I am perplexed, after last weeks draw with Norwich several fans came onto this blog to slam Szczesny for his performance during the game. Whilst I admit it was not his best game I was shocked at the tone of some of the criticism:
Szczesny is learning on the job and cost us valuable points with his inexperience
Do you know what, we are pointing finger at everybody, but the guy that did lose us the game, ie Mr Bloody Szczesny. I am sorry GiE, but he did, he was awful. If we had a better goalie, we would have won the game 3:0.
Isn’t anyone going to mention the failures of our noisy overrated goalkeeper. Positioning is awful ,and he shares responsibility for at least four defeats,inc Totts away and Swansea..
And I’m sure if I looked elsewhere I could find many more examples, I really don’t want to do that to my blood pressure though as Arsenal results are already pushing my heart to previously unknown limits of endurance.
I am well aware that Arsenal are in the results business and that some fans feel we should not be the club which suffers when our youngsters make mistakes and would prefer that our young talent “made mistakes at other clubs” to enable them to learn before the big time. Unfortunately that is not always possible, playing for Brentford in the 3rd division, or Bolton in the Premier League these players will never experience the pressure that they will endure at Arsenal.
The last quote above states that Szczesny has been responsible for a number of defeats (at least four) yet only goes on to mention Spuds away and Swansea away and runs out of steam if it was at least four defeats surely a maximum of 20 letters wasn’t too much to ask to complete the evidence.
I guess I can see how some could blame Szczesny for the goal against Spuds, although in the last two years with the modern football we have seen the best keepers befuddled by the unpredictability of the beach balls football is played with today. The Swansea game he got his angles wrong for the last goal as he did against Norwich on Saturday. In both situations he was left between a rock and a hard place by an AWOL defence, and his inexperience was highlighted as he got caught coming for the ball and then stopping. As a keeper once your mind is made up to go for the ball there can be no second thoughts, sometimes you are made to look a clown (witness Almunia on far too many occasions) and sometimes you are a hero, by starting and stopping you leave yourself in a difficult place of trying to recover your angles and getting set for the shot.
However despite these errors I think our young Pole has been crucial to us winning games this season more often than he has been responsible for defeats. I was hoping to get videos but YouTube has some vicious copyright adherence policy so unfortunately you will have to settle with BBC match reports, I always find for saves to be mentioned in match reports, they have to be crucial or outstanding. After the £20million penalty save against Udinese we went to Old Toilet and got stuffed, then our winning streak started in the Premier League, here are some excerpts:
Swansea H 1-0: Kemy Agustien’s cross found Graham, only for Szczesny to produce a brilliant low reaction save to stop what looked a certain Swansea goal. (Score at the time 0-0)
Bolton H 3-0: Arsenal came into the match under severe pressure and nerves were palpable early on as Pratley was brilliantly denied by Szczesny (Score 0-0)
Sunderland H 2-1: Sunderland who could have led at the break but for a brilliant save from Szczesny as he kept out Lee Cattermole’s close-range header. (Score 1-1)
QPR H 1-0: Taking the lead seemed to fill Arsenal with nerves and Wojciech Szczesny had to save well from Adel Taarabt (Score 1-0)
Bolton A 0-0: N’Gog got in front of Laurent Koscielny and forced a close-range save from Szczesny (Score 0-0)
Sunderland A 2-1: Arsenal were also indebted to Szczesny who made a couple of good saves from Craig Gardner shots (Score 0-0 for both)
Liverpool A 2-1: Kuyt was given responsibility from the spot but could not beat the Polish keeper, who sprang to his right to keep out the penalty and recovered to push away Kuyt’s follow-up too. (Score 0-0)
Corner taken by Stewart Downing, fantastic save by Wojciech Szczesny (Score 0-0)
Another neat build-up ended with Szczesny saving Henderson’s low shot (Score 1-1)
Wolves A 3-0: Yet Connor’s side improved after the break as Doyle and substitute Nenad Milijas were denied by brilliant Szczesny saves. (Score 2-0)
So on the basis of scores at the time of these important saves Szczesny earned us at least 12 points, probably more considering the state of the teams confidence at these times. He has been an integral part of the Arsenal comeback story this season, and concerns over one performance against Norwich are overemphasised because of the pressure on that result, I would say to those doubters, without Szczesny we would not even be in this position right now.
I will leave you with two videos, one highlights of a game in which Oliver Khan was moved to say “Tonight there was only one world-class player – Szczesny.” The German team that night contained Mertesacker, Podolski, Klose, Lahm, Gotze. So to say it is high praise is an understatement, but it is evidence of what the young man is capable of and he is just turned 22, and he is the future legend (the second video explains why)
(The idea for this post came before I had heard that Szczesny is a doubt for Sundays game, Squeaky Bum Sunday (copyright GliC) just got a whole lot squeakier.)
Written by Gooner In Exile
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[…] Szczesny: Future Legend or Egotistical Flapper? […]
To those who criticised Szczeny, they can just fuck off. Many complain about some players not being good enough to wear the shirt, well some of these fans are not good enough to support The Arsenal. These fans are so fickle. They expect perfect performances week in week out, well its not going to happen, its football. These so called fans should just get lost.
Some will come out with highest tickets prices etc. well thats down to the board, not the players.
@ GiE
absolutely brilliant post. Szczesny is not faultless by any means, but he is fantastic keeper. Which says a lot considering his age and how far off his prime he is. The 2nd and 3rd against Norwich were average but i’m sure he’s the first person to acknowledge that. He will learn from it and be better for it!
After seeing Almunia in goals for so long, szczesny is a god sent! I would rather have him in goals and playing for Arsenal than any other keeper in the world. That last clip gave me goosebumps, it’s great to see players show love to the crowd like that (take note Song!)
He was immense against Liverpool…how quickly some forget!
Szczesny = Future Legend
spot on mate
Nice one GIE and you more than anyone on here knows about goal keepers.
I have just seen the opta stats and our pole in goal is third this season to joe hart with 13 clean sheets. He is never fazed, but he needs to work on his distribution especially his kicking.
They just said onSky that this season that 67% of direct shots have been saved in the PL, the best ever.
Red Arse, yes you did misunderstand me.I am just a man of simple words 🙂
Great Post.
Totally agree.
We have a truely talented young goalkeeper, who will, hopefully, be between our sticks for a long long time.
Nobody is above criticism, but to pick holes in Szczesny for a couple of mistakes, is a bit unfair given what was happening in front of him at the time…
To me modern Goalkeeping has changed.
When I was growing up I idolised David Seaman because he was almost nerveless, cool and a giant and he would still be a great keeper today, it’s just that they don’t make goalkeepers like that anymore.
