I have seen some worrying comments recently from Arsenal supporters suggesting that our team is starting to take on characteristics more commonly associated with the slum dwellers from down the road.
No, they are not suggesting that we have suddenly developed bad personal hygiene habits; or started dragging our knuckles along the ground; or begun recruiting players from the ape enclosure at London zoo.
Instead they point to our recent inconsistent form; our ability to look world beaters one day and carpet beaters the next; our capacity to lose in any given circumstance.
Do they have a point?
Are we becoming another Tottering Hospice?
No, no, never and no.
You know the old saying, form is temporary, but class is permanent? Well that applies to Arsenal.
There’s an alternative version of the same saying that applies to the Totts: “Form is temporary, but T*ttenham are sh*t.” Look it up – it’s in all good anthologies of phrase and fable.
Of course we lucky souls born to enjoy the red and white domination of North London can feel disheartened at times. And let’s face it, this current team has put us through the mill and back already this season.
Stirring victories like the 7-3 over Newcastle followed days later by the ineptness of the Southampton game; trouncing Liverpool at Anfield, but succumbing to lowly Bradford at Valley Parade.
It’s enough to bring a quiver to the stiffest of upper lips.
But no matter how down you feel, no matter how bleak our prospects look, don’t ever – ever – make the mistake of thinking that we have anything in common with those sad degenerates who worship a scrawny chicken perched on a basketball.
Even if (Dennis forfend) we were to finish behind them in the league this season it would mean nothing in the grand scheme of things (and bear in mind that all previous precedent points to them doing their usual choke-the-chicken act this year when the going gets tough).
There is no Dennis-given right to have St Totteringham’s Day every year. A glance back through history shows that there have, in the past, been years when that great festival was not celebrated.
Just like years of plague, famine, pestilence and war, they happen once in a while but they are not the norm: they are a perverted departure from the norm.
So next time you hear (or read) someone suggesting that we are “becoming the new Totteringham” just remind them of some facts that every Arsenal supporter should have at their finger tips:
Arsenal League Championships: 13
The Other Lot: 2
Arsenal FA Cup wins: 10
Them: 8
Number of times league title clinched at the other’s ground:
Arsenal: 2
Unmentionables: Never
Seasons in Champions League:
Arsenal: 15
Toe rags: 1
And these are just the tip of the iceberg. If you want to dig deeper there are so many more ways in which it is empirically provable that Arsenal and our unfortunate neighbours do not inhabit the same universe when it comes to class, quality, achievement and history.
What’s more, there is nothing to suggest that that situation will ever change. The Spuds have managed to cobble together a half decent team for now, but their long term prospects are always going to be baulked by their tiny ground, their general scumminess and their tendency to in-breed.
If ever they try to move stadium, we’ll soon see how remarkable was Arsene Wenger’s achievement in keeping us in the top four for year after year without any net spending on transfers.
A Totteringham stadium move is likely to lead to another period in the lower leagues for them (which will be fun, as we will be able to celebrate St Totteringham’s Day on the first day of every season).
So by all means be frustrated with our inconsistency, be angry when our players seem not to show enough effort, but please: enough of the comparisons with an entity so far below us they even have to look upwards to see Lucifer’s arse.
RockyLives
Arsenal News 24/7
arsenalarsenal.net 
I stil belive we can finish dis year above spuds we are in btr position then last year.. But i want arsenal to fite agaisnt like citeh n manure n prove dem money cannot buy everythn
Morning all, phew I think I avoid Mr Rock;s wrath as I’ve never said we resemble the spudders amongst all my doom-laden riffs(of words, not powerchords).
I’d like to add to Mr Rock’s timely reality check that we’d have to finish behind the Spudders for 15 years thenceforth for them to say the gap has been bridged – they would do well to remember that(and that’s not to say the 11 League titles they’d have to win before they reached parity with us on that count.)
Seasons gone unbeaten
Arsenal-1
Totscum-fat 0
Also we seemed to be exchanging Indian travel stories in the previous post, I’ve probably been there abotu half a dozen times, primarily to the Punjab and Himachel(which is where my parents are from) and as I often say the Himalayas are spectacular.
Sure, I’ve done the tourist triangle (RedFort/Delhi – Jaipur – Agra,Tejo Mahalaya to give it it’s proper name) but to see those snow capped peaks in the height of summer is something you’ll never get – better than Mont Blanc and Mount Tiede.
Nice work, Rock a Bye, 🙂
Now stand by to repel the Spudlites!!
You bastard Rocky
Second time in a week we’ll spend the morning “tidying up” only for you to stroll in when things are spotless again 🙂
Rasp, where are you? I suspect you have another busy day!
Just watch this video and I hope Wenger does too at some point and realize the difference between the Arsenal that we have now and the Arsenal we had a couple seasons go. Did Wenger seriously say that this current crop of players was his best ever team? I hope he somehow watches the video and realize where the club is going and start getting some quality players, stop telling the fans that we have money to spend and yet there is much doubt that he will break the bank to bring in a top quality player this transfer period. What better time to do so than the present with the influx of cash from the Emirates deal and incidentally also our most dire season under Wenger so far?
And while obviously spurs will unlikely ever win more league titles than we did, they have a pretty decent squad atm and they have been strengthening their squad bit by bit every year. The gap hasn’t been bridged, but its getting smaller. While the gap between us and lets say United is getting bigger than ever now.
Wow, Rocky. Stand by for some flack from up the road after that one my friend.
My honest feelings are that finishing below Totnum should be a sackable offence for every single person at the club. Its that serious.
I absolutely love the idea that we have arguably the worst team we have ever had under Wenger, and that Spurs have the best side they have had in the last 20 years, and yet, here we are, 5 points behind with a game in hand! 😆
Great post Rocky
@slime….absolutely agree!!!
@ distraught. …’gap between us and Man U getting bigger’ don’t you think foolishly selling our top scorer and the league’s top scorer to them may have something to do with their current position?
As for Spurs…we will see at the end of the season, but I am not convinced
17 November 2012: Arsenal 5 Spurs 2.
Any more to be said?
Great bit of sabre rattling Rocky at a time when we need a lift as supporters and as a football team.
I can’t be bothered to join in with the ‘stand up if you hate totnum’ stuff during games, they’re inconsequential. They have a massive chip on their shoulders, we should avoid emulating them by developing a similar fixation but show our class off and on the pitch.
Much as this will be to Rocky’s distaste, I do think we have become Spurs-like. Ever since that day Newcastle and Phil Dowd pulled back a 4-0 deficit to grab a draw, we’ve shown distinct WHL tendencies.
