Arsenal: Does Marouane Chamakh's Headed Goal Indicate a Rebirth?

It mattered little in the big picture, that headed goal by Arsenal striker Marouane Chamakh, which cut the Blackburn advantage to 4-3.

Yet for an Arsenal team struggling to find an attacking identity in this brutal season thus far, it may well prove significant in the grand scheme of things.

One of manager Arsene Wenger's two offseason signings in 2010 (the other was Laurent Koscielny), the former Bordeaux front man, who had been an integral piece to the Girondins' double-winning campaign in 2008-09, arrived on a free transfer after seeing his contract out.

Considered the type of aerial threat that had largely been missing from Arsenal in recent years (maybe I should say consistent aerial threat that Arsenal was looking for, seeing as Nicklas Bendtner was already at the club) Chamakh immediately impressed in Arsenal's preseason, scoring against AC Milan in the Emirates Cup.

He didn't skip a beat as the season began, notching the equalizer against Liverpool in the first league match of the season.

That goal said an awful lot for him. It was an awkward header, as Chamakh more crashed into keeper Pepe Reina as opposed to heading the ball, but for a side that had been labeled "soft" in recent campaigns, that fearless desire to get to the ball at all costs was a welcome sight, indeed.

It was a roaring start to his career as a Gunner. Chamakh would score 11 goals (all competitions) by the turn of 2011, and earned widespread praise for his ability to hold up play and include onrushing Arsenal players in the attack.

His aerial threat notwithstanding, he looked set to become the sort of all-around striker who could mitigate the effect of star frontman Robin van Persie's frequent injury absences.

Then something happened in 2011.

The return of van Persie from a prolonged absence that had seen him miss nearly the entire start of the season may have had something to do with it, as the Dutchman's spectacular form made him an unquestioned starter in the central striker role in Wenger's 4-3-3 system.

Chamakh was certainly no wide man and, even when he was brought on as a second striker, looked lost when drifting out wide.

Perhaps it was unfair of Wenger to move the languid Moroccan to the bench upon van Persie's recovery, after relying upon his services for so many months—which had played a large part in keeping the Gunners alive in four Cup competitions.

But then, that's football. Chamakh didn't have the tenure of van Persie and, to be fair, the Dutchman is a much more accomplished all-around player.

Losses of confidence are a frequent problem with footballers, but Chamakh's ensuing collapse was cataclysmic.

By the end of the season, he looked a shell of the man who'd taken the Premier League by storm just months before.

His new-found reticence to contribute anything of significance has carried into this season as well, with the Moroccan looking anything but convincing in his appearances.

Yet with Bendtner now shipped out on loan, and new signing Park Chu-Young perhaps requiring some time to adjust to the speed and pace of Premier League football, and new signing Joel Campbell out on loan with Lorient, Chamakh is needed more than ever to contribute.

To his credit, it appears the signing of Park may have sparked some life into him.

He looked better in a short spell as a substitute a week ago against Swansea City, and in scoring the aforementioned goal against Blackburn, provided the sort of physical presence that's been lacking in the Arsenal attack so far this campaign.

In his first action after running onto the pitch, he had a header called back for pushing his opponent over. Unfortunate about the foul, sure, but that's a side of Arsenal that's largely been missing so far this season.

Should he capture some semblance of the form we've seen him exhibit, it would be an immense boon going forward.