First of all Nikki B signed a new and improved contract that sees him earning the same money that almost resulted in Cashley crashing his Bentley into a tree, £50k a week. Poor sod, I hope he’s okay!
Although it’s only 2 games in, it’s clear to see that with Ade gone, Bendtner is a different player, Gallas too though, so when Billy was talking about the lack of respect from a brash 25 year old last season, it was obvious now he was talking about Adebayor and not Robin.
Although it seems that some have stepped up this year, I was trying to work out what the difference is with our game, suddenly the ball is finding the net rather than missing, is it the formation? Is it the team are growing together?
Well 4-3-3 is certainly better than 4-5-1 that’s for sure, the team has started another season together and of course that will help, we have lost a trouble maker and a player that had lost his form, so that too helps, but for me the biggest difference is we are finally pressing and harrowing the opposition, we are chasing lost causes and hitting players hard, this is what we’ve been lacking and that is why we have been getting bullied by shit teams, Celtic tried it but we were having none of it.
As for the deflected goals, I think we would have scored from both of them had they not been deflected anyway. Deco had one the same night and no one said a word, Fat Frank and bar room yobbo Gerrard must have a dozen deflected shots go in every season, but no one says a word, screw them, we won, we dominated and we are now all but through.
Stuff Pompey on Saturday and we’ll be back on top for a day, the Mancs lost to Burnley last night which means that two of the top four have already lost, which is great news for us, I think we could have a great month and that’s without Rosicky, Theo and Nasri, if we signed 3 more players now we could really do something this season.
We have the money, come on Arsenal, lets consolidate, buy Van der Vart or Matuidi, get Numbchucks in and buy a big centreback.
Have a great day Grovers only 37 games to go!
Is aquilani injured ? If so, when will he be back because if we think denilson in bad, he is a footballing God compared to Lucas Leiva
Nish, why take a risk.. It doesnt hurt to have squad depth. rosicky wouldnt mind staying on the bench.
Mind that I’d rather have rosicky
Lol A,
…what do they need VDV for anyways?? didnt you hear? Carrick is “class”….rofl.
I think he is back in training rohan.Not really sure.Why the fuck did liverpool buy that greek CB?
Rohan 2 months, and he’s more injury prone than Rosicky so he’s not gonna get close to filling the gap left by Alonso!
We have squad depth – Arshavin was brought in as a Rosicky replacement, so when Rosicky returns it means we’ve got a player more than we would usually have, rather than a player less if he kept getting injured
Rohan the word is that aquilani is out for 2-3 months.
2-3 months? I really got that one wrong.What liverpool badly need is another striker
True nisanth, a striker, and a centre mid, but it appears they’re completely skint!
How did owen play yesterday?
I think VDV can come in and do a job now as he is pretty adaptable – additionaly, if the rumours about Fabregas going back to Barca next year turn out to be true – what better way to address that, than to get a replacement now and give him a year to bed into the team and the league b4 taking centre stage himself – obviously, I hope there is nothing in the Cesc stories, but he will obviously go back to Barca atsome point.
Owen missed 2 good chances, he is rusty and ive dropped him from fantasy football.
I’d say referring to him as rusty is being diplomatic Arse&Nose, i’d prefer past it, or simply not very good.
Ryan L VDV isn’t a Cesc replacement! He doesn’t play in the same position! If Cesc goes then Nasri, or Ramsey would replace him, even if VDV came in. VDV plays in more advanced positions
Ryan fabregas going to barcelona rumours is crap.No way wenger would agree to soemthing like that.And we must be fucking stupid to let him go for 30 million
nishant
Owen was shit yest..shud have seen the look on capello’s face….Missed a couple of one on ones with the keeper and a simple header from 6 yards out…
I want to see more of Henri Lansbury.
Id say we were stupid enough to let Henry go for only 18 mill
Fran – adoption terms…thats a good ‘un
A, I don’t think he is past it. Give him a month or 2 to settle and he’ll be putting those chances away.