It’s all in the head – even with some imperfections in the squad, we have more than enough ability to continue to enjoy St Totteringham’s Day, and more than that, to challenge the higher places. But what’s between the ears of the players, fed by the media, the fans and the manager, will decide whether that happens or not.
United amaze me: two star players and a gaggle of players either merely good (Welbeck, Young, Nani etc) or ordinary (Evans, Cleverly, Fletcher etc), but they have the team spirit and belief to dominate the league. In my 2012-13 PL team, I’d only have van Persie from United, half the team would be from City, but somehow, despite the obvious limitations of the squad, United just churn out the results.
If we could ditch the Spurs mentality of defeatism and angst, and get just a fraction of United’s belief, we’d be away.
Times we shit ourselves 0
Times they did 1
You’re right wonderman. I (and I’m sure many other fans) would have much preferred if Wenger made Van Persie play out his 1 year contract. While he might be a scum, he gives the impression that he gives his all on the pitch and I think he is professional enough to do exactly that. Pretty sure with him in the team we’d be better off than where we are now, and the added bonus would be United will no doubt have lesser points than they have currently.
But the medium to long term trend is there, disturbing to say. We only finished above them last season largely due to Van Persie’s goals and assists. No-one else was scoring – remember ? He left us because he wanted to win things, which he couldn’t see us
doing. Was he right ? Hmmm, that’s a hard one, isn’t it…… ?
“ In Arsene we rust.”
So the FIFA World XI of 2012 was made up of eleven La Liga players:
Casillas; Ramos; Pique; Alves; Marcelo; Alonso; Xavi; Iniesta; Messi; Ronaldo; Falcao.
Not sure I agree with all of that. Hummels, van Persie, Kompany, Ibrahimovic, Yaya Toure, Cashley, Buffon, Thiago, Silva, Cavani, Aguero, Tevez, Lahm, Schweinsteiger, Goetze, and Chiellini would have good calls to make.
Still, would love us to pony up and make a move for Falcao…..
Yes Spurs are on the up, and we’re in decline.The balance is changing, and it’s down to the incompetent way our club is being managed in comparison to them.The A.K.B.’s are so in love with ARSENE F.C. that they’re in denial, as usual. Like they are with
most other aspects of the affairs at our club.
Those of us who can be objective in our assessments, don’t have any trouble in admitting this, much as we dislike it. A.K.B.’s have great difficulty discerning reality, and so choose to turn a blind eye. Accuse the Arsenal realists of being “Spuds in disguise”, if it makes you feel better. Won’t change the trend though.
Example ; This season is Wenger’s worst start in 30 years.This follows our worst start in 58 years last season. Last season we finished 19 points behind the champions.So far in 2012/13, we’re 18 points behind United, and it’s only AT THE HALF WAY MARK !.Shameful, but true.
“ In Arsene we rust.”
Spectrum, no problem with you having an opinion, but please don’t use lazy and insulting taglines like “AKBs” and “In Arsene we rust”, or pretend you know what other people think, it just makes your opinions less credible.
Is Spurs manager Andre Vilas- Boas going to succeed ? Perhaps not yet, but as the A.K.B.’s say of Wenger -”Give him time.” The way he’s going, he’ll win more for them than our has-been excuse for a manager will. And he won’t need almost eight years to do it in, I’ll bet.
And don’t forget – Spurs have AMBITION, we don’t. Be honest – comparing the two squads, who do you think has the better personnel and squad depth ? Oh, and guess what ? They’re NOT one of the mega rich clubs either!
If you saw our only world class and best player being sold to the team whose goals they are now profiting from, whilst re- signing an average ( at best ) Theo Walcott, what would you be thinking ?
No wonder “In Arsene we rust.”
Yawn.
26 May1989 – I’m not “pretending to know what others think”, simply describing the commonly known traits of the typical A.K.B. Ooops ! Don’t want to offend anyone’s sensibilities on here, as this is a polite website. But I don’t consider reasonable minded people would find the term “A.K.B”. to be insulting. It’s merely a way of separating the two belief camps.A.K.B. stands for “Arsene Knows Best.” What can possibly be upsetting in reading that ? It’s well known isn’t it ? You’d have to be over sensitive to find anything offensive in that ( even if you disagree with it ).
Similarly “In Arsene we rust.” is also in common usage. Or should we only allow the contrary view – ” In Arsene we TRUST.” ? I’d suggest there are far worse descriptions we could use.
In fact, looking at our recent seasons and current situation, “rust” is very appropriate. Which is why I have done, and will continue to, use it.
No, we are not becoming spuds. I’ll give them one thing though, they do put up a fight to hold onto their best players and how they’ve still managed to retain the services of Gareth Bale despite the lack of champions league football is testament to this. I’m not sure, how many of our best players would stick around if this was the case (lets hope we don’t get to find out).
I think that we should be more concerned about closing the gap between us and our real competitors.
Since 2005 Arsenal have won 1 cup and in this time their rivals have won:
Man Utd : 13 cups
Chelsea: 13 cups
Liverpool: 5 cups
As much as it pains me to admit it I agree with Spectrum. Makes perfect sense to me – and I kid you not when I say I WORSHIPPED Arsene !
Yawn, yawn!
Ignoring the rubbish in Spectrum’s last post, and answering the question “comparing the two squads, who do you think has the better personnel and squad depth?”, I’d say the two are fairly evenly matched, with Spurs having the better keepers and forwards (though neither club being that convincing at either end of the pitch) and Arsenal having the better defenders and midfielders, though Spurs have a few class acts, notably Vertonghen, Bale and perhaps Dembele.
If I were to pick a combined XI based on form this season, it would have six Spurs starters to five from Arsenal, but the subs would be almost all Arsenal, suggesting greater depth for us but some real quality at WHL:
LLORIS, GIBBS, VERTONGHEN, MERTESACKER, WALKER, DEMBELE, WILSHERE, CAZORLA, BALE, WALCOTT, ADEBAYOR (Subs: Szczesny, Koscielny, Vermaelen, Arteta, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Podolski, Defoe)
Controversial, 26, but that is a meritorious call! 🙂
26 May1989 – Your “yawn” reaction makes me suspect you yourself may be an A.K.B. If so, why not challenge me on the comments I’ve posted ?
If not, with respect, why not educate yourself further ? You could start with our disgraceful wages policy – see this…. ….http://arsenaltruth.squarespace.com/arsenal-truth/2013/1/7/wengers-selfish-socialist-wage-structure.html
” In Arsene we rust.”
