Galatasaray v Arsenal: Champions League – as it happened
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Version 0 of 1. 9.40pm GMT21:40 Full-time: Galatasaray 1-4 Arsenal That could barely have been more satisfying for Arsenal: they scored some superb goals, enjoyed several excellent individual performances (Ramsey for a half, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Podolski), and defended as a determined, coherent unit for long periods. It took an exceptional freekick to penetrate them and that was only after Arsene Wenger had withdrawn more senior players to give debuts to three more youngsters, of whom Zelalem looked the most comfortable at this level. Thank you for following it here, and also for demonstrating the power of positive thinking. 9.36pm GMT21:36 GOAL! Gala 1-4 Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal (Podolski 90+2) The last kick of the game is suitably triumphant for Arsenal, as Podolski surges into the path of a Sanago pass and rolls the ball past the goalkeeper from eight yards! 9.34pm GMT21:34 90 min: There will be at least two more minutes... 9.32pm GMT21:32 GOAL! Gala 1-3 Arsenal (Sneijder 87) That, in fairness, is a marvellous freekick. It would have taken some seriously advanced military technology to stop that shot into the top corner and, say what you want about Arsenal’s frugality, nobody wants them investing in that kind of stuff. Updated at 9.44pm GMT 9.30pm GMT21:30 87 min: Freekick awarded rather generously to the home side after Mertesacker inadvertently blocked a shot with his arm. Still, another good opportunity for Arsenal to demonstrate their spirit of defiance: Szczesny demands a seven-man wall ... 9.26pm GMT21:26 84 min: Oh! Anderlecht have equalised in Germany: one more for the Belgians, or three more for Arsenal, would put Wenger’s team top of the group. 9.25pm GMT21:25 82 min: Telles hares down the left again - they’re starting to make inroads on that side - but Chambers is expertly positioned to cut out the cross at the near post. 9.23pm GMT21:23 80 min: Wonderful cross from the right by Oxlade-Chamberlain, but the keeper dashes off his line to clasp it. 9.22pm GMT21:22 78 min: This young Arsenal team are really having to withstand some pressure now from the desperate home team: and they’re throwing themselves in front of shots manfully. It’s becoming slightly chaotic at the back but Arsenal players will not be found wanting for character tonight. 9.20pm GMT21:20 76 min: Wenger makes his last substitution: Debuchy’s time is up after an encouraging return to action. 17-year-old Stefan O’Connor strides on to the pitch for the first time as a senior Arsenal player. 9.16pm GMT21:16 74 min: Altintop clips a low shot way wide from the edge of the box. Put off, no doubt, by Chambers’ lunge. 9.15pm GMT21:15 72 min: Flowing break by Arsenal, started by Zelalem and continued by Oxlade-Chamberlain and then Campbell. the Costa Rican hurtles into the box, decides not to shoot first-time and settles for a corner. It’s misdirected by Debuchy intervenes to prevent Gala from breaking. 9.13pm GMT21:13 70 min: Wonderful clearing header from Debuchy under serious pressure right in front of his goal. 9.10pm GMT21:10 66 min: Mertesacker is in the right place at the right time to divert a low cross behind for a corner. He follows up that heroism by heading the corner clear. But the ball comes back as Gala press for at least one goal. This time it’s Chambers who repels them with a header. Arsenal want a clean sheet as much as Gala want to break their duck. It’s a battle of wills as well as skill. 9.08pm GMT21:08 65 min: Debuchy cops a yellow for tugging back Sniejder. And, according to the TV, Podolski has also just been booked, though I have no idea what for. Perhaps he made some remark to the referee that did not satisfy tonight’s positivity standards. 9.06pm GMT21:06 63 min: Maitland-Niles gives the ball away in midfield, but Arsenal scamper back in numbers to foil Gala’s counter-attack. 9.04pm GMT21:04 61 min: Campbell embarks on another powerful slaloming run towards the Gala box before being upended by Semih, who’s on a booking. But there’ll be no red this time because the ref waves play on. 9.03pm GMT21:03 60 min: Gala continue to probe: they are desperate to give some reward to their boisterous fans. But Debuchy foils their latest plot with a superb sliding tackle in the box. Time it wrong and that would have been a penalty. The Frenchman has mad a very solid return to action so far. 9.01pm GMT21:01 58 min: Dortmund have just taken the lead at Anderlecht. Which shows, of course, that Wenger was entirely correct not to bother chasing six goals here. 8.59pm GMT20:59 56 min: Oxlade-Chamberlain wins the ball on half-way to bring an end to a long bout of Gala possession. He then threatens to break forward and would have been away if Kaya had not pulled him down. Yellow card for the Gala man. 8.57pm GMT20:57 54 min: According to Sky, the reason Ramsey was replaced at half-time was because he felt a tightening of his hamstring. No sense risking him. 8.56pm GMT20:56 53 min: A rare error from Campbell cedes possession to Sneijder, who tries to curl one in from 25 yards. No trouble for Szczesny. 