Our hubcaps? Have them, we’ve got the points.

March 4, 2012

Smash and grab, against the run of play, undeserved, call it what you want, Robin van Persie’s two superbly taken goals gave us a very important win at Anfield and with it three extremely precious points.

Buoyed by the glorious fight back last week against spuds I sat myself in front of the telly ready for the match with a greater confidence in my heart than had been the case in more recent weeks. But, continue where we left off last weekend, we did not, Liverpool came on to us with drive, and purpose; they, it has to be said were bossing the game – this lasted all of, well, exactly two and a half minutes, lol before the good guys collected themselves and started to play.

Although, it wasn’t pretty, not as pretty as last weekend: the passing wasn’t as crisp, the creativity wasn’t quite as ingenious but enough collective self belief remained to hold things together and that is in spite of having to suffer yet another totally unjust penalty being awarded against us.

Did you see the replay on the telly at the end where they put what seemed like a magnifying glass on the incident – never touched him, not a feather?

Still, today was the day when Szczesny had decided to be Man of the Match, up stepped Kuyt and across went Chesney’s hand, have another go Kuyt, hahahahah missed again. Did you see Vermealen’s celebration, if you haven’t take another look, passion or what?

No, Liverpool were not going to score today, it took one of our own to give them a leg up. I think it was a very dangerous game that Kozzer was playing; although, I am prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt when he said that he knew that by giving them the lead it would fire Arsenal into action, the same way as it did last weekend, fair enough Koz I am just glad you never tested us by giving them a two goal lead. Am I making too many references to last week lol?

The truth is we were disjointed, the three elements of the team, the defence, the midfield and the attack seemed unable to link up with each other, Song was poor — there I said it, Alex does have a tendency to start slowly but he is usually covered by Arteta, although, today he was miss placing passes which is completely out of character; Theo was having trouble getting past Enrique, and offensively Benayoun offered nothing which left van Persie isolated.

But, remember when the BFG got injured and many said that the ideal CB partnership was Koscielny and Vermealen, I was one of them, well, they were magnificent, my only surprise was what took them so long to gel as a unit. Gibbs helps as does Sagna who was outstanding for the full ninety minutes which brings me back to the game and our only attempt on goal in the first half.

Be honest now, when the ball was rolled out to Bacary on the right wing which one of you expected that kind of cross? Guilty, I didn’t, what a peach, the most perfect angle met sweetly by the Boy Wonder to head us back on terms just before the break.

As both teams took to the field for the start of the second half you could tell that Liverpool’s resistance had not yet been completely broken, there was something about them that still naively thought they had a shot at fourth place, they huffed and they puffed, they hit the post a couple of times but there wasn’t really anything too troubling.

The first significant incident came when they knocked Arteta out cold but just as I was thinking ‘you hubcap thieving bunch of banned words’, their supporters silenced me by giving him a standing ovation as he was carried from the field. That kind of behaviour may be rare in football today but nowhere near as rare as an appearance of a Lesser Spotted Diaby, a real collector’s item this was.

I happily admit I was excited to see him back and his first shimmy that took him effortlessly past a Liverpool player got the blood racing even higher, probably for the first time in the match we started taking the game to them. That’s not to say we started to look like we were going to score, we never gave that impression but it no longer looked like the only winner, if there were to be one, would be the Dippers.

But, as quick as the Lesser Spotted Diaby appeared he was gone, did I dream it? On came the Ox full of fight, at the end of the game I was left thinking that it was a tough call to decide who was more effective: Diaby or the Ox?

But either way it was getting towards the time when van Persie had a decision to make. Some may have noticed him around the ninety minute mark looking up thoughtfully, obviously pondering that all important question: do I want to score, because as we all know, ‘he’s Robin van Persie and he scores when he wants‘?

Robin decided he did, all that was needed was someone to supply him with the opportunity: enter the world’s best DM, that god like, lion of a man (a bit too much?) Alex Song sent in a chip that Fabregas would have been proud of for van Persie to rifle home. Comparing Song’s pass to Fabregas is, as we all know, high praise indeed but there is a higher being in the Arsenal pantheon, sit up straight, pay attention, deference is required, I am about to use the “B” word. The way van Persie guided the ball past Reina was Bergkampesque. The away supporters went wild and deservedly so in my opinion when you consider some of the disappointments they have had to endure first hand in the not too distant past.

COYRRG

Did I mention the chavs lost? Hahahahahaha.

Szeczney: as I have said, Man of the Match, commanding, powerful, intelligent, good distribution, he just gets better and better. 9

Sagna: one of his really, really good games, I expect a great deal from him defensively and he delivered, I don’t expect too much offensively so his cross that led to a goal was a really good surprise. 8.5

Koscielny: superb I thought, it is not easy playing against that diving little Uruguayan rat but our Kozzer stopped him scoring so, 8

Vermaelen: can’t play two games of ninety minutes in a week purleese, this is Thomas Vermaelen we are talking about here. 8

Gibbs: he is getting better isn’t he? I thought his major significance this season would be what he brought to the attack but I like the way he is going about improving his defensive game. 7.5

Rosicky: hmmmmm, not easy, he did work hard it must be said but the job of the person who plays in between Song and RvP is to produce magic and there wasn’t enough of it 7

Song: a very poor first half, ponderous, wasted passes, I thought ‘I am going to have to eat Peaches’ humble pie’…….nooooooooooo, what a pass, what a magnificent piece of football to help win us the game. 12

Walcott: oh why me? I don’t think that last week’s goals change anything, in games when teams are foolish enough to come onto us then Theo will excel but they are the tiny minority of a season, the majority play two banks of four and he has never once shown that he is capable of dealing with such a situation. Still not convinced 6

van Persie: the Boy Wonder can do no wrong 9

Benayoun: I wrote above that he offered nothing in attack in the first half and I stand by that but what I purposely left out, until now, was to say that he worked his socks off for the defence; he tracked back like a demon, covering Gibbs whenever necessary. 7

PS The Lesser Spotted Diaby should not be confused with the Greater Spotted Diaby which, as I am sure you all know, is far more common.

