The Third round draw of the FA Cup wasn't kind to us really although it could have been worse. We take on Hull in a repeat of last seasons final where we needed extra time to beat them after nearly being put out of sight within the opening 20 minutes. It'll be a hard game particularly with our injury hit midfield even though we may have Flamini returning and in Wengers own words "a small chance" of Ozil making an appearance although I struggle to see it.
After our abysmal performance at St. Mary's we need a big result today even though I'd have preferred to see us rest players who are quite clearly shattered (Sanchez). But with our team in the shape it's in currently I think we can dismiss that idea. We know that one thing is for sure and that is David Ospina will play in place of SZCZ and according to the club this was planned long before his comedy show at the weekend. Theo Walcott is expected to start which will be good for him after being out for so long. If anything he takes some of the emphasis off Alexis with his pace and penetration.
Upfront I've heard mixed news about Welbeck ranging from he has a chance to he's ruled out. I would suggest he wont play so Wenger will decide whether to put Chuba Akpom upfront or whether to play Alexis as the lone man again. In the middle Francis Coquelin may play again pairing up with Flamini this time instead of Chambers. Aside from that I don't think we have any other team news. Our defence looks set to remain the same against Southampton let's just hope the don't repeat their performance.
I'm not sure about Hull in terms of who they have available to play but I do know they've been struggling for form recently and goals which probably means they'll unload on us. They have got a goal threat from Jelavic amongst others but the big man I assume will be the one we need to keep quiet. Their defence is there to be got at if we can pull them out of shape with our pace going forward.
Big performance needed today boys, let's repeat the outcome in May.
Showing posts with label analysis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label analysis. Show all posts
Sunday, 4 January 2015
Tuesday, 26 March 2013
Jovetic to Arsenal? International boredom
It's been a while since I've posted having missed our very tidy victory against Swansea which has been followed up by the international break which has been as dull as ever. A few Arsenal players scored for their countries, one Arsenal player has been injured whilst away with his country, the usual stuff really.
We'll start with the injury and it appears that Theo Walcott has suffered a strain training with England and played no part in the 8-0 mauling over San Marino. He will play no part tonight either and he's a big doubt for the weekends clash with Reading at the Emirates. With Wilshere also a doubt it could be a very interesting midfield that is fielded on Saturday. Now the Arsenal site has Podolski up as injured before the Swansea match yet he played 71 minutes for Germany last week so make of that what you will.
Now as always when the internationals roll into town the rumour mill has started churning away. The Jovetic to Arsenal rumours have been around for some time yet and just when you thought that one had died a death, the Sun (I know) has quoted Jovetic himself as saying:
There are other strenuous links around at the moment linking us with Diego Costa but as it's fairly obvious we need a striker it's going to be a long summer with us being linked with every forward who's scored this season.
I'm going to spare a few words for our youngsters who beat CSKA Moscow in the NextGen Series last night, a fantastic achievement and they should all be very proud of themselves. They've set up a very tasty looking semi-final with Chelsea. This has all produced the question however of when will we see any of this success in the first team? It's a question that just highlights how difficult it is to make it in this sport.
When I played football, I played just off a young lad who had plenty of talent and was easily the best player in our squad. Three times he was picked up by scouts and after spells at Fulham, Chelsea and a two year spell at City he has yet to make a name for himself on the scene and very sadly for him, I doubt he ever will. Then at school, two lads were scouted, one a goalkeeper who was actually signed by Charlton, then dropped and he has now given up on his career in football. The path to becoming a professional is littered with players who just never quite made the grade.
But there you go, that's football lets hope that our lads can go all the way! Until Friday have a good week.
We'll start with the injury and it appears that Theo Walcott has suffered a strain training with England and played no part in the 8-0 mauling over San Marino. He will play no part tonight either and he's a big doubt for the weekends clash with Reading at the Emirates. With Wilshere also a doubt it could be a very interesting midfield that is fielded on Saturday. Now the Arsenal site has Podolski up as injured before the Swansea match yet he played 71 minutes for Germany last week so make of that what you will.
Now as always when the internationals roll into town the rumour mill has started churning away. The Jovetic to Arsenal rumours have been around for some time yet and just when you thought that one had died a death, the Sun (I know) has quoted Jovetic himself as saying:
"I have an affinity with Arsenal. It's a major club with a big tradition, one of the biggest in Europe."I'm still very skeptical about whether a move for him was ever on the cards or quite frankly ever will be. If you want to hope though you can watch him take to the field when England play Montenegro tonight.
There are other strenuous links around at the moment linking us with Diego Costa but as it's fairly obvious we need a striker it's going to be a long summer with us being linked with every forward who's scored this season.
I'm going to spare a few words for our youngsters who beat CSKA Moscow in the NextGen Series last night, a fantastic achievement and they should all be very proud of themselves. They've set up a very tasty looking semi-final with Chelsea. This has all produced the question however of when will we see any of this success in the first team? It's a question that just highlights how difficult it is to make it in this sport.
When I played football, I played just off a young lad who had plenty of talent and was easily the best player in our squad. Three times he was picked up by scouts and after spells at Fulham, Chelsea and a two year spell at City he has yet to make a name for himself on the scene and very sadly for him, I doubt he ever will. Then at school, two lads were scouted, one a goalkeeper who was actually signed by Charlton, then dropped and he has now given up on his career in football. The path to becoming a professional is littered with players who just never quite made the grade.
But there you go, that's football lets hope that our lads can go all the way! Until Friday have a good week.
Monday, 19 November 2012
Arsenal 5-2 Spurs...again
In a bizarre deja vu moment, we once again ruined our neighbours in the derby at the emirates. A favour from an old player and goals from basically all of our new first team players saw us ease past them.
It didn't start so easily however. In the first 15 minutes, they looked dangerous and the better team. Gallas soon had the ball in the net only for it to be ruled out for offside but the warning signs were there. Then as Tottenham came down our left, Mertesacker got dragged out of position and Defoe and monkey-man tore into our box in acres of space, SZCZ got a hand to Defoe's shot but the power on it took it across and there was Adebayor to poke it home. However his joy was very short lived.
After a clearance from their box, Mertesacker chested the ball well and it came to Cazorla, but Adebayor tore into him, high, studs up and the ref only had one option. Off he went and it changed the game. You can talk about what might have been had he stayed on but he didn't so it doesn't matter.
Walcott, who again showed he's quality and improvement and also showed that again we need to sign him up, did well to get around Naughton or whatever the fuck his name is. His cross was great and Mertesacker rose above everyone and powered his header home and I can't stress enough how good a header it was, from 12 yards, right into the corner. It was also good to see a real display of emotion from him in his celebration.
Moment's later it was 2, a nice passing move saw the ball fall to Podolski, whose shot clipped Gallas' heels (the wanker) and took it past Lloris in goal. A bit of luck yes but in football sometimes you rely on a bit of luck. We were now running riot and the third came not long after. This time it was a moment of brilliance from Santi Cazorla. You hear so much about continental players going down too easily, this time, it was the opposite. He was fouled when running towards the box, but he didn't want the foul, he wanted the ball and he got back up ran past 2 more players and cut it back for Giroud who finished well on the slide. He's really hitting form now and that shows with that finish, half a chance and it's in the net. But Cazorla really deserves a lot of credit not only for that but for his performance overall which was fantastic.
The second half started where the first left off and this time Cazorla got the goal he deserved. Podolski got in down the left and played the ball across the box for Cazorla who watched it all the way onto his foot and in. Monkey man pulled one back for the yids. But then in the 91st minute Walcott who was also fantastic latched onto a ball from Alex OC and finished it off nicely. Overall an emphatic performance and one that we really did need.
I don't want to sour the mood which don't get me wrong, should be very good at the moment. But at the same match last season, I was sitting in the Clock End whilst me (and everyone else in my block) were getting lectured by a bloke about how Theo wants X amount a week and how can he ask for that when he performs like this and at the time I was inclined to agree with him. Now I'm converted. If he wants £80K a week, we should just give it to him. I do think he deserves it and we'd have to shell out to bring in a replacement anyway so that is now where I stand.
Montpellier at home midweek and it's a game we really need to win to ensure we're in a good position to go through.
After a clearance from their box, Mertesacker chested the ball well and it came to Cazorla, but Adebayor tore into him, high, studs up and the ref only had one option. Off he went and it changed the game. You can talk about what might have been had he stayed on but he didn't so it doesn't matter.
Walcott, who again showed he's quality and improvement and also showed that again we need to sign him up, did well to get around Naughton or whatever the fuck his name is. His cross was great and Mertesacker rose above everyone and powered his header home and I can't stress enough how good a header it was, from 12 yards, right into the corner. It was also good to see a real display of emotion from him in his celebration.
