Merry Christmas to all AA-ers everywhere, past and present.

May 2021 bring all your hopes to glorious fruition, both personal and footballing.

And thank you to all those who have continued to support this blog through some lean footballing times.

In deference to the season, here is a re-working of the brilliant Pogues song “A Fairy Tale of New York,” from an Arsenal perspective.

It was Christmas Evening

In North London

An old man said to me, we won’t win another thing,

And then he sang a song,

“We love you Arsenal,”

I turned my face away

And dreamed about you.

God I’m a lucky one,

Born to support the Gun,

I’ve got a feeling

This year there’s lots to do,

So happy Christmas,

I love you Arsenal,

I can see a better time

When all our dreams come true:

We’ll get far bigger stars

Our dead wood will be sold,

But the league won’t be easy

It’s a place for the bold

When I stood in the Stand

On a cold Christmas Eve

You promised me

Glory was waiting for me.

We had Adams

We had Petit

Lined up beside Paddy

When the team finished playing

We howled out for more,

Ljungberg was winging

All the Gooners were singing

We stood in the corner

And cheered when we scored.

The boys from the Highbury North Bank Stand

Were singing Brady’s name

And the sh*t was piling up

Down Tottenham way:

They are scum

They are junk

They smell worse than a skunk

And it’s been sixty years since they’ve had a parade,

They’re bumfluff, they’re maggots,

They’re cheap lousy braggarts,

Happy Christmas from Arsenal

You’re still in our shade.

The boys from the Highbury Clock End Stand

Still singing Brady’s name

And the cups were coming in

To line our shelves.

I’d never be a Spud,

It’s just not in my blood

I have more pride than that

So I picked Arsenal,

I gave them all my dreams

And put them with your own,

Can’t make it all alone,

Together our dreams will come true.

The boys from the Highbury Upper East Stand

Still singing Brady’s name

Good times are coming back

To Arsenal.

RockyLives, with apologies to Shane MacGowan (who’s an Everton fan)

Move over Gunnersaurus, there’s a new comedy act in town.

He’s there to amuse the kids and provide moments of slapstick fun for all the family.

Yes, it’s Runarssaurus! Laugh, as he flaps his hands in the air while the ball flies off the head of an opposition striker; giggle, as he cleverly guides a tame shot into our net using nothing but his own patent rubber wrists.

Or perhaps, as Bob Monkhouse once said: “When I said I wanted to grow up to be a comedian they laughed. They’re not laughing now.”

We’re not laughing now, are we?

A slick Man City side dumped us out of the Carabao cup last night, winning 4-1 at the Emirates in a game that turned into a horror show for our young reserve goalie, Alex Runarsson.

I feel bad for writing the headline and making fun of the lad, but his signing always seemed a bit odd (he was a reserve ‘keeper in the French Ligue 2 and not particularly rated by his team’s supporters. His stats were bang average or worse).

But apparently our goalkeeping coach had worked with him previously and ‘saw something in him’. Hmmm.

Anyway, the kid didn’t buy himself and nor does he pick himself so if it looks like he’s just not up to it at this level of football it’s not his fault, it’s on the club and the coaches.

And who knows, maybe he has immense strength of character and this will be the making of him, which would be wonderful for him and us… although somehow I doubt it.

The sad thing was that after going behind after two minutes (a headed goal for which Mustafi and Runarsson probably share most responsibility) we had hauled ourselves back into the game with an excellent Lacazette goal following not one but two superb crosses from Martinelli.

At 1-1 we were very much in the game, at least until Martinelli got crocked in a 50-50 with the City ‘keeper. Could or should the ‘keeper have been booked or red carded? I don’t know. If it was the other way round I’d be saying that he was quick off his line and got the ball.

Nevertheless, we were in the game. Then came City’s second and Runarsson’s humiliation. A Mahrez free kick came straight at him at a perfect height to catch or (if you’re Leno) to punch away. Runarsson did neither, merely deflecting the ball into our goal with the most limp wristed effort I’ve seen since John Inman was free.

It was going to be tough enough eking out a result against the most financially doped team in the Premier League without gifting them a goal. Our heads went down and the last two City goals were just the botulism on the cake.

