A Few Thoughts From London

July 26, 2011

Not a very exciting title and certainly not one that is going to shoot the lights out of the hit stats but after questioning myself about it I thought why not, do I really want to attract people who’s blog name is “Wenger The Liar” and the like, not really was the answer. No, far happier am I to address the solid regulars of this fine site.

We have got off to a good preseason don’t you think? Two great goals from Gervinho who really does have that last piece to the attacking jigsaw about him. This man is going to allow Wenger to take no nonsense from Arshavin or Walcott, if either one of those is not performing then bang, off and on with Gerv. I say it this way around because I still think that Wenger will start with Arshavin, RvP and Walcott up front against Newcastle but I don’t anticipate that it will be too long before the goal scoring prowess of The Gerv finds it way into the first team on a regular basis.

If I had to guess as to the player who will ultimately lose out, then for me it will be Walcott. Those who read my comments know that I have a bee in my bonnet about Theo and in that same vein of bias I predict that this time next year he will be a Liverpool player.

Dalglish is on a one man mission to Britify that team in the belief that it is the El Dorado, the magic formula that manu have been using in recent past to win the league as many times as they have. Liverpool have paid some outrageous prices for average English players and I for one do not think that it will work for them. But the man who cannot be understood has too much credit in the red half of Liverpool to be kicked out too quickly and that is why I predict that after another shabby forth coming season the Scousers will make us an offer we cannot refuse – think Pennant.

I do have an alternate theory as to why Liverpool are in such a hurry to Britify that team and that is because Britain is the only football that Dalglish understands (He got lucky with Suarez). By contrast Wenger obviously knows the British players but has almost exclusive fishing rights in France and French speaking Africa. It’s like having our very own pool of talent to pick from, how brilliant is that and amazingly to me there are some who moan – oh no, please, anyone but another French speaking African. Just watch those two goals by Gervinho again and thank your lucky stars we did not buy Stewart Downing.

Walcott highlights the flaw in the youth policy that Wenger has clearly adopted, which is not to complain about its adoption. I am a firm believer that there are only three types of available player out there: the youth player, the twelve million pound player and the thirty five million pound player. Very few thirty five million pound players become available, I’m talking Aguero here, and when they do they inevitably draw the attention of Man City and once that has happened what is the point of trying to financially compete? Aguero is such a good example as it is plain to see that no one has even tried to involve themselves in the potential purchase of what is one of the best attackers in the world. No, at the present time players like that are not for us. The result being that we either have to fish in the twelve million pound pond and hope the likes of Gervinho turns into the next Drogba or try and develop the next Messi through our youth system.

This is all well and good but it is flawed, in order for the club to continue to attract the best youth players out there the fathers of super talented fifteen year olds must believe that if they succumb to Arsenal’s charms then their precious son will get the fairest crack of the whip possible and the flaw, I finally got there, is that players like Walcott are overplayed long before they are genuinely ready, the result is that we lose precious EPL points. I blame the loss of more than one league title on Wenger’s obsession with playing Walcott. Do you remember the crowd’s reaction when Walcott used to get off the bench to warm up: screams of Theo, Theo rang out throughout the ground; for goodness sake he is a puppy with a beach ball now he was even worse then.

Certain young players become too important not to play; their inclusion becomes more important than winning the league. Wilshere is another example of a player who has to be played, I complained last season that he was not strong enough to shield the defence on his own and offered next to no goal threat. My concern about him has been tempered by the realisation that the amount of games he played probably had as much to do with Diaby and Cesc’s injuries than Wenger’s impossible position of having to play him. Can you imagine him being on the bench for the first game of the season? No you can’t and yet if Cesc stays, a player who is light years more talented, then he really should be playing instead of Wilshere, well if we want to win the league he should be.

Which brings me to the title I really wanted to use Cesc, Stay, Please Stay, we are so close to having a team that just rips the EPL to pieces and with the arrival of Gervinho I think we have it. Did you see Nasri on the weekend, talented man but if there was a choice between keeping him and Cesc, hellooooooooo or should I say au revoir. We have one world class player, head and shoulders above all others and if we let him go we are back to hoping that Nasri can become the playmaker and that Wilshere will start scoring goals. They both will at one stage but I believe to win the league you have to have these two things up and running from the outset of the season. I am such a Fabregas fan I would sooner sell Wilshere to Barcelona.

