Arsenal beat Udinese - but will it be enough?

RICHARD OSLEY on a nervy night for the Gunners at the Emirates Stadium as Arsenal beat Udinese 1-0 in the Champions League play-offs.

 

THEY say an early goal is great for settling nerves but after taking a lead against Udinese on three minutes, Arsenal looked full of jitters for the next 87.

Maybe the price of defeat is too high. Imagine. If the Gunners don't make the group stages of the Champions League, the lost earnings is pretty much tantamount to letting Cesc Fabregas leave on a free transfer. After all of the deal-making with Barcelona, that would be crushing for a bruised club already apaprently low on confidence.

What a shame that Theo Walcott's early conversion of Aaron Ramsey's cross was not the springboard for notching a scoreline that would have made the return leg in Italy irrelevant. Instead, Arsenal have another night of nerves ahead of them. They will jangle loudly with the tie still on a knife edge.

At times Udinese looked the better team and maybe, just maybe, Arsenal keeper Wojciech Szczesny will emerge this season as the team's most important player. At times he looks like the only player with the belief that the team can upset all of those miserable predictions about how they will fare without Fabregas and possibly Nasri.

Once exposed in a one on one situation as Pablo Armero burst through, he stood strong. In the second half, his acrobatics smartly foiled a banana free kick. There were other good saves too, even if he had the frame of the goal to thank as well.

The big worry was Maroune Chamakh, starting in place of the suspended Robin Van Persie. He looked blunted, a shadow of the striker who first arrived at Arsenal. Then there was Gervinho, who flitted around behind him. He has lots of promise, loves to run at his man and creates openings. But he never really looked like scoring tonight.

It's not all doom and gloom, however. Ramsey looked the part in midfield. Breaking up the Udinese attacks and helping to build Arsenal's. If the Gunners can get him and Wilshere fit and firing, then wins will come more easily than this. The fans must just hope that the club is still in the Champions League by then. It won't be easy in Italy next week. Not easy at all. One false move and the Europa League awaits.