Marseille 0-1 Arsenal - Match Report
Arsenal came away with a very good win against Didier Deschamps’ group leaders Marseille at the Stade Velodrome in the Champion’s league.
Arsenal came away with a very good win against Didier Deschamps group leaders Marseille at the Stade Velodrome in the Champions league. A last minute winner from Aaron Ramsey gave Arsene Wengers side the three points after a solid performance which turned to near domination in a quiet second half. The French side started brightly but all but fizzled out after half time, allowing Arsenal to finally break the deadlock. Arsene Wenger is no stranger to French football, but the Marseille he knew back in his days of Ligue 1 management were relegated for bribery and match fixing. Their chairman Bernard Tapie was thrown in jail, and Wenger, manager of Monaco at the time, left the league and continued his management career in Japan. Tonight saw his return to the Stade Velodrome though, this time at the helm of Arsenal and the Marseille he faced, now managed by Didier Deschamps, were in trouble having won just one league game, they sat in 15th place in Ligue 1. They had however won both of their Champions League fixtures thus far. Even the most diehard among Gunners fans would admit their start to the season had been far from impressive they sat in 10th place after 8 games. Things looked to be picking up a little for Wengers side though; they won at the weekend albeit a somewhat shaky victory over fellow strugglers Sunderland. The problem with the Gunners is that they are liable to fall apart at any given moment, but would be hoping to gain a victory against the group leaders, and though theyd never admit it, a draw would be a good point. Two teams with a similar philosophy - Marseille signalled their attacking intentions by starting with a 4-3-3 formation. Lucho Gonzalez was perhaps the danger man known as El Comandante due to his leadership skills, hes also a gifted playmaker and has a vicious shot at his disposal. Loïc Remy led the three man strike force, he has 19 goals in 40 games for Les Phocéens, and Mathieu Valbuena on the right wing is an explosive player with a lot of quality. Andre-Pierre Gignac only made the bench. Arsenal dropped Gervinho in favour of Andrei Arshavin, and an injury to Kieran Gibbs meant a start in left back for Brazilian Andre Santos. He hadnt featured too much for the Gunners, but was apparently dropped from the Brazil squad for being too attack minded. The Brazil squad! Considering Dani Alves generally at least makes the bench youd think this pretty much makes Santos a striker. With Valbuena up against him and the Brazilians tendency to get forward; this could well leave gaps in Arsenals already weakened defence. Marseille kicked off in front of a completely empty stand, perhaps due to construction issues it may have just been the camera angle but the pitch looked very wide. This was an advantage for both sides really as there were attacking wingers on each team. Andre Ayew, looking ridiculously fast, picked the pocket of Alex Song in the early minutes. The midfielder attempted to tackle back but brought the Ghanaian down and conceded a free kick as well as earning himself a place in Damir Skominas book. Valbuena took the kick but it was easily held by Szczney. Laurent Koscielney haphazardly shouldered the ball back to Szczney under pressure from Lucho Gonzalez, the Gunners were looking a little nervy their opponents looked a good team. Nevertheless they staged an attack, Theo Walcott swung in a cross that was met by Robin van Persie but he was offside. Carl Jenkinson then handled the ball in the area, there was no question really but Skomina missed it, and as he was already public enemy number one in the Velodrome, he thought he may as well go the whole hog and booked Andre Ayew for protesting. The card was out again and rightly so as Andre Santos clubbed Valbuena in the face with the majority of his arm. The Frenchman had just been playing some lovely football involving Gonzalez again, shame on Santos. A good start from the winger though, hes apparently nicknamed le petit vélo - the small bike, presumably for his size and athleticism rather than his promiscuity. A great clearance off the line from Souleymane Diawara denied Robin van Persie Steve Mandanda seems to have a tendency to come right out of his six yard box to claim it, but on this occasion he missed it and the Dutchman managed to get a header towards goal. The French no.2 managed to punch away Mikel Artetas follow up corner though. Alou Diarra