Our debut in this season’s Carabao Cup involved a trip to the Potteries to play the ‘other team’, Port Vale, whom we haven’t played for 27 years. Then we struggled through a goalless home draw, a replay (remember those?) at Vale Park, extra time and a close-run penalty shoot out in the 1997-8 FA Cup third round and went on to win Arsene Wenger’s first Double. In the days before match day there was much speculation in the Goonersphere as to the team Mikel Arteta would pick for this match. Sunday’s match against the Creative Accountants had delivered yet another injury with Madueke sustaining a knee injury that forced his replacement at half time and his further absence for tonight and a couple more months. As if this wasn’t enough, we also learnt this week that Hincapié, who has played a mere 5 minutes for Arsenal since his late signing, has a groin strain that will keep him out tonight and for a few weeks longer.
Many have suggested that this match is an opportunity for Martinelli to start down the middle hoping he could reprise his epic bursts behind defences and goals against Athletic Bilbao and the Creative Accountants. However, that was not how the coach saw it, but Eze got a chance to play in his favoured ‘ten position’ with Nwaneri at his favoured ‘eight’:
Kepa
White Saliba Mosquera MLS
Nwaneri Nørgaard Eze
Saka Merino Martinelli
Unsurprisingly, Sky couldn’t find a Gooner for the panel and burdened us with ex-Spud Jaimee Redknapp and ex-Spud & ex-Vale Michael Brown. Plus c’est la même chose!
The third tier outfit started with energy and directness as did the travelling Gooners who were in good voice while the locals betrayed their kinship with Stoke-ites by booing Saka whenever he was on the ball. The flurry of local activity lasted 5 minutes after which we established dominance of both possession and territory.
On 7 minutes, Martinelli, at the left edge of the Vale box, found MLS inside the box and the youngster’s back-heel to Eze left our new man the simple task of passing the ball into the bottom corner for his first Arsenal goal. Four minutes later, Nwaneri’s curler from the right edge of the box was deflected past the post.
A pattern of persistent interchange emerged with Saka and Nwaneri swapping roles on the right supported by White’s overlaps and Martinelli and Eze doing likewise on the left supported by MLS’s underlaps. Meanwhile, Merino mainly patrolled the centre though occasionally appearing on the right, showing delicate footwork while making probing passes into the box for darting runs in behind while Nørgaard provided an outlet when necessary and recycled the ball well. After 20 minutes Arsenal had made 211 passes versus 21 by Vale but had not come close to extending their lead.
Vale had an exciting moment when their ‘Gabriel’ darted behind our defence to receive a lofted ball and bear down on Kepa who anticipated the pass and cleared it before the linesman raised his flag for a questionable offside.
A very crisp series of passes between Saliba, White and Nwaneri that took the ball from box to box came to naught but a sweet pass from Merino from the edge of the box to Eze eight yards from goal was met with a firm shot that drew a good save from the keeper on 35 minutes.
Port Vale persisted with the occasional flurry and won their first corner on 39 minutes. There was a free header misdirected downwards then a brief melee in our box before it was cleared but the crowd was lifted and there were a couple of minutes of pressure which called for our defenders to show their mettle.
HT: Port Vale 0 – 1 Arsenal
Our first half was professionally executed with 78% possession but all that ball yielded only five shots at goal and a mere two on target. Despite Arsenal’s dominance and occasional slick moves, the game felt somewhat underproductive and short on goalmouth action and excitement. We could certainly have moved the ball more quickly. Could we liven things up in the second half?
Vale had clearly been told that they were showing us too much respect and they became more combative physically in the second half.
The second half began with brief excitement at both ends, a long throw from Vale followed by a breakaway by Martinelli surging over the halfway line to meet a ball from Saka only to be tackled by the Vale keeper as he reached the ball. Then Saka was trodden on by a Pottery thug called Headley (who had been manhandling him all game) and jangled all Gooner nerves as he lay prone thumping the pitch in frustration.
A spell of intricate interplay as the hour approached ended in our first shot at goal of the half from Nwaneri but it was blocked on the edge of the box. Max Dowman then became our youngest ever player in the League Cup when he replaced Saka on 62 minutes.
Our next attempt on goal came from an impressive long throw from Nørgaard in the 67th minute that found its way to White 30 yards out and his effort cleared the bar by a wide margin.
On 70 minutes Gyökeres and Gabriel came on for Merino and White with Mosquera moving to right back.
