Undefeated run to continue? …. Liverpool Preview.

August 20, 2011

What will be today’s most prevalent discussion in the bars before the game today? Lack of signings and our injury problems. The signings may well arrive but once again we go into an early season game with a long injury list and a threadbare squad. I cannot recall us starting a season with a fully fit squad in many years – what is the point of pre-season training and friendlies if we are to lose players with such startling regularity?

We start our home PL campaign against a confident and resurrected Liverpool. A team which has had a fortune spent on it since the arrival of “King Kenny”. Look at their bench and compare it to ours today – which team looks prepared to compete for the title? This depresses me and many of our fans. It is cause for discontent. And yet I believe that even with our depleted first 11 we will give Liverpool a shock today.

Wenger has insisted upon playing the same system from youth level to the first team which has resulted in new players slotting into the first team with confidence. They have already spent much of their careers playing Wengerball, hence Frimpong’s impressive cameo on Tuesday evening. With Song paying for his stupidity young Frimpong is very likely to start today.

Back to the injuries – Rosicky, Gibbs, Traore (perhaps), Diaby, Wilshere, Djourou – all unlikely to play today.

Will Nasri play? He is in the squad (though we have named 19, so by now he could be out!). He must be fit having played for  France not so long ago. If he plays, how will the fans react? His departure though likely is not in any way certain. He could sign his contract and become an Arsenal great. Remember Rooney last season; one week about to sign for City, the next signs a long term contract at OT. It is unlikely that the Nasri situation will end with the same result – we will definitely not give Nasri €220k a week and nor should we. I would play him – we are paying his wages, so let him bloody earn them.

Liverpool are going to be a force this year. They have improved all over the pitch and what they have managed for the first time in many years is to create a team which does not rely on Gerrard. That they can have Stevie G injured and still have such a good player as Meireies on the bench bodes well for them. Thinking of MF’s, where is Joe Cole? And Aquilani?  The new signings have been expensive but good quality: Adams, Enrique, Carroll, Suarez, Henderson and Downing are all fine players, especially Suarez who looks “super quality.” This is a rejuvenated Liverpool.

An interesting afternoon looms for the defence. The bulk of Carroll and the darting runs of Suarez will test TV and Kos. The lack of an adequate left back will be a problem and I hope  AW can find a decent solution. Midfield is an area in which we will be seriously depleted and one can imagine Dalgleish expecting his team to completely dominate. Who would you play? This is my guess ……

Subs: Who knows!

My choice of Squillaci is because I do not believe it is wise to blood the very inexperienced Jenkinson out of his natural position. Squillaci is not the best but he remains an Arsenal player and is a defender! Perhaps Lansbury, Frimpong or Rasp could play LB and assist in us not being forced to play the Italian – only AW will know.

I have been googling for inventors born in Liverpool and all I can find is one Kenneth Dodd who invented something called the “tickling stick” sometime in the 1960’s.

It would be great to start with a win today and Arsenal are always best when facing adversity. Let’s hope this patched together team can pull off a surprise.

Key player? Arshavin. He likes scoring against the Scouse.

COYRRG

Written by Big Raddy

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Posted by Erik the Red

Boring, boring Arsenal?

August 19, 2011

Written by TotalArsenal.

How tough has this summer been for us Gooners? It is not over yet. I cannot help it, but the transfer window activities during this summer remind me of Ravel’s Bolero. Unfortunately, this is not a reference to Bo Derek’s question – in the film ‘10’: ‘Did you ever do it to Ravel’s Bolero?’, and the subsequent erotic endeavours. No, this association is of a far less pleasant nature; every time we think we reached the crescendo during this transfer window, there is another turn of events – and our patience is being tested even more and our blood pressure is raised even higher. At this stage, we do not know how it will end, and yet the music keeps getting louder and louder.

The fat lady has sung re the departures of our midfielders Cesc and Nasri, but some very good/promising players have been signed as well. The fact is nobody knows exactly what is going on, and what’s more, what will happen next between now and the end of the transfer window – does Arsene?

On top of all the transfer actions, we have an incredibly demanding number of August fixtures: Newcastleaway (0-0), Udinese at home (1-0), Liverpoolat home, Udinese away, and the easiest one of all, Mancs away. You could not make it up! Boring, Boring Arsenal, hey?!

So many fellow Gooners have reached conclusions about Arsenal’s faith this season already. For them the Bolero has stopped, and the outlook is bleak. For me, and luckily for quite a few other Gooners, the crescendo is yet to come: and I am hoping for a hell of a climax. I am as frustrated at the process of our selling and buying of players as anybody else. But, you only have to look at AA’s list above of players ‘in’, ‘out’ or gone ‘on loan’, to realise that the BoD and Arsene have initiated a major, and very complex – from a negotiations’ point of view – change process.

