Whilst Arsene watches scantily clad babes, he also plots his goals‏

July 3, 2014

Morning Gooner’s.

World cup this, World cup that, fans all over the world are excited by the enthralling football they are seeing. The host nation Brazil was celebrating their win over Chile, while I sat and watched with not much interest. I watched a hard fought out game that went to penalties, the first game with penalties, and some good penalties too, but also some very dodgy ones as well. Like all tight matches this one was decided on the last shot of the day. The Chilean player hit the upright and the ball bounced away from the goal, the Brazilian fans went berserk.

Personally I was hoping for a Chile win, they were the underdogs but I have a heart and I was rooting for them, although I never had much interest in the result, I was surprised how disappointed I felt. Maybe being an ex footballer myself, and suffering many demoralising defeats actually makes you realise just how painful defeat can be, but of course you need to win finals as well to appreciate the victories as well, In my case not to many.

I have of course got to bring in our own club, after all this is an Arsenal blog and while we have the close season we know that Arsene will not keep us informed about the possible ins and outs. Arsene is currently employed as a pundit but he is of course watching all the top players in the world, so its like a Busman’s holiday.

As supporters we realise that some of our players are moving on, and of course Arsene knows that only to well while he is working in Brazil and recuperating on the beach feasting his eyes on all those scantily clad Babes, sorry got carried away there. We do of course hope he has his targets in his sights.

Arsene has just signed a new contract, late of course but he signed it. He has just tasted victory of the FA cup, that must have tasted very sweet for him, I can remember the look on his face as he climbed the steps at Wembley, he looked like the kid in the sweet shop left alone to chose anything he wanted. As I saw Wenger hold that trophy I had the feeling that he was never as happy as he was at that moment. Yes he had won that cup before, and he has won other cups and leagues, but that cup was a very long time coming, and the disappointments over those years was I bet how that missing Chilean player felt.

As I said before, Arsene has signed a new contract, so I can only assume that he has been given the ok to to buy replacements. Arsene brought one player last season, but he brought a record breaker to the sum of £42.5 million> Now that has been unheard of from Mr Skinflint but he did. I must admit I was knocked sideways when I heard the news, I had waited, logging into blogs and Arsenal news and the papers the  media and anybody and everybody for a snippet of news, I expected a striker, and he buys a midfielder, not just any midfielder, a £42 million midfielder.

I  felt  I knew what Arsene would do, I thought buy a striker, but no, and after I calmed down I wondered why he had done what he had.  Arsene had Giroud, Sanogo, and Bendtner and we had strikers in reserves as well, but they still had time left on their contracts. Sanogo was raw but showed promise Bendtner had one season left and Giroud had done all that had been asked of him, he must have felt that he had that position covered.

Theo was the player that Arsene was hoping would feed off of Ozil and with The Ox with his powerful runs and Gnabry who had also shown promise he must have felt Ozil was the key. As we all know we did pretty good up till Christmas but injuries to our speedy front men hit us hard, yes we scraped the FA cup but Theo missing half a season The Ox out for some time even Giroud missing a few games and hardly a show from Gnabry we struggled.

This season Bendtner will be gone  our reserve striker has been released which opens the door for a striker, Bacary leaving was on the cards I think we all knew that and Jenks is still not the finished article so another space. Fabianski leaving was also on the cards he must have had the hump when Viviani was loaned in, but Arsene used him in the cups and he never let us down in fact he showed what a fine keeper he is. Viviani has been released so we need a keeper. I hoped we would keep Kallstrom as he had something about him, but he too has been let go. Maybe Diaby getting back to fitness may have a bearing.

So my summary is that Arsene should be looking for a Striker, a Right Back and a Goalkeeper. I figure £42m for them should cover it, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see another couple of loaners, just in case of injuries.  Will Arsene surprise me again this season, Probably.

Written by Steve Palmer

 

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Posted by peachesgÖÖner

Sam Hollis – Arsenal’s first Manager

June 27, 2014

Sam Hollis 1893(ish) to 1897

sam hollisAccording to Arsenal.com Sam Hollis was appointed ‘secretary-manager’ of Arsenal in 1894. He was the first individual to be placed in charge of team affairs. Prior to his appointment, the team had been managed by a committee of players and club members. Hollis spent three years at the club during which time the Club remained mid-table in the Second Division. He moved on to Bristol City in the summer of 1897.

