A Fond Farewell.

January 13, 2018

So, Mr Coquelin leaves the squad.

A player who resurrected a failing career in a manner which will inspire other players. He is proof that endeavour pays and his reward is a fat contract with a top Spanish club. Well done, Francis.

I cannot say that I have been a fan of Mr Coquelin, in fact to me he represents all that has been wrong at Arsenal over the past decade – a reliance upon players who simply are not good enough to propel my club forward. Neither good enough in defence nor attack, his skills lie in hard work, hard tackling and playing simple balls to more creative players. This may be harsh as we have had the occasional glimpse of a player who has great skill and can distribute accurately from midfield to attack, sadly, it was a rare glimpse.

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Squad players are necessary. We have many of them. It must be galling to be either on the bench or not even there week after week. To spend all that energy in training trying to impress the manager but rarely having a first team appearance. Knowing that only if a couple of players are injured you will have a chance.

Of course €30+k a week is a decent recompense for such trials.

Coquelin is only 26 y.o., played over 100 games for us, won 2 FA Cups, a Charity shield and became a multi-millionaire. Not bad for a man who was on loan at Lorient, Freiburg and Charlton in a career that seemed to have stalled.

Upon his return from Charlton Le Coq was a revelation in his DM role resulting in Mr Wenger calling him “the long-term solution”, it wasn’t to be .

Will he play first team football at Valencia? I guess so though Valencia currently sit 3rd in La Liga, 5 points ahead of Real Madrid, which must mean they have a settled team.

Valencia must be happy with AFC,having sold us Mustafi for €40m and used just €12m to buy a decent midfielder.

Thank you Francis Coquelin, Goonerdom wishes you well in your future.

written by Big Raddy

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Posted by Erik the Red

Where’s the transfer fizz and froth?

January 12, 2018

Sources say, linked to, Gazidis on flight to, sister-in-law confirms…… yip, transfer season, but hey it’s January 12 and I hear so little noise. What’s up?

Well, I like to think it’s crazy busy out there, and that my recent internetless period has merely kept me out of the loop, but peering around I’m not sure that is the case. A Greek defender has arrived, and Francis Coquelin has cleared off, and of course we’re left with the inevitable whispers about Mesut and Sanchez. The latter in particular due to the way the last minutes of the summer merrygoround ended.

To be honest, I have no idea what parameters we’re operating within regarding players being cup tied (Europa/CL?), movement domestically/abroad and so on.

Arsenally speaking, things have changed since the last window. We’ve witnessed the reappearance of Jack and the epic progress of Maitland Niles. We all know every single position could be improved upon, but equally, we all realise we’re not Real Madrid so what do we expect.

I think, once again, much will hinge on the Sanchez situation and one would assume Arsene sees the departure of Coquelin as leaving us thin in the defensive midfield position, or has he already pencilled someone in? Maitland Niles?

My personal thoughts on the window’s outcome? Nothing. Not sure why, but I have this gut feeling things won’t pan out for Sanchez the way he wants.

This is an incredibly dull window round up. I hope some of you can add some fizz and froth.

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Posted by Bongo

Solid at the Bridge – Player Ratings

January 11, 2018

Serial Diver

Went down only when he’d lost his balance

Ratings

Ospina – Lazarus got in the way when it mattered ….8

Chambers – WWE slam on Azpilicueta my personal highlight ….8

Mustafi – No unnecessary lunging tonight, except to block shots ….9

Holding – Looked more comfortable against Morata than Brereton  ….8

Bellerin – 100% focused – all thoughts of what to wear after the game on the back burner  ….6

Xhaka – The Hills are Alive with the sound of crunching tackles while on a yellow ….7

Wilshere – Buzzing – luckily the bang is on his “good” ankle ….8

Maitland-Niles – The young Tory oozed class and a complete disdain for Marxian economics ….8

Iwobi  – Magnificent Maradona-esque dribbles followed by powder puff shooting ….8

Welbeck – Magnificent tackle on the snake for which Alan Smith tried to award a penalty ….7

Lacazette – not the day to be an Arsenal striker – best chance half-volleyed into the stands ….7

Elneny – Booked for a foul on Morata ….6

Sanchez – Lively in his pursuit of a transfer ….6

Big Weng – gave the members of the press box something to watch ….8

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Posted by Bongo

Wembley on the Horizon

January 10, 2018

Chelsea away. Injuries all over the shop. Porous defence. Lack of confidence. Fans less than enthusiastic.

