Arsenal moved to the top of Group A in the UEFA Champions League with a convincing 2-0 win over Swiss outfit FC Basel. Arsene Wenger’s side were in total control throughout the game and if not for some poor finishing combined with superb goalkeeping they could have easily scored 4 or 5.
Theo Walcott was Arsenal’s wrecker-in-chief and scored a first-half brace to hand The Gunners their first win in the Champions League this season, following their 1-1 draw in the opening game of the tournament. The North London outfit have hit top form following the draw against Paris Saint-Germain at Parc Des Princes and have recorded four comprehensive victories on the bounce.
Walcott opened the scoring for The Gunners in the 7th minute, heading home Alexis Sanchez’s cutback. The duo combined once again in the 26th minute when the Chilean played a perfectly weighted through ball to the English winger, who slotted home with a neat low finish.
Here are the major talking points from Arsenal’s 2-0 win over FC Basel:
#1 Theo Walcott looks like a man reborn
It was not long ago when it looked like Theo Walcott’s Arsenal career was over and the English speedster was headed for the exit door. However, we are not even two months into the season and Walcott’s place in Arsene Wenger’s starting XI is untouchable.
After a prolific 2012/13 season, the former Southampton man’s progress had not only stagnated, but his career looked to be regressing with each passing year. While injuries played a huge part in his poor form, his insistence to play as a striker didn’t help either. The ACL injury he suffered in Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur looked to be the final nail in his coffin as he never looked the same player.
However, at the start of the season, Walcott had accepted that right-wing was his ideal position and although at that time it looked like just a ploy to get himself a final reprieve, the move is paying huge dividends for both Walcott and Arsenal. 5 goals and an assist make for good numbers for any player at this stage of the season and if he is able to maintain this form and manage to remain injury free, he is on course to replicate his performance of the 2012/13 season.
For now, just sit back and enjoy Walcott at his prolific best.
#2 Arsenal’s failure to kill the game
Arsenal raced to a 2-0 lead within the first 26 minutes of the game and had numerous chances to put the game beyond the reach of Basel, but they were let down by the profligacy of their players in front of goal.
Alexis Sanchez missed a couple of easy chances, while Mesut Ozil squandered a couple of easy chances of his own. Even Walcott, who had already bagged a brace, had the chance to complete his hat-trick in the first half itself was denied by the goalkeeper.
The Gunners had a similar first-half against Chelsea, when they raced to a 2-0 lead within 14 minutes and although they did add a third in the 40th minute, they should have scored more and put the game to bed. Basel had a few chances to score in the second half, and anything could have happened after that.
Arsenal need to start being more ruthless in front of the goal if they are to challenge for top honours this season and can’t afford to miss so many chances, for it is only a matter of time before a team finds their way back into the game despite the superiority of the Gunners. And they do not have to look back much further than their opening day loss against Liverpool in the league, when they had taken the lead through Walcott but lost the game after The Reds mounted an epic comeback.
#3 Tomas Vaclik was stupendous between the sticks
Arsene Wenger’s side recorded 19 shots during the game, of which 7 were on target and if not for the heroics of Vaclik, Basel could have gone back to Switzerland looking back on an even heavier defeat.
Although he did concede two goals during the game, he could not do much about either. For the first, he was left hanging out to dry by his defenders allowing Walcott a free-header, while Arsenal made a mockery of the Swiss outfit's defence by their fluid passing for their second goal as Walcott drilled a shot past Vaclik.
The Czech Republic international made a series of vital saves to keep his side in the mix. First, he denied Nacho Monreal, followed by an excellent save to keep Hector Bellerin’s effort out. The 27-year-old pulled off another vital block to deny Sanchez, while he forced Oxlade-Chamberlain into shooting at him when the winger had skipped past him and was through on goal but was left with a very acute angle to find the back of the net.
#4 The fastest right-wing in World Football?
While Theo Walcott may have lost some of his pace following the ACL injury he suffered in 2014, he is undoubtedly still one of the fastest players in the game, if not the fastest. Hector Bellerin, on the other hand, has shot to fame due to his lightning fast speed and his ability to put it to good effect in crunch situations.
In fact, it was Bellerin who broke Theo Walcott’s Arsenal sprint record when he bettered the Englishman’s 40-metre sprint timing by 1/100th of a second at the start of the 2014/15 season. The full-back’s brilliant recovery tackle on Pedro in last weekend’s win over Chelsea was a testament to the speed that he possesses.
The duo have not been able to work consistently for a long duration earlier partly due to the patchy form of Walcott or due to his recurring injuries. However, this season the duo have featured in most of Arsenal’s game and have formed a formidable partnership down the right-hand side.
Not only are the duo instrumental in Arsenal’s attacking forays, but Walcott’s new found love for tracking back and helping out his partner has surely helped Wenger solidify his right wing.
Walcott and Bellerin have pace to burn and are without doubt the fastest right-wing in World Football at the moment. How big an impact they have over the course of the season remains to be seen, but with so much pace in them, expect it to be electric!
#5 Another false dawn?
Arsenal have been the perennial underachievers in the eyes of many over the course of the last decade or so. They have played fluid, expansive football in bouts and have even managed to be considered title contenders only to falter when it matters the most.
The Gunners have been accused of performing well for only half-a-season and fizzling out in the other half. Following their opening day defeat against Liverpool, The Gunners are unbeaten in their last 8 matches, but the situation reminds many of their fans of a false dawn – which has deceived them one too many times.
They were in the mix for the title until March of last season, before fizzling out and eventually finishing 3rd. It is expected to be Arsene Wenger’s last season at the helm of The Gunners and the Frenchman will be hoping to bow out on a high, but for that, his side will need to keep up this intensity and hunger for the entire duration of the season and not just for one-half of it. Here’s hoping Wenger and Arsenal prove me and the doubters wrong come the end of the season.