It’s insultnig Spectrum, because you have no idea what I or anyone else here thinks. For example, I would proudly describe myself as being an admirer of Wenger, and I always will be, but I also think we’ve reached a point where managerial change is needed, not so much because he’s done things wrong; rather, the situation between fans, club, players and manager is now chronic and I think can only be remedied with change. So what am I, an AKB or a doomer? Neither one.
Just debate the points, don’t use stupid, lazy abbreviations that do you and others here no favours. Who knows, more people might actually be influenced by what you say.
Spectrum, you are quite right. I am a AKB and quite proud of it. I just happen to believe that Mr Wenger knows more about football and the mechanics of Arsenal football club than me.
If you can prove that you know more than him, and this applies to any of his other detractors out there, then do so.
Thanks Spectrum, I think I’ll give your “education” a miss. As for debating with you, pretty much everything you’ve said I (and others) have addressed on this thread. If you’re interested in my opinions (no reason you should be) I’ve posted a fair number of comments here in the last few days that should make it clear.
Back to work.
Its a shame that people are using abreviations like AKB and causing a divide amongst our club. The only abreviations we should be interested in using is VCC.
This Latin ‘truth’ was and will be around longer than Arsene. Shame we dont practise it. Well done Spectrum, you achieve nothing with this divide, apart from airing our dirty laundry.
Spot on 26m @12:02. Preaching to others in order to convert them to your view is just a form of self gratification. A discussion should be an interaction in search of the truth (as far as is possible). Facts often exist only in the mind of those on a mission and blinkers them to the views of others.
You and I have made it clear we see a change of manager as an inevitable consequence of the decline in our footballing performance, but I cannot align myself in any way with spectrum’s attitude on the matter.
of corse we can finish top 4 we are ment to be there woop woop
It’s not necessary to know more than him, to form an opinion or hold a view on the state of our club. We can see with our EYES what is going wrong. Most of us don’t have a coaching certificate, but if we did, we wouldn’t keep repeating the same mistakes over and over as he does. Tactically for example, we can all see that we are inflexible, same formation, same high line in defence, regardless of who we play, players continually out of position, players picked on favouritism rather than form and merit ( e.g.Ramsey ), squad depth always left thin, needed replacements not brought in and largely inferior when they are, relying on injured players to keep their fitness all season ( e.g. Diaby, Rosicky, Gibbs ) and us getting caught short when they don’t, and on it goes….all OBVIOUS faults and flaws that continually are left unaddressed. And these examples ( and there are many more ) are just ON THE PITCH. None of them are hard to see to anyone with even a basic knowledge of football. Yet we have a manager who is paid 7 million a year and seemingly not only fails to deal with them, but condescendingly dismisses anyone who questions them on our behalf ( journalists for instance ).
As Mourinho said the other day, Wenger has had it easy. Supported by a complacent sycophantic and profit driven board,he has no pressure on him to succeed. And by succeed, I mean finish FIRST, not top 3 or 4. Finishing FIRST is what we should be striving for, anything less is failure. At other clubs eight years of it wouldn’t be tolerated. At Arsenal it’s regarded as acceptable, as long as the profits keep rolling in.
To blindly put your faith in someone just because they “know more” than you, is a cop out. We fans may not have the credentials, but we do have common sense and intelligence. And we know when we’re being conned and lied to. It just takes some longer to realise it than others.
” In Arsene we rust.”
Rasp,
I hope you noticed that I kept my opinion about Rusty Bucket to myself. 🙂
Actually, it was easy to ignore him, because he trotted out the same unoriginal, tired old clichéd crap last year, and the year before, and no one listened to his offensive bleating then either.
Yawn, indeed!
Has anyone seen Spectrum about?
Well done RA 🙂
I think if he were a regular contributor he would know that most, if not all of the points made in his last comment have been raised on here in recent weeks – just without it being in the form of an attack on anyone.
I think you, GN5 and WeeDonald have all made the point that what we write on a blog is of zero consequence in terms of it affecting the way things are done at the club – it is human nature to seek understanding and to want to share ideas and the joy/angst with others.
Prince Purrfect Poldi – In case you hadn’t noticed, the supporters ARE divided. Have been for a long time, and are increasingly so. You can ignore this fact if you like, and live in your cosy Wenger lined cocoon believing all is well, but all I’m trying to do is inject a dose of reality on here to some of you.
Bare Arsed ( above ) ” gets it “. And he was a former A.K.B. How long before the rest of you see the damage being caused to our club by the past and current policies and coaching ?
26 May1989 predictably declined my invitation to read the link I provided. Those in denial react like that. They don’t WANT to see or concede an alternative viewpoint.Even when it makes sense and is supported by facts. That’s what dealing with A.K.B.’s is like – utterly frustrating.
” In Arsene we rust.”
Ahh, poor frustrated, puerile Spectrum! we really feel for you ……….. seriously ………………… not!
Hahaha, Rocky. Top bombing. Everyone thought the spuds woul turn up for this one but not if it’s not tagged. Still specutrum did as a spud replacement. Nice
By the way, I also WAS an admirer of Wenger once. When he still had his qualities ( pre 2005 ) that made him so respected. In my criticism of him I don’t deny his achievements. Indeed I celebrated along with all of you in his early years. But he, and some of you, are living off and trading on, past glories. The Wenger we USED to know is long gone, sad to say. Do you honestly believe differently ?
It’s high time we recognised his decline and consequently our club’s. Things won’t change unless he ( and the board ) changes. But he can’t and won’t. Everyone has their rise, peak and decline. It applies to all walks of life, in every endeavour. Credit and respect can only take you so far. Eight years is long enough to win a championship ( or even a cup though that wouldn’t be good enough for a club with our stature ). Time for him to accept this, and resign with grace, before he tarnishes his legacy even more than he already IS.
” In Arsene we rust.”
Hi chas, I couldn’t face an onslaught from the unwashed and so resisted the temptation to tag the post.
Could you let me know who got the assists for Sunday pls?
Rasp,
Giroud gets the assist for Gibbs’s goal, the Pod cottoned on to a miskick, so does that count? 🙂
I have to say I don’t think Spectrum is the first blogger on here with an approach that some might say is “confrontational” as some of the regulars and occasional commenters are like that also.
Of course lazy labels like “AKB” or “Doomer” are sweeping generalisations and don’t elucidate the discussion much however the only time I get wound up is when a supporter, usually an opposition one comes on here to wind up gooners in a disrespectful manner, which I don’t think the case is here.
Right, I would like to have seen more movement on the transfers in by now, rather than exits, albeit loan ones.
