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Angry Wenger targets Fletcher in post-defeat fallout

That didn't last long.

We were told that there was a new friendliness and respect between Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger.

You wouldn't have noticed from today's newspapers:

This is the Arsenal manager quoted in The Guardian:

"There are other points [than diving] that, for me, are more urgent – players who play only to make fouls and who are never punished; players who make repeated fouls and who get out of the game without a yellow card. That, for me, is more anti-football than a player who did what Eduardo did."

Darren Fletcher is the key target of Wenger's ire:

"Wenger was asked to clarify whether he meant Fletcher and laughed, replying with mock surprise: "Why do you say the name?" Fletcher had given away six free-kicks, twice as many as any of his team-mates, but was not one of the three United players to get a yellow card.  "I have seen a player who plays only on the pitch to make repeated fouls," Wenger continued. "Look at how many deliberate fouls some players make and get away with. I think that's a bigger problem [than diving] because it cuts the flow of the game. And people come and pay to see football. They do not come to see free‑kicks. You should ask the referees [how they get away with it].""

Writing in The Telegraph Alan Hansen concludes that the grit of Fletcher is exactly what Arsenal needs:

"Fletcher is a box-to-box player, he runs all day and gets up-and-down the pitch. He is competitive, somebody who is prepared to get his foot in, and he is also good in the air. That is why Sir Alex Ferguson has begun to use him more and more in United's big games over the past couple of years. Fletcher is a really important cog in the wheel.  Put him in an Arsenal shirt, though, and he probably wouldn't fit into their style of play because Arsène Wenger just wants to play open, attractive football. And that is one of Arsenal's major flaws.  They are terrific to watch and, at times they have produced some of the best football that I have ever seen, but whereas United tend not to lose games that they have dominated, it happens all too often with Arsenal and five years without a trophy says it all."

11 points about the Arsenal match

1. A great result.  First things first: what a great result.  Sure, United weren't at their best, more on which below; Arsenal looked deeply impressive at times; and our goals came courtesy of a penalty and an own goal.  But the simple fact is: we beat a team which had scored ten goals over their previous two league games, and which we drew and lost against in the premiership last season.  It will be a great confidence boost for the players, after an uncertain start to the campaign.  And while they may have only earned the points rather than the plaudits, as Rob Draper puts it in the Sunday Mail, that might have something to do with why we've won the league for three seasons running, and Arsenal haven't won anything since 2005.

2. Thank you, Wayne.  We expected more goals, and he's delivering; that's now 4 goals in 4 league games for Wayne Rooney.  He was unusually quiet in the first half yesterday, but came to life in the second and, of course, banged in that crucial penalty.  We could well have found the answer to the great penalty-taker question:



3. Thank you, Diaby.  Yeh, yeh, it's a bit cruel to revel in someone else's misery, but Diaby's own-goal really was something.  What was he trying?  A cushioned header back to the keeper?  A strong header to put the ball behind for a corner?  In the end, we ended up with a bit of both, and it came to a perfect goal in the corner of the net.  Any striker would have been proud...



4. A crucial save.  Still a bit of shakiness with the ball at his feet, but let's not forget Foster's main contribution yesterday: that awesome save from Van Persie, six yards out, which prevented Arsenal from going 2-0 up.  Pure, instinctive, preternatural goalkeeping - and an early contender for save of the season.

5. Penalty controversy.  It just had to happen, didn't it?  After Eduardo's midweek theatrics, penalties - both given and denied - just had to enter proceedings yesterday.  Let's get the Rooney one out of the way first: it was a clear-cut penalty, the ref was right to give it, and Almunia hardly complained.  But, it we're fair, Fletcher's tackle on Arshavin was also a penalty, and you've got to wonder whether the whole diving controversy influenced the ref's decision not to point to the spot.  Either way, Arsenal can't complain too much about it not being awarded, as they still scored from the same move.

6. Super Fletcher.  Aside from the tackle-that-should-have-conceded-a-penalty on Arshavin, Fletcher was flawless yesterday.  We all know he's a big-game player, but now he's becoming the mainstay of the United midfield: solid and combative in defence, and increasingly incisive in attack.  He's even honest, admitting in a post-match interview with Match of the Day that he probably could have conceded a penalty:

"At the time, I didn't think it was a penalty, I thought I got the ball.  But now I've watched it, it's debatable.  But I think I'm due a bit of luck with penalties against Arsenal."

Great stuff.