8.55pm GMT20:55 51 min: Arsenal are content to sit deep and tight now. You can see the determination not to concede. Gala are trying desperately to salvage some dignity but Arsenal just aren’t yielding any chances and remain primed to spring forward on the counter. Zelalem has taken up residence in the heart of midfield and showed commendable deftness and zip so far. 8.53pm GMT20:53 49 min: Sanogo caught offside. But he’ll learn from that. “Second half will see the usual collapse,” drones Nick Bron. “Oh sorry, positive! Well, Campbell will score a hat-trick, Dortmund will draw and Arsenal will qualify top. Meanwhile in London, Dr McCoy has beamed down to the medical centre and cured all Arsenal’s injured players and remains on hand for the rest of the season.” 8.51pm GMT20:51 46 min: Gala made two substitutions during the break, too. Altintop and OZtekin are on for Camdal and Yilmaz. 8.50pm GMT20:50 46 min: Victory is certain and Wenger appears to have decided not to go all out for the six-goal win that would lift them above Dortmund if the Germans draw with Anderlecht. He makes two chnges, Ainsley Maitland-Niles coming on for his debut and Gedion Zelalem also joining in. Ramsey and Flamini are off. 8.35pm GMT20:35 Half-time: Galatasaray 0-3 Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal Wenger’s team simply could not have produced a more convincing initial response to the recent criticism of them: it has been a wonderful away display so far featuring exquisite goals and dynamic determination and power. Ramsey and Oxlade-Chamberlain have been outstanding, Campbell and Podolski also catching the eye. So far this Arsenal performance could be accompanied by the taglie from the Lego movie. Everything is awesome. And let’s hear no talk of what happened at home to Anderlecht ... “Damn you Doyle!” curses Andrew Hearn. “All these years we’ve been blaming Arsene’s stubborn nature when it turns out you just weren’t being positive enough.” Updated at 8.36pm GMT 8.31pm GMT20:31 44 min: A mislaid by Oxlade-Chamberlain! That may well be his first of the game and was quite possibly done deliberately for the same reason that humble Persian rug-makers used to put one tiny flaw in their otherwise perfect creations. 8.29pm GMT20:29 42 min: Arsenal, thanks to yet more feverish pressing, win the ball on halfway and instigate another counter. Tank chops down Sanogo to prevent another goal-scoring chance. The ref shows a yellow card. 8.26pm GMT20:26 41 min: Smart save from Bolat to thwart Campbell after another cutting Arsenal move. Arsenal would have been six up by now if not for the keeper. 8.26pm GMT20:26 39 min: Bellerin has so far reacted very well to his ordeal at the weekend (when he was by no means Arsenal’s worst defender). He has defnded stoutly and made regular raids forward, using his speed and nifty feet to good effect. Gala had to resort to a double-teaming foul to stop him just now. 8.22pm GMT20:22 37 min: Campbell yet again makes an excellent intervention in defence, dispossessing Sneijder with a sliding tackle. There’s a real determination from the visitors to protect their clean sheet. 8.21pm GMT20:21 35 min: Flamini trips Bruma some 30 yards from goal, offering the hosts a freekick. Yilmaz does what Flamini no doubt expected him to do, donking it into the stands. 8.19pm GMT20:19 33 min: Galatasary just can’t contain Arsenal. Not legally, anyway. Melo’s copped a booking for shunting Campbell to the floor as Arsenal threatened again. 8.18pm GMT20:18 31 min: It’s still 0-0 between Bundesliga struggler Borussia Dortmund and Anderlecht, by the way. How about that Jurgen Klopp, eh? Updated at 8.21pm GMT 8.15pm GMT20:15 Gala 0-3 Arsene Wenger's Arsenal (Ramsey 29) Boom! Gala thought they’d cleared a corner but the ball fell to Ramsey some 28 yards out and he enflamed a sensational half-volley into the top corner! Updated at 8.50pm GMT 8.13pm GMT20:13 28 min: Arsenal remain rampant, and win another corner as Bolat bats away another blaster from Podolski. 8.12pm GMT20:12 26 min: Corner to Arsenal, which Campbel delivers from the quadrant, exactly as required by law. Mertesacker tracked the flight of the ball very well, and then headed wide from seven yards. Admirable compassion from the centreback. 8.11pm GMT20:11 24 min: The camera pans to Wenger, who is impeccably turned out in a well-chosen suit. Irreproachable grooming. 