Olivier Giroud the Facilitator as Arsenal Win Raises Arsene Wenger's Hopes Again

EMIRATES STADIUM, LONDON — It had been, as manager Arsene Wenger admitted, "a big week" for Arsenal.

A cup tie away to Manchester United, followed by a London derby against West Ham United, looked to be two formidable tasks to face in the space of a few days, but with both those tasks now successfully negotiated, the Gunners end the week into the semi-finals of the FA Cup and in an ever-improving position in the Premier League.

If it is always boom or bust at Arsenal, then Saturday's 3-0 win over West Ham means the possibilities suddenly seem endless yet again for Wenger and his team. After recent seasons spent scrambling desperately over the closing weeks of the season just to finish fourth, Wenger may have his sights set a little higher this term. 

If other results go their way over the remainder of the weekend, Arsenal could finish it six points clear of fifth position, with a far more amenable run-in than most of their closest rivals. At worst, they will maintain their pre-existing three-point advantage, with Manchester United and Liverpool (the two sides currently closest to them) poised to take further chunks out of each other next weekend.

Beating West Ham 3-0 on Saturday was unremarkable in and of itself, but the three points were another significant step on a path that now seems increasingly likely to end in the most tangible sign of a club’s progress—an improved league finish on the season before. Beating Newcastle United next week, 24 hours before United host Liverpool, will further solidify that prospect.

“We had to be patient and organised and steady,” Wenger said, an assessment of the game that could double as a review of the season as a whole. “And then we scored great, clinical goals.”

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For a while, it looked like being the sort of Arsenal performance the club’s fans have come to know and fear. The home side dominated the ball almost from the first whistle, passing it beautifully in and around the opposition box, but were seemingly incapable of putting the final touches on those intricate build-up moves and actually bundling the ball into the back of the net.

If Theo Walcott (among others) had been sharper in front of goal, the Gunners could well have been 3-0 up before the break; as it turned out, goalkeeper David Ospina needed to make a couple of smart saves to prevent Kevin Nolan from breaking the deadlock.

West Ham, ravaged by injuries, were set out to defend and little more, yet still occasionally cut apart the Arsenal defence with direct passes to Matthew Jarvis or lone striker Diafra Sakho.

The tension was starting to grow as the game approached half-time, but then one moment of brilliance changed the dynamic entirely. Walcott, Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey were all involved, before Olivier Giroud took the ball off the Welshman inside the box and lashed a shot in off the far post.

“It was a fantastic goal for him, because it is a consequence of a fantastic combination before,” Wenger noted. “It is the type of goal we love to score.”

It felt like the turning point. “Conceding on half-time was disappointing because the game plan was to stifle Arsenal as much as we could,” Hammers assistant manager Neil MacDonald admitted. “But we didn’t really pass the ball.”

That settled the Emirates, although it was not until the 81st minute that the game was finally killed off. Giroud and Ramsey interchanged brilliantly after a throw-in, before the midfielder ran onto the striker’s lay-off and lashed his first-time effort inside Adrian’s near post. It was a fitting reward for an impressive all-round performance, one reminiscent of when he was at his best in the first part of last season.

A third goal, this time substitute Mathieu Flamini tapping home after Giroud had played in another substitute, Santi Cazorla, for the astute pass across the six-yard box, meant the final score was a fair reflection of the overall play, albeit one that will mislead some about how fraught it had occasionally been.

“I think that overall it was a good performance,” Wenger reflected. “In the first half we created many chances but could not score. In the second half we had a weaker moment coming out of the dressing room, West Ham were on top for that period, but I think in after that we were always dangerous and could score goals.”

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Giroud had played his part in all three goals, although after struggling so badly in the first leg of the Champions League tie with Monaco, that is no guarantee he will now start in the return leg in midweek. Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez both played well, as did substitutes Cazorla and Danny Welbeck, meaning Wenger has plenty of options to consider.

“I would not like to put too much pressure on him,” Wenger said. “Giroud had an outstanding game today. But what is important is the team plays well.

“All the offensive players have the ability to contribute something. They all understand each other much better than six months ago, and that makes everyone more dangerous.”

It should not be ignored that this was a West Ham side shorn of both confidence and personnel. Goalkeeper Adrian played despite dislocating a finger in the club’s final training session before the game, while the absence of others meant Sam Allardyce’s bench contained six players with a combined four league starts this season (Morgan Amalfitano, the other reserve, has started 12).

They are short on numbers and bereft of any positive reinforcement. Manager Sam Allardyce did not meet the press afterwards, preferring instead to spend additional time with a squad that has now not won since January 25.

“We lick our wounds from today,” MacDonald said. “Arsenal were very good at passing and moving around the box today, and they deserved their win.

“[Allardyce] is trying to get the players up. He’s angry with conceding the two goals at the end.

“We’ve played five of the top six teams [in recent weeks]. The performances have been good, on the whole, but we’ve been disappointed with some of the results. The next six games give us a good chance to bounce back.”

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Arsenal, meanwhile, are now brimming with confidence as they plot a vibrant finish to the campaign. They are already in an FA Cup semi-final at Wembley (Welbeck earning rapturous applause from the home fans for his part in ensuring that), while the trip to Monaco gives the side an outside chance of European redemption, too.

Arsenal are currently six points behind Chelsea (having played two games more), but they still have a game against the Blues to come. The question was put to Wenger: Never mind fourth, are Arsenal actually still in the title race?

“Well… not at the moment,” the Frenchman said, albeit after a pregnant pause. “But we can just keep going.”

Even if the title might be a bit optimistic, he remains as confident as ever that his team is improving.

“I think we have won eight of the last nine,” Wenger added. “We are stronger today than we were at the start of the season.

“We suffered a lot from the post-World Cup [effect], we lost a lot of games. Today we are a different team.”

With Wenger it is a familiar refrain, one the fans have long known to not always believe. Nevertheless, there seems an increasing chance that his confidence will be vindicated—to a greater or lesser extent—over the final third of the campaign.

Just how much, of course, remains to be seen.

All quotes obtained firsthand.