The home team were certainly more involved in this half and Mosquera’s square pass across the front of his fellow defenders to a Vale forward lifted the crowd again but our defence stifled the danger swiftly. Kepa then repeated the error as his pass to Nwaneri went to a Vale forward whose shot from 25 yards just cleared the bar. Our playing out from the back was looking less successful as a result of Vale’s second half pressing.
Dowman flicked a lovely ball behind the defence for Gyökeres to run onto but his shot was blocked by a lunging defender as he bore down on goal.
On 80 minutes, Trossard and Rice replaced Martinelli and Eze.
The Belgian duly scored his ‘super-sub goal’ in the 85th minute with a crisp shot from the edge of the box after slickly taking down a high ball from Saliba to make the space to shoot. Trossard again!
Trossard then produced a through ball for Gyökeres to chase which he did at pace and the Swede forced a Vale defender to concede a corner.
Dowman provided a few moments of excitement with some dancing dribbles and a deft flick to Rice but the goal he and we craved didn’t come. A Nwaneri shot from the edge of the box after a Dowman shot was blocked, warmed the keeper’s hands with 30 seconds to go and then the game was over.
FT: Port Vale 0 – 2 Arsenal
That was a routine, if rather unexciting victory for Arsenal. Port Vale proved obdurate opponents particularly in the second half in which their more aggressive posture prevented Arsenal achieving the dominance they had enjoyed in the first half. Nonetheless, there were no really alarming moments. A win is a win and several players who needed game-time will have benefitted from the outing.
Over the whole piece we had 81% possession, eleven shots on goal with four on target.
Kepa wasn’t really tested and apart from one dodgy pass that was intercepted, looked comfortable with the ball at his feet. Ben White looked lean, hungry and sharp but clearly couldn’t go 90 minutes; Saliba showed his usual calm dominance and was comfortable throughout; Mosquera looked comfortable both at centre back and when switched to right back – bar his dodgy square pass; MLS was quietly authoritative both with and without the ball and deserved his clever assist. Nørgaard had a very competent and comfortable first start and will have benefitted from gaining a full 90 minutes in his legs; Nwaneri gave a confident and competent performance without too may sparkling moments; Eze was involved throughout, took his goal well and might have had more – his interaction with his new teammates appears to be becoming more intuitive. Saka was manhandled throughout but still made a significant contribution to our attack, threatened in possession and will have benefitted from the game time – as long as he has avoided injury; Merino’s deft touches, silky passes and interplay kept us moving and he constantly made himself available at both ends of the pitch; Martinelli was a regular threat, made a lovely pre-assist and might have scored himself. Gabriel and Rice stiffened our resistance as Port Vale tried to get into the game while Trossard sealed the win with a trademark goal and looked lively – was he feeling a hammy at the end? Hope not! Dowman added a bit of sparkle to proceedings and gave Saka an opportunity to put his (rather bruised) feet up for half an hour. Gyökeres got a short run out but limited opportunities to shine, though he did threaten the goal twice.
Just one question – why do these oiks boo Saka?
Job done!
It’s Brighton at home in the next round.
Onward.
Bath
Thankyou for a report that covers the game very thoroughly and accurately and makes it seem considerably more interesting than it was! I can’t remember being so bored in an Arsenal game for a very long time as we found penetration (oo-er) very difficult. Modern football with well-drilled low blocks creates great tedium and ennui .
I’m pleased for Ebere who is clearly a class act and both Nwaneri and Mosquera did very well’ . God speed to the Countrymen wending their way home tonight
Thanks Bath, it seems to have all been fairly routine
and you have summed it up very well.
Good to see that some players came in and did well
enough. Brighton in the next round at home seems
a fair draw and hopefully Leo can happily help them
on their way.
I have never been to Port Vale away so looking forward to
hearing from our intrepid men of the road!
Thanks for a quick and comprehensive report on a game that wasn’t the most enthralling watch, and could have turned ugly if the hosts had exploited a couple of sloppy defensive passes. I was hoping for more of the silkiness of the first goal, especially as it came early. Not to be, although Dowman’s sumptuous no-look flick over the top for Gyokeres to run onto will linger long in the memory.
Brighton at home is not the worst draw for the quarters, given the teams still left in the competition.
Greek media blocked all communications relevant to the game so I am most grateful for your excellent, thorough report. I’m left with feeling that, if you have to miss a game, this one wasn’t a bad one to miss.
