Carling Cup – Plan A will defeat Clan B

February 26, 2011

Written by ryandanielwood

It’s been almost as long as AFC have gone without a trophy since I last posted a feature on AA. I don’t know if that makes this post a case of perfect timing and fate, it probably doesn’t. I just can’t help but want to express myself whilst the Arsenal are on the brink of expressing themselves all the way to a little piece of history! Yeah…that’s definitely it!

And what a chapter in our grandest of club histories it could prove to be. After peeling myself off the ceiling from ARSE-BARCE Round 1, I’ve become a little partial to dreaming of a spectacular quadruple don’t y’know?. Come on, don’t roll your eyes now, it could happen. The Red and White machine has been blowing gaskets and valves over the past five seasons, and when the going’s been good, the tank has either run out of gas or the fragile underbelly has suffered from a lack of maintenance. What about if this year “The business end” of matters is met with a head of Ashburton steam!?

The first road block en-route to our clean sweep of glory is Alex “let the dogs off the leash“MacLeish. A managerial figure of Scottish steel, that would scare the living pants off me, if I wasn’t all to aware that his steel is nothing more than cheap economy knockoff compared to that of the Purple nosed nightmare further north.

His plans IMO will be to put the Blues through a fitness and determination cycle the likes of which can only be equalled by the famous montage from Rocky IV. He’ll also no doubt fill Bowyer’s head with one last Wembley hurrah, and a strict instruction to end an Arsenal career on the night.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure Mcleish would love to play beautiful football to achieve results, evidence is suggested by some of his dips into the transfer market . A couple of Blues have even plied their trade in our corner at one time or another, but to put trust in Mcleish to play a fair strategy on CC final day, would be as foolhardy as ever putting your faith in Hleb or Bentley to remain loyal to a badge with a certain cannon on the front. Maybe it is unfair of me to question their integrity, but it seems as though they took it as a literal sign to move on from our club as if being shot from one!

So what of our own chances and tactics?

Well so good is our Plan A at this moment, it can overturn the best team in the world. So I’d go with that, wouldn’t you? “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” doesn’t really do our game plan the justice it truly deserves.

That said, We’ve been spectacular and underwhelming on all competitive fronts in equal measure this season, so caution will no doubt be rife at times.

In fact such an inconsistency in our league and at our level would usually see a club knocked out of at least two competitions by this juncture, if it weren’t for the fact that our telling difference this season, is that we truly don’t know when we’re beat. We are the EPL team that is snatching victory from the jaws of defeat on a regular basis. And I am confident it is that new acquisition of unshakable grit, that is convincing all that watch on, that the Arsenal have finally matured.

And if we are to win it all, after living so long with nothing at all,  it might even plant a seed of doubt in the mind of that smug git Xavi, that Cesc is not all but Barca bound.

COYRRG

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It’s Grin Up North!

January 20, 2011

Written  by Carlito 11

A result to put a smile back on our faces, a Nasri inspired Arsenal waltzed past a doggedly determined Leeds side to halt the slide against Championship opposition.

The game kicked off with some tough challenges signalling a hard fought encounter but we soon got our passing game going, Arshavin and Chamakh combining nicely before the latter dummied the return of a one/two letting a besnooded Nasri slip through the centre of defence and bury the ball in the 5th minute. The deafening noise from the home support receded and the game was going according to plan.

Chamakh had a couple of efforts thereafter- a great powerful header needing a good save from Kapser Schmeichel and a powder puff shot from the edge of the area. It is no wonder his first touch is so fantastic when a shot aimed on target has all the power of volleyed hacky sack. Where MC’s first touch is a thing of beauty, NB52’s has all the cushioning of a ping pong shot, one of which fortuitously ricocheted off Andy O’Brien to Sagna who took a touch and smashed it from the right hand side of the area- clean off the laces- to make it 2-0 and Arsenal were cruising at 2 nil. A superb goal from our Mr Reliable.

Nasri and Song were running the show at this stage but despite a good work rate from all three forwards, Nik Chamshavin was not producing much up front with some poor decision making from AA , poor touches from Nik and poor shooting from MC leading to the odd groan. But the defence was relatively untroubled and the team was playing for each other when Arshavin was fouled allowing Leeds to continue a build up around our box in the 37th minute. The ball found its way to Johnson who scored what must be the goal of his career, busting the net from 25 yards out. It was an unstoppable shot that Szczesny could do nothing about despite leaping valiantly in the right direction. The renewed fervour of their support did little to alter the fact that we were still much the better team and despite the best attempts of ITVs commentary team to convince us otherwise, there was no Arsenal wobble this time.

