Blackburn 1 v/s Arsenal 0, 5th Round FA Cup February 28th
By francisferns
@francisferns (671)
India
February 28, 2007 3:56pm CST
Here's some text commentry for all the guys who missed the game:
1 min: Arsenal get this fifth round replay underway, and if either team plays anything like they did at the weekend, then we could well be in for a treat here.
2 mins: Alexandr Hleb gives away a free-kick for a block on Stphen Warnock on the left. David Bentley swings the cross over but William Gallas is commanding in the area and heads away.
3 mins: Armand Traore concedes a corner on the Blackburn right, which Morten Gamst Pedersen whips in to the near post, but Matt Derbyshire's header is high and wide.
4 mins: Gallas tries a long ball forward, but Chris Samba gets there first, and clears under pressure from Freddie Ljungberg.
5 mins: Emmaneul Eboue is down receiving treatment after Pedersen trod heavily on his left achilles from behind.
6 mins: Eboue limps to the side of the pitch, but should be OK to carry on.
7 mins: Eboue is back on and promptly gives away a free-kick for a clumsy lunge on Warnock. Ryan Nelson plays a long ball down the left looking for Shabani Nonda, but the offside flag goes up.
8 mins: A Gilberto through ball looking for Jeremie Aliadiere goes through to Brad Friedel, who plays a rather strong pass to Nelsen, but the New Zealand defender manages to control and clear.
9 mins: Derbyshire almost springs the Arsenal defence but again the offside flag is raised.
10 mins: Hleb cuts in from the right and hits a low left-footed shot about five yards wide of Friedel's right post.
11 mins: Go route one and the ball finds its way to Warnock on the left, but his cross on the run goes out for a goal-kick.
12 mins: Nonda is penalised for knocking over Gallas while chasing a ball down the right flank. That one looked more like a shoulder charge, and Nonda is unlucky.
13 mins: Traore is forced into conceding another corner on the right, which Pedersen whips in. However, it's low and Eboue gets there first at the near post.
14 mins: Eboue does well to shepherd out for a goal-kick under pressure from Nonda.
15 mins: Aliadiere almost gets free on the right for Arsenal, but Warnock is there to tackle after he skipped past Nelsen.
16 mins: Julio Baptista is muscled out in the centre circle.
17 mins: Pedersen tries a chipped pass over the top looking for Nonda, but it's too strong and Manuel Almunia comes out to gather.
18 mins: Blackburn have started the brighter of the two sides, with Arsenal having just Hleb's shot to show for their efforts.
19 mins: Baptista feeds Aliadiere on the right flank, but the return pass is just cut out by Brett Emerton.
20 mins: Baptista gathers on the left of the Rovers box, but his cross is cut out then he is firmly muscled out by Samba.
21 mins: Arsenal have looked rather disjointed thus far - perhaps a hangover from their exertions at the Millenium Stadium.
22 mins: Rovers aren't happy with Aliadiere. He gets the ball free ten yards out, but his touch is heavy so he tries to take it round Friedel, but flings himself to the ground. No penalty given, but bafflingly no yellow card for the dive either.
23 mins: Gallas is now down after seemingly twisting his knee in a challenge with Nonda.
24 mins: Gallas is up, and should be OK to continue.
25 mins: Some neat passing by Arsenal in midfield leads to nothing.
26 mins: Ljungberg crosses from the right and finds Baptista at the far post, who tries to chest down rather than head, and Rovers clear.
27 mins: Nonda cuts in from the left, and slices his shot so badly that it goes out for a throw in about level with the edge of the area.
28 mins: Arsenal denied a penalty. Baptista slips in Ljungberg on the left edge of the area, and he's clearly dragged over by Emerton, but Graham Poll gives nothing. The contact started outside the area, but that looked a poor decision.
29 mins: Warnock goes through Eboue on the Arsenal right and this time Poll does give the right decision.
30 mins: Ljungberg gets a talking to, presumably still complaining about the penalty, or lack thereof.
31 mins: Baptista wastes a glorious chance. Denilson floats over a free-kick from the right, finding Baptista totally free eight yards from goal, but he heads over.
32 mins: Arsenal are very much the better side now. Bentley cuts in from the right and shoots, but it goes well over.
33 mins: Denilson wins a free-kick after the most innocuous of pushes from Tugay.
34 mins: Blackburn claim handball in the area from Traore, but nothing given.
35 mins: Traore then rightly goes into the book after a late sliding tackle on Bentley. Pedersen fires the free-kick in but Almunia does well to claim.
36 mins: Arsenal are knocking the ball around in midfield, but good pressure from Rovers means that they aren't really going anywhere with it.
37 mins: Aliadiere goes over rather easily under the challenge of Nelsen on the edge of the area, but a free-kick is given.
38 mins: Denilson splits the Rovers defence with a great ball through the middle for Ljungberg, but the Swede's touch is heavy and it goes through to Friedel.
39 mins: A bizarre corner from Pedersen. He hits it towards the edge of the area looking for Tugay, but it's at head height and the Turkish midfielder can only nod back to his own defence.
