Arsenal continued their momentum with a 3-1 Premier League win over Birmingham at the Emirates Stadium. Robin van Persie and Abou Diaby had fired the Gunners into a 2-0 lead inside 18 minutes. However, Lee Bowyer capitalised on a mistake by young keeper Vito Mannone – preferred to fit-again Manuel Almunia – to pull a goal back before half-time.
After soaking up plenty of pressure during the second half from the battling Blues, Andrey Arshavin wrapped up the points late on as Arsene Wenger’s side made it seven successive victories in all competitions this season.
New Birmingham owner Carson Yeung – who has promised manager Alex McLeish a transfer kitty of up to £40 million to spend in the January transfer window – was in the stands.
However, the challenge ahead to make his club in the same league as the Gunners was clear inside the opening few moments as the hosts immediately went on the offensive.
Emmanuel Eboue combined with Theo Walcott down the right to swing over a dangerous cross towards Robin van Persie.
On five minutes, the Dutchman knocked down a high ball into the path of Tomas Rosicky at the edge of the penalty area.
However, the Czech midfielder scuffed his first-time shot into the ground.
Birmingham defender Liam Ridgewell left Walcott – making his first start of the season following a back problem – in a heap following a strong sliding challenge.
The Arsenal forward, though, bent his knee back when falling, and had to go off for extended treatment.
As play continued, the home side should have taken the lead when Diaby’s left-wing cross was knocked back by van Persie at the far post, but once again Rosicky got his timing all wrong and failed to make a decent contact.
Walcott, hoping to be part of Fabio Capello’s World Cup squad, soon came on again – immediately picking up the ball on the right, expertly side-stepping Ridgewell before his cross was tipped over by Joe Hart.
The opening goal finally came on 16 minutes.
Alex Song collected possession 25 yards out, and slipped a lovely low pass through the left side of the penalty area.
Van Persie took the ball on his right, then switched back inside past Stephen Carr before drilling it into the far corner.
Before Birmingham could recover, it was 2-0.
Eboue put Rosicky clear down the right channel, and his cut-back from the near post went all the way through to Diaby – who smashed a first-time effort into the roof of the net.
Arsenal were now in cruise control, but to their credit, Birmingham maintained some tempo.
Song bundled over James McFadden to concede a free-kick in a decent position for the visitors, some 25 yards out.
Larsson, who left Arsenal in January 2007, struck his effort well as it beat the wall, but Mannone got down quickly to make the save.
Walcott eventually had to go off, replaced by Arshavin on 33 minutes.
Arsenal were made to pay for a lapse in concentration as Birmingham pulled a goal back after 38 minutes.
Barry Ferguson sent a deep cross into the penalty area, which Diaby flicked back up in the air.
Mannone, under pressure from Larsson, came to collect, but dropped the ball – which Bowyer smashed into the net.
Arsenal quickly looked to restore their two-goal cushion, and Hart saved well down at the right-hand post to deny Arshavin.
Birmingham, clearly boosted by their goal, had an early chance at the start of the second half when the ball flashed across the Arsenal six-yard box.
At the other end, Arshavin stabbed a close-range effort wide after Diaby’s low centre.
Larsson was, at full stretch, penalised for what referee Lee Probert deemed a somewhat harsh backpass, giving Arsenal an indirect free-kick eight yards out.
Fabregas rolled the ball to Arshavin, who stopped it for van Persie, but the Dutchman’s fierce effort skimmed off the top of the crossbar.
As the hour passed, Arsenal maintained the pressure, but despite all of their decent approach play, failed to find a telling pass.
It could have proved costly as Mannone made a brave take as Ridgewell’s pass went through the Arsenal six-yard box, which would only have needed a touch for the visitors to equalise.
Arshavin, however, settled matters with five minutes left when he slotted home from just inside the penalty area after a quick counter attack.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger lamented a knee injury to Theo Walcott which overshadowed the 3-1 Barclays Premier League win against Birmingham.
Walcott will undergo a scan to assess the damage, which could now signal another spell on the sidelines for the World Cup hopeful.
“It is difficult to assess at the moment, whether it is a ligament which is twisted or just a kick,” said Wenger. “The fact he says he felt a little unstable when he was running is not good. We will scan him tomorrow. If he has just a kick, then he has a chance to play on Tuesday (away to AZ Alkmaar). But I believe he will not be available. It is not a cruciate problem, but it could be more than a week.”
The incident brought back memories of Martin Taylor’s X-rated challenge on Eduardo at St Andrew’s during February 2008, which left the Croatia striker with an horrific double leg fracture and out of the game for almost a year. After that match, Wenger had lambasted the Blues defender whom, in the heat of the moment, he claimed “should never play again”, a statement later retracted.
Arsenal’s manager felt it was difficult to judge just how much intent Ridgewell put into the challenge, which referee Lee Probert had not given as a foul. “It was a tackle which cut through, without any restriction,” said Wenger. “I felt it was a tackle meant to impress.
“I do not know whether he wanted to play the ball. If he touched just the ball, then that is part of the game. That is my first impression from the bench, but I would have to see it again.”
Birmingham manager Alex McLeish felt there was little wrong with Ridgewell’s challenge. He said: “It was a fierce defender’s tackle. “Liam must have caught Walcott because he stayed down and got treatment, but I don’t know whether it was dangerous. There was no free-kick given. If you are going to penalise every tackle, it would be a different game.”
“We were cruising, in control, and wondering who would score third goal,” said Wenger, “but we made a mistake defensively and they got a goal back. The Premier League is like that. In the second half, we did not have the same fluency, control, or pace.
“However, 3-1 is still a fair result because we still had plenty of chances. Birmingham worked hard and regrouped well when they did not have the ball. We also lacked a bit of sharpness and sometimes tried to force a situation individually when it was possible collectively, and that is why we did not score more goals.”
Wenger added: “When we focus to play our game, I believe we can score and play the ball through any space. That is something fantastic, but we have to keep our composure.”
New Birmingham owner Carson Yeung has promised McLeish a transfer kitty of up to £40 million to spend in January, and was in the stands at Emirates Stadium this afternoon. The Blues boss hopes this is the start of a bright era for the midlands club.
“Maybe people will inflate prices and we have to be careful, but we welcome it, because we need some fresh quality in the team,” the former Rangers manager said. “It is a challenge to our guys now.”
McLeish added: “We are where most people expected us to be in the league, but performances have been good and I do not think have looked out of place. We just have lacked a cutting edge in not converting our chances. We need to find it. Now I am looking for our match winners to be playing consistently well and show they can go to the next level.”