I am amazed how little trust there has been in the BoD’s and Wenger’s plans and capability to achieve the best possible for our club this summer, although I do agree with comments made in the past – by the likes of Red Arse especially – that Arsenal’s PR activities towards the fans have been poor. The multi-facetted negotiations, involving high risks/many millions of pounds, and the complex strategies that are required with such a large programme of change, are the likely cause for the lack of communications regarding the BoD’s exact plan of action. However, Ivan Gazidis promised major transfer activities a few weeks ago, and I will not judge him and the Board until the TW has closed.

There has been so much negativity around that even the most weathered and resistant AA’ers have been affected by it. I am also not above this negativity, but am not yet willing to accept any defeatists’ views until the TW is firmly shut. Only then are we in position to analyse, and criticise or praise, what the BoD set out to do and achieved this summer; only then can we start to make projections of what will happen this season.

For me, it is absolutely inconceivable that we would let Fabregas and Nasri go, without reinvesting in a quality, ready-to-go, attacking central midfielder. I would also be very surprised if we were not to buy a fourth CB, so we can pick our two CB’s for every game from Koz, Vermaelen, Djourou and the new signing. This is the minimum I would expect us to buy before the end of the TW, and for me, it would be a worthy crescendo to this mad summer; anything on top of that – like a top-striker – would be even better. I have listened to Gazidis, and I have listened to Wenger and I believe they are capable and trustworthy people, who will deliver on their promises.

I am hoping, and yes EXPECTING, that this is the way it will go. My brain tells me this is what will happen, but my heart is not so sure. There is still a nasty and lingering doubt that it might not happen, or even worse: that Arsene is the last one to leave our club before the TW shuts. The critics might finally get Wenger’s scalp, and Arsenal have entered the dark ages again.

 

Let’s hope we get a 10 out of 10 ending to this most unusual and unpleasant transfer window a Gooner has ever had to witness.

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Posted by WiganGooner

You’ve only come to see Eboue.

August 18, 2011

Who has been my least favoured player over the last 3 seasons? Emmanuel Eboue. Who has been my favourite Gooner of the last 3 seasons? Emmanuel Eboue. And herein lies the conundrum. How could such a likeable man become so annoying when he got on the pitch?

We have had many discussions over the months about the efficacy of Emmanuel; what he brings or doesn’t bring to the team, but no-one has ever questioned his commitment to the cause. He swallowed the whole AFC cake, history, tradition, fandom and obsession. He become the totem at the club when not playing, greeted the players when they left the pitch, was the first to celebrate a goal, he has been a Gooner personified. BUT he was not paid to be a Gooner, he was paid a huge amount of money to be an effective footballer and it is this context that he let us down.

This is the man who invented the starfish – lying on the ground as though hit by a piece of 4 by 2. Staring at the ref, beseeching him to take action against the miscreant who was close enough to Eboue to allow him to dive. simulate. I hated his theatrics. I hated his lack of honesty – it was not and is not the Arsenal way. I also found his lack of end product immensely frustrating – for a man who can beat a player both with pace and tremendous skill, he should have had more assists. He has a wonderful engine, can get from box to box in seconds , can drift past opposition defenders with ease but to what effect? He never learned to cross accurately, find a man in the box, nor shoot on target. To be fair, he did become more disciplined in his last season and perhaps Galatasary have signed a bargain.

I was ashamed to be a Gooner when he got booed off the pitch having been brought on in a position he had never played in previously, no Arsenal player should be humiliated in such a manner that AW is forced to replace him. It was a night of shame for all true Arsenal fans. How did Eboue react? He manned up, put in more effort, more training, made himself popular again. Grounds all over the country resounded to “You’ve only come to see Eboue”, such was his resurrection as a player.

It was typical of EE’s luck that he left the club in the same week as someone else who has been hogging the limelight. Few words have been devoted to his 6 years of loyal service, it is a shame because he deserves so much more. This is not a Nasri whose love for the club can be measured in £’s, it is a man who sweated blood for a club he loves.

Eboue’s AFC career was blighted by injury and it was his ankle rather than his lack of talent that forced AW to sign Sagna as our first choice right back. He played 132 games for us and always gave his all, never hid despite the boo-boys, always played with a smile.

I wish him well at his new club, they have signed a Man, not a spoilt brat but some-one who knows how to overcome adversity with a wide, toothy grin.  Emmanuel Eboue is a clown but he is also a real Arsenal man, farewell and thank you.

Written by Big Raddy

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Posted by Erik the Red

Forza Arsenal

August 16, 2011

Which are the best games of the season? Well, to me they have always been the Autumn  midweek night games. The games start in sunshine and finish under floodlights, it is early season so the fans are excited, the team has gone through pre-season and are all fit and raring to go.  These are nights that live long in the memory.

