Yesterday I wrote about Arsenal’s Young Pretenders, and the promise that they have in store for us.
Well at the Hawthorns yesterday evening, they duly turned up and not only showed their promise, but also their quality whilst also showing their maturity.
It was not a classic, but frankly I don’t care, the ends justify the means and it’s Arsenal facing Chelsea in the next round, so bring on the ‘Conceited One’.
Wenger fielded a slightly more experienced side than I had expected, with Flamini dropping out after a slight shoulder problem, in came teenager Isaac Hayden to play alongside Arteta, shielding a back-four containing Jenkinson, Monreal, Vermaelen and Mertesaker with Fabianski in goal…
That was pretty much EPL quality…
The attack had Miyaichi and Gnabry on the flanks supporting Bendtner, all three playing for the entire 120 minutes. In the hole was Eisfeld…
The first 45 minutes was easily forgettable, with a long range shot hitting Fabianski’s bar being the highlight.
Arsenal created very little with Bendtner lacking any real support forcing him to battle it out with the two West Brom centre-backs… As an exercise in regaining fitness and match sharpness, it will do him good. As an exercise in endearing him to the Arsenal fan base, I think I’ll sit on the fence…
Half-time: 0-0…
In the second half, Arsenal took the lead thanks to the hard work of another teenager, Serge Gnabry, who hunted down the ball, won possession and found Bendtner. He controlled the ball, laid an inch perfect pass through to Eisfeld whose run into the box put him clear and with German precision Thomas slid the ball home…
0-1.
West Brom didn’t lay down, they came back with a series of corners, one which led to their headed equaliser from Saido Berahino (no, I’ve never heard of him either)…
1-1, and so into extra-time. By then teenager Akpom had replaced Eisfeld, teenager Olsson had replaced teenager Hayden and teenager Bellerin had replaced the newly injured Arteta..
All the Kids made a positive impact on the game. Akpom’s pace and trickery, Olsson’s cool head and technical ability and Bellerin in midfield, showing his versatility and tenacity. All of them have future 1st team written all over them…
During added time, Bendtner had Arsenal’s best chance as he was put through on goal, but credit the WBA defender who didn’t give up and made a last gasp tackle as Bendtner was about to score. For WBA, despite a lot of huff and puff only a Reid shot onto the bar and a goalmouth scramble was all they could point too, despite experienced substitutions made at the end of 90 minutes…
Our Young Prentenders had seen us through extra-time with a maturity that belied their years, now they had to step up to the plate and take responsibility for 3 of our 5 penalties…
Strangely enough the only one to miss, was a German… Mein Gott…!!!
Bendtner calmly sent the WBA keeper the wrong way to make it 1-1.
Gnabry, despite outwardly looking calm, took a soft one that was easily saved, 2-1…
Olsson was super confident (or looked it) and slid the ball home, 3-2…
Akpom following a WBA miss was as calm as a cucumber as he sent the WBA keeper the wrong way to equalise, 3-3…
Finally, Monreal showed his class following another WBA miss to send the keeper the wrong way again and to blast a curving shot into the net to win it for the good guys, 3-4….
As a spectacle, the game won’t last long in the memory but as an introduction to the talents we have in our midst at Arsenal.
However, the talent we have in Hayden, Gnabry, Olsson, Bellerin and Akpom, it’s a mouth watering taster…
I’m sure we’ll all look forward to seeing a lot more of our Young Pretenders, in this most (so far) encouraging of seasons…
Bring on the Chavs….
Written by BrainwashedKev
Morning All…
Ginge, I’ve seen Gnabry, Olsson, Akpom and Eisfeld play, before last night…
Eisfeld I’m not sure about, although he does have a happy knack of scoring, not a bad habit to have.
The other three have the ability to develop into 1st team players, but obviously they are still young and young players mature at different rates..
Some, like Wilshere, come on very quick and others like Gibbs take a bit longer.
