Blackburn Rovers ... 0 Arsenal ... 2: Alex Ferguson's mind games are working. Arsene Wenger has been infiltrated by self-doubt and his players have been struck down by such bad nerves that the football resembles a balloon when they are trying to control it and a medicine ball when attempting to make a pass. From Daniel Taylor at Ewood Park
Well, maybe not. In fact, definitely not. Ferguson's accusations of braggadocio may have succeeded in irritating a few people at Highbury but it is too simplistic to attribute Arsenal's worst performance of the season to the mischievous remarks of football's most notorious stirrer.
Wenger was bemused by the suggestion his players might be afflicted by what a golfer would call the yips. "We will still do it" were his last words before leaving Ewood. "It's still ours to win," said Wenger, but their lead in the Premiership has been trimmed from eight points to two in 10 days and the impetus is with Manchester United.
In the Champions League, meanwhile, Arsenal need a draw in Valencia on Wednesday to reach the quarter-finals and the news Patrick Vieira may return from injury is tempered by Martin Keown joining David Seaman, Ashley Cole and Sol Campbell among their absentees.
Once Keown had departed with a strained hamstring, Pascal Cygan and Gilberto Silva formed a defensive pairing so flimsy that Valencia's representatives would have left Ewood with soaring levels of optimism.
To pin this success entirely on Blackburn's perspiration triumphing over Arsenal's pirouettes would do a disservice to the aesthetic members of Graeme Souness's side, players such as Damien Duff and Keith Gillespie. But more than anything it was the indefatigability of Gary Flitcroft and Tugay Kerimoglu in midfield which instigated this win.
"When you're up against Henry or Pires or Bergkamp," said Souness, "you can end up being embarrassed and the whole country watching it on Saturday night. Everyone wanted to make sure there was no way that would happen to them."
It is this sleeves-up mentality which Souness was trying to drum into Andy Cole when he accused him of desultory efforts in training on Friday, which led to the striker leaving in a huff and subsequently being dropped from the first-team squad.
Blackburn, courtesy of Duff's right-foot volley and a classy finish from Tugay early in the second half, have already reached the same points total as last season and have realistic aspirations of concluding a satisfying season by qualifying for the UEFA Cup for the second successive year.
Guardian Service
BLACKBURN ROVERS: Friedel, Taylor, Berg, Short, Gresko, Gillespie, Flitcroft, Tugay, Duff (Johansson 69), Sukur, Yorke (Gallagher 78). Subs Not Used: Grabbi, Douglas, Kelly. Booked: Duff, Tugay, Flitcroft, Sukur. Goals: Duff 22, Tugay 52.
ARSENAL: Taylor, Lauren, Keown (Silva 18), Cygan, van Bronckhorst, Pires (Wiltord 69), Parlour, Edu (Jeffers 69), Ljungberg, Bergkamp, Henry. Subs Not Used: Toure, Warmuz. Booked: Parlour, van Bronckhorst.
Referee: S Bennett (Kent).
