Ok so because Aston Villa were lucky enough to win again and beat Portsmouth we have to win at Goodison, a draw or worse would be a disaster, what’s worse is they have Mario the mechanic back tonight and he will dominate our fragile midfield if we let him.
They have no real forwards so it will be a 4-5-1 from them as they tend to win from midfield, but we can spring a surprise if he attacks from the off so this is what I would do tonight.
It’s bold and it’s adventurous and it doesn’t involve his favourites but this is what I would do if Wenger let Le Grove pick the team tonight, and frankly after the Cardiff game, he ought to.
Almunia (because he will)
Sagna Kolo Djourou Clichy
RVP Diaby Nasri Vela
Bendtner Adebayor
The reason I would pick this team is because we could be creatively dominant with Nasri and Diaby, they looked comfortable after the shaky start the others had in the first half (against Cardiff) if we do that again Everton will hammer us. RVP plays out on the right for Holland to great effect and Vela can play out left, and when he plays we are better going forward and maybe as we have two big boys up front we can whip some crosses in with the long ball, don’t forget we hit them with the long ball last season to great effect.
I would have Eduardo on the bench as the impact sub as he destroyed them last year Wilshere, Denilson and Ramsey as cover for Diaby.
Following the news that Rosicky will make his comeback in March makes me even angrier that we have not replaced the injured players by now and we have had two players out for a year or more, you can put a temp in for so long but two for a year is just plain daft.
Still the news today that we have said was the reason he doesn’t spend has finally surfaced as the boss admits he is paid on performance, the article in the Guardian says he is paid handsomely because he makes the club money, so now we know, it’s not about the right player, it’s about his salary and that is why he persists with such young and ordinary players. If of course the article is true.
You judge for yourself (LINK) but it would explain why we keep getting in money and never spending it.
I still think we will get Arshavin though because he couldn’t stay at Zenit now and if they don’t sell him they will have to wait until the summer when the market will be worse and the player will be older and when we’ll be in the Uefa cup.
I wonder what the managers reward will be then?
I still have faith that we will sign Arshavin and another only because it’s obvious to the world that at least two players are not up to the standard we need to succeed and two others are long term injured.
Come on Arsene, now your secret is out spend the money and please don’t pick that team that played Cardiff, if you do we’ll lose, also try Nasri and Diaby together, when you do we look better, we really do and don’t forget you bought them, they’re your players too!
Have a great day Grovers Scotland is a long way to go to play a midweek game, let just hope the wheels are still on the team coach when the game ends, I meant no offence to anyone there as I know that people from the area do not steal hubcaps and I know Everton is not in Scotland I was being silly and trying to be funny about the fact that Liverpool is a long way up north, there humour explained.
3-1 to the Arsenal if he plays that team.
i just cant believe i got up at 3 am to see that donkey’s bollocks of a game …
when our arsenal team just plays long balls you know your in for a crap game …
but yes ade brings something unique to our game doesnt he ??
well he did again last night !
he draws all these players out of position and creates all these openings , fuck ive never seen one of them the whole time he has played for us ! all i see is he gets the ball loses it , he gets the ball and the off side whistle goes , or he kicks it, either A) at the keeper or;B) hits air !
Ethan, it’s a complete myth, all this Ade physical bollocks.
There used to be a semblence of truth to it but now it’s merely a empty platitude by those who don’t really watch or understand the game.
His physical nature at the moment is about as significant as Bendtner’s pink boots.
im not worried in the slightest about finishing 4th even if we sign noone paulinho, i just think it’ll be closer if we don’t.
when he wants to be he can be physical paulinho, when he plays to his strengths, which is why defenders hate playing against him so much. However when he’s in the mindset that he thinks he’s the bollocks and spends the whole time thinking he can be a playmaker or dribbling out wide, he’s a complete and utter waste of time
certainly its not doom and gloom long term ..
with the likes of rosicky – dudu – cesc – theo all to return .. the addition of arshavin (who i also think will turn up at arsenal ) would lift the spirits ..
but wenger needs to get gourfrann or gourguff or both , who can be played in over the next 4-5 months ready for next season .
we still lack strength – depth and confidence .
also sort out your constant injury woes wenger !
you always cry about it but never strengthen the squad .. change your training ethic or buy more players !!
I have never bought the badey myth.
It was a freak season that he will never repeat.
ethan gourcuff is on loan at bordeaux, so isn’t available this season anyways, and gouffran only signed in the summer for bordeaux. We need one creative player, arshavin will do, but if we don’t get him we do need someone else.
we also need a top quality dm. People talk about our current players, but what happens if one of them gets injured, we’re in an absolutely ridiculous situation!!
ethangunner – I don’t get your point, we scored in the alloted time, there was nothing fluky about it, both teams had 7 shots each and we had 4 on target to their 3 ?!
Shall we just argue for the sake of it though, for old times sake ?!
A in your piece (11.54) you write “Bendtner is a fantastic talent” you are stating it as a fact that we all know … you do not say … in my opinion or I think … Bedntner is a fantastic talent …
mark, he does not state one way or the other, its open to conjecture.
you, however, did state “we all know”
let it go.
mark before that i said “we don’t know bendtner isn’t top class, some think he isn’t some think he is.”
i don’t think anyone would assume after i’ve said that that i’m speaking factually. anyone with half a brain would realise i’m speaking of my personal opinion, not attempting to claim that it’s a fact or something that “everyone knows”
Metal Gear 9:44 – I am with you!
ethan, I was up at 4, but had the good sense to go back to sleep!
