Arsenal Special: Midfield Majesty Makes Gunners A Match For Anyone

There was no doubting the midfield majesty, movement and imagination that Arsenal delivered. In another era, in another country called the Netherlands, it was called 'total football'. The pity was that a team managed by a player as great as Ronald Koeman could barely muster much response to an exhibition of modern, flowing attacking play.

Koeman was an attacking sweeper with a booming long-range shot and played a key role in successful PSV, Barcelona and Dutch teams of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Alas, for those who went to the Emirates in hope of a contest, the Alkmaar side had not one player of his class - or Arsenal's.

Arsenal had players queuing up for shots, showpiece moments of skill and attacking runs with every player revelling in the freedom of their system of play. The only one in the Arsenal team not to charge forward in a bid to score was the goalkeeper Manuel Almunia, who was content to bide his time during a quiet evening until they were caught over-egging the icing on their cake and conceded an unnecessary goal in the closing minutes.

On this form, particularly with Cesc Fabregas, Andrey Arshavin and Samir Nasri competing for top billing as the greatest entertainers in town, Arsenal's forward play, the speed and precision of their passing moves and their guile and understanding is sublime. Fabregas scored twice, both times making the AZ goalkeeper look vulnerable at the near post and generally ran the game from his role in central midfield.

But he was outshone, in terms of sheer efficiency, by Arshavin's three assists - two of them beautifully judged passes that led to the goals from Nasri and later Abou Diaby. And nobody could argue that the way in which Nasri, making his way back after injury, tip-toed past two defenders to make space and shoot was anything but perfect. Only Eduardo's almost outrageous back-heel can lay claim against the rest as the moment of the night.

What should have been a perfect evening for Arsenal, however, was spoiled by their failure to keep a clean sheet. It may seem a tad unfair to complain, but there are going to be times in the future when games must be won by a single goal against much tougher opposition and keeping them out is of paramount importance. Good teams do not concede bad goals and it is a habit that Arsenal must stop before it becomes any kind of a problem.

That said, the all-round industry and defensive as well as attacking play of Diaby was excellent and, with so many flair players in midfield, he proved to Arsene Wenger that he has the ability to stake a claim for the holding, defensive role and to develop into someone who may, in time, play with the all-round authority of Patrick Vieira. Only time, and matches against opponents who care little for buying the Christmas presents, will really tell.

Tim Collings