Moving on or running away: cries of, if we don’t buy another defender we will continue to be vulnerable to an aerial threat from set pieces ring out from the blogshere, all I have to say to this is — tosh. Vermaelen wasn’t playing last season so it is reasonable to assume that his experience will galvanise that area of the team; Koscielny coped extremely well with his forced baptism of fire to the EPL brought on by the captain of Belgium’s injury, he played far more games than was originally anticipated and did a good job in my opinion, I expect him to be even better this season.

The idea of Gibbs as the new left back is starting to grow on me; so many teams come to the Emirates and park the bus that in the past we have struggled to break them down far more than we should for a team of our quality. How many times have we seen the ball played along a line of Arsenal players backwards and forwards before going out to Sagna or Clichy to send in a poor cross that nine times out of ten results in the loss of possession — too many is my answer. Gibbs can operate skilfully in the opposition’s eighteen yard box and as a result I expect him to start scoring some important goals.

I really do think we are ahead of the curve it terms of having a more settled side than the likes of United, City, Chelsea and Liverpool a side that is ready to storm the EPL but our side is only settled if Fabregas remains — Stay Cesc, Please Stay

London

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Forget the Beautiful Game

July 25, 2011

Written by dandan

Winning they say is everything, forget the beautiful game it counts for nothing if you don’t win something.

I was pondering this when watching a TV documentary on Murray Walker this week, a man whom I was lucky enough to meet as he, our respective wives and I cruised en-route to Australia. He was on board to give some lectures on his life in and out of motor sports.

Great as these lectures were, it was the conversation that took place when they asked to join our table for breakfast that impressed me most. What you see on TV is what you get with Murray: enthusiasm personified, an unbelievably knowledgeable raconteur of class who is also ready to listen.

At 87 he is 20 years older than I, yet made me feel that I was the old man, a class act I feel privileged to have met.

What has this to do with wining you ask? Not a lot except we spoke of Stirling Moss – a man so entrenched in British folk-lore that, even today, if stopped by the police for speeding you are likely to be asked, who do you think you are Stirling Moss?

Interesting is it not, when you realise that though he never won a world championship, he drove with such skill and bravado whilst winning 16 grand prix, but never the big one, that it didn’t matter. You don’t tend to get asked are you a Hawthorn, Surtees, Stewart, Hunt ,Mansell Or Hill : All great  british drivers and world champions in days gone by, No it is the brave , seemingly indestructible yet cavalier nearly man (he was second twice) whose name has entered the language of the nation.

Now our team is like that.  It wins games and hearts with style and panache, indeed  all but the biggest prize the Champions League, has been collected along the way, whilst setting domestic records over the Arsene Wenger years, including in the case of the invincibles, an  astonishing entire season undefeated. So much so, that the very word Wengerball has also now entered the language, as a description of all that is , stylish, skillful,  and entertaining, only the physicality of the English game precludes  us from the accolade of total football bestowed on Cruyff’s legendary Dutchmen, but it is the nearest to  the beautiful game this country has ever seen.

We may not have won a trophy for six years, but in years to come, even should we not win another one, unlikely as that may be, Wengerball will still be ingrained in our living language, like Stirling Moss, to be used to describe excellence in our sport. When only the dried ink in books of statistics will recall the extravagantly purchased successes of Chelsea and City.

Winning is of course great and to be strived for at all times, although the manner in which success is achieved  bring’s recognition, pride and respect and the traditions they engender live  far longer in the collective memory, of a football nation

A new season approaches, our team evolves,  let’s hope our style and skills continue to grow and our manager’s quiet revolution continues to spread, to the discomfort of the long ball bully boys, both financial and actual, we all know so well. As we add another trophy or two to our already well filled cabine.

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Gervinho Has Arsenal Singing In The Rhine

July 24, 2011

Written by Jamie

Match Report: Cologne 1-2 Arsenal

So now that we have the far-east hand shaking junket out of the way, Arsenal fans could be justified in feeling that this is where the serious stuff begins. After all, Arsène Wenger said so himself.

No more games against Kuala Lumpur elevens or tepid match ups with the mighty Hangzhou Greentowns. Proper football is upon us. An English team against a German team. Football as we know it.

Of course while Arsenal began the Pre- Season proper in Germany’s North Rhine-Westphalia region yesterday, El Capitan, Bendtner and co were still plotting moves away from London. So it is impossible to know exactly how we will line up next season but we got a pretty good idea.

One thing is for sure, Arsenal don’t seem likely to change formation. So it seems that 4-2-3-1 or as others like to call it 4-3-3 is here to stay. Frankly, I think that the only difference between the two is how effective the wingers are.