Yet tonight, despite this being Arsenal’s opening home match, there are ripples, no waves, of discontent and difficulty. The fans are unhappy, the team is torn apart by injury and doubt,  grey clouds are expected over the Emirates. It is in this context that Udinese arrive at THOF to try and knock us out of the Champions League.

Much has been written about the glass half empty/half full performance at St. James. I prefer to concentrate upon the positives – a solid defensive performance and a midfield that controlled the game. We looked under-par in the offensive aspect of the game but surely with the quality we have that will come.

Udinese:. I know little about them but Italian teams are always good, well trained, difficult to break down and almost always a threat. Udinese will be no different despite losing their 3 best players this summer. Sanchez, Inler and Zapata all moved on which will make Udinese a different proposition to the team that finished 4 th in Italy. Sanchez, in particular, will be missed; voted best player in Italy last season he was sold to Barca for over €30m. Yes, we know that pain!

Udinese have only played English opposition once  – they beat Spurs 2-0 in 2009  🙂  This is their first CL campaign having had the best season in their recent history. In Di Natale they have  last season’s top scorer in Italy (29 goals – 59%  of Udinese’s goal tally!), though the loss of Sanchez and Inler will surely affect his supply line.

You know the tale of woe emanating from the Emirates. Cesc gone, Nasri and RvP suspended etc etc.  Despite this, we remain a top European act and have enough strength in depth to win the tie tonight. Much will depend on the efficiency of the attack and for this reason it is a big night for the front 3. Without any real creativity in midfield they will have to start creating their own opportunities, in particular I would to see Chamakh return to the player we saw at the beginning of his AFC career.

My team: (assuming a fit Rosicky)

 

 

subs: 7 chaps.

I really hope AW has enough faith to go at Udinese from the start and play a proper 4-3-3 rather than rely on a deep-lying Arshavin, but he has almost always chosen a cautious approach to the first legs of games so I wouldn’t be shocked to see AA start in place of Theo.

We have yet to lose or even draw a CL qualifying game, having won all 8 played. Tonight should see us continue this excellent run.

Udine is a small town (175,000) near Venice in the Fruili region, famous for it’s wonderful wines. Bruno Sacco was born in Udine; the head designer of  Mercedes Automobiles for over 30 years. He was voted one of the 25 most influential car designers of the 20th century and as an ex-Merc man (an old 500 SL) I can testify to his achievements.

COYRRG

written by BR

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Posted by Erik the Red

Cesc Would Have Stayed If…

August 16, 2011

So, in a piece of shocking news akin to “sun rises in east” or “John Terry proven to be total twunt”, it was finally confirmed that Cesc Fabregas is leaving us to join his DNA soulmates in Barcelona.

I could echo Shakespeare and say I come here to praise Cesc, not to bury him. But there has been no shortage of teary-eyed eulogies around the Arsenal blogosphere bidding farewell to our little Spaniard.

And there have also been many thoughtful (and some less thoughtful) analyses of what his likely departure will mean for the team, for our formation and for our prospects this year. Again, I’ll leave that to others.

What’s exercising my grey cells this morning is this:

Did it have to be this way?

If things had been done differently, might we now be looking forward to the sight of Cesc leading out the troops for a fresh Premier League and Champions League campaign?

Many reasons have been suggested for Cesc’s determination to leave Arsenal, including several that reflect badly on our club and its manager. The main theories seem to be as follows:

Cesc would have stayed if…

…the club had showed some real ambition in recent years by signing other big name stars to play alongside him.

…we had finished last season more competitively, perhaps coming second in the league and not falling down like a pair of Sammy Nelson’s shorts.

…the club had acted early and decisively in the transfer window this summer, thereby demonstrating to Cesc that we were going to put right the flaws that led to last season’s abysmal collapse.

…the club had at least gone out and signed a decent defender early in the transfer window. A solid, English giant of some kind. Ryan Shawcross anyone?

…we had re-signed Alex Hleb. It is well known that he of the mazy dribble to nowhere was Cesc’s best friend at the club after Senderos left. Bringing him back might have persuaded the Captain to stay one more year.

…the fans had not played their part in making the end of last season so ill-tempered. Cesc is one of the best players in the world – yet on a regular basis in March, April and May he found himself walking off the pitch to a chorus of boos. Even if they weren’t directed at him personally, how could he, as captain, not take them personally?

…we had won the Carling Cup. Regardless of what then happened in the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League, we would have claimed our first silverware under Cesc’s captaincy and provided enough optimism to think that others would follow.

…we had won the league at least once in the last three years (or the Champions League).

…Barcelona had not spent the best part of two years deliberately unsettling him at every turn, eventually making his continued presence in North London untenable.

…Arsene Wenger had tried harder to keep him.