Ha ha, Lucas gave away the penalty.
I bet Liverpool fans are effin raging over that guy messing up their title aspirations.
Shall we just argue for the sake of it though, for old times sake ?!
keyser – i can always count on you ..
how many people on here truly believe we would equalize in extra time simply because we deserved it ..
????
i think both teams were equally as poor ,
and 1 point each was a fair result , however to guess we would equalize in time on is more ass than class ,and cutting it too close if you firmly believe we deserved it !
so the question i have for you keyser is if you have faith in this current team so much will we win anything this season ????
PDT
yes i was stupid enough to TRY and watch the whole game .. long ball tactics , our midfield not firing , static passing , no penetration ..
watch the likes of song – eboue- diaby ..and ade!
and people wonder why we suck this season !
i should of had the sense to go back to bed also pdt!!
Does anyone believe that AW has not lost it? That he is still a good manager?
We can blame the players, but this is not about the players. This is about the manager and the board who have created this abominable mess.
The players (mostly) are terrible and will never be better. The manager’s job is to cull them, but he won’t because he is too busy making money for the club. The board is away fattening their backsides, so no one who can do anything cares.
I watched for about 20 mins but my heart was pounding so hard that I would be disappointed yet again that I decided to go back to bed. I am going into depression becuase of this effing team.
ethangunner – Wait, what was your point again ?! Are you saying that because we scord soo late, thus making it less likely that we would, that we didn’t deserve it ?!
Are you calling me as ‘ass’ ? Heh..
This has been a terrible week so far!
Stringfellow …. A ….. please read my original comment again … I did not say “we all know” and I did not say “everyone knows” …. I said “we know” and “we” being those of us on this site (and there are more than a few) who don’t think Bendtner is top class. I was therefore not talking for everyone else and not talking for those who don’t agree with me.
Not sure if anyone postes this earlier. Arshavin refused to train and said that Zenit hasn’t agreed a deal yet.
http://74.125.95.101/translate_c?hl=en&sl=ru&u=http://www.life.ru/video/8715&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dlife%2Bru%26hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1G1GGLQ_ENUS309%26sa%3DG&usg=ALkJrhj5uF5OFi3A4a_gNA91UQmQFxhsOA
Keyser, I didn’t watch the match, but if I believe Setanta’s numbers (slightly different from yours), then Everton matched us all the way and went slightly better on some.
Here’s the link….
http://www.setanta.com//uk/Articles/Football/2009/1/28/Prem-Everton-v-Arsenal-ratingsstats/gnid-37588/
Just spent quarter hour working out stats – if things carry on exactly as they have, both we and villa continue our current form in the next 9 games, then we’ll be ahead of villa on goal difference on the 18th april, before our harder games, and villas easier games. It’ll depend on how the team has developed as to how things end up
yes pdt, a good deal of people believe that wenger hasn’t lost it, and that he’s still a good manager, and in fact the best manager in the clubs entire history.
i don’t think there’s a single player that needs to be culled, there are just players who need to be added, and hopefully that’ll happen before 2nd feb.
Today was not a good result, nor a bad result.
things in general are not currently good, nor currently a disaster, though they are slightly below being average.
there are players who will be better, and there are some who won’t, but aren’t as bad as people make out. the likes of song, and eboue won’t ever be worldbeaters, but would be adequate squad members, but playing half a team of squad members together makes everyone look worse than they are
Just hope that Dudu comes back from his national callup in one piece.
pat -that website is a bit of a joke, but good news if it’s true!
wenger also said – “There is nothing new, because today I have been focussed on the game, and I did not pick up any phone calls so nothing has happened. It was 90 per cent that I will be able to give you more in the next two days. Remember in this job the other 10 per cent can be more important than the other 90 because people can change their mind quickly”
which would make me think it will happen, probably not until the weekend though. maybe he’ll be paraded before the west ham match!
yeah let’s hope pdt. We’re using croatia as a reserve team game to get him match fitness, i hope he does fantastically. If it just suddenly clicks at home against sunderland, edu in alongside vp, nasri left mid arshavin right, sudddenly the fast flowing pass and move returns and blows them away
A, I hope you are right and Wenger hasn’t lost it.
Would appreciate your perspective on this :
1. Why doesn’t he play Vela?
2. Why doesn’t he move Nasri to the middle?
3. Why does he not give Wilshere any minutes, not even as a sub when we are winning?
These are options that he has – why isn’t he using them?
A, (1:08 post), we still wouldn’t have anyone in the centre of the park. Dudu, RvP, Nasri and Arsh would still need service.
This is a laugh some of these comments from the “Blind Optimists”…
A draw didnt reflect the game at all, Everton deserved to win for all bah 10mis of the 1st half.
I love this club but for some of you to say that performance was good, just shows how far ure standards have dropped. well i suppose that can be justified considering the team we field.. Spirit my arse!It was a Haryuken(street fighter) punt foward only for RVP to be world Class enough to finish it! So dont tell me that it was a good show of football, at 1 stage we couldnt string 3 passes together. Everton didnt play for a draw, if u think they did u r watching the wrong game. They were just to shit to create anything like us.
Even the best manager in the club’s history has bad seasons and we have had several of them. Ferguson went through his own crisis, reinvented himslef, went and bought and bought and bought and see where he is now.
I don’t see signs of Wenger trying to reinvent himself. He isn’t doing anything new. All he is doing is playing the same tired squad over and over again hoping that they will suddenly become swans.
A, I hope you haven’t gone off to sleep but are penning a stinging response.