Additionally a different focus on match tactics and approach is necessary as can be seen by the disconnect between the midfield and defence.
Twatter, yes I know I shouldn’t really believe anything on that, still seems to think there is some mileage in the Villa rumour however unlikely that sounds and that Theo’s contracxt extension announcement is a day or two away. Ha !
So Spectrum, everything would be ok if Arsene could only give you a couple of minutes of his time so you could explain to him his failings and the need for change.
Your like one of those geezers that acosts the Prime Minister in the street with a “how to fix the economy” written on the back of a postage stamp. hahahaha
Spectrum go away, you’re boring and your punchline is still patrhetic
chas – Intelligent comment. So a Spud would spend / waste an hour and a half of his time pointing out truths that might be inconvenient to emptyheads like you, would he ? Well in your mind he might. I’m surprised no-one has told me to go support ——,——-,or ………..( fill in the blanks ).
Okay, I’m done here. See you at the open top bus parade showing off our third place “trophy”. It’ll be in May. Coincidentally the same time Wenger said to “judge him” by. Oh hang on a minute – he said that BACK IN 2008 !!!
But all we need is to “give him time”, eh ?
“In Arsene we rust.”
And i wouldnt bother trying that either. I did and now have a restraining order. hahaha
Nice post by the way Rocky.
We are nothing like Totnumb, never have been and never will be
Arsenal are a cut above, always have been and always will be.
I admire your objectivity spectrum and your comments carry a lot of weight. You have raised numerous good points and Its a shame that they are being overlooked- I for one have enjoyed reading your blog. yep, our socialist wage policy which fails to retain, attract and motivate employees (players) is the underpinning factor to our demise. Resources are not being effectively allocated, and what really takes the p*** is that the actors up top are deriving consistent increases in remuneration, despite this. This doesn’t seem very socialist to me.Mr Wenger, please leave the patronizing to our Chairman!
I agree. It is the club’s lack of corporate social responsibility that it tearing the fans apart. We must not blame ourselves. We have a legitimate right to challenge those who control ‘our resources’, particularly amidst allegations which suggest that the club is abusing its fiduciary relationship with us, the fans. Moreover, it is our duty of care to do so.
Every supporter has a right to voice their claim, and that’s exactly what your doing. So keep up the good work.
vp, I wonder how much more of a divide there is between the club and our supporters compared to other clubs.
As gooners we only look at and think of our own club but it would be beneficial to know how we compare to the rest of the premier league with regard to how we feel the club treats us, for example the Swansea FA Cup match is a category B game (cheapest adult seat £35.50) while the Swansea league game was a category C (cheapest adult seat £25.50) hence the call by some blogs to boycott the replay.
chary, all fans of the same club argue with each other, Arsenal are not a special case.
In fact, i think its fair to say, ive had many more heated disputes with fellow Gooners than i have with supporters of rival clubs.
I have three brothers, all gooners, and when we were kids used to fight about Arsenal all the time. Now were all in our forties we still do. On Christmas day, myself and my older brother were seperated at the dinner table, over a dispute on the merits of Gervinio. But not before ide shoved a turkey bone down his whatsit. hahahaha
Mr Syrup, it would be interesting to know how we compare though as regards to the fragmentation of support. as well as like/dislike of “The club” – are we more disconnected(from the club) than average in the Premier League ?
I only had 2 sisters so I missed out on the rows about football – all I get too is barrack my manure supporting kiwi bro-in-law for being a glory-hunting plastic.
And slagging off their manager loads 🙂
I think Arteta got the asstist Rasp
Long time reader of this site and I often peruse the comments with great interest. There are lot of excellent and intelligent contributors here and I can’t pretend to know the inner workings of the club as a corporate entity as some of you have laid out in excellent comments on previous articles.
However, what is clear to me is that Spectrum came on here and made some very relevant points that were completely dismissed. No one (apart from vp) has directly responded to the article he posted on the socialist wage structure, which I think is an appalling revelation. A FOOTBALL manager, in my opinion, should not be overseeing that side of the club in the first place, and it makes me wonder how much money we have wasted in wages over the last 8 years that could have been better spent.
Arsenal have been leaking ridiculous goals for years now. Surely as manager that is something that Wenger needs to address and should have addressed a long time ago. Why has the defensive gritty side of our football heritage under GG been swept under the carpet and forgotten about. This should have been combined with Wenger’s ideal of beautiful football, not swept aside.
Can someone also respond to the point of tactical inflexibility/rigidity whatever you want to call it and a refusal to adapt to the opposition and quite clearly playing players out of position. Why did Nicky B have to learn his trade on the wing. Why does he persist with Ramsay there. Why is making Podolski play as a winger. Also does no one remember what Fabregas said re never having studied opposition teams while at Arsenal. Again I think this is quite shocking.
I’m not trying to have a go at anyone, but these are points I don’t think have been properly debated (here) and are complaints I have seen other supporters (as a match going supporter) talk about for years.
Yeah, i heard about the pricing, its absolutely laughable. I think that there’s divisions between all fan bases, more so with us because of the way the club is run (governed). A Wenger press conference is more like watching a politician on question time then it is a football manager. We are not as open and transparent as most clubs and run more like an insider family dominated business, which alienates the fans,making us feel more like consumers then members.
Its the lack of clarity that’s partitioning the fan base, as nobody really knows whats truly going on. This invariably will, and has created different schools of thought. Kroenke is still yet to reply to Usmanov’s letter which requests details about his loan taken out to acquire us. Rather then use this opportunity to quell suspicions and reassure, the club expose themselves up to allegations of concealment, without the need to justify their integrity to the fan base. I think that most people would view such a request as reasonable, given the fact that Usmanov is a fellow major shareholder. It is quite difficult to understand why Mr Kroenke is not willing to comply. I guess, just like with everything else, we’ll have to fight it out amongst ourselves to figure out why.
Its hard to know for sure chary, but now again i do go on the odd Tottenham message board as ‘Ralph Coates Hair Transplant’ to wind them up, but most of the time i dont need to.
The amount of inter fighting is unreal, arguing about things like wether David Howells lives in Enfield or Chingford. The old timers are revered on there, you know the ones, they go on about Jimmy Greaves and actuly saw Totnumb win the league. As soon as one of them posts the others swoon and wish that they could touch them in some way or collect there pension for them from the post office.
They have one bloke called N17 who saw them win the double and now lives in Australia, who if he came over to the UK they would give an open top parade to. And another called Selkey who lives in Spain who claims to have been at the 1962 European Cup semi final. But he gets a bit of stick because he thinks theres a rift between AVB and Levy.