If the wingers are slow and lack movement it is a 4-2-3-1. If they are fast and quick in to space like the first half yesterday then it is a genuine mobile 4-3-3. This is when Arsenal play best.

All of which was evident when Wilshere chipped a perfectly weighted pass to Gervinho.

The new boy crept in on the defenders blind side to lift the ball over the on rushing keeper.

This seemed to dampen the crowd who had been in good voice pre-match.

A short while later Wilshere was again the architect. Pinging a pass wide to Walcott this time, who squared it cutely for Gervinho to sweep home a second from eight yards out.

The first goal to me was a Wiltord finish, the second a Pires, right place, right time finish. It was very impressive how he found space frequently in the first few minutes.

Based on very little, A you tube video, 29 minutes in a Arsenal shirt and half a dozen games when I didn’t really know who he was in the French League a couple of years back, I would say he looks to me like a Pires/Wiltord hybrid.

Arsenal had wobbled towards half time before Jenkinson capped a brilliant Arsenal performance by beating Szczesny with a lob Dennis Bergkamp would have been proud of.

Arsenal looked vulnerable with the normal high defensive line. The midfielders don’t get enough pressure on the ball in pre season. Frankly, I’m fine with that, I would rather they didn’t risk injuries.

I don’t worry about us defending in open play. Our record is very good on that front. At the risk of stating the obvious, we need a big centre back or an organiser at set pieces.

Arshavin had four attempts in the second half but again didn’t really hit the heights. His pace seems to have gone and he needs to play in the middle somewhere. Where he can use his close control, vision and shooting. He is too isolated on the wing.  He never hides though.

Sitting at home, I might be getting worried about Fabregas leaving but all I know is this, if I were sitting on the banks of the Rhine with some of the Gooners that made the trip, I wouldn’t be worrying about any of that. I would be ordering another round of the local Kölsch and trying to work the name Gervinho in to a song.

Life goes on.

First Half Team

Szczesny – Didn’t inspire confidence but did ok.

Koscielny – Strangely out of sorts. One of our best last season but lacked his competitive edge.

Vermaelen – Similar start to Koscielny but improved as the half went on.

Jenkinson – Was trying to cover Koscielny when conceding the own goal. Technique needs work. Could he be a better cover right back than Eboue?

Gibbs – Excellent, his best game yet in the warm up. Smooth and could have scored in the second half.

Song – Solid but no yet at full tilt.

Ramsey – Played well, some nice touches.

Wilshere – Best player, was involved in both goals. He looks very well after his summer of rest.

Walcott – Sharp and focused, made one, movement was good.

Gervinho – Eventful, 29 minutes, 2 goals, impressive movement and a knee knock. I like him even if he does have the least subtle parting since GDR made plans to stop defection in 1961.

Chamakh – Did he play?

Miyaichi – Must have been chuffed to get on, did have one run, with what is becoming his trademark step over. Hoping he gets a Visa, He might brighten up the Carling Cup come the winter.

Second Half Team

Mannone – Curiously solid.

Fabianski – Not much on but good to see him back.

Sagna – No thrills, no spills, just another 45 under his belt, coasted.

Henderson – Got his chance at left back but seems to have come to a sticky end after giving himself a nasty looking knee injury in the dying moments of the game.

Squillaci – Could look out of his depth in a puddle.

Djourou – Tried hard to cope with the lack of structure around him, he gives his lot.

Frimpong – High on industry and low on artistry which is no bad thing for the anchor man but still lacks consistency to his passing.

Rosicky – Played well, it is bizarre that there is a part of all of us that still thinks he might still have his finest hour ahead of him. We can all dream.

Nasri – He looked a bit disinterested other than his cuddle for Jenkinson at half time. I wouldn’t read too much in to it, just easing in the warm ups.

Vela – Introduction was about a noticeable as air

Arshavin – Tried but still looks under par.  Arsenal need to get the best out of him this season.

Van Persie – Couple of lovely touches, time has taught him to take pre season easy.

Afobe – Got on at 89 minutes, hopefully we might see more of him through the season.

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Cesc Will Rue The Day He Left Arsenal

July 23, 2011

Not many players leave Arsène Wenger’s Arsenal and thrive.

Look at Alex Hleb.

The ‘new George Best’ sold his soul for a Mr Whippy with extra sprinkles and quickly went from Barcelona to the heady heights of Birmingham FC.

Now, still owned by Barca but not wanted by anyone, he floats in the footballing ether, dribbling in mazy circles to nowhere and declining clear shooting opportunities to his heart’s content.

