Respect

March 9, 2017

Once upon a time on AA we had Rant Friday, well today is Rant Thursday.

Last night’s game at Camp Nou may have been exciting and the denouement exceptional but what about the rest of it? And what of our game the night before? My focus here is on Respect.

The cheating exhibited by Suarez, Lewandowski etc is a disgrace. It shows no respect for the referee, the opposition and much more importantly, the game. These people benefit from deceit. Their prime purpose is to gain benefit and kudos by blatant diving. Cavani got shown a yellow card  for waving an imaginary card (fully justified), yet Suarez who spent most of the evening diving and feigning injury picked up just one card when he should have been sent off at least twice.

It is wrong and could be so easily remedied. Post game analysis (of which there are endless re-runs) allows the authorities to retrospectively ban players. They have too do so if the game has any merit or morality.

FIFA and the FA show little respect for the spirit of the game. Tuesday night saw a referee completely out of his depth. His sending off of Koscielny , the penalty thus rewarding Lewandowski’s blatant cheating  clearly affected the game. So too did hthe referee’s rebuttal of our penalty claim when Theo was felled. It could so easily been sorted out  by the 4th official using video technology. It works ion almost every other sport and in both cricket and rugby adds to the entertainment. Why not football? The argument that it cannot be used at grass roots level is quite frankly ludicrous.

In the absence of true heroes current society makes heroes of sportsmen; they have to be role models and with that comes responsibility. That players are rewarded for cheating has a knock-on effect. Why be honest when deception pays?

The current authorities have to start to bring morality and honesty back to the game we love. There are simple solutions, I could do it and so could you, so why can’t they?

What happened to Fair Play?

Rant Over (for now)

written by Big Raddy

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Posted by Erik the Red

R.E.S.P.E.C.T

March 7, 2017

We were humiliated in Munich. Did OK in the first half and got smashed in the second.

Will AW give it full gas against BM at home? He tried it at Liverpool and despite a second half revival we got sucker-punched. Or should AW batten down the hatches and hope for a morale boosting draw or even a narrow victory?

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No Ozil, though he was conspicuously absent in Munich, so his input will hardly be missed. Sanchez is likely to start if only to shut up the media.

My Team:

Ospina

Bellerin   BFG   Koscielny    Monreal

Ramsey    Xhaka    Iwobi

Ox    Sanchez     Welbeck

Walcott is so out of form he surely cannot start but perhaps AW will give him some pitch time in a no pressure game. I would drop Coquelin, he just isn’t good enough to compete at the highest level.

I would like to see BFG return to the side and add some calm to a nervous defence

I am sick and tired of my friends ribbing me about Arsenal following the BM game. Given the milliions spent on the squad  we should be able to compete. We are good enough to do so but have lost our way in recent weeks.

100% application and pride in the shirt is all I ask.

COYRRG

 

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Posted by Erik the Red

To Ozil or not to Ozil? That is the Question.

March 4, 2017

Hard to predict this one; we could win handsomely or get tanked. Neither team is playing well and yet both are capable of pulling out enough moments of quality to win the game. Should be interesting.

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We lost at home on the opening day of the season in a strange game – we dominated for 70 minutes – Liverpool had 5 shots all game yet we conceded 4.

Good news: No Henderson, no Sturridge. Bad news: Mane, Firmino and Coutinho are back and playing well.

Good news: Liverpool are struggling at the centre of defence. Bad news: We do not have a centre forward in form.

Good news: We play better away from home. Bad news: Liverpool are very good at home and just beat Spurs.

Good news:We have few injuries, OG, Ramsey and Koscielny are available. Bad News: Ozil has been off sick and is a doubt.

Once again, Mr Wenger has to find the midfield key. With Ramsey, Xhaka, Ox, Coquelin, Elneny, Iwobi and Ozil to choose from he has yet to find a combination that delivers security and creativity. I don’t know either!

My Team:

Cech

Bellerin      Mustafi      Koscielny     Monreal

Ramsey     Xhaka     Coquelin    Iwobi

Walcott    Sanchez

Theo gets an hour to prove he is still an important player at Arsenal. Seems unfair to drop Oxlade-Chamberlain as he has been playing well but IMO Ramsey is a more adaptable player.

There have been calls to rest Ozil as his performances in recent weeks have not reached his usual excellent standards, I tend to agree. Even Dennis got rested when he was out of form. We have so many attacking MF options that giving Ozil a reminder that every player has to fight for his place will do no harm. On the other hand it may convince the German Genius that his future lies away from the Emirates!

We have been crap away to the big clubs this season and Liverpool have been very good at home, the portents are not good, but if Arsenal are to stay in the Top 4 they cannot afford to keep losing against direct rivals, as such this is a huge game for us, and let’s be honest, we haven’t played well since before Xmas.

I would take a draw though a repeat of 26/6/1989 would be preferable.

COYRRG

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Posted by Erik the Red

Is Kroenke killing Arsenal?

March 2, 2017

We did well under the stewardship of the Hill-Woods. Even better under the ownership of  Dein and Fizman but Silent Stan? Has he been a hindrance or a help?

I was one who rallied against Usamov, I felt he would take us in the Chelsea route – no history, no tradition, just a money club, but in hindsight I may have been wrong – if we are to compete we have to do so with financial muscle, and with Stan at the helm this is unlikely.

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Kroenke is a businessman not a football fan. He has no allegiance to Arsenal and my guess is that he never will, we are just another of his sporting franchises. And what an investment Arsenal are, the share price has almost doubled since he bought in! Does Stan care if we win trophies? Probably, as it increases AFC’s value but judging by the success of his other franchises he prioritises profit over glory.

Why am I writing this? Because I was thinking about Pogba. We needed a player like him but we bought Pogba Light, Xhaka, who cost €60m less. And this is significant because if Arsenal are to win the title again there needs to be massive investment. Will Silent Stan sanction a €100m transfer? Of course not, he hasn’t elsewhere and he won’t at Arsenal.

Doing things the Arsenal Way is all well and good when we are winning but it seems less significant when we see Spurs above us in the table.

To improve we have to keep our best players and improve the squad. Will Kroenke buy the players to augment Ozil & Sanchez or will they leave to play in better teams? I think you know the answer.

As Terry MHT knows – never trust a man with a wig

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Posted by Erik the Red

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