Strange people. hahahaha
Mersef. I have been raising most of those points in your 3rd and 4th paras for a while also, but as we are dealing with individuals not every point raised will necessarily get addressed.
Just yesterday I was question our substitutional predictability/rigidity -always at 65ish minutes no matter what the state of the game.
And the lack of attempting to change your game to suit the opponent is another thing that puzzles/infuriates me.
Merseforever
Pretty much all the points you mention have been discussed at great length in both comments and headline Posts on here for a long time now.
The reason people are not engaging with Speculum is because we pride ourselves on maintaining a civilised forum for discussion on here and he wants to garnish his points with insults and abuse.
Let’s say you and I wanted to have a discussion about Gervinho’s hairstyle. You like it ( 🙂 ), I don’t. You explain why you like it, I then respond by making a reasonable point (“but surely those flying dreads must get in his eyes at time”) but follow it up with something like “and if you can’t see that you must be a fkin moron. You Mekon-hair lovers get on my tits.”
My good point may not not be rendered invalid by the insult, but it will probably disincline you from debating further with me.
In short, no-one on here objects to Speculum making his points – we object to the manner in which he makes them.
Hello everyone
Thanks for the comments.
To be honest (don’t tell anyone) I wrote this after thinking to myself the other day in a moment of madness “bloody hell, we’re becoming just like that lot down the road.”
Of course I quickly washed my mouth out…
Rasp – thanks for not tagging the Spud name. Last thing everyone needs is a load of N17 idiots practising their kindergartern level English on here.
Merse, with all due respect, the points you raise are debated on here all the time. You make some very good points, all worthy of good discussion, but you have done so in a way that does not preach or imply that other people are somehow stupid or deluded.
Spectrums tone implied that we who do not see his point of view are a bit dim, and in due course will see he is right after all. fair enough, he can say what he likes in my opinion, but that dosnt mean i have to enjoy be preached to.
Besides, ime the only one allowed to preach on here. hahahaha
Mr Syrup, it seems like every teams board has a similar spectrum of fans, we have our esteemed elders, the young fighters, the doomers, anti-doomers (to use terms I don’t like) – the thing is you need to be an octenogarian Spud to have seen a Spud League Championship.
Hi Merseforever, thanks for coming to join us today, its nice to know you read the site, you’re approach to blogging is in line with what we aim to achieve on AA. I hope you keep commenting, your opinions will never be discarded.
I understand your defence of Spectrum based on the points he was trying to make. He has been on the site several times before and unfortunately used the same abrasive approach that has devalued his message today.
Both you and vp (and chary) have managed to make similar points in a way that allows us to concentrate on the topic, not flinch from the abuse.
We have debated all the points spectrum makes and seen both sides of the argument upheld.
Just for the record, I am probably preceived as one of the moaners on here as I have regularly criticised our pay structure, the make-up and performance of the Board and the manager’s role at the club … and I’ve done it without calling people names, pigeon holing them with acronyms and signing off with a catchphrase calculated to rile.
If they have been, my apologies, I haven’t read every comment on every blog post so I have clearly missed them.
I think if I am honest that what made me write this post is a real disillusionment with the club. This not a problem unique to Arsenal, but football in general with its increasingly corporate direction etc and what I call ‘WengerSpeak’ which has developed eg this meaningless rhetoric of ‘The Arsenal Way.’ Ticket prices are reaching obscene levels and the amount of die hard Arsenal families I know who are being priced out year on year is massively increasing. For those of us who still pay, it is incredibly frustrating to see our money spent on an idealistic wage structure which is then so obviously undermined by the 7.5 m a year Wenger earns. This is a wage that is in no way justified in my opinion. If the club were in a real period of austerity, the manager’s salary should have fitted that framework.
Other things that annoy me is this myth that we are special for being a club committed to ‘Youth’ and this is a new innovation that Wenger has brought in. I don’t deny that for a while he did well with it, but if you look at his entire tenure how many English Arsenal academy products have really made the step up. Cashley and Jack. Contrast that to the previous generation of Adams, Rocky, Thomas, Davis, Parlour and Merse. Clearly there are structural factors in England in general that have caused the decline in talent, but I don’t see what is honorable about picking up talents from Spain etc at 16 and then claiming we have a great academy. Not to say that I have a problem doing it (it’s the way the world works now) but I resent being told that doing this somehow makes us special and more ethical than others and hence justifies a frugal spending policy with money we are alternatively told is/isn’t available.
Like I said, I think a relatively undiscussed issue is the increasing disconnect between the traditional supporter base and the club. 100 years ago the club moved to Islington and begged the locals for support. Today, many Islington residents who are 3rd/4th generation Gooners cannot get into the ground. Obviously I concede that the club has massively expanded its supporter base and is probably not of primary concern to them or to a majority of other Arsenal fans, but I think it is something that merits discussion. What do you think could be done, if anything can be, to remedy this?
I would be interested in those on AA’s thoughts. The above post is more a rant than anything, but I hope it’s at least coherent in some way. I am probably a middle aged romantic longing for the club I grew up with (yellow and blue away kits, all players in club suits, the cannon facing the other way, a proper North Bank) and I am probably living in the past. But I do think the club has lost something that made it special and it saddens me greatly. I doubt I’ll make another post here, but I’ve enjoyed my brief foray into the online blogosphere! Back to work for me!
Hi Rocky, 🙂
You and Rasp have said it right.
Opinions, are not facts, otherwise they would not be opinions, so everyone, (let’s call him “x”) is free to give an opinion, and some will agree and some will disagree with him.
“x” may then express other opinions, and those who agreed with the original point he made, might now disagree with his new opinion and so on.
Therefore to try and label other bloggers, in advance, as belonging to one faction or another is utterly pointless.
I do not know one single regular blogger on here with whom I have always agreed, and vice versa, but they are my friends, nonetheless, and I would not dream of insulting them, because of a difference of opinion.
That cannot be difficult to understand. 🙂
Top comment Merse. I am not too bothered what the manager earns as his salary is often used as a way of attacking him when it is the Board who decide how much he will be paid – he’s not going to say ‘no that’s too much’.
I agree with all your other points. Sadly we can’t go back to the days when football was naive. The wage structure is/was bonkers. I had hoped we were moving away from it but recent statements have cast doubt on that.
Having an owner who is not a fan can be good or bad. We’re not going to go bust but on the other hand we know that success on the pitch is not his priority – success in the business is his sole aim.