Matthieu Flamini, after finally having a good season at Arsenal, showed all the loyalty of a two bob hooker and decamped for Milan. One of his main gripes was that he had been forced to play so many games at Arsenal as a left back.

No such problem with the Rossoneri. They played him at right back instead.

Thierry Henry won some gongs when he joined Barcelona, but he was literally a peripheral figure (pushed back out to the wings, from where Arsene had rescued him all those years earlier). A classy, brilliant player, but no-one can doubt that we got the best of him and sold him when his decline had started.

Now he’s some kind of showman in the Americas, wearing a Stetson and juggling footballs on the back of a rodeo bull while toting a Colt 45 or somesuch.

Patrick Vieira? Like Henry he was too good to vanish into obscurity. However, when he moved to Italy he had the bittersweet experience of winning numerous medals – but only as a bit part player. When he stumbled across the ATM that never stops churning out ten pound notes (otherwise known as Man City), who can blame him for retiring to its warm dressing rooms and well varnished benches?

Ljungberg, Pires, Adebayor, Reyes, Petit, Overmars… I could go on, but the point is: Arsene knows when it’s time to let a player go. In most cases it is when he has judged that their performances have crested the zenith. It doesn’t necessarily mean they are bad, just that they will never quite reach their peak again and will, in fact, decline.

Even those he has been forced to sell reluctantly, like Flamini and Anelka, have never subsequently had the central, starring roles they had at Arsenal.

So what about Cesc?

Have we seen the best of El Capitan? When he leaves us will it be for a few tortured years of bench-sitting at Barcelona, plagued by ever-worsening hamstrings and haunted by the curious longevity of the Xavi-Iniesta partnership, still winning the Primera Liga well into their thirities?

Will we Arsenal fans nod sagely to each other and repeat the mantra that players just never do as well when they leave us?

DON’T BE STUPID.

Cesc Fabregas is one of the best four or five players in the world. I would put Messi and Ronaldo ahead of him, but after that…? The man is a genius. Of course he is going to have a marvelous career at Barcelona. If he is not a regular first team starter by January London will eat his red-and-white socks*.

And yet, you say, your headline referred to him rueing the day he leaves Arsenal. If he goes on to win Spanish title after Copa del Ray after Champions League what will there be to regret? What tears will little Francesc possibly shed?

Let me tell you.

Cesc will rue the day he leaves because when this Arsenal team, whose talisman he has been for so long, finally starts to win the big prizes without him it will pierce his heart with the brilliant sharpness of one of his incredible passes through the Totteringham defence.

If Arsenal win the league this year – and I am one of those who believes it is a real possibility – then Cesc will be disconsolate. It will be a failure for him that will live with him throughout his career and his life.

He will have given eight years of his life to a project – and not just any project, but a glorious, ambitious, eyes-on-the-stars kind of project – and then walked away just before it reached its crowning glory. It would be as if Neil Armstrong got to the Moon’s orbit and said: “You know what, I’m fine, I’ll just stay here in Apollo 11 and look out the window…”

Never mind whether he has a championship medal in Spain, a Champions League title and has been chosen as Miss Catalunia 2013, there will be a hole in Cesc’s soul that will never be filled.

He will rejoice for his erstwhile teammates, but deep down he will know that he should have been with them. And for that, I will grieve with him.

RockyLives

*That’s OK isn’t it London?

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Only One Arsène Wenger

July 22, 2011

Hey Arsène, how many big pots are we going to win this season?

 

Why we need to stick to the Wenger Revolution

(And why it is necessary to keep reminding us of this)

By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.
Confucius

The beautiful game is seldom played beautifully. Many of us are football addicts and will watch any game however mediocre it promises/ turns out to be, and I am exactly the same. But, we all notice the difference when we watch a truly beautiful game: only then will we express ourselves in superlatives and will even the most prosaic fan become poetic, only then are our needs for the beautiful game fully satisfied and are we truly happy, and only then will a game become engraved in our memories – become immortal so to speak.

Looking a bit closer at how football clubs approach the game, one can see four distinct variants, depending both on the level of success and the aspiration to play football that is pleasing to the eye. These are:

  1. Strong focus on ‘result-football’, with an inherent low aspiration to play beautiful football, but also with low levels of success: mediocre, uninspiring football by far and large, played by the majority of clubs within UK/Europe.
  2. Strong aspiration to play beautiful football, but low levels of success: attractive, praiseworthy but naive football, played by a small number of clubs – West Brom under Tony Mowbray,  and last season’s Blackpool are some good recent examples.
  3. Highly successful football, but with low levels of aspiration for attractive, beautiful football:Chelsea under Mourinho, almost every successful Italian club (the exception being AC Milan in the early nineties), Inter under Mourinho, Manchester United in recent seasons, etc.
  4. Highly successful football that is also very attractive and beautiful to watch: Barcelona in recent years, Milan in the early nineties, Ajax in the seventies and mid-nineties, Arsenal in the late nineties and during the ‘Invincibles’ era.

