A victory is a victory is a victory… however, I’m not subscribing to that game being something to be impressed by. We were poor on many levels tonight despite having an adequate team out. Wenger was talking about his injury problems in the press conference last night like we had a Carling cup team out… but Almunia was no loss, Denilson was no loss… and if we’re being honest, nor was Sagna.
Diaby was described as the new Paddy by Wenger a few weeks ago, we had Cesc, Rosicky, Bendtner, Eduardo and Song making up the rest of the midfield and attack… Eboue is more than able as a deputy and I reckon my Nan could have done a reasonable job in goal for Almunia. So Wenger’s crowing about squad depth is totally misguided in my opinion, because the only shock inclusion was Mannone.
The game was full of mistakes, bad passing, a lack of rhythm and cohesion… it was a poor showing. Yes, I’m pleased we won… but I’ve been here before… being told to take pleasure in hollow victories in the hope that we have this consistent 5th gear we’ll get into… that doesn’t really happen these days. Last night we lacked quality from our best players, and that is an all too familiar problem.
The first warning sign was when Clichy failed to deal with his man, the Liege player nipped in, crossed across the box… Song shanked it out of play. I love Clichy, but he’s been inconsistent for some time now… is it time to toe him up the ass and give the more than capable Gibbs a crack?
Shortly after, a corner was cleared, the ball looped out the box… Eduardo was under it, he flicked it back across goal to no one… Standard took advantage of our keepers lack of ability and slotted home at his near post. A weak goal if ever I did see one… fancy tricks on the 18 yard box are as appreciated as much as a bout of mouth herpes… near post goals are about as common place with our reserve keepers as swine flu in the work place… remember Chelsea in the semi? Why can’t a reserve keeper just come in and do the basics right?
Barely two minutes later, Gallas dropped the Liege striker with Eduardo like deftness in the box… Karma was restored, the ref pointed to the spot. 2 down after 5 minutes. Shocking.
The tone of the game was summed up when Cesc passed the ball out for a throw in after the centre kick… this was going to be a drag.
The first half was reminiscent of last season… I felt personally embarrassed that I’d ignorantly backed a squad with one addition. Where was the urgency, where was the fight… why did the players look nonchalant? I’ll tell you why… because it was the same bunch of players who underachieved last year. Sadly Lucozade doesn’t come with character supplements.
This was standard Liege we were playing, not Barcelona. We lack leaders on the pitch. Cesc leads by example… where are players who lead through inspiration?
We plodded through the rest of the half creating very little until late in the second half… Diaby powered through midfield and played Nik in with a defence splitting ball… he finished superbly with a nut meg that found its way into the back of the net. Is that what happens when you put a centre forward in the middle? Crazy thought, I know.
The second half started with more ridiculousness. Alex Song made a dreadful back pass… played Standard in, who finished poorly. This are the types of error that cost us against proper teams.
Nik was played in with a beauty of a ball from Rosicky… and was denied by a superb tackle. Arsenal were starting to play, the belief started to ebb back into the team.
Songs range of passing was back to it’s 2008 best… flying passes to the crazy people talking in his head.
Gael Clichy continued to play poorly, if anyone needs a chest infection it’s that man. I thought Fabregas looked sullen and disinterested, I quite often feel he goes missing when things aren’t going our way… mind you, you’re only as inspired as those around you… if I was a world class chef and I was working in McDonalds, I wouldn’t be flipping burgers with much verve or passion.
Eboue fell over. I watch football with my Sunday league team mates… watching Eboue is like watching your Granddad cracking on with a bar maid at a family party… a bit embarrassing, especially when your mates are watching.
Set pieces were rubbish all night… after all the early season promise, it seems that the goals we scored against Everton were more luck than judgement. Cesc’s deliveries seem to be consistently poor…
Rambo came on for Rosicky and his first contribution was a 25 belter at the keeper. Say what you will about his discipline, the guy offers more of a threat than most of Wenger’s favourites and he does have heart in bundles.