Doesn’t bode well.

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Last game was a cracker; full of excitement and top quality attacking allied to dreadful defending from The Arsenal, diving and awful finishing from Chelsea. I expect much of the same tonight and would be thrilled with a similar result.

Sanchez: According to the media we have received a €20m offer from City. How will that affect both the player and the manager? Would you sell him or let him go for nothing in summer? Is €20m enough?

VAR: Exciting and interesting development which will/could change the way football at the highest level will function. It works in other sports but can it work in football? Would Hazard’s clear dive be a penalty or not? Depends upon one’s viewpoint which is exactly the point!

Given that Chelsea and MC remain in the Carabao, was AW decision, to prioritise tonight over the FA Cup, pragmatism or stupidity?

We shall see.

There is no doubt in my mind that if Arsenal play well, particularly if we take the chances in attack, we can win. The question is – does the team share my faith?

COYRRG

 

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Posted by Erik the Red

Should we sign a Forward?

January 7, 2018

FA Cup. It has been good to us in recent years having only lost once in 4 seasons, can this run continue?

Away at Forest is a potential banana skin, especially as Mr Wenger  is expected to rotate his squad. Xhaka, Ramsey, Giroud, Kolasinac, Koscielny and Monreal are all injured, so the potential for rotation is limited. Wilshere needs to be rested and with Xhaka out we will struggle to be creative. Should be interesting to see if Iwobi, Coquelin and Elneny can find space and provide the ammunition for the front men.

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I know nothing about the current NF team. Once Cloughie left and they dropped out of the PL I lost interest. Thankfully for the Forest owners, their fans have not and they average over 25k attendance at the new City Ground (more than 7 PL teams).

Forest have a caretaker manager having sacked the previous incumbent, (what a lovely word) Mr Warburton after 9 months of difficulty. This is often bad news for The Arsenal as players try to impress the new manager.

My Team:

Ospina

Debuchy   Chambers   Holding

Nelson  Coquelin      Elneny    Maitland-Niles

Iwobi

Welbeck   Walcott

Not sure about this attack as Mr Wenger must have a reason to freeze out Walcott,  if it is because Theo is leaving then he is unlikely to play. In which case we are struggling to find a fit forward. Could Nelson be played upfront or Akpom? Mr Wenger has stated we are not interested in signing Aubameyang.

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Both teams could use The Lord

Mr Wenger starts his 3 match touchline ban, punished for telling the truth. Referees have ruined our season which may cost Arsenal millions of pounds. Where is their accountability (a post in the making?)?

Can we continue AW’s astonishing run of never having lost in the FAC 3rd round?

Hope so.

COYRRG

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Posted by Erik the Red

Lacazette to Score?

January 3, 2018

Hopefully we will be playing against 11 and not 12 tonight. Another points-robbing refereeing decision could see me give up watching.

For a decade Chelsea have been a team studded with A-holes. Lampard, Terry, Costa, etc there were loads of them. Today only Luiz really approaches the awfulness of the past. Instead they have pleasant folk like Hazard, Kante, Cahill and Courtois.

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Can we beat The Champions?

To be quite honest, I am doubtful unless we find some form. Chelsea will hopefully not PTB and allow some space for our forwards; if they do we can beat them but unlike Arsenal they have a full squad to pick from.

Chelsea also have a clever, charming manager with very good hair. Abramovich seems to like a good haircut.

With Ramsey, Giroud, Monreal and possibly Kos and Kol out, we have selection problems.

