That was rather horrible

34 minutes into the game we were 2 goals up...

How did we lose it from there? (Not to mention losing it by 3 goals)

In the last 5 minutes of the first half, Arsenal managed to find 2 goals out of nowhere, putting themselves in the driving seat going into half-time.

What happened next shocked me the most, Harry decides to take off Saha and Kranjcar, to bring on Sandro and Rafa. I can understand why Sandro came on for Kranjcar to provide more structure against a very strong Arsenal midfield, but why would he bring on Rafa, a player returning from injury, in place of Saha, a player who has already scored a goal in the game and has looked very threatening on the ball.

Rafa was very slow and did not do create many (I don't think any) chances in the 2nd half. Saha, on the other hand would have been looking to link up with Adebayor, being able to either play him through or receiving a through ball. In the 1st half, the Arsenal defense looked all over the place, much like in their previous matches. But when Rafa was on, they looked much calmer as they could handle his speed (not that he has too much).

I'm not saying Rafa is a bad player - I think he is one of the best in our team - but when you are playing against a opponent which requires pace in the attacks in order to break through, then he's not the man for the job. This is why he was so effective in the Champions League last year, because his technical ability is superior and he does not need pace against the slower, European teams.

One last point that is quite important, is Parker's yellow card early in the game. This forced him to play more cautiously which allowed Arsenal more space in the middle. Unfortunately he picked up a second yellow in the closing stages of the game, meaning that he will miss a very crucial game against United next week.

This will probably mean that Sandro will get a start this weekend, most likely playing alongside Modric, Bale and Kranjcar in the middle (unless Harry decides to put Lennon in the team).

One last thing to cheer you up - we're still 7 points ahead of both Chelsea and Arsenal, so no matter what anyone else says, we're still the Kings of London.

TTID