But the end result is hopefully they end up as quality performers for Arsenal’s first eleven…
I thought it the worst i have seen from arsenal for a very long time. Bendtner did ok with little support, Ryo improved in the last 10 minutes, this indicates a run in the first team (will never happen) will improve him. some absolutely shocking passing going astray. forgettable evening. Hope we put out a full strength side for the game against the scum oilers next round.
Morning all.
Super write-up Kev. I never saw the game myself but am pleased that some youngsters got a nice taste and that Arteta isn’t injured.
Young pretenders! Lolz! Funny indeed. But so was Cesc some ten years ago. And Aaron and Jack some five years ago. They may not all make it. But many will. Particularly Serge, Hector, Chuba and Gedion, with Kristoffer Olsson not far behind that class.
Shew, that’s a bit harsh deejay. What were you expecting from the teenagers vs seasoned prem men. Near to WBA’s first team with players that are full internationals.
Deejay, we had three players making their debuts last night.
Bellerin made his debut out of position…
Give ’em some latitude mate
Kev, awesome awesome post..
Btw, did anyone else notice that players were sleeping quite often on the surface? And due to that our threat in final third was less? I saw almost all our players sleep quite often and I thought that also affected the team.
SoG, All first comments go into moderation…. Now you can chat away…!
Morning All….!
Thought bentner will impress me buh truely he is jux a waste of resources. Dont kno why wenger still believes in him like that.. He never impressed me seriously..
Good Morning to the Lady of the House and all fellow Gooners in residence.
Kev – A great wrtite-up of an interesting but not very entertaining game. While none of our Young Guns set the world alight they did perform with an assured confidence and weren’t intimidated by a team of experienced professionals. Yes, there were many errant passes, but to be fair many would have required inch perfect placement and exact wieghting. Had more of them come of we would have sliced the Baggies open.
The youngsters were not afraid to try some difficult moves, but they required a bit better timing and deftness of touch than they possessed. However, they all show great promise and hopefully they will continue to develop. The future looks bright.
The only real drawback has been drawn against some strong teams. I was hoping the kids would start against some lower level teams and have a long run to give them some first team experience. The big question is, will Arsene persist with the kids against Chelski?
A great write-up as expected from ‘still’ the Brain wahed Kev… lol
Bellerin featured last season against Coventry at RB and he did very well…
I like Eisfield but he plays like there is something quite not right with him… what I like about him is that he turns up when needed with goals;
Kev- I asked last night if you knew why Eisfield has not been able to develop his stamina; I know he missed about 3 years of football/development through injuries but playing with the u-19/21’s for a year I expected more physical development from him…
Cg- I am with you on your last paragraph at 10:54
I thought Olsson looked very good and offered more than Hayden technically but I admit I have a soft spot for Kris so I may be wrong…
Its a shame about Nico and Toral; I guess with us meeting the chavs that is their opportunity gone for the year unless we draw a ‘weaker’ team in the FA cup…
Bendtner was very slowly in everything.
It’s not difficult for a defender to face him.
I’m not remember so many shocking passing, sometimes with the team unbalanced,
We were lucky, even for me, whe were the best team in extra time.
When in the nest game to Chelsea ? This line-up depends of the injuries, the challenge and so on.
s2s- the players were slipping at both ends of the field… was it due to them wearing the wrong type of boots?
I think we are being harsh on some of the players who played last night.
