Disappointingly Gervinho’s debut ended up with a red card. It kind of remind me of Koscielny debut against Liverpool which ended up with same fate. As always Barton did what he does best and provoked him and Gervinho fall for it. I was surprise Barton only got away with only a yellow though. Some said it’s only fair because Song should have been sent off for the intentional foul he committed on Barton earlier in the game. Now make of it what you will, but I don’t see how that is relevant.

Wenger had this to say:

“I think Gervinho didn’t deserve the red card personally. I dont know why Joey Barton has grabbed him at the throat to get him up. I think thats a yellow card. I feel the referee has not seen it and the assistant has not seen it properly. I am 100% sure the referee has not seen the incident so I would like to know who made the decision. Will I appeal? I will have a good look at it but I am tempted to say yes.”

Well I say good luck with the appeal. Even if Barton provoked Gervinho, Gervinho still slapped him on the face. However, as Wenger mentioned I don’t think any of the refs watched the incident themselves.

Before the sending off Gervinho had a good game, showed us that he has skill and at times could be exciting but lacked that final touch. All his passes and crosses ended up in no man’s land. I’m sure as the season goes on he will gain more confidence and understanding with his teammates.

Speaking of the game, I’m not so sure if there is much positive to take from this game. We were solid defensively. If I was to give man of the match to any of our players it would have to be to Koscielny. He was solid in the back, dealing with everything that came his way. He was also commanding in the air winning all the aerial balls which is good to see. It seems to me that Vermaelen and him are forming a very good partnership in the heart of the Arsenal defense. This however don’t mean we don’t need another defender. Our third and fourth defenders are nothing to relay on.

Our midfield saw most of the ball but had no clue what to do with it. The Denilson syndrome was on display, too many side way passes. It was obvious that we are missing some creativity in the middle. Wenger has come out and said we are not going to sign Mata and are not talking to Jadson. Unless he has someone better in mind to give the midfield life, then we will be served with most of the same for the rest of the season.

Also, today it was evident young Wilshere is very important to the team and the sooner we get him back fit the better it will be. Nobody tried anything ambitious, and it was saddening to see we weren’t able to create any clear cut chances. Their goal keeper didn’t have to make any decent save and he was playing against Arsenal. How odd is that? Now we just seat and hope that Wenger is ready to bring out his checkbook and buy some quality players. Oh why haven’t we yet signed Cahill? He scored for Bolton today and had a very good game too.

What did you make of the game? Let’s hear your thought in the comments.

dgooner.wordpress.com