Rob, which part of Oz are you in? Must have been early for you….
we looked good for the 1st 10 minutes then everton dominated the whole 1st half ..
and again in the 2nd half they looked more likely to score with the possession they had .
my point is keyser the game demanded us to get 3 points ! we knew villa had won and we needed to keep pace with them. we didnt even come close considering the rigors we are up against , this is all about the top 4 ! …and staying in it !
getting 3 points from this game did not mean
that we equalize with 50 seconds left on the clock of time on !
this game from an objectives point of view failed miserably ! and if it was’nt for a clichy long ball too RVP in the dieing seconds of the game they would have pulled off a victory against us .. too close for comfort , but at least we got a point ..we fell far short of the objectives we all knew we needed to achieve this game , i would hardly call it a successful evening !
He doesn’t play vela because he plays ade and vp. Vp can’t be dropped, and ade causes defenses problems and can score goals etc, though i think he was attrocious today and should’ve come off. Vela really isn’t a 4-4-2 left winger, he doesn’t get the space or time on the ball when he plays there, and isn’t as accomplished an all round player, as well as his ball retention not being great. Nasri also plays there at the moment. I did think vela could have made a difference today for ade, but i guess wenger thought with the lack of space we were more likely to score from long balls.
nasri doesn’t play in the middle because mainly he isn’t a centre mid in a 4-4-2, he has very rarely played there in his career, and we currently need to be as solid as possible, because we don’t have the creativity to blow away teams. I would like to see him centrally in a 4-5-1, but vp is currently excelling there. As well as that he wouldn’t be as effective in a 4-4-2 midfield, because he’d have to pick up the ball in deeper areas, and his defensive duties would take away his freedom.
wilshere i guess just isn’t considered quite ready yet. He has shown moments of brilliance, but even in his last game for the reserves where he scored that terrific goal, he actually didn’t have a very good game. He seems a bit hit and miss, and when we’re having to battle really hard for results especially against the likes of everton, i don’t think it’s the place for him. I think we’ll see a fair bit more of him ironicallly when we’ve actually got more creative players playing, because he’ll be able to link up better with them, rather than playing in these tight battling matches.
Currently we’re lacking in creativity without cesc, rosicky, or a new signing, and as a result we’re putting out teams designed to be as solid as possible, and hopefully steal a win with the odd goal. Wenger and the team doesn’t have the belief or confidence to really attack teams and blow them away, so we have to fight for every win, which is why the likes of wilshere and vela don’t play much, and nasri can’t get a central role
PDT – I went by the stats the Guardian and the BBC had for the game, it doesn’t really matter either way, it was just like some war of attrition in midfield, it wasn’t the best game, but we weren’t outplayed even with their extra man in the middle.
1-1 was probably a fair result and our goal was deserved considering the kind of game it was.
1. Vela was ill against Cardiff, he might still be feeling the effects of that, he’s barely played for us at home let alone away with a team as physical and defensive as Everton.
2. If he wasn’t going to bring on Vela and move him out wide, Nasri was the only width we did have.
3. How many players need minutes ? I’d say he’s behind Bendtner, Vela and Ramsey simply because of age, and come to think of it how many games have you been completely confident of us winning even if we have been leading at times ?!
Looking at the stats, it looks like we didn’t create enough. We must start Nasri in the centre of the park with Diaby or Denilson.
haha pdt that was a very lengthy response, apologies.
regarding needing someone in the centre of the park, i don’t think we do, as vp will be that player. We’ll just be solid with song’s (or new signing’s) power and size, and denilson’s composure and ball retention, which will give nasri, arshavin and vp the freedom to roam around and create behind ade. Until cesc is back anyways
ethangunner – That was your point ? We deserved that goal, neither team really deserved to win, you could make an argument for either however unlikely.
Diaby played the ball for Van Persie.
Liverpool have played two games against them in a week, they’ve drawn both, pretty much in similar circumstances, Chelsea drew at Goodison as I think did United when they went there.
We can demand things all we like, they didn’t even come out and attack us like last season or at The Emirates in the first half, they are a disciplined and well organised team who with a lead or even holding out for a draw seem to be quite resolute.
The only dissapointing thing is that Cahill the plum got himself injured when they’ve got Unite don the weekend, I remember them going to Old Trafford last season defending for their lives for almost the whole game getting a good well worked goals and then Pienaar gave them the game with one of the most shockingly bad penalty box decisions ever.
Hi Keyser!
1. Vela grew up in the Mexican system. He has demonstrated his ability to smile through physical teams.
2. What’s the point of having width if we don’t create? We need a creative spark in the centre of the park and Nasri is the only one who can do it.
3. Vela and Ramsay are ahead of Wilshere, true, but Bendtner is not on the midfield queue – he should be in the forwards queue.
Good point on the number of games I have been sure of winning – the last one was against the spuds!
we played basically 4-5-1, everton played 4-6-0, it resulted in a game consisting of very few chances, and a battle founght almost completely in midfield, which neither team could win. We were not better than everton, nor were everton better than us, we were very evenly matched, and I’ve never seen a game where a draw was more of a fair result!
we didn’t create enough pdt, but noone has been able to create against everton recently. Today was crying out for an arshavin, or even a theo to come on and break through. I was very surprised vela didn’t come on, but again i guess it was down to ade’s height. I genuinly think we would have created twice as many chances if vela or bendtner were in for ade though, everytime we tried to build an attack he’d miscontrol it when it came to him, one of the worst performances i’ve seen from him, though there have been alot this season
We need Vela to play on the left ffs. I am an Arsenal fan not an Arsene Wenger fan…
And history CLEARLY SHOWS that if we play Nasri in the middle and Vela on the left….We are more creative and more succesful than playing Denilsong in the midfield.
