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The week in numbers: w/e 24/4/11

April 25, 2011 2 Comments

Chopra has scored double centuries in consecutive games

228 – Varun Chopra became the first Warwickshire player ever to score double centuries in successive first-class games, as his 228 helped his side defeat Worcestershire by 88 runs in their Country Championship first division match.

86 – Needing just 145 to beat Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire were skittled out for just 86 in their second innings after Chris Read and Steven Mullaney had earlier put on a crucial 150 for Nottinghamshire’s seventh wicket.

50 – Lionel Messi scored his 50th goal of the season as Barcelona beat Osasuna 2-0 to maintain their eight-point advantage over Real Madrid at the top of La Liga.

6 – Rafael Nadal won his sixth Barcelona Open title with a 6-2 6-4 victory over fellow Spaniard David Ferrer. He is now unbeaten in his last 34 matches on clay.

43 – The AFL‘s newest team, the Gold Coast Suns, registered their historic first win in their fourth game, staging an incredible comeback from 40 points down to defeat Port Adelaide 104-101.

57 – Age of Grete Waitz – former women’s marathon world record holder, nine-time New York Marathon winner and 1983 world champion – who died on Tuesday after a six-year battle with cancer.

6 – Number of centuries scored by Mark Selby, a record for a 25-frame match, as he moved 12-5 ahead of Stephen Hendry in their second round match at the World Snooker Championship.

1 – Englishman Lee Westwood claimed golf’s world number one ranking after winning the Indonesian Masters. Compatriot Luke Donald could have edged ahead of him by winning The Heritage tournament, but lost in a play-off to Brandt Snedeker.

The Premier League in numbers

13 – Manchester United‘s 1-0 win over Everton marked the first time they have ever won 13 successive Premier League home games.

Hernández scored United's 100th goal of the season

100 – In scoring the only goal of the game, Javier Hernández registered United’s 100th goal in all competitions this season.

7 – Liverpool‘s 5-0 win over Birmingham ended a run of seven consecutive league draws between the two teams.

9 – Sunderland‘s 4-2 win over Wigan ended a run of nine straight league games without a win.

903 – Fernando Torres‘ goal in Chelsea‘s 3-0 win over West Ham ended a run of 903 minutes in all competitions without a goal.

7 - In Arsenal‘s 2-1 defeat at Bolton, Robin van Persie set a new Premier League record by scoring in his seventh successive away match.

(Some statistics courtesy of Opta Sports, The Times, @InfostradaLive and @StatManJon.)

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Coulda, shoulda, woulda, didn’t as familiar failings bite Arsenal once again

April 25, 2011 1 Comment

Bolton 2 Arsenal 1

Sturridge 38, Cohen 90; van Persie 48

Turn off the life-support machine. The patient’s condition is now terminal.

Arsenal‘s title challenge, which had been slowly unravelling ever since the Carling Cup defeat to Birmingham in February, finally came apart at the seams as they succumbed to two Bolton goals direct from corners, the second in the final minute of normal time. It is a familiar weakness which has cost them repeatedly this season, and it’s not unlike watching someone running full-tilt into a brick wall over and over again, and being surprised when they are knocked unconscious every time.

There can be no excuses. With the exception of long-term absentee Thomas Vermaelen, Arsenal were able to field their strongest possible XI at the Reebok Stadium:

Szczęsny

Sagna– Djourou– Koscielny – Clichy

Song – Wilshere

Fàbregas

Walcott – van Persie – Nasri

Despite a run of six games which had seen them win just once, the visitors arrived with a 16-match unbeaten run stretching back to a defeat at Old Trafford before Christmas. Arsenal had also won when the two sides had met at the Emirates back in September, where they emerged as 4-1 winners over ten-man Bolton in a game which was much tougher than the scoreline suggests.

The entire season in 90 minutes

This game represented Arsenal’s entire season in microcosm. They started brightly, became bogged down, missed enough clear chances to have won two games, then contributed to their own downfall by conceding simple set-piece goals aided and abetted by poor defending.

