Why I’m Loving Van Persie Now

April 30, 2013

So the melodrama is over.

Brave Sir Robin returned to the club that stood faithfully by his side in sickness and in, er, more sickness.

He walked on to the pitch through a guard of honour. He got booed by most of the home supporters. He took a few kicks and gave a few kicks. He scored.

bsr

That’s it folks… all over, nothing to see here.

I still have mixed feelings about BSR. I completely understand why many fans are angry that he chose to leave (and that the club sold him to Manchester United, of all people).

But I also appreciate the great memories I have from the one proper season he gave us during his Arsenal career: all those “did you see that?” goals; all those volleyed finishes from Alex Song golf chips. It’s just a shame it turned out to be his last season with us.

Anyway, the dust has now settled on his return to The Home Of Football and we can get back to worrying about the important business of winning our final three games.

The problem is, it’s not as simple as that, is it?

We don’t just have to worry about our own games, we also worry about those of the teams competing with us for third and fourth spots in the Premier League.

And this is why I have decided to become a Robin lover again. It won’t be with the passion that I once had for him and I can guarantee it won’t be a long-lasting affair. In fact, it will be all over by 6pm on Sunday.

Because shortly before then the referee will have blown the final whistle to end Manchester United’s home fixture against Chelsea. And I am sincerely hoping that Brave Sir Robin, who has been in superb scoring form for two full seasons, will have done us an immense favour by banging home a hat trick against the Chavs.

If United beat Chelsea, it will give us some additional margin for error in our run in. Hopefully we won’t need that margin and we will spank QPR, Wigan and Newcastle in turn to guarantee a top four finish, but even then, it might make the difference between third and fourth place.

I hope that United will put in a proper amount of commitment and effort against Chelsea.

The Purple Conked Gorbalian has said that they will. He talked of “honouring” Chelsea’s rivals for the Champions League places by competing properly, but I have my doubts.

They have won the league already at a canter and, psychologically, I just can’t see them being as committed as they should be.

In fact, the “Van Persie returns to Arsenal for the first time since joining United” sideshow probably worked against us at the weekend. It fired up the crowd and added spice to the occasion.

Arsene Wenger said that our players started with such energy and bite because of the way they had prepared. That may be part of it, but I have no doubt that the heightened passion of the crowd also played a part.

It encouraged our boys to snap into tackles, win the second balls and harass United all over the pitch.

But if you start bullying people, eventually you’re likely to provoke a response. The United players, being the competitive people they are, could not help but be roused into fighting back eventually.

But when they entertain the Chavs it will be a very different matter. It will be a game played in front of a complacent home crowd who don’t really care what the result is. Many will have consumed a fair few drinks on the way up from Surrey and – if it’s a nice afternoon – will probably doze through the match.

Let’s face it, the place is hardly a hotbed of atmosphere at the best of times. If the Emirates is a library, Old Toilet is a mausoleum. Without the fun.

In other words, I wouldn‘t be at all surprised if Chelsea come away with all three points.

My only hope is that Brave Sir Robin himself, despite the abuse he received from his former worshipers on Sunday, will feel he owes it to us to try and help us get a top four place.

I hope that his friends in the Arsenal dressing room – the ones he was so eager to pop in and see after scoring against them at the weekend – have urged him to do his bit.

How ironic would it be if goals from Robin van Persie played a part in keeping us in the Champions League next year?

RockyLives

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A Hard Fought Draw

April 29, 2013

This was on paper always going to be the most tricky game of our run in and chase for a Champions League spot. Added to the normal nerves of entertaining United was the return of Brave Sir Robin, and the indignity of having to give said Dutchman and his new teammates a guard of honour on to the pitch after winning the title last Monday. As a mark of my disgust I did not enter the living room until that silly business had been completed.

On to the match, Arsene had picked the side most of us would have expected before the game. Podolski in for the suspended Giroud and with a chance to prove that his future in the team rests in a central striking position.

I posted the following comment before kick off yesterday:

What do I want today? 3 points obviously…..but more importantly I want us to take the field showing a belief that we can win. Too often this season we have gone out in games against Top 4 competitors with a look of a team destined to lose and given a performance to match.

From the start the team set about United in a fashion we have not seen for quite some time. We pressed the ball, were quick to the tackle and competing for the second ball, so much so that within 1 and a half minutes we got our reward, Brave Sir Robin gifted possession to us in the centre circle, Cazorla picked out Podolski who moved it on to Rosicky who picked a lovely pass in to the feet of Theo, despite the tight angle he dispatched the ball past a static De Gea.

theo v united

Maybe this would be a good day after all, the best thing about this was that we did not stop or slow down for the next thirty minutes, continuing to press and fight for possession and being quick to block out United attacks.

Cazorla tried a curler to double the advantage but De Gea saved well (although a bit dramatically) and Ramsey breaking fed Podolski who shot from a tight angle when perhaps he should have squared it to where Theo was waiting, perhaps he was trying a little too hard to prove a point. Maybe young Aaron chose the wrong option with Theo looking better placed to shoot.