That in mind….Arsene’s persistence with DEnilsong and Diaby in the middle only shows the lack of Ambition Wenger seems to want to drive this team into the toilet.
i dunno pdt. Bendtner is most effective when playing a deep lying role, i like him recently coming in on the right in a 4-3-3, see alot of promise with that, wouldn’t mind starting the odd game with it.
I’d like to see vela and bendtner start against cardiff and tear them apart
A, I appreciate your commitment to Wenger and reasoned response, but I don’t agree.
Vela should not be competing with Ade/RvP. He should be playing in Nasri’s position and Nasri should be playing in Cesc’s position (till Cesc is back). Maybe RvP can fill that position, but we haven’t seen any evidence of it so far. We do know that Nasri can play there and play well there.
Wenger is experimenting here, and he knows his experiment isn’t having blockbuster results. He should really be trying something different but he hasn’t.
A
That is odd…Cuz i could swear on my Granny that Nasri was an Offensive Mid for OM so why wont he be able to play in the middle?
i think bringing in arshavin will help nasri no end. Just as rosicky and hleb helped each other interlinking and roaming around, they’ll be able to create more with someone else helping carry the load. Eduardo might also help them, as when ade is in the mood he’s been in recent weeks he’s more of a hindrance than they opposition defenders to our passing moves
There is no point putting Wilshere on the bench if he isn’t given minutes.
All this stuff about Everton being overly negative is untrue. We just don’t have the ability to play anything other than lateral passes so by the time we actually try to move the ball on they have got back into position.
The passes and space was there to exploit with the right quality of player but this side doesn’t have it.
he was david, just as hleb was, rosicky was, pires was, and even freddie was before he came to us. That’s all in a contintental system, with two midfielders behind them. nasri could play centrally, but only if ade was dropped
!!!!!!
A said something good about my man Theo!
PDT :
1. Sorry, but the Mexican system does no prepare anyone for the Premiership.
2. I can understand the need for a creative spark, but with a packed midfield and Fellaini roaming around it’s still not going to be easy, Nasri moved to the middle still means someone less effective on the wing.
3. Thrown on late in a game when there is less need for shape or as players tire, Bendtner, especially on recent performances, has been effective, he’s got the experience and the goals to go along with it, Wilshere will get his chance.
Ade is a large part of the problem.
Here’s the team I would play when Dudu is back.
ALmunia (I really wish we could find someone else)
Sagna-Toure-JD-Clichy
Denilson-Nasri-Diaby-Vela
RvP-Dudu
This is a “good enough” team. Not a world class team, but one which we could pin our hopes on for taking us to fourth place.
paulinho the point is they didn’t try and attack, or create anything either, they were very negative, though a top arsenal team would have been able to pull them out of position and break them down still, we couldn’t today, just as liverpool and chelsea have been unable to do….
wilshere wasn’t on the bench today….
pdt i’ve never seen vela play well in a 4-4-2, whenever he’s done well out wide for us it’s been with us chasing a game, throwing everyone forward. Starting there is a completely different kettle of fish, much more defensive responsibility, and options. I’ve seen vela play maybe 5/6 times left mid in 4-4-2, and i’ve never seen him have a good game, whereas in 4-3-3 when he has more space and freedom, he’s exceptional.
nasri likewise has only played centre mid for us when we’re throwing everything forward chasing a game. Like hleb, he can play there, but with one up front, so he can be more advanced and exploit the space in the hole, rather than being nullified in a congested midfield
BTW, Denilson is better than Diaby who is much better than Eboue, who is much, much, much better than Song!
Just for the record…..
A, I would say that if the opposing team is playing 4-6-0 and we need the three points as deperately as we did, then we are, indeed, chasing the game.
PDT
Spot on…he should be trying something different but he hasnt and he’s not because as i said…Lack of Ambition/Concern….awful pathetic stubborn pride and persistence with a failing strategy.
Denilsong will never create anything period. And id rather play Eboue on the right than playing Denilson there because Eboue would at least facking give us Van Persie free kicks.
The only thing Denilson gives on the right is the facking ball!
Yes…Wenger is our most succesful manager….but why does he persist with a clearly failing strategy/players??????????????????????????
How many games do we have to be absolutely facked before he adjusts???
PDT,
Brisbane australia.
It was 6am when the game started for us.
and i wish i had slept in. Most games are generally arounf 12am to 330am in the morning.
we’ll have arshavin pdt
i’d like –
—–almunia
sagna–jd–gallas–clichy
——-denilsong
bendtner–nasri–arshavin
———vp
*desperately
The basic problem with Ade…and RVP…is the Wenger system…they are looking to pass instead of attacking the defense….for instance..when was the last time any of our attackers actually successfully delivered on a fast break?
Lol, nice team but ure dreaming A
No Ade? Pffftt as if Wenger would do that and no Eboue eithee
A, I don’t have your level of faith in bendtner…..maybe its the boots or the hair but he seems to believe he is better than he is.
i disagree pdt, a draw against everton isn’t a bad result, though it isn’t a good result obviously.
With their recent form, and strength in midfield we could easily have got bullied out of the game. As it was our midfield we very solid gave as good as they got against a very strong and aggressive everton midfield, and they scored from their first chance of the match which ruined our game plan, but because of the quality of the opposition we couldn’t chase the game as we have recently at home, going to 4-2-4, because we could then get battered.