7. Valencia Watch.  Here's how the Valencia scorecard looks now: great in preseason; underwhelming as a substitute against Chelsea; anonymous against Birgminham; our best attacking player when he came on against Burnley; great against Wigan; and, now, fairly poor against Aresenal.  It's a mixed bag, and has set tonuges wagging about whether he's worth the £18 or so million we paid for him.  We'll keep an eye on the situation, but there's certainly enough there to think he'll develop into an effective performer for United.

8. Taking a dive.  So Arsenal don't dive do they, Mr Wenger?  The prosecution presents Exhibit A: Emmanuel Eboue being given a yellow card for, erm, diving in yesterday's game.  After the Eduardo controversy, Eboue certainly could have picked a better weekend for his amateur dramatics - especially when they're quite so blatant.

9. Comedy Arsene.  Another of the game's main talking points, along with Arshavin's penalty-that-wasn't: Arsene Wenger being sent to the stands for kicking a water bottle in frustration at Robin Van Persie's late, disallowed goal.  The Arsenal manager didn't know where to sit, so he ended up standing in an alcove above the dug-outs, surrounded by thousands of United fans, all pointing and laughing.  Classic.



10. Lack of spark.  As I've said above, it's superb that United ended up with three points - it's the mark of champions that they can still win despite not playing at their best etc. etc.  But if you're going to take a worry away from this game, it's that we're still lacking a certain spark.  Aside from the dynamic Darren Fletcher, the midfield lacked cohesion and penetration.  And it showed in a performance which registered only two "shots" on target by the 64th minute - Rooney's penalty and Diaby's own-goal.  Late misses from Berbatov and Nani, both from very promising positions, added to the sense that this team is quite firing on all cylinders.  I expect it will all come together soon enough, as it has on occasion already this season - but there were times yesterday when you half wished Ronaldo was still around.

11. Final word from the manager.  Here's Fergie's take on the game:

"When you are 1-0 down at half time it’s an uphill task against a team of the capabilities of Arsenal. We had to dig deep.  This result can make a difference and the players will gather momentum from this win.

Last season we dropped four points to Arsenal and six against Liverpool. We were a bit unlucky there, but you have to correct these things. Already we’ve made a better start this season in that respect."

Pete

Alastair Campbell backs Darren Fletcher

Alastair Campbell - the former Director of Communications and Strategy for Tony Blair, and a devoted Burnley fan - has spoken out against Darren Fletcher's dismissal last night.  This from his blog:

"But all of the satisfaction for my son and his fellow United fans, despite all the 'we're going to Rome and that's a fact' singing (another dig at Benitez for his unwise rant of a few weeks ago) was minimised significantly by the fact that Darren Fletcher was sent off unfairly and will miss the Final.

As Jamie Redknapp and Ruud Gullit know from my occasional childish and not so childish texts to them when they're commentating for Sky, Fletcher is the Campbell household's Number 1 United player, who does not get anything like the recognition he deserves.

He has overcome quite a lot of grumbling from supporters in his early days at the club to become a key player who would almost certainly have played in the Final. He has heroic fitness levels, is a team player par excellence, and a Scot.

His tackle on Fabregas, whilst not elegant, was a superb piece of defending, not a foul, certainly not a red card. As he trudged off to one of the few loud Arsenal cheers of the night, all around us were trying to find out if he could appeal. That he could not adds to the injustice.

Uefa is entitled to have its rules, which appear to stipulate that his case can only be looked at if the Italian referee, Roberto Rosetti, looks at the tape, decides to admit he made a mistake, and he can recommend the card be rescinded.

But surely, for a match as important as this, there should be a better system than that. There is talk that this will lead to a change in the system, that such incidents could be reviewed by a refereeing panel after the event. But that is not going to  happen in time for this.

In which case, public and media opinion may be the only thing that might even begin to swing it. So I hope Redknapp and Gullit pile it on in their pre- and post-match discussions at Stamford Bridge on Sky tonight. They might spread the word among the Continental stations likely to be watched by Uefa's hierarchy, and get Geoff Shreeve to ask the Chelsea and Barcelona managers in their pre-match interviews whether they think it is grossly unfair for a player to miss a Final in these circumstances. They both seem like decent men.

What is the greatest injustice anyone can face? Probably to be in jail for something you haven't done. Missing a Champions League Final for a red card that should never have been given is not far off from being a footballing equivalent."

Fingers crossed that UEFA are listening.

Pete

Full speed ahead: Rome!