United started to get in to the game, but in the main were restricted to crosses and deep runners trying to get on the end of them, Szczesny saved well with his face from the Dutchman in the one clear chance they created.

The second goal of the game would be vital and it looked like it was only going to be ours but from half hour onwards we seemed to be paying the price for our frenetic start opportunities to counter attack were being slowed down, a few loose passes appeared when previously we had been precise and quick.

With the half time whistle approaching Bacary Sagna made a poor backpass to BFG, he has played in the same team long enough to know BSR would be looking for it, he picked up the ball and raced towards goal, Sagna worked hard to get back and the angle for any shot was tight but Sagna, red mist fully descended, lunged into a risky tackle, his outstretched studs made contact with the ball but from behind as he was the tackle would be a foul anywhere else on the pitch. In Sagna’s defence he must have been surprised to see BSR as he had been firmly tucked in Koscielny’s pocket up to that point. The Dutchman picked himself up and scored the penalty to level going in at half time.

The goal could not have come at a worse time. With legs starting to tire we needed to go in ahead and to be able to be lifted to push on, unfortunately we went in to the break heads down and regretting yet another individual mistake that have cost us too often this season.

From the restart it was clear United had been given a piece of the managers mind, it also looked like any rebuilding of confidence in the home dressing room in the second half had not worked. United were waiting to kill us on the counter attack, that they didn’t was testament to the defending of Koscielny and BFG and the keeping of Szczesny.

Mertesacker so often taking up positions to deny passes or make a large obstacle to surpass, Koscielny was his normal dynamic self quick into the tackle and clean interceptions, it is a shame that the appointment of Vermaelen as captain robbed Koscielny of so much game time this season. We have sorely missed his pace and power and it has been an important feature of our recent form.

Sagna had some more troublesome moments and most of United’s threat came from that side combined with midfielders struggling to match runs.

Going forward we were toothless, the ball got in the final third but there was no zip around the pitch either passing or running. Podolski appeared to have run out of steam after 55-60 minutes, he was failing to win any high ball or compete meaningfully. We missed Giroud’s workrate and ability to occupy defenders….he is an aerial threat that centre backs have to actively mark, which opens more space for the technicians in the team to use.

By the end it appeared that neither defence wanted to lose it and both attacks wanted to win it, there were large amounts of space from defence to defence and that gave us less chance to create a winner.

Wenger tried to force the issue bringing on Wilshere for Rosicky, Gervinho for Podolski and Ox for Ramsey. This did inject some more pace in to our play but we were restricted to more long shots, one from Cazorla just not carrying enough pace to beat De Gea.

Dowd brought the game to a close with a point acceptable to both. It was a shame that we could not get a winner, but as I have said before you get what you deserve in football and if you make mistakes like Sagna’s you do not deserve to win a game of football.

But the performance especially that in the first half was what I was looking for when I posted my early morning comment, we refused to be bullied, we stood up to the challenge, and we matched them physically man for man.

Only a fool would argue that BSR would not make our team better, but on yesterday’s performance not many of them impressed me enough to think they would make us better in other positions.

Ratings

Szczesny – 8 some good saves and a confident unflashy performance from the under fire young keeper

Sagna – 4 offensively poor, and cost us the equaliser

Mertesacker – 7.5 another solid performance from BFG, his experience and reading of the game makes him a far better defender than people give him credit for.

Koscielny – 8.5 (MotM) tucked BSR in his pocket where many other top strikers have sat before. Quality performance from the best Centre Half at the club

Gibbs – 7 not his attacking best but kept Valencia quiet most of the game

Arteta – 7 because of the way United play his defensive role was different today requiring him to track runs rather than intercept and clean up loose balls. He didn’t do this to the required standard too many late runners hitting the box untracked. With the ball he was his same reliable self.

Ramsey – 7 looked to tire early, some good passes and touches early on, was getting in good offensive positions all game without always being picked out.

Cazorla – 7 a relatively quiet game but forced De Gea into two good saves.

Rosicky – 7.5 good pass for the goal, lively about the pitch and unfortunate not to get a bit more curl on a well imagined shot.

Walcott – 8 great finish for the goal, and a constant threat to slower defenders. Needs to be much better without the ball. Did Evans a favour by keeping him at arms length when Evans appeared to want to come in and rub foreheads.

Podolski – 5.5 very poor in the centre forwards role, hope he improves over next two games, we will need him to help bring the midfielders into the game.

Subs
Wilshere – 6.5 very quiet didn’t really get into the pace of the game

Gervinho – 7 we became much more mobile with him on the pitch but with United defending deep there was little or no space to exploit.

Oxlade-Chamberlain – 7 looked to get hold of the ball and attempt to influence the game.

Written by Gooner in Exile

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Guard of Honour?????

April 27, 2013

A Guard of Honour for the newly crowned Premier League champions?

Arsenal Football club have intimated that the home players will line up as a Guard of Honour to welcome the new Champions onto the pitch prior to Sunday’s match.

The decent thing to do? Or, given the antipathy towards United in general and a certain Dutchman in particular, a provocation to the frustrated Arsenal faithful?