I think its more likely we end up with the PSV boy than we do with VDV….its looking like it anyways…but he’s another left footed player that im not sure where he would fit into the team?
A – unfortunately, your comment on Owen being past it is pretty much bang on…….he has lost so much pace it is shocking.
He received the ball last night and didn;t even attempt to beat his man down the wing…..all he could do was turn back, get tackled and win a throw in…….
The two sitters he missed were cause he is a bit rusty tho…..think he’ll bang those type of chances in this seson but, he is not the owen that raced past the Argentine defence to score a “wonder” goal in 1998……
http://goonertalk.com/2009/08/20/eduardo-returns-but-walcott-still-out/
Wenger interview….
I doubt it Arse&Nose, he played most of last season, and was missing 2/3 very easy chances every game! He’s lost an extra yard of pace, and that means he’s rushed when finishing, and doesn’t have it now. He’s past it imo, but only time will tell.
Fergie is shit in the transfer market when it comes to bargains.
Arsene wenger on the other hand…..
Arse&nose….he is a bit past it mate. He is only still in the EPL cause he has adapted his game to poach goals…….as my previous comments said, he has lost most of his pace…….he’d never be able to race past our defence like that FA cup final these days…..
wardo he missed those chances all through last season though, you can’t be rusty for a whole season! Maybe lacking confidence, but not rusty.
if… and I say IF fabregas was to leave next season Yoan Gourcuff could be the best replacement…. what say????
Good. Now that Dudu is fit we will see if Bendy still plays ahead of him
Eduardo back and Walcott back in a matter of days…..
to be honest A….i didn’t watch him much last season !! Have to go with your theory if you saw more of him than I did…..altho, think he suffered injuries and lack of determination at Newcastle (could be the manager)
He looked like he lacked confidence last night and the miss right at the start did him no favours whatsoever !
ardent – dont even want to talk bout that……. 1) cause its next season and 2) unthinkable at the moment
David Eduardo has been fit every game so far this season when the teams have been announced. I did think that Eduardo would start on Saturday, but not sure now with his tight groin, still think there’ll be a fair few changes though.
wardo
wts the talk about an agreement in place?
Team for Pompy?
_________Almunia________
-Sagna–Gallas–Vermy–Clichy-
_______Song–Denislon_________
________Fabregas______________
–RVP–Eduardo–Arshavin–
I dnt kno A
I keep hearing that he doesnt want to be “risked” even when he is fit? Understandable….i guess
ardent it’s gibberish – spanish media claim with barca for 35 mil next summer. Just silly, he’s worth much more than that.
Samir VP won’t play wide, if those three start it would probably be eduardo would be on the right, as it was the brief time they played as a front 3 in pre season
samir.
i’m sure diaby will start…. i dont knw hw hell fit in but he will start with either arsh or denilson rested….
Ardent, I’m with Wardo on that one
Arsenal forward Nicklas Bendtner has not been offered a contract extension at the club as was widely reported this morning. Bendtner’s father Thomas denied the story that suggested the striker had been offered a new three year deal worth a reputed £50,000 a week.
Thomas Bendtner told Sporten.dk: “Under no circumstances is that correct, but it sounds exciting,”
“I could try to call Arsene Wenger to see if they’ve done a deal without me, but I can’t imagine that would happen.”
The Danish international faces a make or break season at the Emirates following the departure of Emmanuel Adebayor. He recently changed his squad number from 25, to 52, and in doing so he offered to pay Arsenal fans who had his original shirt number a full refund.
Ardent – haven’t seen that but think it will be BS.
he’ll keep every one fresh n fit fr the manc game… so expect rotation in the next two games
hmmmm??
Yeah David, first match was after internationals, so Eduardo said that Wenger decided as only 4 days after he’d played 90 minutes it wasn’t worth risking him by starting him, then he was named on the Bench against Celtic, but felt this tight groin so Wilshere replaced him. Only been two games.