The second half started with a great move and a Song shot on target. Schmeichel was busy throughout and pulled off some good saves. Leeds countered and closed us down and tried to boss the game and if Song had not been there like a rock against the tide they may have done better against an otherwise lightweight Arsenal midfield. Arshavin had the look of a man desperately trying to play himself back into form but it was not to be and he and Chamakh were replaced by RvP and Fabregas .

We immediately shifted from 3rd to 4th gear and within minutes Bendtner had the ball down the right wing and flighted the perfect cross. Van Persie leapt and hung in the air before nodding emphatically through the outstretched grasp of Schmeichel. After that it was showtime with flicks and kicks- our away supporters singing the Rocastle, Henry and Wright songs loudly enough to be heard on TV.

Smiles all round at the final whistle- Huddersfield at home in the next round!

Arsenal verdict: Good performance with even those off form grafting hard.

Leeds verdict: They’ve got better players than I had given them credit for and play a fair tough tackling game. They deserve to do well this season based on this performance.

Support verdict: Leeds started at a tremendous volume but after initially being hushed by the first goal they kept it up well until the end. Our support could be heard well too 🙂

Man of the match: Nasri, Song and Sagna all deserve a special mention.

Moan of the match: Why do other teams’ fans always sing “same old, always cheating” when their players have committed the heaviest or clumsiest fouls?

Player ratings:

Szcenzny 7 Didn’t have much to do. Was a solid calming presence when required and couldn’t do anything about Johnson’s screamer.

Sagna 9 Reliable as ever and a gem of a strike for our second.

Djourou 8 Solid tidy play winning everything in the air.

Koscielny 8 Did nothing wrong and showed he is a ball-playing centre back!

Gibbs 8 Some good runs to link defence and attack. Untroubled by and large.

Song 9 Immense presence – at times winning out against 3 Leeds players. Had too much to do at times but managed very well.

Denilson 6 Just doesn’t have the presence to mix it even at this level. Left Song to do most of the breaking up and most of the link play.

Nasri (Captain) 9 Another gluefooted display of glide and finesse. A joy to watch and a great goal to get the game plan going.

Bendtner 7 Frustrating as he can be, his cross for the 3rd was top drawer and he put in a shift. Can he develop a better first touch at this stage?

Chamakh 6 Some excellent link play and a good header in the first half. Faded in the second. Can he develop a better shot?

Arshavin 6 Really tried, but it’s not coming off for him at the moment and his passing and decision making are suffering as a result.

If you don’t agree with Carlito’s player ratings have a look at London’s ………………….

Szczesny: noticeably different from his recent performances: much calmer body language, a sign I read to be growing maturity. Kicking was much better, although, he obviously needs to keep practicing that part of his game. 8

Sagna: it is obvious to say that footballers play better after a rest but never is it truer than with Sagna, watch and notice the difference the next time this happens which will probably be after the Barcelona game, oops I almost forgot to mention, he scored a lucky goal, only joking. Dammed if he was going to try and roll another ball across the box for Bendtner to miss again. Pick that beauty out of the net Shmeichel. 8

Djourou: back to his calm, laid back, reassured, Swiss self; he has come a long way this season, not the finished article so we shouldn’t be too hard on him when he slips up and slip up he will but that is for the future; tonight, I felt very comfortable with him there. 7.5

Koscielny: top drawer performance, some superb long range passes, I know that Leeds are not Prem opposition but if he carries on improving at the rate he is we are going to be very happy bunnies. 8

Gibbs: got caught out of position far too many times for my liking; although, he improved as the game went on. I still don’t understand how people can rate him higher than Clichy? 6

Song: I have run out of superlatives for the best player of that position in the EPL, would you still take Essien over our Alex? I wouldn’t. 8

Denilson: tut, tut thinking that the English press won’t pick up on interviews given in Brazil is a bit naïve. A functional performance but nothing special; the only positive I can think of is that with Song being so obviously being first choice DM at least we have someone who is prepared to spend most of his time on the bench acting as back up in emergencies, conclusion, hurry back Frimpong. 7

Nasri: I wrote a post the other day on my perception of how certain players like playing with certain others, Nasri and Chamakh are obviously bezzy North African mates living in London and loving playing their football together. Tonight he was given a chance to practice for his inevitable, soon to be central midfield role; he is not quite ready yet as the fact that his performance tailed off towards the end demonstrated but it is now when and not if. I almost forgot his goal as well, class, pure class. 8.5

Bendtner: the first thing I would say is that there is no doubt in my mind that he is getting better with every game, that said with every game I get more confused as to what we are going to do with him, great cross for the goal though. 7

Chamakh: lots more defensive work going on tonight, lots more chasing down and chasing back. I like it; he needs a goal now to fully regain his confidence. 7