There have been suggestions that the fans should stand with their backs turned and in silence, this could prove to be embarrassingly ineffective unless the vast majority of those present took part. There will no doubt be a number of fans who will boo and in other ways express their contempt for the new Champions, as is their right.

Back in 1991 when Arsenal won the old League title our opponents for the final game of the season lined up to clap the new Champions onto the pitch, that demonstration of respect was organised by the away clubs manager a certain Alex Ferguson.

It is by no means an established tradition to provide a Guard of Honour, although it has been done on a few occasions. United have three more games to play after Sunday, will Chelsea, Swansea and West Bromwich be expected to honour United? If so where does it end? Does it carry on through next season until all the other Premiership sides have had their chance?

Frankly I’ve grown tired of the so called pre-match ceremony, teams marching out together, lining up and shaking each others hands in a totally meaningless ritual, particularly as it is often marred by one player or another refusing to shake the hand of an opponent over some perceived slight or previous disagreement ……

On Sunday afternoon and in all future matches let’s just get on with the game.

Written by Norfolk Gooner

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Arsene Wenger: Dictator or Loyal Servant?

April 26, 2013

I think the above question is the one question that if we had a clear answer would help unify the fragmented support. The question of Arsène’s power has raised it’s ugly head again in the last week with United winning the title. Many Arsenal fans are laying the blame solely at Wenger’s feet….”sold them the title” is a popular phrase used by these supporters.

Arsene-Wenger

In truth it’s hard to disagree with the fact that the traitorous Dutchman had a very positive impact for Salford United, and their early season form was boosted by his arrival. Ours on the other hand was affected by his departure and another summer of uncertainty.

The bone of contention however is that Arsène’s supporters don’t believe the decisions to sell players is solelyArsène ‘s and that his statements after another sale are simply those of a man being asked to follow the company line, but also bound by a loyalty the club he loves. Why else would he still be here?

Greed? I think he probably hasn’t got a lot to worry about when he retires.

Egotist? Maybe but if that was the case he would have taken the Madrid job a long time ago and given himself more chance to win a few trophies.

In a recent interview another departed player gave a slightly different version of events.

Wenger told me that if Cesc left, I would stay but Kroenke wanted the money.

The coach told me we’ll only take Gervinho. Cesc was already gone, I had only one year left so I decided to leave.

There is a subtle twist there in that the player himself says he chose to leave but he also says Kroenke wanted the money. There is though one undeniable statement – Arsène did not want him to leave.

So should Arsène come out and say as much? He has said previously that he could write a book about that summer, would it be better for us if like Mancini he would just come out and say “the Board are lying, they forced me to sell to buy, they did the same this summer too, that’s why I had to sell the Dutchman and Song, as I needed to bring in replacements in other positions with different skills and also replace the departed”.

Man City fans should be revolting against the manager given their squad but, despite having spent another *£14m net, by claiming that he was not allowed to spend as he had in the previous two summers (net spend £164m) the City fans have continued to show their support to him.

Arsenal fans disenchanted with the “all powerful” Wenger will point to the fact that Arsène says nothing of the sort as some kind of admission of guilt.

What if it is misplaced loyalty to a club that gave him the chance to manage at this level, what if he thinks it is better to present a united front, what if he can’t think of life without Arsenal.

There is no point saying “but if we’d kept X and Y we would be dominant” because we wouldn’t have A and Z if we hasn’t sold.

Those are the two sides of the story, but we do not know the truth, if we did would it change our opinions of the Board or Arsène? If I found out Arsène had final say on those players departure from the club then maybe I would view him differently, if on the other hand we find out he has nothing to do with contracts, sales, wage levels would it help us focus our questions (and ire) towards the board/owners? Would we believe again that “there’s only one Arsène Wenger”? Could we judge him solely on the teams performances knowing he has been working under internal pressure.

Gooner in Exile

*would have been £31m had Balotelli not exited in January

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Should Szczesny be replaced?

April 23, 2013

It’s widely expected that Arsenal will sign a new goalkeeper during the summer transfer window. There is little doubt that we need a reliable, experienced and talented ‘keeper, something that has been sadly lacking since the departure of David Seaman in 2003. I mean no disrespect to Jens Lehman but his erratic behaviour and volatile temperament, which led to him being nicknamed Mad Jens, indicates to me his unreliability.

Of our present crop Szczesny is probably the best but Arsene Wenger seems to have spotted a flaw in his temperament hence his recent relegation to the bench. Fabianski is a reasonable ‘keeper but is not up to the standard required by a club playing near the top of the Premiership and in, hopefully again next season, the Champions League. Neither is Mannone.

We have been “linked” with several ‘keepers over the recent past, although it has to be said that the “linkage” has been mostly speculation on the part of tabloid sports writers desperate for some copy.

Two names have, however, appeared with some regularity, Stokes City’s Bosnian international Asmir Begovic and, rather surprisingly, Barcelona’s Spanish international Victor Valdes. One other high profile ‘keeper recently added to the list is Real Madrid’s Iker Cassillas.

Should any of the three be signed then I would expect at least one of our present ‘keepers to depart.