Merseforever
I absolutely agree about the disconnect between fans and club, though I think that is a general problem, not something Arsenal have a monopoly on. The thing that gets me is the fact that teenagers who want to go to games must now depend on mum and dad having enough disposable cash to pay for them – when I was a kid, I was able to fund my Arsenal habit (including going to plenty of away games) from the money I earned doing a paperound and working at a fruit and veg shop. With prices at all clubs the way they are, that’s not possible anymore (even if teenagers still had paperounds etc).
But it’s vital to give them the chance to go to games. Which is one reason I think it would be great to see some safe standing terraces return to football, and why I also think our club should use some of the money we pump into it to subsidise cheap tickets for the under 21s. Otherwise the only people who’ll grow up with a habit of going to games will be those who grew up in richer, middle class homes.
I’m also with you on the yellow and blue away kit, but footballers in suits not so much! Though those bloody massive headphones they all insist on wearing now should be banned. As for our new badge, it’s better than the old one in my opinion!
Merse.f your (possibly) last comment has enough discussion points to merit a headline post, most of which I either agree with or can relate to.
The traditional fanbase I believe is vitally important in connecting the local community to the club and while the club has many ventures and projects that help foster this.
However the ticket pricing is something of an issue as I see it as it seems more and more tourists make up the home crowd as local supporters cannot afford to attend so many times.
Merse4ever, 🙂
That is a brilliant exposition of the frustration felt by an increasing number of lifelong Arsenal fans.
You made a number of points, and I will restrict myself to replying to one. You said that the cost of tickets and access to games by people who have grown up around the club who cannot get, or afford those tickets is distressing. And for what it is worth – I totally agree.
I do not have an answer for you, other than to say it is not unique to Arsenal, but it would be brilliant if the club could subsidise, in some way, those who live within a certain radius of the ground.
I also have sympathy with the other points you raise, and hope that was not your last blog on here!
Please stay and chat, when you have the time! 🙂
To be fair to the club, I think they do make an effort with locals in terms of tickets to games – not necessarily a huge effort, but I think from friends who live close to the ground that local kids get some extra access to tickets.
26m, yes I agree, the new badge is an improvement on the rather complicated older versions and in keeping with the modernisation of the club. The Nike tick is the best logo there will ever be because of it’s message and simplicity, I understand the nostalgia attached to the old crest but it is a graphics nightmare and needed to be upgraded. Have a look at Liverpool’s badge if you want to see a logo that shouts the 70’s – it’s truly awful.
Agreed Rasp, though the simplicty of the 1970s cannon and three cannon-balls (especially before the Umbro logo got a look in) was lovely. And do you remember that away kit we had with the massive cannon in the centre? Great stuff….
I do 26m, that was my favourite. I think the badge has improved at every revision. When you see our badge on the tv next to that of an opponent, it always looks strong and classy in comparison – I only wish the team did 🙄
I do not have a preference to the old or new crest, but from memory the change was brought about because of the need to protect the club’s commercial rights.
It seems that patent ‘rights’ to the old crest were not legally protected, and this only became evident when the club tried to restrict the growing, unauthorised use of the old crest on non Arsenal products.
The rights to the new ‘simplified’ crest is now fully protected.
I’m going to be awkward and ask why couldn’t they have designed a new club logo that didn’t look like a yoghurt pot label ?
There must have been some way to retain the character of the old one but in a simplified/updated manner.
I don’t like the new badge. It is very generic. There is a sports team in Australia with a similar badge (not a cannon)
As for spectrum his stupid arsene we rust thing he puts on the end stops me from reading anything he says and makes him sound like a 12 year old (although I’m sure he’s not)
Rasp,
As I am not sure if you received my original email, I have sent an update to ‘arsenalarenuts’ ! 🙂
http://www.footballaustralia.com.au/melbournevictory
I like the one I use as an avatar (Obviously)
Thanks Redders, I’ll have a look later when I get home.
gm, that badge has a certain Freemason’s flavour about it, but like the Freemasons, it doesn’t tell the viewer what it is promoting.
Hello
Glad to Join u on the debate I just read spectrums post and I agree with some of the managerial points he makes,
Not to keen on his aggressive typing on here,but I don’t know him he may be a real nice person.
Again u know how I feel about Mr Wenger but I don’t end a post with ‘ In Arsen we rust”.
I don’t find that amusing at all I’m now sounding like my dad it must be my age.
I end my post like this
MUCH LOVE
Sheep Hagger™
Can any one tell me what year we was sponsored by Umbro has I have an Arsenal scarf with the Umbro diamonds on it .
I had it before I was married so its at least 28 years old.
Much love
SH
!978-80 according to this Sheepy. : http://www.classicfootballshirts.co.uk/premiership-clubs/arsenal.html
Cheers char
By the look of it I think it’s about 82-84 that era.
Cheers I wonder if its worth anything my wife lost it for ages and then it turned up under the stairs.
Further confirmation that Umbro weasled their way onto the shirt in 1978: http://www.historicalkits.co.uk/Arsenal/Arsenal.htm.
Bum!
I am determined not to pay any attention to any of the hundreds of “Arsenal are EYEING x”, “Arsenal are preparing a bid for y” cobblers that permeates the blog world during January.
But do you know what always catches me out, and gets to me in a way I would prefer not to let it, is Arsene’s carefully choreographed “quotes for the transfer window”.
These usually start with “Yes, ve vill go into the market”, “vee are only interested in top, top quality, or “ve vill go into the market when Theo’s contract is finalized”, until it starts to morph into “no, vee are not interested in him”, having previously said, “yes, I like him, he is an Arsenal type player”.
Now he is saying “vee will buy two players, IF we can find someone”, which has become, “with Diaby and Rosicky coming back, I do not know if we need someone” and to bring us up to date, “ve will only go for the ‘right’ players, if they are available”.
I try to stop myself reading this stuff, because it is like an emotional roller coaster.
If I could speak to Arsene I would say, “look, Arsene, buy if you think that is right – do not buy if you do not need anyone, either way is fine, but bloody well stop sending out these continual contradictory update messages — please. They are not necessary, and make you seem vacillating or economical with the truth!” 🙂
Spectrum did raise some valid points, just a shame he did so in a Dennis-awful manner! The main point I got from his preaching was that ‘In Arsene We Trust’ is maybe a little bit dated.
What would you change it to that is a little more fitting?
In Arsene We Percevere would be my choice!
🙂
Slim,
You have hit the nail on the head, regarding Speculum.
The thing is he has been on here a number of times, and he is always deliberately provocative.
Newer bloggers on here would not know that, but it explains some of the comments he received in response.