There has always been some debate over who managed Arsenal in their first year in the old Second Division.  One of the names mentioned has been that of Bill Parr it was rumoured that two years before the formation of Woolwich Arsenal, a group of Nottingham Forest players, including Bill Parr joined Dial Square FC and brought their old kits along. The early Woolwich Arsenal records do not mention him as having played for the team so it is difficult to add any credence to the rumour. However he was recorded as having arrived with two other Nottingham Forest players, Fred Beardsley and Charlie Bates – so it’s quite possible that these players were part of the committee mentioned, in Arsenal.com, as having managed the team prior to the arrival of Sam Hollis.

103650288_amazoncom-woolwich-arsenal-football-team-each-player-is-

Sam Hollis was born in Nottingham at some time during 1866 and passed away in Bristol on 17 April 1942. His early work life appears to have made him more suitable for the “secretary” part of his title as he had worked for the government in the Probate Office and then the Post Office, hardly the type of background that would indicate that he would become the club’s first Manager. So maybe he only acted as the clubs top administrative person making his early work for the government a plus – and if that was in fact true then it would make the Bill Parr rumour a little more credible.

He left Woolwich Arsenal in April 1897 and went to Bristol City which had just been formed to become their manager. In March 1899 he left Bristol to become secretary-manager of Bedminster FC, a club which then merged with Bristol City the following year with Hollis leaving to run a pub.  He returned one year later as manager of the combined club. He took Bristol to the top of the Southern League and into the Football League. In March 1905 he left football and managed a hotel, until 1911, when he became Bristol City manager again, only this time relegating the club to the second division.  He finally left in 1913 and moved on to Newport County, eventually returning to Bristol as chairman of the shareholders.

It is very difficult to find any definitive information about the early years at Woolwich Arsenal so we have to take this into account and recognise that some details are blurred.

In my own personal records I’ve shown Sam Hollis as our manager during our first years in the Second Division as it seemed wrong to have only a question mark as the manager in 1893.

According to a variety of sources this is the league record attributed to Woolwich Arsenal from 1893 to 1897.

1893/94 – P28, W12, D4, L12, GF52, GA55, Pts28, Pos 9th.

1894/95 – P30, W14, D6, L10, GF75, GA55, Pts34, Pos 8th.

1895/96 – P30, W14, D4, L12, GF58, GA42, Pts32, Pos 7th.

1896/97 – P30, W13, D4, L13, GF68, GA70, Pts30, Pos 10th.

 

Total: – P118, W53, D18, L47, GF253, GA225, Pts124, Pos 8.5

GunnerN5

 

 

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What is Jack Wilshere’s best position?

June 26, 2014

Yeah, I know, Stevie G is a right old pain; excellent quarter-back when playing against us, has-been no-mark when playing for England. But fair play to him, in the aftermath of “Group D-Gate”, he made a really excellent observation in an interview with the Beeb. He said that the number of young players with the hunger and desire to play for England is diminishing because of the money in the game.  When asked if teenage footballers were becoming millionaires too quickly, he replied that “It has an impact on certain individuals. For those who want money, fame and everything that comes with football, of course it will have an effect.”

In a World Cup where the national teams of the three richest leagues in the world (England, Spain and Italy) have failed to get through the group stages, it is certainly worth asking ourselves what is wrong. There are of course plenty of reasons for the failure of our team, and in a sense none – there will always be random, unpredictable factors at play.  But to my mind, Gerrard has a very good point, there is a real problem of desire and hunger in our younger players, something that has been building all through the cash-rich Premier League era.

One player that seems to show precisely that desire, that hunger, is Jack Wilshere.  He takes a kicking every time he plays, his game of close control and dribbles opens up defences and draws plenty of fouls, some of which are even spotted by the referees.  And Jack doesn’t go around biting opponents, he just gets up and starts again.  When he gets injured (ie, very often), he does his rehab and comes back again.  And he talks a great game – he is clearly desperate to win, in both his Arsenal and his England shirts.  There is a very strong argument, that the future of the England team is Jack Wilshere.

But is Arsenal the right place for him to push on?  He loves the club, that’s clear.  He’s been with us since he was even smaller than he is now.  And he hails from the club’s home counties hinterland – he can probably see his parents’ house from London Colney.  I’d love Wilshere to succeed with us, if only so I don’t have to concede anything to LB.  But if I’m honest, I don’t see it happening, not so much on account of his talents, more because we aren’t going to offer him the right opportunity.  I’ve said before that I think he’s better suited to a four-man midfield, which I assume we’re not about to adopt.  In the current formation, his natural position (even without much by way of a shot) is in the middle of the attacking-midfield three.  And with Ozil, that means Wilshere is effectively an understudy.