The funny thing is, I don’t think any of those theories are completely right. And most are dead wrong.

If we had invested huge sums of money two or three years ago into players that our business model could not sustain at that time, we might well have been more successful in winning trophies.

All that would have done is hasten Cesc’s departure. I believe that Cesc always intended to return to Barcelona one day – but that he really, really wanted to achieve success at Arsenal first. Had he won the league, say, two years ago, he would probably have left last summer.

So spending more money, buying more superstars, abandoning our careful advance towards financial sustainability would only have had the effect of speeding up the ‘Adios’ moment and might well have put us in bad financial straits. Admittedly, we might be feeling better about his departure with a few trophies gleaming in the cabinet, but he would still be gone.

There may be more of a case to make that a stronger finish to last season would have helped persuade Cesc to stay. If we had fought Man Utd all the way to the wire and forced them to win the league rather than us handing it to them on a plate with stupid defeats to inferior sides, maybe he would have felt that one more year would be enough to land the big prizes with Arsenal before heading South. Unfortunately I think that was the point he arrived at the previous summer, in 2010. That was when he decided to give it one last shot at winning things in our red and white. Regardless of how we finished the last campaign, that bird had flown.

Likewise, early summer signings this year would have made no difference.

Short of signing Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Alves, Puyol, Valdes, Pedro, Villa, Pique, Busquets and Mascherano, firing Arsene Wenger and hiring Pep Guardiola, there was no way we were keeping Cesc.

Our likelihood of retaining him has not been helped by the fact that Barcelona are currently going through a purple patch and are generally regarded as one of the best teams ever, anywhere. Their ethics as a club may be in the gutter, but their football is gazing up at the stars.

So what of the other “what ifs”?

If the mood round The Emirates last season had been better, it might have made Cesc more regretful about leaving than he probably is, but I can’t see it as a decisive factor. Nor the absence of his good friends like Hleb and Senderos.

As for Arsene trying harder to keep him… really? What more could he have done? He made him captain, cherished, nurtured and valued him and undoubtedly was key to him staying for the 2010/2011 season. He tied him up on a long term contract which still has four years to run, so he can’t be accused of letting him slip through our fingers for want of proper planning.

So that only leaves the impact of Barcelona and their concerted campaign to unsettle Cesc.

That’s the one factor that, had it not been there, might well have made a difference.

The massive peer pressure exerted on him at every international get-together by Barca’s Spanish players – and repeatedly in the media in between times – must have taken a toll.

Imagine if Barcelona had not been actively pursuing him for the last two years. He might well still fancy returning to his roots (and Catalan roots grow deep and strong) but the sheer pressure and expectation to do so would not have been there and he might have felt he could stay at Arsenal for longer.

But Barca did exert their pressure in blatant contravention of all the tapping up rules, and there’s nothing we or anyone can do about it.

So, to sum up, there is NO right way of completing the sentence “Cesc would have stayed if…”

And now it’s time to move on, with sadness for the closing of one chapter, but hope and optimism for the opening of another.

RockyLives

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Posted by RockyLives

Will Arsenal Win The League? No Reffin’ Chance

August 15, 2011

There appears to be something of a debate about what portents the Newcastle game holds for the season ahead.

Those choosing to see the positives were encouraged by a defence so impregnable that not even John Terry’s mighty and unruly member could hope to penetrate it.

Others, seeing the negatives, despaired of an attack so bereft of creativity that if it were a painting it wouldn’t even get a place on the wall in Tony Hart’s Vision On, as the camera pans quickly past the offerings in this week’s “crap our viewers sent us” section.

What I saw was something to depress both those who wear rose-tinted spectacles and those who prefer the shite-tinted variety.

It was yet another example of Arsenal losing points because of the subconscious refereeing conspiracy against us.

The Barton-Gervinho spat has been discussed ad nauseam.

Yes, Gerv had to go for raising his hand, but Barton should have been red carded for throttling our new signing – and Arsenal should have had a penalty for Barton’s assault.

Apparently Barton reads a lot of philosophy. Well, he’s clearly a complete Kant. And a total Hippocrates, who’s dragging our game into the Goethe.

But what the furore has obscured is the fact that Gervinho was quite obviously tripped in the box in the first place for what should have been a bang-on penalty before the heir to Plato even had a chance to get his fingers round his throat.

And before that?

How about Taylor’s flying elbow into Sagna’s head very early in the first half? Taylor led with the elbow, made no attempt to get the ball and could have inflicted serious damage on our right back. It was also a straight red card assault, but none of the four officials on duty noticed it.

Admittedly, Song’s stamp on Barton was also missed by those highly trained officiators, who clearly need to go to SpecSavers.

In the second half, Sagna, again, was the victim of a throttling by either Obertin or Guttierez (sorry, can’t remember which one) as both players were running for a ball deep in Arsenal’s half. The same sort of throttling that earned Abou Diaby a red at Newcastle last season.