Enjoy your Sunday.

Written by LB

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Posted by LB

You’ll Never Walk Alone

September 13, 2011

You’ll never Walk Alone has always been my favourite football anthem, it reminds me of the wonderful Liverpool teams of the 60’s/70’s and Bill Shankly and the Kop and black and white TV and my first visit to Anfield. It is THE football anthem. Why am I writing about YNWA?  Well, because it is Borussia Dortmund’s anthem, and I have a feeling that with 80,000 Germans singing and cheering on their young and extremely talented side our boys in Red are going to be feeling very alone. Alone but hopefully not afraid.

Like most fans I was hoping that we would not draw BD in the final group of the CL draw, and  am sure I was not alone in using a 4 letter word when we drew them. Borussia are  a top, top team and despite losing Sahin to Real Madrid (he was voted Bundesliga player of the Year) they have (unlike us) retained their squad, even rebuffing a reported €40m bid from Arsenal the 19.y.o Mario Gotze.

Gotze is just one of the exciting talents in this Dortmund team, but let us focus upon him for a moment. Just 19, already touted as the future of German football and hailed by German Football Association’s technical director Matthias Sammer who called him “one of the best talents that we’ve ever had” –  high praise indeed. Remind you of anyone in our squad?  How we miss our Little Jack.

Barrios, a Paraguayan, plays upfront for BD and last season was top scorer in the Bundesliga in 2010 and scored heavily last season. Kagawa an attacking MF is one of Japans most talked about young talents, at 22 he already has 25 International caps. Subotic is a monster Serbian CB whom Chelsea  (and supposedly AFC) tried to sign in summer,  just 22 and a class player. I could continue but you will just get as depressed and anxious as I am.

BD’s stadium holds 81,000 fans and is the largest in Germany, they have an average attendance of  over 77k a game, the highest in Europe. Interestingly, BD are quoted on the German Stock Exchange – the only publicly owned club in the Bundesliga

Arsenal go into this difficult game missing Wilshere, Ramsey, Rosicky and Diaby in midfield. We have an untried defensive unit and are missing our best defender (apart from Chesney). And yet, we have cause for optimism: We have a terrific frontline, we have a midfield with PL experience  (if not CL), a defence that has a good mix of pace and height, and we are at our best playing away in Europe (OK – that might be an exaggeration)

My team:

World’s No.1.

Sagna Mertesacker  Koscielny  Gibbs

Song  Arteta  Frimpong

Walcott  Van Persie  Gervinho

Tough call on whom to play alongside Song and Arteta in midfield, but Frimpong adds some defensive steel and energy which will hopefully allow Song to get forward and be creative.  The front three have pace aplenty which will be important in what is sure to be an open, attacking game.

Most pundits have written off our chances of getting even a point from tonight. They cite our current lack of form and Dortmund’s undoubted home strengths (their loss this weekend was the first in over a year), but these pundits are always writing us off. We have reason to be confident, Dortmund have only 7 points from 15 this season, they are stuttering upfront and have an ageing defence. Their team has little Champions League experience and winning the Bundesliga is nowhere near the achievement it once was, I firmly believe Arsenal would win it with our current squad.

A win is a tough ask, but why not?

COYRRG

Written by Big Raddy

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Posted by Erik the Red

Europe – guess who is back?

August 25, 2011

14 years in the Champions League and counting!

 By TotalArsenal

 

 

— Udinese – Arsenal: 1-2 Match Report —

 Let’s open with a cliché: this was a game of two halves. The first half was ok, but possibly not good enough to qualify for this year’s CL. During the second half Arsenal found its identity again and deservedly beat a spirited, and at times attractively footballing, Udinese football team.

We started very well in the first half, which was incredibly important, given everything that happened to Arsenal over the last few months – on and off the pitch. It was a warm and humid night, and the pitch in the Stadio Friuli looked great (on TV). We started with Szczesny in goal, a back-four of Jenkinson- JD – TV – Sagna; Frimpong, Song and Ramsey in midfield; and Gervinho, Theo and RvP upfront. I had hoped we would play Frimpong and Song together in midfield, but had not expected Ramsey to be the advanced midfielder. I thought Arsene would put Rosicky there from the start, but he kept him on the bench instead – and what a clever move that turned out to be!

Jenkinson started ahead of Traore in our back-four and it is almost a football-fairytale story how the young ‘prince’ Jenkinson has made it to the first eleven of our team in such a short period; and what a prospect he is! Sagna was moved to the LB position, but it was there where we were at our weakest during the first half – and Udinese at their strongest.

Initially Udinese had no answer to our formation and we started to take some control over the game. It was great to see our attacking intentions from the start: Gervinho, Theo, Ramsey and RvP were all hungry and had shots on goal whenever possible. We were also happy to play the long ball on occasion, which gave us the necessary variety in our attacking strategy.

The beauty of winning 1-0 at home, is that an away goal counts double and that is such a psychological advantage during the second leg of a CL qualifier. It totally suited Arsenal who do not know anything else than go out there and attack. The pressure was with Udinese, who knew very well that scoring two goals could still not be enough, as Arsenal are always capable of scoring the all important away goal (or two!).

Gervinho was the most dangerous for us and what a gem Arsene has bought for us this summer. The Gerv just sticks to his role and does it diligently and oh-so effectively. It looks so simple what he does, but how good is it to have a player again who loves to attack space and take on defenders whenever possible for 90 minutes long. The partnership between him and RvP is already looking fantastic and they have only played together for two months.

Frimpong had a good first half, but Song did look a bit lost and rusty at times. Slowly but steadily, Udinese got more grip/dominance on the game during the last twenty minutes of the first half, and in Di Natale they have a player of great quality. He was a joy to watch throughout the game; such clever runs, such energy, such a good balance and body strength, and such lethality in front of goal.