Without knowing how Wenger really sees his ‘keepers it is difficult to know just what he is looking for in terms of a replacement, if he feels that one of them will “make it” in the near future then a short term option may be considered. If, however, that is not the case then a younger player will be the requirement.

It would seem from newspaper gossip that Begovic is the favourite at the moment, at 25 years old he should be approaching his peak, at Stoke City since 2010, he has played 87 times, so has plenty of Premiership as well as international experience having played 20 times for Bosnia Herzegovina.

In the been there, done that, got the T-shirt category both Cassillas and Valdes would be terrific signings but as both are 31 years old they do not represent long term solutions and Wenger’s well known reluctance to give contracts of more than one year to players in that age group means that either could only be seen as stop gaps.

My personal preference would be for Wenger to take the long term view and sign Begovic, but either of the other two would more than adequately fill the gap up to the end of our manager’s present contract.

Begovic, Cassillas or Valdes? What do you think?

Written by Norfolk Gooner

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Cazorla Out?

April 22, 2013

Santi Cazorla was below par against the Cottagers on Saturday and also struggled to influence the home game against Everton.

It has raised the worrying question of whether the talented little Spaniard is starting to burn out after a spectacular first season in the English top flight.

There is no doubting his genius – as he has shown on numerous occasions during the campaign. Twelve Premier League goals and nine assists so far is an excellent return.

santi

But just lately he has seemed somewhat diminished.

Some may point to the fact that he has been played on the right recently to accommodate either Wilshere or Rosicky in the central attacking midfield berth. He plays in a right sided position for the Spanish national side, but there is a strong case to be made that his most effective position for Arsenal has been in the middle, pulling the strings.

But even though I agree with that, I don’t necessarily see that as the reason for the slight dip in form he is experiencing.

Prior to joining the world’s greatest club, Santi had spent his career entirely in the Spanish league, at Villareal and Malaga.

The problem with the Spanish league is that it is as non-competitive a league as you’ll find outside of Scotland (or at least, Scotland before Rangers’ fall from grace).

The fact that Real Madrid and Barcelona are allowed to make their own TV rights deals means La Liga is the most financially rigged competition in world football. The other teams are there just to make up the numbers. Consequently many games are not contested as fiercely as they should be. It’s a huge contrast with England, where the TV money is shared more equally and every game has the potential to be a blood-and-thunder battle, regardless of how lowly the opponent.

Santi Cazorla has played 45 games for Arsenal in all competitions this season. Incredibly, 43 of those have been as a starter.

This leads me to believe that he is just running out of steam in this late stage of the league campaign.

There was a telling moment in Saturday’s game where Theo (I think it was Theo) made a great run into the Fulham box and Santi tried to slide the ball into his path for what would have been, surely, another Arsenal goal.

At most points this season that pass would have been completely routine for Santi, but against Fulham he overhit it by a yard and the chance went begging.

It was a pass made by a tired man with tired legs. And it makes me wonder whether he needs to be rested for the remainder of the run in. Not rested completely, of course, but dropped to the bench to be used as a super sub if we are chasing a game late on.

I know this will sound like heresy to many and I expect to be (politely) shouted down in the comments. But I think we should appreciate that Santi has never in his life played football of this intensity for this long and the only surprising thing is that he hasn’t flagged sooner.

Of course, the three games against Norwich, Everton and Fulham all came within the space of a week and there are now full-week breaks between all our remaining games, but I still feel Santi is a man in need of a summer break.

So if we take Santi out of the front line, how do we replace him? Well, we already have his central midfield replacements ready (Wilshere and Rosicky) and it allows us to play a more wing-minded attacker like Theo or Gervinho on the wide right.

Arsene Wenger has shown himself willing to take tough decisions already this year (dropping his captain; dropping Szczesney). Will he be tough enough to rest arguably the best player at the club?

RockyLives

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Arsenal stars in the Making

April 18, 2013

The NextGen series was concluded some time back but I really liked the concept of NextGen. It gives a platform to all young players to showcase their quality to the whole world and show what they are capable of. Arsenal was unlucky to go out in the semi-final. Unlucky because they were leading the game but they lost the nerves when it matters a lot. Nevertheless they reached the semi final.

Playing at the Emirates in front of a big crowd in the quarterfinal will have given huge confidence to all the youngsters. The crowd supported them well,  most of seats were occupied and that shows how much we care for all young gunners. In this, the first NextGen series some of the performances by the  young guns have really impressed me. I have come up with small list of reserves players who are capable of becoming stars in coming years. . .

Serge Gnabry (Midfielder / Winger)

Serge-Gnabry

Gnabry signed for Arsenal in 2010 but due to his age he joined officially in 2011 when he became 16 years old. He signed his first professional contract at age 17. Gnabry played most of the games on the left wing for the reserves. He is known for his lethal pace, passing ability, creative play has been really very impressive. In a game against Marseilles he sprinted a loose ball and assisted Apkom to make 2-0. Wenger watched that match live, He played 20 minutes against Koln in friendly however he was not that impressive but you cannot judge player in 20 minutes. He played 60 minutes against Reading  and was not that impressive in that game either and was replaced by Thomas Eisfield. Against Liverpool –U21 he scored an absolute beauty. We should loan him out next season to gain first team experience, He is not the finished article yet and it will be too early to promote him.