The modern Arsenal goalkeeper has a hard job and here is a few reasons why;
1) His defence hold a suicidal high line.
2) The midfield get no pressure on the ball as none of them defend properly.(Song included unless scouts are watching)
3) the midfield don’t track runs, look at the first and third goals against Norwich.
4) he doesn’t have Steve Bould and Tony Adams. He has two very good centre back the just scrap 6ft.
Like all of Arsenal’s defensive options he survives on individual brilliance because our collective defending is a shambles.
I isn’t can’t defend, it radiates through the team the midfield do get in the right position. Song constantly gives away free kicks by being the wrong side of the man he is marking, Ramsey hasn’t tracked a run all season. This forces the defence to press and the shouldnt be. They should be holding a position or else runners get in behind.
The teams setup is Gung ho and the will ocassionally mean that a good player has a bad game and when they do they are cometely exposed.
They need to be more compact and that has to come from the bench.
All of those goals last Saturday were bad for the keeper but an organised team wouldn’t have let it get that far.
Morning all, thanks for the feedback so far.
Interesting stat Kelsey, apparently we have conceded 10 shots per game this season, so as we have conceded only 1.2 goals per game so far in the PL my assumption is he is doing alright.
Arsenalista your last para is spot on mate.
Reckon everyone is off digging their bunkers for SBS
The difference between a good goalkeeper and a truly great one is about ten points a season, so naturally I’m hoping that my Polish compatriot will become a great keeper for Arsenal. However, he is not there yet because there are too many deficiencies in his game. He is a very good shot stopper but his judgement, when to come out and when to stay , hasn’t been spot on. His kicking game and ball distribution needs improving as well and he needs to be more physical when dealing with balls in the air. Having said that he is definitely an asset rather than liability for Arsenal , although his dip in form comes at a inopportune time for club and country.
Well said Tom. I think a lot of that stuff comes with experience. He is beginning to relish the physical challenge of coming from crosses, smashed through Koz the other week, which is good to see….you’re not doing your job as a goalie if you haven’t knocked out at least one of your own defenders a season.
Well said Jamie. Joe Hart appears better because he has two defensive midfielders protecting his back four, and defensively they are more organised.
nice post, i agree he is our best keeper and has save us so many times,
Another major factor is having a regular and consistent back 4 who develop an understanding with each other and the keeper. We have had 27 different combinations in defence this season.
Unfortunately Fabianski may have quicker reactions but IMO his nerve has gone after that CL away game two seasons ago.
i have often stated that a title winning defence is built on a solid defence unless you have the calibre of player that we had during the invinsible era.
So, Wenger must adapt his tactics and strategy next season.
Kelsey there’s something I don’t like about Fabs catching style he is very jumpy/snatchy and i think it will lead to drops. I think it’s why I like Szczesny he is more like Seaman in that respect. But I think his 1 on 1 is better than Seaman (when he gets the decision right). There’s also a lot of Bob Wilson in the way he puts his head and arms in first when smothering the ball.
Afternoon all, Good article GIE thank you: Life is tough for keepers their mistakes tend to lead to goals, where as keepers often sweep up for outfield players and mask their cock ups. Chesney has had his moments but by and large has done ok.
For all of you who suffer from pre match nerves and lack of confidence. A little glass half full fact for you. It is an acknowledged fact that bookies are seldom wrong and Arsenal are quoted at 66/1 against spuds 8/1 this morning.
So 3rd place it is then no danger. 🙂
i would swap anyone for szczesny, he a great goalie, of course everyone make mistakes but hes soo young, 2nd best goalie in league this season, he just needs to improve 2 things, stop runnign off line when defender is in control so ball doesnt loop over you and run across line and dive quicker on freekicks
Great article GiE,
Unfortunately a large proportion of fans only care about the last performance and the next. This will be highlighted on Sunday when our whole season will be judged on a 90 minute performance when we are lacking form and some of our better players, rather than the 37 performances before it.
By Henry Winter
11:00PM BST 11 May 2012
It was before kick-off against Manchester United on Jan 22 at the Emirates, and Henry knew the world would be judging this precocious attacking midfielder.
“It was really my first start in a massive game,’’ recalled Oxlade-Chamberlain. “Just before we were walking out to the tunnel, Thierry put me in a headlock and whispered in my ear: ‘I’ve been watching you in training. You have a bit extra, so try to run at people. Don’t waste today. Take people on, show the world what you can do, work hard, work back.’ That gave me massive confidence.”
Arsenal lost 2-1 but Oxlade-Chamberlain shone. “Thierry took me to one side after the game, with a big smile, and said: ‘Well done. That’s what I was talking about.’ Growing up, Thierry was my hero. He used to try stuff and pull it off, fantastic stuff. I remember that goal he scored against Tottenham in 2002, ran though the whole team.
“When he came back to Arsenal, I was a bit shy and nervous for the first two weeks. He was sat two spots away, with Theo Walcott in the middle. It was surreal. After two or three weeks, I realised he was a human being, no different to me or anyone else, a nice guy. The main thing I learnt from him was his will to win. I was sat on the bench with him and he was shouting away. He’s been there, done everything, so for him to come back to Arsenal, where he’s already a legend, and still want to win shows what makes him such a good player.” They aim to mould good people as well as good players at Arsenal.
Resplendent in black tie, Oxlade-Chamberlain was talking at the Emirates on Thursday before attending Arsenal’s charity ball fund-raiser for their foundation and for Save the Children. Arsenal have long had a benevolent tendency, stretching back a century when they staged benefit matches for destitute families who lost loved ones in the sinking of the Titanic.
“They do everything here with a touch of class, from the way we try and play football to off the pitch,’’ Oxlade-Chamberlain said. “They are always doing events, visiting schools, charities. It’s the Arsenal ethos, helping others and being friendly. Whenever we have guests in to watch training, Arsène Wenger steps aside from the session, makes the effort to go over and stands there for half an hour chatting. Whenever anyone visits the training ground, all the boys make sure they go up to the guest, shake hands, introduce themselves. The same with fans if they come in the players’ lounge. I get on really well with the fans at Arsenal. It’s not hard to keep my feet on the ground at a place like Arsenal.
“I’m only 18, playing with world-class players who always remind me to keep working hard. Robin van Persie is very similar to Thierry. If we win and he’s played well, he’s never really happy with himself if he hasn’t scored. He always wants to score and to do better. That’s what makes him the best striker in the world. His ability on the ball is special.
“He’s very vocal off the pitch. The other day he pulled me aside and said: ‘Keep being patient, keep working hard, keep learning off all the boys and your time will come. When it does make sure you grab, it with two hands.’ That’s inspiration. I remember when he first came to Arsenal, he was in the team with Thierry and Dennis Bergkamp, you could see he was an unbelievable player but never the main man. He’s worked up and he’s the main man.