The goal ironically came from a bad cross, it was played into the back post… it bumbled around, and Vermaelen added to his tally. The goal was littered with controversy… Song looked to have hand balled it, he may have been offside… but honestly, in the grand scheme of giving a shit, my sympathies were low. We were back on track… Sagna and Wilshere entered the field of play.
Shortly after Eduardo went high and wide… then Vermaelen had a shot cleared off the line. You sensed a goal was in the offing… and it was…
Eduardo kneed the ball in from a low corner… superb. Thank the footballing Gods that the Belgian team were weak.
Rambo set Nik up late, but he placed the ball too far in front for the Dane for him to finish.
The ref blew up and we had delivered a victory which signalled how strong we are mentally, how young our average age is… and Wenger clearly demonstrated the strength in depth we have as a club this year.
Sarcasm isn’t clever and it isn’t funny… sadly though, it’s so true it hurts. Wenger pretty much delivered the above predictable verdict in his press conference. 99 people can see the problems with this squad, the other one is Wenger.
Personal mistakes luckily didn’t cost us today, but that’s because we played a very poor team. However, you’ve already seen what happens when these mistakes happen against better opposition. I think it’s terrible that these mistakes are even happening against outfits like Standard, I really do.
Having a superb starting 11 sadly doesn’t win you any awards at the end of the season. I feel Arsene has sold us down the river of fan delusion again and it’s not lies because he believes what he says.
Very disappointed despite a win… because we’ve been here so many times over the last 4 seasons… winning and playing badly isn’t the sign of a good team, because we don’t have it in us to go on a 15 game winning streak to nullify the bad games.
Ratings:
Mannone: Erratic, nervous and at fault for the first goal. His kicking leaves a lot to be desired as does his decision making. 5
Clichy: Mistakes are creeping into his game on a more frequent basis and it is a worrying decline. He needs to pull his socks up especially with a World cup looming. I think a couple of games on the bench would do him some good as I know he has it in him to be a great player for us. 5
Gallas: Dropped the Standard player on the edge of the box and I felt for him a bit. Not his best game in an Arsenal shirt but he coped better in the second half. 6
Vermaelen: One of the few bright sparks in a dire team performance. I like his never say die attitude and I love the way 90% of the time he comes out of the air as a winner with the ball. He did well to scramble home the second goal and he was unlucky not to get another shortly after. 7
Eboue: Slotted in a right back and to be honest, I couldn’t tell the difference between him and Sagna… which is more a sign of how Sag’s has declined over the last year. 6.5
Cesc: Quiet, sloppy… a touch miserable perhaps. He’s not coping well playing in our team at the moment and that is a big worry. I’m sure he was looking for big signings this summer and Wenger failed to deliver again. The coach talks about what he sees in training when he justifies his frugal policies… does he read the papers and the body language of his star names when he doesn’t sign players and think his policies are correct? I do wonder… 5
Diaby: Someone need to get this man’s coat and hail him a taxi. A truly diabolical performance by the lanky Frenchman… not even redeemed with an assist. His reactions are slow, his passing and control are shambolic at times and his mistakes are so amateur it brings a small tear to my eye or more than a few occasions. Stick Rambo in there… or Merida… get JET back off loan… anything please… 4
Song: I struggled to make up my mind about Song tonight. He made some important tackles and got in the way a few times, but his passing was terrible and he made some school boy mistakes. It really isn’t good enough for me… he needs to find consistency and he needs to do it quickly. What I did find interesting was talking to a Liverpool fan who was telling me how they all dread the inclusion of Mascharano in the starting 11 at Liverpool… everyone seems to be having a problem filling this DM role bar Chelsea. 6
Rosicky: It’s nice to have our dynamic china Czech back in the team. His class is apparent in whatever he does… he rarely wastes a ball and he has a lot of tenacity and aggression in his game. I would truly love it in a Kevin Keegan way if he managed to stay fit this year. 7
Bendtner: Finally played centrally… finally delivered an ok performance. He slotted between the keepers legs before half time with pretty much his first chance and he showed great strength an perseverance on other occasions. Is this the watershed moment for our Dane? Well… that depends on whether he is stuck out wide in the next game. 6.25
Eduardo: Much like he was when he first started for us… he’ll do nothing for 90minutes, then he’ll pop up for a goal. Not the worst attribute, but needs to do more for the team. Nice for him to get on the score sheet though. 6.25
Have a great day Grovers, see you and your pretty avatars in the comments!