Barton’s dives all resulted in free kicks for the home side; Arsenal players had to be virtually rugby tackled before referee Walton would put the whistle to his lips.

Frankly we should no longer be surprised.

They say that referees’ decisions even themselves out over the course of a season. Well, from an Arsenal perspective, for several years now our seasons have been about as even as the Himalayas.

I have written before about how I think that referees have a subconscious agenda against Arsenal. Essentially, they see us as a foreign team playing in an English league and this leads to preconceptions that (a) our Johnnie foreigners all cheat and (b) they don’t like it up ‘em.

So, on his Premiership debut, our new African attacker, recently signed from the French league, gets tripped in the box and an inept official decides it must have been a dive. He’s not sure, so he doesn’t stop to book him for simulation in case the TV cameras prove him to be incompetent, but he doesn’t give the penalty either.

Likewise with the Barton-Gervinho scuffle. Barton can assault our player – that’s just a red-blooded Englishman showing passion. Just a yellow card for “getting a bit carried away”. Gervinho, of course, gets a red for what must have been a meaty right hook, right? That tough Barton fellow wouldn’t fall to the ground like that unless he had been seriously hurt would he?

I estimate that last season refereeing mistakes – whether from incompetence or from subconscious bias –cost us at least 12 points. The worst example all year was in Saturday’s corresponding fixture, when Phil Dowd pulled on a black-and-white striped shirt and started playing for the Geordies.

His appalling performance that day left us utterly demoralised and I have little doubt that it was that result, rather than the Carling Cup final, that set the tone for our late-season collapse. If Dowd had made just one less mistake we would have still won 4-3 and our title charge may well have stayed on track.

I don’t expect this season to be any different. As Saturday showed, we will continue to get the crappy end of the stick – the one that’s covered in essence of Barton.

It means we probably have to be effectively 10 points better than Man Utd to have a chance of pipping them to the title by just a point.

I’m not sure what we can do about it.

Just be philosophical I suppose…

RockyLives

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Posted by RockyLives

Newcastle v Arsenal – Match report

August 14, 2011

Arsenal came to Toon to play and play they did.

The first half was predictably all Arsenal, controlled possession and lots of through balls for Gervinho and Arshavin to chase. Gervinho did extremely well on his Premier League debut and there is much more to come from the talented Ivorian. Ramsey busied himself about in the middle of the park and did very well, the midfield trio of Ramsey, Song and Rosicky functioned well and snuffed out any attacking threat from Barton, Tiote and Cabaye whilst piling more pressure on Newcastle.

Unfortunately Robin Van Persie was isolated up front and rarely received the ball in a goal-scoring position. Gervinho worked tirelessly trying to create opportunities but none came to fruition. As the first half came to a close with the score at 0:0 it was deja-vu, the problem with the 4-3-3 is this, if they don’t have to come at you and can afford to keep at least 5 players at the back then it just doesn’t work, because the target man is man-marked leaving a minimum of 4 players to handle the runners.

Jonas Guttierez didn’t shower himself in glory, I saw him on two occasions wave an imaginary card at the ref to get players booked. I thought that was a yellow card offence in itself?

We weren’t clever enough at times and showed a lack of sharpness and guile, Ramsey made some excellent runs which were missed for other options. Our defence coped well with the physical presence of Demba Ba and Ameobi and finished the first half with plenty of credit. Sczcesny had a very mature, consistent performance with some excellent catching and punching whilst under pressure. I thought he particularly dealt with high balls well which always makes the defence feel more relaxed and his ball distribution is much improved.

Out we came for the second half, at this point it all still felt good. I felt the team blend was good and if we got a goal (with the likely source being Gervinho/RvP combo) then I thought we were capable of scoring a few. Rosicky again started pulling the strings and we carried on as if the half time break never happened. Again plenty of pressure and a RvP free-kick that threatened the goal but just skimmed the top of the net with Krul floundering.

Arshavin came off on 60 with Theo coming on to try and stretch the game. Theo looked a bit leggy, off the pace and laboured. I would have saved him for later in the game. A bit of controversy as Song stamped on Barton, which infuriated the Newcastle player as it was missed by all the officials. Currently I wouldn’t be upset if half of the Arsenal faithful marched all over his stupid face, but it was not to be.

Barton, not to be ignored however managed to get into the limelight, never one to shirk his responsibility as a role-model and professional he decided to get involved when Gervinho, who went down in the penalty area after slight contact with Tiote. Barton charged across the pitch, grabbed Gervinho by his shirt and hauled him to his feet. Far be it from me to defend Gervinho, but if someone did that to me I’d headbutt them. Barton looked incensed that Gervinho went down and continued to hold him. A ruck of players ensued with players entering the fray to seperate the players and Gervinho foolishly tapped (only a tap, not a slap or punch) Barton on the head and he went down like he’d been hit by a rock. So, don’t mess with Gervinho, he’s really hard as nails.

