Let us start here. This is an Arsenal blog,
if you expect a balanced view go elsewhere. If you expect me to be anything less than scathing towards our trophy-less neighbours from Wembley you will be disappointed. If you think I am going to write about Harry Kane being the best striker since Jimmy (not good enough for the ’66 WC team) Greaves, think again.
Why? Because where I went to school you had a choice, you were either a Gooner or a Spud, and once you made that decision it was for LIFE. This was the beginning of my understanding of Yin and Yang, of the balance between good and evil, right and wrong. And for me and millions of others Spurs have always been wrong’uns.
When I was blessed with Goonerdom it was a time of total THFC dominance (I know … to you younger chaps it is inconceivable!). Spurs were the best there had ever been and I can still recount the entire Spurs team of the early ’60’s. Sadly, but inevitably, a long slide into obscurity followed.
Do you know the last time Spurs won a proper trophy (not the Carabao/MilkToblerone/Disney Cup)? It was in 1991 – 27 years ago. And the one before that? In the early 80’s!!
And they think they are as big a club as the Mighty Arsenal 😀 😀
Their fans are so short of ammunition that they resort to 100+ year old history and complaints about our elevation to the top rank, from which, unlike Spurs, we have never fallen.
Enough of the past, how about today? It should be an enthralling encounter. Spurs on the back of 6 wins including two against decent opposition, us on a run of 18 unbeaten.
We go into a home game as underdogs, a rarity against the Miscreants, especially as we have lost just 2 of the last 14 (thank you GN5).
I could spend the next few minutes writing about their players, but where is the fun (for me) in that? We know – their fans tell us often enough. Of all of their players the only ones I would want at AFC are Eriksen and maybe a CB to replace Mustafi. The others are all too ugly.
I could also write about their manager, David Wagner, who as an Argentinian is well versed in the dark arts.
As to their fans … they are the only visitors to our ground who regularly damage the stadium, one has to question why they smash a toilet or rip up a seat in the away end – it is not as if a Gooner uses them!
Of course many Spurs fans are reasonable people, and I count many amongst my friends but they have a rotten core, they have been misguided into an awful decision to follow the skinny cock. It has affected them – generations of “almost” would affect anyone.
I think it would be remiss of me not to remind them that “4th is not a trophy and nor is 2nd or 3rd”. A refrain we heard every season for almost 20 years.
So, in a big game who starts for us? Ozil is straight in, as is Terrier and Xhaka. As always we have problems at the back and I would not be surprised to see us line up with the back 3 which won at Bournemouth.
My Team:
Bent
Catwalk Mustafi Greek Bloke Wardrobe
Terrier Xhaka Iwobi
Mesut
Laca PEA
Emery has a choice and it will be very interesting which direction he takes with the team; will he be pragmatic and look to control the midfield, including an extra MF/CB or will he attack?
I hope he gives it the beans.
As I am sure you know, we start slow, not leading at half-time at all this season, a strange stat. Could we please score early, pretty please?
As always this is a game between Good and Evil, sometimes twice out of 14). Given Spurs excellent form we have cause for concern but we have the tools to win. No place for feint hearts. For Harry, England & St. George etc
A tense afternoon ahead and we can win this.
Let it Be So.
COYRRG
Arsenal News 24/7
arsenalarsenal.net 
He he, as a Spud I find this article amusing. Will be a tough game for sure and I hope we win, but can see us cancelling each other out. Good luck
Thanks, Big Randy, I enjoyed reading that.
That David Wagner has managed dozens of clubs, ain’t he. 🙂
Loving your confidence to only field 10 players.
Well it’s an awful pity you won’t be manager today. That 4-3-2 formation would give Spurs the edge methinks.
Clean out to fully operational in 3 seconds.
To dare is to do,
To dare is to doooo-oooo-oooo,
Thirteen league titles,
you’ve only won two.
Great PM Raddy … you had me chuckling throughout … and all so true 🙂
If I could have a wish today it would be for Xhaka and Mustafi NOT to give away free kicks in dangerous positions. Its a very even contest on paper, let’s hope we don’t gift them the standard number of opportunities in the first half ….and Ozil, can we see you at your very best please!
wow, great stuff Raddy. 🙂 what a tub-thumping curtain raiser!
Bring the spuds on!
COYG.
Its slightly more that not giving away free-kicks, Rasp. Not giving away possession in our half, more like. 🙂
Wonderful start to the football day Raddy.
Given that the majority of both sides of my family were Arsenal supporters I never ever considered another team – especially our low life neighbours.
The overall record between the 2 clubs is very close with the Gunners having won 1 more league and non league games – the overall record is –
W68, D47, L61, GF266, GA247.