P.S. I was only kidding about the Isle of Wight yesterday… you’re all beautiful people and you’re island fantastic! There are still Wigan tickets available in my Exchange… so message me if you’d like to go.
Pedro
bbk…
great diaby video compile, thanks…
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c673DuZK7vw&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1]
Surves that fucker right for being thick enough to get Ades name on a perfectly good shirt.
Pedro, what’s this exclusive? Have I missed something? Is it Arsenal related?
Just to add: I watched that match last night..and I must say Mr. Fabregas needs to sit down for a spell. Who gives a shit who he has to play next to?..Who gives a shit if he reads the papers or blogs?..I thought he was our captain or some such bullshit..the guy is poor right now and he needs to step up. The guy gets the soft cuddle from fans and blog sites while Diaby (90 minutes guaranteed, regardless of performance)is shit-canned by one and all. Meanwhile, Ms. Wenger (at 60, honestly, tell me how any 18-25 year old can relate to a 60 year old man)continues to wheel out the same lines and wring his hands as if he was sending his child off to grammar school for the first time. And our so-called goal keeper, the one who is over 30 yet dyes his fuckin hair..whatthefuck?..is backed up by a kid named Mannone?…seriously?…
i do agree that clichy is making alot more mistakes recently… he was 2 blame for the 2 goals against city and also he played quite bad yesterday… but than again i think wenger should not only rely on him and swap clichy and gibbs so that clichy will try 2 improve…
diaby wasnt the best ever but he helped create the first goal… i think next season he will be much better than now cause he is still in the process of learning…
gallas wasnt to bad… but conceeding 2 in 5 mins was the shock of my life.(even when we played manure i was stunned) we seem to conceed alot in just a few minutes like vs man city 3 in 15 mins…its quite worrying…
ramsey and wilshere did impress tho… ramsey looks quite confident….
In fairness to Cesc he doesnt get as bad of a doing as Diaby because we know Cesc can do it. Diaby has always been the same inconsistent fucker. Cesc needs a break tho…definately needs to be dropped until he gets back to his best.
And Mannone, he isnt shit Als back up. He is the third choice keeper who only made his 2nd ever appearance. He might have been at fault for their first but he isnt to blame for anything else. He had no saves to make and should never have had to start in the first place.
I thought the post was a bit negative, I mean he only had £43 million to spend, and as he said, no one out there is better than Song, Denilson, Diaby, Eboue or Almunia. If there was, he would have bought them, he said so.
I think we have to trust in Arsene, he does have a degree in economics after all.
I think it’s even worse that we know Cesc can do it. The only reason he played shit last night is because he jst couldn’t be bothered. The amount of times i saw him lazily jog towards the ball and lose it was disgraceful.
People talk about others not inspiring him? How about him inspiring others? Isn’t he supposed to be the captain? God knows what he earns in a week and the fucker can’t even be bothered to run for the ball. He is showing the same form as he did early last season, and yet again the other players are being blamed for it rather than his own poor attitude.
Very poor display from Cesc.. Worst player on the pitch last night by a long way
In Almunia we have a world class goalkeeper. Obviously there is noone better in the world better than him.
Eboue is the pass master so buying a winger or another playmaker would be pointless.
And Diaby is Vieira so why even think of bidding for any quality DMs out there…they wouldnt even get a look in with Diaby controlling the midfield week in week out.