Arshavin: BR put forward the idea that it is not right to accuse a player of not trying as how could we know if he is or not (forgive me if I misunderstood). I judge a player on whether he is trying or not by the effort he puts in to regain the ball once it is lost and within that criteria I don’t think Arshavin can be criticised in the slightest tonight; he was unlucky, I thought, that the extravagant things he tried didn’t come off. 7

Subs

Fabregas: we’ve got Cesc Fabregas, we’ve got Cesc Fabregas. 8.5

Van Persie: biased moi (said in a Miss Piggy voice). 10

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Birth of an Away Fan …. Over Land and Sea (and Leicester)

January 7, 2011

Why Going Away beats staying at Home. Written by Gooner in Exile

This is the picture my Brother as Best Man left on everyones place setting at my wedding, tucked away in an envelope only to be revealed at his say so. It is, I am afraid to say fellow Gooners, me. In my defence it was my 4th Birthday 24 June 1980, as some of you will know, shortly after the FA Cup Final in which Trevor Brookings header defeated The Arsenal. My Grandad was a Hammer and so he was greatly pleased to wind my Dad up by buying me this kit.

My Dad having been raised between The Tollington Arms and The Globe pub in Holloway was rightly distraught and would not talk to me or my Granddad for the rest of the day. My Nan was an Arsenal fan but I don’t think my Grandad was keen on anymore around the family. As I was given his name as my middle name I think he decided I should be the one to buck the trend.

In all my West Ham Supporting years my Dad took me to one game at Upton Park with my Nan (Grandad having recently passed away), I was 7 about to turn 8 and it was Trevor Brookings last game for the club he was awarded a soft penalty and I went home happy. Just researched the result and it was actually 2-1 to Forest that day but I only remember West Hams goal.

Cue the following season and the change, my Dad took me, along with my Brother (a fully fledged Arsenal nut), to Highbury, we stood in the Junior Gunners section and Arsenal beat Leicester 1-0.

After the game my Dad uttered words I will never forget. “If you want to go to see live football you can come here, I’m never taking you to Upton Park again”.

Some of you will say bloody well said! And to be honest once I had walked into Highbury there was no going back; an Arsenal supporter was born.

Now to the main part of the post the difference between going Home and Away.

Between the age of 8-17 I went to Highbury at every available opportunity, when I was about 14 my Dad would stand on the East corner of the North Bank while I made my way to the back with the singers, happy memories. I took part in the sit down protests over the demolition of my beloved North Bank, I surged with the goals sang my heart out and every other Saturday came home hoarse and happy.

There is no feeling like it I don’t have to explain to football fans, but standing on a terrace going through the same emotions as the thousands of people stood round you, singing as one, moving as one, thinking about it is making my hair stand on end and sending shivers down my spine.

At 17 my Dad and I decided to get Season Tickets at Highbury, the North Bank had been built and after a year of standing on the Clock End we decided to go for Clock End season tickets they were cheaper too. Up until November off we went every other week, at the same time I was earning plaudits as a Goalkeeper and was being asked to play for the First Team of my club, this was non league football, 4 leagues down from the Conference, I still harbored dreams of a professional career. But I always said I can’t I have an Arsenal season ticket. The manager cleverly chose 4 consecutive games where Arsenal were away and picked me for every one. My Dad then allowed me to make the decision, I chose playing and at the end of that season we gave up our Season Tickets, having used them sporadically for the season.

If we had known then what we know now we would never have given those up. For the years of Arsenal’s success under Wenger I sat watching from the comfort of my armchair, or the MOTD highlights.

15 November 2008 16 years in the wilderness and a move to Norfolk later I went to see Arsenal live for the first time since I was 17. It was Aston Villa at home, sitting about 4 rows from the back of the Upper Tier in what is now the Clock End, despite Manuel’s penalty save we lost 2-0. My next game 0-0 versus West Ham in similar seats. Would I ever cheer an Arsenal goal again. Actually scratch that would I ever sing an Arsenal song again? Where was the atmosphere? Okay the results weren’t great but there was a time when the fans would support the team no matter what the performance on the pitch.

I did not enjoy the experience, this wasn’t what I remembered, the family in front were more intent to eat the fare of the food stalls rather than watch the match, slipping out every 20 minutes for new supplies. The guys to my left were wearing no colours, and talking German. Is this the Home of Football, is this the home of The Arsenal? I left on both occasions feeling confused. Yes away fans tend to be loudest supporters at a ground they have to be to be heard so try harder, but there was little response at the Emirates, the North Bank and Clock End boys would retaliate with louder songs back at Highbury, wouldn’t they?