Theo Walcott dominated the opening few minutes, breaking free down the right and forcing an early save from Jussi Jaaskenlainen. Cesc Fàbregas, too, looked bright as Arsenal presented a constant threat with their fast counter-attacks. He regularly found space between Bolton’s defence and midfield, and brought another smart stop from Jaaskenlainen with a stinging 20-yard effort, but too often his final ball was inaccurate and opportunities went begging.

But Bolton are no pushovers, especially at home. They met Arsenal’s speed with a series of crunching tackles, with striker Kevin Davies putting himself about with some vigour. It was enough to gradually knock the visitors out of their stride, and the home side were soon in the ascendancy. In the space of three minutes, Chung-Yong Lee missed a glorious chance when he chose to pass rather than shoot when clean through, a missed clearance by Johan Djourou gifted another opening, and goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny fumbled a routine cross.

So it came as little surprise when Bolton took the lead on 38 minutes, and the source of the goal was equally predictable. On-loan striker Danny Sturridge was already proving himself to be quite a handful when his cross from the right picked out Lee, who brought a fine block out of Szczęsny. From the resulting corner, however, Gary Cahill rose almost unchallenged to power in a header which may have crossed the line before Samir Nasri cleared it. No matter, as an unmarked Sturridge nodded in the rebound.

Arsenal responded positively before half-time, as Fàbregas struck a post from 25 yards, but they nearly found themselves two down straight after the restart. Sturridge spun away from Djourou and raced into the box. There appeared to be a slight contact between the two and the Bolton player went down. Referee Mike Jones pointed straight to the spot – replays suggested it was a soft penalty, to say the least – but justice was done as Szczęsny saved Davies’s weak shot with his legs.

Van Persie took his Premier League tally to 15 goals (image courtesy of arsenal.com)

90 seconds later Arsenal were level, thanks to a moment of rare penetration and clinical finishing. Van Persie exchanged passes with Fàbregas on the edge of the area before drilling a low shot beyond the reach of Jaaskenlainen. It was the seventh consecutive away game in which the Dutchman had scored – a new Premier League record.

The game appeared to have turned decisively in the visitors’ favour, but despite dominating possession for long spells chances were few and far between – a familiar story for Arsenal fans. Midway through the half, van Persie strode forward with the ball and hit a fierce shot just wide. Then, a couple of minutes later, he twice set up chances which should have put Arsenal in front. First a brilliant ball over the top set up Nasri one-on-one. But the Frenchman, perhaps more than any other player, has typified Arsenal’s decline in the last two months. Where before Christmas he would have placed the ball either side of Jaaskenlainen, he opted instead for power and offered the keeper an easy chance to parry, and Cahill completed the job by blocking the rebound. Seconds later, another through ball from the Dutch striker set up substitute Marouane Chamakh in the box, but the Moroccan international passed up the opportunity to shoot and misdirected his lay-off to Nasri. Nasri later spurned another, more difficult chance when played in by another substitute, Andrey Arshavin, but his hooked effort was weak.

The denouement had a certain air of inevitability to it. As the clock ticked into the final minute of normal time, Johan Elmander capitalised on a defensive mix-up and fired in a shot which Szczęsny turned behind. Tamir Cohen ran unchallenged across the face of the box with Djourou trailing in his wake, and placed his free header into the back of the net.

Shell-shocked, Arsenal could not offer a meaningful response. But it would have been a futile gesture anyway. Even a draw would not have been enough to keep them realistically in the title hunt. The loss of their long unbeaten run was really neither here nor there. Arsenal could and should have found a way to win this game. Yet again, they found a way not to. It has been an all to familiar failing not just this season, but over the last few. There will be no silverware at the Emirates this season.