8.09pm GMT20:09 22 min: Campbell snuffs out a Gala attack by blocking a Sneijder shot at the edge of his own area. The Costa Rican then rampages deep into the opposing half and feeds Sanago, who attempts a drive from 20 yards. A deflection takes the sting out of it and enables Bolat to make a comfortable save. Otherwise, no doubt, the keeper would have been sent flying backwards into the net by Sanogo’s blockbuster. 8.06pm GMT20:06 20 min: Oxlade-Chamberlain leads another charge into Gala territory before offloading to Podolski, who unleashes another left-footed blaster from 20 yards. It whizzes past the keeper ... and strikes the top of the crossbar! 8.05pm GMT20:05 19 min: Gala, clearly too intimidated by Arsenal’s renowned aerial power to loft a corner into the danger area, decide to take the set-pieces short. Melo eventually tries to ping in a cross but Mertesacker nuts it clear. “As someone who’s stuck in the office (it’s afternoon where I live) and unable to watch the match, I’m starting to wonder if these goals are actually happening, or if it’s all part of the vow of relentless positivity,” blurts a suspicious Kevin Lee. “How do I even begin to comprehend a world in which there’s nothing hyperbolically pessimistic being said about Arsenal?” 8.02pm GMT20:02 17 min: Bulut attempts to beat Szczesny from 30 yards but instead sends his shot into the Bosphorous. “I’ll tell you what,” promises Fredrik Oqvist. “If we could somehow manage to make sure Arsenal play only meaningless matches I think they’d do quite alright.” 8.01pm GMT20:01 15 min: Flamini booked for a wild late tackle. But in fairness to him, the yellow card goes nicely with his jersey. “In keeping with tonight’s spirit, I think it’s wonderful that our dear leader and his men chose to travel by train last weekend rather than by air, thus saving the environment.” coos Oystein Aarnes. “I also heard that the day dear leader was born Highbury was covered in a magical mist and that clouds above it turned red.” Updated at 8.20pm GMT 7.59pm GMT19:59 13 min: Sneijder prods the ball wide for Telles, whose cross is intercepted by Debuchy, whose comeback has so far been marked by a quiet consistency that can only have been instilled into him by his leader and compatriot bestriding the sideline. “So in response to Zach, who may complain about the ticket prices and Mr Wenger, a simple retort,” begins Wez Hunter. “ The stadium sells out every week. It may be expensive, but any business that sells out every week regardless of how much the price must be doing most things right. Regarding all that he has known, rest assured it isn’t all happy top four placing and champions league every year. Monsieur Wenger clearly has some issues to address and he probably will do so. Just pay attention to Spurs and Liverpool in the next few years, as they attempt to attain champions league on a shoestring budget whilst in the build. Let’s just see where that leads shall we.” 7.57pm GMT19:57 GOAL! Gala 0-2 Arsene Wenger's Arsenal (Ramsey 11) The real Ramsey is back! A calm low finish into the corner from eight yards after a searing run and perfect pass from Oxlade-Chamberlain! Updated at 8.11pm GMT 7.54pm GMT19:54 8 min: Secure handling from Szczesny to hold a long-range effort from Sneijder. 7.54pm GMT19:54 6 min: Bellerin, starting on the left tonight after suffering on the right on Saturday, makes a timely intervention to put Melo off as the Brazilian wound up a shot from 10 yards. That pressure was enough to provoke a miscue, the forward dragging the shot wide. “Parsing out satire from abuse from criticism from repetitive blog-like articles about Wenger’s failings is just semantics,” complains Gideon Unkeless. “Better to acknowledge the role of the paper in stirring up people’s emotions and close the subject.” The problem is you seem to be suggesting the Guardian has one big line on Wenger - that’s not the case: many different people write about Arsenal on these pages and each offers has their own thoughts. 7.49pm GMT19:49 4 min: That really was a magnificent finish from the German, who thus completely vindicated Arsene Wenger’s astute management of him. 7.48pm GMT19:48 GOAL! Gala 0-1 Arsenal (Podolski 3) What a strike from the German! He rocketed it into the roof of the net from an acute angle with Jonathan Walters-esque power! Updated at 8.05pm GMT 7.47pm GMT19:47 2 min: Arsenal win the first freekick of the match - a triumph! It’s on half-way and Flamini takes it, initiating a period of careful ball circulation by the visitors. 7.46pm GMT19:46 1 min: Arsenal, looking lovely in yellow and blue, make a textbook kick-off. Exemplary stuff from Wenger’s warriors. 