The worst offence is not one of the fans but of the PA system. It is too loud, it stifles the people in the ground, it tries to give us the entertainment or stir up the excitement. An atmosphere cannot be manufactured, I cringe with embarrassment as The Wonder of You is played, do they expect us to sing that? Why not give us Good Old Arsenal, why not let the fans sing there own songs, or at least to be able to hear when someone starts singing so that we can join in, instead we are beaten into submission with the latest X Factor tripe played loud and clear over speakers only normally seen at Music Festivals.

With some fate I was following the twitter feed of Alan Davies, he was at WBA away and was celebrating a win, I tweeted him and asked if the atmosphere was better away, to which he replied “absolutely, who are these people who boo at the Emirates”. I could not agree more, so the decision was made that me and my Brother would try and get tickets for an away game, Stoke in the FA Cup 4th Round was the first available game.

We lost 3-1, we played a mixture of youth and reserves, but the fans, these were the fans I remember, these are my kind of Gooners, singing with every part of their body, old and young, male or female. Most of all supporting the team, whatever team Wenger put out, we were going to make sure the Britannia Stadium knew we were there. Even a rendition of “Delilah” after the third goal went in did not extinguish the renditions of “One Arsene Wenger” and “By far the Greatest Team”. We lost and I went away happy!

Unfortunately work and restricted away sections meant that was the only away game last season.

This year however a few trips up North to poorly supported teams at odd kick off times have meant that Red Members get their chance to go away, Blackburn, Everton, Wigan, Birmingham and counting. I also managed to get to the Emirates for Bolton on the friends and family day, I sat in the lower tier close to the Away area, and it was much better than previously but still too quiet for my liking.

I know there are many fans who go to the Emirates who also went to Highbury I also know there are many fans on this site that are not necessarily English or born within London, but I would assume that most on here would wear the colours at the game, would actually watch the game, would support the team not sit to wait to be entertained. What can be done to stop the rot at the Emirates, we have Red Action corner but really that creates one pocket of noise. They’re needs to be lots of pockets of noise so others around them feel inclined to join in.

The whole culture at the Emirates appears to be sit down and wait for something to stir us, when the Arsenal fans travel away we make our own entertainment, sing songs, dance and have a fantastic time, but also try to stir the team in to something spectacular. Even in defeat I go home happier than I ever do at Emirates (but then I wasn’t there on Monday against Chelsea). The Emirates is great when it roars, but it doesn’t roar often enough for my liking, thats why I look forward to away trips more than going to home games.

Oh one other thing, travelling away I have yet to see an empty stand with 10 minutes to play except the home end on the receiving end of a drubbing. How did the players feel when they had hauled us into the knockout stages of the Champions League to see the ground emptied out around them. Would have been nice for those fans to have stayed and show some appreciation for their efforts.

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Happy New Yearn …. Resolution Required ….

January 1, 2011

No it’s not a spelling mistake, but I will take the opportunity to wish all Arsenal supporters everywhere a Very Happy New Year. And to all those of you who Yearn for silverware and titles, I offer these words of comfort…….

The season is half over. We’ve done well; we’re 2 points off the top of the table in 3rd place.

Could we have done better? …. YES

Are we fortunate to still be in touch with the top? …. YES

Is it within our power to win the Premiership? …. YES, YES, YES ….. if we show the RESOLUTION and work rate we did against chelski

It all starts today when we face Birmingham City. They are hovering just above the relegation zone on 19 points and represent something of a bogey team for us in recent years. Apart from Martin Taylor putting an end to Eduardo’s Arsenal career, we also have to right the wrong of the very soft late equaliser conceded last season from a Kevin Phillips lobbed header that Stevie Wonder could have saved. Before that game we had a realistic chance of winning the title, but that result accompanied by yet more injuries to key players heralded the start of the collapse of our title hopes as we only collected 7 points out of a possible 18 to the end of the season.

Birmingham are no pushovers as they proved in a hard earned draw against the mancs. They play for one another and are a better side than their position of 16th in the table would suggest. Their team is a mix of ex-Arsenal players (Sebastian Larsson & Alex Hleb), seasoned pros (Stephen Carr), scumbags (Lee Bowyer – but thanks for the goal against manure) and an array of enthusiastic journeyman players schooled by their tough manager Alex McLeish.  They also have a giant up front in Zigic who has already scored from a header against us in the home tie which finished 2:1 back in October.

Zigic is a player we have to be aware of, not because of his sumptuous ball skills (because he doesn’t possess any) but simply his physical and aerial threat and for that reason, I implore Arsène to put Song, Djourou and Sczcesny in the side.  We need to put pressure on the ball and outclass them in midfield and Big Johan will have to remove Drogba from his pocket to make room for their big Serb.

After Wednesday’s game I have absolutely no idea what side Arsène will put out. I’m not going to second guess him, so this is the team I would pick.