Apart from Mert and CJ25 most of the players had played less than 3 full matches this season…
Even players like Serge, Olssson, Monreal had not completed matches all season at u-19/21 and international levels. B-23 was in preseason and he was able to complete 120 minutes playing up front by himself…
We could not truly expect to make 7 or 8 chnages and have the same fluency playing away from home…
I think we have to look at the medium to long term… resting JW, Sagna and Ramsey as an example is crucial in getting any form of result at Swansea and then competing with Napoli (who have a few injures as well btw)
All my humble opinion of course…. 😉
the kids were good and was along 120mnts+the pnlts hector akpom genarby and the others were ok,hector and akpom were the game changers
Morning all, Blinding report AK, Your faith from yesterdays post was a lot more than what i had. My stream last night was a very poor one so missed most of the game, but i did watch some of the highlights and saw the shootout I could have kissed Monreal as that last penalty hit the back of the net. The youngsters did well and as you said yesterday many will no doubt be household names by the end of the season. I doubt they will go no further than the next round but i could be wrong. This competition is a joke in my opinion especially how Wenger looks at it but as you said yesterday it has given Bendy and the lads a chance on the big stage. Bendy with his little ponytail looked quite sweet i thought, pony tail and masses of tatoo’s must have scared the Albions defence, but in fairness to Bendy he did try all night. Our victory was all down to luck and in the end was down to one man’s nerve for the last kick of the day, Arsenal are better than that and in my opinion this should have been an easy win. Granted easy wins do not always gain experience for our youngsters but competitions like this with a gateway to Europe should be taken more seriously by our club but thats only my opinion. Well predicted Ak. 🙂
Morning all.
I was frustrated that I could not see the game on TV, but listening to it on the radio it seemed very low key until extra time and the penalties.
So, a poor game by all accounts, but we won.
Do I care that our youngsters played like … well, youngsters .. many of whom were making their debuts?
No I don’t.
Am I happy we won? Yes I am.
There have been too many times over the years when an Arsenal team have murdered the opposition and then lost to a sucker goal.
Was I happy that we played superbly .. but lost?
No I bloody wasn’t.
Give me the win any day.
We can always play better next time.
Sorry, I forgot to say, very good match report B Kev!
Morning all
The kids did very well yesterday though disappointed with Ryo and Gnabry performance as that is to be expected since they are still kids and inconsistency in performance is bound to happen. I can’t fault their defensive contribution though. But loved Akpom, Bellerin and Olsson who were never fazed with the occasion. The future of the club is great seeing those teenagers making their mark yesterday.
Mert (MOTM) was superb, calm and calculated. If only he has speed he would have being the best CB in the world. The way he reads the game, doesn’t panic. Capt. Vermaelen had a steady performance and I was very impressed with Jenks and Monreal.
I thought NB23 did ok being his first 120mins over 2yrs. Starved of service in the final 3rd and had to hold his ground against WBA 2 CB’s.
Overall I am glad we qualified for the next round as we’ve being able to rest our uninjured first team players. Hopefully all our injured players should be back before we face the oligarch
Good Morning All. Nice report Kev. Most of us are not privileged yesterday to watched the young stars in Arsenal shirts. But no matter how they performed, they took us over the finish line. A job well done.
I watched Chelsea the other day, make no mistake, they filled in most of their first team players including Mata and Ramirez. Even JT and Cahill played that day. I think we should do the same comes Match Day.
Ts, I don’t know if they were wearing the wrong boots but I guess Ryo sure was wearing wrong boots. He slipped far too many times.
My standout young performer was Kriss Olsson. He was absolutely Arteta like. Calm, composed, creating space and always moving into space. Just a classical deep play maker performance.
A word on B-23, the picture after winning penalty says a lot about B-23. I guess next 9 months will decide where he’ll end up.
I’d prefer we play the steady boys in the middle and give the youngsters a chance on the flanks in defence and attack. It’s not an important cup and it will be played just like this one with a game on the weekend and CL a few days after.
Morning all, good read kev,
I don’t mind the kids get a run of games and I wasn’t harsh on my view.
They kept going and in the end they got through..
My view is that bendtner is no kid by the way.. didn’t deserve to start.. I thought Akpom showed more
when he came on..
I was also disappointed in Ryo, I expected more from him.. he did help tracking back and defending though..
I also have to say the previous generation of kids… Carlos Vela iand co showed more promise and fluency in passing and play than the current ones.. and we all know where that ended..
Ts,
After watching Olsson play last night, I really hope Tomas gets two years extension on contract, since he and Arteta could do massive jobs with some of these kids and for me especially for Olsson. And the way he took that crunch penalty, nervy to start with and adrenaline pumping when he scored. Awesome.