Moment's later it was 2, a nice passing move saw the ball fall to Podolski, whose shot clipped Gallas' heels (the wanker) and took it past Lloris in goal. A bit of luck yes but in football sometimes you rely on a bit of luck. We were now running riot and the third came not long after. This time it was a moment of brilliance from Santi Cazorla. You hear so much about continental players going down too easily, this time, it was the opposite. He was fouled when running towards the box, but he didn't want the foul, he wanted the ball and he got back up ran past 2 more players and cut it back for Giroud who finished well on the slide. He's really hitting form now and that shows with that finish, half a chance and it's in the net. But Cazorla really deserves a lot of credit not only for that but for his performance overall which was fantastic.
The second half started where the first left off and this time Cazorla got the goal he deserved. Podolski got in down the left and played the ball across the box for Cazorla who watched it all the way onto his foot and in. Monkey man pulled one back for the yids. But then in the 91st minute Walcott who was also fantastic latched onto a ball from Alex OC and finished it off nicely. Overall an emphatic performance and one that we really did need.
I don't want to sour the mood which don't get me wrong, should be very good at the moment. But at the same match last season, I was sitting in the Clock End whilst me (and everyone else in my block) were getting lectured by a bloke about how Theo wants X amount a week and how can he ask for that when he performs like this and at the time I was inclined to agree with him. Now I'm converted. If he wants £80K a week, we should just give it to him. I do think he deserves it and we'd have to shell out to bring in a replacement anyway so that is now where I stand.
Montpellier at home midweek and it's a game we really need to win to ensure we're in a good position to go through.
Wednesday, 14 November 2012
Fulham Analysis
It all started to see well, just like against Schalke, then just like against Schalke we conceded a 2 goal lead. It was a match where had we just been tighter at the back we could have gone on to score more and would have easily taken the 3 points.
Giroud, who was fantastic, opened the scoring after just 11 minutes with a powerful header than Schwarzer couldn't keep out. Then on the 23rd minute, Podolski converted Arteta's cross and we were 2 nil up and cruising. However, once again, defensive problems at the back saw Berbatov find space far too easily and simply nod it past Mannone. It then got worse as Berbatov then crossed for Alex Kacaniklic who peeled away from Sagna and headed into the ground from 14 yards. Mannone perhaps could have done better but he did have to travel the length of the goal to get there.
The second half didn't start well either. 20 minutes in Arteta, who had an absolute mare, was caught dallying on the ball by Ruiz and then gave away a penalty. At which point Berbatov stepped up and cooly put the penalty in. We had squandered a 2 goal lead and we all feared the worst. 2 minutes later Giroud came to our rescue, he hit the base of the post with a great effort, it fell to Walcott who then crossed for Giroud to head past Schwarzer again. With seconds left, we got a dubious penalty decision when Arshavin put in a cross that hit a Fulham defenders hand. Harsh, but in this league you have to take these chances and sadly we didn't. Arteta rounded off his shocker by having his penalty saved very well you have to say by Schwarzer.
I understand that the manager has his penalty takers set out before the game but it seemed the logical move to let Giroud take the penalty, although he missed one against Coventry earlier in the season. That's not a moment to linger on or worry about, everyone misses penalties it just happens. What worries me more is the fact that we once again shipped 2 goals that we should have dealt with.
It's the derby this weekend and its a real chance for either team to kick on as we've both been playing badly. I've heard reports that we will start with 3 centre-backs. If Wenger decides to do that, he will have lost it. For 2 reasons, firstly as an attacking team, removing an option going forward isn't smart. Secondly this is the derby at home, we have to go out and show we mean business, we can't sit an absorb pressure.
A lot of mixed feelings and opinions ahead of Saturday, I'll be back with mine beforehand on Friday. I'm going to finish by saying that I've seen a lot of talk on twitter about people wanting us to lose at the weekend. We support our team, always. We can be disappointed with results and we have the right make those feelings known but we always have to support the team. It's what we're here for. Until next time enjoy the rest of your week.
If you feel like it give me a follow for stuff on Arsenal, football and just general ramblings:
Follow @fisher_mr
Giroud, who was fantastic, opened the scoring after just 11 minutes with a powerful header than Schwarzer couldn't keep out. Then on the 23rd minute, Podolski converted Arteta's cross and we were 2 nil up and cruising. However, once again, defensive problems at the back saw Berbatov find space far too easily and simply nod it past Mannone. It then got worse as Berbatov then crossed for Alex Kacaniklic who peeled away from Sagna and headed into the ground from 14 yards. Mannone perhaps could have done better but he did have to travel the length of the goal to get there.
The second half didn't start well either. 20 minutes in Arteta, who had an absolute mare, was caught dallying on the ball by Ruiz and then gave away a penalty. At which point Berbatov stepped up and cooly put the penalty in. We had squandered a 2 goal lead and we all feared the worst. 2 minutes later Giroud came to our rescue, he hit the base of the post with a great effort, it fell to Walcott who then crossed for Giroud to head past Schwarzer again. With seconds left, we got a dubious penalty decision when Arshavin put in a cross that hit a Fulham defenders hand. Harsh, but in this league you have to take these chances and sadly we didn't. Arteta rounded off his shocker by having his penalty saved very well you have to say by Schwarzer.
I understand that the manager has his penalty takers set out before the game but it seemed the logical move to let Giroud take the penalty, although he missed one against Coventry earlier in the season. That's not a moment to linger on or worry about, everyone misses penalties it just happens. What worries me more is the fact that we once again shipped 2 goals that we should have dealt with.
It's the derby this weekend and its a real chance for either team to kick on as we've both been playing badly. I've heard reports that we will start with 3 centre-backs. If Wenger decides to do that, he will have lost it. For 2 reasons, firstly as an attacking team, removing an option going forward isn't smart. Secondly this is the derby at home, we have to go out and show we mean business, we can't sit an absorb pressure.
A lot of mixed feelings and opinions ahead of Saturday, I'll be back with mine beforehand on Friday. I'm going to finish by saying that I've seen a lot of talk on twitter about people wanting us to lose at the weekend. We support our team, always. We can be disappointed with results and we have the right make those feelings known but we always have to support the team. It's what we're here for. Until next time enjoy the rest of your week.
If you feel like it give me a follow for stuff on Arsenal, football and just general ramblings:
Follow @fisher_mr
Wednesday, 31 October 2012
Reading 5-7 Arsenal?!?!
Last night I sat and watched quite possibly the most ridiculous 120 minutes of football I've ever seen. I saw Arsenal at their absolute worse and then at one of their best. A combination of defensive errors, keeping errors and just terrible play meant that after 37 minutes we were 4-0 down to a Reading side that we had basically let run riot. We all had that feeling that we could have been well and truly embarrassed and it was looking more than possible that we'd go down conceding more than 8.
Then came the first of three moments that changed the entire match. Arshavin who had another hit and miss match, slid the ball through for Walcott who clipped the ball over the onrushing keeper and we had a faint glimer of hope. After presumably a bollocking at the half Wenger sent the same side out to correcct their mess. We began to get a foothold in the game and then the second turning point in the match when Wenger brought on Giroud and Eisfled, which turned out to be an inspired substitution. 2 minutes after arriving Giroud powered his header back across goal and it was 4-2 and we started to believe.
The game went on and then hope began to fade as we seemed to be throwing chances away. In the 89th minute, Koscielny put right his wrong and also scored a header. This only galvanised the team and 6 minutes into the added 4, Walcott's shot crossed the line and was cleared off, the official didn't give it but Jenkinson made sure the ball went in and smashed it into the net. 4-4 and we were in control. In an amusing moment at the end of this Coquelin and Giroud threw their shirts into the crowd, before being told there was no replay in this competition.
The equaliser was the last turning point in the match and totally deflated the hosts. We kicked off extra time and the game was a bit end to end and after a few scary moments, Chamakh the man who hasn't scored in 13 months drilled his shot low into the corner and we had the lead for the first time in the match.
We started the second half of extra time and rather predictably Reading scored from a header and then penalties looked a sure thing. But Walcott who played outstandingly wasn't having that and after a bit of confusion he smashed the ball home from about 8 yards sending the absolutely immense away support into utter delirium. Moments later Chamakh put the icing on the cake lobbing the keeper from 30 yards and that was finally that.
Overall it was a ridiculous night, in which we conceded 5 yet through spirit, grit and determination sent all of our away fans, who were most definitely our 12th man, away with beaming smiles.
The game went on and then hope began to fade as we seemed to be throwing chances away. In the 89th minute, Koscielny put right his wrong and also scored a header. This only galvanised the team and 6 minutes into the added 4, Walcott's shot crossed the line and was cleared off, the official didn't give it but Jenkinson made sure the ball went in and smashed it into the net. 4-4 and we were in control. In an amusing moment at the end of this Coquelin and Giroud threw their shirts into the crowd, before being told there was no replay in this competition.
