Match report – By the numbers – Player ratings – Video

Normally after a match there’s plenty to write about in the blog the next day, but I don’t think today would be far from being summed up in bullet points:

• Arsenal were unchanged
• Aaron Ramsey scored in the 12th minute
• Burnley pressed like pressing things for the whole 90 minutes
• Arsenal controlled the ball for the most part but struggled to make chances

And that’s kind of it. A very welcome three points, our eighth win in a row, and there’s not a whole lot more you can say about it. Performance wise it was far from the throbbing shafting we gave Liverpool, but then when you’re playing a team scrapping for their lives then it’s unlikely to be easy.

Burnley committed lots of little fouls which Mike Dean, for the most part, rightly awarded as free kicks to us. In the first half their fans howled with outrage every time it happened, aghast that one of their men might be considered so unsporting. It rose to a crescendo towards the end of the half, but when it continued throughout the game they just kind of gave up – like a kid denying he’s eaten all the sweets as he wipes chocolate and jam from around his mouth.

Our best player was Francis Coquelin, whose performance was a masterclass of interceptions, making 11 in all as Burnley tried to play through our midfield. He drew post-match praise from Arsene Wenger who said:

He’s shown his individual quality winning the ball and passing it quickly, and he’s very strong in the challenges. He also contributes to the balance of the team and that’s very difficult to measure. You know that the balance of the team sometimes depends on one player who has some characteristics that the others don’t. He looks like he has hugely contributed to that.

From an attacking point of view we struggled to create, in part to Burnley’s dogged resistance. Defensively we were pretty sound with Ospina making a couple of decent saves, and overall it was a game that never looked in any real danger despite the precarious nature of the 1-0 scoreline.

That we made our first substitution in the 81st minute tells you the manager was happy enough with how the players out there were doing their jobs – although I would have been down with a bit of Rosicky earlier in the second half. It felt like we needed somebody who could burst between the lines a bit, but they ended up sitting so deep when we had it that I understand why that didn’t happen.

Afterwards, the manager paid tribute to the home side’s display:

I’m pleased with the performance because it was a more fighting performance than a fluent performance. Many people question us on that side but I would first say that I’m surprised by the quality of Burnley. It would be a shame if they went down because they are fantastically well organised, they press very well, they have a great solidarity, they are very fit and I understand now why they took points from the big teams here.

And his own defence:

There were periods in the game where we need to be tight, well organised and calm at the back, and I think our defenders and goalkeeper deserve credit.

And so we now sit in 2nd place, 4 points away from Chelsea (who have two games in hand and will beat QPR easily today), but 4 clear of Man Utd and 5 of Man City who meet today at Old Trafford. A draw, and a genuine flurry of red cards, in that game would do us nicely.

It’s nice to have done our job and to be able to sit and watch with the points on the board. It wasn’t a win that will be remembered through the ages, but one that now adds to a fantastic run of form and it’s very enjoyable to be in the midst of it.

Right, that’s that. Back tomorrow with more and James and I will be here with an Arsecast Extra for you too. Until then, have a good Sunday.