Post-match reaction and analysis

Arsène Wenger did not attempt to hide the moribund condition of his team’s challenge in his post-match press conference:

It is true that we have dropped too many points today. It is very frustrating because we should have nine points from this week and we have two. That’s a little bit the story of our season.

But he refused to publicly blame his players:

If there is someone to blame, it is me. I pick the team and I choose the players. For me, the players [have] had an outstanding attitude all season.

Although there was no hiding from where the biggest issue on the pitch lies:

I am convinced we are a very good footballing side. We have not been stable enough defensively. The numbers are the numbers, we have conceded six goals this week at a moment where you cannot afford to concede six goals in three games and win the championship. We were too frail defensively during the season.

It is a statistic which I am sure will be trotted out ad nauseam over the coming weeks, but Arsenal’s clear weakness is on set-pieces. Of 36 league goals conceded this season, 20 have come from set-pieces. That’s 56%, the highest ratio of any team in the division. Is it a function of having too many short, physically slight players? Is it a question of poor organisation? Or is it a lack of concentration at key moments? In reality, it is a combination of all three. And this sort of thing becomes a self-perpetuating habit. Opposing teams know they have a good chance against Arsenal at set-pieces and free kicks. And the Arsenal players know they are vulnerable themselves, which affects their confidence and leads to hesitancy in a situation when decisive action is more important than ever. There is no easy answer. But Wenger needs to find one if this Achilles’ heel is to be remedied in time for next season.

I will not dwell overly on tactical analysis here. There is little to be said that has not already been said many times by countless people this season. Let’s just say that the crucial 1% or 2% that makes the difference between a champion and a contender continues to elude Arsenal at the business end of a season, and no one – with the honourable exception of Wojciech Szczęsny – emerged from the Reebok with any real credit. The talent is there. The results are not. A turnaround is needed, but sacking the manager or ditching half the players is no guarantee of that. Newcastle sacked Bobby Robson early in the 2004/05 campaign after taking them to a top five finish the season before, thinking his time had passed. Six managers and 4½ years later, they were relegated to the Championship.

Defeat leaves Arsenal nine points behind leaders Manchester United with four to play. Realistically, securing a top three finish must now be the club’s main objective. Manchester City are eight points behind, but have two games in hand. Next up are leaders United, who can mathematically eliminate Arsenal from the title race with victory at the Emirates next Sunday. A game which, a few short weeks ago, had all the makings of a title decider is now one which few Arsenal fans will face with much optimism. How quickly the winds can shift in football.

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Three-sy does it as Gilbert wins Liège-Bastogne-Liège

April 24, 2011 4 Comments

The irresistible Philippe Gilbert crowned himself King of the Classics as he rode a perfectly judged race to complete the triple crown of the 2011 Ardennes Classics. Having won Amstel Gold last Sunday and Flèche Wallonne on Wednesday, he outwitted everything the fraternal combination of Andy and Fränk Schleck could throw at him to take a surprisingly easy victory in the 97th running of Liège-Bastogne-Liège.

First run in 1892, Liège-Bastogne-Liège is the oldest of cycling’s Classics, and is traditionally a race dominated by Belgians – including five by the incomparable Eddy Merckx - although Gilbert’s victory here was the first by a ‘home’ rider since 1999. Even more fittingly, he comes from the small village of Remouchamps near the bottom of the Côte de la Redoute, one of the race’s key climbs, so this is very much his ‘local’ race.

It's as easy as one-two-three as Philippe Gilbert adds Liège-Bastogne-Liège to his Amstel Gold and Flèche Wallonne wins (image courtesy of Graham Watson)

The race route covers a 255.5km out-and-back loop starting in Liège and finishing in nearby Ans. The outward leg is a largely straight, flat blast, while the return leg is anything but level, with nine of the race’s ten climbs occurring in the final 100km, including the Côte de Stockeu (a 1.0 km climb with a dizzying average gradient of 12.2%) and then, in the final 35km, the three closing ascents of the Côte de la Redoute (2.0 km, 8.8%), Côte de la Roche aux Faucons (1.5 km, 9.5%) and Côte de Saint-Nicolas (1.2km, 8.3%). The summit of the Saint-Nicolas is located just 5.5km from the finish line, with the last 1.5km a steady incline which stretches already tired legs to their limit.