Udinese started to put up two rows of four – very close together – in front of our attackers and we started to struggle a bit to get through. We were vulnerable for attacks from Udinese’s right wing, but luckily we escaped a couple of times. It was, however, during this period that Arsenal had their best chance to nick the all important away goal in the first half. Gervinho found his way into the box with a brilliant move and pulled the ball back perfectly for Theo. The latter hit the ball low and hard – and on target – but the impressive Udinese goalkeeper Handanovic made a great save. RvP received the rebound, but could also not find a hole in the Udinese defence, resulting in another good save by their goalie.

Finally, Udinese found the opening with a couple of quality moves:  Pinzi, with some quick thinking, found Di Natale with a good cross, who had positioned himself cleverly between Jenkinson and Djourou – who both should have been tighter on him. Di Natale – the ex-international – proved why he has been the Italian top scorer for the last two seasons, by scoring a classy header over our goalie, from only a half chance. Szczesny had no chance at all. All in all, Udinese deserved to be in front at the break.

In the second half, Rosicky came in for – the impressive  Frimpong. This was clearly no reflection on Frimpong’s performance but a tactical change. And what a difference it made. Arsenal started to look again like the Arsenal that we have come to know in recent seasons. Song, back in the DM position, became an absolute beast in the second period: what a transformation. Ramsey looked a lot more in his element, and chapeau to Rosicky who brought some well-needed freshness and directness to our attacking play again.

 

In the 55th minute, Gervinho’s efforts were rewarded. He made it relatively easy to the by-line and passed cleverly back to RvP: 1-1! With the all important away goal in the bag, it was important to stay calm, but we did the opposite by conceding a penalty, which seemed harsh to me at the time. Anyway, what came next is all that matters: a world-class save by Szczesny – one that we will remember for decades to come and provides us with the final proof that this man is ready for the big stage. Let’s hope that the strength Szczesny showed in his left arm is symbolic for the found again strength and belief within the entire team.

After that save, the Udinese players and their fans never believed in it again. And Arsenal dealt a final blow by a superb goal from the man who loves space as much as Na$ri likes oil-smeared cash. The always impressive Sagna combined cleverly with Theo and the latter finished coolly and professionally. Job done and we are once again, for the fourteenth time in a row, back in the Champions League!

Arsene Wenger has shown everyone again what really matters in football: a well-thought-through system and eleven talented players on the pitch, with hunger and desire to win, and who love to work for each other till the end. Forget about transfers today, just enjoy the moment.

Player ratings:

Szczesny: 8.5 – did not make a single mistake and made a world-class save tonight. Superb.

Jenkinson: 7 – confident, energetic, good awareness and calm under pressure: what a buy – he could well be the transfer of the season!

TV: 7 – solid, but gave a penalty away at a crucial time, which could have cost us dearly.

Djourou: 7 – also solid, but should have been putting pressure on Di Natale before he was able to score. Still a fine performance though.

Sagna: 7 – struggled in the first half quite a bit, but played out of position, and is of course not left footed. Combined very well Theo for 2nd goal.

Song: 8 – struggled quite a bit in first half, but what a second half! Once Song gets going, there is no stopping him.

Frimpong: 7.5 – fine first half –worked hard and broke up a lot of attacks. What a prospect!

Theo: 7.5 – good, solid performance. Aggressive from the start and scored a very important, and well taken, second goal.

Ramsey: 7 – still finding his way without either Cesc or Wilshere on the pitch, but improved considerably in the second half. Decent performance overall.

RvP: 7.5 – worked hard and scored the all important first goal.

Gervinho: 8.5 – Man of the Match for me. Song was my MotM in the 2nd half, but overall, Gervinho deserves it in my opinion. He is focussed, works hard for the team, unselfishly looks for the best attacking opportunity, and just added that bit of extra class which made the difference tonight.

Rosicky: 7 – helped Arsenal to find its identity/shape again and worked hard.

Traore & Arshavin – not enough playing time to make a judgement.

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Posted by WiganGooner

Szczesny – Arsenal’s No 1?

August 2, 2011

Written by Gooner in Exile

With the season fast approaching and yet another summer passing without the departure of Almunia and without the arrival of the much craved experienced custodian I thought it would be a good time to assess our current goalkeeping line up against the rest of the top four wannabes.

So let’s look at our current crop first.

Szczesny – aged 21 – this lad is the real deal in my opinion. A good communicator, confident to come for the high ball, and an excellent starfish approach to deal with one on ones. There are still a couple of areas for improvement one is decision making under pressure the mad rush out for a 50:50 through ball which will come with experience. The other is his kicking which again will come with age and strength development but is such a necessity in the modern game, especially as we as a team so often lose the fifty-fifty ball that the kick needs to be competed twenty yards past halfway line rather than on it.

At 6ft 5 he provides an imposing figure in the goal although for me I would like to see him fill out a bit as a bit of extra padding for a goalkeeper is useful when being challenged in mid air.

One thing that does not appear to be an issue is his confidence, he appears to have an arrogant streak about him, which all the best keepers need, even after the Carling cup final he came back to give a good display against Sunderland before being injured against Barca. It is these moments of error where only the keeper is to blame and how the keeper responds to it that truly separates the great from the good keepers.

Half a season of top flight football under the belt will have benefited him. Perhaps the best thing that has been said about him was from his Brentford manager Andy Scott during his loan spell during 2009-10. “It has reached the stage where when he lets in a goal we wonder why he hasn’t saved it.”

Fabianski age 26 – I believe he has had enough chances, whilst his general keeping improved last season there is still an underlying weakness in his basics, in my opinion he snatches at the ball which leaves him vulnerable to fumbling it, and for me is too jumpy on his feet.

The only keeper around our rivals that I could liken him to is Gomes, the same scruffiness to the style of keeping which concerns me when watching. He is 6ft 3 but somehow he manages to make himself look 5ft 9.

Mannone – aged 23, again not good enough for the Nunber One shirt although he is a good shot stopper. Like Szczesny he seems to have an unwavering confidence. Last season on loan at Hull he received some good reports bit unfortunately his appearances were cut short by injuries.

