Arsenal-Marseille Preview

Wait, we play tomorrow?!?!

Yes, people, apparently we still have a couple of more matches to play after decimating Ch3l5ea. Tomorrow sees us return to the Emirates after our triumphant Saturday win, to take on French side Olympique Marseille for the last time this season in a decisive Champions League clash for the right to top Group F. Currently, we are sitting pretty at the top, with 7 points. Marseille are right behind, with 4 points. Greek side Olympiakos follow with 3 points, and surprising disappointment Borussia Dortmund round out the table with a solitary point.

You know, you could have just shown them a pic of the group tabl- SHUT UP, PINK HAIR.

So, with that being said, it’s pretty crucial we don’t lose our focus and win this one. This is an historically dangerous match, for various reasons: first of all, we always, ALWAYS switch off in the CL group stages around Matchdays 4 and 5. Last season, we made a blistering start, winning our first 3 matches comfortably. One month later, we suffered away losses to Shakthar and Braga and had to settle for 2nd in the group, and the ultimately infamous R16 loss to Barca. In 2007-08 and 2008-09, we suffered similar fates, dropping to second to beatable sides (Sevilla and Porto), due to our lackadaisical attitude.

Second, we tend to switch off after getting big wins. For far too long, this team have embarked on promising runs of form which culminate with an imperious win over a top rival. Then, just as we’re supposed to continue our run and make headway into competitions, we falter- let’s use last season after an example:

Arsenal 3-1 Chelsea Next Match: Wigan 2-2 Arsenal

A sense of relief and jubilation surrounded the Arsenal nation after finally beating Chelsea. Then, a few days later, we go and drop 2 points to Wigan. Wigan, people.

Arsenal 2-1 Barcelona Next Match: Arsenal 1-0 Stoke

Yeah, we beat Stoke, but at what cost? We lost Cesc and Walcott to injuries, dooming our Carling Cup final, which we lost to Brum. Arguably the negative turning point of our season.

Arsenal 1-0 Manchester United Next Match: Stoke 3-1 Arsenal

Our last win of the season. Our Spring Collapse continued, and culminated with us dropping to 4th place, a humiliating blow.

So yeah, it’s clear that Arsenal teams of the past have a bit of a concentration problem. They think too much about the big picture, instead of a game-by-game focus. However, this season it’s quite different. Our horrid start to the season means that we have only started to embark on a promising winning run. Saturday’s win was the first real big win of the season. Mental strength, a favorite of Wengerspeak, was without a doubt on display in the last couple of weeks. On Saturday, we came back from 0-1, 1-2, and 3-3 to win the game. We went behind to Bolton in the CC and quickly came back and won. We went into halftime against Sunderland and Stoke 1-1, and ended up winning, thanks to van Persie’s brilliance. Hidden in this winning run has been our resilience, and we should be commended for our renewed focus and determination. It’s time to break the rotten streaks tomorrow, and secure a vice grip on the leadership of our group.

Mental Strength...

By now, we should be fairly familiar about Marseille. Since we beat them at the Velodrome, they have gone on a winning run, winning two in Ligue 1 and one in the Coupe de Ligue. With that being said, they are still 9th in the league, far away from the European spots. They’ll be itching to set the record straight, though. Their best players are forward Loic Remy, center playmaker Lucho Gonzalez, and adventurous GK Steve Mandanda. Their wingers, promising Andre Ayew and tiny Mathieu Valbuena, are fast, tricky, and dangerous, so our full backs will have to be on their toes to stay on top. Off the bench, they have the French duo of Andre Gignac and Morgan Amalfitano- two good players that can make some damage. A win tomorrow won’t come easy, and if Arsenal want to continue their winning run, they’ll have to show the same prowess they have showed in recent weeks.

Team news for this one are mixed. Jenkinson and Vermaelen are fully back, and will be available from the start tomorrow. On the other hand, Chamakh has a knee problem and is out for this one, reducing our number of available backups for van Persie to just one. Gibbs is still out. Diaby, who if anyone remembers, was penciled in to return for the Bolton game, is out for another 3 weeks or so with, yet again, a calf injury. Sigh. Diaby would have actually been useful for this one- his energetic and direct style of play would have probably fit in with the way we’re playing, and he would provide useful cover for Ramsey and Arteta. Anyway, let’s hope he continues to recuperate and comes back one day. One day. Everyone else is fine, and there were no injuries suffered at the Chelsea game.

