Sensational Alexis & Mertesacker Start FA Cup Defence

Match Review: Arsenal 2-0 Hull City - FA Cup - 04.01.2015

Arsenal's defence of the FA Cup got off to a leisurely start on Sunday. It was one of those games where you could tell that Hull weren't really bothered about getting through and though we didn't run riot as such, there was only ever one team in the game. We needed a comfortable game following the tough winter fixtures and that's exactly what we got.

With our current injury situation, there weren't many options for Arsene Wenger in terms of rotation. Despite that though, there were starts for Rosicky, Bellerin and Campbell, while Theo Walcott made his first start since the the third round last year. Calum Chambers moved from midfield to centre back, while Monreal started in place of Gibbs. There was also a change in goal, as David Ospina came in for Szczesny.

There've been a lot of rumours about a supposed dressing room bust up between Szczesny and Wenger following the Southampton game and some suggestion that the keeper may lose his place for a long time. Whether Szczesny's mistakes in the Southampton game lead to an extended spell on the sidelines remains to be seen, but his absence for the cup game was not unusual and I imagine it was always a game he was going to be left out of.

Hull also rotated significantly, with the likes of Aluko and Sagbo coming into the side. With the away side's precarious current position in the League, it's not surprising that they weren't interested in a cup run and I think they'll be glad to be able to focus exclusively on staying up. As a consequence the game was quite lack lustre, Hull weren't pressing with any intensity and I think it affected us too. The whole game had a training ground feel to it, made all the more surreal by the fact that there were no more than 500 away fans, when there could have been 6,000. Sunday evening kick offs aren't really helpful for fans travelling long distances to see their team.

We had a few good chances in the first half, the best of which fell to Joel Campbell following some beautiful quick passing, but his finish was poor and the keeper made an easy save. It was a matter of when rather than if, but the opening goal came from a surprising source with Per Mertesacker nodding in practically unchallenged from a corner. It's nice to benefit from some shocking set piece defending for once! It was slightly disappointing to only be one up at half time as Hull really were there for the taking.

The second half was honestly quite boring. Arsenal probed and tried to string together some moves, but there was no real pace to the game. It didn't help us that Theo Walcott looked as rusty as an old kettle and that Campbell was largely ineffective on his flank. Hull threw on Abel Hernandez in a token gesture of chasing the game, but the tie was decided emphatically by Arsenal's star striker.

With less than ten minutes left, Cazorla found Alexis on the edge of the box. The Chilean controlled and turned beautifully before curling a precise finish into the bottom corner. He has been beyond anything we could have dreamed at the start of the season, I knew we were signing a sensational player, but he's surpassed all expectations especially as seems to never tire. He looked to be fatiguing in the Southampton but against Hull he was sprinting and chasing like it was his first game of the season. It's a genuine privilege to watch him in the stadium, as you don't really appreciate quite how brilliant he is when watching on the TV.

The FA Cup, again, represents our most realistic chance of silverware this season. The Premier League is well beyond us now and although we've finally got a decent draw in the Champions League, we will eventually have to play one of the giants, should we progress. Having proved that we can win it and gotten rid of the nine year monkey from our backs, there should be confidence within the squad that we can make another strong challenge for the famous old trophy.

Teams

Arsenal (4-3-3)
Ospina, Bellerin, Chambers, Mertesacker, Monreal, Coquelin (Y), Rosicky, Cazorla, Campbell (Maitland-Niles 91'), Walcott (Chamberlain 76'), Alexis (Akpom 84')
Subs
Martinez, Koscielny, Debuchy, Chamberlain, Akpom, Zelalem, Maitland-Niles

Hull (4-4-2)
Harper, McShane, Davies, Maguire, Figueroa, Huddlestone, Brady, Quinn, Ince, Sagbo (Hernandez 67'), Aluko (Elmohamady 62')
Subs
McGregor, Bruce, Livermore, Hernandez, Elmohamady, Dawson, Meyler

Player Ratings

Ospina - 7/10 - Looked calm and confidence, despite his limited involvement
Bellerin - 7/10 - Had quite a quiet game, but looked lively at times
Chambers - 7/10 - A nice easy game for the youngster
Mertesacker - 7/10 - A steady performance and a nice goal for him too
Monreal - 7/10 - Another typically solid showing from the Spaniard
Coquelin - 7/10 - Continued his impressive form, despite some Flamini-esque tackles
Rosicky - 7/10 - Solid
Cazorla - 7/10 - Also solid
Campbell - 6/10 - Slightly disappointing, should have had a goal too
Walcott - 6/10 - Looked super rusty, so this run out will have done him good
Alexis - 8/10 - Simply wonderful, limitless energy and such quality finishing too
Subs
Chamberlain - 6/10 - Didn't do much apart from getting whacked on the knee
Akpom - N/A
Niles - N/A

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