After the match began.
The Partizan Belgrade players were very excited, immediately entering a high-intensity, high-tempo rhythm.
Facing the playing style of these fringe teams in Europe, Arsenal clearly had their own set of ideas for dealing with it.
First, keep control of the ball, constantly passing it back and forth in the midfield and defense lines.
Entice the Partizan Belgrade players into making ineffective runs, wearing down their stamina.
After all, when a person's adrenaline surges, their physical stamina will inevitably drain faster.
It was under this constant passing that the Partizan Belgrade players struggled to get a touch on the ball.
After running pointlessly for too long, no one was willing to run anymore.
Once the Partizan Belgrade players gradually recovered from their initial state of excitement, Arsenal launched a deadly strike.
In the 15th minute of the match.
After a simple one-two with Nasri in the midfield, Wilshere carried the ball and ran towards the right flank.
He threaded the ball into the open space on the right side of the attacking third, and the overlapping Sagna took the ball and cut inside towards the penalty area.
Facing Krstajić's defense, Sagna passed the ball to the arriving Arshavin.
Arshavin laid the ball back to Wilshere, then immediately made a forward run into the penalty area.
Wilshere didn't hesitate, playing a quick one-touch through ball; the ball went straight through Aleksandar's legs, and Arshavin, who had arrived in position, met the ball's trajectory and curled a shot with his left foot towards the goal.
Partizan Belgrade's goalkeeper Stojković dived to his right, his fingertips barely brushing the ball, but he couldn't prevent it from finding the back of the net.
"GOOOOOOOAL!!!"
"Number 23, Arshavin!!!"
"With an assist from Wilshere, Arshavin overlapped into the box and scored a goal. Arsenal currently leads 1:0."
After scoring, Arshavin ran to the sideline and performed his signature head tilt and shrug, looking extremely arrogant.
In the 33rd minute of the match.
An accidental handball by Clichy in the penalty area resulted in Partizan Belgrade being awarded a penalty.
"Sir, I didn't mean to!" Although Clichy vehemently protested, the Main Referee still awarded Partizan Belgrade a penalty.
Partizan Belgrade's main striker Léo stepped up to take the penalty, converting it cleanly to equalize the score at 1:1, bringing both teams back to square one.
As Fly's long-range shot went wide in the final moments of the first half, Partizan Belgrade ended the first half tied 1:1 with Arsenal.
In the locker room, Wenger didn't comment extensively on the first half.
Even when Nasri made a mistake, Arsène Wenger didn't dwell on it.
Instead, he told the players not to panic, to take their time.
Based on Arsène Wenger's demeanor, Fly guessed that the Professor was very confident about this match.
A draw at halftime was not something unacceptable.
Generally speaking, strong teams truly assert their dominance in the second half.
Especially in the last thirty minutes after the 65th minute.
Because by this time, the stamina of players from weaker teams who rely on sheer courage has largely been depleted.
At this point, even if they want to fight with an iron will, they are willing but unable.
After the second half began, Arsenal played their usual passing game to wear down Partizan Belgrade's stamina.
In the 56th minute of the match.
Taking advantage of a slight dip in the Partizan Belgrade players' stamina, Arsenal suddenly organized another attack.
During a forward dribble by Nasri, the ball was intercepted by Belgrade midfielder Ilić.
However, the ball was not controlled by the Belgrade player, but was immediately kicked by Rosicky towards the left flank.
The overlapping Clichy received the ball and played a short curved pass into the center of the penalty area, cutting through Partizan Belgrade's defense.
Fly's legs moved like Rockets, stopping the ball before Marko could reach it.
He immediately feigned a push to the left, fooling Marko's balance, then quickly pulled the ball back to the right, took a step with his left foot, and followed with a shot.
After realizing he had been tricked, Marko threw himself forward directly in front of Fly.
Facing Fly's shot, he instinctively slapped the ball with his left hand, pressing the ball Fly shot down with his palm.
"Beep----"
After the referee's whistle, Marko immediately realized he had just made a big mistake!
Before he could even get up to argue, the Main Referee immediately showed Marko a red card and awarded Arsenal a penalty.
"Oh, Marko has made a major error; he actually pressed down Fly's shot with his hand."
"Undoubtedly, this is a straight red card offense!"
"Because Fly's shot was a golden opportunity, and at the moment he completed the shooting action, he was in an uncontested state."
"The only opposing player he had to face was the goalkeeper."
"This highly probable goal-scoring opportunity was prevented by Marko using his hand, so a straight red is completely justified. The referee's decision was very decisive!"
After Arsenal was awarded the penalty, Fly confidently took the ball and walked to the penalty spot.
Because Fabregas had given up the penalty in the first Champions League match, the other Arsenal players didn't try to claim it.
After all, if the Arsenal 'Prince' wanted to take the penalty, even the captain didn't say anything, so it was better for the rest of the ordinary players not to interfere.
Wenger on the sideline didn't say anything either; Arsène Wenger didn't object to Fly wanting to take the penalty.
But the prerequisite was that Fly had to prove that his penalty conversion rate was high enough!
If his penalty conversion rate was indeed good, Wenger wouldn't mind letting Cesc Fàbregas give up the right to take penalties.
After all, the main reason why Fabregas, a midfielder, became Arsenal's primary penalty taker was that the penalty conversion rate of Arsenal's past strikers wasn't very good, which is why it fell to a midfielder to take them.
Originally, Wenger's preferred primary penalty taker was Van Persie.
Van Persie is a skilled shooter with a decent penalty conversion rate.
But Van Persie is constantly plagued by minor injuries.
Just over a month into the season, Van Persie was already on the injury list due to ligament damage in his right ankle.
According to the team doctor's examination, Van Persie would be out for at least three weeks.
This means he wouldn't be able to return until mid to late October.
Thinking of this, Wenger couldn't help but feel a headache.
What kind of 'glass' physiques are these, they all like to get injured one after another.
One Van Persie, one Diaby, one Vermaelen...
Plus a Wilshere who is suddenly not as 'glassy' this season.
Wenger suddenly felt that he had truly been patient in the past, still able to calmly give opportunities in such situations.
However, the good news was that Fly, on whom he placed high hopes, was an iron man.
Since the day he arrived at Arsenal, in three years, he hadn't suffered even a single minor injury!
Even the malicious foul by mamba last time only caused some pain at the time.
Subsequent examinations found nothing wrong.
Anyone who didn't know might think that Fly being stepped on by mamba's studs never happened at all.
Of course, if Wenger knew that in the original timeline, Van Persie's forced return to the starting lineup in the match against Blackburn Rovers led to a worsening of his injury and a direct five-month layoff, what would he think?
At least in this lifetime, with Fly available, Arsenal doesn't need Van Persie to rush back.
Van Persie thus avoided a major injury and can recover properly.
This might play a different role in Arsenal's development in the future.
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