“Thomas Vermaelen is another really good character, a leader, another winner, always trains 110 per cent. I look up to Jack Wilshere. I watched him on Match of the Day last season and in the Champions League. For someone so young, he plays with so much maturity and his technical ability is unbelievable. He’s already world-class. He’s a very confident lad and at the same time quite quiet and humble.
“I look up to Theo Walcott. He’s a good role model, very focused, very humble, a good guy who helps me out a lot. Theo has a big part in the iPod in the dressing room. Wojciech Szczesny is the loudest. Definitely. Then Emmanuel Frimpong. Those two are never quiet. Alex Song is a massive character in the dressing room, singing and dancing, Bacary Sagna as well. They dance to any music. African music, dance music.
“I do a lot of the music. I’ve had to adapt my playlist because I had a few complaints from Robin and Vermaelen. They don’t like my R’n’B too much. They like more European style of music. The last song before we go out for the game is Ya Baby by Play & Win. Bacary introduced it. It’s a dance tune and everyone seems to like it.
“The manager is a very good communicator. If we’ve had a bad game or bad performance, and he can see everyone is down, he will leave it for the next day. Then he’ll go through it in depth. If he raises his voice, he picks his moment to get the right reaction out of the players.”
Good mentors guide Oxlade-Chamberlain from Wenger at Arsenal to the men overseeing his business affairs, Rob Segal and Aidy Ward at Impact Sports Management, to most significantly mother Wendy and father Mark, the former England winger. “I’ve seen a few videos of him but the quality isn’t as good as it is now.’’ Oxlade-Chamberlain smiled. “People said he was quite good. He tells me he was. Dad’s a friend. He was my under-11 coach at Southampton. We were playing at Tottenham once and he dragged me off because I wasn’t doing something right. I was crying on the sidelines. He wasn’t happy. He said: ‘You won’t be doing that again.’ And he was right.’
“He’s the one person whose opinion I really trust. He’s never been one of those dads to big me up. He’d say to me: ‘If you believe in yourself and work hard I believe you’ll get there and be very good.’ At Southampton I nearly got released and had two months to prove myself. Six months later I was in the first team.
“My mum’s a back-care specialist. She met my dad when she was doing physio at Port Vale when he was there. She’s overprotective at times. If I’ve ever got a bad knee, she’s double-checking. My mum always encouraged me to do my schoolwork. I did all my GCSEs, I got three Cs, five Bs, two As, and an A* – in PE! I missed some schoolwork once because of football. The teacher said: ‘Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Hardly anyone makes it.’ All my mates told her: ‘He’s going to make it.’
“My mates used to try to wind me up for not coming out to parties, saying: “What’s wrong with you? You’re boring.’ But they respected I had to make sacrifices. My best friend Matt lives with me; he goes to Goldsmiths studying media. It’s good to have him round, get a few tips.”
This member of the media offered Oxlade-Chamberlain a tip. Make sure you shake Roy Hodgson’s hand after Arsenal’s game at West Brom. “I will do,’’ he grinned. “The Euros are a target for everyone. It’s every boyhood dream to play for your country. If I don’t go, I will carry on working hard and make sure it’s next time. I’ll be supporting whoever goes away with England. I know there’s a lot of really good players in this country, fighting for places.”
Sooner or later, his time will come, preferably in the centre. “I do enjoy it in the middle. For years, I played centre-mid, or No 10, like Bergkamp.” And inspired by Thierry Henry.
That’s a nice piece with Ox…thanks for sharing GN5. Interesting that like us he sees himself as a forward or in the middle.
I think eventually a midfield of Jack, Frimpong and Ox could be quite frightening, although it would be a little short. Then again that hasn’t exactly hindered Barca.
GIE;
I would like to see a capable back up, who is a threat, to Szczesny, he needs to be kept on his toes, and good competition will do just that. However I think he has the making of being our long term goalkeeping solution.
Wouldn’t it be just great if all of our squad displayed the same love and desire as the Ox – an outstanding individual.
I think Paul Robinson would be a great signing from Blackburn, just not sure he would want to come as a number 2.
Fine defence of our young ‘keeper from the Goalies’ Union GiE 🙂
He is definitely the best of our options and will be our ‘keeper for a very long time. I wouldn’t have minded seeing him get one more year as No 2 – playing cup games and some league matches while working on some of his weaker points in training.
The only problem is that we didn’t have a No 1 good enough to allow us to do that.
On the plus side his learning curve has necessarily been steeper for being thrown in the deep end and the areas where he sometimes lets himself down (positioning, distribution, dealing with crosses) are all very open to being rectified with training.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18034222
1968 Matt Busby congratulates Joe Mercer live on TV
What a different era!
I agree with both GN5 and SGG it will be good to have an experienced reserve, however I am not sure how good it is for keepers to be fearful for their position, they need to know they are number one, if you start worrying that a mistake will lead to a spell on the bench it can play chaos with the mind. Trust me….i’ve been there….if anything it leads to more mistakes.
GIE: I wasn’t eluding to fear – but more a competition of ego’s.
Talking of United:
Looks like AW will be playing Coquelin at RB in place of Sagna – the downside is that may force him to start with Ramsey –
We may need devine intervention………
John Devine?
I would luv it ……………… just luv it, if Rambo gets a start!
Well, actually I luv it anyway.
Great read GIE.
I love this goalie, he`s got it all plus he`s super confident. He may have made a few errors of judgement, but at 22 he can only get better. My one criticism at the moment would be his positioning for Direct free kicks outside the box. I have previously commented on this. If you have Arsenal player and the time, go back to the Sunderland game, freeze the picture at 30:20 ( top left hand corner , or 34:51 bottom on the player ) on full game ( not highlights ) and tell me what you think, imo he should have took another step to his right and been more central, he would have still seen the ball and possibly saved it. There was another game where he did the same , but I cant remember which one. He will learn and at such a young age getting constant playing time, it wont be long untill we can justify our brag that he is one of the best in the world.
Sorry, Arsenal Vs Sunderland @16th Oct` 2011 at Emirates.
Smashing Post, GIE, really summed up the situation very nicely.
Chezzer will make his mistakes, but rather than crawling into his shell in the way that Almunia did, he won’t, because his great self confidence will help to look to the next game and forget the past error.
He will be fine, tomorrow, if he is fit.
Good shout, Glic! 🙂
Chezzer could well play for another 18 years (injuries permitting) which just puts things into perspective.
AW has stated that Szczesny is fit and will play tomorrow.
No Redders, I was typing very quietly ! 🙂
Off to bath my puppy, `coz he stinks !.
