Match Report: Arsenal under-18s 1 Charlton 0

An Emmanuel Frimpong goal was enough for Arsenal under-18s to see off Charlton at London Colney this morning.

        Manager Steve Bould named a similar side to the one which was held to a draw against Norwich last week. However, this time he experimented with a more attacking formation and named Nacer Barazite and Rui Fonte on the bench.

——————–Szczesny—————–

–Blackwood—-Ayling—–Thomas (c)—-Evina

————Frimpong——-Eastmond

—–Sunu———-Wilshere———–Freeman

————Murphy

subs: Shea, Fonte, Barazite, Steer, Rasmussen

So, to the match and Charlton started the liveliest and had England youth international Jonjo Shelvey in attack. He fired a couple of tame shots at Szczesny early on, but the tall Polish ‘keeper was equal to it on both occasions.

Next, it was Arsenal’s turn to attack, Emmanuel Frimpong played through Craig Eastmond and he hit a shot just past the post. Arsenal had to wait  until the 23rd minute for their next opportunity, but they didn’t make the most of it. Luke Freeman did well to win a corner, but Rhys Murphy headed over from Frimpong’s delivery. There was a tense battle going on in midfield and as such there wasn’t a lot of goal mouth action, with strong challenges flying in from both sides. Frimpong went down in the area, but the referee waved play on. Jay Thomas, who captained the side today, burst forward from centre back and hit a powerful shot which curled away into the wind. By this point, Arsene Wenger had turned up to watch and Arsenal’s youngsters began to up their game. They ended the first half with a flurry of opportunities, none of which were taken. First Cedric Evina hit a decent cross to win a corner and then Jack Wilshere spurned an opportunity over the bar. To round off the half, Jay Thomas headed over the bar from Wilshere’s free-kick. It was a decent first half display by Arsenal, but they had nothing to show for it.

Half time- Arsenal 0 Charlton Athletic 0

  The second half was a much more even affair. Just moments after the restart Cedric Evina had to be alert to clear a Jonjo Shelvey effort off the line. Then Shelvey came close again, this time with a free kick. He hit a swerving shot which deflected off Luke Ayling and went out for a corner. Arsenal were battling hard and Gilles Sunu was making some good runs, but was frustrated when his teammates didn’t pick him out. Gilles has been working hard to bring his teammates into play in recent weeks, but they haven’t been returning the favour. Craig Eastmond was having another solid game in central midfield and hit a shot wide on 71 minutes. Just two minutes later, Wojciech Szczesny was forced into action when Shelvey came close once more. Arsenal were still in control, but needed a goal to cement their status. Then, on 76 minutes it came. A neat interchange of passes found the ball at Wilshere’s feet. He dribbled past a couple of players before cutting back inside and picking out the on-rushing Emmanuel Frimpong. Frimpong steadied himself and wasted no time in firing the ball into the back of the net. It was a long overdue reward for the large amount of effort that the Arsenal players had put in. Then, just after the goal had been scored, Steve Bould shuffled his pack in order to ensure victory. The substitutions he made were:

Nacer Barazite for Rhys Murphy

Rui Fonte for Anton Blackwood

With this extra attacking threat now on the field, Arsenal lined up as follows

———-Szczesny———-

-Eastmond—Ayling—Thomas—-Evina

-Sunu—–Wilshere—-Frimpong–Freeman

———–Barazite—-Fonte

Nacer scored against Colorado Rapids on Thursday, so he didn’t start the game, but Bould saw this as the perfect opportunity to bring him on.

It was a frustrating and incredibly tense last five minutes for Arsenal, as Charlton piled on the pressure in search of an equaliser. Szczesny did well to make a save at his near post, and threw the ball out to Freeman who was away in a whole array of space. He had Gilles Sunu alongside him, but instead went for a cross which he miscued horribly and fell to a Charlton player. Luckily for Luke, the Addicks made nothing from the resulting break.

With the clock ticking down, Bould made one final change:

Rene Steer for Jack Wilshere

The Arsenal formation changed as follows

——Szczesny—-

-Eastmond—Ayling—Steer—Evina

-Sunu——Frimpong—Thomas (c)—Freeman

–Barazite—-Fonte

Barazite headed one final effort over the bar in stoppage time. Then, the referee blew his whistle to signal a vital three points for Arsenal, who travel to play Reading next weekend.

Full time- Arsenal 1 Charlton Athletic 0        

PLAYER RATINGS

Wojciech Szceszny-7- Much improved in recent weeks and made some vital stops

Anton Blackwood- 5- Didn’t really get into the game and was substituted

Luke Ayling-6- Made some good tackles and encouraged his team mates

Jay Thomas-6- Made some good runs and is at home at centre-back

Cedric Evina-7- Much better than last week. Made some good crosses and decent clearances

Craig Eastmond-7- Another neat and tidy display. Did his job well and had a couple of opportunities himself

Emmanuel Frimpong-7- Got the goal and gave another decent display in midfield

Gilles Sunu-8- JEORGE BIRD’S MAN OF THE MATCH

A terrific performance. His technical ability is second to none, a great first touch, it’s just a shame his teammates don’t pass to him very often.

Jack Wilshere-7-Some great dribbling skills, but his passing wasnt’ as accurate as it usually is.

Luke Freeman-5- Tried hard but it didn’t come off and should have passed to his teammates more

Rhys Murphy-6- Didn’t get many chances, but had good close control and worked hard for the team

SUBS

Nacer Barazite-6- Could have scored at the end and added a physical presence to the attack

Rui Fonte-5- Didn’t really make an impact

Rene Steer-5- Came on very late but made a vital clearance

Not used: Rasmussen, Shea

Footnote: Havard Nordtveit and Gavin Hoyte were training with the first team today, and whilst they are unlikely to be in the squad against Wigan, it was great experience for them. The Colorado Rapids were also at the training ground and were being put through their paces on the far pitch. There were a couple of other famous faces in attendance as well. In addition to Arsene Wenger, Chris Powell, the former Charlton player was there as was ex-Spurs boss David Pleat, who I was standing next to. Armand Traore and Johan Djourou trained separately as they are short of fitness, whilst Kyle Bartley, Justin and Gavin Hoyte as well as Henri Lansbury were all watching the u-18 game.