Wilshere is reaching a critical stage in his career.  He needs to be somewhere where the team is built around him, where he’s the metronome, measuring and setting the rhythm of the team.  He’d probably be suited to being at one of the big Dutch clubs, or teams like Valencia, Real Sociedad, Marseille, Southampton or Everton.  He’d never do it of course, but Spurs would actually suit him pretty well.

I hope I’m wrong, but I’d say Jack’s time with us is going to end sooner rather than later.  And that would be good for him and good for English football.

Written by 26may89

 

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England come home before Arsène

June 25, 2014

Morning Gooners,

Many countries are on their way home after falling at the first hurdle in the World cup, and seeing how I am an Englishman of course I am disappointed by England’s early exit. Personally I felt England’s Manager Roy Hodgson was very fortunate with the youngsters that have been produced, obviously I was wrong, after 3 games my countrymen only managed 1 point,and as we all know that equates to 2 losses and a draw.

Having said that, I still feel that England, Manager, and Players, have learned a lot from this World cup. Taking a young squad to a place like Brazil, with its high temperatures and humidity is quite different from what they experience here, that of course is not an excuse, many other countries also had the same problems, but in the learning cycle invaluable for the future.

I feel that this world cup has come slightly to early for the England team, as some players have just started to emerge. Hodgson wanted to blend experience with youth. The manager felt that the talent we had would be beneficial, young fit men with plenty of energy, many of our youngsters looked very confident, they looked around the players in the squad, and having watched many of them in the league they felt that they stood a very good chance.

Confidence is a fine thing, but inexperience normally has a habit of kicking yourself up the jacksie, and that in all honesty has been what has happened. Although England’s squad looks good for the future, they still need setbacks along the way, to make them aware of just what can happen, as a squad they will learn together, they will learn how to play together and how the manager wants them to play.

There are spaces that will now become available, as ageing seniors will probably fall by the wayside, and although these players have had long England career’s they have never had too many victory stories to pass on to the new recruits. For Arsenal supporters our own players who were in the squad never got to see to much action The Ox at his first world cup never managed to kick a ball in anger reminded me of Theo’s first World cup, but Jack did get to put his boots on.  Jack, I felt, didn’t let us down, he didn’t stand out, but he also didn’t do anything stupid. The Ox of course has watched England from the touchline, not being fit enough to play but he should have learned a thing or two and also had an expenses paid holiday, he should be well rested by the time the new season kicks off.

England have reminded me of our own club, inexperience has been our downfall for many years, and with new players coming in, they have needed a season to find their feet. England have had a short time together but I feel they have shown promise. Arsenal  have also shown promise claiming their first trophy for many seasons, but lack of faith has been a sticking point for us. Leading the league for so long last season gave them and us nosebleeds. We all hoped for a taste of success but we never really believed it would happen until it finally arrived.

Of course the FA cup will last a long while for the players but so will the high losing scores we had to deal with as well. Our Achilles heel is top teams in our own league, we will have to deal with this type of game in the future, if we want to taste the same kind of success.

I feel that Wenger would have had a good insight to who is available, and who may just fit into our club to strengthen us, Players leaving and openings to fill would be his priority when he arrives back from Brazil. I am sure he would have watched Joel Campbell and although he may not have scored many goals I am still sure that Wenger will call him up, whether Joel see’s himself in the Arsenal strip in the future is yet to be seen but for me if Bendtner leaves Joel wouldn’t be a bad replacement.

Of the many players on show in this world cup, I would like to think that Arsène has his eye out for a keeper, and also a good right back, with Santi looking at pastures new  and Vermaelen also rumoured to be going Wenger will have to work quickly. Arsenal as England have good futures, where Hodgson has bundles of talent and the best of English talent Arsène will have to spend and spend well. Arsenals foundation is now fairly sound, but the need of quality is abundantly clear. Arsène has said in the past, as long as you replace with better players we will always improve, I look forward to our new signings.

Written by Steve Palmer

 

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Arsenal’s exciting season ahead

June 23, 2014

So, what does that fixture list for 2014-15 look like from an Arsenal point of view?

The priority in August (as we know from previous years) is the Champions’ League play-offs, we need to navigate those safely and without fuss, so we want a pretty tame start domestically.  And with Palace at home, Everton away and Leicester away, we have more or less what we would want.  Not that I’m saying they’re easy games; the visit to Goodison will be challenging, Palace under Pulis will continue to be tough and the Foxes will be excited to be back in the top division.  But it could have been a lot worse.

