Arsenal 4 Blackburn 0: Arshavin at the double as Gunners move back into the top four

14 March 2009 22:58
Andrey Arshavin opened his Arsenal account as an attacking masterclass saw theGunners to a handsome victory over Blackburn in their Barclays Premier League clash at the Emirates.[LNB]Theo Walcott, restored to the starting XI following a cameo against Roma in midweek, was in electric form all afternoon but the headlines will go to the £15million Russian and substitute Emmanuel Eboue, who scored twice at the end.[LNB] Manchester United 4 Liverpool 1[LNB]Bolton 1 Fulham 3[LNB]Everton 3 Stoke 1[LNB]Hull 1 Newcastle 1[LNB]Middlesbrough 1 Portsmouth 1[LNB]Sunderland 1 Wigan 2[LNB]ARSENAL NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB]Arsenal v Blackburn: How the game unfolded[LNB]BLACKBURN NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB][LNB]Arshavin netted a fine individual effort after 65 minutes and may yet be credited with a second after his heavily deflected shot gave Arsenal the after just 80 seconds, while Eboue benefited from a tap-in and a penalty.[LNB] Tongue-derful: Andrey Arshavin celebrates his second goal against Blackburn Rovers[LNB] Arsenal took inside two minutes to open their account for the afternoon, Arshavin trying, perhaps unsuccessfully, to claim his first strike for the club.[LNB]Nicklas Bendtner started things off from a deep position, neatly turning Morten Gamst Pedersen before rolling a defence-splitting pass to Walcott on the right.[LNB]Walcott raced to the byline and cut the ball into the six-yard box where both Song and Arshavin were waiting at the near post.[LNB]It was the Russian who got the first touch but a heavy deflection off Andre Oijer means it was surely an own goal.[LNB]El-Hadji Diouf, booked for lunging at Manuel Almunia, looked Rovers' most likely creator, twice finding space behind the attacking Bacary Sagna but lacking support in the final third.[LNB]There was a change after 13 minutes, Gael Givet giving way to David Dunn and Warnock dropping from midfield to left-back to make room.[LNB]But the shift in personnel did not bring Blackburn's defence to life, with Bendtner handed far too much room to test Paul Robinson from 20 yards. [LNB]Warnock himself was lucky to avoid censure when he barged the sprightly Walcott to the turf a yard outside the penalty box after he was released by Arshavin.[LNB] Spot-on: Emmanuel Eboue hits Arsenal's fourth with a penalty[LNB] With half an hour gone, the Gunners on the attack again, Arshavin and Walcott dovetailing wonderfully to free Sagna on the overlap.[LNB]His cross found Bendtner at the far post but, after a moment of hesitation in the Blackburn defence, the danger was cleared.[LNB]With 10 minutes to play before the break Samir Nasri almost made it two, rattling the woodwork with a vicious free-kick.[LNB]The Frenchman went close again seconds later, striking a bouncing ball first time from eight yards and forcing an unconvincing save from Robinson.[LNB]Pedersen had a half chance to equalise with the last move of the first period but with two defenders and Almunia bearing down on him, he lost his footing at the key moment.[LNB]After the interval, the hosts came out in inspired form and Walcott, once more, was the key. Manchester United 4 Liverpool 1[LNB]Bolton 1 Fulham 3[LNB]Everton 3 Stoke 1[LNB]Hull 1 Newcastle 1[LNB]Middlesbrough 1 Portsmouth 1[LNB]Sunderland 1 Wigan 2[LNB]ARSENAL NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB]Arsenal v Blackburn: How the game unfolded[LNB]BLACKBURN NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB][LNB]First he outpaced Warnock only a minute after the restart, getting himself into space but then dragging his shot well wide, then he handed Bendtner the simplest of scoring chances.[LNB]Speed was again the key, allowing the winger to measure his cutback afterlosing his marker.With the goal gaping, the Danish striker got his feet in a tangle and made onlythe lightest of contacts.[LNB]And with just five minutes of the half gone Walcott made his third major impact, athletically volleying a loose ball in the area and drawing Robinson into a smart reaction save.[LNB]It was not long before Kolo Toure got in on the act, attracting a huge cheer for lobbing the ball over Pedersen's head as he moved up from defence.[LNB] Handy Andrey: Arshavin nets his second goal [LNB] But for all their dominance the lead remained at a single goal.[LNB]Indeed, it was fast becoming one of those days for the oft-criticised Bendtner, who missed a hat-trick of presentable chances in the space of three minutes and started to feel the fans' frustrations.[LNB]It was Arshavin who released the pressure.[LNB]Collecting the ball wide on the left, the January signing drove straight for goal. He ghosted past Danny Simpson, who offered little by way of a challenge, and lifted his ball expertly into the roof of the net.[LNB]This time there was no doubt over the ownership of the goal. [LNB]Bendtner, though, had one more miss left before being replaced by Carlos Vela.[LNB]A thrilling run by Walcott and a superb pass from Arshavin teed him up this time but a graceful move was denied a fitting end when the striker blazed into the stands.[LNB]To their credit, the Arsenal fans gave the misfiring Dane a loud show of support as the left the field.[LNB] Manchester United 4 Liverpool 1[LNB]Bolton 1 Fulham 3[LNB]Everton 3 Stoke 1[LNB]Hull 1 Newcastle 1[LNB]Middlesbrough 1 Portsmouth 1[LNB]Sunderland 1 Wigan 2[LNB]ARSENAL NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB]Arsenal v Blackburn: How the game unfolded[LNB]BLACKBURN NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB][LNB]Substitute Eboue, who has enjoyed less generosity from the crowd this season, poked home the third after Robinson pushed out another Arshavin effort with three minutes left.[LNB]The Ivorian then stroked home from the penalty spot after Vela was clumsily fouled by Martin Olsson.[LNB] [LNB]  

Source: Daily_Mail