Beautiful part of the world to be in, Rob!
he’s been exceptional imo in the last 4/5 games pdt when coming on as sub, he won us the games against bolton and hull, and was very sharp when he came on today.
i dunno rob, we’ll see! I really think ade could end up playing a bit part role if we can get arshavin and return to form, maybe i am dreaming though
Rob….i hear you guys are experiencing heat waves the kind that can cook an egg out in the sun!
A, that is precisely the crux of the problem. Everyone in the EPL and CL has figured out how we play. They come in knowing we are going to pass the heck out of them. So, they pack the midfield, 10 men behind the ball, get in a few fierce tackles in the first half hour – Wenger should know that this is how most teams will play against us. A great coach creates new tactics to stay ahead of the game. What innovations have we seen in the last four years? A larger number of headed goals – yes. Long balls – yes. But have we gotten better at crosses? Do Clichy and Sagna practice crossing? Does Ade know how to make a turn with the ball at his feet in the penalty box? What is our team learning?
i dunno david, i think vp can be very creative, but ade doesn’t have the capabilities to actually do anything when he drops deep and tries to pass, he needs to be aiming to get on the end of moves, as he’s useless deep
When teams come out to defend and play for a draw, we have to be able to play percentage football.
A
I admire your optimism…but Bendtner is shite.
Memory serves me correct Van persie won us the game at hull.
I’m off – gotta work. Keyser and A – I hope you guys are right and we will be great again and soon!!
pdt i think we’re just missing one creative player. As it is nasri is our only creative midfielder, so they can just double mark him and prevent him getting the ball in areas he can do damage. With two of those types of players we’ll have double the options.
VP is currently dropping very deep to help out but it still isn’t working
clichy and sagna don’t have the technique to kick the ball properly, so will never be great crossers of the ball. I said that about a month ago and got attacked by everyone on this board for slagging off our two best players of recent times!
nah david, bendtner completely changed the game, dropped deep picked the ball up, created the space and moved the hull defence all over the place, he was the one who gave the ball to vp before the pass to nasri, and then scored the third. Things changed completely with the change of formation and bendtner’s introduction though
PDT Says:
January 29, 2009 at 1:51 am
Wenger should know that this is how most teams will play against us. A great coach creates new tactics to stay ahead of the game. What innovations have we seen in the last four years? A larger number of headed goals – yes. Long balls – yes. But have we gotten better at crosses? Do Clichy and Sagna practice crossing? Does Ade know how to make a turn with the ball at his feet in the penalty box? What is our team learning?
——————————————————–
You deserve a standing ovation for this. These are world Class questions i would love for Wenger to Answer.
night pdt
nice debating, and we are right, we’ll be great again very soon!
A
I disagree. Hull gave the ball away cheaply on a counter attack and we were balls off our socks lucky because they came out of their shell which allowed Nasri to be free by himself on the left.
Bendtner had absolutely nothing to do with it at all.
And the 1-2 for the third was all Van Persie’s work…because Bendtner had the chance to cut it back to R.V.P twice in that game but both times decided to shoot it str8 to the keeper for an easy save.
You have to digg deep to tell me Bendtner won that game for us not even close.
bendter was the one that gave the ball to vp, and the defence had been dragged out left david. The whole make up of the game changed when bendtner came on, he kept dropping deep and creating things, we we much more dangerous in general when he came on…. I’m far from the only person who things he was quality in the last few games. He should be starting ahead of ade imo, who has been attrocious for a good while
anyways, my bed time now too
lets hope to wake up to news to news of arshavin’s imminent arrival!
I am one of tose you speak of A. I too think Bendtner has vastly improved in the last few games.
Denilson is garbage. O gosh…Setanta is showing the replay…and im watching this twit give away the ball and cuz stupid fouls.
That Arteta free-kick couldve easily been Everton’s first goal if Van Persie hadnt saved our skin (again)
Bendtner ……..is………a ……………legend!
Well that’s a bit premature admittedly but he definitely will be great if certain things go the right way.
If its side to side passing thats all we practice we cant even do that one right because we do it so slowly with no intelligence. Its sad. It really is. And i like clichy but why is he always on the receiving end of disaster?
Yes Stu
Those pink boots are legendary. Thats about it!
Which free kick is that?
I also dont rate Denilson but i am willing to give him the benifit of the doubt over Song.
I will admit that at the beginning of the season I wanted Song as DM ahead of anyone else but obviously my mind has been changed following his performances and attitude.
There is a theory that Clichy is so important to the team and such a leader by setting example that whenever he fucks up the team goes into shock and we concede as a result. He was after all called Mr.consistency a lot last season.
I agree with the attitude. But Song is a better defender than Denilson. I used to think Denilson’s passing was Robin if Cesc was Batman but he cant pass for shite anymore. And he lacks intelligence…at least Song defends. He has to be the worlds most talentless Brazilian i have seen.
I am talking bout the first half freekick the stupid foul on the left corner that Denilson commited which led to Van persie heading it away for a corner. That was a really stupid foul…worse than anything ive seen from Song…and you know Song commits blond dumb fouls
David, i know a few Liverpool fans that would disagree with you there. My bestmate thinks Lucas is their Eboue. Always plays ahead of beter players and rarely does the right think.
Dont recall that free kick, my stream was probably down at the time.
Is that what explains our shocking meltdown with the spurs???
I dont think so. Its cause Gallas decided to ball watch. Nobody tracking back chasing the attacker.