Things get tougher in September, with games against Man City at home, Villa away, Spurs at home and Chelsea away (on 1 October), as well as (hopefully) the opening pair of Champions’ League group games.

The remainder of October and into November is fine, with matches against Hull (home), Sunderland (away), Burnley (home) and Swansea (away), plus some Champions’ League games and the beginning of the League Cup.  There is then an international break, after which we face Man United at our place and go to West Brom.

The run-in to Christmas is ok, with matches against Stoke (away) and Newcastle (home), but we then have our trip to Liverpool.  There is also the League Cup and the last group stage match in the Champions’ League.  Over the holiday period, we don’t have long trips, with the Boxing Day match against QPR (home) and then to West Ham, but those two matches are in the space of three days.  We then have a midweek, New Year’s Day trip to Southampton. And in January, after the traditional slot for the 3rd round of the FA Cup, we have matches against Stoke (home), Man City (away) and Villa (home), plus the League Cup semi finals and the 4th round of the FA Cup.

February will be a little more testing, with matches against Spurs (away), Leicester (home), Palace (away) and Everton (home), and the 5th round of the FA Cup and the beginning of the knock-out phase in the Champions’ League.  But March won’t be too bad (certainly a lot better than it was last season), with meetings with QPR (away), West Ham (home) and Newcastle (away), as well as the FA Cup quarter final and the continuation of the Champions’ League.

There will be a couple of tasty home matches in April, against Liverpool and Chelsea, but in between those we will face Burnley (away) and Sunderland (home), and there will be the quarter finals of the Champions’ League.

The season will run a bit later than usual, presumably on account of the World Cup.  The FA Cup Final will be at the end of May, and the Champions’ League Final (in Berlin) will be on 6 June.  Our league campaign will culminate with some very winnable matches against Hull (away), Swansea (home), and (for our last league game) West Brom at home, but our penultimate match will be away to Man United.  That could be a very big match.  If we’re still in it, there would also be the small matter of the Champions’ League semi finals

So, no death clusters this time around, but equally shorter runs of easier games than we had last season.  The run-in is pretty good for us, as is the opening.  Depending on how the Champions’ League group fixtures play out (if we get there….) and then how the knock-out phase falls into play, there will be times when we have tough combinations of domestic and European fixtures.  An obvious one will be the Spurs-CL-Chelsea combo at the end of September.  But all in all, things don’t look too bad on that front.

I reckon the draw is pretty good for us, better than last season.  Now just the small matter of the summer’s transfer business……….

Written by 26May

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1930 – The First World Cup

June 21, 2014

The inaugural FIFA World Cup was staged in Uruguay in 1930 and was played from July 13th to July 30th 1930.

1930_World_Cup Final Ball

Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain and Uruguay all lodged applications to host the event. Uruguay was the eventual choice as they were the reigning Olympic Champions (1928), the country was celebrating the centenary of its first constitution and their bid included the building of a new stadium as the World Cup centerpiece. The Uruguayan authorities also offered to refund the expenses of all participants. The other nations withdrew their bids, and Uruguay was chosen to host the tournament at a FIFA congress at Barcelona in 1929. All matches were then played in the Uruguayan capital, Montevideo, the majority at the centerpiece stadium – Estadio Centenario.

1930 World Cup Stadium

The first World Cup was the only one without qualification. Every country affiliated with FIFA was invited to compete, and given a deadline of 28 February 1930 to accept. Plenty of interest was shown by nations in the Americas; Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru and the United States all entered. A total of seven South American teams participated, more than in any subsequent World Cup Finals. However, because of the long and costly trip across the Atlantic Ocean, and the length of absence required for players, very few European teams were inclined to take part. Some refused to countenance travel to South America in any circumstances, and no European entries were received before the February deadline. In an attempt to gain some European participation, the Uruguayan Football Association sent a letter of invitation to the Football Association, even though the Home Nations were not members of FIFA at the time. This was rejected by the FA Committee on 18 November 1929. Two months before the start of the tournament, no team from Europe had officially entered.

