Arsenal win keeps hopes intact
Arsenal's Champions League hopes are still alive after
they eased to victory against Dinamo Zagreb at Emirates
Stadium.
The Gunners needed to win and hope that Bayern Munich
beat Olympiakos to ensure that a victory by two goals - or by
a margin of one if they score three goals - in Greece in their
final group game would send them into the knockout phase.
Bayern fulfilled their part of the bargain and Arsenal had no
trouble with a Dinamo side who beat them in the earlier
fixture in Croatia.
Man of the match Mesut Ozil headed them in front after 29
minutes and Alexis Sanchez added a second four minutes
later before the Chile forward rounded off a fine second half
move to give Arsenal the convincing win their superiority
deserved.
Listen to BBC Radio 5 live commentary of the goals
Ozil pulls the strings
Midfielder Ozil has had his critics since making the £42.4m
move to Arsenal from Real Madrid in September 2013 - but
he has arguably been the Gunners' most influential player
this season.
The elegant Germany international has become the goal-
maker supreme, setting a Premier League record with an
assist in his seventh successive game when Olivier Giroud
put Arsenal ahead at West Bromwich Albion on Saturday.
And he was pulling all the strings here as Arsenal kept their
Champions League campaign on track, not only by
displaying a wonderful range of perfectly-measured passing,
but by breaking the deadlock and easing nerves inside the
stadium with his diving header.
Ozil's languid style sees him painted as something of an
enigma, but when he moves so silkily, dictating the tempo in
this fashion, he looks a player of the highest quality.
Mesut Ozil's
diving header
finished an
Arsenal move
that began on
the edge of
their own area
Sanchez the energiser
If Ozil is the man who provides the brushstrokes on
Arsenal's canvas when they are playing well, then Sanchez is
the energiser, a perpetual motion combination of intensity
and talent that can prove irresistible.
Arsenal did not only get a world-class forward when they
paid Barcelona £32m after the 2014 World Cup in Brazil,
they acquired a character who can set the tone for a
performance with his work ethic and desire.
He proved it here, not just with two goals but with his
relentless determination to win the ball back when
possession was lost, a prime example being in the first half
when he chased back 40 yards down Arsenal's left-flank to
make three tackles before eventually securing the ball.
they eased to victory against Dinamo Zagreb at Emirates
Stadium.
The Gunners needed to win and hope that Bayern Munich
beat Olympiakos to ensure that a victory by two goals - or by
a margin of one if they score three goals - in Greece in their
final group game would send them into the knockout phase.
Bayern fulfilled their part of the bargain and Arsenal had no
trouble with a Dinamo side who beat them in the earlier
fixture in Croatia.
Man of the match Mesut Ozil headed them in front after 29
minutes and Alexis Sanchez added a second four minutes
later before the Chile forward rounded off a fine second half
move to give Arsenal the convincing win their superiority
deserved.
Listen to BBC Radio 5 live commentary of the goals
Ozil pulls the strings
Midfielder Ozil has had his critics since making the £42.4m
move to Arsenal from Real Madrid in September 2013 - but
he has arguably been the Gunners' most influential player
this season.
The elegant Germany international has become the goal-
maker supreme, setting a Premier League record with an
assist in his seventh successive game when Olivier Giroud
put Arsenal ahead at West Bromwich Albion on Saturday.
And he was pulling all the strings here as Arsenal kept their
Champions League campaign on track, not only by
displaying a wonderful range of perfectly-measured passing,
but by breaking the deadlock and easing nerves inside the
stadium with his diving header.
Ozil's languid style sees him painted as something of an
enigma, but when he moves so silkily, dictating the tempo in
this fashion, he looks a player of the highest quality.
Mesut Ozil's
diving header
finished an
Arsenal move
that began on
the edge of
their own area
Sanchez the energiser
If Ozil is the man who provides the brushstrokes on
Arsenal's canvas when they are playing well, then Sanchez is
the energiser, a perpetual motion combination of intensity
and talent that can prove irresistible.
Arsenal did not only get a world-class forward when they
paid Barcelona £32m after the 2014 World Cup in Brazil,
they acquired a character who can set the tone for a
performance with his work ethic and desire.
He proved it here, not just with two goals but with his
relentless determination to win the ball back when
possession was lost, a prime example being in the first half
when he chased back 40 yards down Arsenal's left-flank to
make three tackles before eventually securing the ball.
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