And Denilsong are gonna be world class very soon. Buying someone who could defend in midfield would just kill them.
Apparently we are ready to spend 20m on Akinfeev in January. I’ll be looking forward to that. Im planning a trip to Hell on the same day…better get my gloves and scarf ready.
And Pedro says Wenger had £40 million in his sky rocket to spend, that’s impossible, how could you get £40 million in your pocket??? And how would you know.
You should play FIFA 2009 or something or football manager or Tiger Woods golf.
I don’t know anyone who could fit that much into a pocket, unless it was Ade’s mums pocket, she probably is the only one who’s arse is so big she would need a massive pair of trousers to fit it in, so maybe only her, but definitely not Wenger.
January you say? That should just about coincide with the bluing of the moon
Just like to say well done to the players last night.A winning start away from home in the Champions League.Great spirit shown to come back.
Geoff, I bet Eboue could, He is a clown after all
Stu, if we buy Akinfeev in January, I’ll sell my arse to a blind man as a wedding ring.
No chance.
Paul, would you say that if they were called Dagenham and Redbridge? Cause they were the equivalent.
Bill you could be right there mate!
Arse&Nose Says:
September 17, 2009 at 12:04
I never said we would win anything, my only point is that we are taking time to adapt to a new system and that we should be patient.
——————————
Arse&Nose Says:
September 17, 2009 at 12:17
Without Wenger we would just be a top 10 team not a top 4 team.
—————–
Yes. We are doomed without Senior Wenger. This my friend is exactly why people call you an AKB. Infact look it up in the dictionary. You’ll find those words you juss spat right there.
And another thing.
Just how are the players supposed to get used to a system that has been changing every season for 5 years?
David, top comment mate, every year he changes it, so by definition he’s saying he was wrong the season before.
I would be happy with any decent keeper in january. Anyone in goal but Almunia. Anyone from Germany would be just fine.
Don’t give a shit who it is as long as we win
Australia 296/8 (50.0 ov)
Catch you guys later. I have internet issues.
Big Raddy Says:
September 17, 2009 at 12:38
So once again LG’ers end up abusing each other because they have differing opinions.
====================
Raddy I find your words rather appalling.
For one. Have you ever been on any other blog before?
Why are you making abuse “of each other” as if it is something completely exclusive to LeGrove alone?
Fuk sakes man if we are so bile and Vicious why are you here?
There are juss too many blogs that i care to mention about that bloggers go after each other its human nature…however right or wrong and correct me if I am wrong but LeGrove management do their uttermost best to cut that shite out!
Are we still wenger bashing?
Arse&Nose Says:
September 17, 2009 at 16:36
gooner786, you are over reacting.
Usmanov is in it for profits, the first thing he did when he bought shares in Arsenal was to ask for Dividends-does that not tell you all about the motives of this man?
=======================
Another Idiotic comment. You think Kroenke just spilled out millions during a recession to Arsenal buying shares because he’s a nice guy?
Has anybody ever seen the facker at an Arsenal game before?
In defence Bacary Sagna has been a big player for Arsenal. They have only conceded eight times in the 16 games he’s featured in against mid-table sides this season and last. When Sagna hasn’t played, an average of 1.33 goals have been conceded.
Gooner786
If Usmanov takes over he will lump the £837M value of the club (Forbes Valuation)as a debt and if you are advocating spending £100M for new players then if you add on our current debt it would mean a total of £1.2B+.
Man Utd have to pay back £69M per year in interest only against a debt of £800M so we would have to pay even more back each year which would be madness.
As regards to the £40M available , if the reports are right that we only sold 2 flats at the Highbury development this year, then as the last phase of the works is now completed the sales of the flats wouldn’t have been enough to pay off the builder.
They would have had to therefore raise cash or renegotiate a larger loan with no prospect of paying it off quickly due to the lack of demand.