FIFA president Jules Rimet intervened, and eventually four European teams made the trip by sea: Belgium, France, Romania, and Yugoslavia. The Romanians, managed by Constantin Rădulescu and coached by their captain Rudolf Wetzer and Octav Luchide, entered the competition following the intervention of newly crowned King Carol II. He selected the squad personally, and negotiated with employers to ensure that the players would still have jobs upon their return. The French entered at the personal intervention of Rimet, but neither France’s star defender Manuel Anatol nor the team’s regular coach Gaston Barreau could be persuaded to make the trip. The Belgians participated at the instigation of FIFA vice-president Rodolphe Seeldrayers.

The Romanians boarded the SS Conte Verde at Genoa for the 15 day voyage, the French were picked up at Villefranche-sur-Mer on 21 June 1930 and the Belgians embarked at Barcelona. The Conte Verde carried Rimet, the trophy and the three designated European referees: the Belgians Jean Langenus and Henri Christophe, along with Thomas Balway, a Parisian who may have been English. The Brazilian team were picked up when the boat docked in Rio de Janeiro on 29 June before arriving in Uruguay on 4 July. Yugoslavia travelled via the mail steamship Florida from Marseille.

1930-FIFA-World-Cup-Captains shake hands

All matches took place in Montevideo. Three stadiums were used: Estadio Centenario, Estadio Pocitos, and Estadio Parque Central. The Estadio Centenario was built both for the tournament and as a celebration of the centenary of Uruguayan independence. Designed by Juan Scasso, it was the primary stadium for the tournament, referred to by Rimet as a “temple of football”. With a capacity of 90,000, it was the largest football stadium outside the British Isles. The stadium hosted 10 of the 18 matches, including both semi-finals and the final. However, a rushed construction schedule and delays caused by the rainy season meant the Centenario was not ready for use until five days into the tournament. Early matches were played at smaller stadiums usually used by Montevideo football clubs Nacional and Peñarol, the 20,000 capacity Parque Central and the Pocitos.

A golden trophy known as “The Goddess of Victory” was commissioned from French sculptor Abel Lafleur.

1930 worldcup trophy

Eventually thirteen teams (seven from South America, four from Europe, and two from North America) entered the tournament. Few European teams chose to participate because of the difficulty of travelling to South America. The teams were divided into four groups, with the winner of each group progressing to the semi-finals. The first two World Cup matches took place simultaneously, and were won by France and the United States, who defeated Mexico 4–1 and Belgium 3–0, respectively. Lucien Laurent of France scored the first goal in World Cup history, while American goalkeeper Jimmy Douglas posted the first official “clean sheet” in the tournament.

Action in 1930 World Cup Final

Argentina, Uruguay, United States and Yugoslavia each won their respective groups to qualify for the semi-finals. In the final, hosts and pre-tournament favourites Uruguay defeated Argentina 4–2 in front of a crowd of 93,000 people, and became the first nation to win the World Cup.

world-champion-1930-uruguay-with-the-famous-t-model-ball-1366282901

The 1930 FIFA World Cup is located in Uruguay

GunnerN5

 

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W-enger W-atch

June 19, 2014

Can be pronounced V-enger V-otch, I’m easy on that one.

Tell you what though, our Man in Brazil is having one or two re-thinks. Only last night he texted me this:

cesc v bsr

Ooo la la mon meilleur ami Didite. J’ai vu le match entre les Smokey Dopey Dutchies et Les Espagnols, et zoot alors, ils ont jouer le W-Formation de mon grand pere Herbie Chapman. Peut etre, on va jouer les trois a derriere le saison prochain a Arsenal. Juste pour une blague.

Mon Dieu Didite, qu’est ce, les Espagnols sont fini. Merci Dennis. Maintenant on peut jouer le mix entre le vitesse et pouvoir du style anglais avec juste un tout petit peu du tiki tiki taki. Un peu comme les mangeur des saucisse?

spain go out

Aussi, Didite, tous les equipes jouent avec un sole grand ‘un en haut., mais ils ont tous complete merde. Regarde Fred. Pas exactement “heureux jours” n’est pas.

fred

J’ai entendu qu’il y a beaucoup de chit chat en Angleterre au sujet de Mario Balotelli. Je vous ai dire  c’est mon dernier contract a Arsenal, et, comment on dit on Anglais “I’ll be buggered if I’m not going out with a banging”. Est-ce que mon anglais est correct?

Balotelli

J’aime beaucoup son style de chevaux Mohawk de Mario. C’est surement plus Le Rouge Freddie que Dingdong Frimpong, donc tout va bien.