The lineup for this one will probably be very weird. We’re on a great run of form at the moment, and we have some depth we should be exploiting so our key players don’t get injured. Marseille aren’t pushovers, and this game, if won, would virtually guarantee our position as group winners, so it’s not as if this one is a walkover. But, like I said, our depth is there, and what better way to mold them into match sharpness by giving them playing time? My prediction for the match tomorrow:

Szczesny

Jenkinson    Koscielny   Vermaelen   Santos

Song   Benayoun

Walcott  Arshavin   Park

van Persie

Subs: Fabianski, Djourou, Mertesacker, Ramsey, AOC, Arteta, Gervinho

With Jenkinson and Vermaelen back to full fitness, I think we’ll see them out there tomorrow. Djourou was pretty bad on Saturday, in spite of some promising moments. And Mertesacker was at fault for Chelsea’s first two goals, so if anyone of our CB’s is going to be benched, it’s going to be the ‘Sack. It will be interesting to see how Kos and TV5 perform in their first game together since our home win against Udinese back in August- a lot of people are saying that partnership should be reinstated and ‘Sack should be dropped, and I’m inclined to agree. ‘Sack has been decent, but not great, and while a lot of people were saying Mertesacker-Koscielny was growing into a good partnership, I put that down to Koscielny’s individual brilliance than anything else.

Elsewhere in our backline, Andre Santos continues to amuse us- and bemuse us- with his displays. It’s funny, he sucks 3/4ths of the time, but there’s something about him that makes him so lovable. The hulking performances, the excess of muscle and fat, the dorky samba dance, scoring against Chelsea- yeah, that’s probably it. Rock on, Sambameister.

In midfield, I would be extremely surprised if the same three started tomorrow. I reckon we’re going to see at least one continue, and my money’s on Song. Arteta has played almost non-stop since joining, and Ramsey could use a break after a great 2 weeks. Benayoun was among our better players in our CC win over Bolton, so I think he should start. And Arshavin was excellent in the central spot as well, so he should be given a second chance to show that that role really is the best for him.

Up front, Park has to start, I think, and one of Gervinho and Walcott will accompany him in the wings. With Chamakh out, there really isn’t anyone else other than van Persie- does he need a break? Yes, absolutely. Will he get it? Not with his current form and attitude, and that’s ok with me. It’s clear that Captain Vantastic is in the form of his life right now, and feeling great about it. Benching him would do no good and if he feels he can keep on playing game after game, then let’s play him game after game. After all, we’re guaranteed goals! November, with the exception of the Man Citah clash in the Carling Cup, looks to be a fairly easy month filled with winnable matches. They’ll be other opportunities to rest him then.

On the bench, the other first-team players who won’t start this one will be there. I expect AOC or maybe even Miyaichi (he was on the squad) to be on the bench, and perhaps one of Frimpong or Coq to replace Arteta or Ramsey. Gosh, writing about the multitude of options we have to fill up our starting XI and bench fills me up with joy- happy times are here again!

The attitude around these parts is a light, pleasant, almost stoned one- and after beating Chelsea 5-3, it’s hard not to feel a little bit invincible at the moment. Still, people overlooked that our defense was crap for much of the first half on Saturday, and Marseille won’t hesitate to go all out and exploit our weaknesses, especially now that they’re away from home and have nothing to lose. A win tomorrow would see us rise to 10 points, 6 ahead of Marseille. Depending on the Dortmund-Olympiakos game, that could just be enough secure the group. It would certainly guarantee us a a spot on the knockouts, for what seems like the 200th time in a row. A draw wouldn’t be the end of the world, but it would make us susceptible to stumbling in our later matches and dropping 1st place. So let’s get out there, smash Marseille, lock up the group, and feel good.

Come on Arsenal!

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Category: Arsenal News, Champions League, Fixtures, Players, Preview