European Cup, semi-final, second leg
ARSENAL (Van Persie 75, pen)
MANCHESTER UNITED (Park 7, Ronaldo 10, 60)

United and Europe is an irresistible combination.  Benefica, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Juventus, Roma; the list of special results, and special evenings, goes on and on.  And now Arsenal at the Emirates, 5 May, 2009, can be added to it. 

Unsurprisingly, this morning's paper's are stuffed with praise for United's imperious 1-3 victory.  The Mirror calls it a "masterclass, not a contest"; The Independent puts it down as an "annhilation"; and the Mail deploys the word "massacre".  Here's how their write-up continues:

"After all that talk of penalties at the end of what was supposed to be the ultimate encounter between Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger, Arsenal lasted about as long as Ricky Hatton.

Two blows, 10 minutes, game over and dream, for Wenger anyway, at an end.

This is why Manchester United are the champions of England, Europe and the world and why they are now within touching distance of becoming the first team successfully to defend the European Cup in the modern era. Not to mention why they could be celebrating an unprecedented quadruple if an 11th Barclays Premier League title comes before their appearance in Rome."

Although this was very much an all-round performance by United, special praise is reserved for - who else? - Christiano Ronaldo.  The Mail's Martin Samuel even dedicates an entire page to the Portuguese star's "supershow". He begins:

"Beat that, Leo. It is going to take some display if Lionel Messi is to revise opinions at Stamford Bridge tonight. It is going to take some performance to convince those attending Manchester United’s annihilation of Arsenal that they were not already witness to the greatest player in the world.

Memories of Cristiano Ronaldo’s display at the Emirates Stadium will be hard to erase. He was masterful, compelling, unstoppable, a tour de force as a striker, operating with the wit of a winger."

And then goes on to say that Sir Alex - should he have to - couldn't replace Ronny with a better player:

"There is a stellar cast supposedly lined up to replace Ronaldo in the event of his summer departure to Real Madrid, but the contenders all have one problem: they are not him.

They cannot lead the line like a centre forward, they cannot score 42 goals in one season, they are unlikely to finish top of the Premier League goalscoring table, where Ronaldo presently resides. Nor will they bury stunning free-kicks from distance like he does, either: because few players can; not even David Beckham, who was among the awed United followers looking on in wonderment as Ronaldo ripped Arsenal apart."

While, writing in the Independent, Sam Wallace picks out United's "exquisite" third goal, Ronaldo's second:

"The road to Rome and the Champions League final on 27 May was decorated by a third exquisite United goal in the second half that reminded Barcelona, should they overcome Chelsea in the other semi-final tonight, that the Catalans do not have the copyright on counter-attacking football. It was dazzling, a box-to-box, four-pass move that opened up Arsenal from belly to throat and was finished by the night's assassin-in-chief, Cristiano Ronaldo."

Many of the column inches belong, like the night, to United.  Those devoted to Arsenal tend to ask the question of whether the potential of Wenger's team will ever translate into trophies.  Here's Stephen Howard in the Sun:

"Simply, it was men against boys — as it had been at Old Trafford — and confirmation this Arsenal side has some serious way to go before it matures enough to take on the likes of Chelsea and United in the semi-finals of major tournaments.

This was supposed to be the night Arsenal took another stride forward.

Instead, it was a massive step backwards, adding fuel to the belief their long unbeaten run came courtesy of the deficiencies of many of the sides they faced — and the fact the Premier League is split into the Big Four and the rest.

Or is it now the Big Three?"

Of course, for United fans, there was one especially sour note to the evening: the unwarranted dismissal of Darren Fletcher, which currently looks as though it will keep him from the final.  Pretty much every commentator sympathises the Scottish midfielder, and even Arsene Wenger has called the red card "harsh".  There's one major dissenting voice, though - that of Graham Poll, the former referee, writing in the Mail:

"Italian referee Roberto Rosetti had a fine match and can justify in law the penalty he gave after Darren Fletcher brought down Cesc Fabregas.

When commentators and former players say: 'He got the ball, it can’t be a foul,' they are wrong.

Even though Fletcher got a slight touch on the ball, Rosetti felt it was impossible for the Manchester United midfielder to avoid taking his opponent in the follow-through. Therefore, he had no option but to dismiss the Scot."

We'll have more on the Fletcher situation later, so - for now - let's just dwell on another famous European victory for the boys from Old Trafford.  A job done, and done exquisitely.

Pete