Can I make a plea to our recruitment team: if we’re going to sign a crap goalie, please can we sign a BIG crap goalie. There aren’t many small, successful ‘keepers at the highest level and poor young Runarsson looked like a player in a schoolboy team last night.

To compound a miserable night, Martinelli looked to be in quite a bit of difficulty after his injury (why the heck he came out for the second half at all is a mystery). He was by far the brightest spark for us in a gloomy evening so let’s hope this is not serious.

If you’d asked me if I’d take a 4-1 defeat in the Carabao Cup and a league win over Chelsea on Boxing Day I’d have bitten your hand off. We’ve done the first part so, hey, we’re sure to win on Saturday. Aren’t we?

RockyLives

In a very seasonal fixture we entertain Manchester City tonight in the quarter final of the Caribou Cup.

Caribou, as you all know, are also called “reindeer” and tend to be kept busy at this time of year pulling Santa’s sleigh.

It would be nice to think we could win and get closer to winning a trophy in this so-far abysmal season. If we manage to beat City we would play the semi final on January 5th, meaning (if we win again) that we could have a Wembley appearance booked by the first week of the new year.

I know it’s only the Reindeer Cup, but that would lift spirits a little bit, wouldn’t it?

Even so, tonight’s game is surely an occasion for El Patron to play several of the younger and more fringe players. After all, our Premier League form is the real crisis area right now and we face Chelsea on Boxing Day.

Given the wealth of talent available to the pale blue Mancs, even a second string side from them will be packed with ability, so this will be a difficult fixture for whichever group of Arsenal lads we send out.

It also makes me think Arteta will opt for a back three/five to give us more defensive security in the hope we can do again to City what we did to them in the FA Cup last season (soak up pressure with the ‘low block’ and catch them on the break).

Here’s my (highly unlikely to be accurate) predicted line-up, bearing in mind that Xhaka is suspended and Partey and Auba are both unavailable through injury:

Runarsson

Soares – Chambers – Mustafi – Mari – Kolasinac

Maitland-Niles – Elneny

Nelson – Balogun – Smith-Rowe

For all our league woes, we have continued to shine in the cup competitions, so I wouldn’t rule out us winning this one, whoever starts.

Come On You Gunners.

RockyLives

I think we all agree with Arteta that we want to see fighters on the pitch and to be honest, while this may have been an issue in the last few years, I feel like we do have some players with fighting spirit and a positive mindset to fight for our club and victories. Name your perceived fighters and perceived victims.

Who would make it in the New Zealand Rugby Squad?

It seems that we are actually going to have to fight very hard for a top 8 finish this season. Who would have thought this would be the case after our Community Shield victory and the signings of Gabriel and Partey?

The point is that we are cruelly lacking…points so far this season. We have not won any games in two months in the EPL and although there has been a bit of misfortune, overall, we have not performed well and we have not managed to be “hard to break down” nor “hard to stop/contain”. I know the players are the ones on the pitch but I also think that the coach has his responsibilities. We just have not been good enough this season (except maybe in the Europa League).

So who should lead Arteta field to steer us back in the top half?

GK: We let Martinez go so we have to rely on Leno as our GK.

RB: Bellerin did have some good games but mostly, he has been ineffective. AMN needs to improve some more defensively but he has been OK while Soares is at best a sub so AMN for me.

CB: Gabriel has been great until he got his red card. Luiz is still among our Top 3 defenders and although Holding is not as consistent as we wanted, who do we play ahead of him? Saliba/Sok are not qualified, Mari/Chambers are recovering and Mustafi remains a liability…

LB: Tierney has been sensational as a LCB and LB and I think he should be played as LB as his crossing is rather good.

DM/CM: Partey is key, El Neny has played well. Ceballos has been our most dangerous midfielder thanks to his passing. So we do we start? Partey-El Neny for me.

RFW: Saka is really our creative force these days. His runs and timings have been good and he can pbbly cause havoc if played on the right side too. Willian has been abysmal and Pepe not consistent enough. What about Nelson? Hard to say so far.

ST: Martinelli for me. I think he can hold up the ball and not only create for others but also for himself. He is also good at making runs inside the box. Nketiah works hard but not enough end product, same for Laca. As for Balogun, maybe a bit light still although a great prospect.