I think we need a new CB and a younger CB like JD….Kolo has lost it all…and Gallas thinks he’s a striker apparently.
I rate Lucas Far many million times than Eboue or Denilosn.
And dont eat me alive…but i prefer Eboue on the right that Denilson….as i said…he does give us those R.V.P freekicks….Denilson gives….the ball away?
I agree, preferable I would have neither there but Eboue is a better option on the right. Denilson is hopeless there because he has no pace what so ever, but at least he gives his all as opposed to Eboue who does most things wrong and cheats his arse off.
Clichys slip against spurs can be put down to lack of options. He was facied with a dilema, try beat Lennon (i think) or pass to Song who was about 3 yards away and being marked. IMO its a combination of lack of options, poor defending, shit defenders and luck.
Song gave Clichy no room, imo should have easily stopped the progressing Jenas, Gallas or Silvestre should have closed the shot down and Jenas had a huge slice of luck to score from there.
I agree with most of what you said Stu
But I play RB now….and i also did in high school…so i know a thing or two about defending….Clichy shouldve just shielded the ball by turning his back…or done what silvestre does…
“When in doubt…Shoot it out”
Song takes part of the blame…but ultimately clichy shouldve delt with the ball thats why it all comes down to experience…and seeing as he is more experienced than song it was absolutely shocking.
If off for guitar lessons…i’ll be back in an hour or so…seems like your always on here at this time…
Im*
keyser
not unless diaby’s number is 2 ! clichy made the assist to RVP !
did you even watch the game ?
they dominated the 1st half ,if you were to put down on paper who deserved to win and created more clear cut chances it was them ..
As ever, we couldnt break them down , long ball tactics and crossing to no one ensured we where never in the hunt ..
and my point still remains if you think it was a good result , then you arent aiming very high are you ..
it was a MUST 3 points for us !
that was the dedication we needed ,
not oh, oh hum
that was a fair game …
this game hi-lights without a doubt our weaknesses .. a year or 2 ago you would have been shocked by anything else other than 3 points 4 us !
to say we were as good as Everton on the day
is no complement at all ! do you get my point now ?
its about you being complacent with our teams worsening condition .
Ya David, i agree. I think a lot of people forget that Clichy is one of the most senior members now. At about 24/25 he has been around quite a bit. He and Toure are the only ones from the invincibles left.
Our starters arent even all that young either, its just that they are in vital areas and mainly average players at best.
Sagna, Toure, Gallas, Clichy, Eboue, RVP, Ade : All mid to late 20s and all have a fair bit of experience.
Even at 22 Diaby has been here for a while but never got going. Although Cesc is still only 21 he has been in the first team for 4 years already.
Also Rosicky is late 20s, Eduardo is 25. All these players are around the same age that a lot of our invincibles were at. All we need is quality with experience.
Almunia, Eboue, Ade do not represent that imo. And Silvestre or Gallas are what we need at the club either. They are both well past their best imo. Major changes are needed to have a squad capable of competing on all fronts now, not in5years time.
When you consider that Everton have held title challengers its not a horrible result. But as you say Ethan, considering we used to thump them ona regular basis and they were a easy 6points its a shit result. Also considering that we needed to win to even stay close to the top and catch Villa.
However, having said that it shouldn’t matter how others did there. We should only be concerned with how WE do there. We should be beating teams like this but we definitely didnt deserve to win after such a poor performance in desperate times.
Well i think it is obviously clear the board are not ambitious now or in the near future….we want to sell Cesc for 50 million because Wenger had it right we are a “selling club”
This is not a sports team anymore…Its a business that is out to Milk every dime out it can possibly get.
To make the board richer and Arsene’s pockets fatter.
I have one question though. What do we have 2 billionaires on our board for if we are so obsessed with making money? Is it not Abramovich’s money that funded chelsea’s tittles???
What the fack is Kreonke and Usman for?
lol I actually seem to recall hearing something along the lines of Abramovic hasn’t actually given any of his own money to them and has just taken out loans to fund their spending sprees.
Dont know the full story but if that’s true then Chelsea are well and truly fucked if he leaves.
hahahahaha…..I dont believe it. A billionaire taking out loans…well…that has truly got me speechless.
We have 2 billionaires. One is actually freaking russian…and reportedly “loves Arsenal like a man loves a woman”
Well i dont know…but i make sure i buy my lady stuff when she needs it. I know i would if i was a billionaire.
lol
I just hope he doesnt tease us with his money, fuck us up the arse and fuck off leaving us alone and broken.
lol
Hey my philosophy is there a bad boys and there are good guys….women have the luxury of choosing who they want.
Anyway, im going to sleep.
Hopefully when I awake Arshavin will be an Arsenal player, or at least have agreed everything.
You know what is odd???
I think if we had 4 minutes we wouldve won the game…because we started playing with a sense of urgency i havent seen from arsenal alll facking season…even Ade was pressing hard for the ball…and Bendtner was amazing as welll….its amazing what a goal does to a shite crappy piss team like ours.
we are ARSENAL, not Arsene.
ONLY WHEN THE TIDE GOES OUT DO WE DISCOVER WHO HAS BEEN SWIMMING NAKED – WARREN BUFFET
How many of us are willing to bet this on Arsenal?
WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It was a must win…………..
totally agree david
they showed more spirit in the last 3 minutes of the game than they did for the regulation 90 minutes ….
thats the consistancy issues we have …
anyone who watched the game could see that , thats why anything else other than 3 points is a failure to launch .
we have some catching up to do with bad fixtures at the end of the season , so getting all the points we can now is paramount !
saying we played no worse than a crap team played, doesn’t cut it for me !
we missed 2 points last night .. and the second we come up against a ‘marginally average team’ , this team currently struggles …
also where has our beautiful football gone ?