Fancy telling your puppy he is a stinker — and he speaks so highly about you!! 😦
Look what £500 million gets you:
http://www.independent.co.uk/incoming/pg4cityplangraphicjpg-7737869.html
GliC I know the game and the goal. In fact I was there (see I can be there for wins too!)
But I feel all keepers in the modern game put too many men in the wall. I know I didn’t play the highest level but for me the maximum I would have in a wall was four. I wouldn’t back a player to beat me from more than eighteen yards in open play so why should free kicks be different? If the ball was more than 20 yards put 3 men max in the wall. I could make sure I could see the ball, had less ground to cover if they went behind the wall so could wait for the player to strike it before moving.
If Coquelin does play at RB then that leaves us with only 4 fit mid-fielders.
Ramsey – 33 Appearances, 2 Goals, 4 Assists, Shaky Confidence.
Song – 33 Aps, 1Goal 12 Assists, 100% Confidence.
Risicky – 27 Aps, 1Goal, 6 Assists, 100% Confidence
Benayoun – 18 Aps, 3Goals, 1Assist. Super confident.
I’d start Song and Rosicky in the mid field and Benayoun and Ox on the wings and have Ramsey on the bench (period).
GiE – good post, you could have been a defensive lawyer, probably more fun than being an accountant 🙂 and more money 🙂
Yeah, some fans digust me. To blame the Wigan game on Szczesny, shoot those bastards, don’t let them anywhere near the Emirates. Proper fans keep such dirty critisism to themselves, rather than pointing fingers. Especially when they know eff all about goal keeping
Is blog plagiarism legal 🙂
Hi All,
Sterling work in defence of our Number 1, GiE, and as you’ll remember, I didn’t ‘slaughter’ Szczesny, I criticised the management for allowing the situation to develop where Szczesny became our only realistic choice, because AW didn’t adequately replace Lehmann.
When he was on-loan at Brentford in Lge One, he was the stand-out performer, and earmarked as a future star.
He has been put in a position of huge responsibility where everything he does is magnified and debated to the nth degree, and in the main he has stepped up brilliantly, but the over-reliance on a player so young is part of AW’s achillies heel, just as we have seen with Wilshere, and this season, Ramsey. And every mistake Szczesny makes is compounded by our worst defensive record since the 1983-84.
There’s no doubting he is a great GK in the making, but it would have done no harm to us at all to have brought Friedel in last summer to help Szczesny complete his apprenticeship.
Evonne, I hid the names to protect the guilty 😉
GiE – YOU!! Did you see the Polish defence on the first clip??? Dear, oh dear, oh dear…..
Actually, watching that clip against Sunderland, you will hear how verbal he is, a 60,000 crowd and all you can hear is Szczesny belting out orders !.
My pretty pooch is now perfectly pampered and perfumed !
Szczesny has a 62.67% save record for shots on target this season, which is the 3rd worst in Premier League behind the Bolton and Blackburn keepers. Also is 3rd behind Robinson and Hennessey in goals conceded from outside the box.
He is a descent keeper, but don’t get confused, keepers are trained to stop shots, and they ALL do that from time to time. I’ve always said some of the best keepers in the world are in their best form at 34+yrs Van der Sar, Shilton, Seaman, Buffon, Zenga etc. It is way too early for a team with title winning hopes to have Wojciech Szczesny as their #1. It’s the difference between good and great that has kept us without a trophy these 7 years.
Cheers, i hope you all at least try to understand my view.
Hi Trini
If we all thought the same it would be a boring world.
If we all went on the stats of games, Barcalona would be in this years CL Final, they dont always tell the true story.
GIE, as usual, well thought out. I remember some of those exact posts u mentioned, so this needed to be written. No one is perfect, but i think we are in good shape at keeper for many years to come. We are generally disorganized defensively as u said, so he has one of the toughest jobs of top keepers in the league. Lets just hope he stays confident always. Love his attitude.
GLIC:
I have to disagree this is one of the most meaningful statistics.
If Szczesny only stopped 62.67% of the shots on goal then he didn’t stop 37.33% all of which could have or may have resulted in goals.
In other words over he didn’t stop one third of the shots on goal.
This doesn’t mean I’m anti Szczesny but pro this particular stat.
Rambo is a fine young player and should Theo not pass his scheduled fitness test,will I hope take his rightful place in our midfield tomorrow, bring Benny in on the hour by all means to say goodye, but our young players need the game time so lets get Aaron out there playing
The Ox will come into his own next year alongside Rambo and hopefully Jack
Hi GN5
Does that stat include deflections , as against the Spuds and Norwich last week, which he could do nothing about ?.
Some of them Manu goals were right on the spot and dont think anyone would have got to them.
I know your not anti Szczesny, but others might use the stats to try and justify their dislike for him or to put him down.
Being a Goalie is the hardest and loneliest position in football and imo they need all the backing and support we can give them.
On a different point, all the goalies I`ve played with, have had one thing in common, their all effing loony. Am I right GIE ? 😆
PS
My Son in Law is one, they`re not exactly the shy and retiring type !
GiE. Sorry for late showing.
Fine post, I enjoyed reading it.
I’m in the pro Szczesny corner. I think he is second to Hart in the premiership.
It’s about time we had some one in our team with a pair. And he has them in abundance. Ok, he is not the finished article yet, but he will be a top top keeper for years to come.
DD;
How could ypu possibly advocate giving an out of form player “game time” in the most crucial game we have had in years.
It’s the final game of the season, he can get all of the game time he needs next season – when we are less vunerable.
Yes, that stat would include deflected shots, but you’re missing the point, he is not the only keeper to have a deflected shot scored against him. Those stats are as of Jan 12th. I know you must be thinking they are different now, but the reason I did that search was because in the Norwich game I heard the announcer on ESPN say that he has the worst record in the EPL for save % from shots on target.
He is a lot better than Almunia and Fabianski, that’s about all I can say. Future legend??? I wouldn’t go that far, this club has standards and that word legend is thrown about way too easily.
😀 Glic, funny when i was a lot younger and starting out in Senior football i was oft criticised for being too quiet, not controlling my area and having poor kicking (this was at the tender age of 17 when i was first selected for the senior team in a Middlesex Cup game) i was a good shot stopper, and our defence was crap whether I came for crosses or not so the boss decided he would rather someone in the sticks who might save more than half the shots on goal rather than the senior keeper.
Next season a new manager arrived and decided an older louder head was needed in goal he dropped me to the reserves until that keeper got injured, and i was called back in and he never got his place back, the loud mouthed extrovert you met at the Tavern came out of his shell. Kicking and cross claiming got better with age and strength too.
