The season has been given a glimmer of hope again tonight after Manchester United lost their second game of the season to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
I watched with interest tonight as United started the first half of their difficult double header at Stamford Bridge and Anfield. Much has been made of Fergie’s team’s poor away record this season and lack of games against big teams, and they stayed true to their form tonight.
People go on about Arsenal being unable to defend set pieces (rightly so, don’t get me wrong), but it’s not like we’re the only ones. United lost the game at Wolves to bad set piece defending and their failure to deal with a cross again tonight cost them the equaliser.
People also go on about how bad Arsenal are in the big games, but that’s three defeats in a row for United against Chelsea, and nine years since they last won at Stamford Bridge.
Another boost tonight was that Nemanja Vidic was sent off late on, which should mean he’ll miss the Liverpool game this weekend. With Andy Carroll likely to return in that game, things seem to be falling together rather nicely for Arsenal as far as the league is concerned.
Despite some high-scoring wins, Chelsea only won the league by a single point last year and I really believe Arsenal can do the same. We won’t have to be brilliant, just make sure we don’t mess up too often, and I think we can take advantage of the fact that our rivals look rather ordinary at the moment. This would, however, mean there’s no room for a post-Carling Cup final sulk that this team is very much capable of. One bad result tends to lead to more with Arsenal, and this latest defeat will have hurt badly.
Still, we will not face Chelsea again this season, unlike United who will meet them again at Old Trafford in May. Our games are easier and we might just get away with it, and without the pressure of the occasion of a cup final, the players might strangely find it easier to simply be consistent and go all the way in the league.
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