Leyton Orient 1-1 Arsenal: The Gunners let down by Almunia

A last minute equaliser, surprisingly due to Almunia.

Arsenal now face another match against Leyton Orient due to the 1-1 draw this evening. Arsenal were in control for the majority of the game, but Leyton Orient never gave up and scored a late equaliser to set up a fascinating replay at the Emirates Stadium. Arsenal dominated possession and completed a record amount of passes this season. There were no goals in the first half but early in the second Rosicky opened the scoring. It was a well worked goal which resulted in a superb header from the Czech international. However at the very end of the match we were all let down once again by Manuel Almunia. The man is useless and is a liability for Arsenal. Wenger shouldn't of rotated Szczesny as he would have saved the shot without a doubt, after all goalkeepers can't really get that tired can they. Credit is due to Leyton Orient however as they defended well for the game and never gave up hope of an equalising goal.

 Arsene rotated the team heavily, with Alex Song the only player retaining his place from the Barcelona win. Chamakh started up front supported by Tomas Rosicky, and Denilson was given a rare start in Wilshere's position. Miquel made his debut for Arsenal at centre half and the Spaniard impressed throughout. He is only 18 and did very well for the majority of the game. Cesc and Samir were on the bench however if the game didn't go to plan. This game was always going to be very different to the Barcelona game, and this was clear throughout the game. We began the game keeping the ball really well but not really creating that much offensively. There appeared to be a lack of effort from the forwards especially Bendtner and Chamakh. Chamakh looked tired despite hardly playing recentely and he missed an easy opportunity midway through the first half. Half time arrived and the score was still 0-0 despite Arsenal having players like Arshavin playing against a league one side.

Rosicky scores his first goal for over a year.

 Wenger decided to stick with the same XI at the start of the second half despite not being ahead in the game and having Fabregas and Nasri on the bench. This seemed to be the correct decision as after a brilliant passing move Rosicky scored a great header to give Arsenal the lead. There were over 20 passes leading up to the goal and Arsenal deserved to be in the lead. Arsenal continued to dominate possession but weren't creating many chances, a worrying sign for the Arsenal fans. Leyton Orient weren't creating many chances either and the game seemed to be heading towards a 1-0 win for the Arsenal. The match wasn't that exciting for the rest of the second half until Andrey Arshavin broke through nearly sealing the victory for The Arsenal, but he hit the post to the disappointment of the Arsenal fans. Then disaster struck for Arsenal in the 89th minute as the Frenchman Jonathan Tehoue scored a dramatic equaliser. It was a brilliant run from the Frenchman but Manuel Almunia really should of saved the shot. Once again we were let down by the Spanish goalkeeper who simply doesn't deserve to be a professional footballer. The only plus point is that Szczesny is now clearly the number one and was rested today for more important games ahead.

Almunia lets everyone down once again.

 All in all it was a poor performance from the Arsenal, who now face a replay on March 2nd at the Emirates. This is a fixture Arsenal don't need but at least we are still challenging in all four competitions. Miquel showed he can be a top defender in his debut performance, whilst his fellow Spaniard Almunia showed once again why he shouldn't have ever become a footballer. Arsenal will need to be far better on Wednesday to beat Stoke in the Premier League but thankfully Manuel Almunia won't be in goal and the superb Szczesny will.