The equaliser was the last turning point in the match and totally deflated the hosts. We kicked off extra time and the game was a bit end to end and after a few scary moments, Chamakh the man who hasn't scored in 13 months drilled his shot low into the corner and we had the lead for the first time in the match.
We started the second half of extra time and rather predictably Reading scored from a header and then penalties looked a sure thing. But Walcott who played outstandingly wasn't having that and after a bit of confusion he smashed the ball home from about 8 yards sending the absolutely immense away support into utter delirium. Moments later Chamakh put the icing on the cake lobbing the keeper from 30 yards and that was finally that.
Overall it was a ridiculous night, in which we conceded 5 yet through spirit, grit and determination sent all of our away fans, who were most definitely our 12th man, away with beaming smiles.
Thursday, 25 October 2012
Bad to worse
Last night was one of the worst performances from an Arsenal side that I can remember. For a team that prides itself on the back of attacking football, to have one shot on target in the 94th minute, its quite frankly appalling. We never looked like creating anything going forward and defensively we had a disaster. Santos had a complete mare at the back and wasn't helped by the fact he got no cover from Podolski or anyone else for that matter.
We started Gervinho ahead of Giroud which in my opinion is a disaster to start with. The Ivorian is erratic and quite frankly not us to our level. Wenger keeps saying he has faith in our new signing yet his reluctance to play them to me suggests something else. Giroud needs games to bed in and at the moment he's just not getting them and I can imagine that frustrates him a lot. The managerial tactics were poor too, we clearly weren't at the races yet we still waited until the 70th minute to make changes. All players will struggle to make an impact with 20 minutes to go and they came on and did very little. The last 2 games have been worrying and today made for a feisty, angry and uncomfortable AGM.
After reading what was essentially a transcript of it I have come to the conclusion I came to a few years ago. The board need to change and they need to change NOW! Peter Hill-Wood is past it and has no agenda apart from his own. Gazadis is pushing the same boat he has been for years, financially stable and all that but when asked about squad investment, dodged the question. If you believe what was said Arsene has the money to spend but chooses not too because of his beliefs. I find that a hard pill to swallow, when you look back to his early years, did we develop Viera, Pires, Ljungberg, Bergkamp? No. I think the board are using Wenger in a manner that he can't defend.
Signing multi-million pound deals is all well and good but only when the team compete and the stadium is full. Last night neither happened and I'm afraid if something doesn't change sooner rather than later, the deals will stop, the money will stop and the club will be in danger of entering an era we cannot escape from. So my feeling at the moment is: Wenger in, Hill-Wood out.
Back to the football and Saturday the team has a chance to redeem itself by returning to winning ways playing QPR at home and hopefully they will be bolstered by injury returns. Until then, have a good week.
We started Gervinho ahead of Giroud which in my opinion is a disaster to start with. The Ivorian is erratic and quite frankly not us to our level. Wenger keeps saying he has faith in our new signing yet his reluctance to play them to me suggests something else. Giroud needs games to bed in and at the moment he's just not getting them and I can imagine that frustrates him a lot. The managerial tactics were poor too, we clearly weren't at the races yet we still waited until the 70th minute to make changes. All players will struggle to make an impact with 20 minutes to go and they came on and did very little. The last 2 games have been worrying and today made for a feisty, angry and uncomfortable AGM.
After reading what was essentially a transcript of it I have come to the conclusion I came to a few years ago. The board need to change and they need to change NOW! Peter Hill-Wood is past it and has no agenda apart from his own. Gazadis is pushing the same boat he has been for years, financially stable and all that but when asked about squad investment, dodged the question. If you believe what was said Arsene has the money to spend but chooses not too because of his beliefs. I find that a hard pill to swallow, when you look back to his early years, did we develop Viera, Pires, Ljungberg, Bergkamp? No. I think the board are using Wenger in a manner that he can't defend.
Signing multi-million pound deals is all well and good but only when the team compete and the stadium is full. Last night neither happened and I'm afraid if something doesn't change sooner rather than later, the deals will stop, the money will stop and the club will be in danger of entering an era we cannot escape from. So my feeling at the moment is: Wenger in, Hill-Wood out.
Back to the football and Saturday the team has a chance to redeem itself by returning to winning ways playing QPR at home and hopefully they will be bolstered by injury returns. Until then, have a good week.
Monday, 22 October 2012
Norwich: Poor display
After waiting 2 weeks to watch Arsenal again, they performed like that?! It was one of those games where we just never got into it, didn't click, couldn't find our rhythm, however you want to put it, it was terrible. We didn't look interested in the match and for the 4th league game in a row conceded first. This time there was no reply.
We dominated possession but far too often Giroud was isolated upfront and we couldn't supply him. Then in the 19th minute Mannone spilled a shot that he probably should have held and even against Grant Holt Mertesacker couldn't match his pace to block his finish. Again this leaves question marks over Mannone about whether he really can challenge for number 1. That for the moment is a debate for another day though as at this current moment we simply have no choice with SZCZ and Fabianski out for the near future anyway.
From that we never really looked like getting an equaliser. Giroud had a half chance with a falling, overhead kick, a difficult technique so no surprises when he didn't quite pull it off. Then the best chance of the game fell to Gervinho. Serge Gnabry who every time I've seen him has been quality, slipped a perfect ball through for the Ivorian who delayed too long before pulling the trigger and saw his shot blocked. In all honesty, he may have scored 5 goal this season but I still see him as the weak link and the sooner he disappears off to the ACoN the better in my opinion.
It was interested to hear what Arteta had to say after the game about defensive issues and the effect conceding has on a team:
He's correct in what he says and it was clear to see that he was highly disappointed with the performance of the team and to be honest he should be.
Ah well that's the end of the match and now it has to be forgotten before we face the toughest opponents in our group, Schalke, at the Emirates on Wednesday night. A preview of that match will be up tomorrow. Until then chin up and lets move on.
We dominated possession but far too often Giroud was isolated upfront and we couldn't supply him. Then in the 19th minute Mannone spilled a shot that he probably should have held and even against Grant Holt Mertesacker couldn't match his pace to block his finish. Again this leaves question marks over Mannone about whether he really can challenge for number 1. That for the moment is a debate for another day though as at this current moment we simply have no choice with SZCZ and Fabianski out for the near future anyway.
From that we never really looked like getting an equaliser. Giroud had a half chance with a falling, overhead kick, a difficult technique so no surprises when he didn't quite pull it off. Then the best chance of the game fell to Gervinho. Serge Gnabry who every time I've seen him has been quality, slipped a perfect ball through for the Ivorian who delayed too long before pulling the trigger and saw his shot blocked. In all honesty, he may have scored 5 goal this season but I still see him as the weak link and the sooner he disappears off to the ACoN the better in my opinion.
It was interested to hear what Arteta had to say after the game about defensive issues and the effect conceding has on a team:
“If you go ahead, it gives you a lift, the other team has to take risks, and you can cause mistakes. You can’t get back in the game every time you fall behind. It’s a tough ask and we haven’t done it today."
He's correct in what he says and it was clear to see that he was highly disappointed with the performance of the team and to be honest he should be.
Ah well that's the end of the match and now it has to be forgotten before we face the toughest opponents in our group, Schalke, at the Emirates on Wednesday night. A preview of that match will be up tomorrow. Until then chin up and lets move on.
Friday, 21 September 2012
Manchester City (A)
Afternoon, I have a busy weekend so thought I'd post now. This Sunday we face the biggest test of the season so far and possibly the hardest game we'll have in the league. We travel to City fresh off a very ugly win in Montpellier, which in all honesty we were lucky to win. City on the other hand will have had their confidence dented after leading twice in the Bernabeu only to throw it away conceding two goals in 2 minutes much to the delight of Jose Mourinho.
This is a huge game for us and although we've had a good start to the season much of how people will view us competitively this season will be judged on our performance on Sunday. On how we compete with the "big boys". There is no doubt this is a huge test for our relatively new team.
If we play like we did on Tuesday, giving the ball away sloppily and taking risks with tackles, we will get punished by a team of City's quality. We need to be at our best to really have a chance of coming away with anything. I seemed to think that we were over-complicating things on Tuesday when often the simple ball is the most effective. We were getting caught in possession time and time again and frankly we just looked tired. There will be little room for error and Sunday and all the players need to keep it tight.
Both teams will be tired after big games midweek but in a game like this the team who wants it more usually comes out on top. And our boys certainly want it. Lukas Podolski is certainly not shy in his thoughts and seems confident that we can get a result. I must admit I have been impressed with the whole team ethos this year and we do all seem to have the belief that we can do it.
