There was a feeling of doom and gloom surrounding the Emirates last night after Saturday's shambles at Stoke, and the players must have sensed the displeasure amongst the fans as they put on a rather uninspiring display.
Having beaten their Turkish counterparts in a scintillating display to win 5-2 in Istanbul, many fans could be forgiven for expecting another rout.
Aaron Ramsey was included in the starting line-up, playing on the right in place of the injured Theo Walcott and he acquitted himself well, always looking for the ball and making clever passes. It is easy to see why Wenger was so intent on securing the 17 year-old Welshman's signature in the summer. He reminds me so much of Fabregas when he burst onto the scene at a similar age, quality players, whatever their age, seem to have unlimited time on the ball.
Arsenal started brightly and were busy around the edge of the box. As always, however, it was the final pass which let the players down on more than one occasion. Robin Van Persie, in the news at the weekend for 'elbowing' Thomas Sorensen against Stoke, looked sharp, and his quick turn and shot really should have put the Gunners 1-0 up at half-time but Volkan, the Fenerbache goalkeeper tipped the shot onto the bar.
The second half saw much of the same with Lukasz Fabianski a virtual spectator, and Arsenal pressing for a goal.
Bendtner and Ramsey were replaced by Vela and Diaby and the latter almost scored with a header from a Van Perise corner, but it was just a bit too high of the target.
Mikael Silvestre was taken off with a suspected broken nose at the end of the game, which is worrying for Arsenal fans ahead of the clash with the Frenchman's former employers Manchester United on Saturday.
Let's hope that the players can raise their game for Saturday's match otherwise Arsenal's season could be over before its' even started.
Having beaten their Turkish counterparts in a scintillating display to win 5-2 in Istanbul, many fans could be forgiven for expecting another rout.
Aaron Ramsey was included in the starting line-up, playing on the right in place of the injured Theo Walcott and he acquitted himself well, always looking for the ball and making clever passes. It is easy to see why Wenger was so intent on securing the 17 year-old Welshman's signature in the summer. He reminds me so much of Fabregas when he burst onto the scene at a similar age, quality players, whatever their age, seem to have unlimited time on the ball.
Arsenal started brightly and were busy around the edge of the box. As always, however, it was the final pass which let the players down on more than one occasion. Robin Van Persie, in the news at the weekend for 'elbowing' Thomas Sorensen against Stoke, looked sharp, and his quick turn and shot really should have put the Gunners 1-0 up at half-time but Volkan, the Fenerbache goalkeeper tipped the shot onto the bar.
The second half saw much of the same with Lukasz Fabianski a virtual spectator, and Arsenal pressing for a goal.
Bendtner and Ramsey were replaced by Vela and Diaby and the latter almost scored with a header from a Van Perise corner, but it was just a bit too high of the target.
Mikael Silvestre was taken off with a suspected broken nose at the end of the game, which is worrying for Arsenal fans ahead of the clash with the Frenchman's former employers Manchester United on Saturday.
Let's hope that the players can raise their game for Saturday's match otherwise Arsenal's season could be over before its' even started.
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