But you do have to be a little bit nuts to be a keeper, you put your body on the line every week, and in the standard of football i played my body was tested, so much so that i had to hang up my gloves at 26 with done in ankles and elbows. I used to play every game with fingers taped and neoprene on every joint 😀
On Szczesnys stats I looked for some last night but couldn’t find them, as Kelsey said earlier he is 3rd in the league on clean sheets. On his goals conceded percentage it would be interesting as GliC says for a breakdown of where the shots are from, my guess is most goals conceded by us have been on counter attacks, and therefore an absent defence. I would like to see a bit more detail before using a global percentage as a basis to decide upon his shot saving ability.
I don’t think too often this season I have felt he could have done better with a goal, but i have definitely on a number of occasions felt he has kept us in the game, the double save at Anfield being one of those moments that defines a keeper. If it had been Joe Hart you wouldn’t stop hearing about it in the English Press.
GIE:
A clean sheet could also be due to the opposition having no or a few shots on goal = no credit to the keeper.
Trini
Thanks for telling me ,”I`m missing the point “, usually It`s, “I`m missing the plot ” !. 😆
I wonder how many of the 37.33% of shots on target that he didn’t save we’re actually saveable? I’ve seen us concede some utterly ridiculous goals this season including deflections and own goals, as well as worldies that have flown into the corner. It’s an interesting stat, but it’s not something to judge the young keeper’s season on.
G5 I do not see Ramsey as you do and in any case I have no worries about tomorrows game, . Manager leaving, mid table club that plays with the ball on the ground. Bookies quoting 1/66 away win no problem.
If you want a good read on why our defensive frailty might not be all Szczesnys fault I heartily suggest this in-depth study of defensive stats by that man Desigunner again.
http://www.eplindex.com/10846/solid-premier-league-defence-epl-opta-stats.html
GIE
So being a Goalie was what made you the man you are today !.
It`s a bit chicken and egg stuff. Is he a Goalie because he`s mad or is he mad because he a Goalie ? . 🙂 I think if I was as big ( in a good way, fine figure of a man, none of that BrokeBack stuff though ) as you, I would have been a Goalie, I seemed to turn into a Mr Hyde once my feet touched the pitch, plenty of early baths for me I`m ashamed to admit !.
I like how DD is supremely confident at this time. At present I will be round the Mother in laws for her birthday lunch, I may not be the best company, especially as there will be two Norwich lads, and one Dipper in attendance. I fear i will be on my phone all afternoon as she has no sports tv 😦
GLiC. Your not missing the plot at all, you’ve totally lost it.
GIE. Give me your number and I will gladly text you as the goals go in, Nil Desperandum my friend
“Szczesny only stopped 62.67% of the shots on goal” I find hard to believe and is also misleading.Were they direct shots without a defender in sight, I doubt it. Maybe a proporrtion has to blamed on the defenders for allowing the shots to even take place.
Another factor is the ball which moves in a totally different way than say twenty years ago,but I accept it is the same for all keepers.About a year ago Seaman was interviewed and said something to the effect that nowadays the keeper sees a long range shot , really late because of the swerve.
The boy will come good.
VCC
Whereabouts in Essex are you ?
GIE:
You choose your mother in law over Arsenal I don’t understand??
Ten minutes from the QE2 bridge, Dartford crossing.
Kelsey the stat is very pure.
Total Saves/(goals conceded + total saves)
And on that basis it is one of the lowest. The article by Desigunner I linked to shows that we concede a high number of goals in proportion to number of passes allowed in final third, and also we have the highest number of “provoked” offsides.
The best defences have the lowest number of provoked offsides (city, united and pool) and the highest number of passes allowed in final 3rd for every goal conceded. As I said earlier our style leaves our young Pole overexposed on occasion and in some respects I’m surprised it’s even that high!
GN5
A) the game won’t be on TV here (ManUre and ManChavs are)
B) I like my nether regions
C) I like my heart
I’ll be watching it on live text and it’ll be bad enough for me.
VCC
My Brother lives in South Ockendon, Is that near you ?.
I`m going to have a Media blackout between 3pm and 5pm and then look at the TV text through my fingers at 5pm, I`m bricking it !
For the record I am not anti-WS13, but I do feel that he should have solid competition for his spot. It’s impossible to say which shot any one keeper would save that another would not. Goalkeeper errors, decision making, distribution and positioning however can be reasonably compared. I agree that stats don’t tell all, but they do provide insight and the manager is a big fan of its usefulness.
http://www.barriesview.com/2012/01/shot-stoppers-201112-premier-league-goalkeeping-opta-stats
GLiC. I moved to South Ockendon from Latimer Road London in 1953, at the age of three with my parents and sister. I lived there until 1983. I had thirty happy years there and k ow it very well. What road does he live in?
It’s five miles from me.
GIE:
Now I understand.
In Canada we have the choice of 4 games being shown live at game time.
Man C v QPR
Sund v Man U
Spurs v Fulham
WBA v Arsenal.
I’l be clicking back and forth for 2 hours.
I have said many times that statistics can only be useful if they are accurately collected and applied correctly.
Everyday we see, hear, and read statistics from the media or individuals with an axe to grind ‘proving’ their particular point of view with spurious correlation to unrelated events.
It is a well known phenomena and the people concerned like to hide hide behind such ‘evidence’ — “it’s not me, it’s just that’s what the statistics show”. The media and such individuals try to manipulate all us mere innocents, by quoting supposedly convincing statistics.
There was an interesting report produced a few years ago which showed this very fact. Now understand, it’s not me saying the following — it’s just the report. OK?
1) Children with bigger feet spell better.
2) Counties with higher divorce rates tend to have lower death rates. 3) Countries that drink water containing fluoride have higher cancer rates than those that do not.
Well that’s interesting and perhaps a bit worrying. Should we all stretch children’s feet, or for married people to divorce their partners, or perhaps only drink only but bottled water from natural sources?
Fear not. Statistics like this may well be ‘true’ and related in some way, but the one set of quantitative stats is not necessarily the causative factor for the other.
Let’s have a look;
1) Older kids have bigger feet and can spell better than a younger child. That’s true — but, so what?
2) The chances are that the longer couples remain married, the less likely they are to get divorced, but they are more likely to die than younger couples, who in turn are more likely, by comparison, to get divorced. Again, true, but, so what.
3) It is a fact that nations who are able to bear the cost of fluoridation are wealthier and more health conscious. This is likely to result in a longer life span, leading to cancer which is recognized as a frequent disease of old age. Yeah so?
The fact is stats are simply a collection of data, and unless the data is accurately collected, properly filtered and collated and then applied to related causal events they are valueless.
OK, I know I am wasting my time, especially trying to convince those who don’t want to know, — but just saying — for the sake of balance!