40 mins: Pedersen looks for Nonda over the top, but Gallas gets there first and nods away.
41 mins: Emerton is penalised for a late tackle on Ljungberg on the Arsenal left.
42 mins: Baptista gives away the ball when in a promising postion on the right side of the Rovers area.
43 mins: Baptista tries a ball over the top looking for Aliadiere, but it's too strong and runs through for Friedel.
44 mins: Tugay trips Hleb on the right, He claimed the Belarussian dived but the free-kick is given.
45 mins: A deep cross from the right finds Baptista at the far post, but he can't direct the header at goal with any power. There will be two minutes added time.
45 mins + 1: Tugay goes into the book for the slightest of pushes on Hleb. Very, very harsh.
45 mins + 2: Hleb runs in from the right and slides to Aliadiere, whose first touch is bad but manages to twist and turn and get a shot away, but Friedel saves. The half-time whistle goes, and Arsenal really should be at least one up.
46 mins: The teams are out for the second half, and Blackburn have made a change. Stephen Warnock is off, and Zurab Khizanishvili is on.
47 mins: Hleb hurls himself to the ground, but Poll is not fooled and tells the winger to get up.
48 mins: A free-kick is mysteriously given for Gallas seemingly winning the ball from Derbyshire on the right. Pedersen makes a mess of the free-kick, by hitting it low into the near side-netting.
49 mins: Gilberto does well to out-muscle Derbyshire in the area and head away from a free-kick.
50 mins: Gallas defends superbly by calmly tackling Derbyshire then turning and playing clear.
51 mins: Golden chance for Nonda. Bently finds the striker from the right, but he looked like he didn't expect the ball to reach him and didn't manage to get the shot in when free about 12 yards out.
52 mins: Hleb slips inside for Baptista, who shoots left-footed towards the top corner, but Friedel does well to tip round the post.
53 mins: Denilson's corner is nodded away at the near post.
54 mins: Gilberto looks for Aliadiere over the top, but the pass is too strong and it skips through for Friedel to gather easily.
55 mins: Gilberto plays a terrible pass back to Gallas, who under pressure from two attackers manages to turn and play back to the safety of Almunia.
56 mins: Almunia's long punt upfield evades everyone except his opposite number Friedel.
57 mins: Blackburn's striking substitutes are limbering up on the touchline.
58 mins: Nelsen very nearly plays his defensive partner Samba into trouble, but he manages to shield the ball well and Rovers clear.
59 mins: Great chance for Pedersen. Bentley splits the defence to play in the Norwegian on the left side of the area, but he slices his shot wide of the near post.
60 mins: Nonda looks to spread play out right for Bentley, but it goes over his head and out.
61 mins: Change for Arsenal - Theo Walcott is on for Eboue. Arsenal reshuffle, with Senderos moving to right-back, Gilberto back to centre-half and Hleb tucking inside in midfield.
62 mins: Ljungberg is away down the left and crosses into the middle, but Walcott goes in rather tentatively and Blackburn clear.
63 mins: Double change for Blackburn - Tugay and Nonda come off, and David Dunn and Benni McCarthy will replace them.
64 mins: Denilson plays in a free-kick that is half-cleared. Bentley then claims a foul from Ljungberg, but nothing given and the Swede crosses in from the left for Baptista to try an overhead kick that has little power and Friedel gathers.
65 mins: Derbyshire breaks on the left side of the area, but he can't make room to get away a strong shot and it dribbles through to Almunia.
66 mins: Poll makes something of a meal of a free-kick, insisting that Gilberto only takes it when he is good and ready. Another sub for Arsenal - Gael Clichy replaces Traore.
67 mins: Denilson looks for Baptista in the box, but Samba gets there just in front of the Brazilian.
68 mins: Clichy tries a cross from the left, but it's behind the run of Aliadiere and too far ahead of Walcott.
69 mins: Something of a squabble on the touchline when Wenger holds on to the ball when Arsenal have the throw. Mark Hughes gets terribly upset, but quite why is a mystery.
70 mins: Samba is the next to get upset over nothing. He perfectly fairly muscles out Ljungberg on the left side of the box, who doesn't look for the foul, but Samba gives him an earful nonetheless.
71 mins: Mokoena gives the ball away in midfield, and Baptista tries an audacious shot from way, way
1 person likes this
3 responses
@ram_cv (16513)
• India
1 Mar 07
Hmm... Looks like it is again only Champions League that we are going to contest for this year... Let's hope this easing of fixture congestion would help Arsenal go one better in Champion's League this year.
Cheers!
Ram
@danoneism (679)
• Malaysia
1 Mar 07
hurm... seems like arsenal hav bad luck recently.. huhu.. so now they out from the FA cup... the lost the carling cup.. so.. what's next?? lets wait for the champions league... ?
@encik_khairul (183)
• Malaysia
1 Mar 07
trophy-less season yet again for us.
impotent upfront, unimpressive marking by sanderos, a penalty claim turned down ... to me, it's a dull match. 87th minute goal makes it even worst.
we do need a reshuffle next season.