. And Almunia is still not fit with the world’s strangest injury–still that “chest infection,” apparently. So they join Denilson, Nasri, Fabianski, and Djourou in the trainer’s room. In better news, Walcott will be in the squad tomorrow, and Bendtner will be back after his car accident.

Wenger’s main lineup dilemmas, therefore, will be settling on a midfield and settling on a forward line. I have to think he’ll try to work Theo back in gradually, especially since Walcott will probably be able to get some rest over the international break to well and truly make sure he’s back and healthy for our fall and winter schedule. So I have to think he’ll probably start on the bench, and maybe come on in the 65-70th minute in the impact role in which he served so effectively in 2007-2008. I imagine Bendtner will get the start instead. As for the midfield, it’s probably wishful thinking, but given Diaby’s extraordinarily bad performance against Fulham, hopefully Rosicky will get the nod.

Mannone

Sagna-Gallas-Vermaelen-Clichy

Rosicky-Song-Fabregas

Bendtner-van Persie-Arshavin

Here’s to 3 points. Come on Arsenal.

The first goal was certainly a rarity for Arsenal this season — an early goal, within the first two minutes of the match. Bendtner came back to retrieve a pass from Kolo Toure and played Walcott through into the penalty box. The defending was so poor that both Song and Theo made it through unmarked and onside. Walcott hit a low cross into the center that was bundled in by Andrey Arshavin off a defender or two. 1-0 early on, and an optimistic sign of things to come. Arshavin was in no hurry to claim the goal as his own, made noticeable by a series of gestures made shortly after the opener. He’d get his chance to open his Arsenal account in style once again.

The rest of the half would have been much more comfortable had Arsenal found that second goal. But alas, Bendtner was his typical wasteful self — I tell you if the Dane can find some consistency one day he could turn into a half-decent striker, but for now, he leaves a number of chances begging. Fortunately, the lack of goals was the only thing to be concerned about, aside from the fact that Blackburn’s El Hadj-Diouf went in late on Almunia, managing to stay on the pitch while only receiving a yellow card. If you’ve seen the tackle, it’s reminiscent of the one that took out Eduardo. I’m not even kidding. A 1-0 lead at the half was comfortable enough for the moment, despite a couple of near misses from Nasri.

A word on Arshavin’s first half gloves — the pint sized Russian was sporting a short-sleeved kit with black gloves. What gives Andrey? Is it colder in London than St. Petersburg, cold enough to wear gloves and not long sleeves? Makes no sense to me. But what I can understand and appreciate is Arshavin’s skill. It was 20 minutes into the second half with Denilson and Alex Song playing a nice one-two in the midfield. Denilson found Arshavin with a lovely ball on the left, and instead of crossing it to Nicklas Bendtner (who had a hat trick of sen, the owlish one decided he’d rather have the goal himself — deking out a Blackburn defender and scoring over Paul Robinson from a seemingly-impossible angle. 2-0, and game over.

A word before going back to Eboue’s brace — if Bendtner could finish he’d easily have netted a hat trick. Since the departure of Henry, Arsenal forwards are very wasteful; specifically Adebayor and the Dane. Van Persie is a bit more consistent, but to see how inconsistent these players who are supposedly prolific scorers are is a cause for mild concern.

That being said, Eboue closed out the day’s scoring — Vela, on for Bendtner, found Arshavin unmarked on the left side, and the cagey Russian forced a save out of Robinson right onto the bar. Eboue crashed the net and it was a simple tap in. His second came a few minutes later, stepping up to take a penalty that Vela drew. 4-0 was a good result and it’s back into fourth after Vela’s loss to Tottenham today.

What is even more impressive is how threatening this team is starting to look. With the pace of Walcott back in the side and Arshavin’s passing skills on display, it’s fun to watch the Arsenal again. Even Alex Song put in another solid performance, something that may bode well for the rest of the season. There’s no reason to get cocky now, but there’s a twinge of confidence in the air. Hope that they can hang onto fourth place this time around.

Match of the day highlights after the jump, brought to you by you know who. Chime in below as well.

Arsenal v Blackburn

Another win, and back into the top four — for a day at least. Highlights above courtesy of 101greatgoals.

“We have been consistent in the Premier League for a long time now.

“We just want to transform our home draws into wins, and we have a good opportunity to do that tomorrow. I feel that if we are consistent, then we will be ahead of Villa at the end of the season.”

Spot on assessment. For all those doubting that Wenger has completely lost it — I know, not too many people actually do think that — he is astute when it comes to our chances in the league and what needs to get done today. The only injury news to report is Eduardo, who did something to his groin muscle and is out. Hope to see Theo with a start, along with Arshavin in. I think the midfield might look like this: Nasri, Arshavin, Song, Theo. That’d be something interesting, and imagine Cesc in for Song and it’s quite exciting. Although fair credit to the Cameroon international for playing very well during the FA Cup last weekend. If he can replicate his performances in the league against more stout opposition then perhaps he might be someone to be more excited about after all.

That’s all I’ve got. Remember to post your comments and thoughts before, during, and after the game right here. Come on three points.