This is gnarleygeorge9 coming to you from the coast
We are currently enduring a heat wave of epic proportions here, & after giving a spuds fan, out here on hols, a good hammering in the pub on Monday night about how shit they are & we will finish top 4, I feel as cold as after this mornings performance, oh, apart from the last 2 minutes
ethan your words about ade are ringing in my head, he was hopeless this morning, & needs a good rocket up him.
Anyway, I’m off now for a swim in the surf so, stay cool , well I spose that is easy for those back in pommy land
I want 6 points from the west ham & spuds games.
Has arswaxin signed?
Gnarely…..Like the way you’re rubbing it in……haha……6 points mandatory from the next 2….we’re slipping away slow but sure
RVP’s goal
http://www.101greatgoals.com/videodisplay/2022270/
GG9
you sound excited !
???
was the spuds fan a female per chance
you know we will forgive you if you ended up getting laid out of it !
you know what they say … ive never been to bed with an ugly chick , but ive sure woke up with a few !
where r u gg9 ? the gold coast ?
or better ???
We are not going to break our wage structure. We have enough quality to maintain the title challange. Cesc, Theo, Dudu and Rosicky coming back are like new signings. We are not unduly worried. We have character, determination, resilience, which no other team has. We have ambition. We always are tactically very good, very intelligent. We have a good squad.
I AM ARSENE WENGER.
Wenger Still Cautious Over Arshavin
Thu 29 Jan, 07:09 AM
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger believes the deal to bring midfielder Andrei Arshavin to the Emirates Stadium is “90 per cent completed” but admits the final 10 per cent is the most difficult.
The Gunners chief had just seen Robin van Persie blast an injury-time equaliser last night at Goodison Park, with Everton on the brink of victory following Tim Cahill’s 100th career goal.
But with a vital point in the bag for the battle for fourth spot, Wenger revealed that the Arshavin deal is still in the balance.
He said: “There is nothing new on Arshavin, I have been concentrating on the game and not taking calls.
“But the deal is maybe 90 per cent completed. However, the final 10 per cent of any deal can be the most difficult.
“Maybe in the next two days. In this kind of job it can be difficult at this stage because people can change their minds completely.”
arsnal kenya When I saw the score line on the sky news ticker the voice of AW started to echo WE HAD COURAGE INTELIGENCE TO BREAK WE WERE COMMITTED..THE TEAM IS AMBITOUS. or (CAZ I DIDN’T WATCH LAST NIGHT) WE WERE TIRED A BIT
Abd when I saw the sports news on sky (and they didn’t bothered to show goals) AW’s post match interview was same as I thought…5 points differnece is hell to cover up
Hi guys i am new to this site and love everything about it. I been an arsenal fan for as far as i can remember and would be gratefull if i could join your blog. I was told about this site by one of your members. And it has kept me very busy while i am at work. Looking forward to the new posts
Hi Henry and welcome, you are free to blog now!
nice name henry !
we could of done with a player like you last night !!!
in fact im not sure why we ever got rid of you in the first place !
ive been made to suffer regarding king ade the 14.5 ….
to go from grace and sublime skill to a circus clown minus the red nose , its been a hard fall ..
hopefully this arshavin thing will be wrapped up soon and we can see RVP – arshavin up top …with dudu as back up and nik b as super sub ..
and ade as money in the bank ! because its coming mark my words !!! ade will be sold !
That sitter against Cardiff comes to mind……it’s fresh……imagine wouldn’t have had a replay….sigh!!
I hope he is ethan, lazy fook.
here no arsene…useless talking no new thing take a big banner to the grove in home match against west ham and with BIG ENOUGH LETTERS ON IT THT SAYS
SONG SUCK FOR GOD SAKE SEND HIM BACK TO CAMEROON
Just read through some of the comments during & after the match, I can’t believe people were being so critical. I assume those people were so deluded to begin with that they actually thought we could go to Everton & win with a team like we have at present.
As I said yesterday Everton have a better defensive unit, which they actually work on. Their midfield last night was the strongest they could possible field & has a lot of variety. Everton’s midfield was so superior to ours & whilst they had no strikers as such they had Cahill who is probably one of the most clinical players around.
All in all a draw however undeserved cannot be regarded as a poor result. It keeps us in a uefa cup position which is all we deserve & also keeps Everton 5 points behind us, they have to go to Man Utd on Saturday so we stand a good chance of being 7-8 points clear of them.
We have this thing GMR where we hope to win and when you see Song in the line up you know it won’t happen.
GMR – A draw last night was a decent result coz right now we are fucking terrible!
Then again a draw last night was a bad result because we are Arsenal! And we should be challenging for honours, not the Uefa Cup.
People saying they are happy that we could be 7-8 points clear of Everton can do nothing other than illustrate how far from greatness we have drifted under Wenger’s guidance in the last year!
I hear ya.
Moyes said “It shows how far we have come to be disappointed with a draw against Arsenal”
I think it’s more indicative of our decline that I was happy with a draw at Everton.
More worryingly, West Ham were fucking terrific last night, albeit against a poor Hull side.
Well we have that to look forward to then!
Also, and this isn’t directed at anyone, but I don’t like it when people say we shouldnt be calling for Wenger’s head. I personally want him to turn things around for himself. I dont think any fan would want him to go mid-season, if at all, and Wenger needs to know how angry the fans are with his performances!
