"Fabiański! Don't play with fire!" Letkinson shouted from the stands, looking both worried and slightly ridiculous.
Faced with Luton's striker Vardy charging at him, Fabiański tried to smash a clearance upfield — but he mistimed it! Vardy, alert and aggressive, stabbed his foot out and managed to block it!
"The goalkeeper needs to play it safe!" Mosen said anxiously from the commentary box.
Even Arsène Wenger, standing by the dugout, was visibly startled. His heart only settled when he saw Vardy's deflection skim the outside of the post and roll out for a goal kick. Wenger had been uneasy about starting Fabiański — the Polish keeper's lack of big-match experience was a risk. And goalkeeping, after all, was the cornerstone of any solid defense. That rash decision to delay clearing the ball nearly proved disastrous.
On the other side, Luton's manager Ethan had already sprinted down the touchline, half-ready to celebrate what he thought would be a dream start. But he had to stop in his tracks, arms outstretched in disbelief as he watched the ball drift wide of the target.
If they had gone ahead so early, Luton would have seized all the momentum. Ethan could only shake his head and share a regretful look with his assistant John. Even Vardy himself looked momentarily stunned — he hadn't expected Fabiański's hesitation, and he couldn't adjust quickly enough to capitalize fully.
Meanwhile, Fabiański's heart was hammering in his chest. Only when he saw the ball thud into the advertising boards behind the goal did he breathe a sigh of relief.
Since the game had only just begun, many viewers at home missed the chaos live — but fortunately, instant replay allowed them to see just how close Arsenal had come to a nightmare start.
Arsenal restarted with a goal kick. Van Persie dropped deep to receive the ball, then laid it back to midfielder Cesc Fàbregas.
Luton's players immediately sprang into action. As Fàbregas received the ball, N'Golo Kanté rushed in, cutting off the forward passing lanes. Fàbregas, seeing no safe options, calmly played it back to Kolo Touré.
But by now, Luton's front line had surged across the halfway line.
Lewis Emanuel pushed forward from the left, Kevin Keane pressed from the right, Vardy lurked centrally, and Hasan Ali — usually a defensive midfielder — was charging high up the pitch!
Touré picked up the ball — only to find Vardy already bearing down on him. Touré stayed composed; he glanced sideways to check for his center-back partner Silvestre.
But what he saw made his blood run cold: a blur of blue — Hasan Ali! Somehow the Luton midfielder had raced all the way forward and was now pressing Silvestre tight!
Wasn't he supposed to be sitting deep? How had he appeared so high up so quickly?
Wenger, from the bench, had expected Luton to play a conventional single striker setup. He hadn't anticipated their midfielders pushing so aggressively onto Arsenal's backline. Touré didn't have time to think about it — Vardy was breathing down his neck, and a pass to Silvestre was out of the question.
If Arsenal's regular No.1, Almunia, had been in goal, Touré might have risked a calm backpass. But with the inexperienced Fabiański behind him — and so close — he didn't dare.
Instead, Touré shifted the ball sideways to right-back Emmanuel Eboué.
Eboué had tracked back to offer an outlet, but he received the ball with his back to play — and Lewis Emanuel was already on him like a shadow. Without a clear view behind him, and under pressure, Eboué didn't dare attempt a risky turn or a cross-field pass.
Instinctively, Eboué decided to play it safe: he would thump it out for a throw if needed. But just as he prepared to hoof it, Fabiański called out, offering himself for a simple backpass.
Relieved, Eboué slid the ball back toward his goalkeeper.
But the moment the ball left his foot — Vardy sprang into action!
He surged forward, chasing the pass!
"Be careful!" Eboué cried out, realizing too late that he had invited danger.
Fabiański froze for a split-second. He had planned to calmly control the ball and distribute it wide — he had already spotted Gibbs open on the left flank. But now Vardy was closing in at full sprint!
At that moment, Vardy rushed up, and Fabianski seemed to have only one option left: a big clearance!
If this were the Premier League and he were facing a top-flight opponent, Fabianski would definitely have gone for the safe option.
But when he glanced at Vardy's face—still somewhat unfamiliar to him—he hesitated. Although he knew Vardy was regarded as the best striker in the Championship, Fabianski still trusted his own technical ability more. He decided to fake a clearance and instead control the ball, shift it onto his left foot, and pass it out to Gibbs on the flank.
Fabianski shaped up for a big kick... then suddenly dragged the ball back with his right foot.
However, Vardy didn't bite on the feint. He gambled—again—that Fabianski might try something risky inside the box. The odds were low, but Vardy was the kind of player who would go all in even if there was only a 0.1% chance.
And this time, his gamble paid off!
Fabianski did try to play short inside the box!
Vardy stretched out his right foot, poked the ball away, and it rolled dangerously across the six-yard box!
Luckily for Arsenal, it wasn't immediately turned into a goal...
"Just clear the ball safely!!!" roared Eboué in shock, after seeing Fabianski almost cost them a goal.
Fabianski didn't dare to argue. He pretended not to hear, quickly retrieved the ball, and prepared to take a goal kick.
Although it was Vardy who created the danger, Wenger's eyes were elsewhere—locked onto Hassan Ali.
"Are we sure about the scouting report?!" Wenger turned and asked his assistant. "That kid's really a defensive midfielder?"
Les nodded firmly. "I've watched Luton's matches a few times. Hassan Ali definitely plays as a defensive midfielder."
Wenger knew that already—but he still couldn't quite wrap his head around why Ethan would deploy a midfielder just behind the striker. Did Hassan Ali possess some hidden attacking talent?
From Wenger's perspective, the danger Arsenal had just faced stemmed largely from their failure to account for Hassan Ali. Arsenal had assumed Luton were playing with just a lone striker. That allowed their two centre-backs to spread out, each having more space on the ball. But Hassan Ali's sudden pressure caught Kolo Touré off guard, creating the chaos that nearly cost them.
As the match resumed, Wenger observed carefully. Hassan Ali really was playing just behind Vardy—not as a second striker, but as an aggressive, high-pressing interceptor, willing to burn his energy for the team.
With Hassan Ali harrying alongside Vardy, Drinkwater, and the others, Arsenal's defenders struggled to find clean forward passes. Their buildup was disrupted; panic began to creep in.
Their clearances became less composed—either Luton would quickly reclaim possession, or even if Adebayor dropped deep to receive, he would immediately find himself swarmed by Luton's relentless midfielders.
Kanté had already registered two key interceptions.
Arsenal's usual attacking rhythm—patiently building from the back through the centre-backs, full-backs pushing into midfield, and passing through the thirds to generate threats—was being strangled by Luton's pressure.
For now, Arsenal couldn't create any real danger up front.
Still, Wenger wasn't worried.
Football is a ninety-minute game, and Wenger had faith that his players had the quality and composure to eventually break through.