LFW: It has to be Auba. I think that with Saka on the right and Martinelli in the middle, he will be able to rediscover his shooting boots. With Tierney’s overalaps, he will have the chance to cut inside.

So here it is for me, if we stick to a back 3 system:

Leno – Holding, Luiz, Gabriel – AMN, Partey, El Neny, Tierney – Saka, Martinelli, Auba

Bench: Runnarsson, Saliba, Mari, Bellerin, Xhaka, Willock, Nelson, Willian, ESR, Pepe, Nketiah, Balogun

Offload in January: Soares, Chambers, Mustafi, Sokratis, Kola, Laca

What do you say? Is that starting XI our best when all are fit and available?

230 years ago Fletcher Christian seized control of a ship from Captain Bligh. This has passed into history as ‘The Mutiny on the Bounty’.Watching Arsenal for the past few seasons reminds me of this woeful tale. To me it appears there are a number of players that aren’t giving 100% and more that are pursuing a mutiny for their own ends.

Unai Emery was the fall guy after Arsene Wenger ended his tour of duty. Initially he performed pretty well. We should have got into the Champions League then there was the disaster in Baku against Chelsea. From that point his days were numbered. There were problems on Emery’s ship. He cast aside players then brought them back. This inspired revenge. It was clear players wanted him out. There were stories of players taking the Michael out of Emery’s accent. Childish at best. The end came against Southampton at home, where the players accidentally got a draw, but hardly celebrated. They wanted Emery gone. Freddie came in as a stop gap and again the players could hardly be bothered. He ended up playing a number of the younger players to make clear what he thought of the effort of some of the ‘pros’.

Fast forward to Arteta. It started well with some blips along the way. The FA Cup win was a huge over-achievement, beating Man City & Chelsea on the way to our record 14th trophy. But come the new season and the grumbling started again. Wins turned to draws, draws to losses. The players looked like they were low on confidence, even sabotaging games.

In my opinion there is a Mutiny underway on the Good Ship Arsenal. The only way to stop it is by casting the villains adrift. The culprits:

• Mesut Ozil – The leader of the mutiny. He should have been paid off in the summer. He’s hanging around like a virus infecting the rest of the team. Cast him adrift on Pitcairn Island!
• Granit Xhaka – Only Wenger knows what he saw in Granit. All I can see is a player who isn’t at Premier League level and got sent off on purpose against Burnley to get Christmas off. To the stocks!
• Alex Lacazette – I used to rate this guy. Since his contract negotiations have halted he has been hiding on the pitch. I swear he has missed a few chances on purpose. He has become the Union man that has downed tools for the cause. The guillotine is calling!
• Hector Bellerin – He’s got some nice tattoos, an exciting vegan philosophy, but he can’t defend for toffee. Send for the Spanish Inquisition!
• David Luiz – Plays when he has his ego massaged. When he’s not happy – red card. Banish him to the Amazon jungle!
• Willian – Well he ain’t is he? 4 more years of this cowboy. Private jet to the Sargasso sea! Ably supported by minor crew members Mustafi, Kolasinac & Sokratis. Lock them up on the Rock!
• The only solution to the Mutiny is to dump these muppets from the Good Ship Arsenal. It was never going to be easy for Mik, but these guys are making his job near impossible.
• Yours truly, Pete the Thirst

About three years before finally being shuffled out of the club I implored Arsene Wenger to resign we had just won the FA Cup beating Hull unconvincingly, many took my post as intended a love letter to Arsene asking him to go to stop the noise destroying our club from outside and in, others didn’t see that and attacked me for being mad to ask him to leave after winning the cup final. I expect the same today for those who don’t read to the end.

There were issues with the fans already according to many we were not good enough, signings were average the squad was full of “dead wood” and Arsene just wouldn’t adapt to more defensive tactics or bring in the new Gilberto.

The refrain from the stands was often “we want our Arsenal back”, my question was always what Arsenal, the one of Arsene’s early seasons, the Arsenal of George Graham, or maybe the Arsenal of Terry Neil, I guess it depended how old as a fan you were to what Arsenal you were referring to.

The Arsenal I have always wanted back is the one run by a Board of Directors who had a long history with the club, but that is pure fantasy what top side is owned independently without foreign investment? I have to accept the game has changed in that respect.