Dites moi quelque chose Didite, vous etes les grands ballons du chien sur les ticytactics, ou est ce que je vais jouer cet Mario? J’ai vu comment SAF a prit l’autre lunatique Eric Cantona est le transforme a joue juste derriere d’un strikere, mais je vais jouer le Mesut dans la poche, donc je crois que il cera impossible de jouer Mario et Ollie au meme temps.

Ok, a bientot mon ami, je dois frapper la rue.

xxx A

ps For those of you who don’t speak high level eloquent French, Arsene is basically texting his observations, and thoughts on what he may be bringing back to The Arsenal. You seen anything relevant?

écrit par MickyDidIt89

 

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Arsenal to appoint a new captain

June 18, 2014

Arsène Wenger is reported to be ready to appoint a new club captain. With the departure of the present incumbent, Thomas Vermaelen, looking ever more certain the position needs to be filled. Thomas has apparently agreed terms with Man U, although so far no negotiations over a fee have taken place.

What should we be looking for in a captain? Well first off he must be an established and regular starter. He needs to command the respect of the players as well as the fans and he must have sufficient standing within the game to be able to communicate calmly with the on-pitch officials.

The two most influential captains that Arsenal have had in their long history have been Tony Adams and Patrick Vierra and so in my personal opinion any candidate would ideally be a centre-back or defensive mid-fielder and thus be in a position to see the whole game.

Our current vice captain, Mikel Arteta is an obvious candidate but as the appointment must be a long term one he perhaps is ruled out.

So I guess what I am saying is that it comes down to just two possibilities, Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker. Koscielny is a fine player and would make an equally fine captain but overall I’d go for Mertesacker for his general calmness and the stability that he has brought to the team.

I know that a good number of people will be calling for Jack Wilshire to be given the job but as yet he can’t command a regular starting position, although in time I expect him to become our captain and to hold the post for many seasons to come.

Written by Norfolk Gooner

 

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Outstanding Özil Overwhelms Overated Old Portugal

June 17, 2014

New Arsenal marmite man Mesut Özil managed last night in 60 minutes to show why he has the potential to be a superstar or Germany’s own Wayne Rooney. Even though he is their best player he seems to have to walk on water to avoid boos from his own supporters.

He was given a free role on the right where his main focus was being a playmaker and not having to worry about defending. We all know that defending is part of the game but he seemed to relish the freedom he was allowed and was able to weave his magic and cause problems. His diagonal runs were mouthwatering and constantly troubled the Portugal defence.

Obviously playing against 10 men can create more space but that’s not always the case. A more compact defence is often difficult to penetrate but with a world class striker in Thomas Müller and other creative players to link up with Germany, were ruthless.

At sixty minutes Özil was subbed and wore his usual ‘spoilt brat, I want to play on’ expression and there should be no doubting that he’s happy to play for Germany so I think Arsenal supporters should stop seeing this as a sign that he’s not happy playing for us.

As usual social media went into melt down as Arsenal supporters moaning about Mesut’s lack of finishing clashed with others who defended his skills.

Despite Özil’s almost faultless performance it’s clear that Germany are also aware of his penalty taking frailties and it was good to see that he is excused that role.

Could Arsenal’s record signing become a legend and will Arsenal supporters be patient enough to allow him to fulfill his potential?

Written by peachesgooner 

 

 

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England Prove Wenger Right

June 16, 2014

Ok maybe a strange headline in the aftermath of a disappointing result for England at the hands of Italy.

But it was the manner of that defeat that proved yet again why England struggle on the world stage and whilst the 100mph Premier League may all be about guts and courage the International and European game far more often favours the technically better sides who are prepared to keep the ball and wait for openings.

Pirlo outclassed his counterpart Gerard in every department, Gerard may well be an “all action” midfielder but too often he is found out at this level. He does not have the patience or accuracy of passing to compete at this level in the deeper midfield role.

On top of that as soon as an England midfielder got the ball he looked up to see England backsides running away from him, so was left to attempt forward passes through the eye of the needle, rather than the more reliable approach of movement in multiple directions opening defences up by pulling them this way and that before launching the attack in earnest.

So why does this prove Wenger right? Well the sun might shine on a dogs arse one day (as it did for Sturridge’s goal ) but more often than not in Champions League football pace, power and strength is not enough, you need guile, and composure, and that is what Arsene is building, and he is now doing it with English and Welsh talent that are capable of playing that way. Until England managers learn that there is more to football than energy and commitment we will continue to fall short.

He has a squad to play a midfield of Jack, Barkley, Lalana, Rooney and Sterling, surely that would be better than the one that started on Saturday night?

Written by Gooner in Exile

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