So that’s our bunch I’ve left out Manuel because he as we all know has had his day. I think despite that Szczesny has been given squad number 13 for the forthcoming season that he will be first choice, although I expect Wenger to make plenty of noise that Fabianski is still in the running to keep the younger of the two Poles in check throughout the season.

So what about our rivals?

Manchester United, after losing Van Der Saar who has been unquestionably the best keeper in the league for the last three or four seasons Ferguson has decided to invest in youth. He has signed the 20 year old De Gea, however the noises coming out of Old Trafford are not resoundingly positive. Ferguson has signed him it appears because he feels he missed out on Cech at a similar age due to worrying about age.

The goalkeeping coach has cast some doubt on his decision making saying he expected him to come for a high ball that led to a conceded goal in a pre season friendly, a view Ferguson shared before retracting his comments and saying he didn’t think he had a chance with the goal. Additionally Ferguson has questioned his physical build. He is not a fluent English speaker and therefore will have a communication issue.

With Kuszczak requesting a move away from Old Trafford Ferguson is left with Anders Lindergard (27) and the young Ben Amos (20) as cover should De Gea be left out for any reason. I think United have left themselves remarkably exposed in this area.

Chelsea have Cech who has never recovered the form he showed before his unfortunate collision with Hunt’s shin (accidental my arse). He still remains one of the best shot stoppers in the league but his timidness in aerial duels since that injury has led to Chelsea looking more vulnerable from set pieces. Like Ferdinand and Vidic, Terry and teammates have never looked comfortable with anyone else behind them, so for them an injury to Cech would leave them fielding Turnbull or Hilario, Hilario has often been called upon and found wanting, Turnbull has less experience but is probably second choice. Combined Hilario and Turnbull they have made 26 appearances in five years.

Spurs have signed the ageing Friedel, whilst last season he continued to defy his age with superb performances for Villa he is not getting any younger, older goalkeepers hit an age where everything looks great one day and two weeks later the age starts to tell and the injuries mount up. Gomes always makes me smile as despite some great shot stopping he is always prone to an error or two. As extra cover they have Cudicini who I would have liked to see us sign when Lehman departed.

The Twitcher has assembled an experienced group of goalkeepers but only Cudicini has ever set the world alight on the top level and at 37 his best days are behind him as he proved last year. His game was all about shot stopping and agility, you just can’t keep that going into your late thirties as a keeper and to survive at the top level you need to rely on your mind more than your body.

Man City have Joe Hart who benefited from a season long loan in with Birmingham to return to City last season and capture the starting slot. He is probably the most complete young goalkeeper in this crop and will go on to be one of the best England has produced. With Given left for Villa the only cover at Eastlands is provided by ex Arsenal trainee Stuart Taylor, who at the age of 30 has never found a regular Number One berth that he desired when he left. The other backup is Neilsen. Like Chelsea reserve keepers these two have only a handful of games at the top flight and any serious injury to Hart would leave them also exposed.

Liverpool still have Reina who Carragher has called the best goalkeeper in the world (after gifting us an equaliser at the start of last season) despite not even being Spain’s number one. I think he is good in every aspect of keeping but he is not great in any. As an ever present he has also prevented the reserve keepers any game time so if any injury occurs they would also be exposed to fielding Brad Jones or the untested Doni.

Having taken a more detailed look at the goalkeepers among our closest rivals it is difficult to see why our goalkeeping options are so maligned. It is without doubt a fact that we have not had a number one since Lehman good enough for the level we compete at. However take the main keeper away from City, Chelsea or Liverpool and they look very vulnerable, Spurs have assembled a group of experienced but hardly world class keepers and United find themselves in a similar position to us, except they have spent a lot more acquiring the group.

I hope that Szczesny continues to improve and we can finally put the goalkeeping question to bed and be safe in the knowledge we have a keeper for the next ten to fifteen years who we can trust. What I would ask of Wenger is that our young keepers coming through are sent on loan to other Premier League clubs as for keepers the only place to learn is at the sharp end, and I’d rather that it be at the expense of WBA or Wigan than for us.

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Posted by peachesgÖÖner

Another ‘Keeper Headache For Arsenal?

April 22, 2011

After all the pain we have experienced with our goalkeeping options in the last few years, hands up if you thought we had finally solved them with the emergence of Wojciech Szczesny?

Our 21-year-old stopper certainly has many of the attributes essential for a top class ‘keeper.

His stature, attitude and authority in the box all augur well for the future. But that’s the point – ‘for the future’.

Right now – in the present – he is far from the finished article.

In the North London Derby on Wednesday night he had a real curate’s egg of a performance. Some of his saves were truly outstanding. But he can arguably be blamed for two of the Spuds’ three goals. And the persistent problem with his kicking was again in evidence.

Suffice to say that if Almunia had had that exact same performance, many people would be glossing over the saves and pillorying him for being beaten at his near post and for giving away a penalty when the attacking player was running the ball out of play.

Instead I have seen barely a mention of Wojciech’s performance.

For now, it seems, our young Pole is benefitting from the halo effect of not being Manuel. Most fans are prepared to overlook his mistakes and over-appreciate his saves.

But let’s not forget that Wojciech was at least fifty per cent responsible for giving away the goal that cost us our best chance of silverware this year. And he has made other mistakes since (like handling the ball outside the area) most of which can be put down to inexperience.

So what conclusions should we draw?

For me, it’s that we should feel lucky to have a young prospect who could well turn out to be an Arsenal goalkeeping legend.

But perhaps, for next season, we should not automatically consider him to be our number one Number One. Indeed I would be surprised if Arsene Wenger does not restore Fabianski to the first team role next year, with Szczesny as number two.

I wrote a post about Szczesny way back in January, before the many disappointments that have been visited upon us in the last couple of months. I warned that we were expecting too much of the young man and that he was bound to make errors. I take no pleasure in having been proved right.