Ten riders escaped early on, building an advantage of nearly four minutes at Bastogne as Gilbert’s Omega Pharma-Lotto team worked hard at the front of the peloton to keep the gap under control. A few riders attempted solo attacks off the front of the peloton on the Stockeu climb, but the Schlecks’ Leopard-Trek team helped to keep everyone together. However, a subsequent attack on the Haute-Levée, combined with a few riders dropping off the initial breakaway, eventually resulted in a 13-man group forming at the front which pushed out a lead of 1:43 as they approached the Redoute, the eighth of ten climbs. Again Leopard-Trek came to the front to lead the chase, shaving a minute off the gap to the leaders as that group started to disintegrate on the climb.

The decisive attack, however, occurred on the penultimate ascent of the Faucons, as the Schleck brothers accelerated away from the front of the peloton. Only Gilbert was alert enough to go with them, as all the other favourites were left floundering in their wake, their potential threat nullified. Only defending champion Alexandre Vinokourov, who suffered a broken derailleur almost simultaneous to the attack at the front and had to change bikes, had any real excuse for missing out.

The trio quickly swallowed up the remnants of the breakaway group ahead of them, with only Greg Van Avermaet able to latch on as they whipped past. As they sped towards the final climb of the Saint-Nicolas, the quartet’s advantage continued to extend – 30 seconds, 40, then 50 – big enough to confirm the peloton as a non-factor in terms of contesting the win, but near enough to not allow the leaders to slacken their pace too much.

With Van Avermaet effectively a passenger at the back of the front group, Gilbert and both Schlecks maintained a decent but watchful tempo most of the way up the climb, with no one willing to make the first move. This was surprising given the brothers’ numerical advantage, and also the fact that every pedal stroke gave Van Avermaet, the best sprinter of the four, a growing glimmer of hope.

In the end it was Gilbert who made his move first, digging hard near the summit of the climb. It was a later and less savage acceleration than his ultimately unsuccessful atttack last year, but it was more than enough to shake off Van Avermaet immediately and, a short distance later Andy Schleck also started to lose touch. Once over the top, he did manage to regain touch with the lead pair, but it was a clear indication that he was only going to be of limited help to his brother.

Nonetheless, Fränk had the luxury of sitting back while Gilbert and his brother took turns at the front to maintain the buffer over the chasing pack. But even with that additional advantage, both Schlecks were powerless as Gilbert was able to time his effort on the long uphill finish, leaving his finishing kick until the final 150 metres and easing far enough clear that he was able to start celebrating 50 metres before the line.

Victory meant Gilbert completed a hat-trick of Ardennes Classics wins – a feat which has only been accomplished once before, in 2004 by the now banned Davide Rebellin. It rounds off an incredible fortnight in which he also won Flèche Brabançonne, meaning he has won the four most prominent Ardennes races, something which has never been done before.

For Gilbert, this win meant more to him than any of his others:

For me, it was an exceptional day. It was something I dreamed about and I was able to win. It’s simply something fantastic, one of the best moments of my sporting career.

And Andy Schleck graciously acknowledged that the best man had prevailed:

He was stronger than us today, there was nothing we could do. He was cool and collected. He’s classy.

However, although the Schlecks were outfought, out-thought and surprisingly passive in the closing kilometres, both will be happy with their form as they build towards July’s Tour de France. For Gilbert, however, his 2011 season has already exceeded even his own expectations. Four dominant wins in the Ardennes in two weeks – we may never see dominance such as this in the spring Classics season again. The man is a machine.