Chamakh looks tired and a little lost so I’d keep resting him and play RvP. The jury is still out as to whether these two can gel in the same team. We cannot afford to have any passengers for this game so Nik and AA would be on the bench for me.

I’m pretty sure Fabiasnki will be in goal and AW is unlikely to pick all the players I have chosen as he will have half an eye on the citeh game coming up on Wednesday. My philosophy is simple, (some of you will probably say flawed and naive) win this game and then worry about the next. If we have the luxury of being 3 goals up with half an hour to go, we can substitute the more important players with any of the excellent options we have on the bench.

We’ll have our captain back and hopefully vice captain in waiting Thomas Vermaelen will shore up the defence very soon. Can we win? can we keep winning?

To the Michael Buble cover song – It’s a new life:

It’s a New Year

It’s a new day

It’s a new game

For Arsenal

And I’m feeling good

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Arsenal, not successful? …. you gotta laugh

December 25, 2010

Second in the league

Semi final of the Carling Cup

Through to the last 16 of the Champions League

Yet to play in the FA Cup

The best stadium in the Premiership

Zero debt

The only way is up………..

Thanks for all your support on Arsenal Arsenal

….. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year…….

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Arsenal …. you’ve forgotten haven’t you…

December 17, 2010

Written by Rasp

It’s easy to forget that Arsenal is more than just a football club, particularly when we have recently suffered disappointment on the pitch. Arsenal is part of the community and affects people’s lives worldwide. Peaches and I were  reminded of this last night when attending the book launch of Arsenal ‘Til I Die at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal Arsenal had submitted a selection of some of the many great posts on the site over the last year for inclusion in the book and we are proud that articles by Big Raddy and Irishgunner made it to the final print – luckily for us, neither author could make the occassion so we reluctantly had to deputise for them…. The book is a complilation of personal stories relating to Arsenal written by diehard supporters. It has been produced in collaboration with Arsenal in the Community and the National Literary Trust and proceeds from the book sales will go to charities supported by Arsenal.

Back to the football…….

Ok, so Lady Luck was not on our side against the mancs, but considering we’ve lost 5 games before Christmas and we’ve still got as much of a chance of winning the title as anyone else, I’d say she’s been pretty to kind to us so far.

There are three reasons why I can be cheerful (maybe even optimistic) when I look ahead to the second half of the season. For the first time in several years, we may have the makings of a strong spine to the team – and hopefully a team who play with some backbone. The emergence of Djourou as a top class defender and Chamakh’s role as a target man who brings out attackng midfielders into play are huge plusses, but  I believe that our success could rest on these key factors.

  1. Szczesny. The goalkeeper is the foundation of the defence. The young pole put in an excellent performance on Monday despite being tested early on by his own defenders who put him under pressure with under-hit back passes. He is 6ft 5in, brash with confidence, good in the air and a great shop stopper. He is Arsenal’s number one with the potential to be better than Seaman.
  2. Vermaelen. Hopefully he will be back in the New Year. We’ve really missed this guy. Apart from his obvious ability, he marshals the defence. He’s a leader at the back, someone who instils and inspires confidence in those around him. We need a commanding presence to make the defence solid. TV is National captain and was captain of Ajax – he is our man.
  3. Fàbregas. We saw how shockingly poor (by his own standards)  our captain’s passing was when he came on at OT. He’s not fit and should be rested until he is 100% because a fully fit Fàbregas makes Arsenal the best it can be. So I hope that Arsène sees sense and Cesc is not even on the bench against Stoke. I’d be quite happy to send him back to Spain for a week or two to recharge his batteries. If we can get our captain back to the full fitness for the New Year, we can launch a serious bid for the title.

Other reasons to be cheerful …….

The boost of winning the CC. The final will be played on Sunday 27th February. Barring a spectacular lapse into over-confidence we should be able to get past Ipswich over two legs and secure our place in the final. If/when we reach the final, the desire to silence the critics and bring our much publicised trophyless run to an end will surely see us climb the Wembley steps to collect the silverware.
The fixture list. We’ve already played most of the difficult away fixtures except totnum and that is a score we will need no motivation to settle. The second half of the season just looks as though it’s opening up for us to go on an unbeaten run. We have consecutive home games against pool and the mancs on the 16th and 30th of April and if we can be top after that, we have only Stoke, Villa and Fulham to complete the season.
Nasri’s on fire – but we’ve made it to 2nd in the table with the majority of our players not on top form (although Sagna is back to his best) and we can only expect them to improve – we will not fall at the final hurdle this time.

Ken Friar spoke from the heart last night as he explained that the Board were as fervent supporters as any of us in that room. They care passionately about the club and take nothing out. The tour of the Emirates is awe insiring. The lay-out, styling, facilities, attention to detail …. everything about our stadium is incredible. Sometimes we need reminding that we have achieved a miraculous transformation under Arsène Wenger of which we should all be proud.

