Arsenal 2 – 1 Reading: Brazilian boys see Arsenal through
279 comments March 4th, 2007
Considering the way Reading have played this season, and the fact that we were running the risk of becoming the first side to lose four consecutive games in different competitions, this victory has to go down as a good result.
We should have been in front at halftime, but Cesc Fabregas somehow missed after a simple ball from Julio Baptista. We all know he should get more goals from midfield, but this one really was on a plate. It will rival Tomas Rosicky’s effort against Moscow for our miss of the season.
Shortly after half-time, however, we were in front – an astonishing burst of pace from Gael Clichy resulted in the otherwise excellent Andre Bikey bringing him down, and a penalty was awarded. Gilberto duly tucked away the fourteenth penalty we’ve been awarded this season. Indeed, it seemed we should have had another one for a foul on Baptista, but the referee clearly felt otherwise.
Baptista didn’t have to wait long for his reward for a good day’s work. A pass from Denilson set him one-on-one with Graeme Murty. The ball seemed to escape from him, but a combination of power and luck allowed him to toe-poke his eighth goal of the season – his first in the Premiership.
Some slack defending late on almost allowed Reading back into the game – a Cesc own-goal could have been more than a consolation were it not for the utter professionalism of Jens Lehmann and William Gallas. Their desire not to concede almost turned them against each other at one stage, but all that anger was borne out of a genuine hunger for perfection. That’s the kind of attitude that makes people winners. To see Jens yelling at Hleb for repeatedly giving the ball away makes me hope that we will be able to replace that kind of charisma and influence when he leaves.
All in all, three points is three points, which was absolutely essential when you consider the run we’d been on and the upcoming PSV game. Thoughts now turn to that, and inevitably towards the fitness of a certain Frenchman…
