If I was unlucky enough to live in Lancashire (or is it Merseyside?), Everton would be my team though wearing blue and white would be an anathema. There is something regal about the red and white.
I mentioned in an earlier comment about Everton being a proper English club. What I meant was they have proper history; the first to play at Anfield, the first Liverpool club, decades of close run failure, and until recent times, not Oiled up. Fairplay to them. And I love their old fashioned ground, so much better than the soul-less bowls that modern stadium designers put up to maximise the brands profit (sadly a new ground is about to be built).
It is unfortunate that Everton have run into a rich patch of form having just beaten the Chavs. This will be a tough test for our boys. But not impossible – Everton are not a Top 6 team and we have a good record at Goodison.
Their manager, Marco Wagner, has finally found a way to win after a dreadful (by their standards) start to his Everton career. A much vaunted manager, he has much to do if Everton are to break into the Top 6. I don’t see how it is possible but hope is eternal – especially in football.
As ever, control of the midfield will be vital and Everton have a fine midfield. I would have liked us to sign Sigurdsson (who is a perfect Ramsey replacement), he is a very dangerous player. Another transfer target may be Gueye, a fine defensive MF. Upfront Richarlison is quality and showing why the Toffees paid so much for him.
Expect Pickford and Keane to be on top form andf we are looking for a left back Digne would certainly fit into the AFC team, a younger Monreal.
Enough of the them,
Mr Emery has to find a way to improve our away form if we are to achieve our ambitions. I would start a similar team which thrashed Newcastle. Depending upon fitness,we should welcome back Xhaka for Douzi and Kos for Mustafi.
Arsenal have a very busy couple of weeks ahead and perhaps Mr Emery will allow Kos and Xhaka more recovery time.
You may have noticed that I have stopped putting up my anticipated starting team, there are two reasons; the first is that Me Emery is impossible to second guess and unlike Mr Wenger he tailors his team for the opposition. The second is I got bored with it 😀
Referee this afternoon is Kevin Friend who has only officiated one AFC game this season, giving out 7 yellow cards vs Burnley (we won 3-1). The dreadful performance of Taylor last week could have been costly, we must hope for better today.
Given the remarkable good fortune (read luck) enjoyed by both MU and the Chavs, we could use some of the same today.
COYRRG
Arsenal News 24/7
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Guten morgen meine lieblings,
Another fine Post, Raddy, and whenever I read the phrase ‘hope springs eternal’ it makes me realise there is always tomorrow when one has had a tough time.
There was a time when I, like many of you little hopefuls, used to think that whoever we played at Highbury, or the Emirates, it was just going to be a win — the question was ‘by how many?’.
In the latter years of Arsene’s era, that was not the case, and neither is it currently in the nascent days of Unai’s reign.
Today I feel ……. well, we could win comfortably, or then again, we might produce a performance that simply gutters out in abysmal disappointment.
Of course — hope springs eternal — dunit? 😜 So, I’m gonna go with WIN.
Go Gunners!!
Actually, I have been a little bit remiss, above, in that my comment was intended to be a generalised musing about our performances home and away — but it reads as if I was referring only to home games.
Unai has got the team playing very well at home, with 10 unbeaten games on the trot (?) — but we have been inconsistent away from home. N’est-ce pas? 🤪
Morning Raddy.
Thanks for the PM, they always make good reading
As a reference point here are all of our away game results.
Played 14. W5, D4, L5.
Chelsea L, GF2, GA3
Cardiff W, GF3, GA2
Newcastle W, GF2, GA1
Fulham W, GF5, GA1
Crystal Palace D, GF2, GA2
Bournemouth W, GF2, GA1
Man U D, GF2, GA2
Southampton L, GF2, GA3
Brighton D, GF1, GA1
Liverpool L,GF1, GA5
West Ham L, GF0, GA1
Man C L, GF1, GA3
Huddersfield W, GF2, GA1
Tottenham D, GF1, GA1
Looking at those results the only unexpected losses were against Southampton and West Ham. Losing away to Chelsea, Man C and Liverpool was not surprising however losing 1-5 at Anfield was a big shock.
I’m looking for something to make me more positive about today’s game – but it’s not working. I’m very nervous.
Well today is a bit of a bell weather game, a game where we will find out if our team has what it takes to be winners.
Morning RA.
I’ve just been informed by DAZN that they have the exclusive rights to the EPL for three seasons starting with the 2019/20 season. All I know for sure is that this applies to Canada – I don’t know if it affects other Country’s, They already have the rights to Champions League and Europa League. I pay $20.00 a month (around 11.50 pounds) it also covers Darts, Snooker, Tennis, Rugby, Cricket etc….it’s a great deal in my opinion. DAZN also has a playback feature.