Of course there are more variants, but out of these four extremes only the fourth one represents the sort of football that people speak about many decades later, the sort of football that becomes immortal.

 

Arsène Wenger is a dreamer, a Don Quixote, an idealist, and a genius. He somehow wants to win pots by playing beautiful, total football, with a team that is built from within the club, on the affordable but risky concept of combining the development of youth players with the purchase of rough diamonds, that can be made to shine within 1-3 seasons. On top of that, he wants our club to adhere to a self-sustaining financial model i.e. live within our means. I, like many other Gooners – but definitely not everyone – love Arsène Wenger for this highly principled, romantic and yet competitive approach to the game and our club. It is currently unique within the UK and in Europe.

I believe the world is crying out for leaders, in all sorts of professions and sports, who can combine competitiveness – and I will not have anybody say that Wenger is no longer ambitious – with a vision, and a set of principles and virtues. Wenger, more than any manager in Europe, has all of these qualities in abundance. He could have walked away from Arsenal many times, to clubs where he would be free to continue with his philosophy and principles on how the game should be played, and more importantly: where he would have been given an almost unlimited cheque book to sign whoever he wanted, in order to complete his quest for beautiful, highly successful football. I believe he decided to stay with Arsenal to both remain loyal to our fantastic club – during the challenging period of transformation for Highbury to Ashburton Grove – and achieve something truly remarkable, in the hardest way possible.

Arsène Wenger is not perfect, and neither are we, nor is any manager: c’est la vie. I do not believe in the tacky ‘Arsène Knows’ mantra. But, what Wenger is trying to achieve: winning pots through highly attractive football on a self-sustaining financial model is unbelievably important, for Arsenal as well as football in general. He does not get enough credit for this, not from the media and not from the fans.

During the Wenger years, we had more than a good taste of highly attractive, and yet successful, football. We have become accustomed to it, but in recent years we have been famished of success (but not beauty). Yet, this is the time to remain faithful, to breath-in and breath-out, to give Arsene a chance to push us to the next level. Demanding success, even when it has been relatively so long since we won anything, is not going to help. Arsene wants it more than anybody else, so why push him even more? It is counterproductive.

 

Even if some fans would rather want us to ditch our style/ aspiration to play beautiful football, in order to win something again, there is really no way back. The third variant is not an option for us. We do not have the funds now, and most likely not for the next decade to come, to compete with Chelsea, Manchester Cityand possibly also Manchester United and Liverpool. These clubs will always be better equipped in assembling teams that win cups the ‘calculated way’, without a strong aspiration to play the game beautifully. Neither should we want to have those sorts of insane funds, but that is a discussion for another time.

No, for us it is all or nothing, The Wenger revolution cannot be stopped: the rocket has left the earth’s atmosphere and it is our only chance for success. It will come, maybe this year, maybe in two or three years, and when it comes it will be so good, that not only we, but many generations after us, will still eulogise about it.

In the meantime, try to relax and enjoy the ride: there will be plenty of beautiful football again this season, thanks to the genius and aspirations of Arsène Wenger.

“To live only for some future goal is shallow. It’s the sides of the mountain that sustain life, not the top.”  Robert M. Pirsig.

TotalArsenal.

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Pick your team versus Cologne

July 21, 2011

It seems that Arsenal supporters have gone quiet at this testing time, either because they are biting their tongues in the hope that we will be surprised by some unexpected quality signings or because their faith in the management leaves them in no doubt that Le Boss will weave his magic and everything will be fine come the start of next season.

Luckily we have a game of football ahead to act as a distraction from the growing tension of the Cesc saga (he’s all but gone let’s face it) and the results of what Gazidis describes as being ‘very active’ in the transfer market.

It’s a couple of days away, but there is a game in Cologne on Saturday afternoon. This will be another chance to see how the team will set up and how new players are fitting in. Hopefully we’ll see Gervinho play but I expect Cesc to have not recovered from his little injury. Will Nasri play? After Mancini’s announcement that he expects to sign Samir by the end of the month maybe he too will be a ‘leeetle bit short’ for this game.

