Arsenal 0 - 1 Blackburn Rovers: ...

Well, isn't this just typical?

After being embarrassed by Bradford in the cup, you'd have thought we'd be spared any more humiliating defeats this season but we should have known better. Yet again, it's a result that cannot be judged as unlucky for whatever reason, but because the quality of our performance was just way below standard.

In fairness, we were playing with a few players who weren't in great form or fitness. Diaby has yet to get a run of games behind him since coming back from injury, Rosicky has barely played, Gervais wasn't playing in Africa and Chamberlain has lacked form all season long. With those four as your main creative and scoring outlets, the level of performance was, inevitably, going to drop.

But is that a good enough excuse for the result? Definitely not. Even if you aren't playing well, you're still expected to beat sides like Blackburn at home; still expected to find a few alternative routes to goal when you're Plan A isn't working. For example, we had around 10 corners in the first half. How many yielded decent chances at goal? About two. It's not good enough. I know we've never been a consistent exponent of set-pieces but for goodness sake, the amount of times one of our corners is just lumped into the hands of the keeper or fails to beat the first man at the near post is sickening.

And let's examine our Plan A for a moment. Putting aside form and fitness, there was no urgency in our play at all in either half. Diaby, in particular, pissed me off all game with his dallying on the ball. His touch was always loose and every time he got it, it took him an age to do something with it. Gervais was his usual self, beating people for fun but then producing nothing when it mattered. Chamberlain and Rosicky scarcely involved themselves bar a couple of bright moments while Giroud suffered greatly from the lack of service; though the level of his own performance wasn't anything to be proud of.

Naturally, of course, when a good chance does come, it's put wide by Gervais. Welcome back.

Then the sucker punch comes. One slip of concentration and a scuffed shot later and Blackburn are in the lead. Arsenal have to come back from behind for the umpteenth time but fail to break Blackburn down. Even the introduction of Wilshere, Cazorla and Walcott couldn't change the game.

Blackburn will go off tonight with all the plaudits of having beaten a big team away in the cup. Their fans will be delighted with the effort shown by the players and the prospect of being one win away from a Wembley semi-final.

I wish we could have moments like that. Why don't we ever have cup performances where we really put in 100%, performed well and gotten a good result? Why do we so readily pass up these opportunities? I don't care if top four is more important than the FA Cup in the long term, or that we have a bigger game on Tuesday. I wanted us to actually try and win the cup, as I'm sure a lot of fans did.

Losing to Blackburn at home is already a tough thing to accept, but when your teams goes and puts in a performance like that in a competition they had a genuine chance of winning, you just reach new levels of disappointment and disillusionment.

The rational side of me says that it's not a great disappointment because top four is ultimately more valuable, but results like this can't be brushed aside so easily. It halts whatever momentum we've gained in recent weeks and upsets the fans and players. Worst of all, it's almost entirely self-inflicted.

Roll on Bayern on Tuesday.

This is who we are.

WTF IS THIS SHIT

Should have scored so many. Even the goal we conceded was comical. We have no luck at all

Shocking performance especially in the first half. These lot keep letting us down, i am not even looking forward to the Bayern game and the rest of the season. How can you look forward to games when these type of performance are going to keep coming

Embarrassing doesnt even begin to describe it

It's not like Arsenal created a lot of goalscoring chances despite great possession unfortunately. You had Gervinho miss a shocker (what a suprise) and Walcott miss an open header... but other than that, everything were half chances.

Szzzzzzzzzzzzzzzny has to stop making saves where he puts the ball right back down the middle. He's freakin terrible at that. Every time he stretches for a save, he puts it right back into the danger area. He needs to push those wide. Watch Lloris and De Gea do it: They rarely leave anything for a second chance even on the toughest of saves. I've said this before... i think he's a very average keeper. He's not good in the air either.

Obviously this loss will stoke Wenger Out flames, but really I think this one came down to the players. It wasn't a strongest XI but Wenger would have been wrong to play his best possible team today with Bayern still to come on Tuesday. Rosicky et al needed some game time and I think Wenger was justified in putting out the team he did today. The players unfortunately came up short. They really should have won, but they didn't.

Disappointing as hell.

Gerv put in a decent shift I thought, but I fear those missed chances are the signs that we've just caught the tail end of Ivory Coast Gervinho and he's quickly regressing into Arsenal Gervais.

you just have to laugh . even if we did make changes to team selection, that team should have won . but to be honest i will feel more disappointed if we dont make the top 4 although i hate blackburn with all my heart .

sportsczy wrote: Watch De Gea do it: They rarely leave anything for a second chance even on the toughest of saves.

not sure if serious

The last thing we had to look forward to this season is gone just like that

so un clinical, how gervinho is a footballer is beyond me, summer cant come quickly enough so we can ship these dead wood players out. and ox has gone backwards, needs to go on loan.

Match report: See last 8 years.

Possible silver lining - if Arsenal manage a huge miracle and upset Bayern Munich over two legs, think of how hilariously, entertaining schizoid that will be.

Samuelj29060 wrote:Match report: See last 8 years.

Exactly. Like I said earlier, this is who we are.

Ganso wrote:

sportsczy wrote: Watch De Gea do it: They rarely leave anything for a second chance even on the toughest of saves.

not sure if serious

very serious... i've been following evra a bit this year and De Gea pushes everything wide if he can. He only spills things in the danger area if he's making a miracle save.

7 of the #AFC 11 that played today started in 7-1 win v Blackburn last season.

For once I'm happy that I went out instead of watching one of our games.

I'm so gutted I won't even bother watching the highlights.

The only good thing I saw in the whole match today was that Rosicky strike that hit the cross bar.

Just watched the goal back. Why did Walcott feel he didn't have to track left-back Olsson's run? http://bit.ly/12U6lA7

Not surprised or angry, our team is not good enough and Wenger just make things worse.

Wenger did not sign striker because Gervias was best Striker in Africa.

sportsczy wrote:very serious... i've been following evra a bit this year and De Gea pushes everything wide if he can. He only spills things in the danger area if he's making a miracle save.

Helped Liverpool back into the game a few weeks ago by parrying a tame shot into the feet of Sturridge

Mate, De Gea is crap

Lex wrote:

sportsczy wrote:very serious... i've been following evra a bit this year and De Gea pushes everything wide if he can. He only spills things in the danger area if he's making a miracle save.

Helped Liverpool back into the game a few weeks ago by parrying a tame shot into the feet of Sturridge

Mate, De Gea is crap

he has got great shotstopping skills.. But nothing more..