Arsenal are back where they belong, finally into fourth position. Alexis Sanchez netted injury time penalty to drag Arsenal into Champions League spot. The penalty was controversial but at the end of the day three points matters. Penalty was awarded after Burnley defender James Tarkowski muscled Aaron Ramsey leaving only option for ref Lee Mason to point at penalty spot.
It was harsh for Sean Dyche’s side as they were composed in the defence and did well to deny Arsenal until that ‘harsh’ penalty. Burnley didn’t go down without a fight – in fact Petr Cech had to make more ugly saves than Nick Pope.
Burnley and Arsenal have a trend to leave deciders in the dying minutes considering their last three meets.
‘Football is very harsh game’ and proof to ir was performance of Burnley’s James Tarkowski. He was influential throughout the match, appearing into the defence when needed, sticking with the ball and standing tall as a wall in the back line. He was one of the best performers for the hosts until that penalty. Suddenly after the whistle pointing towards spot Tarkowski was the one to blame. Yeah, its right – this is a ‘harsh game’.
PLAYERS RATINGS
Burnley
Nick Pope – 6/10
Lawton – 6/10
Tarkowski – 8/10
Mee – 6/10
Ward – 7/10
Gudmundsson – 8/10
Cork – 6/10
Hendrick – 6/10
Defour – 5/10
Brady – 7/10
Barnes – 7/10
Subs:
Wood – 5/10
Arsenal
Cech – 8/10
Koscielny – 8/10
Mustafi – 8/10
Monreal – 7/10
Bellerin – 6/10
Xhaka – 6/10
Ramsey – 8/10
Kolasinac – 7/10
Iwobi – 6/10
Alexis – 8.5/10
Lacazette – 6/10
Subs:
Wilshere: 6/10
Welbeck – 6/10
POST MATCH INTERVIEWS
Arsenal defender Laurent Koscielny: “You are always happy because you score a late goal and have three points.
“It was a difficult game you know, they play very direct, cross very well and upfront they have players who can score headers. We knew it was a difficult game so that is why we are very happy. Burnley played well in the first half and put pressure on us.
(on back to back clean sheets) “It’s always important for a defender but also the team. I thought we have the quality to play forward and have opportunity to score.
(on winning after rivals had dropped points) “I think it was very important, more than the Tottenham game. It was crucial to win here.”
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger:
“In the first half we didn’t find our game, they stopped us from playing very well. In the second half it was a question of the final ball and patience, not making a mistake at the back. We changed a bit of shape (at half time), I felt we had to give more.”
On the penalty: “From outside it looked 100%. I don’t know why he pushed him in the back. I would like to see it again.”
On Burnley: “They have 22 points and when you play against them you know why. They conceded only two goals at home since the start of the season. They defend extremely well, they are very dangerous on the direct game.”
On being back in the top four: “It’s early, it changes from one week to another, we wanted to win away from home and we did it. Let’s focus on the next one.
Burnley manager Sean Dyche:
“It’s difficult because it was a very good performance from us. Overall you’re disappointed not in the performance, the outcome.”
On the penalty: “It was highly unlikely it wasn’t going to get given on a day like today, that’s all I’ll say.”
On how he feels: “There’s a lot of me inside, that’s raging a lot. It’s a coupon buster, I don’t think anyone would put a bet on that (the fact they keep losing late against Arsenal). I’ve told them (the players) we continue to develop, we continue to move forward. I’ve also told them this is the reality. Football’s a harsh game and sometimes it hurts you.”
On the performance: “To limit them to very few chances is very pleasing. It’s hard to define how you don’t get something from the game, but we didn’t today. There’s so many pleasing things, the growth I talk about, it was on show today.”
PLAYER REACTIONS
Last minute winner? Some would say we have cojo***!!! #COYG pic.twitter.com/oaOFtSwIII
— Héctor Bellerín (@HectorBellerin) November 26, 2017
???Not much better than those last minute wins! Glad we kept a clean sheet! COYG ??? #sm20 @Arsenal @6_LKOSCIELNY pic.twitter.com/4IhbZGrUtG
— Shkodran Mustafi (@MustafiOfficial) November 26, 2017
We did it again!! Very important win against a tough team. #COYG ?⚪ pic.twitter.com/bxeODdTHh0
— Nacho Monreal (@_nachomonreal) November 26, 2017
Big win , clean sheet ! #coyg . pic.twitter.com/GZiTsiy1uU
— Petr Cech (@PetrCech) November 26, 2017
Important win today, Burnley didn’t make it easy for us but the lads kept going ?? #WeAreTheArsenal pic.twitter.com/7YAGFYT2MD
— Per Mertesacker (@mertesacker) November 26, 2017
Tough Game Away From Home But We Dug Deep Till The Final Whistle. Another 3 Points, Thanks For Your Support ?⚪ #AFC pic.twitter.com/fZklEI3pUR
— Alexander Iwobi (@alexiwobi) November 26, 2017