If we lose Cesc and maybe Nasri, will we still be able to compete for a whole season and finish near the top of the Premiership?

Take the opportunity to pick from those who we know will be available and let’s see if we have a side that can not only beat Cologne, but can maintain our extraordinary run of top four finishes under Arsène Wenger?

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My Arsenal Prediction Will Come True… One Year Late

July 20, 2011

OK, this is a bit of a risk.

Chin up, deep breath, clench buttocks: here we go… no, hang on a minute – unclench buttocks (it’s making me want to wee a little). That’s better. Now, for real this time, here we go:

The EPL Player of the Year for the 2011/12 season will be…

Andrey Arshavin.

Before you laugh, shout or go back to Teenage Latin Lovelies, let me point out that, at Arsenal, there is a precedent for what you might call the delayed prediction.

At the start of the 2002/3 season Arsène Wenger proclaimed that his team were capable of going a whole season unbeaten.

Most people were highly skeptical about this suggestion and some were brutal in their ridicule. They said that in the modern age, with so many demands on the top teams from so many competitions, it could never be done.

Arsenal failed to win the EPL that season, finishing five points behind Manchester United. Many of Arsène’s critics remembered his “unbeaten” comments from back in August 2002. In fact Arsene had been careful not to say that his players would go through the season without experiencing defeat. He merely said that they could.

Most journalists ignored that subtle difference and took joy in pointing out that, far from going unbeaten, Arsène’s men had lost six times in the league that season.

The following year Arsène (and we) had the last laugh. The Invincibles went unbeaten for 38 games, history was made and those same reporters who had been ridiculing Le Boss 12 months earlier were suddenly writing breathless articles about whether this was the best team ever to grace the English top flight (it was).

In a nutshell Arsène had been right with his prediction, but just a little premature – and which of us hasn’t had that problem once in a while?

Which brings us back to our diminutive Russki.

Now I would hardly wish to compare myself with our esteemed manager, but a year ago I predicted that Andrey would be the Player of the Season. Not just for us, but for the whole EPL.

It’s fair to say that that prediction was quite spectacularly wrong. Despite a tidy goal return and an excellent assist record Arshavin had, at best, a mediocre season. Perhaps even a poor one for someone with his talents.

Regardless of the stats, we fans could see that the little Leningrader was often peripheral to the action; he frequently lost possession and seldom tracked back. And some us thought that, well, he had been overdoing the borscht a bit. He may have been only a few pounds overweight, but when you’re the size of a mouse that’s going to show.

But what if, like Arsène, I have come up with the right prediction at the wrong time? What if I’m proved correct – a year later on.

I happen to think it’s possible, and here’s why.

  • First, no-one can question Andrey’s innate footballing talents. He is rightly regarded as one of the most skilful players in the world. If you doubt me, go to YouTube and take another look at his four-goal performance against Liverpool.
  • Second, after some rough treatment from the fans during last season, I thought he really sorted out his effort and work ethic in the last part of the campaign. His tracking back and tackling earned many a resounding cheer in those later games (when there was not much else to cheer about). I think it finally began to dawn on him that English fans don’t approve of ‘luxury’ players who don’t pitch in when the opposition have the ball.
  • Third, although Russia’s inability to make the World Cup last summer should have meant he would come back to Arsenal fully rested and fired up to succeed, in fact I think it was a serious blow to his morale. He was his country’s captain and the failure weighed heavily on him.
  • Fourth, in pre-season this year he looks slimmer and sharper and, while other illustrious members of the team seem to be searching for the escape tunnel, he has been talking a good game.
  • Fifth, if Cesc goes to Barcelona (as I believe he will) it could be the making of Andrey. The style of play we created to maximize Cesc’s talents meant that the Russian really was peripheral – in the literal sense. He was pushed to the left of the field and forced to play as a winger. Without Cesc I expect him to get the chance to play more centrally, possibly in the Dennis role or with a greater roving brief – and that will enable his gifts to bear more fruit.

I can’t imagine many of you will agree with me, and I fully understand why. The question is, was last season evidence of his powers beginning to wane (and his performances for Russia arguably support this theory)? Or was it an aberration, caused in part by the crushing disappointment of not getting his country to the 2010 World Cup?

We shall see.

OK, I’ve got my tin hat on – over to you.

RockyLives

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The Winds of Change

July 19, 2011

At last we have played some football and wonder of wonders a new wind of optimism seems to be blowing through the blogs after the most excruciating month of self-flagellation I can remember in 60 odd years following the Arsenal. From learning to read the match reports of Desmond Hackett : he of the Brown Bowler hat: on the back page of my fathers Daily Express, to watching Nubile young ladies sensationalise each and every action on Sky Sports News.

