Table of Content
Although their opponents only had three shots on target, Arsenal rued not putting their chances away throughout the game, and left themselves with little hope of ending their trophy drought this season. Three days later, Arsenal resumed their Champions League campaign with a Round of 16 clash against Bayern Munich. In the first leg of a very challenging tie at the Emirates, they slumped to a 3–1 first-leg defeat, with Podolski scoring against his old club to give Arsenal a slight chance in the second leg. Needing to lift the fans, Arsenal played relegation-threatened Aston Villa in sight of a third-straight win in the Premier League. Arsenal did so with a brace from Santi Cazorla either side of an Andreas Weimann equaliser to stay four points adrift of North-London rivals Tottenham, who they played the following Sunday.
Inside the first 20 minutes, former Gunner Emmanuel Adebayor went from "hero to zero" as he gave Spurs an early lead before getting sent off nine minutes later. This allowed the Gunners a route back into the game, which eventually came from the unlikely source of Per Mertesacker with his first goal for the club inside 25 minutes. Arsenal then finished the half strongly with goals from Podolski and Giroud to give them a 3–1 lead. In the second half, Arsenal soaked up some early pressure from Spurs before Cazorla scored when the team were on a magnificent break. Despite Gareth Bale's goal in the 71st minute, Arsenal made their man-advantage count, as Walcott completed the rout three minutes from the end.
Closer Look | Arsenal 2014/15 Home Shirt
Chapman’s rationale for these innovations was he wanted to maximise player visibility, making it easier for his players to pick each other out on the field of play. 1 Steve Bould and Neil Banfield were confirmed as the assistant manager and first team coach respectively, following the retirement of Pat Rice, however Boro Primorac will continue in his position as first team coach. Estimated delivery dates - opens in a new window or tab include seller's handling time, origin ZIP Code, destination ZIP Code and time of acceptance and will depend on shipping service selected and receipt of cleared payment - opens in a new window or tab. Further details in the shirt include the outer back neck graphic which references the WM formation that Chapman pioneered so successfully, along with the inner back graphic which reads “Victoria, Concordia, Crescit” – the Club’s long-held motto since 1948 which translates as Victory through Harmony. Fly Emirates remain the principal sponsors of the new Arsenal home kit 12/13, which retains its white and red look.
Giroud was top scorer in the French league last season and Arsène Wenger stated that he expects him to flourish. He was primarily signed as a backup to golden boot winner Robin van Persie, in a bid to challenge this season's Premier League title and win the club's first trophy for seven years. Arsenal then travelled to the Far East, in a tour similar to that they embarked upon before their 2011–12 season. Arsenal started their tour by travelling to Malaysia to play a Malaysia League XI in Kuala Lumpur.
December
The Champions League also proved fruitless, as despite a valiant effort in Bavaria winning 2–0, they were ultimately knocked out on the away goals rule against Bayern Munich, thus extending their trophy drought for an eighth season. The highest scoring game in their season was the famous 7–5 win in the League Cup , where they came back from 4 goals down to beat Reading. Arsenal's highest scoring league win was the 7–3 win against Newcastle United in December; this was also their joint highest-scoring Premier League game of all time.
Two goals from Giroud, and one each from Walcott, Podolski and Cazorla left the Gunners just four points off their north London rivals Tottenham in fourth. Arsenal then progressed into the fifth round of the FA Cup in another thriller three days later, with a 3–2 victory over Brighton & Hove Albion in the Falmer Stadium. Giroud scored yet another brace, and Walcott scored once to increase his goal tally to 17 for the season, as Arsenal set up a tie against Championship side Blackburn Rovers in the next round. A deflected free kick from Lukas Podolski late in the game and a brilliant display from debutant Monreal left the Gunners in a promising position as teams around them dropped points. For the first time in six attempts, Arsenal climbed the table to fifth with a 1–0 win over Sunderland.
February
Michael Turner opened the scoring for Norwich from a set piece but a trio of goals was scored by Arteta, Giroud and Podolski, as the Gunners ran out 3–1 winners. Arsenal extended their losing streak at Old Trafford to six seasons, in a performance that left Arsenal sixth in the Premier League table, nine points off the top. Arsenal, frustratingly for everyone connected with the club, showed another stuttering performance against table-topping Schalke 04 in the Champions League. They created a 2–0 lead inside 26 minutes with goals against the run of play, from Theo Walcott (following a mix-up in defence) and Giroud, however, Schalke deservedly pegged Arsenal back with goals either side of half time, from Dutch striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Peruvian Jefferson Farfán, as the Gunners left Gelsenkirchen with a point.