Teams are total guess work really, especially as they have about 80 players to choose from. For us I think we'll see a similar line up to that we had in France. I'd like to see Koscielny step in if he's fit because I'm not entirely sure Mertesacker can deal with Aguero an other pacey strikers at their disposal. But here goes: Mannone, Jenkinson, Mertesacker, Vermaelen, Gibbs, Alex OC, Diaby, Arteta, Podolski, Cazorla, Gervinho. I think Arsene will decide to drop Giroud to the bench for this one and keep Gervinho in as well hes got 3 in 2. I do worry about Jenkinson down the right, he'll be given a tough time by City's wingers. But in a big game, players sometimes step up.
Our game of course, follows a hugely important match on Sunday, in terms of football more than anything. I hope it all goes without incident for the sake of relations more than anything.
So all attention turns to Sunday where we'll really test our mettle. COYG!
Prediction: Manchester City 2-1 Arsenal
This is a huge game for us and although we've had a good start to the season much of how people will view us competitively this season will be judged on our performance on Sunday. On how we compete with the "big boys". There is no doubt this is a huge test for our relatively new team.
If we play like we did on Tuesday, giving the ball away sloppily and taking risks with tackles, we will get punished by a team of City's quality. We need to be at our best to really have a chance of coming away with anything. I seemed to think that we were over-complicating things on Tuesday when often the simple ball is the most effective. We were getting caught in possession time and time again and frankly we just looked tired. There will be little room for error and Sunday and all the players need to keep it tight.
Both teams will be tired after big games midweek but in a game like this the team who wants it more usually comes out on top. And our boys certainly want it. Lukas Podolski is certainly not shy in his thoughts and seems confident that we can get a result. I must admit I have been impressed with the whole team ethos this year and we do all seem to have the belief that we can do it.
Teams are total guess work really, especially as they have about 80 players to choose from. For us I think we'll see a similar line up to that we had in France. I'd like to see Koscielny step in if he's fit because I'm not entirely sure Mertesacker can deal with Aguero an other pacey strikers at their disposal. But here goes: Mannone, Jenkinson, Mertesacker, Vermaelen, Gibbs, Alex OC, Diaby, Arteta, Podolski, Cazorla, Gervinho. I think Arsene will decide to drop Giroud to the bench for this one and keep Gervinho in as well hes got 3 in 2. I do worry about Jenkinson down the right, he'll be given a tough time by City's wingers. But in a big game, players sometimes step up.
Our game of course, follows a hugely important match on Sunday, in terms of football more than anything. I hope it all goes without incident for the sake of relations more than anything.
So all attention turns to Sunday where we'll really test our mettle. COYG!
Prediction: Manchester City 2-1 Arsenal
Wednesday, 19 September 2012
Montpellier Breakdown
It was ugly, we rode our luck, they should have scored more. But we took all 3 points and in football that's all that really matters. I'm not going to babble on too long about this but there are a couple of points I'd like to go over.
In the first half, we looked good and dominated until Vermaelen gave away a dubious penalty that on reflection probably was a penalty. Belhanda stepped up and cheekily chipped it right down the middle. This sparked wild celebrations from their fans and I feared the worst. But 7 minutes later we were level through a very classy Podolski goal, after he was passed in from Giroud, who frankly did basically nothing all game. His second touch opened his body up, selling the keeper a dummy and then putting it past him at the near post, a really great goal. 2 minutes later, we were ahead thanks again to Gervinho. Jenkinson who had a touch and go game (dithering a few times), went charging down the wing, as he did a few times to be fair to him, and put in a great cross for Gervinho in the middle who basically couldn't miss but nearly did! 2-1 Arsenal.
We went in at the half and I felt pretty confident that we'd kick on a kill the game off. Sadly the second half we were poor from the get go. We started and Montpellier battered our goal firing shots all over the place. When we did finally clear our lines, we looked tired physically and didn't really look like we had anything left to give. Steve Bould made the changed as the half went on with Giroud (another goaless appearance), Cazorla and Podolski coming off. Montpellier had a golden chance as the seconds ticked down when Mertesacker completely missed with a sliding tackle leaving the player with the ball about 10 yards out only to smash it straight at Mannone who did well to hold onto it. Diaby who thought the referee wanted to send him off?? made a stupid challenge in the box that I thought was a penalty only to see it waved away.
We were lucky and I'm really not sure why we looked so tired in the second half. If we play like that against city,we'll get battered on Sunday. Ah well. Until then have a good week.
In the first half, we looked good and dominated until Vermaelen gave away a dubious penalty that on reflection probably was a penalty. Belhanda stepped up and cheekily chipped it right down the middle. This sparked wild celebrations from their fans and I feared the worst. But 7 minutes later we were level through a very classy Podolski goal, after he was passed in from Giroud, who frankly did basically nothing all game. His second touch opened his body up, selling the keeper a dummy and then putting it past him at the near post, a really great goal. 2 minutes later, we were ahead thanks again to Gervinho. Jenkinson who had a touch and go game (dithering a few times), went charging down the wing, as he did a few times to be fair to him, and put in a great cross for Gervinho in the middle who basically couldn't miss but nearly did! 2-1 Arsenal.
We went in at the half and I felt pretty confident that we'd kick on a kill the game off. Sadly the second half we were poor from the get go. We started and Montpellier battered our goal firing shots all over the place. When we did finally clear our lines, we looked tired physically and didn't really look like we had anything left to give. Steve Bould made the changed as the half went on with Giroud (another goaless appearance), Cazorla and Podolski coming off. Montpellier had a golden chance as the seconds ticked down when Mertesacker completely missed with a sliding tackle leaving the player with the ball about 10 yards out only to smash it straight at Mannone who did well to hold onto it. Diaby who thought the referee wanted to send him off?? made a stupid challenge in the box that I thought was a penalty only to see it waved away.
We were lucky and I'm really not sure why we looked so tired in the second half. If we play like that against city,we'll get battered on Sunday. Ah well. Until then have a good week.
Wednesday, 12 September 2012
Sagna, Santi and Southampton
Well here we are again, in that dull interlude, where football fans go a little crazy due to withdrawal symptoms. Of course we have internationals but they are boring as fuck so the rumour mill starts to churn out crap again.
Let's start, anyway, with the our first win of the season over Liverpool. It's always good to beat Liverpool at Anfield and although long gone are the days when I saw this fixture as "one of those games" that could go either way, it's still nice to get one over on them. I expected us to win and we did with some real stand out performances. It was great to see Poldi get on the score sheet with his first goal for us (and partially rescuing my fantasy league score) along with Diaby who was simply mustard, creating Lukas' goal along with other chances as we went forward. But once again Santi Cazorla was magnificent to watch, I saw him described as majestic before the game and he really is. It's a shame for him that the Spain squad is as good as it is because otherwise he'd be a regular. My dad said to me "once he scores, he'll be away", moments later he was embracing Gervinho after smashing the ball low under-ish Reina who didn't get down quick enough. A solid performance and scarily a third clean sheet in a row, maybe Steve Bould is starting to work his magic.
So, as I'm sure many of you know, the papers ran a story the other week quoting Sagna as saying something like "losing your best players, of course it affects you". Along with some talk about his contract which is set to run out in 2014. When asked whether Arsenal had contacted him over his contract he said "No, nothing". I can understand Sagna's frustration cause he reflects the mood of a lot of Arsenal fans, but I think he just needs to stop for a moment and take a look at the situation. His contract doesn't run out until 2014 and while I'd rather Arsenal just sorted it out I'm sure they will do so in their own time. As for this "ambition of the club" shit that RVP rolled out, the fans don't buy it, the club don't buy it and player shouldn't see it as an easy way out.
Moving on though, in his interview after the Liverpool game Arsene said that he was impressed with Diaby and he hoped he got through the Internationals OK. However he has picked up a muscular problem, which ruled him out of last nights game with Belarus. On the plus side Wenger isn't concerned saying he has a "small chance" of playing on Saturday which to me means he won't be playing on Saturday. Let's hope it isn't serious and he can get back to his killer form soon.
That's about it for now I'll be back with a pre-match report for the Southampton game on Friday. Until then enjoy your week!
Let's start, anyway, with the our first win of the season over Liverpool. It's always good to beat Liverpool at Anfield and although long gone are the days when I saw this fixture as "one of those games" that could go either way, it's still nice to get one over on them. I expected us to win and we did with some real stand out performances. It was great to see Poldi get on the score sheet with his first goal for us (and partially rescuing my fantasy league score) along with Diaby who was simply mustard, creating Lukas' goal along with other chances as we went forward. But once again Santi Cazorla was magnificent to watch, I saw him described as majestic before the game and he really is. It's a shame for him that the Spain squad is as good as it is because otherwise he'd be a regular. My dad said to me "once he scores, he'll be away", moments later he was embracing Gervinho after smashing the ball low under-ish Reina who didn't get down quick enough. A solid performance and scarily a third clean sheet in a row, maybe Steve Bould is starting to work his magic.