Redders
6.31 – brilliant and true.
Trini
I’m not sure if you commented on AA before but thankyou for presenting your points so coherently and so respectfully. Especially given that you are arguing against the grain, as it were.
Red Arse I owe you a drink. 🙂
Regardless of the stats, isn’t it just time to circle the waggons and make damn sure we collect 3 points tomorrow and send as many positive vibes to the team as possible. The doom mongers and glass half empty brigade can have their say then – they will anyway regardless of the outcome. Bollix to them – now and forever – COYG – now and forever.
Dandan…..you owe me one too. 🙂
VCC in that case then I will give you one when we meet 🙂
Alfred Hitchcock didn’t have a belly button. It was eliminated when he was sewn up after surgery. True, but he made some great films 🙂 Another useless stat.
Author: Michael A. Dritschel
There was once a group of Biostatisticians and a group of Epidemiologists riding together on a train to joint meetings. All the Epidemiologists had tickets, but the Biostatisticians only had one ticket between them. Inquisitive by nature, the Epidemiologists asked the Biostatisticians how they were going to get away with such a small sample of tickets when the conductor came through. The Biostatisticians said, “Easy. We have methods for dealing with that.” Later, when the conductor came to punch tickets, all the Biostatisticians slipped quietly into the bathroom. When the conductor knocked on the door, the head Biostatistician slipped their one ticket under the door thoroughly fooling the layman conductor. After the joint meetings were over, the Biostatisticians and the Epidemiologists again found themselves on the same train. Always quick to catch on, the Epidemiologists had purchased one ticket between them. The Biostatisticians (always on the cutting edge) had purchased NO tickets for the trip home. Confused, the Epidemiologists asked the Biostatisticians “We understand how your methods worked when you had one ticket, but how can you possibly get away with no tickets?” “Easy,” replied the Biostatisticians smugly, “we have different methods for dealing with that situation.” Later, when the conductor was in the next car, all the Epidemiologists trotted off to the bathroom with their one ticket and all the Biostatisticians packed into the other bathroom. Shortly, the head Biostatistician crept over to where the Epidemiologists were hiding and knocked authoritatively on the door. As they had been instructed, the Epidemiologists slipped their one ticket under the door. The head Biostatistician took the Epidemiologists’ one and only ticket and returned triumphantly to the Biostatistician group. Of course, the Epidemiologists were subsequently discovered and publicly humiliated.
MORAL OF THE STORY: Do not use statistical methods unless you understand the principles behind them.
Kelsey Behave LOL 🙂
VCC
Somewhere off Brandon Grove, I think !
RedMJ thats the spirit
In China, even if you are a one out of a million kind of guy, there are thousands more just like you!!
Another Stat.
I`ve seen some of the amazing stuff gm does with hair, he is the real life Edward Scissorhands, but on Squeaky Bum Sunday, he should be extra carefull. Take care Scissorhands Gooner !.
.A statistician is a professional who dilegently collects facts and data and then carefully draws confusions about them.
When the Titanic sank there was 7,500 lbs of ham on it. (Not including Leonardo DeCaprio)
I was unaware that he was that old……………………..
Finally:
Some lions mate over 50 times a day.
During a lion’s mating season, they will mate every 25 minutes for three days straight.
I knew i should have been a Millwall supporter. 🙂
If Pigs could fly, it wouldn`t have sunk then !
Kelsey…..and the bar man said “I know I called for ice but this is f—— ridiculous. :-).
Nearly as much as me then, but I`m a lion bastard aswell !
I always liked the old joke about the Irishman who read that every third child born in the world was Chinese.
So he named his children Seamus, Padraig and Chan.
🙂
Actually these are real facts (except leonardo) and the replies from VCC and GLIC are brilliant.
The problem with the Captain of that ship ?, he didn`t go to SpecSavers !.
Can we keep this up until 3.00p.m. tomorrow. 🙂
Statistically we don’t have a hope of keeping it up………….
Would love to Kelsey, but my Sons mate is fighting tonight and I must go and watch and support him.
I need some chocolate, still hours away, but I`m stressed out already !. WHERE`S MY CHOCCY BAR !.
VCC
It’s all kicking off down at the kebab shop then? Nice of your son’s mate to give you advance notice 🙂
Stop talking about the Titanic.
You’re making me a nervous wreck!
Sounds like some of you boys need some Viagra Concentrate Xtra Strong !
Yes Rocky, he’s kicking off about ten o’clock. He trains local boys at a boxing club, and it’s his turn tonight, a real nice guy.
In 1912 a guy found a lamp and suddenly a genie popped out. The genie said, “I will grant you one wish.”
The guy was not well-to-do, so he said, “I want to live in luxury for the rest of my life.”
“Fine,” said the genie, “Here’s a first class ticket for the Titanic.”
Dandan @7:52 🙂
Stop Press:
Glic has informed me of the following:
The UK Audit Commission has revealed the result of their latest survey:- It revealed that 3/4 of the people in Great Britain make up 75% of the population.
According to their other survey, 51% of the people are in the majority.
We are indebted to you Glic! 🙂
Another fine post GIE
The first sentence of the first comment of the day says it all for me.
😀 LB, I think Naz got to the nub of what I was saying
News Just In : Operation Lasagne failed. They’re just not that stupid these Spuds. However Agent Adebarndoor is set to cause dressing room unrest at 9am. And just in case we also sent Operation Portidge in to motion. And currently both Bubbles and Clyde are making their way up to Bales bedroom for a reunion.
Robins family pile on the pressure to stay…good girls:
Bouchra (wife):
“We have been in London for eight years now. As a family, we love it here.
“Robin is captain of Arsenal and, as many people claim, the leader of the Arsenal team.
“Arsenal believed in Robin when he was young and when he was considered as a bit of a rebel.
“We don’t want to upset things at home either. Our kids, Shaqueel and Dina, go to school here in London. And they are just as happy as we are.
“We still expect to sit down after this season is over and have a look at the future.
“We have to make some decisions at some point. But it is not just about Robin. He also thinks about us, his children and me.
“I also love it that everyone at Arsenal respects him. At the training ground, at the stadium, his teammates, the fans.
“Everyone comes up to me all the time to tell me how happy they are with him.
“I also see that Robin is really kind to everyone at Arsenal in return. As a skipper should be!
“A good captain should be concerned about the club, about the team, about everything involving Arsenal. Oh, and in the meantime, I have been promoted to ‘skip’s wife’.”
Jose (Mum):
“Arsenal is a beautiful club. They have no debts and Robin is being worshipped there.
“I honestly feel that the fans and the people at the club really love him. That is worth so much, too.