Incidentally we talk of fiddled expenses today, dear old Desmond used to bill the paper for a new Bowler every month, and was so wrapped in his own PR, he would, whenever he was at the airport arrange for a tannoy message to be put out calling him to take a phone call at the information desk, thereby making sure he was seen by his public. Eat your heart out Mourinho you were not the first special one, though in passing I must admit I would rather have met Georgie Thompson than him: Sorry I digress

In all that time never have I known such bitter recriminations over a season past and opportunities lost, as have characterised this one. But now the players are back on the field I do detect a change on-line, sure the press persist with their silly transfer roundabout, but among those that matter, the fans. There seems to be an acceptance that losing Cesc and Samir would be a blow but not a fatal one. We have the wherewithal to get by and move onwards and upwards, because losing them would cost someone a lot of money.

Watching a very calm Arsène being interviewed in Asia, this observer gets the distinct feeling that should the worst happen he is prepared and has his plan B in place, that the money as usual will not be wasted, his targets are identified. Gazidas has since that interview also gone on record to declare that the board is happy with the planning and the firm stance on Cesc and Samir in that they wish both to stay and are prepared to take the loss on Samir if they do.

Should this prove to be nothing but an aggressive marketing ploy however, it matters not, as the result of failing to hold onto them can only mean a significant cash inflow and despite the implacable stance of some seasoned fans that the board will not make this money available to AW, my belief is to the contrary given our financial position is so much more favourable than in seasons past.

If Cesc. does go, it could  well be the making of Samir, enabling him to play in the middle of the park for a year as he does for France,  unless of course the Arsenal  do decide to let the obscenely stupid city money lure him away.  Unlikely as that maybe before January, which is when Samir with the ball firmly in his court,will probably take stock and make his decision as a free agent whether he stays or goes.

In the meantime AW’s carefully scouted and identified generation of  new players designed to marry with the gifted young players we already have will begin to arrive and strengthen the squad.

Frimpong, Theo, Ramsey, TV back from Injury, hopefully Rio and a whole galaxy of others, will be added too, with new players with league, maybe even PL experience joining in the next month. Creating the kind of optimistic buzz around the Emirates we have not felt for some time.

Other old ‘uns like me will remember Harold Macmillan in years gone by saying a wind of change is blowing through Africa and by golly did it. That same wind is now I think about to hit the Emirates. Brought on by new players and a strengthened squad, a potent mix of youth, ambition, experience and desire among the existing players to put right the wrongs of yesterday and shove the often underserved criticisms of the simplistic consumers (how I love that description) who masquerade in dark corners as fans and pour their vitriol out into the blogosphere, down their throats. That is not to say all was sweetness and light in the camp, of course it wasn’t, nor was it beyond the compass of real fans to say we got it wrong, but we are the Arsenal and as in times past we will come again.

I happen to believe that this is the year and the gentle breeze rippling through the blogs could well become a hurricane of joy for the real fans and untold bragging rights for those that feel the need to have them.

Written by dandan

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Pique Slams Barca Team Mates For Constant Cesc Talk

July 18, 2011

Barcelona’s Gerard Pique has lashed out at his team mates over their attempts to unsettle Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas.

The furious 24-year-old Spain international told the Spanish newspaper Sport: “We must leave Cesc in peace and let things run their course.”

His midfield colleague Xavi was the latest Barcelona player to go public about Fabregas earlier this week, earning a stinging rebuke from Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.

Other players from the Blaugranes to have made unprompted comments include Andres Iniesta, Dani Alves and Pedro Rodriguez.

Even the mayor of Fabregas’ home town got in on the act this week, suggesting the Arsenal stalwart had been ‘kidnapped’ by his club.

Many observers see the barrage of comments as an orchestrated campaign by Barcelona FC to unsettle Fabregas and force Arsenal to sell him at under his market value.

There is growing speculation that the blatant nature of the campaign is alarming the European game’s top echelons, with UEFA preparing to step in to remind Barcelona of their responsibilities. If the Catalans ignore the warning sanctions could follow.

Rounding on his colleagues Pique said: “Any player suffers when there’s so much talk about his future.”

He added that although Barcelona’s players had always talked with respect, their comments were damaging the Arsenal number four and they should stop immediately.

End of news story.

Note to Readers:

This story accurately uses the same quotes that were used in yesterday’s coverage of Pique’s remarks.