I’m always like a cat on a hot tin roof watching NLD’s so like Raddy I hope for an early lead to calm my nerves down. It’s a tad too early for alcohol as the game starts at 9:05am here but I might indulge at half time…………….
That should read having won 7 more league games.
Really annoyed my wife last night – I opened a box of Celebrations and changed all the wrappers around.
She really got her Snickers in a Twix!
Hi Arnie, we’ve been pretty good at keeping possession and we’re a lot better at playing through the high press this season … but I take your point 🙂
🙂 🙂 GN5
Great rallying cry BR .
I am sort of expecting Emery to do something very unusual and play the same team that started last week.
COYRRG
Good punt, LB.
Thank you Raddy, on the way to the game ……… all non attendees, as usual, have places in my pockets 💋
Gonna be loud and proud xx
Brave by Emery … we can see exactly where he’s coming from now.
There is no indication of Ozil being injured so his absence from the side can only mean that he does not fit into Emery’s plans – will he be sold in January?
Chambera playing as cdm for Fulham looking good
Chambers
Mkhitaryan again
Fred … positivity from you please … this is always the biggest league game of the season … save your moans for later 🙂
Get in there … PEA pisses all over them …..
Iwobi literally killed a fast break jeez
Ok ignore my comment about Iwobi
That was no penalty.
He did not touch him.
Poor refereeing, dive by Son … bring on VAR. Mike Dean strikes again … did he celebrate this one?
I was really enjoying that half until the diving cheating scumbags got a penalty for diving and cheating 😡
Man, I knew this was going to happen. Look at dean’s officiating record on another site, and it sure looks shady according to the data. Is this guy on the take? Seriously…..
sonG dived liked a swan and should have been carded, dier should have been on yellow for his foul on Tor, and been given his marching papers after the celebration, but we all know that would only happen in a parallel universe.
The team settled down and started to play better again after experiencing a collective red mist-and rightly so,
Come on Emery, make some changes at half time, and let the Arsenal smash and grab a few goals to win this game.
Interesting that sky do not show the penalty incident in slow motion which would then have made it clear whether or not there was contact.
What you can see is son drawing his left foot back deliberately which indicates that there was no contact.
A dive.
Think the pen was very very harsh, the merest flick of studs on Soms laces does not bring Son down, and the bigger point is Son had already lost possession, the ball careering off his right boot before Holding tickled him.
But he gave Dean the option.
Neville annoys me in commentary though, moments before speaking about how great it is for tackles to be flying in and then criticising the one that gives away a penalty?
Now back to more important things. Absolutely cracking start, but too good, it was likexwe we’re the underdogs…and the opposition would be saying what we normally say “they won’t be able to keep this pace up”. And we didn’t, couldn’t. But the disappointing thing is we were starting to get opened up before the equaliser and we were still committing rather than consolidating the 1-0 for twenty minutes.
First goal set piece defending questionable. The line invited that ball from Eriksen and was punished as you expect. Although Leno could and should have done better with angles and hands. He should be in front of his post.
We let ourselves get involved in the nonsense and we’re not concentrating when they broke for second.
Disappointingly we didn’t make most of our initial bursts.
Ok, so wrong result, so far, but we’re the better side. Hopefully turn it around. Most exciting 45 I’ve seen in ages. Only change I can see would be Laca on for Mustafi. Come on you Gunners, could be a memorable day
ps hope you’re all well
Just WOW
Get in!
Shouldn’t we switch to a 3412 so lacazette and aubameung would be up top together
Get in Get in Get in
WOT A GAME 🙂 🙂
Unreal, so great to watch the team respond!
Brilliant subs by UE at half time … he seems to keep his powder dry and unleash the quality in the second half …
Shit club no stadium 😁😁😁
Liking the fight lol
Fantastic team spirit. Unai doing a superb job. Brilliant day
Phew.
We cannot be prouder than today after that performance.
Even with their cheating.
The Aubemayang strike was good, the Laca strike was orgasmic.
Anyone want to write some match feelings?
I woke up 15 minutes into the game with us 1 up. Watched in horror at the Mike Dean show, decided I was a jonah so didn’t watch the second half.
I could add some made up ratings though. ☺
what a game and what a win! Spirited win punctuated by great goals! We were the best overall and deserved to win. Auba, LT, Holding, Kola and Bellerin had a great game. Ramsey and Lacazette did well when they came in.
Disappointment: Mustafi and Mikhy
Don’t get rasp vex by saying negatives about mkhitaryan
This game and Leicester tied for my favourite of the season thus far
A word on Aaron Ramsey, it is speculated that he or his agent may have been greedy in their wage demands, and also may be possible that his style of play doesn’t fit in with the managers view, but personally, I’d like to keep him at the club. I wonder if there is a chance we might offer him a revised contract more in line with his value to the team.
