Wengerball Goals See Arsenal Into Quarters To Face United

Match Review: Arsenal 2 Middlesbrough 0 - FA Cup 15.02.15

Arsenal cruised into the quarter-finals of the FA Cup with an extremely comfortable win against Middlesbrough. The Championship side have been in excellent form this season and having knocked out Man City at the Etihad in the last round, many were expecting them to give us a rough time. But in truth, Middlesbrough never came close to worrying us and we won with plenty to spare.

Szczesny returned in goal, with Ospina now established as number one for the foreseeable future, while Gabriel made his first appearance for the club since signing in January. Surprisingly, Alexis also started, despite having gone off with an injury on Tuesday and Wenger claiming the forward ‘wasn’t himself’ at the moment. There were also returns to the team for Chambers, Flamini, Gibbs and Welbeck.

There was a change in formation for us too, as we lined up in a 4-2-3-1, with Özil playing behind Giroud and Flamini and Cazorla as a midfield two. Perhaps it was a change made to fit all the players Wenger wanted into the team, or maybe a tactical choice to combat Middlesbrough’s 4-4-2. Whatever the manager’s reasons, we controlled possession with ease and began fashioning ever more dangerous openings. Cazorla had a freekick saved, while Giroud’s twenty yard effort was pushed into the path of Alexis wh couldn’t fire in from an angle. A goal seemed only a matter of time and when it came, it was an absolute beauty.

Boro chased shadows as every Arsenal player touched the ball in the move. Cazorla’s wonderful pass to set Gibbs free on the left was the key moment in the move, allowing the left back to square to Giroud for the finish. Our passing and movement was too much for Middlesbrough and the goal was sprinkled with little moments of individual brilliance. Alexis beat a couple of players and played a reverse pass to Welbeck; Welbeck held off a defender to lay it off to Cazorla; Cazorla avoided a challenge before playing the perfect ball through to Gibbs; Giroud made a great run to the near post to make Gibbs’ assist simple. It was wonderful to watch.

If the first goal came through our brilliant play, the second was down in a large part to Middlesbrough’s poor defending. Just two minutes later, Alexis earned a corner and with the Boro players still discussing how to defend it, Giroud struck. Middlesbrough left a huge gap around the penalty spot and before any of their defenders knew what had happened, Alexis curled the ball in and Giroud met it with a lovely volley past the keeper. I’m not entirely sure what was going through the Boro players heads but they switched off in a big way and the game was pretty much done at that point. They’d offered no reason for optimism in attack and with Arsenal monopolising possession, it was difficult to see them causing another upset.

I think Arsenal played within themselves a bit in the second half. We controlled the game and were by far the more threatening of the two teams, but I don’t think there we were intent on scoring the third. Having said that, Boro did have their keeper to thank for keeping the score respectable, as he made saves from Alexis, Walcott, Özil and Gibbs. Middlesbrough’s only moment of real danger came deep into injury time, when Kike got free but planted his header onto the post. That was a minor blip on a comfortable afternoon for the Gunners.

So we’re one game away from a return to Wembley and half of the way towards retaining the cup. With the teams left in the competition there should be nothing to fear from the Arsenal players but United away could be very tricky. The draw has been made and we’ll have to put worries about our form at Old Trafford to one side and focus on a difficult trip to Palace and then the home tie with Monaco.

Teams

Arsenal (4-2-3-1)
Szczesny, Chambers, Gabriel (Y), Koscielny, Gibbs, Flamini, Cazorla, Alexis (Rosicky 72’), Özil, Welbeck (Walcott 72’), Giroud (Akpom 83’)
Subs
Martinez, Monreal, Mertesacker, Coquelin, Walcott, Rosicky, Akpom

Middlesbrough (4-4-2)
Mejias, Fredericks, Omeruo, Gibson, Friend, Clayton, Leadbitter, Bamford (Reach 54’), Tomlin (Vossen 54' (Y)), Adomah, Kike
Subs
Ripley, Husband, Whitehead, Reach, Vossen, Nsue Lopez, Woodgate

Player Ratings

Szczesny - 7/10 - Had nothing to do, but some of his distribution was good
Chambers - 7/10 - Had a solid game, but really isn’t a right back
Gabriel - 7/10 - A very good debut, calm and assured
Koscielny - 7/10 - Bossed it as usual
Gibbs - 7/10 - Got forward excellently and was a real menace for Boro
Flamini - 7/10 - Did a good job and gave what little protection was needed to the defence
Cazorla - 8/10 - Glorious performance from a wonderful player and the captain on the day
Alexis - 7/10 - Still looks short of fitness, but gave some of the Boro players nightmares
Özil - 8/10 - Majestic, created seven chances and looked imperious all game
Welbeck - 7/10 - Going through a barren run for goals, but his overall game was good
Giroud - 8/10 - Despite missing 3 months, he’s having a superb season
Subs
Rosicky - 7/10 - Had a good 20 odd minutes and will likely start against Palace in a 4-3-3
Walcott - 7/10 - Looked dangerous and hungry and nearly grabbed a goal
Akpom - N/A

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