Arsene Wenger Had A Tough Day[/b]
Coming up to the age of 65, sometimes you have to wonder how much you still need this. Midway through what appeared to be an intolerable ordeal of a semi-final, Wenger looked as if he were being tortured. How much could he possibly withstand?
Wenger was so fraught; he looked dizzy when Per Mertesacker's equalizer allowed him to breathe again. Still the tension ate at him, as an air of the unpredictable descended. Both teams' players were dropping, cramped up, exhausted. Alex Oxlade?Chamberlain found one last ounce of energy to crack a shot against the woodwork but the game drifted with a sense of inevitability towards a penalty shootout. Wenger, who had not stopped his worried pacing for 120 minutes, looked beyond strained. His fate was in the hands of players who have become difficult to depend upon at crucial moments this season. For all the fear of a penalty shootout, in actual fact Arsenal's confidence grew with each spin of the roulette wheel. Lukasz Fabianski built the foundations by saving Wigans first two penalties. Mikel Arteta and Kim Kallstrom who was a winter loan signing, got the ball rolling and as the nerves eased, and the color returned to their cheeks, Arsenal at last had a moment of elation to lose them in.
When Santi Cazorla steered a free kick down the middle of Scott Carson's goal, Wenger grabbed Aaron Ramsey, embracing him like a son, then about turned and disappeared down the tunnel. Lord only knows how he felt inside. This emotionally turbulent season takes another twist. Arsenal are in the FA Cup final. An enduring memory of that, Arsenal's last trophy, is of Vieira and Roy Keane crossing each other on the last, fateful, walk between centre spot and penalty spot. With the season almost over as Arsenal dropped out of the top four shortly before kick-off, Everton leapfrogging their way in with a victory at Sunderland, this semi-final was overloaded with significance that could trickle into the league campaign and the broader discussion about Wengers future. All in all it tended to fizzle out at the feet of the day's chosen front man, Yaya Sanogo, who played as if the ball took him by surprise. Across the white line in the dugout, Wenger stood fidgeting, as if in a doctor's waiting room. Arms folded. Arms unfolded. Pacing from one side of his technical area to the next. He looked so stressed. You could feel his nerves 200 yards away. In disputable penalty. The first of the afternoon. Wenger could barely watch the whole game fidgeting and worrying like a student waiting for his results.
Thankfully for Arsenal and Arsene Wenger it was a good day as Arsenal progressed to the finals.
Coming up to the age of 65, sometimes you have to wonder how much you still need this. Midway through what appeared to be an intolerable ordeal of a semi-final, Wenger looked as if he were being tortured. How much could he possibly withstand?
When Santi Cazorla steered a free kick down the middle of Scott Carson's goal, Wenger grabbed Aaron Ramsey, embracing him like a son, then about turned and disappeared down the tunnel. Lord only knows how he felt inside. This emotionally turbulent season takes another twist. Arsenal are in the FA Cup final. An enduring memory of that, Arsenal's last trophy, is of Vieira and Roy Keane crossing each other on the last, fateful, walk between centre spot and penalty spot. With the season almost over as Arsenal dropped out of the top four shortly before kick-off, Everton leapfrogging their way in with a victory at Sunderland, this semi-final was overloaded with significance that could trickle into the league campaign and the broader discussion about Wengers future. All in all it tended to fizzle out at the feet of the day's chosen front man, Yaya Sanogo, who played as if the ball took him by surprise. Across the white line in the dugout, Wenger stood fidgeting, as if in a doctor's waiting room. Arms folded. Arms unfolded. Pacing from one side of his technical area to the next. He looked so stressed. You could feel his nerves 200 yards away. In disputable penalty. The first of the afternoon. Wenger could barely watch the whole game fidgeting and worrying like a student waiting for his results.
Thankfully for Arsenal and Arsene Wenger it was a good day as Arsenal progressed to the finals.