As I have said before they should not have pretended to be Developers and should have sold Highbury to a Property company, however the Directors got greedy thinking they would earn £100M profit.
I have always said in life you should stick with what you know and not enter into aspects that are not within your expertise – we are after all a Football Club and not a Property/Development Company surely?
i feel its clear that wenger will stick with almunia,i think thats a shame because there quite few keepers better tham him,he is bad keeper but will never be top class keeper,i have no dought that wenger the money but its finding the right player fit into the team and top commanding midfielders are pretty on the ground at this point he realy shot himself in foot letting both deria,flamani and gilberto
Kieth that looks like a myth.
What we do know for a fact is that Wenger believes in the current squad. So much so that he didnt change the PLAYERS but changes the SYSTEM over and over…year after year and the results are the same.
If we dont win this year I fully expect him to change formations to a 5-2-3
David you are on a rampage
Raddy made those comments when something he said to franchise evoked an abusive response from some of the commenter.. Pedro and Geoff don’t condone calling each other names on the blog. This is not what LG stands for.
As for A&N being an AKB he is no more an AKB as you are a doom monger.
Okay I’m back! To clear up the abuse bit, we have a rule that stops people slagging each other, we can’t be on here 24/7 so apologies if anyone has been offended, let’s forget, cyber kiss and move on.
As for Arse&Nose, he is Wengers lovechild, not Eboue! I know you’ll take that in the spirit it is said A&N!
Mayank, other than that my friend, well said!
What is wrong with being an AKB ?
Doom Monger because i believe in life after Wenger?
Then so be it. I will wear it proudly round my neck….so long as he accepts he’s an AKB.
Thomas Vermaelen once visited the virgin islands. They are now just called The Islands
The earth was flat untill Thomas Vermaelen stepped on it.
It is rumored that when he was only 15…Thomas Vermaelen scored a dazzling header beating a 6’5 defender…..from his own cross.
I didn’t call you a doom monger David, just because your view differs from mine doesn’t mean i have to typecast you. Same goes for A&N just because he has an alternate view does not make him an AKB.
Its funny how backing Wenger and the club is the alternate view though.
An AKB doesn’t think for themselves and believes that Wenger runs Arsenal, in fact an AKB believes Wenger is Arsenal.
I am an Arsenal fan, Arsene Wenger is not, he’s never paid to watch Arsenal. I pay shedloads every year, I see nothing back but rhetoric. So I’m not an AKB.
No manager is bigger than the Arsenal, and AKB believe that whatever Arsene does is Ok.
I hope that helps.
Also i take it you like Verm.
Drogba was noticed by scouts prior to his high profile signing at Chelsea because TV had created certain indentures when he upper-cutted a horse.
He’s not paid to watch Arsenal Geoff he was supposed to retire 4 years ago. Coaching is a physically strenuous job and he has paid with his health.
Not many managers his age would be a part of building a stadium to launch Arsenal into world domination (pardon my theatrics).
Also believing in wenger could also mean that you’ve analysed the situation and come to the conclusion that Wenger is doing the best thing for arsenal. Not just because you’re a sheep.
Mayank
I dont have a problem backing Wenger as long as there is some sound reasonable Logic to it…as Geoff said…instead of the regurgitated rhetoric that is typical of AKB’s.
Arse&Nose Says:
September 17, 2009 at 12:17
Without Wenger we would just be a top 10 team not a top 4 team.
If this isnt an AKB. I dont know what is.
I guess when Wenger is old and retires we can stop kidding ourselves we are a big club and start being satisfied with a lower table team.
If 300 Is a Spartan Movie…and they decided to make a Spartan movie from Belgium it wouldve stared Vermaelen and the movie would have been called
“1″
Arsene Wenger earns £5 million a year, a threat to his health my arse.
Working in a pit or losing your job when you have 3 kids and a mortgage would do your health.
Fuck me, I would manage Arsenal for nothing. Please don’t make out he has a tough life, I will vomit.
Too late, I vomited.