The fans are the only people that can let Wenger know that he is doing a bad job. Yesterday’s comments only served to prove that the board will never say a bad word about him because he is making money for them. So if his boss’ are making sure standards are met then the only people left are the fans.
Tony – being 7-8 points from Everton is all we can hope for with this squad. We are lightyears away from the other top 3 clubs right now, however Villa for all that money spent are hardly world beaters.
My point remains that nobody on here or any other site could name a midfield that Wenger could have started last night that would’ve been good enough to beat Everton. They have better players than us right now & everybody can see that. Man Utd went there with a better team than us & only drew.
Sorry, I meant “So if his boss’ AREN’T making sure standards are met then the only people left are the fans”.
Before last nights game there were a lot of people on here who said they would take a point. Also quite a few who said we would lose. we got a draw against a team that the bindippers can’t beat at home with thier full team.
2 weeks ago wenger was quoted as saying we are 2% away from being a world class side.Or did i misread that ?
GMR – How about a midfield of:
Vela Nasri Denilson RVP
with Bendtner and Ade up top?
I think we lacked creativity. The reason we became invincibles and won numerous trophies was because of our philiosophy that the best form of defence was attack. Wenger seems to have totally abandoned that way of thinking. People were worried we wouldn’t be able to handle Arteta’s creativity. Why didnt we give their defensive unit something to worry about. Playing that midfield last night meant that about 6 of Everton’s most defensive players had a fairly comfortbale night.
We are not managers so I guess this could be debated all day but I just think we lined up far too defensively which actually made things worse.
In fairness Evrton are notoriously hard to beat and we have taken 4 points off them this season.
TA, we’ve lacked creativity all season which is why we have struggled to beat shit teams even at home. 1-0 home wins over the likes of Pompey, Wigan, WBA, Fenerbache etc just paper over the cracks. We didn’t even create many chances in all of the games i mention.
Which is why we need Arshavin.
Listen when you have players like Song and Eboue who are fist choice we will win nothing, Denilson is a hard worker but he’s not world class and Almunia is not in the Spanish set up, so why is he in ours?
RVP has played on the wing for us before & I can’t remember him ever being that good at it. That midfield you named would be walked over by more experienced & much stronger players as Everton have.
Can you tell me when Bendtner & Adebayor have ever played well together because once again I certainly cannot recall it.
Remember when we played team and had shots, when we lost our first home game at the Grove we had 29 to their 1. How many can you remember last night eh?
Steve – Agreed. I think the sooner we get back to playing offensive, fast counter attacking football the better. It seems to be that Wenger hasn’t shosen to play like this since Thierry left. Ihope that doesn’t mean he is basing his play around the likes of Adebayor now!
In all honesty, when the injured players return and with the hopeful signing of Arshavin (which I don’t think will transpire) we could be somewhere near getting back to our best. But by the time that happens everyne will be on their summer holidays.
Morning Goons;
Thought 1st half we were by our ‘now’ standards, ok. We battled & had some organisation. 2nd half, wtf happened, we were a mess in most parts.
Adebayor has had a reality check…HEY PAL,IF YOU’RE READING……YOU’RE A QUARTER OF THE PLAYER YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE…
We didn’t even really dominate Plymouth to the extent we should have done Geoff. Their goalkeeper barely had to make a save until the 2nd half.
Geoff, that my point, this team isn’t good enough & you can blame Wenger for that. However, you’d have to be deluded to believe any of his available players last night were good enough to beat Everton.
Usually I get really pissed off when we don’t win, but it was just so obvious we wouldn’t yesterday that I cannot see why anyone has got so upset by it.
Watch out guys Arsene says Everton might win the league…. Get that man in a straight jacket
i am sorry every time i see the arsenal squad i cant see that many top class players in the team the complete lack depth in the squad which due wengers refusel buy players, arsenal are top teamand they need top players, i realy feel delinson,diaby,ramsey,song,vela should be on the bench and realy they should be at 3/4 top class players in midfield and you bring these young players gradualy they will have the chance to learn from the top class players which is what fergi has done, wenger has done once a player reaches 30 will only get 1 year contract and if they wont tahn more that they can leave which is huge mistake ed you need your experiened players.it becomming more apparent that wenger is not going change his policy and if the fans want things to change they have to vote with there feet because as long as wenger continues with his policy the team wil win nothing
GMR – I know where you are coming from and Ade and Nikki B certainly wouldn’t be an ideal choice. But I think the more creative and problem causing players we have on the field the less time it gives them to have a pop at our leaky defence. Wenger not only went on the super defensive last night, but he did it with 1 amazingly bad and 2 very average players all in the same midfield.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that I personally would have fielded strong attacking players rather than 3 piss poor defensive players.
We don’t need a major overhaul, just look at a team like Barcelona they were poor last season but they bought a few new players in the summer & it’s transformed them, even though most of the new signings cannot get a look in. Suddenly players like Yaya have gone from average to excellent, thats what we need a new injection of players & some competition for places.
I understand that people are very upset and it is not my intention to provoke anyone but to single out Song for special victimisation is unjust to say the least. Song, very frustratingly gave the ball away more than we have the right to expect from a professional footballer playing for Arsenal but Song gave the ball away no more than Denilson, Adebayor or Diaby and even Sagna is struggling with one of the most fundamental of tasks: crossing the ball.
The only ray of hope that I can see shining is that each of those players mentioned above will be replaced with Eduadro, Walcott, Fabregas and Rosicky and I remain optimistic over the Arshavin deal.