Yet again we found ourselves up against a team set in a defensive mould, rarely venturing out over the half way line which in some respects made it an easier game for us once the first goal went in, as we were almost assured victory.
It was your stereo typical one sided game. As so often happens in this game, the away side fire an early warning shot, in this case Bent sending a 20 yard shot wide. But from then on in, it was all us, with attack after attack. If we had been three or four up at the break Everton could have had no complaints. Instead, it was two nil, with a brace from Campbell on his premiership return. What a joy it is to see him back in the team, and with a smile on his face.
The second half was just as predictable, as we continued to put pressure on their rearguard, without having to worry about a counter attack.
For me, the major positive to come out of this game was to see us willing to take a shot from outside the box. Granted a few were row Z bound, but as Chelsea proved last season, some of those will get a deflection and end up in the back of the net. More of that please lads!
Arsenal Man of The Match – Sol Campbell
Jens Lehmann (6) A spectator throughout, with just a few routine crosses to deal with.
Ashley Cole (6) Spent the night in the final third, and helped keep the pressure on.
Sol Campbell (9) A top performance. His attitude to the game was outstanding, while his commitment level was through the roof. Got two well deserved goals, which we would like to see more of this season.
Kolo Toure (6) Had very little to do all night.
Lauren (6) Overlapped well, but didn't find that killer ball.
Robert Pires (6) Taken off injured after Neville had gone straight through him.
Cesc Fabregas (5) Didn't get into the game, and was sloppy with some passes..
Gilberto (7) Swept up any lose balls and got forward to support the attack.
Freddie Ljungberg (7) Tackled back on the rare occasion it was necessary and provided a constant threat from the right..
Jose Reyes (8) A close contender for man of the match, after he ran his socks off and wanted to be involved with everything.
Robin Van Persie (8) His off the ball running combined with his energy levels made this another fine display.
Subs:
Dennis Bergkamp (7) Started where he left off against Thun, and got straight into the game.
Alexander Hleb (7) Whilst running with the ball, it appears that nobody can take it off of him. Superb dribbling ability.
Alexandre Song (6) A poor first touch, but showed some good passing.