Thomas Eisfeld (Attacking Midfielder)

eisfeld

Eisfeld signed for Arsenal on 31st January 2012 from BVB. Wenger describe him as next Mario Gotze. Eisfeld played in the  friendlies against Malaysia XI & Kitchee and scored in both the matches. He was one of the very impressive players in Arsenal’s Asia tour. His play-making abilities , on-field presence of mind , technical understanding makes him one of hottest prospects in Europe. His substitute cameo against Reading where we came from behind and won the match was very impressive. He can play on wings or in midfield but his natural position is playing as SS or No 10. He is quite deadly from that position given his passing ability and eye for goal he has. He has played in 20 U-21 Matches and has scored 8 goals and 4 assists quite impressive. I hope Wenger will promote him next season, if not we should loan him out because he will leave Emirates if he doesn’t get enough first team action and we don’t want to loose such a great talent.

Hector Bellerin (Defender / Winger)

Hector Bellerin

Frankly speaking I had not heard his name before NextGen but he was one of the star performer for Arsenal in NextGen Series. Bellerin was signed by Arsenal from Barca Youth academy at age of 16. He started playing as Right back for Arsenal reserves and within some days he made right back position his own. He played in almost all the matches for the reserves. He is known for his pace, crossing ability, attacking mindset and high work rate. He is very good while attacking and quite impressive while defending. Surely he can be backup for Jenks once Sagna leaves . Due to his impressive run in reserve league Arsenal offered him a new contract. I don’t see him getting promoted to first team for at least two seasons due to the other options we have at right back  in the current Arsenal squad. A loan out will be a ideal solution.

Ignasi Miquel (Defender)

Arsenal's Ignasi Miquel celebrates after scoring against Coventry City during their English League Cup soccer match in London

Miquel has been on the verge of breaking through at Arsenal for several seasons without ever quite making it. He is our reserve captain, he is well known figure in first team as he is been playing in league cup since 2010-11. He played every minute in League cup for Arsenal in 2011-12 season. His natural position is Centre back but he has played as Left back in several occasions. He is one who is on the verge of breaking into the first team for the past 3 years. He is known for his aerial ability, game reading and strength. No doubt he is very good player and needs more first team experience, A loan out will be ideal given the option we have in current squad in Centre back and may be more addition in the summer will cancel out his chance to play regular first team next season. But surely I want to keep hold of him

So this was a small list of players who are capable of playing in first team in the near future. I am sure you will all have some young players in mind to discuss, if so please share with all 😉

Written by Manthan

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Arsenal Get The Point

April 17, 2013

I don’t know about you, but I really enjoyed the game last night. I know, I know, it’s bad for us given that picking up only one point drags us back within range of Spurs, as well as Chelsea. But the game was a keenly contested match between two proper, competitive teams. Everything was played on the edge, and that makes for an enjoyable spectacle. I’m sure I’m not alone in having enjoyed this 0-0 more than our 3-1 win on Saturday.

Not that the match started that well for us. For the first 20 minutes, we failed to show any quality on the ball, and it all looked pretty disjointed. And we could easily have gone a goal down, when Steven Pienaar received a through-ball from Phil Jagielka that managed to elude both Koscielny and Mertesacker. Fortunately, Szczesny was quick to attack the ball and did enough to put off Pienaar, whose shot sailed over the bar. Bit of a let-off though.

It took a while for us to find our rhythm but eventually things started to click for us, especially in terms of more effective use of the ball. Our best first half chance came near the 40-minute mark, when some sublime play from Cazorla led to Ramsey putting in an excellent first-time cross, which was delivered perfectly into the danger-zone, where Giroud was waiting. Unfortunately, Big Ollie’s shot wasn’t what it should have been and it went wide.

002

Everton took a robust approach to the game – I don’t think they were especially dirty, but it was clear that they would get in our players’ faces pretty quickly. The referee, the unfamiliar Neil Swarbrick, wasn’t really up to the intensity of the match, and didn’t deal well with some pretty obvious gamesmanship from Everton, not least from Marouane Fellaini, who often made up for being outpaced with arms going across the player he was competing with. The most obvious failure of the referee came when he failed to give the most obvious of second yellow cards to Darron Gibson, when he cynically body-checked Walcott to prevent a useful break. There was simply no room for debate, it was as obvious a yellow card offence as you could wish to see, but the referee bottled it. But for the most part, both sides approached the game fairly, even if some of the tackles were strong.

It was great to see Arsenal rediscover the joys of playing on the break. And it was from one of those that Chamberlain received the ball when advancing into the penalty area. He had a choice: shoot or pass. He opted to slide a pass into Giroud, but Coleman did just enough to scramble the ball away before Giroud could get it home. Perhaps the Ox should have gone for his shot after all. This was probably the closest we came to scoring, we opened up Everton completely.