It’s quite clear that while Pique was offering a partial defence of Xavi, he was also saying that his team mates should stop talking about Cesc.

Strangely the British press chose only to focus on the former interpretation, with not a mention of Pique’s “shut up” message to his fellow players.

A typical headline was “Pique defends Xavi comments” (ITV Football).

There’s a simple reason for that. The media has decided that Arsenal are in crisis, that Fabregas and Nasri are going and that “big” players don’t want to join us.

Once their pack mentality kicks in, they willfully ignore facts that contradict this over-riding narrative (such as the second half of Pique’s comments). In fact, once Fleet Street decides on its narrative it’s harder to turn than a supertanker.

If you want further evidence, just look at the garbage written by Sam Wallace in The Independent, under the headline “Jagielka snub shows Arsenal’s fading appeal.”

Regulars will know I have banged on about this a lot, but it really does my head in.

And by writing the Pique story the way it could quite reasonably have been presented with exactly the same facts, I hope it will go some small way towards helping Arsenal fans realise they should pay less attention to what they read. Most of it is made up and the rest is twisted to suit whatever agenda the journalists and their paymasters want.

Ignore the bullsh*t. Wait for the facts.

RockyLives

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Arsenal’s Transfer Plans Decoded

July 13, 2011

Never mind what the newspapers say or what “inside sources” claim to know, there’s only one sure way to determine which of our supposed transfer targets have a realistic chance of joining Arsenal.

I refer, of course, to the arcane art of the anagram.

Mystics have long believed that rearranging the letters of a person’s name can reveal hidden truths about them and their destiny.

So it’s no surprise that Maggie Thatcher converts easily into “That grim EEC hag”; or that Tony Blair PM is “I’m Tory Plan B” and President Boris Yeltsin became “Isn’t one terribly pissed?”

So, with this in mind, I have run a few of our alleged targets through the anagram scrambler and the results are quite revealing.

For example, it becomes obvious that Gervinho was always going to be coming to N5 once you realise his anagram is “In H. Grove”.

Likewise there’s no chance of us ever signing Kevin Doyle because, quite simply, he is an “Evil Donkey.” Not that we needed an anagram scrambler to figure that one out.

And Jermain Defoe – “No Jedi, Me Fear” – was always a non-starter. With only three league goals last season the Force was definitely not with little Jermain.

However the powers of anagram are capricious and don’t always make things so clear cut. I’m in two minds about what their insights tell us about Per Mertesacker, the big German defender. As a “Pecker Streamer” does that mean he’s a long streak of p*ss? Or does it mean he’s going to p*ss all over the opposition? Tough one. Maybe he’s just got an STD.

No such ambiguity with Christopher Samba, I’m afraid. “Chamber Pot’s Hairs” tells it’s own story. He may be a big strong centre back, but if he joins us he’ll be as welcome as a pube on a toilet seat.

Nor is young Dutch defender Jan Vertonghen coming to us, as his anagram makes clear: “No have Jnr gent.”

Gary Cahill on the other hand gives you everything you want from a central defender. We often talk about needing a CB who is a tower of strength, a man mountain, rock solid at the back. Well, Gary is “A Hilly Crag” and that’s good enough for me.

And if we need some back-up to come off the bench when Alex Song gets hurt, there is an intriguing possibility in the shape of AS Saint-Etienne’s Blaise Matuidi, whose letters unscramble to reveal “A timid sub? A lie!” Fierce substitutes – that’s what we want.

Finally, to add some goal threat, how about Wigan’s Hugo Rodallega? Is his anagram – “Good large haul,” a hint that he would win the Golden Boot if he joined us? Hard to tell. Maybe he’s just a prolific angler in his spare time.

Anyway, given that it’s well known how Arsene Wenger leaves nothing to chance in his preparations, I have little doubt that he devotes an hour a day to analysing the results of his official AFC anagram scrambler, pondering over the hidden meanings of results such as:

Wayne Rooney – Nan Were Yoyo

John Terry – Re JT: Horny

Nemjana Vidic – Maniac Jived

Dani Alves – Anal Dives

If you have got this far, thankyou for humouring me with this untypical post. Sometimes the seriousness of everything is such a drag that one tries to lighten the mood.

And I have no doubt that if you’re so inclined you can easily outdo my anagrams in the comments below…

SickyLover

Note from admin:

It is likely that the site stats will pass a million hits today. How befitting that we celebrate this landmark with another brilliantly amusing and innovative post from RockyLives. Thanks to all the great authors and contribuors who have made Arsenal Arsenal such a success. COYRRG

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