I’m very happy about this news as it means I’m guaranteed to see every major Arsenal game, I’m unsure about the FA Cup and League Cup games but I might be able to pick them up off of English TV channels.
Great work once again, thank you Raddy.
We’re on a treadmill now, every game is a MW .. it’s almost irrelevant who we are playing. I trust Unai to pick the team and devise the tactics for us to win, there is no doubt that if he gets us into the top four he will have achieved a Wengeresque miracle.
It’s going to be a rollercoaster, what odds that it all comes down to the last game of the season to decide which of the 2 teams win the EPL and which 2 of the 4 pretenders join them in the CL next season.
We should be seeing a packed midfield against Everton away, quite similar tactically to the one against Sp*rs away recently.
One of their strengths is their midfield (Gueye, Sigurðsson & Gomes). The other is the probing runs and 1v1s from the flanks (Coleman, Digne, Richarlison & Bernard)
I would expect starts for Guendouzi, Mkhitaryan, Ramsey & Elneny (if Xhaka is still doubtful) in the midfield battleground.
If we can better Sp*rs away, we could beat Everton away.
Cheers, BR.
Time to improve the away form, indeed.
A big performance from the lads is required.
COYRRG
Our line up (forced) makes me even more nervous…………very antsy right now.
5 more wins should see us in the top 4. Given our home form i’d fancy us to win the 2 remaining Emirates fixtures against Brighton and Palace, so that means we need to find 3 away victories. That’s a tough ask as Leicester and Burnley are finding some form, and Everton, Watford and Wolves are difficult places to go. My hope is that some of those sides start thinking about their summer holidays fairly soon.
A win today is vital. 🤞 We could do with an early goal to take the crowd out of it.
have to read PM later
have to leave in 30 mins
So….come on you gunnnners
Rubbish
We’ll be getting beat here if we don’t wake up.
Coming across as very quiet and subdued in the ground. Seems to have rubbed off on our players!
We look more bothered about whingeing and sulking than trying to win at the moment
Worst 25 minutes I’ve seen from us in a while.
Without Ramsey and Xhaka, the Arsenal look toothless.
Mkhitaryan, Geundouzi and Özil off for Ramsey, Auba and Iwobi.
Absolutely dreadful half. Zero energy and unable to pass the ball 5 yards.
Nonsense to take off three players. The Elneny-Guendouzi combo is not working and its pulling Ozil far too deep to come and make things happen. Really missing both Xhaka and Torreira in this one. Don’t think Emery has much choice but too push up midfield and play Ozil in the hole. Hopefully Rambo is fit enough to come on at start of second half.
Good to see Emery making the changes. Given the booking I probably would’ve taken Geundouzi off instead of Elneny. Hopefully we’ll see more of the ball in better areas this half.
The inability to pass 5 yards hasn’t changed
Something wrong when u prefer iwobi over mkhitaryan
Mkhitaryan has been dreadful today
Shambolic!
What is Özil doing there? Gives ball away in our half and just jogs back.
Seriously, what team am I watching?
Guys walking, moving the ball at a creeping death pace- do we actually have a shot on goal thus far?
The officiating has been poor today but we’ve spent more energy moaning and sulking than we have trying to score. All summed up by our so-called captain Mesut Özil throwing his jacket like a petulant child on the bench.
Not sure where this performance has come from but it’s been very poor.
Rubbish so far.
Is scapegoating also a form of confirmation bias?
The Arsenal, based on the performance today deserve nothing less than 7th place!
We got what we deserved from an awful performance. Everton are not a great side and they didn’t have to play well to beat us.
Pants
Well that was piss poor from pretty much everyone who put on an Arsenal shirt today. I would say only Leno and Sokratis did their jobs to a reasonable level.
“Well today is a bit of a bell weather game, a game where we will find out if our team has what it takes to be winners”.
Earlier today I made that comment – I got a very clear response.
AT least the FAC SF is exciting
I feel that the problem here was central midfield. Guendousi and Elneny were simply no competition for their midfield. All those misplaced passes certainly did not help.
I think without Torreira, Xhaka and Ramsey starting I suspect that UE, with an eye on Thursday could see this coming.
AS it was, their goal was a fluke, like Liverpool’s first goal a few weeks ago, bouncing off a defender into the path of jagielka with an open goal a few feet away.
Add that to the blatant penalty not given, perhaps it was not as bad as it seemed.
what pissed me off the most today was seeing the desire of Bernard, tracking back riding challenges then you have plays like ozil and Mkhitaryan doing absolutely nothing
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