I don’t think either Eduardo or Bendy will be first choice this season, there’ll be alot of rotation. VP might even come under threat if he doesn’t score a few goals, though he is very good in the central role at bringing others into the play.
gourcuff and cesc are so different.. they don’t even play in the same position. gourcuff is a proper No.10.
But yes, that is a possibility I don’t want to contemplate.
A- so u do think that VDV is adaptable enough to play in the Cesc position ? He plays in the midfield 3 for Holland. Nasri could do the role you’re right there and hopefully Ramsay wil develop into that aswell, but if you lose 1 doesn’t hurt to keep the numbers the same player wise.
Nisahnth – I don’t believe that newspaper story about the pre signed contract, but I would suggest it is clear that at somepoint Barca are gona come knocking for Cesc.
you don’t need pace, you don’t even need to be that fit to play as a poacher. Remember linekar, and even our own davor suker-he was 32ish when he was with us.
All Owen has to do is be in the right place at the right time, and he can still do that as he has shown, the sharpness will come.
Id play the carling cup team against pompey. I think they can do a job.
A&N
Why do you care about M.Owen
Arse&Nose he was in the right place at the right time all last season, and doesn’t have the finishing anymore. It isn’t just the pace that’s deserted him with his legs gone, it’s his agility as well, he can’t get into the right body shape to finish off chances, his technique has suffered as well as his pace.
Owen WAS a clinical goal poacher, as well as being lightning, he suffered injuries and lost a yard of pace, but remained a clinical goal poacher, then he got more injuries and he’s a long way away from being clinical now, he misses a hell of a lot of chances, but somehow still has this reputation for being clinical because of what he was like 5 years ago!
arse&nose.. if that were the case, most strikers would play until they were 40.. that’s a bit of an oversimplification to be honest.
Is Vela fit then? Could he start V Pompey?
David, I don’t care about Owen. I’m just sharing my opinion on him because I think he can still be decent for Man Utd.
A, I beg to differ on Owen. If he stays fit and gets games he will be finishing off chances at Utd.
Arse&nose….that’s the whole point A and I were making…….he main part of his game was pace. He has lost that so, effectively, past it……being a poacher is the only reason he has managed to salvage any part of his top tier career however, he is not the best at that role. There are others who can do a better job….
Most poachers start of lacking pace therefore adapt at a much earlier age……
I’m not saying owen is a complete waste of space cause he is not but, for a top 4 European club, it may be a case of opportunity cost when selecting owen ahead of another striker……he may, however, be a very very good impact sub for around 65 / 70 mins onwards
Hsve to disagree about VP beiing good in the central role A
his assists have either come from outwide or from a set piece and he gets bullied like denilson against fulham last year
No way he’d start Samir, no idea if he’s fit either! Hopefully in the squad
not looking foward to facing Sol this w/e….he always picks up his game against us and is still a force in the air……need to play around him then he’s fcuked !
Maybe Arse&Nose, if it was a case of having no confidence last season, and he somehow gets loads of confidence this season. Nothing to do with being rusty, or playing with poor players though, as he still got, and missed shitloads of chances for Newcastle.
David that’s the job of the central player – drifting out wide, and the wide men or midfielders running past him. He certainly doesn’t get bullied, much more physicality to him than Torres, who plays that role well enough for Liverpool
wardo sol doesn’t play for pompey anymore does he….??
He’s on his way to notts county i thought?!
Owen is an instinctive finisher and used his pace and reflexes inside the box to finish off the chances… Without his pace, it’s almost like he’s lost a leg. If he wants to be successful now, he will ahve to start playing more intelligently and model himself on someone like eddie which imo is beyond him.
He is finito if you ask me. He might score 12 goals ore thereabouts this season but he isnt going to come up with those crucial strikes ronaldoesque…
VP more pysical than Torres? Wow…we must not be waqtching the same player…..because if Wenger persists in that role he’d be injured before the month is out
A – thought he did mate….did hear the rumours of him being offered player/coach role at notts c but dont think he has taken it yet…….happy days if you’re right
wardo pretty sure his contract expired at the end of last season and he never extended it so even if he’s not signed for anyone he’s not gonna be playing for pompey.