B/w good post Bkev
We had a dynamic/mobile midfield when Olsson and Bellerin played in the pivot. Especially when the latter player came in for Arteta. Eisfeld will turn out to be some player but his development is very slow. He is someone that needs to be playing regularly but doubt if he will be afforded that at arsenal. He needs to go out on loan.
If we are really serious about the Capital One Cup we should not take Chelsea lightly. Their last game against a lower league side said it all. Majority of their team was made up of First Team. When they made changes they bring in first team players to replaced those going out. Ramies replaced Marco Van Ginkel, Demba Ba replaced Fernando Torres. David Luiz, Mata, Willian, Cahill, Michael Essien,Fernando Torres, Frank Lampard,Ramiez and Bertrand are all first teamers.
The League Cup (Coca Cola, Capital One or otherwise) is not a major cup. With the current state of the team and the number of injuries we are currently carrying, it would be unwise to risk anymore injuries to first team players.
This is a great opportunity to get some good experience for our young players so the coaching staff can gauge their progress at a level of play and competition above that offered by the U21 league(s). We could put more of these players out on loan, but that would adversely affect the U21s, whose squad is light on numbers like the first team. Plus, we can’t get any guarantees that our loan players will get much, if any, game time on loan. Some players have been lucky and held a regular first team position in their loan team, while others have been used as reserves, only to be used when a regular is injured.
It is unfortunate that the FA will not permit Premier League teams to run ‘B teams’ in the lower divisions like they do in Spain. That way the club could control and ensure enough playing time to benefit our young players’ development.
The feeder club idea if it goes through could be a start-Cg
Afternoon Gooners,
Not much to add. Everything of note has been said.
CG
That’s exactly what I’ve been missing from the mix developing top talent. A chance to field against seasoned pros in a B-team setup.
The Dutch competition started a pilot this year mirroring the Spanish setup. Three clubs have been allowed to enter the Championship competition with B-teams. Creating valuable experience and serving them a taste of top tier tenacity and determination.
BTW Excellent match review Kev.
Although I would have opted for: “The constipated One”
Glad we won, don’t care how.
Bendtner slow, but I am sure it should be expected with the whole world watching him.
Wenger will not take this competition seriously because the games are sandwiched between a PL game and Champions league game
Liverpool has lost 2 games in 3 , is the party over for them ?
Could Arsenal be addicted to winning ? That will be the dream
Are we having a Silent Stan protest today??? Or did the pastor die??
Wot I love about the league cup is u never know what to expect when you see our teenagers play.every few years a new fabregas r wilshere appears out the woodwork.if wenger is left build without selling (as ud expect after the signing of ozil) its exciting times ahead for us all.zalelam, gnarby, eisfield,bellerin all have a chance of making it at our fine club.come on arsenal.
@DG, the pastor passed away, still tears in my eyes. 🙂
Which of those cups can we really win??? I think we should weigh our options because our squad is so thin and plaque with injuries. can we win the PL, FA, CL or the Capital One??? Why don’t we go for what we can win with full force and enough resources? The CL is an interesting competition to be in but can we win it with such squad as thin as it is, I have my doubt.
So far other teams are using almost their first eleven in the Capital one Cup and we are not. ManU, L’pool, Chelsea and ManCity have done the same, that tells me they are taken the cup seriously. We cannot do what we did few seasons ago when we chased all the competitions and lose all of them and even loss to Birmingham in the final.
Afternoon Nash
Trouble is some say the club should live up to its standards and chase the title, others say the FA cup and so on.
Most clubs adjust their plans and primary goals in December as you’re halfway through all competitions.
DG. We have to be realistic to what we can pull off. If we go with full force to win the EPL and the FA cups, then let do it. But to think we can compete in all the competitions with and win all of them is a dream. We been there before and lost all of them and even to Birmingham who were relegated.