The points he made are valid for discussion, even tho we have already done them to death recently. But then we have done most Arsenal matters to death, haven’t we? 🙂
I think Wenger is still a great manager, and if he leaves us will have some blinding success elsewhere. I just think it’s become impossible for him to succeed again with us. I’d love to be wrong on that.
Just while I’m writing about The Lord Spectrum, is it the AKB’s (sorry!) that are unwilling to see that Wenger is no longer the right man for the job, or is it the ‘In Wenger We Rust’ lot who are unwilling to accept that we are no longer a title challenging club?
6 of 1, half a dozen of the other I think.
Both sets of fans seem to be clinging onto parts of the past that they wish were still true today. In reality, I believe that we are now a top 4 team, with a still very good manager.
The AKB’s (sorry!) think Arsene is the main reason for most, if not all, the success we have had in the last 15 years and think he can do the same again. The IAWR fans believe he is the man to blame for us no longer being the side we once were and want him gone. Reality shows more of a murky picture, that Arsene built a lot of the good work on a GG defence, Dennis Bergkamp, and a lot of help from David Dein. On the flip side, the reason we are no longer a title challenging side must have a lot to do with the new stadium, oil barons and money-grabbing players. It’s obviously not all, or none, of Wengers doing.
My point being that these polar opposites aren’t really helping the club and the divide is becoming a bit ridiculous.
Sorry for ranting!
RA,
I think we’ve done all Arsenal subjects to death, so much so, that I think we should become freelance bloggers!
Who do you think Spurs should sign this window?
Only Joking!!!!
🙂
Brede Hangeland
Is available on a free his contract is expending.
He would be able to help out in defence,go get him Wenger!.
Not for me SH. He hasn’t improved from when we didn’t sign him 2 years ago so don’t see the point. We need starters, not bench warmers. Chiellini would be nice, but I think the lad at Montpellier (Yanga-Mbiwa?) is more realistic, though I can’t say I’ve seen much of him either.
There is this habit at our club of fans urging Wenger to sign anyone that is mentioned as a potential signing. For example, we are being linked with this Lopez fella from Atletico Madrid, yet most of the people saying we should sign him will probably have never watched him kick a ball! Then when we don’t sign them they moan!
Does that happen at all clubs or just ours?
Slim, re your 6:09
It is the terminology that is so dated and irrelevant. What the fook is an AKB for goodness sake.
Yes, I know what the acronym stands for, but in your time on here, have you ever come across anyone who is so brain dead that they think any human being, including Wenger, is so omniscient and has such god like attributes that they/he ‘always know best’.
There are differences of opinions among all fans who care, of course, but, for all the support AW is given, all of us have some reservations about various issues he has been involved in or decisions he has made.
My team/club is Arsenal, and much tho’ I admire Arsene Wenger, one day he will be gone, but Arsenal will always be here.
It is Arsenal that I support, it is the Arsenal team that I love to watch, and while the management and coaching of Arsene is beneficial to both, he will get my support, but Arsenal remain, as they always have been, my priority and love, and the priorities and love of all bloggers on here, I hope!! 🙂
Rasp,
I sent the assists update at 6.50 am this morning.
Redders
@6.09
Spot on Sir!
Apart from a handful at the extreme ends of both perspectives, I guess very few people could be called AKBs or Doomers. Most have a more complex view of matters and that’s why attempting to divide the support into two simplistic camps actually reduces the opportunity to discuss matters seriously and with the subtlety they deserve.
SPECTRUM,
Have you read the motto of the club?
VICTORY THROUGH HARMONY
Just to let you know you would say I was a AKB if you listened to my views and a In wenger we rust if you ever heard me at a match.
These lazy terms do not sum up me. What is important is we stick together.
That is why my views support Arsene and The Arsenal.
Rocky masterpiece, from the first sentence I knew who had written it and some absolute pearlers along the way 🙂
Who had George in the sweepstake, choose any of them, it was the most common name of Arsenal legends 🙂
RA, RL and GJ,
Totally agree.
I hope Wenger wins another trophy, not for the fans, but for himself.
If mr specyoulum actually read Arsenal Arsenal fairly regularly, he would know that every single poster and commenter on here has questioned Wenger to a greater or lesser degree (except Sir Terence of Syrupsville perhaps 🙂 ).
He comes on once in a blue moon looking for an argument, totally contrary to the spirit of the site. Even commenters on LG can’t stand him and his pathetic catch phrase.
Btw, I would like to apologise for light-heartedly using the ‘doom’ word when ribbing my good friend Micky a few days ago. It was only meant in jest and wasn’t intended to be taken as a divisive and destructive phrase as specyoulum uses AKB.
I raise my glass to the Honourable George Exile, first baby of AA 😀
Me, too.
Here’s to George Exile the First.
I hope I live long enough to have a beer with him and his old man in the Tavern.
5 years isn’t that long Chas 🙂
Excellent choice, GIE. 😀
“George” has royal associations in this country, first dating from George 1st and became popular from then on.
It is of Greek origin, “Jorj”, so maybe Terry Nutkins should be his Godfather!! Altogether now — Nooooooooooooooooooooo!! 😛
Is chas an old fellow like 75?
Much love
SH
Yes, Sheeper. Just like you!! 😛
I won’t be far off it in 18 years time, sheepy. 🙂
I’m 49 in July I’m a young male sheep .
Btw, I would like to apologise for light-heartedly using the ‘Yes’ word when ribbing my good friend Chas a few minutes ago. It was only meant in jest and was not intended to be taken as divisive or destructive.
(That should get me out of that!!!) 😛
Ahh, that reminds me Hagger, that ‘photo you produced that allegedly had your wife in the middle of two ewes, well if you look closely, your wife is a Ram too!!
Best not to tell her though!! 🙂
Long Live George
Bravo Exile
Badford v Dirty Villa on sky.
I refuse to watch that rubbish I’ve given the wife the remote tonight,
Brb look
Right, I had better go and lie down before I take the mickey out of the maestro Rocky Roll, and, like Chas and Sheepy, he will never forgive me — again!! 😛
How can you tell red I can’t see no cock in the pic on middle sheep
I’m easy going don’t worry
You’re forgiven, RA (what for, I’m not sure)
I’ll never forgive you Redders!
(Although for what, I have no recollection)
Sheep – you have been a very amusing and completely original addition to this site – I’m glad you found us.
Were you reading AA for a while? Or was the day of your first comment the first time you visited?
Nice one Chas
Some top goal keeping in that clip 🙂
Was that Frank Worthington? He was some player.