So, as I'm sure many of you know, the papers ran a story the other week quoting Sagna as saying something like "losing your best players, of course it affects you". Along with some talk about his contract which is set to run out in 2014. When asked whether Arsenal had contacted him over his contract he said "No, nothing". I can understand Sagna's frustration cause he reflects the mood of a lot of Arsenal fans, but I think he just needs to stop for a moment and take a look at the situation. His contract doesn't run out until 2014 and while I'd rather Arsenal just sorted it out I'm sure they will do so in their own time. As for this "ambition of the club" shit that RVP rolled out, the fans don't buy it, the club don't buy it and player shouldn't see it as an easy way out.
Moving on though, in his interview after the Liverpool game Arsene said that he was impressed with Diaby and he hoped he got through the Internationals OK. However he has picked up a muscular problem, which ruled him out of last nights game with Belarus. On the plus side Wenger isn't concerned saying he has a "small chance" of playing on Saturday which to me means he won't be playing on Saturday. Let's hope it isn't serious and he can get back to his killer form soon.
That's about it for now I'll be back with a pre-match report for the Southampton game on Friday. Until then enjoy your week!
Tuesday, 21 August 2012
Sunderland, Song and Sahin?
OK so as you know I'm currently on my hols but as I have a few hours to kill I thought I'd just go over recent events and goings on.
Well let's start with the game on Saturday that sadly didn't get off to the start we all wanted. I didn't watch the game but was getting updates and saw the highlights after. It's always a gutter when you boss the game and create 20 plus chances to end up 0-0. We, in all honesty should have scored and won, the chance the fell to Giroud should have been 1-0 Arsenal but I think potentially nerves got the better of him and he put it wide. I said when we signed Giroud, it had the potential to be a really good buy, but I think he will take some time to settle. Podolski I'm not so worried about coming from a league with a much higher calibre of football, but Giroud may take a bit of time to bed in, let's hope it's not too long. Cazorla looked phenomenal, a real star, he could easily be our best player this season. His real test will come when we travel to middle earth on Sunday and take on that colony of orcs known as Stoke. If he stands up to them and still shines then we know we are most definitely on to a winner.
Unlike the RvP deal, I was really disappointed with Song. Firstly because the deal we struck was pitiful. £15m for someone of his quality with 3 years left, really Arsenal is that the best we can do? I am sad to see him leave after he said "I am happy at Arsenal" but once again greedy agent Darren Dein (wanker) turned his head away from us like countless other players over the last few seasons. I can't see Song playing much this season and it just feels like another deal that Dein had engineered in an effort to spite us fans. However the good news is that Song was our last player tethered to that unbearable fucker so we're rid of him at last.
Finally and I must say take this with a pinch of salt, the Sahin deal seems to be moving in the right direction with 'according to sky sources: a deal has been struck'. I suggest much of this has to do with the fact that the Luka Modric deal also seems to be moving in that direction. But please don't take this deal as done these are the same sky sources that claimed RvP was staying at Arsenal a day before he signed for United so...
Anyway looking ahead to Stoke on Sunday where hopefully we can get our first win of the season. Until then have a good week from a rather stormy Orlando.
Well let's start with the game on Saturday that sadly didn't get off to the start we all wanted. I didn't watch the game but was getting updates and saw the highlights after. It's always a gutter when you boss the game and create 20 plus chances to end up 0-0. We, in all honesty should have scored and won, the chance the fell to Giroud should have been 1-0 Arsenal but I think potentially nerves got the better of him and he put it wide. I said when we signed Giroud, it had the potential to be a really good buy, but I think he will take some time to settle. Podolski I'm not so worried about coming from a league with a much higher calibre of football, but Giroud may take a bit of time to bed in, let's hope it's not too long. Cazorla looked phenomenal, a real star, he could easily be our best player this season. His real test will come when we travel to middle earth on Sunday and take on that colony of orcs known as Stoke. If he stands up to them and still shines then we know we are most definitely on to a winner.
Unlike the RvP deal, I was really disappointed with Song. Firstly because the deal we struck was pitiful. £15m for someone of his quality with 3 years left, really Arsenal is that the best we can do? I am sad to see him leave after he said "I am happy at Arsenal" but once again greedy agent Darren Dein (wanker) turned his head away from us like countless other players over the last few seasons. I can't see Song playing much this season and it just feels like another deal that Dein had engineered in an effort to spite us fans. However the good news is that Song was our last player tethered to that unbearable fucker so we're rid of him at last.
Finally and I must say take this with a pinch of salt, the Sahin deal seems to be moving in the right direction with 'according to sky sources: a deal has been struck'. I suggest much of this has to do with the fact that the Luka Modric deal also seems to be moving in that direction. But please don't take this deal as done these are the same sky sources that claimed RvP was staying at Arsenal a day before he signed for United so...
Anyway looking ahead to Stoke on Sunday where hopefully we can get our first win of the season. Until then have a good week from a rather stormy Orlando.
Thursday, 16 August 2012
The Saga Concludes
Well there you have it, in a way we all knew it was inevitable. The destination wasn't inevitable however and I can completely understand all the bitterness that followed and all the hatred. That's just football...
Where to begin? OK those who know me personally and follow me on twitter
(https://twitter.com/fisher_mr) will know that last night, far from being hurt and disappointed I was actually in a rather cheery mood. I'll explain. £24m for a 29 year old, injury prone player with one year left on his contract, to me is brilliant business. As always we've made an enormous profit and I think United have taken a huge gamble for a number of reasons.
Firstly, with a injury sheet longer than the Olympics bill, there is always that question mark over RVP and his fitness. With his many injuries over the years every time he goes down there is always that fear that he might stay down. At 29, one more big injury could spell real trouble for him. I don't want to wish injury or anything like that upon him, even when a player moves to sp*rs you still don't think like that. But I do have a niggling feeling he may be seeing a lot of the United physio.
Secondly I have real reservations about how he will work with Rooney. I can't see them working together, he won't score 20+ goals I will put money on that. Can he feed Rooney as a Shadow Striker? Is that worth £24m? I don't think so. I'm sure Ferguson will play them side-by-side upfront, but considering they have problems in centre midfield will they get the support they need?
So it's a big risk. In terms of my personal feelings, I don't feel betrayed or angry. Just a little disappointed that he could have been up there with Henry, Wright, Bergkamp and now he'll just be that dutch bloke that scored some good goals for us. He won't be remembered as a legend and I'm sure that one day he'll look back and regret it. But he engineered this move himself and now he has to deal with whatever it brings.
We need to continue our build up to the new season now and re-invest the money that we will get from the deal. A striker should be right at the top of the list, I worry about Giroud coming from Ligue 1, yes he looks promising and he certainly knows how to find the net but it's a big step for him. Podolski I'm less worried about but I don't really think Wenger wants to play his as another striker as such more as a versatile attacker. I'd like to see us buy Llorente but I can't see it, Wenger now surely knows that we need to bring in some players and it's just a case of waiting and seeing what happens.
As I'm jetting off to the USA tomorrow posts will be limited, but I will do my pre-match posts as the new season FINALLY kicks off! In the words of Thomas Vermaelen "Life go's on".
Where to begin? OK those who know me personally and follow me on twitter
(https://twitter.com/fisher_mr) will know that last night, far from being hurt and disappointed I was actually in a rather cheery mood. I'll explain. £24m for a 29 year old, injury prone player with one year left on his contract, to me is brilliant business. As always we've made an enormous profit and I think United have taken a huge gamble for a number of reasons.
Firstly, with a injury sheet longer than the Olympics bill, there is always that question mark over RVP and his fitness. With his many injuries over the years every time he goes down there is always that fear that he might stay down. At 29, one more big injury could spell real trouble for him. I don't want to wish injury or anything like that upon him, even when a player moves to sp*rs you still don't think like that. But I do have a niggling feeling he may be seeing a lot of the United physio.
Secondly I have real reservations about how he will work with Rooney. I can't see them working together, he won't score 20+ goals I will put money on that. Can he feed Rooney as a Shadow Striker? Is that worth £24m? I don't think so. I'm sure Ferguson will play them side-by-side upfront, but considering they have problems in centre midfield will they get the support they need?
So it's a big risk. In terms of my personal feelings, I don't feel betrayed or angry. Just a little disappointed that he could have been up there with Henry, Wright, Bergkamp and now he'll just be that dutch bloke that scored some good goals for us. He won't be remembered as a legend and I'm sure that one day he'll look back and regret it. But he engineered this move himself and now he has to deal with whatever it brings.