Result:

1. Philippe Gilbert (Omega Pharma-Lotto) 6:13:18

2. Fränk Schleck (Leopard-Trek) same time

3. Andy Schleck (Leopard-Trek) s/t

4. Roman Kreuziger (Astana) +0:24

5. Rigoberto Urán (Sky) s/t

6. Chris Sørensen (Saxo Bank-Sungard) s/t

7. Greg Van Avermaet (BMC) +0:27

8. Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas-Cannondale) +0:29

9. Björn Leukemans (Vacansoleil-DCM) + 0:39

10. Samuel Sánchez (Euskaltel-Euskadi) s/t

2011 ‘Five Monuments’ recaps:

Milan-San Remo

Tour of Flanders

Paris-Roubaix

2011 Ardennes Classics:

Amstel Gold

Flèche Wallonne

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Spoils shared, season spoiled as Arsenal let two-goal lead slip again

April 21, 2011 4 Comments

Tottenham 3 Arsenal 3

Van der Vaart 7, 70 pen, Huddlestone 44; Walcott 5, Nasri 12, van Persie 40

For the second time this season, Arsenal took a two-goal lead against Tottenham. And for the second time this season, they failed to convert that advantage into three points as Spurs recovered to earn a share of six goals and the points. It seems slightly churlish to point it out after such a thrilling match, but it was a result which ultimately did neither team much good. Arsenal slipped to third, behind Chelsea on goal difference and six points adrift of Manchester United, while Spurs are two points behind fourth-placed Manchester City.

Arsenal rested Jack Wilshere, who had looked weary in Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Liverpool, and dropped Emmanuel Eboué, the villain of the piece in that game, from the squad altogether. Alex Song and the fit again Bacary Sagna returned to the starting line-up.

Szczęsny

Sagna– Djourou– Koscielny – Clichy

Diaby– Song

Fàbregas

Walcott – van Persie – Nasri

Arsenal entered this game unbeaten in 15 league games, but having drawn four of their last five. At the Emirates in November, they had squandered a 2-0 half-time lead as Spurs scored three second half goals to win 3-2.

Walcott opened the scoring inside five minutes (image courtesy of arsenal.com)

A five-star first half

In a breathless first half played at a frenetic pace in a proper derby atmosphere, the two teams showcased everything that is both good and bad about them, combining fast, penetrative attacking play with frequent cases of the collywobbles at the back.

Barely four minutes had elapsed when Arsenal sliced the Spurs defence apart. Cesc Fàbregas wielded the scalpel with a weighted pass through the middle which Theo Walcott raced on to and applied a clinical finish past Heurelho Gomes.

The lead lasted barely two minutes. Vedran Ćorluka crossed from the right and found Rafael van der Vaart, who gave Wojciech Szczęsny no chance with a precise finish to even things up.

Nasri restored Arsenals lead (image courtesy of arsenal.com)

But Arsenal were undeterred. Robin van Persie tested Gomes with a fierce drive from an acute angle. Then Samir Nasri strode purposefully forward with the ball and fired in a shot from 22 yards which went through Michael Dawson‘s legs. Although Gomes was unsighted, the ball seemed to be close enough to him to deal with, but by the time he started to move the ball was already beyond him and nestling in the net. 12 minutes: 2-1.

There then followed a 20-minute spell with little in the way of chances but a great deal of industry accompanied by the odd over-enthusiastic tackle. Abou Diaby in particular was lucky to escape a caution for a nasty sliding tackle from behind on Luka Modrić. Walcott, played in by van Persie, dragged a shot inches wide. Modrić saw an effort beaten away by Szczęsny.

Van Persie scored for the sixth away game in succession (image courtesy of arsenal.com)

And then the game exploded back into life in the final five minutes of the half. Former Arsenal captain William Gallas unwisely tried to chest ball down in the box, Walcott seized on to it and dinked over a clever cross. Van Persie’s header was brilliantly saved by Gomes, but the Dutchman made no mistake with the rebound. It was the sixth consecutive away game in which van Persie had scored, tying Didier Drogba‘s Premier League record.