Win tonight and it will be a decent Xmas, lose and we fall behind.

My Team:

Cech

Chambers    BFG    Koscielny

Bellerin    Xhaka    Wilshere    M-N

Ozil

Lacazette    Sanchez

Given Chelsea use pace to attack it may be wise to start Holding rather than our Club Captain in the middle of defence and perhaps Elneny, or Coquelin, in place of M-N to add a touch of security.

This is an important night for Arsenal can we beat or even compete with a very good team in form? Can we get our potent front-line to fire. Lacazette needs to score and go on a run of scoring if we are to compete for the CL places. Trouble is, I am not sure he or AFC are capable.

That said, we beat Chelsea last time they came to The Emirates and at Wembley 😀, we can again.

COYRRG

 

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Posted by Erik the Red

Signings on the Horizon?

January 2, 2018

Windows open. We could use some new blood. Will we get any?

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Can Arsenal afford to let Sanchez go and if they decide they can, is there a viable transfer target to replace him?

Debuchy could go but we have no-one to back up as a RWB/FB. Our central defence is wobbly with Koscielny fragile, BFG pensionable and the others inconsistent. We are lacking a right winger as Mr Wenger refuses to play Theo (who is likely to leave). Giroud is 31 and ageing fast. Welbeck is as good a finisher as I am. We lack spark in midfield with no-one able to get a grip on the game. Heaven forbid that Ozil leaves in summer.

So … is Draxler good enough? Is Turan too old? Will AFC compete in a hugely inflated market? In summer it was shocking to read we paid €35m for Mustafi, but at today’s prices was a bargain.

And who could get sold? Akpom, Elneny, Perez, Walcott, Coquelin, Debuchy ++?

My guess is that we will not buy anyone, sell a couple and loan a few out.

What do you think?

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Posted by Erik the Red

2017. How was it for You?

December 31, 2017

It’s been an odd 2017, hasn’t it?

Will he stay/should he go being one of the main talking points (AW/AS/MO/JW/HB etc). Team played some great football, some lamentable football, some boring football and some football which got you out of your seat marvelling at the sheer ingenuity of the interplay. Probably not enough of the latter.

We have seen Guardiola transform an average team into one of the best ever (but not THE Best ever). Pocchettino take the Miscreants to un-imagined heights, coaching The Plumber (Harry Kane) into one of the world’s top strikers. Merinho reducing United into an expensive Stoke. Klopp making Liverpool the best viewing in the PL. Chavs winning the PL by a huge margin yet remaining unconvincing.

Add in the fairytale seasons for Brighton and Huddersfield and we have a fine year of football.

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My highlight of 2017? Unquestionably Per Mertesacker’s performance in the FA Cup Final. Magnificent doesn’t do him justice.

Giroud’s wondergoal came a distant second.

What was yours?

Like countless others I am a regular listener to the Arseblog podcast (the man deserves to be knighted for his services to Arsenal). Arseblog talked recently about how he is not sure that he “likes” the current Arsenal team.  This got me thinking and I have to say I agree with him. Individually I enjoy watching Ozil, Ramsey, Sanchez etc but as a team? Do they compare in terms of enjoyable watching with other teams from the last few decades? Not in my opinion.

Why?

Where is the swagger, the humour or the spirit of other teams, whether it be Merson’s insanity, Adams determination, Wrighty’s enthusiasm, Thierry’s brilliance, PV4’s domination, Pires’ elegance or Santi’s humour which were the essence of those teams? There is none of that. We have become industrial; yes, Ozil is a wonderful player but will be remembered as a true Gooner in 15 years?  I want someone to make me smile.  I want goals, and Yes, I want us to win, but above all I want to be entertained.

Perhaps this is why we have such high ambitions for Wilshere.