It worried me that, when he did inevitably make mistakes, the fans would start to turn on him too, but thankfully that hasn’t happened yet.

To conclude – this is NOT an anti-Szczesny piece. I am very hopeful that he will become our true number one in the next 18 months to two years.

But for next season? In all honesty I would like to see us bring in an older, very experienced ‘keeper to do the job until Wojciech is fully ready.

I know I’m a bit of a lone voice on this one and that most Gooners are only too happy to acclaim the lad as the chosen one, but I do feel he will continue to cost us points for a while as he matures into the role.

RockyLives

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Posted by RockyLives

How many Spurs players would get in Arsenal’s First X1?

April 21, 2011
Sorry all, Rasp and I are really busy today, we haven’t been offered a match report but BigRaddy wrote this before he went away so it would be churlish not to use it for discussion today following last night’s thrilling 3-3 at the lane.

We had some fun recently with a post discussing how many Man Utd players would fit into our team playing in the same formation as Mr Wenger employs.

Today I will do the same with Tottenham Hotspur :-

Szczesny v Gomez.

We missed our young Pole during his injury, his influence over the defence in such a short time is profound. He bosses the area in a way we have missed since Mad Jens and Seamo. Gomez is flaky, there is no other word for him. He can be excellent – a fine shot stopper and dominates at set pieces but he is prone to regular lapses of judgement. Given that our lad has so far only made one glaring error (and I blame Koscielny for that), it’s the Pole in Goal.

Sagna v Corluka.

Sagna has returned to the reliability he showed a couple of seasons ago and IMO is the best RB in the country. Corluka is a fine player, has good ball skills, a decent engine and can cover at CB, but he is not as good as Sagna.

Clichy v Assou Ekotto

Gael has his critics but remains an excellent full back. Ekotto has a loyal fanbase amongst Spurs fans and has been very good whenever I have seen him. Clichy is the better attacking player and apart from his weekly lapses in concentration is the better tackler.

Centre Backs

It is hard to establish just who are Spurs first choice CB’s. Woodgate and King are fine defenders, in fact The Master (TH14) has said that King is the best defender he played against. But they are permanently injured. This leaves Gallas, Dawson and Kaboul and for the sake of discussion I will drop Kaboul.

Is Gallas as good as Djourou? In his prime certainly, but one must ask why Mr Wenger chose to sell him to our local rivals; obviously because he believes he has better replacements, and a fit JD is a wonderful CB.

Dawson v Koscielny is not so clearly defined. IMO Dawson is the best English CB, I would have liked to see him in an Arsenal shirt, but Kos has the makings of a great player and an Arsenal legend. In his first season he has made silly mistakes but which player hasn’t? Koscielny gets the shirt because he is  better at passing and driving forward the team.

Midfield.

Again it is difficult to decide upon Spurs first choice midfield. Like us they have a glut of quality players but unlike us they have no set go to 4  players. I will choose Modric, Huddlestone, Van de Vaart and Bale. Probably more attacking than Harry would choose as he often plays 2 DM’s (he has Palacios, Huddlestone, Krancjar, Jenas, Pienaar and Sandro to choose from!)

Song v Huddlestone

Easy choice really. Song is amongst the finest young DM’s in world football. He has improved so rapidly over the past 2 years that we noticeably miss him when he is injured. He has a fantastic first touch, good engine, is a decent tackler and is good aerially. Song’s main fault is that he can get too adventurous and in trying to get back to defend makes rash tackles – he has picked up numerous yellow cards this season without making one really dirty tackle. Huddlestone, according to my Spurs mad nephew, is an integral part of both Spurs and England’s future. He too has made huge strides in his career; capable of playing an accurate and intuitive long pass and assisting defensively, he is one to watch – but he is just not as good as Song, and nor are any of Spurs other DM’s

Fabregas v Modric.

We all know the answer to this! Cesc is a genius; the best creative MF in the PL and a World Cup winner. Modric has had a fantastic season and it would be no exaggeration to say that I am sure Mr Wenger would have liked to sign him; phenomenal energy, a perceptive passer, excellent ball control and a player who knows no fear. But sadly not in Fab’s league.

Wilshere v Van der Vaart.

When playing this parlour game there are inevitably clashes that don’t really gel, and this is one of them. VdV doesn’t play the same game as JW. However, if one had to choose a player for our team I would certainly take the reliability of Wilshere. He turns up every game and gives his all whereas VdV goes missing which I guess is why Real sold him so cheaply.

Nasri v Bale.

Both fine players. Both at the start of their careers. Both up for Player of the Year. They have different skill sets which work very well for their teams. Bale could add what we lack on the left of our attack – pace, but Nasri is a better ball player and can beat a player by looking at him. Nasri scores more goals. Bale is the better defender.  I was going to give the shirt to the least ugly player but they are equal in this area as well. I will take a rain-check ….

Walcott v Lennon

Lennon – ugly, no final ball, phenomenal pace. Theo . good looking, developing tactical awareness, even faster. Capello prefers Theo, so do I.

RvP v Defoe/Crouch/Pav.

Robin is better than all of them. True, Crouch is better in the air. Other than that the Dutchman has it all and would prove it if he could stay fit for a season.

Manager:

Wenger v Redknapp.

Credit where credit is due. Harry has done a wonderful job at Spurs. Taking a team that was threatened with relegation to the Champions League in such a short space of time is a great achievement. Had it not been for economic reasons Redknapp would be England Manager and I am sure that if wants it  he will be after the Euro’s. But check out the Trophy Cabinet. Harry –  1 x FA Cup. Mr Wenger  – 4 x FAC. 3 xPL . French League and Cup, Japanese League and Cup.   Mr Wenger OBE voted World Manager of the Decade.  Mr. Redknapp  – Zip.

So the team looks like this:

Szczesny

Sagna   Djourou  Koscielny  Clichy

Song   Fabregas  Wilshere   Nasri

Walcott  Van Persie

Managed by Mr Arsene Wenger OBE

Why no Bale? Because he is so prone to injury, and he is a throwback.

