Huddersfield Town 0-1 Arsenal – Premier League review.

A bientôt, Monsieur Wenger. 

So we got a win away from home, at last.

And a good way to end Mr Wenger’s illustrious tenure at our football club.

It was an ironic end, which Arsene himself alluded to as ourselves and Huddersfield share Herbert Chapman as a legend and a great manager. So for Wenger to end his Arsenal career at Huddersfield, given the history we have with Chapman, was stark.

However, Huddersfield Town should be commended for the reception and recognition they gave Wenger, even clapping on 22 minutes of the game, to mark his 22 years as our manager.

As for the game, Huddersfield played very well in the opening periods. They pressed us well, and they had various chances that whilst not troubling Ospina, showed how they were troubling our defence and midfield.

That said, after 30 mins or so, we started to match their tenacity, and I believe we got a worthy lead and winner through Aubameyang.

Kolasinac and Ramsey worked well on the left, and PEA slide in their six-yard box to poke home. It was his tenth goal this season, and surely for next term, he is a stern rival for Mo Salah’s Golden Boot. The PL has several world-class strikers in it currently, such as Salah, Kane, Aguero, or Lukaku. PEA is, without doubt, one of them, and we’ll see how well he can do when the new manager arrives.

The second half was a mix of our and their attacks, and overall it was a pleasing performance.

Welbeck, Lacazette, and Mkhi had chances, whilst Mooy could have scored for them.

Though we got a clean sheet, and finally we won an away game in 2018.

I had a feeling that Huddersfield would not lie down, considering they were safe now. We showed a little of the midfield weaknesses as in previous games, but then for one game (for once), we were able to withstand it.

It’s good that the new manager at the least (Max? Or even if it’s Arteta…) doesn’t have the added burden of having to win an away game.

Impressions/player ratings

This was not a stellar performance, but not rubbish either.

It’s possible a draw was a fairer result. Though I think our attacking intent and quality was better. PEA was the difference between the teams and had this been a Liverpool, City, Spurs, or United, we may have drawn this at best.

However, our attacking play was strong, and we did create chances. It was similar to the Leicester game, or even Newcastle game, in a way. Though in my view they both have better forwards than Huddersfield, and today we managed to be clinical when needed.

The players seemed to be playing for Wenger’s last game, and our passing as always was the strong point.

It’s oft-said, but it’s true; we don’t need to change our attacking shape. But defensively we require strong development. Though today, the defence were not that bad.

The midfield after a while managed to contain Huddersfield’s pressing and was able to get forward to support the attack. Ramsey supported the attack well, but Iwobi’s distribution was not the best.

PEA got a goal of course, but Welbeck’s finishing let him down again. Lacazette was muted and had a good chance to score but his final shot was poorly executed.

Ospina – 6

Bellerin -6

Holding – 6

Mustafi – 6

Kolasinac – 7

Iwobi – 5

Ramsey – 6

Xhaka – 6

Mkhitaryan – 6

Lacazette – 5

Aubameyang – 7

Welbeck – 5

Monreal – 6

Maitland-Niles – 6

Man of the match

PEA 

He’s proving me to be a real talent, and to get ten goals in half a season is very good.

Who knows how far he can progress next season?

I’m just glad to have him around, and it shows how well our attacking prowess is functioning.

Man of the match plus

This seems like an odd title, and it’s no disrespect at all to PEA.

But then there is another man who needs a mention. You can guess who he is….

I’ve critiqued Wenger often, though I’ve always respected his achievements for us.

He is a man of class, intelligence, grace, ambition, wit, and charm, and he has embodied the values that our club represents and espouses.

I will miss Mr. Wenger as much as he will miss us, and I wish him every success in the future.

#merciarsene

I just hope if he does manage another English team, he goes easy on us. Or if we beat him, then we don’t batter his new team.

Marble Halls

MarbleHallsTV is an Arsenal social media account on Twitter, Facebook and Youtube. Been a Gooner since the 90s, inspired by Ian Wright, then Bergkamp, Vieira, Henry, Pires, Campbell, Rosicky, Koscielny, Ozil and Sanchez. A digital marketer/entrpreneur by profession, born in UK living in the Americas now.