Gervinho got sent off, Barton got a yellow. Worst decision ever. I agree Gerv had to go, for the tap as it does count as raised hands, but surely Barton’s handling of the player, his aggressive attitude deserved a red also? – Referee Peter Walton take note: Have a look at the replay son, if you think it’s OK to manhandle a player up from the floor by the shirt then you need to be refereeing somewhere else.

Newcastle tried to press home the man advantage, but the defence held firm with some excellent work from Koscielny and Vermaelen. Gibbo and Sagna both did extremely well also.

We played a containing game after the sending off, looking to break with the pace of Theo and Gibbo but Theo really looked slow today. An odd thing to say and I know he’s coming back from injury but he looked really slow. Frimpong came on for Rosicky in the 84th minute and shored up the midfield further and pushed Gibbo to left midfield. We didn’t really carve any more opportunities in the match and it headed into injury time. Djourou was brought on for Ramsey and literally his first touch robbed a Newcastle player and he bombed forward, charging across the halfway line, it was 3v1 for Arsenal as Gibb0 and Theo ran either side of the beleagured Newcastle defender, Djourou stumbled and half stabbed the ball wide for Theo but he had to check his run and it allowed Newcastle to recover. A short burst of pace failed to beat his man and the opportunity was lost.

There was just enough time for RvP to have a snap-shot at goal which went well wide.

All in all it felt like the end of last season. The Arsenal fans were baying “Spend some F#*#@n Money” and it finished goalless.

There are plenty of positives to take from this match;

1) We defended extremely well at both corners and set pieces. The zonal marking system looked very effective.

2) Our midfield trio looked very good, I can’t fault their performance and I didn’t once think that I wished we had Cesc in there, I thought in particular Song did a great job covering the defence, whilst Rosicky kept pulling strings. Sometimes we needed a bit more guile, but it is still the first game of the season and there is a lot more to come from our midfield if this performance is something to go by.

3) Gervinho is going to be awesome. I hope his red card is turned into a yellow, because I feel it is very harsh considering the provocation and the agressive manner in which Barton grabbed him. I would have done far worse in Gervinho’s shoes and Barton would still be looking for his front teeth now.

4) Sczcesny looked every bit our number 1 keeper. He was very focussed, confident and tidy today.

There is much to look forward to with Udinese on the 16th (tuesday).

Come on you Gooners!!
WG

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Posted by WiganGooner

Act One Scene One

August 13, 2011

Let us start with the simple stuff.  We are playing Newcastle . Everything else has complications. Which team will we play? What are the tactics? What is happening with the squad?   Will the shenanigans with Cesc and Samir affect the team? How will Newcastle perform with their new players and the loss of major stars? Will last season’s lucky socks bring a better end of season result?

I cannot speak for all but I am really excited by this season. The potential loss of our best player (and Samir)  will not mean the loss of our football ethic and ability to win trophies. We are about to witness the development of the best English creative talent since Gazza (let’s hope JW has a longer career); TV has the potential to become a real world class player –  we missed his drive and resolution throughout last season, should he form a partnership with either  JD or Kos, we have defensive solidity. The loss of Clichy (who I liked very much) allows the fleet footed Gibbs and Traore to shine – they are the future. One of last season’s highlights was the Pole in Goal – still a baby and yet comfortable, relaxed and confident, an AFC legend in the making. What with the youth and skill of Ramsey, Song, Theo, allied to the experience and quality of Sagna, AA and RvP, what is there to be fearful about? And that is before we look at Chamakh who will surely improve in his second season and the dazzling talents of Gervinho.

It would be easy to see Newcastle away as the beginning of the end of our previous season’s trophy campaign.  I prefer to look at that amazing first half when we blew away a decent Newcastle side. This is the Arsenal I want to see – incisive, intelligent, impish,  involved and inspiring. Turn off the DVD at 4-0 and you will be a happy man; stay watching and you will see one of the worst refereeing performances in the history of the Premiership. Let us hope for better from  the referee today.

The team? Your guess is as good as anyone’s. Our midfield is decimated and yet we still have the opportunity to play with 4 full Internationals and three national captain’s (Rosicky , Ramsey and AA).   I haven’t seen any of the friendlies and have no idea about the form of our players but my gut feeling (based upon too many years as an amateur pundit) is the following:-

though we may be better going at a dodgy Newcastle defence and playing Theo in place of Rosicky. There has been talk of Lansbury getting a game – I would be loathe to start him at  St James’ which can be a testing ground for a young man, I would prefer the experience of Rosicky (though much depends upon the fitness of Ramsey).