Why no Spurs players?  Check out the table since 94/5

And this site is called Arsenal Arsenal not Dear Mr. Levy ……

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Posted by Erik the Red

How many Man Utd players would get into Arsenal’s First Team?

March 31, 2011

I spend much time discussing football with fans of other teams. Inevitably we play the “but he would never play in our team “game, and this could be the first of “How many Arsenal players would get in  ……… first team”?

Let us look at the current leaders of the PL,  Man Utd, taking what I believe to be Mr Wenger’s first choice 11 v Aaron’s view of the SAF’s first choice.

Note Well. This team is set-up in Arsenal’s formation , not the Man Utd 4-4-2 !

 

Van de Saar v Szczesny.

Not as obvious as one might think. Van de Saar has huge experience and has been a superb keeper. Had AW signed him 5 years ago we could well well won a title or two, but at 40 y.o. his powers are fading and retirement beckons. Whereas our new GK is but a slip of a lad and has a glittering future ahead – he dominates the area, is a fine shot-stopper and is learning quickly.  Experience v Youth?  It has to be the Pole.

Sagna v Rafael.

Rafael looks major find. Comfortable on the ball, can cross, likes to attack, and can tackle but he has already shown a questionable temperament and has clearly studied tapes of Dani Alves’s cheating  techniques. Sagna is quite simply the best right back in the PL. I would like to see his crossing improve but in every other area he is superb.

Centre Backs.

Man Utd are truly blessed in this area. Ferdinand and Vidic combine footballing skills and strength. They are both on-field leaders and the rock around which MU function. Arsenal’s first choice CB pairing is unclear, who are they? TV/JD? TV/Kos? Kos/JD?  The JD/Kos pairing seems stable and they combine well but neither is at the level of either of MU’s CB’s

Clichy v Evra.

I love Gael, I detest Evra, but my feelings are not based around their footballing ability.  Sadly, Evra is a fine footballer, a winner and very consistent. Gael, as we all know, has lapses, I think he is a better attacking force than Evra but Evra is more solid. I am afraid Evra gets the shirt.

Song v  Carrick

No contest here. When Carrick was at West Ham he looked as though he could develop into the new Bryan Robson – it didn’t happen, whether through lack of ability or injury, we will never know. Either way, he hasn’t the control or vision of Song who at the tender age of 23 is already one of the most influential players in the PL.

Fletcher v Wilshere.

Jack’s progress is nothing short of astonishing. At the age of 19 to be the central figure in the England team indicates a truly great player in the making, but Fletcher is the key player in a dull yet effective MU midfield. A terrier and a man who doesn’t accept losing – just the type of player we are lacking at Arsenal. So it is with heavy heart that I take Fletcher, because I believe that with him in the team we would already have won the PL, though I fully accept this is a controversial decision!

Nani v Theo

Another tough one. Nani has all the tricks, has pace and a fine shot. He also has a very questionable attitude and dreadful hair. Theo has better hair, more pace, less attitude and could be a future Arsenal great. However Nani has 9 goals and 16 assists and is the most effective player in the PL this season, whereas despite having his best season to date Theo has 7 goals, 6 assists. Shame on me but it has to be Nani

Rooney v Fabregas

This is difficult because they do not play the same roles as MU normally set up as 4-4-2-. If one assumes that Rooney is MU’s playmaker then we have to pit him against our own playmaker,  I could duck the issue and say it depends upon the opposition or shift Rooney out left to be compared with Nasri, but a direct comparison it has to be. Let’s look at this season’s stats – Cesc: 31 apps,  9 goals. 13 assists. Rooney: 29 apps, 9 gls, and 11 assists (?). On these stats Cesc is more slightly effective though both are the talisman of their sides. When either of them plays at the top of their form, their teams win. I love Cesc and this is an Arsenal site so Cesc gets it.

RvP v Hernandez/ Berbs.

I asked my MU mad friend Aaron who would be SAF’s first 11, and he chose Hernandez ahead of Berbatov. I would pick RvP ahead of either of them. Simply put, our Dutch striker is World Class, a player who can score both the spectacular and elementary goals.

Nasri v Valencia

Valencia is a fine player and I expect him to have a major impact on the PL next season, but Nasri is at another level. That Samir became France’s new National Captain last weekend is evidence of his rising stature and reliability. A fine player and with Valencia only just returning from injury, the obvious choice.

So a team of:

Quite how this team would function would be the managers concern though he would have a fantastic bench should the team not perform.

Clearly MU’s defensive steel added to Arsenal’s greater ball control would be a frightening prospect for any opposition and I would expect this side to win the PL, but they would be unlikely to go through a season unbeaten – only a truly great side could do that …. 😉

Finally, today is the 10th anniversary of Rocky’s untimely death. We all loved Rocky, he was a Gooner through and through, a hero to all who watched his development through the youth teams and into the wonderful player he became. My favourite memory of him was his goal at the Lane in the League Cup Semi-Final – one of the most exciting moments of my life. Gone but never forgotten.

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Posted by Erik the Red

Up for the Cup??

March 12, 2011

Lucky Arsenal? This season we have drawn Newcastle and Spurs away in the Carling Cup, Barcelona in the CL, and now Man Utd away in the FA Cup.  I can only imagine Mr Wenger has spent the season walking under ladders and crossing the path of black cats. No-one wanted this fixture, neither Arsenal who are coming off the back of an emotional defeat at Camp Nou nor Man Utd, who are facing Marseilles in an important contest on Weds.

And yet neither manager will give up on this game. In my opinion both will put out as strong a team as injury permits, pride will dictate their actions. However, we are without (I hate writing this …) Vermaelen, Walcott, Fabregas , Song, Fabianski and Szczesny, and United are without Nani, Ferdinand and Park.