Yeah David, in terms of saying VP gets bullied, he’s stronger than Torres.
Rohan….dont think you are alone with that opinion.
There must have been at least 8 EPL clubs he would have gone too not including Arsenal, Manure, Lpool, Chavs (as its obvious he would have gone to anyone of these) butm no other manager came in for him…..
I’m not writing him off completely tho….just think this is his last chance of EPL survival……you never know, may make him sharp again.
didn’t know that A…….would you have him as back up defender at Arsenal ???
Just a thought….altho know it wont happen
why are we talking about M. Owen? Shldnt we be hoping that he continues to be crap?
Don’t write off ManU yet. They always start badly. I think they have enough in their armory. Their reserve strikers (Macheda, etc) are better than Owen and Berby. I fully expect them to play them from now
Just think its funny that Zola wants Chamakh just because we were interested in him.
Macheda better than Berbatov? hahaha…what drink you having friend?
Yes United Start the season badly..but how many times have they lost to a 5th placed Championship team?
nah wardo – he’s lost his pace and balance, he should go to the championship, or a bottom of prem type club imo. Having him back here would be like getting in another silvestre.
Confident Macheda is better than Owen and Berbatov?! Macheda is a decent kid, he’ll barely play this season, he’s nowhere near good enough for the first team, same with Macheda
man utd loosing to burnley will do them no harm, it’ll be a rocket up their arse’s… after we beat them they broke the PL record for not conceding!!!
Afternoon.
RvP gets bullied?
Cant agree with that. Just coz he has a gay name, dont mean Robin cannot handle himself!
inside – you can never get enuff of the muff fella
Trivia :United last lost to a promotion side back in the 04-05 season. A point for anyone who gets it. (i remember it well)
Then i suggest you put down the red tint glasses….Robbin is on the floor half the game.
United lost, thats 3 points they didnt get,. Its a positive as far as I can see. Not sure they have anothher level to go up. They always do start slowly, but they still generally grind the results out.
Now, IF Wigan get a result from them, that would be sunfin.
I suggest you follow WWF, Baseball, NHL… or start taking the Prozac again.
Rose tinted glasses?
What is your problem? Always wanting an agrument…
Daivd;
I agree, United losing to burnley is unusual
I guess noone knows….oh well.
Was it Reading Stu?
NFL yes….Basketball yes…Baseball maybe…NHL what? WWF maybe when i was 5 years old…
I could say the same thing to A…or anyone else that disagree with me…and they wont be half as sensitive….what is this obsession with Prozac?
West Brom!
Nope…guess again.
David;
Prozac is GOOD, make you feel all nice and fluffy, make you see flowers and birds and pretty things,m instead of dark, nasty horrible things….
Oh FFS fella, I was jestin with yer, jump on board…
charlton??
oh actually – norwich beat them didn’t they????
It was Reading, or Ipswich werent it?
Clue: the lost 2-0 away.
Yeah A is right. suprise suprise.
*to confirm it was Norwich.
Norwich Stu?? Really should’ve known that – I was at uni there at the time
Was it Wolves?
How about Watford?
Preston?
Is any one masochistic enough to follow the cricket?
Oh thanks Man G….didnt know what Prozac was…not sure why i need to know it but good info more or less…taking Prozac and watching WWF? That says it all dont it?
palace!???
That would be one fucked up combo for sure!
fuck it
Leyton Orient?
Oh FFS! Those daft spuds are goin on with themselves for being top of the league and they are bound to break into the… erm, top 10 maybe perhaps ooh if they are lucky…
The thing is Man U do start badly but this time around they just don’t have enough about them for me to think that they’ll pull it off again. Also both times didn’t they have Ronaldo coming back later.
Who do ye think will score arsenals first hattrick this season? Or will we even get one?
A, David,
Macheda is top drawer, believe it or not.
Who do you guys reckon will start on saturday?
Line ups please
LJW is also top drawer… doesn’t mean he’s gonna light up the PL.