“When we go to Arsenal and we walk into the stadium with him, it is electrifying.
“As a mum, that fills me with pride. It is really fantastic. When Robin’s granddad, my dad, was over at the Emirates for his (91st) birthday and we were taking pictures inside, I heard grown-up people behind me say: ‘We love Robin’. As a mum, I could not wish for a nicer thing.”
The man himself:
“I have got to know everyone at the club. The kit man, the laundryman, everyone really. I know everyone by name. I love all that.’’
“My grandad also wanted to walk on the pitch. But as we all know, the grass is almost sacrosanct and nobody can walk on it after a game. Not even your family.
“But when our groundsman saw grandad standing on the touchline, he said, ‘Robin, YOUR
grandad can step onto the pitch’. Well, you see, that’s Arsenal.”
“While I am playing, I realise that it will be mainly me who decides where we live.
“If my kids want to go back to Holland, we will do. But that won’t be for another 10 years, I think.
Stats are as accurate as the data collected! I was really looking forward to the game the whole week but today I nervous big time!can’t even sleep properly
Hi GiE, thanks for an excellent post, written by somebody who clearly knows what he is talking about. Some very fine comments as well today. 🙂
I think Szczesny has had a very fine season, especially if you consider how many times the four in front of him have been different and how long the defence did not have prober FB’s this season. Consistency of performance goes hand in hand with consistency in formation/players. I think he misses Mertesacker a lot at the moment, but that’s for another time.
What I like about our Pole in goal is his fearlessness, his tenacity, and his ability to shake off quickly a disappointing performance.
Regarding tomorrow: I feel confident we’ll win the game and I am not nervous at all, YET!
COYRRG!
I might as well open another beer and sit up all chatting to myself on here. I cannot sleep.
SOOOOOOOOO nervous about tomorrow.
Who said it is only a game?
Bayern got humiliated today by Dortmund in the German Cup Final: 5-2. You have got to wonder what this will do to Bayern’s self-confidence for the CL final next week. I think it has to be a win and third place tomorrow.
Total…perhaps they rested a few players and thought they could coast it.
The sort of thing Arsenal would do.
Its a must win situation Im afraid, and Im starting to get weak. I think we will manage at best a draw, which wont be good enough.
Hi VCC 🙂
If we won last week and we still needed a result today, I would have been more nervous. But we lost and now need to win. Arsene has got the experience to use last week’s result to galvanise his players and I expect them to come out full with determination to win the game in a very professional manner.
Total…..We did not lose last week, it was a 3-3 draw.
What I am worried about is we have been in this position so often and as you say you expect them to come out full with determination. Why is tomorrow any different to other weeks when we had to do just that.
sorry… and failed!
SBS. Has arrived.
Apologies, it felt like we lost, but of course it was a draw.
Tomorrow is different because it is our last chance and we are the Arsenal, and Wenger will has had a week to make this clear. It is time to be confident VCC and trust in our manager. 🙂
I truly admire your confidence Total.
But I can only see Deja vu, ala the last few weeks.
So many points just thrown away when we should have coasted it.
What do you think the line up will be tomorrow?
Sz
Le Coq – Koz – TV – Santos
—————-Song ———-
—–Rosicky—Ramsey——–
Theo——–RvP——–Gervinho
This is both what I hope and expect.
Theo only if fully fit, if not: Gerv on the right and Benayoun on left.
What do you think?
I think that will be Wengers line up, but Im sorry my line up would replace Ramsey with the Ox. And its a toss up for me with Beny/Gerv. Think I might start with Beny.
Squeaky bum time.
Being third in the race for golden glove puts everything in perspective, when some morons criticise Sczesney for his performance against Norwich.
VCC – fair enough. I think you know my view re the rambunctious Welshman hahaha 🙂
Yep I think I do.
Im off to bed now Total. Sweet dreams, and catch you manana.
COYG.
VCC 🙂 Sleep well my friend!
For those who are getting all tense – have a dance with Arsene (courtesy of Chas’ posted link a while ago). 🙂
http://fuldans.se/?v=tpoljgeecn
There are those that reckon the following was written for me, Kelsey and one or two others on here and who are we to argue 🙂
“It has been suggested in the past few days that dinosaurs contributed to their own demise by the amount of methane they emitted.”
Dandan 😀
VCC
Relax – 4-1 to the mighty Arse 🙂
Morning all.
Well we won 5-3. Then we drew 2-2. Then we won 6-0.
I’ve only been asleep 6 hours but the managed to have three different dreams about the result. The draw woke me up in sweats.
But I realised something. Look at the state of us….most grown adults with many years experience of big matches and we are 99% quivering wrecks. Anyone care to imagine what the players are going through this morning.
Oh and by the way if 3rd isn’t a trophy we wouldn’t be like this.
It’s match day here already. Had a great time in Hanoi. I saw the new manc shirt for sale in a market here already. I don’t think it’s even been released yet. They had the chad one as well. It’s going to be really tough today. I think a single goal will win it.
Haha just looked at the new United kit….looks like a tea towel
It’s horrible. I saw a cooked dog after I saw the kit and preferred the dog! (I didn’t eat it dog lovers) 🙂
Lovely interview with Pat Rice in the Mail
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2143573/Pat-Rices-Arsenal-moments.html
“I’ll continue to support them. I started out as a fan and now I’ll go back to being a fan.”
“I couldn’t single out one game from my time working as Arsene Wenger’s assistant, my over-riding memory is of the brilliance of the man, rather than just the matches. He is a fantastic manager, one of the all-time greats in my book. He treats everyone the way he would expect to be treated himself, with courtesy.”
GiE,
Sorry I wasn’t around yesterday to comment “live” so to speak on your post. A very fine read with much work put in, so thank you.
In short, GK is the last position I would look to strengthen/reenforce during the window. There is is the odd heart stopping moment bt hey, that’s entertainment.
Shit, talking of The Jam, where’s Chas?
t-07:57 hrs
tick
tock
I’m off out now. Not sure if I’ll see the game as it’s fucking mainland here. Whatever happens we are Arsenal!
mainland = mancland
GM,
Never trust a “mainlander”. Just remember, we are “islanders”.
Its certainly an exciting last day. Utd or City. Three teams after 3r, 4th and 5th and some relegation stuff thrown in for bad measure.
I actually think its even bigger for Spuds than us. They have a new stadium to build, and without CL football with its 20-30m, the attraction/loss of top players, I believe they will disappear into the doldrums without it.
GiE,
Good point earlier about 3rd spot and a trophy. I think everyone would take CL Football over a CC win.
Micky funny you should say that. I spoke to a Liverpool fan on Friday. Asked him if the season was a success. His answer … no. I asked would it have been if they won the FA Cup…his answer ….no. Basically he realises without CL football they have little chance to improve, and worst of all for him they might finish behind the toffees.