Adebayor was not celebrating his goal. He was just running away from Thomas Vermaelen.
Well to me its a moot point ’cause we don’t know and can’t know. We had been 12th with GG so you never know if Wenger left after 2006 maybe we’d drop out.
We’re no Barca or Man U but we might well be if Wenger achieves his vision (which to me is just a trophy or 2 away). That’s why he receives my backing.
Fucking hell, we made Wenger, before us he got tin tacked from a shit club called Monaco and went to a even shittier team called Grampus8.
He came to us and inherited a great team, oh and then he bought Vieira.
I’m resting my case.
david
i garantee you if wenger could find top midfielder he would get one but i believe the squad as well its just 1-2 players should not be starting in my view,the middle of park is game is always won so you need need players to putting consistant performaces and have very good passing range and will be able to maintain possesion.diaby has his good points and i think he would better suited just behind striker not dm player he not got the passing,much better suited to ramsey and nasri and cesc
Okay boys I’m really off now, have a fun filled night.
There are no Nuclear Weapons in Belgium. There is only Vermaelen.
I thought an AKB would want Arsenal to do well or am i missing something?
Hey, it’s very easy for us to say that we’d manage Arsenal for free ’cause we don’t have to. The reson he makes that money is the time he gives us and his ability. To say he loves Arsenal less that us ’cause he doesn’t pay for season tickets is like saying Lincoln was less patriotic that average joe ’cause he did’t pay taxes.
Geoff Says:
September 17, 2009 at 19:20
Fucking hell, we made Wenger, before us he got tin tacked from a shit club called Monaco and went to a even shittier team called Grampus8.
He came to us and inherited a great team, oh and then he bought Vieira.
I’m resting my case.
——————————–
The comment is so glorious. It needs to be reposted.
We made Wenger. Wenger did NOT MAKE ARSENAL.
Like everything in life it was a give and take relationship. We gave him a job he gave us another page in the history books, fair trade. We don’t owe him anything but the club is being moulded in his vision so it makes practical sense that he stays at the helm.
leon
I agree with that. Evrybody has said Diaby is shite.
And suddnely someone comes up with the stats
4 games…2 goals…1 assist.
Doesnt look like shite aye?
Same with Denilson. Same with every facker that plays like horse dung on the pitch. They are shite but statistical the dogs bollocks.
Do we win games with stats or on the pitch?
I agree he should be the SS..not because of creativity…but because thats the safest place for him to lose the ball.
Mayank
It makes practical sense to some people and those people are lesser and lesser as the years go by as we almost lose to a team that has never been to the CL before. As we get pissed on by a former player who was replaced by a teenager sorry 20 year old. As we get humiliated by our rivals year in and year out.
This vision he speaks of sounds nice and looks nice on paper. But reality is far from it.
Hence the term “deluded”.
We were 2 goals down yesterday because Vermaelen wanted to show as a defender how an attacker should do his job scoring goals.
Is it that far?
We invested more that any other club if you take the Stadium payment into account so you can’t say we’re keeping the money.. So with little on field investment we’re now at a stage where one trophy away from being great for the long term future. You wouldn’t deny that a PL or CL trophy now would put us in the same league as RM Barca and MU?
We have a world class academy and stadium that wasn’t there when Wenger came.
So it makes sense to show patience for a little longer than we thought or deserved.
All that pisses me off is you can just call someone an AKB because you don’t agree with their views as if that in itself is an argument.
Anyone who spends hours blogging about Arsenal for hours should not be accused of being a sheep and not thinking for himself. That my friend is impossible.
Remove one of the hours from the above comment
And oh hatrick in a blog fart.
I believe TA and a whole lot of great players that came from our academy before Wenger.
Wenger inherited a great team period. When has he built a great team from scratch?
You say if we win one trophy we would be on par with the likes of Madrid and MU?
Oh dear…
How many CL trophies have we won compared to them?
More importantly how many CL trophies has Wenger won…despite being there 3 times?