tried an effort from range that he scuffed terribly, it was good end-to-end football, but Arsenal were having the better of it, piling a great deal of pressure on the home side. A great run from Loïc Remy. He managed to just keep the ball from going out for a goal kick and then got away from Jenkinson and Per Mertesacker before lashing a shot at goal. He didnt catch it cleanly though and it bounced agonisingly wide. The first sign of the Frenchmans threat and Arsenal would be hoping to not see too much of it. Cesar Azpilicueta had his first attack of the night which is lucky for me considering the spelling of his name. He broke down the right before putting in a cross that was easily held by the equally mispellable Wojciech Szczney. Lucho Gonzalez came very close as he hit a shot from a tight angle. It went marginally wide the closest either side had come. Tomas Rosicky was covering a lot of ground but his passing was poor at times. A needlessly extravagant attempt on the outside of his right foot didnt come close to playing van Persie through, and he failed to release Andre Santos when the left back was practically on his own in the opposition half. He gave the Czech a dirty look as he was forced to return to his most hated position on the pitch defence. A very even game as the two sides went in for half time. Id say Arsenal had edged it, but Marseille had looked almost as threatening and were playing some very nice free-flowing football. HALF TIME Andre Santos showed he doesnt have the same approach to free kicks than compatriot Roberto Carlos. In other words he cant take them he scuffed a supposed cross into the ground and it was cleared to safety. The left back wasnt having a good game he could have been dismissed in the first half and Valbuena was getting the better of him 9 times out of 10. Arsenals defence all but collapsed just before the hour mark. A dipping cross from Remy wasnt cleared immediately and was allowed to bounce in the heart of the box. Mertesacker and Jenkinsons response was to hack at the ball repeatedly until it went away. Ayew and Diarra were both trying to get a hold of it, but it was a superbly timed challenge from Alex Song in the end that allowed Arsenal to clear it. Jenkinson had to leave the field with an injury and was eventually replaced by Johan Djourou. As so often happens, the best chance of a close game fell to Theo Walcott, and as so often happens, he missed. Sloppy defending from the Marseille defence allowed the winger to get pretty close to Mandandas goal, but his shot was weak and was kept out by the keepers foot. He was under pressure from Nicolas NKoulou and the defender may actually have been the one who got the final touch. Loic Remys rather frustrating night was brought to a close as he was replaced by André-Pierre Gignac. A big name but due mainly to injuries he only has 8 goals for Marseille, still he had the ability to test the Arsenal defence. Lucho Gonzalez was also replaced by Morgan Amalfitano the midfielder had had a good game. The game really had slowed down since the interval, with the exception of Walcotts chance neither side had created a great deal and it seemed destined for a 0-0. Chelsea were winning 5-0 against Genk, so not many neutral spectators left watching this one. The good thing for Arsenal is that so far theyd been pretty solid defensively. This is no small feat either so often they crumble at the slightest hint of pressure. But for a few blips the back four had been pretty airtight, Per Mertesacker had put in probably his best performance so far in an Arsenal shirt. Gervinho played van Persie through, and the strikers fruitless night continued as he failed to put it away. It was quite a tight angle, and Mandanda got his angle right to save with his knee. For van Persie though, it was a good chance. Aaron Ramsey then put the winner away in injury time. Mandanda, whod been brilliant all night, could do nothing as the Welsh youngster had all the time in the world to pick his spot and bury it. The cross came in from Johan Djourou and although Gervinho couldnt meet it with his head, Ramsey picked up the pieces. A deserved win for the Gunners. Referee: Damir Skomina Olympique Marseille (4-3-3): Mandanda, Cesar Azpilicueta, Diawara, NKoulou, Morel, Gonzalez (Amalfitano, 73), Diarra, Cheyrou (Kaboré, 87), Valbuena, Remy (Gignac, 69), A. Ayew Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Szczney, Jenkinson (Djourou, 62), Mertesacker, Koscielny, Santos, Song, Arteta, Walcott (Gervinho, 67), Rosicky, Arshavin (Ramsey, 78), van Persie