In the early days of Emery’s first season we smashed a poor Fulham side who went on to be relegated 5-1 at the Cottage, Arsenal fans rejoiced and the sound of “we’ve got our Arsenal back” reverberated from the away end.

A mere two years later we sit in 15th place with more losses than wins after 12 games, our worst start since 1974, not sure that was the Arsenal any of us wanted back and it was before my time on this small blue dot commenced.

It was an awfully long way back to where we ended the 90’s and started the naughties courtesy of Graham and then Wenger.

Now we look back in hindsight I have to ask, was it that bad with Arsene? Ok we maybe weren’t title contenders but on the flip side the team still managed to give us some hope we were only ever one or two players away. Where are we now? Five, six, seven players away?

Ok it’s wishful thinking Arsene won’t want to interfere. Arsene wouldn’t want a second fiddle job and has moved on to pastures new, but I can’t help thinking Arteta needs help, and who better to give it than Arsene, the man that gave Arsenal players unbelievable belief gave young players opportunities, if you were good enough you were old enough. He was ruthless to players who were usurped, Debuchy signed to replace Sagna, got injured, Hector came in and made the place his own and Debuchy a decent player everyone expected to be first choice right back left the club soon after.

But if there’s one thing I want back from watching my club it’s freedom to play, playing with a smile and making me smile. Yes we didn’t always win but it was at least good to watch.

Come back Arsene all is forgiven make me smile again.

Gooner in Exile

Another loss at the Emirates and another really tasteless and toothless performance except for the first 10 minutes of the second half…Not many positives to take on tonight.

The numbers in the EPL are damning:

• 15th in the EPL, with only 13 points in 12 games and with a -5 goal difference (10 for, 15 against)
• 4th home defeat in a row for 1st time since 1959
• 1st defeat to Burnley in the EPL
• 1st goal conceded on a set piece
• 0 goal score in open play,,,

But tonight was worrying on many levels:

• Xhaka’s red card showed that he was still not learning anything but it also showed frustration
• Few minutes later El Neny could and should have been sent off
• Bellerin also getting carded
• Willian is still not hitting the next gear
• Auba is really looking like a lost puppy on the field;
• Creativity still a major issue, ineffective set-pieces and crosses still a trademark this season
• Laca missing a golden opportunity that could have paved the way for a victory
• Arteta unable to find a solution, which is the worse.

So where do we go from here? Well, if Arteta does not finally accept that he needs to do something different in terms of team set-up and squad selection, then I think we will be going straight to relegation battle because there is no reason why we would improve in this set-up although Martinelli and Partey will make a difference for sure but 2 players can’t solve everything.

If Arteta has some clue, he may at least start to:

• Go back to a system with 3 central defenders
• Rely more on youth and hungry players such as AMN and ESR for example
• Give a rest to Auba.

My problem was that the players really seemed to get frustrated on the pitch and that does not bode well because it shows lack of communication, lack of trust in each other, lack of trust in the manager’s instructions…If some are looking to replace Arteta already, Favre is now available.

Ratings:

Leno – 4

Bellerin – 3; Holding – 4; Gabriel – 4; Tierney – 5

El Neny – 4; Xhaka – 2

Willian – 3; Laca – 4 – Saka – 5

Auba – 3

Arteta – 2

Mikel really is at a massive crossroads in his Arsenal career and more importantly to us of course as Arsenal supporters.

Aubamayang, Lacazette, Nketiah, Pepe and Willian are not working.

There are too many players there with too much talent for all the blame to placed solely at their door — meaning the lion’s share must lay with the manager.

When Arteta arrived he built from the back with 3 defenders and five in front — it worked; we won the FA cup, he has tried to change into a more attacking formation and it is failing badly.

Arteta’s tactics are fairly straight forward, when there is a position that is not working as well as it should he will alternate between the contenders in the hope that one of them gels, the obvious example is the left wing back. Kolasinac and Tierney vied for that position until it became clear that Tierney was the best player for the role.