George? Mr and Mrs Exile are people with the finest taste!
Frank Worthington was before his time.
26,
🙂
Thank u for that rocky for that comment .
No I found this site in July and used to post as Andi R.
But then I had the bug and now use this name as its my x box live name as well.
My lap top was so slow so I bought an I pad which is super fast .
Much lover
SH
Another famous George
George Michael of wham I’m a big fan of him .
And he’s Greek not a Welshy.
George is a lovely name for a Gunner!
Thank you for the post Rocky, very amusing indeed. Why is St Totteringham’s Day not a Dennis-given right? When was the last time they finished above us in the league?
the lovely Brandford are firmly on the way to win the carling cup
Sheep – you like George Michael? Right… I might as well come out of the closet and admit to absolutely adoring George Best, sshhhhhh
Another good shout George best I can only just remember him playing for Fulham In a c final I think it was 74
thanks Chas! he looked even better on the pitch, did you like him?
He’s got more hair than me Mr best .
Good pic of the Belfast boy.
I knew GiE would name him after me 😛 …. George is my middle name, it was my dad’s middle name, and his dad’s etc etc … family tradition. My first son’e name is also George
evonne,
I preferred Susan George.
Rasp,
did you see the updated assists email I sent at 6.50 this morning?
My middle name is Owain it’s welsh for Owen as in burnt out
Michael Owen
Thanks chas, I’ll go have a look
Chas – what was Susan George’s position?
reverse cowboy
Susan Melody George (born 26 July 1950) is an English film and television actress, film producer and Arabian horse breeder.
And played in midfield for man poo.
Sheep
Are you a descendant of Owen Glendower?
No stay out of Wales .
He’s nothing to do with me .
Honest
I always liked the story of Glendower.
He led the English a merry dance with his rebellion and was never caught.
Shh rocky lots of English on here,they may find me and beat me up
Bradford 3 Villa 1, with a few minutes left.
Respect.
Come on Badford
Sack for him soon Paul lambert &butler
You’re right there Sheep. Should have stayed at Norwich.
Don’t rate him .
I manage my sheep bette than he can Villa
Sheeps of to sleep in locked up again tomorrow.
I will read the new post at tea time
Night much love
Aled Jones
How about – “In Arsene we underachieve” ?
No offence intended, but that probably sums up the effort the team gives in some games 🙂
A belated Happy New Year to Us all.
While in Malta I went to dinner wearing my Arsenal shirt on the night of the Newcastle game. I got some dirty looks from one guy in particular. He finished his food before me and left the dining hall. As Mrs. T & me finished our dinner and went in the lounge to watch the match I spied the guy watching on another telly. The score was 2-2 at the time. As the score went to 5-3 guess who I saw slinking out ?
I never saw him again after that.
We certainly didn’t underachieve that night!!!
SheepHagger,
Are you a Fifa man on Xbox? Anyone else play Xbox Fifa online?
Just noticed we have only lost 1 of our last 10 League games! The draws are killing us though.
I mentioned earlier how the version of the Arsenal crest used by goonermichael as an avatar contained imagery associated with Freemasonry. This made me curious so I googled ‘Arsenal freemasonry’ and found that Sir Henry Norris was indeed a prominent mason who became the top dog….”He was also a prominent Freemason, rising to become Grand Deacon of the United Grand Lodge of England.” … so it is probably no coincidence that there is Freemason imagery displayed around Highbury (built by Norris)
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/ARSEnorrisH.htm
The image to the right is commonly used to indicate there is masonic involvement
The G stands for Gooner…obviously 😉
Sorry if it has been covered already in comments (haven’t scrolled that far up).
But Arsenal apparently are to offer Theo a £25m deal, £90k a week 5 year deal + signing on fee. So lets say Theo’s agents being faithful to their player (andnot working for their 5% commission at all) get £5m for his deal, it still only means Chavs, Shitty or United have to offer him £120k a week (and no signing on fee) to be ahead of our offer.
Apparently when TV5 signed his new deal it was for £3m signing on fee.
Balotelli is on £170k a week.
The biggest problem is that that £25m + £5m is part of Arsenes transfer budget.
If we said budget this season and next is £200m, we have already used a large portion thing down the 5 young Brits, lets assume £10m each as an average. Then Cazorla, Pod and Giroud lets assume another £50m. And Walcotts deal, leaves us with £75m to spend on new talent. If we want to keep Sagna could be another £20m, and Szczesny needs a new deal.
Suddenly the Walcott deal starts to eat in to what seemed like a large budget.
True Father of George Exile, but that will always be the way. It was when Henry was pushing for more money, it was when Fabregas did and it was when van Persie did. And each of them was simultaneously agitating for signings.
Anyway, the massive new TV deals come on stream soon, which will have an enormous impact on PL football finances – the agents all know that there will be even more cash sloshing around (probably around £50m extra on average per club per season – the bottom club will get more next season than City got last year for winning the title). The already obscene levels earned will step up again to new levels, so that £100k a week is going to look pretty mundane in a couple of years. In fact, Walcott’s five-year deal could end up being relatively cheap for the club.
It’s all obvious and well-aired, but we need to make our current wage spending work better, which means moving a bunch of players on (not nearly as easy as many seem to think, it doesn’t just happen at the flip of a switch). And it should mean moving back to a more merit based wage system, like United’s, where the true stars get top whack and the worker bees get less. We can understand why a different system had to be put in place when there was no money to spend on transfer fees and when the whole squad had to be based on young players, but that phase is in the past. It’s difficult to judge whether the club is making the necessary transitions, but it certainly needs to.
Early footage of Arsenal’s zonal marking system in training.
Ooops, wrong one.
This should be it.
Get there eventually…….
A world of my own………..
Morning Chas,
That’s a see one get three free!! 🙂
It seems the Spuds are no longer after Zaha, because there is a deal in place for him to go to Manure in the Summer.
How can Arsenal/Arsene compete in these circumstances.
Evonne ‘what is Susan Gworge’s best position”
Chas “Reverse Cowboy”
Answers do not get better ROLF
Off for the day
Hi all
Apparently in Brighton they are cofident we will beat Swanse and are on our way to Brighton for the next round. As a result the tickets are all spoken for
Are WE confident that swans are fair game?
Morning all
We have a New Post ……………….
( handshake)
( I I * )
( II* )
Does your site have a contact page? I’m having problems locating it but, I’d like to shoot
you an e-mail. I’ve got some recommendations for your blog you might be interested in hearing. Either way, great site and I look forward to seeing it expand over time.