A topic of discussion on yesterday’s AA blog was whether we play 4-3-3 or 4-4-2 or another combination. My take is that we  have such fluidity  there is no fixed formation, particularly when we play with overlapping full backs and centre backs who like to go forward!

And how about the opposition? Fervent, expectant fans will be expecting a win against an Arsenal team in “disarray”.. The Barcodes are a passionate club and their players will be fired up. The loss of Nolan could be telling as will be the lack of an adequate replacement for Carroll. Mad Joey Barton has yet to find a club yet it would be no surprise to see him start – Pardew will be  short priced at the bookies to be first manager sacked this season, and for that reason he may well decide to forego creative football for the malice and aggression we saw last season.

We usually start the season well and perform our best when facing difficulties. No Wilshere is disappointing but Arsene still has enough strength in depth to cope, especially as we have our first choice defence available (if this IS our first choice defence!).  Can we win? Of course.

Newcastle was home to  Reginald Mitchell (1895-1937). Who, you may well ask? Mr. Mitchell was an aeronatical engineering genius who designed and created the WW2 fighter plane, the Spitfire, without which Arsenal could currently be playing in the Bundesliga!

COYRRG

Big Raddy

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Posted by Erik the Red

Kieran Gibbs: the key to Arsenal winning the league.

August 11, 2011

I can’t get that Benfica game out of my head, have you ever known a pre-season friendly in which one team brings on their best players at the beginning of the second half? Well, that is what I reckon the Portuguese did on the weekend, demonstrated perfectly by the introduction of enormously talented Argentinean international Pablo Aimar. This is the equivalent of us fielding the side we did for the first forty five minutes then keeping the same side for the start of the second except replacing Rosicky with a fit and raring to go Fabregas.

Benfica may have been better in the second half but they were still good in the first, as I have said before, probably better than seventeen of the twenty teams in the EPL and yet we found a way to initially contain them before finding a way past their talented defence. This bodes well for the forthcoming game against Newcastle.

We could have and should have been better, Rosicky and Ramsey are all very good but neither of them offered Song any real support and when playing top class opposition which is what Benfica are then our Alex needs a bit more help than either of those two can offer. In a nut shell — we missed Wilshere. A midfield of Song, Wilshere and Ramsey would have been better balanced and as a consequence much more effective. Rosicky was picking up the ball deep in our half and doing his usual drop of the shoulder enabling him to go past his man but then all too often his pass would not find an Arsenal player, we would lose possession and find ourselves back under pressure again.

But all this is a side-show, our attack looked good the inter play between The Gerv, Arshavin and RvP was impressive again, however, I couldn’t help thinking that with the introduction of Fabregas this attack would be unstoppable. Cesc picks the ball up deep drops the shoulder, goes past his man but unlike Rosicky his next pass finds a red shirt more often than not. This is the difference between a ten million pound player and a sixty million pound player.

A few people have posed the question how should we deal with Cesc when it is so obvious that he wants to leave, the answer is, if he stays, just thank your lucky stars; he is the most talented player we have and he will set that attack on fire.

Anyway the second half against Benfica was the second half; they must have really wanted that little cup, presented to them at the end of the game, in view of the players they brought on whereas it was clear that Wenger was using it for what it was: a pre-season fitness builder.

I want to say a few words more about that game by focusing on Gibbs but putting it in the context of the end of last season.

I think Harry wrote recently that he felt it was the fact that we didn’t score enough goals after Christmas that let us down more than any thing else. I remember thinking he is right, I totally agree with that. Harry was met with a barrage of comments insisting that the collapse of the last nine games was down to the defence and very little to do with the lack of goals. I was taken aback for a while but I have thought about it some more and I am back agreeing with Harry: it was the lack of goals rather than the defence that caused the bulk of the problems.

Look at the last nine games of last season they include teams like West Brom, Blackburn, Villa all teams that we should have beaten and yet they all found a way of drawing or beating us by employing almost the same tactics every time: allow us to pressure and hit us on the break. We dominated those teams with seventy percent of the possession or more and yet we could not find a way to put them to the sword.

Enter our new white knight: Kieran Gibbs, this man is going to offer so much more than we had last season. As an attacking force he is head and shoulders better than Clichy, superbly demonstrated by his pass to RvP for the goal on the weekend and by the way did you notice where The Gerv was for that goal – right place, right time again (love it). Gibbs is going to enable us to punish those teams above a whole lot quicker this season, forcing them to come out which will negate their ability to hit us on the break. This I hope will lead to a calmer reaction from the defence. What about Gibbs the defender? Cross your fingers and hope that Vermaelen plays out there when some real defending is called for but humour aside there are very few games in which teams try to attack us – Barcelona, who are difficult for any side to face, but really after that, who?

