Gooner Talk

Emmanuel Adebayor scored a hat-trick as Arsenal strolled to a comfortable victory over Blackburn at Ewood Park.

It was always going to be a test for Arsenal seeing as how the last performance away from home was a dire 1-0 loss to Fulham. After a stunning double win over Twente and Newcastle at the Emirates.

Nasri would not start due to a knee knock – despite travelling with the squad, but England hero Walcott would start in what would prove to be a football masterclass.

First Half

Arsenal started off with a bang, piling up attack on the Blackburn goal right from the start.

In the 4th minute Van Persie tried to curl in the ball from 30-yards but keeper Paul Robinson came to Blackburn’s rescue by punching away the ball.

Arsene Wenger made a wise decision in including Theo Walcott, in his starting line-up as the latter created havoc for the rival defenders throughout.

The Gunners shot into the lead in the 8th minute of play through Van Persie who gave finishing touches to a beautifully constructed move.

Goal: Robin van Persie (8)

Blackburn slowly started to build up the pressure as the match progressed and looked desperate to find the equaliser. In the 13th minute Emerton sent over a great cross from the right but Santa Cruz failed to guide his header goal wards.

Minutes later Santa Cruz made a great run into the rival defense and set up Roberts on the edge of the box, but Arsenal keeper Almunia dived to his left to keep the ball from entering the nets.

Minutes to go before the halftime whistle Rovers almost found the equalising goal but Santa Cruz header of Emerton cross missed the target narrowly.

Right at the stroke of halftime Adebayor put the Gunners up by two goals through a brilliant header off Denilson cross from the left flank.

Goal: Emmanuel Adebayor (45+)

Second Half

Arsenal had completely taken any wind that may have been in Blackburn’s sails with their second goal but the Gunners were not resting on their laurels. A cross met Kolo Toure who should have made it 3, but he failed to get the ball past Paul Robinson and a corner ensued. After a poorly defended corner, Emmanuel Eboue has a rasping drive saved by Robinson for another corner that would come to no avail.

Arsenal were passing the pall around the pitch oozing with confidence as Walcott was replaced by Song. Blackburn could not even muster up a single attack, and soon it was to be 3. Emmanuel Eboue was brought down in the area by Neil Warnock after a surging run, many though Eboue had dived. It was Adebayour who calmly put the ball hight into the net.

Goal: Adebayor (pen) (81 mins)

Each successful Arsenal pass was greeted with ecstatic “Ole”’s from the traveling Gooners, as the cheered on the young pairing of Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey, as they replaced Eboue and Denilson.

It was the 17 year-old Ramsey who made a mark on the game, making a mockery out of the offside trap to play in Adebayor who rounded Paul Robinson was hit home for his hat-rick.

Goal: Adebayor (90 + 2)

Adebayor’s hat-trick capped off a truly spectacular performance from the Gunners that showcased the young side’s raw and abundant talent.

Check out all the Match Highlights over at our good friends, Arsenal SPOT.

Player Ratings

Almunia – 6: Had little to do, but was always there to collect dangerous crosses when needed.
Sagna – 7: A solid performance as usual, supplied well with passes on the right flank.
Toure – 7: Should have scored early in the second half, but a strong match at the back.
Gallas – 7: Marshaled the back well in order to keep calm after Blackburn attacks and secure a clean sheet.
Clichy – 7: Completed the Back Four’s wonderful performance, always a threat on the left.
Eboue – 7: Has really progressed as a player in recent weeks, some good passing moves and won the penalty.
Fabregas – 8: Quietly instrumental in every Arsenal goal, provided the foundations for victory
Denilson – 7.5: Some brilliant passing moves and supplied Adebayor with a perfect cross to head home
Walcott – 7.5: Electric pace tore apart Blackburn defence before setting up RvP, should have set up Eboue soon after, however carried on from where he left off in midweek to guide Arsenal to a win.
Adebayor – 9: Just the performance the Togolese frontman needed after the summer, a stunning performance and a deserved hat-trick.
Van Persie – 8.5: Cool finishing for the first goal, and showed great team spirit in giving Adebayor the penalty.

Subs

Song – 7: Did what was asked of him well, no mistakes.
Wilshere – 5: Anonymous, but was only on the field for a matter of minutes.
Ramsey – 7: Despite being on the pitch for less than 10 minutes, his through ball to Adebayor gave us a glimpse of what’s to come.

Tags: Adebayor, almunia, arsenal, Clichy, Eboue, emerton, gunners, hatrick, van Persie, walcott, Wenger

This entry was posted on Saturday, September 13th, 2008 at 5:04 pm and is filed under Match Report. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.