But again Arsenal conceded quickly, as Tom Huddlestone seized on a loose clearance to drill home a fine 25-yard half-volley through a crowd of bodies to halve the deficit at the break. For the second game in a row, White Hart Lane had witnessed five goals in the first half, although 3-2 probably flattered Spurs somewhat.

Arsenal capitulate once again

Harry Redknapp made two changes at half-time, taking off Ćorluka and the injured Gareth Bale and replacing them with Aaron Lennon and Younes Kaboul, and the arrival of the former for the largely ineffective PFA Player of the Year clearly unsettled the Arsenal defence, with Song being booked after bringing the England winger down.

Twice in the early minutes of the half Fàbregas charged forward menacingly at the heart of the Spurs back four, but without an end result. Then van Persie lashed a spectacular long-range volley past Gomes, but the flag was already up. Replays suggested the Arsenal man was probably level.

Szczęsny conceded the equalising penalty, but otherwise had a fine game (image courtesy of arsenal.com)

It was a pivotal moment. Walcott, racing free, hesitated when he should perhaps have shot, but Spurs increasingly assumed control of the game. Pressing high up the pitch to deny Arsenal’s midfield time and space, they gradually pinned the visitors back into their own half, seemingly unable to string three passes together.

An equaliser looked likely, with van der Vaart and Lennon looking the most likely sources. When it did arrive, it came as little surprise that both were directly involved. Lennon raced after a long ball and got there just ahead of Szczęsny as he charged out to meet him. Contact – a clear penalty. Van der Vaart sent the Polish keeper the wrong way from the spot. 3-3.

Tottenham shaded the final 20 minutes – they certainly had the better passages of possession – but both sides had their chances to seize all three points. Modrić, van der Vaart, Peter Crouch and substitute Sandro were all denied by Szczęsny. Fàbregas saw two efforts stopped by Gomes. In the end, a point each was about right. And it was probably just as well, as you wouldn’t trust either of these teams to defend the lead had they taken it in the closing minutes.

Arsenal have now won just one of their last eight games; Tottenham one in nine. Although both remain in contention for their respective objectives, it is hard to escape the feeling that the season is sliding away from both North London clubs.

Post-match reaction and analysis

Arsène Wenger was disappointed to have squandered the lead, blaming fatigue after Sunday’s game:

It’s disappointing because we had the lead and we were caught from being 3-1 ahead. The attitude was fantastic and we played the game we wanted to play. I feel we dropped physically in the second half, you could see that the Liverpool game had a bearing. Of course it was an exciting game where both teams could have won.

Despite dropping another two points, he argued the title race remains open:

Completely open. We have to get ready for the next game and fight as we do. This team has a remarkable attitude. Even if, at the moment, we are not rewarded by the number of points [we are getting]. We are remarkably consistent because it was a difficult game tonight, with an average performance we would not have come away with a point. We are on a 16-game unbeaten run but recently we haven’t got enough points because of too many draws. That’s what we want to turn around until the end of the season.

And he continued to defend his team’s character:

It is not all negative because, after what happened to us on Sunday, to recover and come back with such a spirit, I personally believe that this team has an outstanding personality. Not many teams would have survived what has happened to us recently.

There is an element of chicken-and-egg about Wenger’s last statement. While the team has not laid down and died – the first-half performance here was as exuberant as we have seen from them since New Year – the likelihood is a United or a Chelsea would simply not have allowed themselves to get into this position in the first place. Would either of those teams have lost the Carling Cup final the way Arsenal did? Or thrown away a 4-0 lead at Newcastle? Or been consumed by panic after scoring in the 98th minute? It seems unlikely. The easiest way to get out of trouble is not to get into it at all. The fact that Arsenal are trying manfully to dig their way out of a hole does not excuse the fact they should not have fallen into it.