We need to continue our build up to the new season now and re-invest the money that we will get from the deal. A striker should be right at the top of the list, I worry about Giroud coming from Ligue 1, yes he looks promising and he certainly knows how to find the net but it's a big step for him. Podolski I'm less worried about but I don't really think Wenger wants to play his as another striker as such more as a versatile attacker. I'd like to see us buy Llorente but I can't see it, Wenger now surely knows that we need to bring in some players and it's just a case of waiting and seeing what happens.
As I'm jetting off to the USA tomorrow posts will be limited, but I will do my pre-match posts as the new season FINALLY kicks off! In the words of Thomas Vermaelen "Life go's on".
Tuesday, 24 July 2012
Koscielny new deal + transfer rumours
Hi all, just a quick post today as I am extremely busy.
As I'm sure many of you know, this morning Laurent Koscielny has agreed a new long-term deal with us. We have been criticised for our defensive frailties over the last couple of seasons but Koscielny, especially last season, I think has been fantastic. He's really got his head down and got on with the job in hand making crucial interceptions, tackles and scoring the odd goal too including our winner at West Brom. He has really won the fans over and it's great to see him (much like Vermaelen) sign a contract, no fuss, no problems and focus on his football. See Robin, it's not that hard is it?
In other news and these are only rumours I have seen from various sources that we have agreed personal terms for Malaga winger Santi Cazorla. He's a lad I don't know much about I'll admit but he would be yet another addition to our attacking line up. Giving us plenty of depth up front. I don't know whether he's a left or right winger but it means there will be hot competition for one side.
Malaga are currently in a bit of a financial situation. With the new owner piling money in at a rate of knots, there have been issues with players wages not being paid and tax problems. If they don't wipe their debt by July 31st, they will be relegated and banned from playing in the Champions League. This gives us the opportunity to possibly force a sale of around €20m.
Yesterday Wenger also stated that we won't be going in for Yann M'villa, unless Wilshere or Diaby suffer a setback which sadly seems likely. I think it's risky to gamble on Diaby's fitness and bringing in a player as cover would be no bad thing. But we can only speculate until anything else is said.
We play the Malasyia XI later today in our first proper pre-season match, let's see what happens and pray for no injuries. Till next time.
As I'm sure many of you know, this morning Laurent Koscielny has agreed a new long-term deal with us. We have been criticised for our defensive frailties over the last couple of seasons but Koscielny, especially last season, I think has been fantastic. He's really got his head down and got on with the job in hand making crucial interceptions, tackles and scoring the odd goal too including our winner at West Brom. He has really won the fans over and it's great to see him (much like Vermaelen) sign a contract, no fuss, no problems and focus on his football. See Robin, it's not that hard is it?
In other news and these are only rumours I have seen from various sources that we have agreed personal terms for Malaga winger Santi Cazorla. He's a lad I don't know much about I'll admit but he would be yet another addition to our attacking line up. Giving us plenty of depth up front. I don't know whether he's a left or right winger but it means there will be hot competition for one side.
Malaga are currently in a bit of a financial situation. With the new owner piling money in at a rate of knots, there have been issues with players wages not being paid and tax problems. If they don't wipe their debt by July 31st, they will be relegated and banned from playing in the Champions League. This gives us the opportunity to possibly force a sale of around €20m.
Yesterday Wenger also stated that we won't be going in for Yann M'villa, unless Wilshere or Diaby suffer a setback which sadly seems likely. I think it's risky to gamble on Diaby's fitness and bringing in a player as cover would be no bad thing. But we can only speculate until anything else is said.
We play the Malasyia XI later today in our first proper pre-season match, let's see what happens and pray for no injuries. Till next time.
Thursday, 12 July 2012
RVP U-turn and other news...
Well this was reported a few days ago, I debated writing about it then but decided I'd wait until this new round of talks were over, then got bored and decided to write about it.
After the big "I'm not signing statement", it appears that Van Persie may sign a new contract following a new round of talks with Ivan Gazidis. It seemed odd to me at the time to release the statement and for it to be worded as bizarrely as it was. Word on the grape vine is that it was written by his agent, who I will come on to in a minute, with a bit of RVP input. According to Sky's Dharmesh Sheth this was all in the aim of negotiating a more frugal contract, which is entirely believable looking at Robin's agent.
So Robin's agent...well...Kees Vos is the sort of man that gives football agents a bad name, now that's saying something. Everything I read about him is simply that he likes to keep moving players around to earn a nice commission for himself. It was his idea to release the statement with the intention of either: increasing the chances of a transfer or increasing the value of a new deal, thus increasing his commission. Quite why players choose him is beyond me but there you go. So after Kees brainwave, we stand where we do now, knowing nothing more than we did the other day. If you'd like to personally tell Kees what you think of him then use his twitter here.
Now I'm not going to comment on what I think Robin will do, because simply I don't know. Should he sign a new deal he may get a rather frosty reception from some of the fans. A lot of the love we felt for the dutchman has evaporated, myself included. That said I stand by my statement from the last post. There is no way he will be as prolific as last year, that was his peak season.
For now we can only wait and see what comes out of the club. When that time comes I'll be on it!
After the big "I'm not signing statement", it appears that Van Persie may sign a new contract following a new round of talks with Ivan Gazidis. It seemed odd to me at the time to release the statement and for it to be worded as bizarrely as it was. Word on the grape vine is that it was written by his agent, who I will come on to in a minute, with a bit of RVP input. According to Sky's Dharmesh Sheth this was all in the aim of negotiating a more frugal contract, which is entirely believable looking at Robin's agent.
So Robin's agent...well...Kees Vos is the sort of man that gives football agents a bad name, now that's saying something. Everything I read about him is simply that he likes to keep moving players around to earn a nice commission for himself. It was his idea to release the statement with the intention of either: increasing the chances of a transfer or increasing the value of a new deal, thus increasing his commission. Quite why players choose him is beyond me but there you go. So after Kees brainwave, we stand where we do now, knowing nothing more than we did the other day. If you'd like to personally tell Kees what you think of him then use his twitter here.
Now I'm not going to comment on what I think Robin will do, because simply I don't know. Should he sign a new deal he may get a rather frosty reception from some of the fans. A lot of the love we felt for the dutchman has evaporated, myself included. That said I stand by my statement from the last post. There is no way he will be as prolific as last year, that was his peak season.
For now we can only wait and see what comes out of the club. When that time comes I'll be on it!
Thursday, 5 July 2012
RVP won't sign a new contract, we shouldn't give a fuck
OK I've just deleted this whole post and I've started re-doing it because what I wrote first just didn't really sound right. So this is take 2. Now I've been saying all season about how we need to sign him up and how we needed to do this, I should be gutted. Quite frankly I'm really not. I don't know why. Possible because I've seen this done a million times with Arsenal, I've seen bigger players leave and more important and honestly better players leave (Cesc, Henry). But mainly because when I wrote this the first time I read it through and thought: but was robin really all that? 8 years and he had one blinding season and now his head has doubled in size.
His statement quite frankly was baffling. I don't understand why he would release it in the way it was worded. The club he spent all season saying he loved and he basically said I've outgrown you. Somewhere up in the crazy dutch mind of his, he thought he was saying the right thing and let us down lightly. That completely backfired. The hero-to-zero tag is definitely what happened in this case. Fans aren't stupid we all know that by saying what he did, he drove his transfer value down, meaning of course when he signs, his wages can be higher. I genuinely thought he was better than that.
I know last season he effectively won us 3rd place, but apart from last season did he really do much? I don't think so. Reports say we're going to be offered £22m, remembering he will be 29 before the season starts, I think that's a decent sum for a player whose reached his peak and has had one good season. But now everyone is asking should we sell or should we hold him to his contract.
Being brutally honest we HAVE to sell now. We've been in this situation before and we know the consequences of holding out and having the whole thing explode in our face. With the new season upon us in around a month and a half, we need to reinvest and we need to do it soon. But will Arsenal re-invest? This is what really gets supporters wound up, we sell these players OK, we don't have much influence over that but the money seems to disappear into some account somewhere. I can already see what the excuse will be this time "We bought 2 new strikers already, what more do you want?"
Staying is now the worst possible scenario for him, does he really think the fans will so willingly take him back? I am saying this now, IF he did stay for the last season, I will not cheer any goal he scores. I'm pretty sure there are many the same out there.
But at a club that isn't built around him I can't see him being anywhere near as prolific. Another name in a team of individuals, we saw it at the Euros, he will flop next season, mark my word!
