By Karl M. Tinsley

Sorry for the late reaction guys, but it’s here nonetheless.

MY 3 STARS

#1. ROBIN VAN PERSIE: Was influential all match with his passing, shooting and free kicks. In the first half he delivered a lovely knockdown ball to Walcott in the Chelsea 18 yard box and later worked a brilliant 1-2 with Fabregas and nearly flicked in Sagna’s powerful low cross.

In the 2nd half I wasn’t surprised to see him stay on the pitch because despite the score line he kept plugging away like a loyal soldier…always like to see that from a player who has in the past had his intensity/heart questioned by fellow Gooners.

Nearly created a goal for himself late in the 2nd half when he went on a nice mazy run that took him across the front of the Chelsea back 4 and into the 18 yard box…only Cech getting low and making a great save prevented the Dutchman from slotting in low right. Hope Robin feels comfortable to put pen to paper and ink that 4-5 year deal that is supposedly on the table. We need Robin, love him or hate him…he is most definitely a game changer!!.

#2. KOLO TOURE: Yes we gave up 4 goals and the 3rd one was bundled into the back of our net by Kolo…but to me he looked strong, fearless in the tackle and hungry to win the ball at all times. Loved his shoulder barge on Drogba in the 1st half that saw him drop his compatriot like a rag doll…brilliant defending!.

He made several goal saving plays, notable among them was his full stretch interception on the Malouda cut-back ball deep in our 18 yard box in the 1st half. He had some tough luck on the 3rd goal but I admired his effort and passion the whole match…even tossed in some nice penetrating forays deep into the Chelsea defensive positions.

#3. NICKLAS BENDTNER: The great Dane truly excels in that super-sub role. Time and again when coming on late (70 mins) this season he has been able to conjure up some magic and find that elusive goal for the squad. Not my favourite player by any stretch…but I gotta give him props for coming on late and again having an impact on the match. He had some other good headers and attempts on net after his first superbly taken header goal.

He has shown that he is far from being ready for the role as a starter at striker…but if he is willing to keep his mouth shut and continue to help the team as a super-sub…then I say we keep him and move Adebayor out for cash that can be spent on acquiring the world class CB we’ve needed since January 2008. Nicky is an enigma wrapped in a mystery. Probably prudent to hold onto him for another year or two and see where he takes his game.

Honorable Mention

KIERAN GIBBS: Thought he had a nice bounce back game after the meltdown against Man Utd at Old Trafford on Tuesday night. His play was up-tempo with a more disciplined approach in picking his spots to go forward and attack when the game was still within reach…of course he was horribly out of position on the last goal as he was caught jogging back 15 yards behind the wide open Anelka who rang his low drive off the post, with the rebound being bundled home by Malouda. Gibbs had some nice over-laps that were picked out by Diaby, Cesc and Robin.

On the defensive side of the ball he was resilient and had no major gaffes. In the first half I was very impressed with his defense on Drogba out on the wing when he stripped Drogba and then quickly launched a counter-attack…love to see that from our wing backs!!. Going to be a battle royale next season at LB with Armand Traore coming back from loan and a healthy Gael Clichy ready to take his spot back. Might be a good idea to secure a loan deal for Gibbs with a Prem League club lower down the table. At 18 years of age…time is very much on his side.

CESC FABREGAS: He had some exquisite touches especially in the first half when we were carving Chelsea apart during the first 35 minutes. His seeing eye pass to pick out Nasri running in the channel down the centre of the Chelsea defence was awesome in its weight and audacity…kinda reminded me of the type of through balls that Bergkamp used to play…just crazy vision from Cesc.

He also worked a lovely 1-2 with Robin in and around the Chelsea 18 yard box. The first half had Cesc pulling all the strings. That said he faded a bit in the second half and he does need to keep mentally switched on when defending..there was a time in the first half when he let Ashley Cole ghost by him without much of an effort or concern to mark him.

SAMIR NASRI: He was awesome for the first 35 minutes…with great overlaps and runs with and without the ball, displaying intelligent pass and move football with Robin and Cesc. Was really happy to see him buzzing again like that. Wished he had dropped a few bombs on the Chelsea net…i’ve noticed that when he has his shooting boots on his game is even more dangerous and electric for opponents to deal with.

His defense was piss poor against Anelka when he basically let him go in the midfield and kinda cantered after him rather than sprinting back in a desperate bid to haul Anelka back…it was almost like he forgot he was playing CM and not the wing…looked like he expected a CDM to pick up Anelka and then realized there was nobody in the midfield behind him.

Lemon(s)

THEO WALCOTT: I counted a minimum of 5 absolute sitters in the Chelsea 18 yard box that Theo “he’s only 20″ Walcott absolutely squandered…not even coming close to hitting the net. Absolute criminal finishing. If it was Bendtner or Eboue, Gooners would be ripping them…sorry…Theo doesn’t get a free pass from me. It was a garbage display of decision making and shooting. Several times he had the ball at his feet with space and time but instead chose to try and hit one-timers that were blazed wide of the net and not even troubling Cech in the slightest.

Another time he was sent in on a near breakaway with a great angle and room on the defender but instead of taking it strong to the net or taking a shot he tried to cut back inside the defender at full speed, lost his footing and went down. His decision making is really beginning to remind me of that previous loser we had on the right wing Jose Antonio Reyes…”Mr. Shoot When He Should Pass and Pass When He Should Shoot”. Theo just recently signed a new 60,000 pounds a week for 4 year deal based upon 14 goals in 100 matches…shaking my head…can you say overpaid.

ABOU DIABY: It’s too easy when he hits the pitch. Lets see…there was the lackadaisical marking of Anelka early on when he let him drift across the top of our 18 yard box without even trying to get a foot stuck in and trouble him. Then he’s turning the ball over repeatedly, due either to his heinous first touch or abysmal vision on the field.

Messed up that nice cut back ball from Walcott to Cesc by cutting in front and stabbing it a mile wide with his wrong foot. And of course there was his inability to hit a wide open and jogging Gibbs with a 5 foot pass at the edge of the Chelsea box in the first half. Why is this douche bag even in Wenger’s plans for next season is a real mystery…first it was his fixation with Senderos now it is Diaby…bizarre!.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

I am proud of the squad for battling hard since the start of 2009 and in the process overcoming a crippling injury situation and enabling us to go on a very nice and deep run in the Champs League and FA Cup and just as importantly to reel in and then drop an Aston Villa squad that was hell bent on trying to take over our spot in the Top 4. I said it back in January that such a thing was very much possible with some good bounces, a kind draw and a bit of luck…well we rode that as far as we could and came up short against Man Utd where we were exposed for being deficient in critical areas on the pitch…yes luck deserted us with the injuries to Clichy and Gallas…but I don’t think even with them healthy we were going to get past Man Utd.

The loss to Chelsea in the FA Cup and omission of Andriy Arshavin makes the blood boil a lot more. We had a great chance to get to the FA Cup Final and with Everton as our opponent I am confident we could have ended our barren spell with the silverware. Just like in January 2008 when Wenger refused to strengthen the club at CB, the decision to not start Arshavin against Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-final will always trouble me. This club most definitely does not need blown up…we just need some heart, experience and toughness at the CB and CDM positions and perhaps a more reliable keeper. If Robin renews his contract and Adebayor wants to go I say sell Ade and use the cash to get ourselves sorted once and for all at CB and CDM. Its been too long since we had Sol Campbell and Patrick Vieira controlling the middle of our defense…lets get it addressed and sorted this summer…puh-lease!!.

As Always,

GUNS IN GUNS OUT

Karlos