The truth is that this was actually quite a good performance until Arsenal started to fade physically in the final half-hour. Tottenham’s home record – just one defeat in 16 this season – is formidable, and the verve with which Arsenal scored their first-half goals was something which had been lacking for several weeks. “Playing with the handbrake off”, as Wenger would call it.

Despite conceding the penalty – it happens – Szczęsny had an excellent game, charging off his line with authority and not being afraid of a collision if necessary (as Bale will attest). It could be argued that he cost Arsenal two points, but in reality his late saves secured one as Spurs poured forward in search of a winner. Sagna was outstanding in a defence which, individually, did little wrong and yet collectively conceded three goals. Many have questioned Fàbregas’s heart and leadership qualities this season, but they would be hard pressed to do so here, as the captain demonstrated great urgency both with and without the ball. Diaby and Song were not at their best, but Walcott and Nasri were a constant threat out wide and van Persie was desperately unlucky not to be flagged offside in ‘scoring’ what could have been the decisive fourth goal. (Although, given Arsenal’s inability to defend a lead, you just never know.)

Ultimately, Arsenal just appeared to run out of steam, unable to fight fire with fire as Spurs pressed aggressively throughout the second half. It was a by-product of having played a tough 102 minutes against Liverpool just three days earlier – Spurs had had the weekend off – but also a sequence of games since Christmas where they have never been able to ease to victory in matches and have had to fight tooth and nail for 90 minutes week in week out. That kind of effort eventually has to take its toll, and we saw the result of that here.

While it is difficult to be optimistic about the title race after having now dropped ten points in the last six games, the numbers tell a stark story. If Arsenal and Chelsea can both beat United then – all other things being equal – the three clubs will all be level on points. Of course, that’s a big if. And it also assumes Arsenal can at least match the other two in a closing schedule which also takes them to Bolton (this Sunday), Stoke and Fulham. But the hope, however unlikely, still remains – even if the majority of Arsenal fans are already looking beyond this season to the summer transfer window.

All the team can do now is take things one game at a time. While the fate of the Premier League depends on others, there are still 15 points left to play for. Barring a major collapse on United’s part, anything less than the full 15 simply will not do. Arsenal’s last five games – against a less challenging set of opponents – have netted just seven points. Therein lies the challenge, and the reason for Arsenal’s decline. If Arsenal had played more like they did in the first 40 minutes over the past two months, the Carling Cup would be in the cabinet and the Premier League trophy would be within touching distance. But they haven’t, and they aren’t.

Disappointing though it was to lose a two-goal lead, the title was not lost at White Hart Lane last night. However, it might just have been conceded there. It is difficult to escape the feeling that Arsenal have emerged from the last-chance saloon empty-handed one time too many.

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Unstoppable Gilbert in a class of his own at Flèche Wallonne

April 20, 2011 1 Comment

For 200 kilometres, the 2011 edition of Flèche Wallonne was, quite frankly, a dull affair – a far cry from the excitement we have been treated to so far during the spring Classics season. However, the race is 201 kilometres long, and any race with an uphill finish which features Philippe Gilbert at its denouement brings with it a guarantee of excitement. The Belgian rider powered away from the pack in the final 300 metres as if he had access to a different gear to claim his second Ardennes classic in the space of 72 hours, following last Sunday’s win at Amstel Gold. It gives him the opportunity to complete the hat-trick at Liège-Bastogne-Liège on Sunday.

Flèche Wallonne starts at Charleroi and finishes in Huy after three closing circuits, each of which concludes on top of the fabled Mur de Huy, a 1.3km, 9.3% beast whose steepest sections touch 19% gradient.

Although 2010 winner Cadel Evans was absent through injury, this year’s race did provide the first opportunity to see Andy Schleck ride head-to-head against Alberto Contador, who now leads his former team Saxo Bank-Sungard.

