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How to beat Arsenal
Norman Hubbard
They can't go through the season unbeaten, can they?
Arsenal celebrate: A familiar caption this season. (MarkThompson/GettyImages)
After 27 Premiership games, Arsenal are showing no signs of relenting. They have already been to Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool and emerged undefeated.
Away games at Tottenham and Newcastle and the visits of Liverpool and Manchester United to Highbury look the main obstacles to a unique achievement.
So, how to stop them? That they have reached March without losing indicates it is not easy, but here are a few suggestions. Although, as the other 19 Premiership teams will testify, there's no guarantee they will succeed.
1: Defend tight and narrow
The pace of Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp's eye for the final pass make pushing up a dangerous tactic.
The offside trap George Graham used so successfully with a previous Arsenal team probably would not stop their successors. If the centre backs are nearer their own penalty area than the halfway line, Henry has less room to accelerate away from them.
As Arsenal's wide midfielders Robert Pires and Fredrik Ljungberg are hardly orthodox wingers, defending the width of the penalty box should be the priority for the full backs.
Arsenal often favour the left wing, but don't over-compensate and neglect the right: Charlton's left back Hermann Hreidarsson was left isolated at times on Saturday and Arsenal's first goal came from a right-wing cross.
2: Pick a quick right back
Or how to stop Thierry Henry, which is rather easier said than done. Henry is rarely man-marked (who is quick enough?) but, given his tendency to drift out to Arsenal's left wing, pace is as important for the right back as the central defenders.
Against Southampton, Manchester City and Middlesbrough, Henry's surges down the left wing have led to Arsenal goals. Even when they don't, if he outpaces the right back, another defender is dragged out of position.
3: Play an anchor midfielder
Phil Neville: To beat the Gunners you need an enforcer like him. (RossKinnaird/GettyImages)
Besides the left wing, Arsenal's chances often come from the no man's land between the opposition's defence and midfield. Bergkamp, dropping deep into this position, provided the passes for Patrick Vieira and Jose Antonio Reyes to score against Chelsea.
Centre-backs are understandably reluctant to follow him, especially as Pires and Ljungberg tend to break from this area into the penalty box. A deep-lying midfielder should at least mark the midfield runners or track Bergkamp.
Crowding the area around the edge of the penalty box should restrict long-range shots, too, though Reyes' first goal against a Chelsea team with a defensive midfielder (Claude Makelele) came from 25 yards.
4: Get your tactics right
Conventional wisdom is that matching your opponents' tactics is an effective way of stopping them. Not for Arsenal, however; most other Premiership teams play 4-4-2 and have failed to beat them. Whatever their starting positions, Arsenal usually have a third player - whether, Pires, Ljungberg or Bergkamp - in the centre of midfield.
And unless the anchor midfielder is supported by two team-mates, Vieira is more likely to dominate the game.
So 4-5-1 it is, the system used by Bolton and Fulham, who have drawn with Arsenal this season.
One alternative, though rarely used in the Premiership, is to play with three centre backs to help deal with the threat of Pires and Ljungberg joining the strikers.
5: Start well
No other team has the ability to kill a game off in the first 20 minutes. Even though Charlton almost got a point on Saturday, Arsenal had effectively won at five past three.
Manchester City and Middlesbrough seem particularly prone to terrible starts against Arsenal. Defence should be the only objective from the first whistle. Get into the game and then opponents can think about scoring.
6: Frustrate Arsenal
Not, as has been the interpretation at Old Trafford, rattle Arsenal. In their last four games away to Manchester United, Arsene Wenger's team have won twice and drawn once. On each occasion, they were subjected to some overzealous tackles.
But Manchester United's one win in that time, in December 2002, owed much to the harrying of Phil Neville. Given Arsenal's experience and expertise in playing with 10 men, getting their players sent off frequently serves little purpose anyway. Instead, close them down in midfield as much as possible.
7: Set-piece expertise
Arsenal are one of the taller teams in the Premiership but, Vieira and Sol Campbell excepted, that isn't reflected in their aerial ability. Though Kolo Toure competes, Henry, Bergkamp, Pires and Kanu, all over six foot tall, don't win as many defensive headers as they should.
Celta Vigo scored twice from set-pieces last week and the aerial threat of James Scowcroft created Leicester an equaliser in a game when Wenger admitted corner and free kicks troubled his side.
His decision to bring on Pascal Cygan in Arsenal's last two games indicated a weakness against crosses. Set pieces should offer the best opportunity to exploit that - especially if their target is not being marked by Vieira or Campbell.
8: Get behind the full backs
Much of Arsenal's width comes from their attack-minded full backs Lauren and Ashley Cole. But, though the centre backs are invariably well shielded by two defensive midfielders, quick counter attacks can catch Lauren and Cole upfield.
Chelsea scored in their last league meeting when Geremi exploited Lauren's absence and a poor piece of control from Vieira to set up Eidur Gudjohnsen.
And, for all they offer going forward, Pires and Ljungberg do not always cover (though, when they play wide, Edu and Ray Parlour will more often). Even when they have time to get back the Arsenal full backs can be left with two opponents to deal with.
9: Hope Edu isn't playing
Edu: Talismanic Brazilian (ShaunBotteril/GettyImages)
As they often prove in the FA Cup, Arsenal can win without Thierry Henry. They won 5-1 away against Inter Milan when Patrick Vieira was injured. Sol Campbell is perhaps hardest to replace, but Edu's presence seems to coincide with Arsenal wins.
Quite apart from his increasingly strong challenge to replace Gilberto Silva as first choice alongside Vieira, the less heralded Brazilian has a habit of scoring important goals.
Of his seven this season, five have come against Chelsea, Celta Vigo or Inter Milan. He also scored last year against Manchester United and has only figured in one of their last three Champions League defeats.
10: Be lucky
Arguably the most important of all, given the quality of Arsenal's players and their consistency this season.
Their last Premiership defeat - against Leeds last season - came courtesy of a Mark Viduka goal which looked suspiciously offside. Two of their losses this year have involved costly individual errors (Jens Lehmann against Dynamo Kiev and Martin Keown away at Middlesbrough).
Mistakes were more prevalent in the collapse of their title challenge last year, especially Toure's own goal at Aston Villa. There have been far fewer this year, but one could cost them their unbeaten record.
