Team Arsenal shine, but Clichy shines the most

Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 0

I thought I’d do another 20 points match review, so that it is easier to follow.

1. Criticized by many lately, including me, I think Clichy had his most solid game yet. He looked focused and was rarely beaten today.

2. If anything, most of Olympiakos’ threat was on the right flank where Eboue was playing at right back.

3.In the 89th minute, Clichy was nutmegged but Gallas covered the danger.

4. It was the theme for the entire game, any given individual player stepped in when something wasn’t right, tracking back, making important tackles.

5. Not much for Mannone to do. Olympiakos only had 2 attempts on goal but they were good chances. Mannone did well to thwart one close range effort.

6. That is 4 Clean sheets in all competitions since we conceded two against Liege two weeks back. Don’t jinx it now.

7. Top marks for the Greek support, visual with the flags and auditory with the drums and really vibrant chanting. If 3000+ Greek fans make that much noise, the return leg in Piraeus will really be something special.

8. Our home support was fantastic too, although it did feel a tad continental. A string of Arsenal attacks got the crowd singing and chanting a lot more. And perhaps the greek supporters might have had a little to do with it too.

9. Did anyone else notice the moment when Arshavin fell over near the edge of the penalty box a bit too easily? It was around the 53rd minute and he looked as if it was a foul. Wasn’t given.

10. That moment marked a 15 minute spell when Arsh seemed lost. His passing and shooting was off radar.

11. Diaby’s substitution changed that. The Russian suddenly became a lot more energetic and really threw himself all over the pitch, even making last minute tackles.

12. His goal was a reward just for that spell, it was really phenomenal. And I was beginning to think he was running out of gas. Was it adrenaline or much more?

13. When Arshavin’s cheeky backheel was given as a goal and not deemed as offside I thought, here we go again. Another scandal….

14.  Zico’s team are well within their rights to complain. But to hint of a conspiracy beggars belief. They were beaten comprehensively anyway weren’t they?

15. Van Persie’s goal was reward for his persistence, it was a bit of a poacher’s goal wasn’t it? Watch out for a post on the Dutch genius soon here!

16. Much better game for Cesc today. He was definitely up for it, played with a smile on his face. Thrived with the likes of RVP, Arsh and Rosicky around him.

17. Another decent outing for Rosicky. Looks like Wenger will utilize him a lot more in this competition to begin with.

18. Diaby’s attempts to try Beckham-esque passing didn’t work. His direct running, attacking the ball was more effective. Pity he couldn’t score just before he was subbed.

19. I really think a team of Diaby, Arshavin, Rosicky, Cesc leaves us one striker short.

20. We had 20 shots at goal and even if the game ended 0-0 I wouldn’t have been concerned. Olympiakos really rode their luck.

Overall, a really enjoyable game to watch, even there were a couple of nervy moments. Two more wins and qualification will be sealed.