Gilbert waves to the crowd as he celebrates his second Ardennes Classic win in three days (image courtesy of Graham Watson)

On a glorious spring day, a four-man break went away right from the start as the peloton were content to run at their own pace and enjoy the sunshine. Belgian riders Preben Van Hecke (Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator) and Maxime Vantomme (Katusha) were joined by Matti Helminen (Landbouwkrediet) and Maciej Paterski (Liquigas-Cannondale), and the quartet built an advantage of over 17 minutes, eventually forcing Saxo Bank and Leopard-Trek to organise the chase in the peloton.

In the final 25km, several riders attempted to bridge the minute’s gap between the peloton and the disintegrating escape group, including Katusha‘s Alexandr Kolobnev, HTC-Highroad‘s Tejay Van Garderen, Sky‘s Thomas Lövkvist and Movistar‘s Vasil Kiryienka. The latter pair ended up alone at the front but with the peloton eager not to miss out on the finish they were easily reeled in with 8km remaining.

At this point Jérôme Pineau, hoping to rescue what has been a dismal season thus far for his Quick Step team, immediately counter-attacked off the front. He was followed by Vacansoleil‘s Marco Marcato and the pair plunged downhill towards Huy with a 20-second advantage as the peloton snaked out behind them, with some riders choosing to mount the pavement as themain contenders jockeyed for position towards the front of the pack.

The two leaders maintained a 14-second lead as they hit the lower slopes of the Mur de Huy for the third and final time and passed under the flamme rouge with 1km to go, but the gap was soon swallowed up as the leaders cranked up the pace behind them. Fränk Schleck and HTC’s Michael Albasini, winner of the mountains classification at the recent Tour of the Basque Country, led the way, with Gilbert, Rodríguez and Samuel Sánchez in close attendance as the favourites all kept a watchful eye on each other.

In the end it was Garmin-Cervélo‘s Christophe Le Mevel who lit the blue touch-paper, making a move off the front with around 500 metres remaining. Gilbert followed and waited patiently on his shoulder, biding his time before kicking round the outside of the Frenchman with 300 metres to go. He looked back and found everyone else huffing and puffing in his wake, allowing him to wave to the crowd and soft-pedal the final 50 metres to take an easy victory by three seconds.

Rodríguez was able to pull clear of Sánchez to claim the second step on the podium, while Alexandre Vinokourov headed a small group of four to claim fourth spot. Contador was just behind in 11th, with Andy Schleck down in 44th after he did not even attempt to contest the finish.

It hadn’t been a great race, but it was a great finish by the master of the uphill Classics who looks in unstoppable form right now. It would take a brave person to bet against him adding a first Liège-Bastogne-Liège triumph on Sunday.

The delighted winner was surprised by the margin and ease of his victory, having not always fared well on the Mur in the past:

It’s a huge pleasure, a bit of a surprise because I’ve suffered a lot in the past on the Mur de Huy. I had enough of an advantage to enjoy the end. It was something incredible today.

Gilbert is the first Belgian winner of Flèche Wallonne since Mario Aerts in 2002, and now has the chance to become the second man to complete the hat-trick of Ardennes Classics wins. Only Davide Rebellin (currently suspended for doping at the 2008 Olympics) has ever achieved this feat, in 2004.

Result:

1. Philippe Gilbert (Omega Pharma-Lotto) 4:54:57

2. Joaquim Rodríguez (Katusha) +0:03

3. Samuel Sánchez (Euskaltel-Euskadi) +0:05

4. Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana) +0:06

5. Igor Antón (Euskaltel-Euskadi) same time

6. Jelle Vanendert (Omega Pharma-Lotto) s/t

7. Fränk Schleck (Leopard-Trek) s/t

8. Daniel Moreno (Katusha) +0:09

9. Christophe Le Mevel (Garmin-Cervelo) +0:12

10. Paul Martens (Rabobank) s/t

2011 Ardennes Classics

Amstel Gold

Filed under Cycling, One-day races Tagged with , , , ,

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