A few minutes later, with Everton tiring, Arteta received a lovely pass from Cazorla and advanced into the box – for a moment, it seemed to open up and a shot against his old club appeared likely, but Jagielka recovered his position to snuff the attack out. A little later, Chamberlain played in Giroud, who was forced a little wide, so the angle was narrow, making the shot a tough one – his effort had to be hit with power if it was to get past Howard but it lacked control and soared over the bar.

Overall, a draw seemed right – a lot of effort was spent by both sides, but neither side got many clear sights on goal. It’s a shame only to draw but that point could well end up being very valuable for us. There were some good performances from the Blues, I particularly liked Ross Barkley, who very nearly scored in the first half, and their defence played very well throughout. But they tired in the last 10-15 minutes, which was when some of our best chances arrived.

Szczesny: 7 Having had a rest after a period of declining confidence and performances, the other Pole in goal did a really good job, with some sharp interventions and safe hands. I was also really pleased to see him deliver a Schmeichel-like long throw, to Gibbs on the halfway line, to launch an attack. I always think when I see a keeper do that that it shows he’s confident in his abilities.

Gibbs: 8 Very good performance from Gibbs, both defending and going forward. He even managed to get in our first shot.

Koscielny: 7 Kos did well, working so effectively in tandem with the BFG. He won most of his aerial duels and generally remained highly concentrated.

Mertesacker: 7 Solid performance from our beanpole, he had Anichebe in his pocket for pretty much the whole game.

Sagna: 7.5 The man with the beads had one of his best games of the season. It’s a shame he can’t cross very well, because he combines very well with the more attack-minded players on his flank.

Arteta: 8 A typically excellent performance from Mr Legohead – he did what he does best, lots of short passes that allowed the side to keep its shape and the ball to be kept moving.

Ramsey: 8.5 MOTM Picked up where he left off at the weekend, with a confident, energetic display. The ground this guy can cover is impressive, and it was great to see him sharp into the challenge. It didn’t work every time but Ramsey turned over possession on various occasions by reason of getting his challenges in early.

Cazorla: 7 Santi had some sublime moments with the ball, there are times when you see his control and think he must have velcro on his boots. And his passing game is often beautiful – he delivers the ball with care and thought, so that it usually arrives at the recipient at the perfect pace and direction. That said, there were also some unusually sloppy moments from the litll’un.

Wilshere: 7 A much, much better performance from LJ than his blowing-away-the-cobwebs contribution on Saturday. Wilshere took a bit of a battering at times last night but he soaked that up and provided a solid performance, even if his passing wasn’t always able to slice through the Toffees’ defence.

Walcott: 6 Theo didn’t find his space often enough, and didn’t have sufficient impact on the game, That said, his passing was very efficient.

Giroud: 6.5 Worked as hard as ever, and had three good chances. He didn’t manage to get any of them on target, which ultimately cost us two points. But he didn’t do much wrong.

Podolski: 7 Did well when he was on the pitch, but he didn’t get any clear opportunities to do what he does best with the ball.

Oxlade-Chamberlain: 7 Added energy at just the right time, when he came on to replace a slightly ineffectual Walcott. The Ox created some good openings, and arguably should have scored.

Monreal: 7 Came on late in the game, didn’t do much wrong, but did manage to pick up a quick yellow card, when he took one for the team.

Written by 26May1989

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Posted by Rasp

Meet The Underminers

April 15, 2013

What do you call someone who does the opposite of supporting their own team?

Well, yes, there is that, but this is a family blog so four-letter words are frowned upon. We need another name for them.

I was pondering this question on Saturday while watching us struggle to break down a 10 man Norwich defence (more of a parked combine harvester than a bus, really).

At this crucial time of the season, with a very real prize still to play for, you would think that the home crowd at the Emirates would really be doing its utmost to give the players extra belief and support.

And I’m sure that’s exactly what most of the fans do and did.

But watching live on the telly in North America it was depressing to hear the moans and groans start to reverberate around the ground after the first misplaced pass of the day.

Now I’m all for moans and groans in the right circumstances, but not at a home game for my beloved Arsenal.

I wasn’t the only person to pick up on this from the television coverage, as the Arsenal Arsenal comments on Saturday will attest to. However, not being there live, you always wonder whether the microphones are painting an inaccurate picture. Maybe the TV crew just happened to have plonked their sound recording kit next to the most miserable bunch of tossers in the whole ground.

But the impression of a vocal minority sowing discord was soon backed up by AA regulars who had actually been at the game. Some even described how they had felt obliged to tell the moaners to stop moaning.

But here’s the thing. I don’t believe that these fans (the moaners) are any less dedicated to the Arsenal than you or me.

Like you and me they are fans (which, let’s remind ourselves, is short for “fanatics”). I imagine they live, breathe, dream and sleep Arsenal just like we do. They almost certainly care just as much and want what the rest of us want: a successful team playing great football and winning trophies.

But where I part company with them is that I don’t accept that the term “supporters” applies to them because, in simple terms, they do not “support.”