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Arsenal …. Why don’t we learn from our mistakes?

November 25, 2010

Written by Rasp

I’ve had nearly a week to calm down from my anger at our ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory last Saturday. I still feel sick to the pit of my stomach, not so much because we lost, but because of the manner in which we lost.  I wasn’t going to use this post, but after Tuesday’s hopeless performance against Braga, my ‘belief’ in this team/squad has been shot to pieces. This is not a knee-jerk reaction, but the accumulation of a growing frustration over the last few years that I can no longer suppress.

Why is our system so fragile?

Saturday’s game was the perfect example. We played the beautiful controlled football for which we are admired in the first half and then fell apart as soon as they scored their second goal. I can’t believe a single fan wouldn’t sacrifice 65% possession for winning a game. Arsène talks a lot about ‘belief’ but I don’t see that these players have the belief necessary to fight back when under pressure. This is borne from past experience when we’ve capitulated. Just review the final games of last season to illustrate the point.

Against Braga, we lacked ideas, penetration and energy. Most of the players (with the exception of Djourou and Gibbs) seemed to be caricatures of themselves, exhibiting all their worst traits. The Emirates crowd have come in for fair criticism for their inability to lift the team when needed, but the plague of anxiety that spreads through the stands is generated by the players and reflected by the fans – not vice verse.

Why do we have a policy of buying small players?

Let me qualify this; I don’t only mean small only in terms of stature but also in terms of presence, personality, guts and leadership. Of course size doesn’t matter when we’re in possession of the ball and are being allowed to play our way. Our problem is when we’re not in possession. Some players still do not work hard enough to regain position, track back and defend as a team.

We have been vulnerable to set pieces for years. Every opposition manager knows it. Chris Hughton knew it when he told Joey Barton to deliver the ball onto Andy Carrol’s head at every opportunity. Would Tony Adams or Keown have allowed Kaboul the header for the winning goal on Saturday? In hindsight, it would probably have been better to play Djourou rather than Koscielny against totnum – perhaps our CB may not have been out jumped by 5ft 7in Defoe?

The spine of the team is weak. Where are the leaders on the pitch? Who grabs the team by the scruff of the neck when we need to fight back? We don’t have a winning mentality. Vermaelen stands alone in the squad as the one player who has what it takes to be a future captain; he is being sorely missed.

Why do we coach the shooting instinct out of our players?

Once again we saw a player (Chamakh) shun shooting opportunities against totnum. This can’t be a coincidence. Maybe our training regimes are so ingrained in the player’s minds that they are ‘brainwashed’ into passing when shooting is the better option? We bought Tomas Rosicky as a player with a reputation for having a fantastic shot who could find the back of the net from way outside the box – I’ve never seen him do it for Arsenal.

Perhaps we should practice our ‘clever passing triangles’ on the edge of the box and someone has to shoot every 10th pass? Fabregas was the only player seemingly prepared to let loose against Braga and his efforts were as far off the mark as is his form of late. He, not RvP or Song, should have been rested – and rested several weeks ago when it was clear that he was being hampered by what must now be considered to be a long term injury.

Why can’t we motivate the players at half time?

I knew that ‘arry would send his players out fired up for the second half; he’s done it many times. Ours emerged from the tunnel looking relaxed and unconcerned, 20 minutes later they looked scared, unsure and vulnerable. Against Braga, our players needed an ‘arry-type rocket up them, but instead they just continued in the same lame lackadaisical vein in which they had laboured through the first half. No spark. No invention. No leadership. No balls.

We accept that Arsène Wenger is not a ‘hairdryer-style’ manager, but maybe he should transmit some of the venom he wastes on water bottles in the direction of his underperforming players at half time. Just once, I’d like to see him make a substitution at half time when a player is not performing.

Why don’t we ever learn from our mistakes?

For me, this is the most damming question, and it can only be directed at the manager. What will it take to shake him from the conviction that his way of playing and this group of players will eventually prove all the doubters wrong? It’s easy to dismiss the opinions of pundits who revel in our failure, but it would appear that Arsène is becoming an increasingly isolated figure, clinging to his principles whilst all around him shrink away in recognition that ‘it’ isn’t working. It has been said repeatedly and for many years that ‘this Arsenal team’ is only a couple of players short of getting back to the very top – I believe this is still the case.

The balance to the argument.

We’ve not had the luck. The free kick that led to the penalty for totnum should not have been given. The decision to book Vela instead of awarding a nailed on penalty against Braga was incomprehensible, but in both cases our performance for the 90 minutes was not good enough. We continue to suffer from injuries to key players – but don’t most teams? The good news is the emergence of Djourou as a big strong defender who can compete with powerful strikers and Nasri as our most effective midfielder and the imminent return of Vermaelen and Ramsey.