Win the next one.
Bath you saw exactly the same game as I did standing behind the goal with three thousand other Gooners. We hooked up briefly with CER and 21CG so the blog was well represented. Summary? A very nice away day. Port Vale fans and stewards were very pleasant and accommodating. Hey chap with a stick! Come round this way and avoid the crush at the pat down (families with small children were being treated the same). No problem, enjoy the game! West Ham could learn a lesson or two about sensible stewarding! Tidy little ground. They had clearly narrowed the pitch and I think it made a difference to us. Also their pre match song (started on the PA then continued by the crowd) is The wonder of you! Brought back bad memories!
The game, as you say was meh, but both goals were good. Home about one. I prefer Burslem to Stoke just five miles away.
3000 Gooners at Port Vale. You can just see m son and I behind the goal. We had the whole of one end with a crinkly tin roof above us so singing reverberated well!
Cheers baff. I’d like to say we saw the same match, but I have to admit….you make it sound a lot more exciting than I remember!
Agree on the conclusions though, and the goals that bookended the tie were both excellent.
Heh, checking the comments, I see TTG is in the same boat.
Nicely done, C100!
As I dropped off to sleep last night ( mercifully not during the game ) an awful pun worthy of Trev at his best came to me when trying to sum up the game -‘ Thierry Ennui’.
My coat is already obtained .
On a more constructive note Ornstein confirms Willy Saliba has signed a long- term contract
Great news @ 9! (might it have worked better at 10? – I think my coat was next to yours on the rack, TTG)
Excellent news, indeed, about Saliba extending his contract.
C100@5: I thought I caught a passing glimpse of the two of you on the telly. Cheering to hear you were well treated. The lower down the pyramid one goes, the more fans seem to get treated as people rather than revenue streams. Vale Park looks a real old-school ground.
Thanks Bath – speedy and comprehensive and made it all sound more exciting than it was.
At least the Stokie oiks have stopped booing Ramsey – they clearly don’t like players with skills round those there parts !
I’m relieved to say I didn’t really catch sight of Lewis-Skelly’s underlaps – matron !
TTG – Thierry Ennui ! 🤣👏🏻👏🏻. Competition will do us both good !
Thanks Bath for a speedy match review. A win is a win is the only real positive spin on the turgid performance. The players look like they decided to play minimum injury risk football as there are much bigger fish to fry over the coming weeks.
The ground look very old skool but nicely full of spectators – especially one stand behind a goal completely full of travelling gooners who were loud and proud the whole match. No doubt C100 and son, CER & 21CG enjoyed churning out the songs which were more entertaining than the match itself.
Great news with Wilo agreeing a new 5 year contract, lots of good work by the club in getting the most of the contract renewals completed without any fuss.
Next we face Newcastle Falcons or is it Newcastle Football club – can we tell them apart!
I’ve just bought a new hoover from Bratislava but it’s not working very well. I think it’s a Slovak !
It dies on its feet?
TTG @14 – well I won’t be russian to get one of those …
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cq5jye4v64no
Very sad news
Terrible news, SP. An absolute tragedy. RIP
That is awful—deepest sympathies to Billy Vigar’s friends and family. I’ve been to Summers Lane several times back when the club was just Finchley. There wasn’t much room between the end of the pitch and the concrete block wall that surrounds the playing area. The nets touch it as I remember.
Tragic for the lad and his family. RIP
rest in peace, billy.
https://www.change.org/p/vigar-s-law-ban-brick-walls-around-football-pitches?
Watching Auchinleck Talbot vs Cumnock Juniors in the Scottish Cup tonight, one of the most intense rivalries in Ayrshire if not in all football. Surprisingly it’s being broadcast live on BBC Scotland. Neither Neville nor Carragher are in attendance to make sour remarks which is nice. Even though the skills on display aren’t the most refined, there’s something refreshing about the honest endeavour of grass roots fitba!
Bath that is the very definition of niche.
There’s nae effin’ niche in East Ayrshire, C100!
Another ground, I see, where a wall of concrete blocks surrounds the pitch close to the touch lines.
More common than not, at that level, Ned.
Close but no cigar commendations to Dr F. Jnr and TTG, who had picked Graham Potter in the GHF Predictathon’s Tin Tack award.
United. Heh.
Bruno. Heh.
Eddie what a boy
Agent Eddie gets it done.
>>>>>>>