7.45pm GMT19:45 An experiment... Tell you what, since Wenger is using this match partially for experimental purposes, I’m going to do the same: yes, I’m going to try to make tonight’s coverage of Arsenal exclusively positive. In other words, I will finally apply the advice my mum used to give, which was ‘if you have nothing nice to say, say nothing”. This, of course, could be quite a challenge bearing in mind that I’m supposed to give regular updates. So come on, Arsenal, be good! 7.41pm GMT19:41 “Well said sir!” chirps Ayman Azmy, the first person ever to call me ‘sir’. “As a Gooner, I have to say that the abuse that was directed at Arsene was disgusting, deplorable, and absolutely inexcusable by any means, regardless of what is happening at the club. Shameful behaviour by some of our ‘fans’.” 7.40pm GMT19:40 “ I completely agree that Arsenal fans who want to ambush Wnger for a bit of abuse should grow up,” says Keith Smith in mature, measured tones. “But shouldn’t there be a bit of reflection on the part of the Guardian also? There have been a number of isn’t-it-time-Wenger-should-go articles in recent years, along with quite a few cheap cracks. And I can’t recall too many acknowledgements of Wenger’s really amazingly consistent and on the whole admirable performance.” You’re getting mixed up there, Keith: just because I don’t think a manager should be abused doesn’t mean I think he should be immune to criticism or satire. 7.31pm GMT19:31 Here’s an email from Zach Gomperts-Mitchell, who wants to vent his spleen. “So, like many journalists, you agree that the unpleasant sounds sent at Arsene were somewhat out of line. Thats fine and as an Arsenal fan my whole life on the most part I’d agree. Arsene has been Arsenal basically since I was old enough to remember and the respect we have for him as a fan base was massive, thats started to change though.Heres the thing, my Arsenal experiance has always been veiwed through the prisim of my families season tickets, when I was a child and now I’ve moved out. The ritual of matchdays, our matchday friends and a nice little chunk of the people I’ve known the longest.Not any more, last season they raised the prices, again, from the most expensive in Europe to even more the most expensive in Europe for a standard season ticket. We can’t afford them anymore and it’s pretty sad.Arsene Wenger is the highest paid coach in the league and his actions for a fair few years now, have been more than frustrating. A large proportion of old season ticket holders are starting to struggle and he is just as cupable as the club. The control he has, means he must take a proportionate amount of responsibility for fan anger. We know our stuff, we’ve seen the financial reports, we’ve paid a higher proportion towards the success of our club straight from our pockets then any other football fanbase, we staid patient through the move, and now there are massive surpluses, not spent and both board and manager seem to have decided to entirley exploit for profit, then ignore.He’s just signed a new contract for even more money and what we’ve seen this season has been infuriatingly familiar. I don’t know if this ridiculously overlong email will change your opinion of the unpleasant spectacle on the platform, but I hope it gives you an idea why the anger at Mr Wenger is starting to turn rather ugly.” Yes, Zach, I am aware of all those things. Everyone is. And booing and protests in the stadium are all fine, as far as I’m concerned, but haranguing a guy at a train station is just abusive. 7.03pm GMT19:03 Preamble: Note to any Arsenal fans thinking of ambushing Arsene Wenger at Istanbul airport tonight if things don’t go your way: grow up. Besides, the result doesn’t matter tonight because Arsenal are already through to the next round and can only top the group if Anderlecht win at Dortmund, which would be as freakish as, say, Arsenal winning at Stoke. So this is as dead as rubbers get, which is why Wenger has allowed plenty of his main players to make like Manchester United and watch tonight’s Champions League action on TV. Meanwhile, Mathieu Debuchy makes a welcome return from injury, while Lukas Podolski, Joel Campbell and Yaya Sanago are all given rare starts. The bench is made up entirely of youngsters who can rely on hardy ol’ Per Mertesacker to provide courageous guidance if they come on. 6.45pm GMT18:45 Teams: Galatasaray: Bolat, Alex, Balta, Kaya, Camdal, Felipe Melo, Sneijder, Bruma, Colak, Bulut, Burak Yilmaz. Subs: Iscan, Altintop, Ozcal, Oztekin, Adin, Kurtulus, Sari. Arsenal: Szczesny, Debuchy, Mertesacker, Chambers, Bellerin, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Flamini, Ramsey, Campbell, Sanogo, Podolski. Subs: Martinez, Zelalem, Akpom, Iwobi, Kamara, Maitland-Niles, O’Connor. Referee: David Fernandez Borbalan (Spain) Updated at 7.00pm GMT |