His statement quite frankly was baffling. I don't understand why he would release it in the way it was worded. The club he spent all season saying he loved and he basically said I've outgrown you. Somewhere up in the crazy dutch mind of his, he thought he was saying the right thing and let us down lightly. That completely backfired. The hero-to-zero tag is definitely what happened in this case. Fans aren't stupid we all know that by saying what he did, he drove his transfer value down, meaning of course when he signs, his wages can be higher. I genuinely thought he was better than that.
I know last season he effectively won us 3rd place, but apart from last season did he really do much? I don't think so. Reports say we're going to be offered £22m, remembering he will be 29 before the season starts, I think that's a decent sum for a player whose reached his peak and has had one good season. But now everyone is asking should we sell or should we hold him to his contract.
Being brutally honest we HAVE to sell now. We've been in this situation before and we know the consequences of holding out and having the whole thing explode in our face. With the new season upon us in around a month and a half, we need to reinvest and we need to do it soon. But will Arsenal re-invest? This is what really gets supporters wound up, we sell these players OK, we don't have much influence over that but the money seems to disappear into some account somewhere. I can already see what the excuse will be this time "We bought 2 new strikers already, what more do you want?"
Staying is now the worst possible scenario for him, does he really think the fans will so willingly take him back? I am saying this now, IF he did stay for the last season, I will not cheer any goal he scores. I'm pretty sure there are many the same out there.
But at a club that isn't built around him I can't see him being anywhere near as prolific. Another name in a team of individuals, we saw it at the Euros, he will flop next season, mark my word!
Tuesday, 26 June 2012
Olivier Giroud Official
So this is no surprising mega signing, its been on the cards for the last 2 or possibly 3 weeks (I'm losing track of the time without the usual football). After England spectacularly went out of the Euro's we need something to cheer us up. Maybe this will be it.
What do I know about Giroud? Well quite frankly not a lot. He spent this season with surprise Ligue 1 winners Montpellier playing a total of 40 games and scoring an impressive 24 goals in league and cup. Standing at nearly 6'3 hes a giant of striker and has won the highest percentage of aerial balls this is the highest in all 5 of the top leagues this season. I'm sure I've done what plenty of Arsenal fans have this morning which is as always gone onto youtube and searched for videos of him.
From what I can tell and must say I have never seen him play so don't hold me to this. He's certainly not the quickest but he looks to me like a poacher with a fair few of his goals coming from following the ball in (something all good strikers should do). That said his technique looks superb and although he lacks pace his timing seems to be impeccable. He certainly looks like he can finish.
His height is obvious but unlike other he seems to be able to actually head the ball, I'm always amazed by the sheer number of tall strikers who either can't head or can't jump but this doesn't seem to be a problem for him.
OK now that I've gone over the bits that make everyone very excited, in the name of being fair I need to make some points. Firstly unless Wenger knows something we don't I can't see how we're going to be able to play 4-3-3 without leaving a high profile player out. We have 4 international players to fit into 3 places: RVP, Walcott, Podolski and now Giroud. Assuming he plays that formation and I know its good to have depth but will any of those players be happy playing every other game, I'm sure the 2 lads won't and Walcott certainly isn't going to be. RVP unquestionably has to play.
What about 4-4-2? OK so Walcott and Podolski on the wing, Giroud and RVP upfront. So then who loses out in the midfield: Wilshere whose our creative talent? Arteta who we just signed? Song who sits infront of the defence? Rosicky who just signed a new deal? that's without mentioning Ramsey. I genuinely can't see how it will work without shifting some players but I wouldn't want to lose any of those.
Also the last international striker we signed from the French league who was good in the air turned out to be Chamakh so...more to come soon.
What do I know about Giroud? Well quite frankly not a lot. He spent this season with surprise Ligue 1 winners Montpellier playing a total of 40 games and scoring an impressive 24 goals in league and cup. Standing at nearly 6'3 hes a giant of striker and has won the highest percentage of aerial balls this is the highest in all 5 of the top leagues this season. I'm sure I've done what plenty of Arsenal fans have this morning which is as always gone onto youtube and searched for videos of him.
From what I can tell and must say I have never seen him play so don't hold me to this. He's certainly not the quickest but he looks to me like a poacher with a fair few of his goals coming from following the ball in (something all good strikers should do). That said his technique looks superb and although he lacks pace his timing seems to be impeccable. He certainly looks like he can finish.
His height is obvious but unlike other he seems to be able to actually head the ball, I'm always amazed by the sheer number of tall strikers who either can't head or can't jump but this doesn't seem to be a problem for him.
OK now that I've gone over the bits that make everyone very excited, in the name of being fair I need to make some points. Firstly unless Wenger knows something we don't I can't see how we're going to be able to play 4-3-3 without leaving a high profile player out. We have 4 international players to fit into 3 places: RVP, Walcott, Podolski and now Giroud. Assuming he plays that formation and I know its good to have depth but will any of those players be happy playing every other game, I'm sure the 2 lads won't and Walcott certainly isn't going to be. RVP unquestionably has to play.
What about 4-4-2? OK so Walcott and Podolski on the wing, Giroud and RVP upfront. So then who loses out in the midfield: Wilshere whose our creative talent? Arteta who we just signed? Song who sits infront of the defence? Rosicky who just signed a new deal? that's without mentioning Ramsey. I genuinely can't see how it will work without shifting some players but I wouldn't want to lose any of those.
Also the last international striker we signed from the French league who was good in the air turned out to be Chamakh so...more to come soon.
Wednesday, 23 May 2012
Arsenal wield the axe
So the big news coming out of Arsenal this morning is that we have released 7 payers: Manuel Almunia, George Brislen-Hall, Gavin Hoyte, Sean McDermott, Rhys Murphy and Scholars James Campbell and Jeffrey Monakana. I'm sure many of you will only have heard of 2 players there being Almunia and Hoyte but first I think you have to spare a though for the others who are all young, it must be hard being told you just aren't quite good enough. But football is a harsh mistress and I wish them all the best in the future.
So Almunia has left the club after much speculation as to what was actually happening with his future although a move did appear to be on the cards. He's had a bit of a touch and go career with us that to be fair included 175 first team appearances, one of them being a Champions League final, keeping a by no means poor 70 clean sheets. But there was just always that air about him, a question mark over his confidence in himself. There was always that niggling feeling of maybe, he'll make that error. To be honest though after Seaman we did like a error-prone keeper: Lehmann, Fabianksi and Almunia all fit the bill. That said I never particularly disliked any of them, just didn't rate them as great keepers.
Almunia's penalty record is nothing to sniffed at either and on his day he was a fine shot stopper there are no doubts there. I just think with all the recent keeper talk about Arsenal and with Szczesny now firmly in the first choice position I just can't see where Almunia will fit in should we need another keeper, as we have *gulp* Fabianski. So I think a move is probably the best for all concerned, I hope he does well whatever he decides to do next.
As RVP's contract talks rumbled on over the last week and bit nothing has come out of anywhere about what exactly has been said or has happened. Talks have ended for now with Robin joining the Holland team in their build up to the Euro's. So for now we can only hope that something will be sorted.
I'll keep you all up to date with any big news that emerges. Until then, enjoy the sun!
So Almunia has left the club after much speculation as to what was actually happening with his future although a move did appear to be on the cards. He's had a bit of a touch and go career with us that to be fair included 175 first team appearances, one of them being a Champions League final, keeping a by no means poor 70 clean sheets. But there was just always that air about him, a question mark over his confidence in himself. There was always that niggling feeling of maybe, he'll make that error. To be honest though after Seaman we did like a error-prone keeper: Lehmann, Fabianksi and Almunia all fit the bill. That said I never particularly disliked any of them, just didn't rate them as great keepers.
Almunia's penalty record is nothing to sniffed at either and on his day he was a fine shot stopper there are no doubts there. I just think with all the recent keeper talk about Arsenal and with Szczesny now firmly in the first choice position I just can't see where Almunia will fit in should we need another keeper, as we have *gulp* Fabianski. So I think a move is probably the best for all concerned, I hope he does well whatever he decides to do next.
As RVP's contract talks rumbled on over the last week and bit nothing has come out of anywhere about what exactly has been said or has happened. Talks have ended for now with Robin joining the Holland team in their build up to the Euro's. So for now we can only hope that something will be sorted.
I'll keep you all up to date with any big news that emerges. Until then, enjoy the sun!
Monday, 7 May 2012
Agony, ecstasy & a second chance
Summing up quite how I felt on Saturday after the result is quite hard. Just a truly gutting feeling. After being informed that we were leading 3-2 I said we'll concede an equaliser now and funny how things work, we did. I'm sure along with many Arsenal fans I was almost sure we'd completely blown our chances of 3rd. At that moment it seemed like everything that could go wrong would. We'd finish 5th, Van Persie would leave, Arsenal would crumble like Liverpool, Sanga had broken his leg and would never play again. Of course I calmed down from this dejected state but it still wasn't a pleasant feeling.