This being my final PM of the year please give me some licence – I am not going to write about how we should beat the team rooted to the bottom of the table who haven’t scored twice at home since March, Nor will I do the team etc etc. You can fill in the gaps …

From an AA point of view it has also been a hard year. Fewer visitors, fewer bloggers, fewer people prepared to write posts and add flavour/variety to the opinions on the site. Will AA survive to see NYE in 2018? Who knows but we are here today and in my capacity as a long-term AA’er we wish all who read the blog a very Happy New Year.

And Come On You Rip Roaring Gunners

 

 

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Posted by Erik the Red

Eagles downed

December 29, 2017

A very entertaining game last night and if I had to sum it up in one sentence I would say it as a determined performance with some worring lapses of concentration.

Slim sums it up humourously: “We are like a team of narcaleptics! We just doze off unexpectedly then suddenly we wake up and are back at it.”

Cech: did you know he keeps whippets?

Chambers: no coincidence that Southampton have 75mil burning a hole in their bank accounts and out of the blue Chambers gets a first team start. 4

Mustafi: I had do a double take when he scored our first, the precision of the ball going from foot to goal made me think that it must have been Ozil at the same time I thought: wow good goal with your right foot Mesut – but no, it was no other than Skhodran M. Top goal, as for the defending, mah. 7

Koscielny: was he responsible for Palace’s second? Maybe. We won so a little generosity. 6

Bellerin: Hector should have had a couple of goals and if he had we would not have to focus on the fact that Zaha bossed him and Chambers down the flank. 5

Kolasinac: I am guessing that he didn’t much like riding the pine and as such when he got his chance to start again he was not going to miss it; he was far more determined last night and the fact that Palace had little joy down his flank is testament to that. 7

The Wilshere pass although superb was expected, the thing that has been surprising me is why he hasn’t been able to do that more often for Lacazette? He is improving with every game. 7

Xhaka: now I am usually quite tough on our Julie but I thought he had one of his best games for the club to date. Very determined, very confident, I am guessing that his goal against Liverpool has lifted his confidence and importantly no schoolboy errors. If it weren’t for a resurgent Sanchez he would have got my man of the match. 8

Ozil: always my favourite so I have to tone these down a bit, quiet start but got into it as the game progressed, so close to another wonder goal from the Sanchez pass. 7

Lacazette: the ball seems as though it just won’t fall for him to be able to slam it home, still he has become an important piece of the attacking jigsaw and there seems little doubt the goals will flow again. 7

Sanchez: MOTM, got his mojo back nothing to do with the transfer window opening again today of course just a case of Alexis’ doing his thing and making a few more simple passes to team mates, funny how that can be so effective. Two great goals. 9

written by LB

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Posted by Erik the Red

A Festive Season Treat or Too Much Mead Hangover?

December 28, 2017

Last season we got hammered by Palace at Selhurst Park by a CP team in trouble. Today  we go there in questionable form and Palace are once again in trouble. Recipe for an embarrassing defeat? Let’s hope not.

Any club that employs Roy Hodgson has my respect, he seems like a top bloke and it takes courage to employ a manager committed to football to take a team out of the relegation zone. Most clubs go for the Hoofball merchants like Moyes, Allardyce etc. I hope they stay up and go on an extended run of good form in the New Year.

Palace spent big money and have some excellent players, players whom the press were linking Arsenal with  – Zaha, Townshend, Benteke and Cabaye. Defence is their problem and one we must exploit.

It is time Sanchez returned to the form we know and love. I do not believe it is lack of desire which is his problem, probably the opposite.

Monreal may be crocked, so is Ramsey. and OG.

My Team:

Cech

Mustafi      Koscielny     Kolasinac

Bellerin    Xhaka   Wilshere    Maitland- Niles

Ozil

Lacazette    Sanchez

Perhaps Iwobi will get a start in place of M-N or Holding could replace Monreal. Who knows except Mr Wenger?

Our form has been strange, consistency conspicuously lacking. One week we are very good in defeat and the next poor in victory.

We need a win and an improvement upon our terrible away form….

Let it start this afternoon.

COYRRG

 

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Posted by Bongo

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