The loss of Szczesny has brought about the situation that (almost) all Gooners feared – a run of games for Almunia. Many point out that Manuel had a fine game in Spain and it would be churlish to argue. However, there is a reason why two Poles under the age of 23 are ahead of him in the AFC rankings and that is because Almunia is notoriously inconsistent. It was said at the start of the season by most pundits that Arsenal cannot win the league with Almunia, unfortunately we are about to find out. That said, I am sure he will give his all for the cause (and promote his flagging career). He must be given 100% support.

Having a more reliable defence will give Manuel confidence. We have tightened  to the point where there appears to be some understanding at the back; something missing since Sol left. Who would have thought that Djourou would be the man to come to the fore (apart from GG, and yours truly)?

We still have the midfield creativity problem in Cesc’s absence. Many have called for Nasri to take Cesc’s role, which make much sense. He has the vision and pace to push the team forward and has been given the Captain’s armband (though Almunia will take it tomorrow) which indicates he has the character to lead the team, and character he will need because at OT Fletcher has the licence to kick anyone off the park. Song is a big loss – Diaby plays better when he has the security of a strong defensive midfielder. Will Mr Wenger dare to start Ramsey rather than Denilson? I would take the risk but this is more a reflection of my opinion of Denilson. The Brazilian has much to recommend him, but not at a team at the level of Arsenal. I am sure he will be a huge success in Malaga, Mallorca or Juventus but not at the Grove – sorry.

Up front Van Persie will be chafing at the bit after his infuriating red card, he is playing as well as any time during his Arsenal career.  Bendtner will be desperate to show that with more than 10 minutes on the pitch he can score, but if Nasri and Arshavin are to start I see no place for him. I expect Nik to leave in summer (and I will be sad to see him go), if I was him I would be fuming that having played in most rounds of the Carling Cup and being one of the main reasons we got to the Final, he was dropped for RvP.  Vidic is back for MU which is a huge fillip for them, and a negative for us. Time for Arshavin to rediscover his shooting boots.

Man Utd have been an anomaly; at no time have they looked a title winning team and yet they have led the Premiership for most of the season. With a dull but effective midfield they rely on power rather than guile. What would they give for a young Bobby Charlton? In losing their last two big games they have seen that Giggs and Scholes fading powers are useful but not dependable. Expect a buying spree from SAF this summer –  a GK, a left back (who wants the lamentable Evra?), 2 creative MF’s, and a CB –  Modric, Rodwell, Bale, Cahill, Neuer have all been mentioned. Valencia has suffered from injury and can perhaps become the Giggs replacement, but MU have yet to replace the brilliance of Ronaldo. What they have replaced is Ronaldo’s penchant for acting with an even worse cheat in Nani. – fine player, shame about the histrionics. Rooney has flickered all season, capable of the brilliant but then petulant and obnoxious – once again his career has been boosted by SAF’s influence at the FA. . Berbatov is the PL’s top scorer and yet remains as unreliable as ever – another capable of brilliance or anonymity. His place is under threat from Hernandez who looks a fine signing –  that valuable fox in the box.

Mr Wenger has continually stated Arsenal will fight on all fronts this season, and I expect him to put out his strongest available 11.

My team:

Personally, I expect us to lose; we are not playing with fluency nor with confidence; we usually go down at Old Trafford and we will be forced to play against 14 men (11 players and the officials). Arsenal have yet to score more than one goal in a game at Old Trafford in the PL, so we are unlikely to see a goal-fest. To win we need to score first and force Man Utd to come onto us, thereby allowing Arsenal to play on the counter-attack. And above all, we need a good and fair performance from the referee, Chris Foy.

It is the final game of the season against Man Utd on Mayday which is more important to me and I imagine to both managers –  this is just the Hors d’oeuvre. I would give the Claret- nosed Caledonian (Thank you RL) the win today in exchange for the 3 points at the Grove.

COYRRG

written by Big Raddy

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Posted by Erik the Red

BRING IT ON!

March 8, 2011

What do you expect from tonight? Will we estacionar el autobus? Will we start gung-ho, try to score early and then work on the counter, or try to play keepball and settle slowly? Or do you expect Barcelona to blow us away early and give us a lesson?

All my non-Arsenal friends are predicting that Arsenal will get a hammering tonight and that we were fortunate to win at the Grove. To them I say “ Pish Tosh and a bottle of Pinosh”. Beating Barca was one of the great Arsenal performances and I see no reason why we cannot progress at the Camp Nou.

I have read the suggestion that we would be better off losing tonight; that we cannot win the CL because there are too many English teams in it and it is less shameful to lose to Barca than, say Chelsea. Again I say “pish”. We have beaten the Chavs on aggregate this season, thrown away a win against Spurs and were unlucky at Old Trafford. We are better than Bayern. In fact, the only fear I have is Real. We can win this Cup.

But first we have to get a result tonight ….

One of the key questions to be answered tonight will be which team is most affected by their missing players? Will we be able to take advantage of the absence of Piquet and Puyol without our most effective strike force? How damaging will be the loss of Song? (he is 50/50 as I write, and I am assuming he will not be risked.)

Should Song be out, who should take his place as our defensive shield? In a perfect world it would be Ramsey or even better, a fit Vermaelen. As it is AW has to decide between Denilson, Diaby and Rosicky. I expect Mr Wenger to take a safety first stance and play Denilson, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see Rosicky get a start in place of Nasri or Arshavin. AW must have been hoping for more from Diaby, who would be ideal if he could just play with more intelligence. Diaby is without question the most frustrating member of the squad; tonight should be a night where he showcases his huge talent but I doubt he can be trusted in so important a fixture.

Wilshere established himself as the coming man at the Grove – I hope he can keep his cool at Camp Nou. His booking for what appeared to be dissent on Saturday was a worry and hopefully not a portent of a young man developing arrogance. Self confidence is an absolute in a player of JW’s undoubted skills, but the glare of the media on one so young can turn heads. I hope AW can keep him grounded. One thing for sure is that Barca will not take him so lightly again.