Well, OK, they “support” in the financial meaning of the word – in that they pay for their tickets and any in-stadium purchases and merchandise and this contributes to the upkeep and running of the club. But they do not “support” the team when it’s on the field of play.

I believe that when people refer to “supporting” a football team (or any sports team) the more appropriate meaning of the verb “to support” is: “to hold up or serve as a foundation or prop for.”

When our players enter the battle, we want them to feel “supported” – that is, that they have firm foundations of good will and encouragement from the fans – foundations that are demonstrated – in the time-honoured way of football – by chants, cheers and songs.

So when some individuals in the crowd do the opposite of this, they are not “supporting” – they are, to continue the architectural/engineering analogy, “undermining” the team.

One of the  dictionary definitions of “undermine” is: “to weaken or cause to collapse by removing underlying support, as by digging away or eroding the foundation.”

So that’s it: the fans who prefer moaning and groaning to supporting and cheering are The Underminers.

Sometimes the “weakening” that they cause is painfully visible. Take Gervinho. He came into the Norwich game off a few good performances. He had been scoring and assisting others to score. Perhaps crucially, those good performances had been away from the Emirates (Arsenal’s away support is, thankfully, almost entirely devoid of Underminers).

Despite his recent good form, the Emirates Underminers were on his back pretty quickly on Saturday

For the first 30 minutes or so he was by far our most potent attacking threat and created several opportunities, not least from his willingness to attack the box and take on defenders.

Most of the opportunities he created fizzled out and as each one did, the Underminers got louder and louder.  Perhaps his best chance was when put through by a brilliant pass from Santi Cazorla. The Swerve took it round the Norwich ‘keeper but his touch was a bit heavy and the ball ended up going too wide for him to score. Instead he squared it along the goal line, perhaps expecting that Giroud might have bothered to anticipate such a thing.

But Giroud had not and the opportunity died amid a cacophony of Undermining. Yes, Gerv had taken a heavy touch. In the same game I saw Cazorla, Wilshere, Walcott and Podolski all also have heavy or bad touches in good positions. The latter group received some murmurs of Undermining, but nothing like the scorn heaped on poor Gervinho. No wonder the Ivorian went into his shell a little after that.

But that’s another characteristic of the Underminers: they like to have a target-du-jour on whom to heap their anger and vitriol.

I was in the ground when a clearly mentally disturbed Eboue was booed to the point of tears some years ago and substituted by Wenger as an act of human mercy. I did not boo him. I just felt sad.

Saturday’s Man of the Match – Aaron Ramsey – got his turn last season. How gratifying it see to see that he was tough enough to weather that storm and come back stronger than ever. Fabianski, Almunia, Denilson, Adebayor, Walcott and others were all targeted at different times.

What frustrates me about the Underminers is that, as I mentioned earlier, they undoubtedly want the same thing as we Supporters (namely, Arsenal success). But they can’t seem to see that their very actions help make that success less likely. I might “want” to have a hundred grand in the bank, but if I don’t get a job (or at least buy a lottery ticket) it ain’t likely to happen.

It’s counterproductive and they seem completely blind to the effect they have. I’ve seen Underminers with their kids in tow, the kids moaning and groaning and swearing at our own players just as much as their parents (Underminors?).

So what do we do about the Underminers? Have they always been there? Did they arise with the move to the new stadium? Are they a sub-section of fans who were spoilt during the good times and now feel entitled? Are they the modern-day “consumers” (rather than fans) that we keep hearing about?

Can we reason with them? Should we ban them? Thump them? Report them to the stewards for negativity below and beneath the call of duty?

I would welcome your thoughts. And it would be especially interesting to hear from some self-confessed “moaners and groaners.” Maybe you feel that what you’re doing is for the best in the long run. If so, please tell us your reasoning.

Finally I would like to include a comment that 26May made yesterday, because I think it holds a lot of truth and informs this discussion: “…the performance of our home crowd is part of the reason players of promise have sometimes laboured to do well and part of the reason why we have failed to achieve what we should have.

“I think we became a quiet crowd 20 years ago or more, other than at big matches, and quietness is something we need to accept. But the negativity, moaning and impatience has built in the last few years, and that p*sses me off more than I can express. I sometimes sit in the North Bank Lower rather than my usual East Lower, but always have to steel myself against the incessant whining of a number of the regulars there… All of that said, from where I was sitting, I didn’t think the crowd was at its worst yesterday.”

RockyLives

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Posted by RockyLives

A Fair Result or One We Got Away With?

April 14, 2013

I think the answer to that is a bit of both. Across 90 minutes on the balance of play, possession and opportunities carved out I don’t think that 3-1 over-flattered us. That we were still 1-0 down going into the 84th minute does leave a certain feeling of having got away with this one though. I will, however, look at the positives that we kept fighting and pressing and that this is a very important trait that I see increasingly in this squad, which should hold us in good stead for the future.

Pod v norwich

Early on we dominated possession and carved out a couple of decent openings. I thought some of our old failings of overplaying it and taking one too many passes rather than taking the shot at the right time was in evidence. The pitch was becoming slick from the rain and seemed to be begging players to hit hard low shots that could spin up off the pitch and cause their keeper problems. When we did shoot it seemed to be 2-3 passes too late and the shot became predictable.

