Match Reaction vs Marseille

[Cripps_orig]

Tevez might have played in the first CL match v Napoli. Not sure as I haven't seen any of their matches

[McNamara That Ghost...]

I think if Citeh went out of the Champions League he might be allowed to play for another side in the Champions League. UEFA have complicated a rule that was pretty simple to understand.

[LDG]

Good result, albeit a tired display, against a very good team. Whilst Marseille lack quality in the final third, they are a very dangerous side, full of power and movement.

Thought we battled hard, and won back possession really well, and bar the first ten, defended excellently. Jenko, Verms and Merts were very very good.

Walcott looked more dangerous on the left, soshould have stayed there.

Park was off the pace, but for me, showed some good movement off the ball. His time will come, but for now we only have one top draw striker.

No shame whatsoever in that result, and the kneejerk bollocks of "welcome back Arsenal" is more blind than the three blind mice, in the dark.

Good result. Not exactly what we wanted, but we have a tough group, and we're sitting on top of it.

[Letters]

We had the chances to win it. You’d have put your house on Van Persie scoring when he was one-on-one. Rosicky’s brilliant pass there was one of the only right decisions any of our players made with regards to the ‘final ball’.

We had the ball in fantastic positions, we had players open - with the right decisions and the right, simple passes, we’d be in on goal. Defensively very solid and determined winning the ball back. Passing - very good working it upto the final third. After that, the wrong choices cost us the win. Ramsey and Van Persie should have converted the clear cut chances we did create. Thought Marseille did a good job too.

Not a horrific result. Plenty of positives - Jenkinson, Mertesacker and Vermaelen at the back were fantastic. Should be very interesting to see what defence Wenger puts out on the weekend - annoyingly, I think Koscielny will be left out again.

Pretty much. Wasn't a terrible performance, wasn't a great one either. Meh. Not a terrible result and we should qualify.
On we go.

[Letters]

We know how that panned out last season.....

Oh yeah, 'cos if we'd won our group we'd definitely have won the CL...

[Power n Glory]

I don't have a problem with Wenger resting RVP. The truth is, we should have put away our chances. Ramsey and Gervinho wasted a lot of good chances in the first half.

Sloppy finishing, bad passing in the final third and poor ball control. It wasn't a bad performance but I think one two players were a bit too cocky. Ramsey had a few chances to pass for the easy goal but went for glory instead. He'll learn. What a snooze fest of a game though. I fell asleep around the 70th minute.

[Letters]

Looks like Wenger had shown similar complacency in 'resting' RvP, surely the right thing would have been to bag the group then rest players for the next games.

It's not complacency, it's common sense. The bloke is made of balsa wood and he's by far our most important player. We HAVE to keep him fit this season and if that means playing him a bit less then so be it. Results haven't suffered so far in games when he's been put on the bench, maybe we'd have won had he started but maybe he'd have got injured too. It wasn't a 'must win' and a draw isn't a terrible result.

[GP]

It's not complacency, it's common sense. The bloke is made of balsa wood and he's by far our most important player. We HAVE to keep him fit this season and if that means playing him a bit less then so be it. Results haven't suffered so far in games when he's been put on the bench, maybe we'd have won had he started but maybe he'd have got injured too. It wasn't a 'must win' and a draw isn't a terrible result.

Pretty much. We've got 4 points out of Marseille. I'd have taken that at the start.

[IBK]

Good result, albeit a tired display, against a very good team. Whilst Marseille lack quality in the final third, they are a very dangerous side, full of power and movement.

Thought we battled hard, and won back possession really well, and bar the first ten, defended excellently. Jenko, Verms and Merts were very very good.

Walcott looked more dangerous on the left, soshould have stayed there.

Park was off the pace, but for me, showed some good movement off the ball. His time will come, but for now we only have one top draw striker.

No shame whatsoever in that result, and the kneejerk bollocks of "welcome back Arsenal" is more blind than the three blind mice, in the dark.

Good result. Not exactly what we wanted, but we have a tough group, and we're sitting on top of it.

This. I can understand that people feel a little deflated after the weekend - but Saturday was never going to herald an Invincibles style-change. This was a CL game, remember - there aren't many totally shite teams in the comp (apart from Genk - tee hee), and Marseille were a lot better than at their place. Our players were understandably a bit jaded - it must be draining when after our start every game is so important with little room for error.

I think the comments about Arteta being a rich man's Denilson are a bit unfair. He seemed leggy last night but has been told to play a more holding role than at Everton (while Ramsey gets forward more) and does the simple things quite well. We suffered form having a 'green' striker on the pitch for 2/3 of the game, but given the complaints about our lck of options there, the boy has to be given some experience/opportunity to improve.

We didn't have to win this game and I would take clean sheet draw over a scoring one (Chelsea) any day!

[LDG]

This. I can understand that people feel a little deflated after the weekend - but Saturday was never going to herald an Invincibles style-change. This was a CL game, remember - there aren't many totally shite teams in the comp (apart from Genk - tee hee), and Marseille were a lot better than at their place. Our players were understandably a bit jaded - it must be draining when after our start every game is so important with little room for error.

I think the comments about Arteta being a rich man's Denilson are a bit unfair. He seemed leggy last night but has been told to play a more holding role than at Everton (while Ramsey gets forward more) and does the simple things quite well. We suffered form having a 'green' striker on the pitch for 2/3 of the game, but given the complaints about our lck of options there, the boy has to be given some experience/opportunity to improve.

We didn't have to win this game and I would take clean sheet draw over a scoring one (Chelsea) any day!

I was gonna add this, but forgot.

And, of course, you're right.

Just because it's not Barcelona, Madrid, Utd, City or Chelsea, we have no right to expect results against quality opposition.

Marseille are in the comp for a reason, and from one of the better leagues, you have to expect them to be a bit better than Stoke.

The CL has always been a patient team's competition. You stay compact, patient and take your chances. Unfortunately we looked a little too leggy last night to convert, but there's no shame in that result.

If someone had said a draw away, and win at home against this lot, everyone would have taken it. That it was a reverse shouldn't really matter....and if we end up level on points with them, we'll go through by rights.