I sat down to watch the Soccer Special not expecting much, to be honest I wasn't really paying attention. Until of course Ciaran Clarke fired Aston Villa into a lead. I expected Sp*rs to hit back and they did through Adebayor at which point I had accepted that they would win. I turned to Newcastle to see them lose to Man City, almost certainly securing the title for them but hey, you can't have it all. At that point we had a hope if securing top 4 knowing a point would do it. The 6 minutes of added time at Villa Park were absolute hell but eventually the full time whistle went.
I couldn't quite believe we had a second chance, one we probably didn't deserve but we'd all take it. It means that once again, we need to win at West Brom to secure 3rd and guarantee Champions League football next year. Although at this current moment I'm not overly confident I'd rather be where we are now. We have been gifted a second chance, if we don't take it then we probably don't deserve to finish 3rd.
We need to hold our nerve and play the game not the occasion. If we keep our shape and Song covers when Vermaelen goes surging forward then we'll have a chance. We also need to keep it simple, rather than trying to over elaborate things. Song was particularly guilty of this after for their last goal at the weekend. He tried a loopy ball over the top instead of playing the simple ball that would have been far more effective.
So a lot to do in this final week of the season but we have launched our kit for the new season. I'm not exactly a fan at the moment but I'm sure I'll learn to accept it over the season. Check our our 2012/13 home kit.
Check back later this week for all the build up to our huge game at the Hawthorns.
I sat down to watch the Soccer Special not expecting much, to be honest I wasn't really paying attention. Until of course Ciaran Clarke fired Aston Villa into a lead. I expected Sp*rs to hit back and they did through Adebayor at which point I had accepted that they would win. I turned to Newcastle to see them lose to Man City, almost certainly securing the title for them but hey, you can't have it all. At that point we had a hope if securing top 4 knowing a point would do it. The 6 minutes of added time at Villa Park were absolute hell but eventually the full time whistle went.
I couldn't quite believe we had a second chance, one we probably didn't deserve but we'd all take it. It means that once again, we need to win at West Brom to secure 3rd and guarantee Champions League football next year. Although at this current moment I'm not overly confident I'd rather be where we are now. We have been gifted a second chance, if we don't take it then we probably don't deserve to finish 3rd.
We need to hold our nerve and play the game not the occasion. If we keep our shape and Song covers when Vermaelen goes surging forward then we'll have a chance. We also need to keep it simple, rather than trying to over elaborate things. Song was particularly guilty of this after for their last goal at the weekend. He tried a loopy ball over the top instead of playing the simple ball that would have been far more effective.
So a lot to do in this final week of the season but we have launched our kit for the new season. I'm not exactly a fan at the moment but I'm sure I'll learn to accept it over the season. Check our our 2012/13 home kit.
Check back later this week for all the build up to our huge game at the Hawthorns.
Tuesday, 3 April 2012
QPR thoughts and Man City Build up
Well, we certainly could have done without that result. But we were sloppy and when a team is scrapping for safety they are always dangerous. The first goal scored by Taarabt, was one that was our own undoing. Thomas Vermaelen, usually solid at the back was caught with the ball and Taarabt unfortunately, after 69 efforts, got his first goal of the season. We didn't look convincing afterwards and then against the run of play Walcott struck the post but the ball came back to him and he side footed in the equaliser. However this wasn't the turning point we had hoped. Early in the second half Van Persie went through one-on-one and drove the ball towards the top corner, Paddy Kenny pulled of a truly amazing save.
I think people were harsh saying he should have scored, he's won us too many games this season to start picking holes in his play and it was a brilliant save. I also think people were harsh in again condemning Vermaelen for the second goal, OK he was caught napping but he slipped, its hardly his fault and on top of that where was Song and the rest of the midfield when the ball was slid in to Taiwo who smashed the ball home leaving Szczesny no chance. So our ran came to end but it was going to happen eventually, we now need to pick ourselves up for City at the weekend.
I know this is going to make me very unpopular but please read it carefully. I think we suffered going forward on Saturday due to the inclusion of Ramsey. A man who's clearly lacking confidence and most certainly isn't a left sided attacker. I struggled to understand why Wenger chose him when we had £26m worth of left winger on the bench in the form of Gerv and Alex OC. There is no way playing Ramsey on the left is going to benefit himself or the team.
So ahead to a game where we can in a sense end City's title chances but more importantly give us a huge 3 points with the Yids breathing down our necks. There's one goal in it so a 6-0 win would be perfect. Maybe asking a bit much there but at this stage of the season things like goal difference can make such a huge difference and with Chelsea starting to pick up form again we really need to make sure we keep ourselves in the race.
The game also has huge connotations for City, they could find themselves 8 points behind United come kick off. Either way they have to come and attack, a draw for them is useless, which means we can split them on the counter and as they showed at the weekend their defence can leak goals. The ongoing spat between manager and Balotelli hopefully means the dressing room is tense. I'm going to say now that I think and also hope that United win the league. When it comes down to football vs money, there is only one winner and I can accept another United title win. Ferguson has been in this position many times before and he knows exactly what to do and how to handle the game, City on the other hand haven't. Mancini said that it will come down to the derby but he may have to face the fact that it may be over by then.
Anyway enough title talk its depressing that I can't speak about Arsenal challenging for it again but there you go. Preview and predictions later in the week.
I think people were harsh saying he should have scored, he's won us too many games this season to start picking holes in his play and it was a brilliant save. I also think people were harsh in again condemning Vermaelen for the second goal, OK he was caught napping but he slipped, its hardly his fault and on top of that where was Song and the rest of the midfield when the ball was slid in to Taiwo who smashed the ball home leaving Szczesny no chance. So our ran came to end but it was going to happen eventually, we now need to pick ourselves up for City at the weekend.
I know this is going to make me very unpopular but please read it carefully. I think we suffered going forward on Saturday due to the inclusion of Ramsey. A man who's clearly lacking confidence and most certainly isn't a left sided attacker. I struggled to understand why Wenger chose him when we had £26m worth of left winger on the bench in the form of Gerv and Alex OC. There is no way playing Ramsey on the left is going to benefit himself or the team.
So ahead to a game where we can in a sense end City's title chances but more importantly give us a huge 3 points with the Yids breathing down our necks. There's one goal in it so a 6-0 win would be perfect. Maybe asking a bit much there but at this stage of the season things like goal difference can make such a huge difference and with Chelsea starting to pick up form again we really need to make sure we keep ourselves in the race.
The game also has huge connotations for City, they could find themselves 8 points behind United come kick off. Either way they have to come and attack, a draw for them is useless, which means we can split them on the counter and as they showed at the weekend their defence can leak goals. The ongoing spat between manager and Balotelli hopefully means the dressing room is tense. I'm going to say now that I think and also hope that United win the league. When it comes down to football vs money, there is only one winner and I can accept another United title win. Ferguson has been in this position many times before and he knows exactly what to do and how to handle the game, City on the other hand haven't. Mancini said that it will come down to the derby but he may have to face the fact that it may be over by then.
Anyway enough title talk its depressing that I can't speak about Arsenal challenging for it again but there you go. Preview and predictions later in the week.
Wednesday, 1 February 2012
Deadline Day Update
This is only going to be a short post ahead of tonight's game but more to wrap up what happened yesterday. You may remember me mentioning that we were in talks with Anzhi Makachakala over Andrey Arshavin. However those deals broke down and nothing else materialised so Arshavin is still our player. There was very little going on concerning Arsenal yesterday, but we did bring a player in.
Don't get too excited but he's 19, from Borussia Dortmund, that's right Thomas Eisfeld. A typical Wenger signing, young, little to no experience and nobody has ever heard of him. Brilliant, I wasn't even gonna post about this because I didn't think it was important, but that's being disrespectful for all we know he may well turn out to be a really good player, I just wouldn't expect to see him any time soon. In other new Ryo Miyaichi has gone out on loan to Bolton which can only be good for him really, hopefully he'll get some game time which is really what he needs.
That's it really a few deals going on elsewhere but nothing really concerning us. So roll on Bolton Away. COYG!
Don't get too excited but he's 19, from Borussia Dortmund, that's right Thomas Eisfeld. A typical Wenger signing, young, little to no experience and nobody has ever heard of him. Brilliant, I wasn't even gonna post about this because I didn't think it was important, but that's being disrespectful for all we know he may well turn out to be a really good player, I just wouldn't expect to see him any time soon. In other new Ryo Miyaichi has gone out on loan to Bolton which can only be good for him really, hopefully he'll get some game time which is really what he needs.
That's it really a few deals going on elsewhere but nothing really concerning us. So roll on Bolton Away. COYG!
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