Giroud headed onto the bar from a Sagna cross early on but our best chance of the first half was when Gervinho was put through one on one with their keeper courtesy of a slide rule pass from Santi. As their keeper came out Gervinho, rightly in my opinion, opted to go round the keeper but took far too heavy a touch which took him too wide and narrowed the angle. He still came close to finding the net but the ball went just wide of the far post. It would have been a tap in for any player following up and I thought Giroud was slightly guilty of ball watching. If you look at it again he jogs along watching Gervinho and suddenly realises too late he ought to be sprinting into the box. I think he could have got there had he instinctively set off at full pace the moment Gervinho was put through.

The second half seemed to continue where the first left off and we weren’t capitalising on our dominance in possession and territory and you just had a feeling what was coming next. Norwich had hardly troubled our goal but once again the old set piece goal against the run of play undid us on the 56th minute. I was seated behind the goal and remember looking at Turner and thinking I hope one of our bigger lads gets tight to him because he is a big chap and has a history of scoring from set pieces. The fact that arguably their most dangerous player at set pieces ended up getting a free unchallenged header reopens the debate about the merits of zonal marking.

I had to watch MOTD to get an extra feel for the game as it is easy to miss a lot when you sit directly behind the goal. I wanted to have a look at the lead up to the free kick and on initial evidence it looked like their player tripped over his own feet so I waited for the replay and the better camera angle to get a better idea but do you think MOTD were interested in looking at a potential injustice against Arsenal that resulted in a goal?

Gervinho and Jack hadn’t really been at the races in this game and Arsene waited another 4 minutes before subbing them for Walcott and Podolski. I felt it gave us a boost with Walcott causing immediate problems down the right and arguably our most natural finisher sniffing around their box. It didn’t take too long before a decent passing move saw Podolski clear and he smashed his shot against the bar. The equalising goal was still eluding us however and Arsene replaced Sagna with the Ox on the 80th minute for an all out assault on their goal. His introduction in addition to the other 2 subs did the trick and we all of a sudden looked far more direct and penetrative.

The equaliser came from a slightly controversial penalty decision. This time MOTD decided to make a real song and dance about it and funnily enough the pro Spurs Lineker, the just behind us in the league and soon to be playing us Everton manager, and the perennially Arsenal disliking Hanson all shouted injustice against Norwich. Keown showed in a close up that although they both grappled a bit the defender did indeed initiate the grabbing of Girouds shirt and clearly pulled him down. The ref should have seen it but didn’t and the linesman correctly spotted it from a greater distance. Well done to him I said as David Moyes, possibly with some ulterior psychological motive, intimated we had been thrown an incorrect decision. Anyway Arteta coolly slotted home and it was 1-1.

What came next was one of those ends that just makes you smile and, if anything, leave the game even happier than if you had the game sewn up on the hour mark. The players obviously realised the importance of the 3 points and kept pressing and cue 2 excellent goals in the last 2 minutes. Podolski’s goal for me illustrated why we should play him more often as no other Arsenal player has his finishing ability.

Happy gooners

A critical 3 points and on to the tougher fixture of Everton on Tuesday. I think we will have to be more clinical in attack and more solid on the set pieces if we want to get the 3 points in that game. Had it been Everton today I am not so sure we would have got away with it. On to the ratings :-

Fabianski 7 No chance for the goal and didn’t have much to do but made a couple of critical stops when needed.

Sagna 6 Considering we had them mostly pinned back he didn’t seem to offer too much to our offence in this game.

Vermaelen 7 Had a solid game. Not too much defending to be done. Their goal seemed to be a tactical fault of the whole team rather than being down to one individual.

Koscielny 7 Ditto for Kos as with TV.

Gibbs 7.5 First game for a bit and looked good both in attack and defence.

Arteta 7.5 Kept us ticking over and put in a good shift. A cool head when needed for the penalty.

Ramsey 8 My MOTM I thought Rambo had a good game today. He seems to have matured recently and today, despite no individual brilliance, I thought he gave an all action display in the Steven Gerrard mode.

Cazorla 7.5 At times drifted out of the game but whenever we are dangerous or create chances he always seems to have some hand in it.

Wilshere 6 Struggled a bit today after his enforced absence. I am not troubled by this. It is nice that others take up the mantle when it is not happening for him and I think a fit Jack will be important to us for these last games.

Giroud 6.5 Scored a goal and as usual worked tirelessly but seemed a little off the pace of the game today.

Gervinho 6 After a couple of good games he was back to one of his more frustrating performances. It remains to be seen if this is just how it is with him or whether he can turn out the good performances more regularly.

SUBS

Walcott 7 Caused immediate problems to them when he came on and all 3 subs seemed to turn the game back in our favour.

Podolski 7 Scored a good one and crashed another on to the bar. You feel we have a greater goal threat when he gets in and around the opposition box.

Oxlaide-Chamberlain 7 Good direct running and made the second goal with a bit of inspiration.

Written by GoonerB

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Posted by peachesgÖÖner

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