Had Arsenal won the game, they would have gone top of the table, as Montpellier managed a draw against Schalke 04, but instead they finished second, setting up a tough test against Bayern Munich in the last-16. Away from the Premier League, Arsenal started their Champions League campaign with a group stage match against debutants Montpellier at the Stade de la Mosson. Arsenal's tough month continued, with arguable the toughest test that awaited them in the entire season – an away tie at champions Manchester City.
After an open-training session , Arsenal scored two late goals from German youngster Thomas Eisfeld and fellow reserve team player Chuks Aneke following Azmi Muslim's opener to win the match 2–1. From there, they travelled to China to play fellow Premier League team Manchester City in Beijing in the inaugural China Cup. With extra significance due to the 2012 Summer Olympics, the match was held at the 2008 Olympic Stadium, and similar to the Malaysia tour, Arsenal attempted to get closer to their Chinese fans. Arsenal ultimately lost 0–2, with two goals in the last five minutes of the first half by Pablo Zabaleta and Yaya Touré to lose the China Cup. Arsenal's fortunes turned however, in their next match against high-flying West Bromwich Albion, where a controversial penalty for a perceived dive from Cazorla gifted Arsenal the lead, when it was put down the centre of the goal by Arteta on 26 minutes.
Despite missing the resulting penalty, Džeko and James Milner gave City a comfortable 2–0 victory. The stadium rang out in a chorus of jeering at the final whistle, aimed at both the Gunners and the referee. Arsenal turned their fortunes, however, as they progressed 1–0 winners against Swansea City into the FA Cup fourth round.
The Premier League fixture list was announced on 18 June 2012 and it gave Arsenal a home game against Sunderland to open the new season. Both matches last season produced a 2–1 win in Arsenal's favour, which promised an entertaining opening match for the club. Although Arsenal had the better of the chances, they played out a 0–0 draw with the north-eastern club.
Shortly after, Arsenal announced that an agreement had been reached with Barcelona for the sale of Alex Song, and two days later, on 20 August 2012, Arsenal announced that he had indeed been sold. Meanwhile, in contrast to last season, Arsenal did not have any other commitments in August apart from competing in the Premier League, with no English contingent participating in the play-off round of the Champions League. This therefore allowed Arsenal ample time to prepare for their next test at the Britannia Stadium in their second game against Stoke City, however it ended as a second successive 0–0 draw, and although their previous defensive frailties were not present throughout August, a goalless month was a cause for concern. Arsenal had no disciplinary issues in their opening two games, which epitomised the controlled, albeit unexciting, start to the season. Arsenal entered a crucial period of the season with a game against newly relegated Queens Park Rangers, as Tottenham and Chelsea would play their game in hand against each other, leaving a straight battle to the top four Champions League qualification spots. Walcott again got the Gunners off to the perfect start with the fastest goal in the Premier League season so far, as well as the 12th fastest goal in Premier League history, after he put the Gunners ahead after 20 seconds.
Arsenal had plenty of chances throughout the first half and parts of the second, and Sunderland had the chance to equalise in the second-half, but it was Cazorla's ninth goal of the season that was the difference of the two teams. Shortly thereafter, Arsenal announced the loan departure of left-back André Santos to Brazilian club Grêmio until the end of the season. This came after the signing of Spanish international Monreal pushed Santos further down the pecking order.
They were then going to travel to Nigeria to play the Nigeria national team in their first visit to Africa since visiting South Africa in 1993, however this was later postponed till summer 2013 based on concerns with the host city. Instead, the club sent three first-team players on 28 July 2012 to engage with supporters in the region. The standout feature of the new Arsenal home kit is the blue details on the shirt sleeves, neckline and socks. These details complement the clean and refined look that has characterised Arsenal home kits for decades, a look that is instantly recognisable by the shirt s block red body and white sleeves. Arsenal manager between 1925 and 1934, his guidance took the Club to three league titles and an FA cup victory during that time. Chapman was the man who innovated the white sleeves on Arsenal's previously all-red kit in the 1930s and won three league titles as well as an FA Cup while he was with Arsenal.
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