Man G you wouldnt happn to be Loved up Loner would you now?
Confident why you say that?
Because 1 game?
He might be in the end Confident, but currently he isn’t even at premiership level, he’s a level below where Jay Simpson was last season
David;
I am always loved up.
Almunia
Eboue Gallas Vermilli Clichy
DEnilson Song Diaby
Arshy Eduardo Bendy
How come Vela isnt mentioned as one of the injured players?
Stu….Eduardo for sure….did we have a hatrick apart from Arshavin.
I’m going for
Almunia
Sagna Gallas Vermaelen Clichy
Song Ramsey
Wilshere Diaby Arshavin
Eduardo
Maybe pushing the rotation a bit though! Bendtner in for Wilshere more likely, or maybe VP and Eduardo wide right. Cesc might play as well
RVP on the bench?
but he is getting battered as Central striker!
A;
You going Saturday fella?
Ade scored one
Mang maybe he isn’t injured.
Stu – Bendy on Sat
A; You almost every single player in the squad there!
David @ 17:12. Are you being serious there or what?
Also…last season Ade and Vela got hattricks.
*mentioned
Currently not got a ticket Mang, trying to source one for sat though, got a spare?!
Stu;
I was wondering too…
A;
Sorry mate. Im taking my mates 12 year old lad. He’s never been before. Im only going for the free scarf!
Sorry
I thot Ade is a twat and he doesnt count!
When did Vela score a hatrick.
A;
Well, I thought Vela’s agent said he was recovering from an ankle injury???
The England cricketers are shite, pathetic bottlers
Wasnt it Sheffield utd at home?
O yes Carling cup…nevrmnd
Did Vela get 1 in a CC game?
Man G….lol !!!
If Eduardo starts Sat, I can see him getting a hatrick. Hope so, he’s in my dream team…
carling cup
will he start eduardo though?
Mang I think that was just agent talk, and maybe a quote from a while ago. In the quote he said that he was recovering from the ankle injury sustained in the Gold cup, which ended at the start of the month, then played in their world cup qualifier on the 12th I think it was. Reckon he’s either ok, or just have a week or so to rest after lots of internationals, rather than actually injured.
choy;
I think AW may wanna rest 1 of the front 3. Probably RvP, or Arshy, maybe bendy… one of em, anyways!
Man G… i think he’s gonna rest RVP… arsh came off early during the midweek game.
A;
I was hoping it was just a break (as in a holiday!).
Effin daft as fook that Mexico have played games all bleedin summer innit!
Wilshire may get a start too. AW said he was ready to start some games. This may well be a good one.
Seriously hope we do actually get a few new players in…
Yeah it was ridiculous, he should just retire from Mexico! Would speed up his development with us massively!!
Yeah it could well be a holiday, maybe he’ll be back now for this weekend, though nothing there in the quotes released today, wonder if there will be in the full press conference when it’s released tomorrow
So Wilshere, Bendtner and Arshavin to score in a 5-0 win? I would be happy with that….i suppose.
I think Vela, if given the chances will be a massive player for us… At least 300ft…
Same back 5
Song
Ramsey Cesc
Wilshere Arshavin
Eduardo
I would like us to play 4-4-2 against teams like portsmouth.Instead of ramsey in mid play bendtner upfront with eduardo.
Stu;
Ha! You are hard to please!
Our strikers havn’t really scored till now.Would be nice if they can score some against portsmouth
Well Vela usually stars when he plays for Mexico so we know he is ready. Its just a matter of Wenger starting him when he is available.
nish;
Nice team.
Right, Im off to get smashed, byeeee!
MG, its the curse of being a perfectionist..i think. Either that or im just a grumpy fuck who is never happy…im not sure which one.
Laters MG, dont break any laws…
Yeah nisanth, that’s why I think VP might start, get him a goal or two!
Stu – and his actually being available, very very annoying how often he’s away. He could be superb for us.
Toodles Mang, have a goodun
I think diaby is also a sure starter on saturday