Two nil, chaps…
Another day, another North London derby win for Good Old Arsenal, who didn’t have to exert themselves unduly to knock pallid Spurs out of the Cup.
In the end, the difference between the teams was the quality of the finishing. Two sublime strikes saw off Spurs, one in each half. First Cazorla lashed a first time effort past Lloris from Gnabry’s perfectly-weighted pass. Then in the second half, Rosicky mugged Rose in the Spurs half before running on to execute a beautiful chipped effort – job done.
The remaining highlight of the game came out of a worrying moment as Walcott seemed to jar his left knee. A stretcher was called for, and it may well be that young Theo has sustained some damage. The incident took place right in front of the sullen mass of away fans, and they naturally proceeded to give the stricken Arsenal player dogs’ abuse. Encouragingly though, Theo felt well enough to sit up on his stretcher and, by means of hand signals, remind the Spurs contingent of the score.
It was a brave, possibly foolhardy thing to do. The stretcher bearers may not have thanked their patient for inviting a hail of missiles, but the Gooners clearly loved it. Theo left the arena in triumph, festooned with Arsenal scarves thrown in tribute by his adoring fans. In adding insult to Spurs’ two-goal injury, the likeable Walcott had put the seal on Arsenal’s joy as well as the misery of Spurs.
A good day for the Gunners, who march onwards and upwards. For Sherwood’s hapless troops, it was an unwelcome reminder of just how far they remain behind the Kings of North London.
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