Arsenal tightened their grip on a Champions League spot as they overcame a stubborn Norwich City to register a 1-0 victory at the Emirates Stadium. Substitute Danny Welbeck scored within four minutes of being introduced as he belted an Olivier Giroud knockdown to score the decisive goal.
Norwich created a plethora of chances but failed to beat Petr Cech.
Here are the 5 talking points of the game at North London:
Emirates Stadium marred by protests from fans
This game will be more remembered for the repeated protests by a group of fans who have been frustrated by Arsenal’s lack of silverware since lifting the Premier League in 2004. Twelve years without a Premier League crown and Arsene Wenger’s apparent contentment with a fourth-placed finish and the FA Cup is not what some Arsenal fans want to see.
Their displeasure was made known to Wenger after 12 minutes and 12 minutes from the end of the game – some of them unfurling placards reading ‘Time for Change’ and ‘Support the team, not the Regime’.
One particular banner which read, ‘Wenger – 12 years of excuses, Ranieri – Champion in 9 months’ reflected the harsh truth of Arsenal’s progress – or lack of it – over the last decade.
Six successive exits from the Champions League first knockout round has done nothing to appease the fans either. The lack of big-name signings has also forced some fans to turn their backs on the Frenchman. It will be interesting to see how events transpire at Arsenal and for Wenger when the season comes to an end.
Nathan Redmond thwarted by Cech brilliantly on two occasions
Arsenal may have bossed possession as always, but the chances fell to Norwich on the counter-attacks, both of them falling to winger Nathan Redmond. The first chance was in the 6th minute when he controlled a Martin Olsson cross well before pulling the trigger which was saved by Cech.
The second opportunity fell for Redmond after 42 minutes, when he controlled a similar cross from Wes Hoolahan and got the shot away, only to be denied by the Czech custodian once again. Those were two glorious chances that went begging for the Canaries, but at least the relegation battlers created those half chances going up the pitch.
Arsenal dominate but fail to test the goalkeeper enough
The fans’ frustration was once again evident as they saw their team have a majority of the possession, but without the end product. It was Norwich who had the better chances in the first half and the Gunners did not test keeper John Ruddy until the 59th minute when substitute Danny Welbeck scored the only goal with his side’s first shot on target.
Arsenal did force Ruddy into a couple of decent saves in the later stages, but the ruthlessness in the final third during the first half was terribly lacking. A club as big as Arsenal should be in a position to finish off relegation battling Norwich without having to leave it late.
Olivier Giroud drew a blank – his goalless run now stretching to 15 games. Wenger must invest in a world-class striker this summer if he has to win back the trust of some of the fans and show them that he still possesses the desire to bring back major silverware to the Emirates stadium.
Welbeck's introduction gives Arsenal much-needed breakthrough
In a desperate need to break the shackles with a goal, Wenger decided to throw on Danny Welbeck in the 55th minute – much to the fans’ delight. However, they were left nonplussed when they saw the vibrant Nigerian winger Alex Iwobi taken off instead of the misfiring Olivier Giroud.
Thankfully, the move worked for Wenger as the two combined to score the winner – Giroud’s knockdown from a cross was met sweetly by Welbeck and was past the reach of a diving John Ruddy.
That was also Arsenal’s first shot on target – a worrying sign of their lack of application in the opposition penalty area. For Wenger though, it was all about the result and he managed to get the 3 points thanks to his substitute.
Do Norwich have the mettle to stay in the Premier League?
Judging from their performance at the Emirates, definitely. Following an insipid second-half performance in the 0-3 thrashing by Sunderland a week earlier, Norwich kept their discipline at the back and managed to keep the likes of Sanchez, Ozil, Iwobi and Giroud at bay for pretty much the entire game.
They also created their own half-chances on the break, with Redmond thwarted by Cech on a couple of occasions and Gary O’Neil mistiming a shot from around 20 yards out.
They can consider themselves unlucky to find themselves leaving the Emirates with nothing, but at least this gives manager Alex Neil more than a tinge of belief that his side are capable of working as a unit and winning their battle against relegation in their final three games.
