A goal in each half, from Santi Cazorla and Tomas Rosicky, gave Arsenal a deserved 2-0 victory over their north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur to move into the FA Cup fourth round.
While Tim Sherwood has overseen a return of 10 points from four matches in the Premier League since taking charge, Spurs have now been knocked out of both domestic cup competitions. And the former midfielder’s tactics left his team painfully exposed in the area of the pitch he used to patrol as Arsenal won for the fourth time in succession against their neighbors at the Emirates.
While Tottenham’s two man front line of Roberto Soldado and former Gunner Emmanuel Adebayor posed Arsenal the occasional threat, particularly early on, it left their midfield undermanned against the strongest area of their opponents. The first goal, just past the half-hour mark was a case in point as Cazorla finished after Tottenham had been cut open, while Rosicky raced clear to all-but secure the win in the 62nd minute.
Both sides were missing key personnel, with Tottenham handing a first start to Nabil Bentaleb, while Arsenal were without Olivier Giroud and Nicklas Bendtner up front and midfielders Aaron Ramsey and Mesut Ozil, who was only deemed fit enough to come off the bench. That meant Theo Walcott being deployed as a central striker and while he didn’t cover himself in glory, the man that took his place on the right, Serge Gnabry excelled. The one downside to the contest from Arsene Wenger’s point of view was a late injury to Walcott that meant Arsenal having to play out the remaining 10 minutes with 10 men. Tottenham, though, had little with which to respond as they faded as an attacking threat as the match wore on.
More to follow.
Goal Cazorla - Arsenal 1-0 Tottenham - 04-01... by beingoal
Arsenal 2-0 Tottenham - ALL GOALS 04-01-2014 by film-shqip
VIDEO Arsenal 2-0 Tottenham: Highlights; Cazorla And Rosicky Goals Send Gunners Through In FA Cup
No comments:
Post a Comment