I have read a couple of comments saying that we should take the money for Nasri while we can, reminding us that we only really got two good months out of him so grab the money now. How can I put this, Nasri is the most talented French midfielder of his generation he is going to be one of the best midfield players in the world, if you are irritated by the fact that he hasn’t signed quicker, ponder this. Do you think that things will be different when Wilshere only has one year left on his contract, do you think Wilshere’s agent won’t shop around, do you think City won’t come calling, will you say oh just sell him? I think not. Nasri should stay and will stay.

Which brings me to what will probably be the last time I will ever be able to write about the most talented player we have at the club: well certainly with the same reverence I save for players who don the glorious red and white. The loss of a sixty million pound player is going to have a serious impact (the club may value him at 40 but to me he is worth far more). Yes, I know we will survive but that doesn’t stop the pain of the imminent loss of what could be so different, so amazing with the attack that we have now assembled – In the words of Total Arsenal: Barça might want you but Arsenal need and love you.

Written by London

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Posted by LB

Leave the dog alone

August 10, 2011

Written by Camberwell Gooner

The final weekend before the Premier League kicks off is over, and all that separates us from competitive football is five long days of work (or daytime TV, depending on your current situation). We’re coming to the end of the Worst Pre-Season Ever (copyright), our squad is paper-thin with no real sign of reinforcements, and Rooney is not just a big-mouthed, balding granny shagger, he also believes that coming back from 2-0 down represents a “footballing lesson”.

Last season, Arsenal’s pitiful descent into the abyss of fourth place when second could have very realistically been achieved, is better than well documented. It’s been discussed, documented, dissected, deconstructed, denounced and, finally, flagellated to within an inch of its life and left to rot on the slagheap round the back of the old coal mine. Meanwhile, Arsenal are the naughty dog slinking back into the house, tail between its legs, after laying a steaming turd (last season’s performance) on the herbaceous borders in the back garden. And some fans have taken on the role of the fuming, green-fingered owner who has administered serial beatings to said hound with a rolled-up copy of the Sun, while others are the sympathetic wife defending Rover – even though this is the SIXTH time he’s done it.

So we’ll leave that smelly dog mess where it is, or better still, bury it so that it can nourish the azaleas…and I have no idea what the flowers represent. (Note to self: ease off the metaphor. It’s getting tired now.)

The Guardian’s season preview booklet thingy is out and for me this is the light at the end of the tunnel, the sign that the very silly season is almost over and we can all enjoy a good few months without its nonsense and our own repetitive navel-gazing. Some of the stats make for some interesting reading, so I did a very quick, extremely dirty and utterly unscientific comparison of Arsenal against other top clubs to see if I could glean anything of note, a sparkly diamond in the rough if you like. My eyebrows were raised more than once during my ‘research’ (and not in the disapproving, “Good God! What perfectly abominable behaviour!” sense, more in the, “I say! Corking stat old chap!” way).

I said myself that in the latter part of last season our attack became stale, slow and predictable – a bit like Old Twitchy’s speech patterns after too much ale, but I actually found that…….

We led the league in shot accuracy with 47.5%, followed closely by Liverpool with 47.2%, ranging down to the Spuds with 41.6%.

We also had the highest pass accuracy (83.7% compared to Liverpool with 77.2% and the others close to us around the 80% mark)

……but hit the woodwork more than anyone else (22 times, The Chavs running us very close with 21, then the others no more than 14 times). Which means we’re the most accurate shooters, but still need to be, er, more accurate.

Even though we scored more than most (72 times to be precise, and you’re probably not that bothered about the other clubs’ stats in this area…what’s that? You are? OK then. As we all know, the Spuds are constantly breathing down our necks and soon to replace us as the biggest club in North London, and they’re well on their way to doing this, scoring a whopping 55 league goals last term. Sorry Spuds, not even close. Now get back in your box. Thwack! *twats them with the Observer – no supplements removed*).

I’ve intentionally left out a lot of other figures as they don’t tell us anything we didn’t already know (and they’re kind of dull), but it’s not hard to see that we’re quite a bit better than the baying, pitchfork-wielding, firebrand-waving mob would have you believe. And before people start lighting Molotov cocktails and sharpening their gardening tools, would they please read my disclaimer below:

  1. I don’t think we’re the best in the league.
  2. I know last season sucked ass over and over again.
  3. I agree we still need more signings.
  4. I’m just as worried as others are about our tough opening fixtures.
  5. I’m not a Wenger apologist.
  6. I do think the board have feet of clay.
  7. I do wonder how good Gazidis actually is.

BUT……….

We kick off on Saturday. It’s a new season. It’s the Barcodes away. And we owe them a hiding. Let’s all get behind the boys. We Are The Arsenal. Come on you reds.

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Posted by peachesgÖÖner

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