And do you know that the payment on the loan for the stadium is fixed? The stadium itself pays for the loan and makes profit?
What makes you think im not patient?
If i wasnt patient shouldnt i be supporting the Chavs like the AKB’s would suggest after 5 years?
You are looking at euphoria of positives…and I am employing you…even crying out to you to look at the team that hasnt won anything for years.
Nothing has changed about that team. The system changes. Sure. But the players. The managers. The shite medical staff that cant do anything to prevent injuries. So please enlghten me about this vision that hasnt seen any positive change in personel for 5 years.
everyone’s gone to the moon
Its completely possible. All they have to do is remix what other people have said. Its called regurgitation. It happns in sheeps and goats. Like you have so brilliantly pointed out. Im not calling anyone a sheep or a goat…And there are tons of people that disagree with me mostly over my views about some fuk up that wears pink boots…but Do you hear me call them an AKB? No.
AKB’s are people who are incapable of logical reasoning and resort to unquestioned managerial following.
david
delinson will never be anything more thqn sqaud player at 18 ramsey is already for ahead of as better passing and stronger but does have the experience wenger is very coursious with him,diaby should play behind striker because he clearly alot of ability going passed players but does have the passing range to play deeper that may or may not change in the futre
First of all i have never suggested to anyone that they support another club.
Yes TA came from our academy but now our academy is one of the best in europe and we have the second biggest scouting system too.
What i meant was with one trophy we’d be as big a club as them not as rich in a trophy sense.
And our most successful CL period has been under Wenger.
The stadium whether you like it or not cost money which will not be recovered in 1-2 seasons. Also clubs with big debt are going to have action taken against them if Platini has his wishes.
Also you see no positives from our trophyless seasons?
CL final top of the league 2/3 of the season, nothing?
Yes we didn’t win but how much of that was down to Wenger?
What a load of wank
The reason bendy’s fans are not called a name is ’cause they don’t have one. I’m sure half LG would be calling people pink boot lovers(PBL) if the name caught on as a valid way to win an argument.
It would be quite funny actually if you called someone an AKB who says he thinks Nik is good.
I was just about over the City bollocks when yesterdays game kicked off yeaterday and within 5 minutes I was back to where I was Saturday evening!
Thank fuck we came back to win and fair play to the players fopr actually havin the wherwithall and the nouse to do that.
But they were pretty effinh poor for long spells and if we are judging all players as the doom mongers like to on here, then Cesc should be axed, along with Clichy, Diaby and Eduardo…
Mayank
As ive said. All of that sounds nice on paper. But doesnt make us win things at all. It hasnt worked. It still isnt working.
We barely beat a celtic team that has just lost to Hapoel Tel-Aviv????
We barely beat a team that are CL debutants despite being in there for 12years. You tell me if we had lost what our CL experience and our stadium have to do with the teams performance?
Sounds like you are just looking for positives anywhere you can find them and ignoring the most important aspect of a football club.
i.e What happns on the pitch.
Loen
I agree Diaby’s best position is behind the striker but so is everyone elses for Gods sake…So is Nasri. So is Arshavin. So is VanP. So is Eduardo. Even Nikki Bulllshite.
Its no wonder Wenger plays everyone out of position!
Anyhoo, gotta go, here’s to a win and a clean sheet would be an hilarious bonus too on Saturday!
Lets not forget Arshavin who was average for us this season and then went and got injured against Wengers wishes.
Thing is, we never signed defensive minded players in the summer, christ! It was a freekin mantra all summer long and it didnt happen….
It aint rocket science, is it? But I do think the slating of Mannone was unfair , he did well last night.
Anyone see Celtics hillarious colapse just now? 1-0 up away from home and lost to a stoppage time goal. Fucking brilliant! hahahahaqhahahaha
Jusy like to point out that its not the same people nt winning anything from 4 years ago. The team has changed quite a bit. The only constant is the manager. The players have mostly changed and some of the staff.