The Wardrobe had designer wear in it today. 7
If Ramsey made it clear that he wanted to commit to the club then Arsenal would make him a very reasonable offer.
The thing is right now he is still shopping around and why not, no matter that Arsenal have withdrawn their offer he knows they would always renew if he wanted it.
Torreira “silk and steel”
How you all feel theo would have done in this new system
I’m sure Ramsey was made a handsome enough offer, but the club in the end had to make a sensible decision, and UE has decided to build without him which is to his credit as he could just as easily use him knowing that he is going, but I guess he would rather build towards a future and use him when he has no other options.
There is another question mark around Ozil, can’t help but worry that he may be on his way.
Could benefit us anyway as without that wage at the club can’t be held to ransom by others.
That was good 😀
David Wagner’s post match
F**kin’ brilliant! Every single player knows what this game means and showed it. Loved the substitutes wanting to beat up that in-bred ‘Deliverance’ c*** Dier. Mike Dean giving them a ropey penalty made it even better in the end (He wasn’t actually that bad besides that, didn’t book Torreira for his shirt off goal celebration) Fantastic substitutions and change of tactics from Emery.
I had a perfect stre*m from start till finish (rare) and the noise from the crowd was maybe the loudest I’ve heard yet.
Wish I was on the Holloway Rd with the Bro and mates, necking pints and planning to go to the ‘Indian Ocean’ for a curry that you really shouldn’t have when you’ve got work the next day…..
I don’t see the fact that the club have withdrawn the Ramsey offer as a final position at all, I see it as a negotiating tactic.
As for Emery he is just a bystander trying to get the best results he can with the staff he has available.
I am in a bar watching Everton and Liverpool supporters sharing some banter. Very strange. I just blanked the spud who walked by.
Thanks for your responses to my Ramsey question. I agree with all those points … I’m just saying that used in the right way he can be a very effective squad member. I see him more as a second half booster than a starter. There is definitely something exciting happening at the club and you could see by his participation in the goal celebration that he is caught up in it.
Love Wagners’s excuses. He lauds Spurs ability to come back from a goal down but nothing about the 3 we scored from a one down situation.
Spurs fans are blaming Dean (much as we would have) 😀
Just imagine how bad he must have felt having to give a pen for this!
Even Mike Riley couldn’t have turned a blind eye.
Ramsey’s pass to Auba was sublime
I wonder if Arsenal continue playing well and start to look like a team that’s going somewhere then Ramsey might want to stick around and may look to get a cheaper deal done, assuming the club still want him.
We are a CB and an attacking midfield player away from being a very good side. I’ve been very impressed with Kolasinac recently, especially in this 3421, and the Xhaka/Torreira partnership is starting to look really good. It was a pleasure to watch today and even going in 2-1 down at half time, I still felt this team would fight and get at least a point. The attitude is fantastic and it’s really impressive to see subs coming on and firing straight away. Ramsey, Laca and Geundouzi all came on full of energy and fight and changed the game in our favour.
Now it’s upto Emery to find a way of getting Laca and Auba in the same side. They seem to really respect each other’s game and you can see that partnership being lethal.
The atmosphere sounded amazing today, even through the TV coverage. Is that the best atmosphere the Ems has had?
Gendouzzi loves it!!
Is it possible to be happier………………..
Baby spud just crept in …….. Shit club no stadium 😂😂😂
🙂
Is he staying up to watch MOTD with you?
Poor baby spud, Peaches! Tell him they were mashed!
Wow, what a game that was! Had everything. Drama, fights, sending off, the comeback…
Loving this new look Arsenal.
Having watched the analysis on MOTD, I’d be even more keen to see Ramsey retained …. also, did anyone see the banana skin incident at the game?
glowing and grinning all day long
what a game! thank you Emery, thank you the good guys, than you fans. 🙂 great activity on AA as well.
Loved the passion and the aggression. That’s what a derby is for. 🙂
the better team won, despite the ref. that’s the right spirit.
very drunk now, very happy, back on tomorrow.
Dynamic tactical wizard v Bambi on ice.
Three men at the back ( even including Mustafi, Ants). The Wardrobe v Aurier. Two X subs at half time. Split the strikers, Ramsey in the hole.
Even Ouzi on to bolster the left side and back to four at the back.
Simply – Dick, you are a genius, our tactical Saviour and even before Crimbles!!
New post
Parlour “sell Ozil and keep Ramsey”!!
Now you are having a laugh, Ray!
Lol