We’re 2 points off the top of the Premiership with 24 games left to play. We’re still in the Carling Cup, the FA Cup and we can still qualify for the knockout stage of the Champions League if we beat Partizan at home or as long as Shaktar beat Braga. Second in the group is the most likely scenario – unfortunately coming second in the group cost us dear last year; had we topped the group there is a good chance we would have made it to the final.

None of this gives me cause for optimism. We play an improving Villa side on Saturday who will be fighting to keep out of the relegation zone. It will be difficult and unless we can play with some fire in our bellies and overcome our fear of defeat, we will drop points and the familiar scenario of struggling to achieve 4th place in the Premiership will become the focus of our season once again.

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Posted by Rasp

Musings of a true Gooner, banishes doom and gloom

November 12, 2010

Written by RedArse

I fell to musing, in a slough of despondency, after the desperately disappointing results of the recent past, and wondered; why do I feel so desolate, so full of despair?

What was the cause of this aching void in my mind, and in my body, where the act of breathing, of existing from minute to minute was such a struggle? How could simple adverse results; shattering defeats, for my beloved team, Arsenal, cause me such extreme anguish?

I suppose it had its origins many years ago, back in my childhood, when, and I can be precise here, I first heard the word, the fascinatingly military sounding name, “Arsenal”. It was while sitting on my father’s shoulders at my very first visit to watch a game.

He had told me he was going to a match, and asked if I would like to go? I knew nothing about football, indeed, I had never heard of such a thing, but I would go anywhere with my dad, just to be with him. Little did I know that would be the beginning of a lifelong love affair with a club, a team who were to so dominate my very existence?

Ironically, the match he took me to was not played at Highbury, but the pre-Bates Stamford Bridge, to see something called a derby between someone called Chelsea and his arsenal. Young, I may have been, but I knew that word, arsenal. It was a place where guns, ammunition, and weapons of all sorts were made and stored. Oh yes, I was going to like my dad’s arsenal; it was every boy’s dream come true.

The old Stamford Bridge was a huge sprawling, open aired amphitheatre which was desperately in need of renovation, and we seemed miles from what was known as a pitch. Puzzled, and a little confused, surrounded by legions of people, I asked my dad where the arsenal was. At that moment there erupted around us a crescendo of sound, and there in the distance, what seemed to be little men, poured out onto the pitch in a tumultuous wave of red and white, and my dad yelled to me, over the cacophony, “there they are”, and gesticulated delightedly towards them.

My eyes opened wide in amazed comprehension that these were, in fact, the Arsenal, so beloved of my father, and who in turn would become the delight of my life.

Over the many years since then, the increasingly glorious victories, and great feats of derring do were to become the stuff of my footballing dreams. None of the vainglorious nonsense spouted by fans of other clubs, following their empty, meaningless wins, could stop me strutting around as proud as a peacock that I was a gooner and a follower of the greatest team the world had ever seen! It says so in the song even!

What cannot be denied is that those dreams, as a child, were occasionally suffused by both pain and ecstasy almost beyond my ability to bear them. A catharsis so intense, that the experience of Arsenal losing a game left me hopeless, helpless and near to tears, whereas the sterling victories achieved an euphoria impossible to describe.

There then lay the roots of my current misery, the counterbalance to the exquisite sense of well being when we win. No amount of alcohol, in my later years, could ever quench the pain of Arsenal losing.

Many gooners, I am sure, can identify with these sentiments, which helps explain the gloom evident in the Arsenal blogs of late. So let me leave you with this crumb of comfort.

Over the years, every Arsenal setback has been more than matched by a thrilling win, and the emptiness of losing has swiftly been consigned to the dustbin of history.

I would love to hear your own stories of how you treat those two imposters, defeat and victory, because whichever of them are currently in the ascendancy, our love of Arsenal will over-ride all.

We will always be Gunners!

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I wonder what happened to Mickey Boot?

October 23, 2010

Written by Neamman

Back in the 60s, perhaps 66 or 67, we had a young player who appeared in 3 games in a month, I saw his debut. His name was Mickey Boot and he scored 2 goals in those three games, the one I saw was a nice shot from outside the penalty box. Yet he never appeared for us again and soon thereafter moved to South Africa. I always wondered why he never progressed, was he a drinker? Did he not have the right mental strength? He certainly had the skills but obviously not all that was needed to succeed!!