If AW or the Board has bought a CF in this window I could have hope we could pull the EPL and the FA cups come May. Why they left it so late is everyone’s guess. This season could have been ours, since ManU, Chelsea and ManCity all have new managers and trying to figure out what players can be best mold into their plan. Mourinho for example is suggesting that Oscar is his #10 not Mata. By the time he figure that out we could be miles ahead with points if we had a proving CF in our mist.
Nash
Churchill once said: planning means everything, plans don’t mean nothing.
I know it sounds ambiguous but winning any competition has a complex set of elements and factors to access. Many of which are beyond organizational influence or direct control.
ok, but Chelsea,M.City,Totts, all of them have a more deeper squad then us
@JM. That why we shouldn’t chase all the competitions, because we don’t have a deeper squad. Chelsea has Eto, Demba Ba and F.Torres. whom do we have????
Evening all, Rico must be working 24/7 to fight that Red Mite or she has found a vegitarian animal loving wine drinker. Not heard too much from Wath come to think of it. 🙂 We have Arsene Wenger Nash, He’s the only reason were ever included in the top 4. Churchil said a lot of things Dutch but aparently he had a stand in to deliver most of what he said. Britain just likes to think he said it thats all
SP1
Are you talking Hillwood as Churchill’s stunt double??
Same potato sacks under his eyes, boar-like brows, bulldog cheeks and regularly soaking Cubans on public occasions.
Nice one Dutch, that made me smile mate. Hope your well, looks like a rest day for every body. or they are a bit shell shocked after our penalty shoot out. I dont know how you felt last night when it went to penalties but i feared the worst. I must admit i had resigned myself for a loss and felt a little shell shocked after that last one went in, I know, i should have more faith 🙂
SP1
I pulled the plug on my stream when the shoot out began. Thought it would ask too much from our youngsters as many were wobbling on their last legs.
BTW I read you had trouble with the live stream. Mine was lagging too. Every 5 minutes I was hitting F5 to refresh and reload the video link. Will look into more reliable alternatives. Promise.
As opposed to Maggie Thatcher dutch, who’s compassion was likened to cannibals on a health kick eating only vegetarians !!!
Kev, last night was proof if you ever needed it that you can’t please all the people all of the time, even rico’s done a runner !
I;ve no room to moan Dutch without your links i would be completly in the dark, at least i saw more than i would have done (keep up the good work Mate)
Very true Micko a wins a win and i am gratefull
Steve, why not just enjoy the the good times when they come around, the youngsters done us proud again last night, think Wenger will stick to his principles and play a similiar team against the Chav’s, fair play to him.
Dutch, I’ve completely given up on links, they jar my brain big time.
Micko
Hilarious Maggie pun. She could definitely timber a tree with her teeth such was her bite force.
Be patient on the stream service, still at a development stage. Will get better in time.
Last night’s match will stand the test of time as sweet memory solely cuz the young guns showed grit and composure when it mattered.
Micko, its not the youngsters that get to me, I know they have to learn and that competition is the way they get experience. But we are one of the biggest clubs in the world probably one of the wealthiest as well and we field a team of miss fits. now dont get me wrong i’m not having a go at them they did us proud, but Arsenal are better than that surly, by now we should be strong in evey game, or am i asking to much.
Nite guys, looking forward to the weekends game, the big guns have been rested and will be biting at the bit, more importantly tsgh’s neck is on the block, bring it on !!
Stevo
It’s not addressed to me but I totally underline your last comment.
I’ve struggled to remove the constant awareness of another casino season. There’s just been too much gambling for my liking. Certainly if you consider the highest ticket prices in the country.
Abysmal to say the least.
Nite Micko.
Nite Micko
Nite Nash & Stevo. Speak tomorrow.
Take it easy DG
Mick, 10.00pm; Amen to that mate…
I’m not digging out anyone, but patience is a rare commodity in footie fans these days, and we’re all guilty of that at time to time…
Being a bit of an anorak, I’ve always taken an interest in Arsenal’s youth and taken a lot of enjoyment and pride in the fact that my club has such an impressive record in producing it’s own players…
New post up..