For all the marginalisation of England’s domestic cup competitions thanks to the wealth and attention bestowed upon the Premier League and Champions League, there is not much as a neutral spectator to compare with watching one of football’s elite humbled by a far less celebrated foe.
After 120 minutes of compulsive action, and a nerve-inducing penalty shoot-out, Bradford City were deserved victors over Arsene Wenger’s increasingly directionless Arsenal. This wasn’t a ‘giant-killing’ in the traditional sense. The images that spring to mind when musing over similar past accomplishments feature muddy pitches, desperate backs to the wall defending and ramshackle, or at best rudimentary, surroundings.
On a freezing night in West Yorkshire, Bradford took on the Gunners in a modern, hugely impressive stadium, in front of their largest crowd – 23,971, since 1960. The Bantams faced a team containing a sprinkling of bona fide world class players, which should have possessed far too much for a side playing in the fourth tier of the English game.
Phil Parkinson’s outfit however, never appeared over-awed, instead stepping up to meet head on the biggest challenge any of the players will have met on a football pitch. Only the hardest of football souls – and Arsenal fans – would have wanted Bradford to be denied such a wonderful night after the alarming downward surge in the club’s fortunes since they were relegated from the top-flight in 2001, just two years on from reaching that pinnacle.
The one constant through that time at Valley Parade has been the loyal support offered by the locals. Helped by some imaginative pricing initiatives the fans keep coming back, and this season an average of 9,755 people have been passing through the gates to watch League Two football. In addition to the financial boost this captivating night will have yielded, and the consequent national spotlight and league cup semi-final place, the most desired legacy for those in charge of the Bantams prosperity will be that a significant proportion of the one-off attendees who were lucky enough to be present as Arsenal were vanquished will return for more.
For every winner there must be a loser. It is one of the great contradictions of the football follower that while seeking to share in Bradford’s joy a huge number will indulge in an enormous amount of schadenfreude at the expense of the Gunners, in particular the 4,500 who traipsed north on a bitter December evening. Few sympathetic thoughts will have turned to the individuals who arrived home in the small hours, with barely time to get comfortable in bed, before the alarm sounded to herald the dawn of a new working day.
None of those alarms will have been as shrill as the noises that must be prevalent in Wenger’s head. His admirable strategy of steady evolution, and avowed reluctance to invest the type of towering sums being spent by direct rivals, was exposed most cruelly throughout 120 minutes of embarrassment. Jack Wilshere’s performance during the latter stages of the first 90 was reminiscent of the best player in the school team buzzing all over the field in a desperate attempt to drag his inferior colleagues with him.
When Thomas Vermaelen headed an equaliser for the Londoners a sense of inevitably took over. After the restoration of parity Arsenal’s class would surely be too much for their deflated hosts. In fact, the extra-time and subsequent spot-kicks allowed Parkinson’s team to exhibit a wonderful character and spirit – and a certain degree of ability – in picking themselves up after what must have felt a crushing blow.
Most troubling for Wenger will be the deficiencies in his side that this display laid-bare. Vermaelen and Per Mertesacker were frequently unsettled by the combination of power and trickery supplied by Bradford’s front pairing of James Hanson and Nahki Wells. Kieran Gibbs is showing no sign of making the progress that was expected upon his emergence as Arsenal’s first-choice left-back, and Bacary Sagna’s attitude on the night couldn’t have contrasted more sharply with that of any of his hungry, industrious opponents.
Lets get over it pals,the lesson had been learned.love the Goners.