Our defence is solid at the moment and I am delighted to see Sagna return (though Eboue did well in the first game). This is the best back 4 we have had for 5 years; youth, experience, physical power and ability on the ball. Have we ever seen our CB’s propel the team as we saw JD and Kos do on Saturday?

Upfront we have problems.  RvP is in the squad, but is unlikely to start. In his absence and on the evidence of Saturday, I would play Chamakh as a lone striker. I love Nik but it appears he requires more time than the Barca defence will allow him (though he has scored at Camp Nou). Chamakh has been publicly praised by AW and I expect him to start. The news has just been released that RvP is travelling with the squad – I wouldn’t risk him, but what a sub!  With 20 minutes to go at the end of a tight game, Robin could make a huge impact.

Our most important players? Fabregas and Szczesny. Fab will be so excited about tonight, the opportunity to show his wonderful talents in his home town stadium.  He will control the tempo of our game. What a night for our 20 y.o. GK. To play at his age in what is the glamour tie in World football is unimaginable. He seems to be unflappable which he will need to be. There is no question that he will be by far the busier keeper and should he perform to his highest ability we have a chance. If he freezes, we are sunk.

My team:

My fear is that should we be 2 down at any time in the game we haven’t the weapons to get back into the game. Without RvP in the starting line-up we lack bite – we need a big night from Nasri and Fabregas. If we score (and have the luck) we will win.

Barcelona is home to many interesting chaps.  Picasso, Dali, Jean Miro`, Gaudi, Jose Carreras, Montserat Caballe`, Pablo Casals, Victoria de los Angeles among others, but does not appear to have any proper Rockers. Perhaps it is a weather thing?

Will I be nervous tonight? Will I be envious of Brigham who is at the game tonight? What do you think?

COYRRG

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Posted by Erik the Red

Come on You Rip Roaring Gunners

February 27, 2011

My first post for Arsenal Arsenal was just over a year ago and I sit today writing a Cup Final pre-match. What drought?

And what of this team that today can earn some silverware and stop the ludicrous carping from the media and a few of the fans? Why are we favourites to win a Cup for the first time in 6 years?

Cometh the time, Cometh the Man. And in this case it is Cometh the Men. Arsenal have moved forward as a club in a very short time and the sudden impact of 4 players has given the team a solidity not seen for many a year. Step forward Messrs Wilshere, Koscielny, Djourou and Szczesny. Suddenly we look solid at the back, and have a new and very young spine, one that can take us to glory.

In just a few games our problemic goalkeeping position has found a pillar of strength, our young Pole has shown against the differing attacks of Barca and Stoke that he is the real deal, and likely to be the Arsenal number One for at least a decade.

Djourou was written off by many, nicknamed Bambi for his ungainly style he has had a checkered injury filled career at Arsenal, but now, fully fit. he is established as the first name of the defensive teamsheet. His absence from the pitch at Newcastle led to 4 goals in 20 minutes – can anyone doubt that we would have won the game had he remained on the field? When Koscielny took the field in an Arsenal shirt I was one of many who questioned Mr Wenger’s signing. He looked lost, lacking in height and pace; yet here we are a mere 4 months later and he looks the real deal. I would even go so far as to say that Vermaelen will struggle to regain his place in the team. JD and Kos have an awesome record playing together, they have a fine understanding and both are just 23!! Probably the youngest CB pairing in the League.

And then there is Jack. What can be said that hasn’t been written? In half a season he has become an integral part of the team and forced two regular Internationals to become B teamers. He is always available for the ball when the defenders are under pressure, and with the ball at his feet is comfortable in the tightest situations. The man has genius.

And what of our other players who have improved beyond recognition? Samir Nasri has become a World Class player, a possible Player of the Year and a man who can mesmerise a defender, He can tackle, he can beat a player with pace, he can cross, shoot, pass with precision – he is a pleasure to watch. And he maintains the ability to give a sly dig which is essential in the hurly burly of the Premiership.

Van Persie is playing the best football of his career, Walcott has come of age, The full backs are back to the form they showed 2 seasons ago – Clichy was brilliant against Barca and Sagna has been strong all season.

Cesc is a big loss today, not because we cannot win without him but because if the game gets hairy, he is “the man”. Cesc has developed into the real leader of the team and I am very sad he will not have the opportunity to lead the side up the Wembley Steps. His injury leaves a midfield berth which I would give to Diaby, who is a more creative player than Denilson. He also has the height to cope with the inevitable Birmingham aerial bombardment.

Walcott’s absence opens a space for Bendtner. I like Nik, he always gives his all and despite not being the most elegant of players can be very effective, he is important when defending corners and set plays. Nik’s goal in the semi-final was as good as any seen at the Grove, and in his two appearances since he has had two assists. A goal and an assist would cement his place in the Arsenal fermament. However, Arshavin has been looking dangerous of late and we could play Nasri on the right with Arshavin on the left which allows us more movement than with the slightly ponderous Bendtner.

My team:

With Arshavin and Denilson coming on after 60 minutes

Birmingham are not a team studded with star players, they have lost the creativity of Hleb through injury and will look to play as a tight unit. They are clear underdogs. A midfield of Ferguson and Bowyer are sure to be combative. Should Birmingham win today it will be as a result of a huge team effort whereas we have the individual brilliance all over the pitch to win the game by having one player on fire.

One may wonder why I have used so few words on this Birmingham team. Truth is, I am bored by them – they are a reflection of their manager. Nothing more needs to be said.

The man who really deserves to win a trophy this season is our esteemed manager. Year after year he has had to listen to the same inane question about our lack silverware whilst delivering the best football seen in the Premiership week after week. Like Birmingham our team is a direct reflection of our manager, and I am very proud that our manager is Mr Arsene Wenger.

Birmingham is the birthplace of some of heavy metal’s stellar bands. The wondrous Judas Priest, Black Sabbath and the very Kings of Rock, Led Zeppelin all hail from Birmingham.

We are better than Birmingham in every department – it is a game for us to lose.

COYRRG

Written by BigRaddy

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Posted by Erik the Red

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