The reason Mickey Boot came to mind was when I saw Jerome Thomas score for WBA. Now its not a strict comparison as he has carved out a reasonable career for himself but I remember the first time I saw him. I was at Barnet watching our reserves beat Chelsea 5-0, Jeffers scored twice, I forget who else did. Thomas and Juan [a Brazilian left back some of you may remember] were on the left wing. I watched astounded as the two of them raced up and down with the ball virtually tied to their feet, their control was so good. I had those two players pegged as potential first teamers but in the end neither made it, Juan due to knee problems.

I know the game has changed but I miss watching the way young stars worked their way up through the ranks and ultimately made it to the first team. Our double team of 71 was largely made up of youngsters who had played for us in the old SE Counties youth league plus the Football Combination. The great teams that clubs like Chelsea, Liverpool, Everton and Leeds had in the 70s were largely home grown boys with 3 or 4, usually high profile stars, judiciously brought to fill in weaknesses. It was the pleasure in spotting and watching the youngsters develop that melded you to you team in a very large degree. I can remember the anticipation when Charlie George made his first team debut, we all knew he was special and it was even in the papers prior to the event. Sadly these days most teams, at least in the EPL, rarely nurture youngsters through their ranks. I think the Manchester United class of the early 90s is the last example of a great team comprised mainly of home grown lads.

But perhaps this is changing, finally the youth academy at Arsenal is starting to bring through a steady stream of youth, players steeped in the Arsenal way. In the early years of this decade we had a very successful youth team but none of them made it as regulars, Sidwell, Harper, Thomas to name a few were all good players, but not good enough for Arsenal, Cole being the exception. We also had another youth cup winning team recently but now we are starting to see some of them in our first team squad as regulars, Gibbs and Wilshere are already established and there are several more on the fringes.

I, for one, hope that this is the start of a new trend, that we go back to producing a steady stream of youngsters who will be given their chance, a realistic chance, in the first team. For those of you who have the opportunity I recommend you start to attend the youth and reserve games as often as you can. They usually are free and, who knows, maybe you will be the first one on this board to tell us about the NEW Jack Wilshere or Cesc Fabregas!!!!

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Posted by Rasp

No subs at half time……. I blame Hleb

October 15, 2010

Friday is traditionally a quiet day on the blogosphere so we have decided to reinstate Rant Friday. This is an opportunity for bloggers to submit a paragraph on anything that has been bugging them. It is not an excuse for an assault on the club or the manager, but a good way of encouraging new bloggers to write for Arsenal Arsenal.

Carlito11’s offering

Picking up on a comment by Jekyll yesterday, I want to question Arsene’s other ill (aside from scouting for keepers!)… the mollycoddling worry about damaging player’s confidence that causes him to never sub off a poorly performing player. Any other winning manager (from the specious one to old rednose to the centurion who is currently leading England to ruin) has been known to make big changes at halftime, but I cannot remember a time Wenger has done this except because of injuries.

The time has come for Wenger to treat these players like men, and shame some of them into better performances. We need anger from players not playing well enough- and a tougher mental attitude. Let’s hear a big more “play better or you’re off”. George Graham would have done it and the best part of our winning attitude during the Wenger era was forged by Graham and the players who remained from his era.

Rant over!

Cheers

Carlito11

Rasp’s rant ….. Hleb’s a weaner

I first saw Alexander Hleb play for Arsenal in a pre-season friendly at Borehamwood back in 2005. I was immediately struck by his amazing ball retention and quick feet. Here was an exciting prospect for the team surely destined to be a pivotal player in the new team Arsène was building to continue the legacy of the Invincibles.

As the weeks/months passed and Hleb became a first team regular, I listened to supporters eulogizing over his intricate passing and clever link-up play, but growing inside me was an increasing frustration. I realised that here was a player who was more interested in exhibiting his technical brilliance than helping his team win games. I’d swear he got more pleasure from turning the same defender inside out 3 times than slamming the ball into the back of the net. His over-complicated play would slow down our attacks and allow the opposition time to get everyone behind the ball.This would lead to the all too familiar scenario of us playing brilliant possession football around our opponents box, but frustratingly, seldom piercing their defence.

I blame Hleb for being the forefather of clever possession at the cost of incisive attacking football. How many times would he wriggle his way into a perfect shooting position only to shun the chance and slot a clever sideways pass to  a teammate in a worse position and the opportunity would be lost?

Hleb’s a weaner. He lacks power. He could pass the ball 20ft very accurately but did you ever see him blast a diagonal pass across the pitch onto A.Cole’s chest or curl a shot into the top corner from outside the box. The way he behaved to engineer his way out of  Arsenal was despicable and his lame attempts to lure Cesc away as soon as he arrived at Barça show that he never had Arsenal in his heart.

The man who thought he was going to be the leading light at the Camp Nou is now a footballing outcast who will be representing Birmingham City (the club he dreamt of playing for as a young boy!) on saturday …. I don’t consider him even worth booing.

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