Arteta is also doing the same with Lacazette and Nkatiah for the number 9 role, the difference here is that neither of them is firmly staking their claim; neither of them has very good close control, neither of them has the ability to hold the ball and neither of them can run with it: can you imagine either scoring the goal that Martinelli did against Chelsea from his own half. Ok, I accept I just put my red and white tinted glasses on and sure Arteta would have almost certainly played the Brazilian were he available.

Arteta needs to go further and be brave enough to play Balogun ahead of Nketiah; there should not be a pecking order, decisions should be made on the basis that the best player gets the job; further, it should make no difference to the club which one of them succeeds so long as one of them succeeds. Same applies to Nelson and Pepe, it should make no difference that Pepe cost more than Nelson and Pepe should not be given priority because of it. Arsene Wenger on Bergkamp: What makes Bergkamp such a good player is his ability to do the simple things really well. I paraphrase. Bergkamp didn’t need to show off, if you think about it he just did all the simple things really, really well. Pepe — take note, a simple pass is more effective than yet another flashy step over, just pass it man aahhhhhhhhh.

I actually have a bit of sympathy for Willian, he came from a team that if he passed to a player and then moved he would more than likely get the ball back — our forward line has the close control and the ability to return a pass of that of hoofed animals. I am clinging to the hope that he and Martinelli, his fellow Brazilian, will form a good understanding.

Aubamayang’s close control on the move is atrocious, his inter-play with his team mates is worse and his ability to run with the ball on a break is laughable — he should be benched until a formula can be found in which he can be reintroduced not the other way round which is happening and failing now. Put simply I think Balogun would do a better job.

Saka does not get a pass here either, he has stagnated in the last few games and should be given a break for either Nelson or Smith-Rowe, it was interesting that Arteta moved ESR out to the left side for the second half against Dundalk he may have ideas of playing him there in the EPL. Again it should make no difference which of the 2 makes it to greatness so long as at least one of them does.

The midfield, don’t get me started…………..

You need to show some strength Mikel, I do not want Fat Sam anywhere near our club after Christmas.

Ok, happy note to end on, did you notice how Balogun runs? He has a long torso and short legs so it looks like they move really quickly when he moves at pace; I mean that is, opposed to the giant strides of Vieira for example; anyway, I was trying to cast my mind back to who had a similar running style and then it hit me.

SUPER MAC…………..

Something to think about, chuckles to himself and finishes the post.

COYRRG

For those of you that have been watching football religiously in the 90s, there was one incredible Argentinian player who terrorized defenders in Argentina and Italy called Gabriel Batistuta but known as Batigol. He was such a talented striker, a real predator in the box with good speed, movement and good use of his body. He was so good that if you picked Argentina or Fiorentina in the Fifa video games from 95 to 99, you could just get the ball to him and you will know there will be a goal for you…I was a big fan of his. A really good forward and I would say that in the last few years, maybe Cavani is the closest player to him although Batigol was faster but Cavani may have better movement…In any case, a quality striker.

Today, Balogun showed that he can play for us in the Europa League for sure and he will certainly be given a run in the Cups and I think that Arteta sees the potential of the kid so we may even see him in the EPL. He showed strength and composure today and he was decisive. I also thought that ESR had a great game today but that’s for another day 🙂 Arteta said that they are working on signing Balogun on a long-term deal because he finds the kid superb and apparently Balogun wants to stay. So what do we do now?

Who do we bet on to join Auba up front? Laca, Martinelli, Nketiah or Balogun. Auba will find his scoring boots, it is just a matter of time. I think his best partner in front 2 may be Martinelli but maybe we could have Martinelli, Balogun, Auba as a front three supported by Partey, El Neny, Saka in the middle…

The decision is tough – we are almost out of the Top 6 race in the EPL. Isn’t it the perfect season then to give our promising youngsters a real chance at gaining experience in the EPL? We can always play competitive teams in the EPL but have younger players in it and then also play more seasoned players in the Europa and Cup League. And if we play the young guns in the EPL, who do you put forward between Nketiah and Balogun?

So the point of this post is to reflect on:

1. Shall we give a chance to your young guns in the EPL and hope they develop into top players?
2. Who gets the nod as starting CF between Nketiah and Balogun if we decide to bet on youth?
3. Do you think that Balogun has what it takes to be our Batigol or Haaland?

Another win the Europa league tonight. Feels good. It may be our direct path to CL…who knows?