Made me think if it wasn’t Spuds likely to get CL instead of us would we be as bothered?
Where is Chas, we’ve needed entertaining videos this week!
GiE,
I think that because of our strong financial position, we could muscle our way back into top four. Spuds I think would go straight to mid table. I would think teams like Newcastle would be far more attractive to the Sugar Daddy sorts than Spuds with their stadium needs.
Morning all, anxious afternoon for moi, 🙂
Morning GiE, thank you for the headline post, i always rate your material, much appreciated ( ‘mi dispiache’ Gus ),
Sorry i didnt get a chance to comment earlier even though i had read it two minutes after it was posted on ‘news now’. 🙂 i had been busy biting my nails and building my bunker and dare i say, mine is a little deeper.. 😦
Our pole in goal was considered a God send when he debut against manure (i think) and he was a revelation in comparison to the confidence stricken almunia and fabianski, although fabianski had started to come good after a run of games (but imo there are better).
its all about confidence for me and WS has it in bundles..i made up my mind as soon as your headline posed the question..WS is a future legend with a huge ego which is his and any other top keepers biggest strength, ie schmeichel, lehmann, kahn, zenga..they’re all strong characters and leaders who put fear into the opposition and their own defence by sheer presence..and its key in any title contending side, where total football is built from the back..(even Krul from toon had shown these characteristics during the season, when he showed balls to stand up to RvP-but hes still a dikhead. haha 🙂 )
its quite simple, YES hes made some errors but imo we would not be here today without him..He won us 3 points on his own back against pool with a world class performance, today we could easily had been fourth with a worse goal dif. heading into our last game behind our worst enemy..not a happy tune is it? SO THANK YOU WOJCZECH!!
of course the errors and mistakes wont go away over night, and the form may dip but he loves the club and is willing to work hard im sure of this..But as youve said many a time i would like an experienced number 2 whos happy to guide and back him rather than take valuable game time from him (eg.maybe try for schwarzer again) because WS is our deserved No1 and future legend !!
Rant over 🙂
@ Redders 7.31pm, spot on buddy..brilliant comment
@ Rocky and Trini 7.40 pm, agree 100%, well done Trini, your points and comments are appreciated and welcome as i agree with Redders re stats, as we take from them what we will, and Trini-never mind anyone taking the mickey about your stats (always a good read)
@ Micky, i was thinking the same thing this morning..Where is Chas? the house seems empty without the video king..
@ Chas, cmon mate- One video to set the mood for the big game pretty please?
OK enough from me…Big Game…
Rain Hail or Shine, the Arsenal will always be there
COYRRG
GM,
good to see you back, how’s your travels?
how are you hating things these days? 🙂
GiE – no. To finish behing spuds would be worst case scenario, but to lose CL place to them would be unthinkable.
Micky – I mustn’t contact Chas before the game. Every time I chatted with him before a game, we drew, not good.
I have a dilemma – I wish it was already 6pm and I knew the result. But at the same time I wouldn’t want to miss the game for the world. What am I to do???
Robbin – I wish you could meet GM – a lovely, lovely, quiet, polite man. Nothing like his blog persona.
morning Evonne,
DONT miss the game, we need everyone’s hands on decks
BURN THE DUVET 🙂
Evonne, regarding GM, i know if you were to put him in a room with ol’ bacon face for an hour, who would walk out and who would be convulsing on the floor..my money says that Not even a FiFa delegate would be able to save bacon face..haha 🙂
Robbin – oh yeah! He aint a pushover, our GM, he’d chop Fergies head off with a pair of blunt scissors
Are you very nervous Robbin? I’m besides myself, have to take more drugs
Suprisingly NO, im quietly confident and dont want to think about outcomes..last game of the season, its been one hell of a ride and ive been educated on this site during the season, so i take it for what it is? i love the gunners, i believe in our boys (whoever plays) and most of all i TRUST our manager… its in our hands and what more can you ask for?
at least i the lasagna chef had the night off.. 🙂
to be honest Evonne, i might have a few quiet cognacs later..
Any news on Theo?
Robbin – a few cognacs? Exactly! you try to face it stone cold sober!
‘I love the gunners, i believe….I TRUST our manager…it’s in our hands andn whnat more can you ask for?’ Nice one Robbin! I could ask for a win? Emphatic win?
Robbin/Evonne,
You are making me nervous!
Someone, please transport me to 14:59GMT.
By special request…..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SzanNps7mI
Morning all.
What a season in the PL and on the final day 6 out of the 10 games have a huge baring at the top and the bottom.
We can’t kick or pass the ball for the lads just support with all the emotion that supporting really means.if anyone isn’t tense about the various permutations that could happen, they wouldn’t be normal.
For some reason my mind keeps wandering back to Paris in 2006 a game we really could have won but Lehmann, Larsen and Almunia changed things.
I will wait until after the final table is resolved to give my thoughts about what I think should and could happen next season.
15 consecutive years of CL football is in the balance today and as we all know may not be resolved until after the final in Munich.
Second guessing the team is never easy but I feel jenkinson wil start at RB and Benny will play for at least an hour.
Wherever you are be it behind the sofa or not let’s hope we are smiling at 5.00 p.m. tonight.
Amen to that Kelsey 🙂
Chas,
Good to have you on board to lighten the mood. Love the last clip.
Kelsey,
Stop dooming us today. Paris 😦
Right, another question for you:
We win today, finish 3rd and secure the CL place.
What then? Do we want the Chavs to win in Munich and become the first London team to lift the CL trophy? Not a pleasant thought, BUT that would also mean that Scum despite finishing 4th do not qualify!
Well, I am evil, so I’d want the Chavs to win the Champions League
Very true Kelsy, thanks..
I just hope that any nervous tones from our fans DonT transcend to our players on the pitch, (transcend-what does that mean? dont know but sounds good).. it just doesnt work for us! i watched Arsenal v Milan at THOF today and our fans were a revelation and the chemistry honestly works…
thats not to take away from our away supporters, who ive said week in week out all season, they have been imense and made me really proud..
As GiE has touched on previously, maybe its a good thing we are playing away..?
Deep breath…..
@ Chas, cheers mate..quite fitting for the occassion..and well done on all the travelling fans, yourself included, i envy and admire you 🙂
Right lads. I’ll join you all at kick off. Pills, drugs, alcohol, duvets or sofa’s, whatever it takes, do it.
Morning all. Lovely sunny morning here in Essex. All smiles here, hope it stays that way after the game.
Morning all
SBS is officially here …………….. New Post …………..
yes yes yes, europe here we come!