Hey i always judge a team on performance that’s why the Man U match didn’t bother me but the City and Liege match did. Results to me are also down to luck because football is a game. Otherwise it wouldn’t be exciting and the best team would win every trophy.
Also Man U and ‘Pool also struggled against poor oppsition and weren’t Man U held to a 0-0 at park head?
On the medical staff front i have to concede i have no clue what goes on there and why we have so many injuries.
Mayank, Wenger doesnt believe in luck. And thats a fact.
In life you make your own luck. And in the lifetime of football you make that luck with the right players.
5 years is more than enough time to get a winning team.
Mayank;
Yep, I was gutted about the final score of the United game, but was very impressed with the performance. That cannot entirely be said of the Shity City game. We should have won that game. When it was 1-1, all the Gooners around me were convinced we’d win the game, easy!
The fact we gifted 3 piss poor goals was fucking depressing. Espeically given the Ground Hog day feeling about it.
Stu;
Do you want Wenger sacked fella? Just asking…
Celtic are hilarious..
They play 5 in the middle and still got over-run! hahahahah….that Brown fella was juss piss poor. Id never complain again about Eboue.
MG, i dunno. I want him to change but doesnt look like ever happening. I would say yes if i new who was coming in after him.
Wenger isnt going to change. Especially after that Q&A meeting?
It’s not about believing in luck. Wenger shouldn’t believe in luck that’s not his job but don’t you think losing a CL final to 2 offside goals was bad luck? Or having a key player injured as badly as Eddy.
When i say luck i mean variables that are not under Wenger’s direct control.
My team for Wigan once again….
………………Manone…………………
Sagna……..Senderos……Vermy……….Gibbs
………………..Denilson………………
…Cesc/Diaby……………….Ramsey……..
..Wilshere………..RVP………..Watt…..
Here are the reasons….
Gallas has played every match plus internationals..he is 32 and we play every 3 days I would rest him….
Cesc/Diaby no matter which one plays I would only ply them 60 mins…..Cesc needs rest/off form Diaby cant play so many games in a row
Ramsey should get a start since Rosicky will not be pushed to hard….
Wilshere on the right sionce Theo is out still….Bendy and Eddy on the bench…..
RVP back to hopefully score and build his confidence….
and Sanchez Watt..because Arshy, Vela are out…and I dont know what has hapened to Traore…
Are you saying Wenger was unlucky for 5 years? And was extremely unlucky when we were scrapping with Villa for 4th last year?
My team for Carling cup…
……………………..Manone…………………
Eboue/youngster……..Senderos……Silvest……….Gibbs
………………………..Coquelin………………
………Ramsey………………………..Merida(if available)……..
..Wilshere……..…Bendy?????………..Watt…..
Bendy could be played to score more goals and build confidence I guess……
I mean luck as in a player is unlucky to miss a chance. Wenger said he doesnt think luck has any affect/effect (whichever one it is) on the final result of a match.
He said a players misfortune (missing a chance) is a players inability to show their ability at any given moment (or something like that.
Ja G;
Wot? You playing our 1st choice keeper in the CC mate??? No Swzerny?
Id rather play Bartley ahead of Silveste Ja.
And i like S.Watt up top or Sunnu/Murphy on the left
Mayank/Stu;
I think we have had a load of bad luck, but when you have a lot of injuries over a sustained period of time, then you need to be reaDY for it and we havent been.
#
I am hoping/praying/sacrificing virgin goats, that we dont have to see long term injuries to certain players this season.
Shocking Wenger would say that Stu.
Even more shocking that he rates Bendy after saying that.
Ja G;
I am really hoping Coquelin and maybe Frinpong get a go in the CC. Yeah and Sunu and Watt too.
No David we were crap last year.
What i’m trying to put across is just ’cause we haven’t won a trophy in any given season you can’t call that season a failure. We’ve been unlucky on some occasions and crap on others.
David;
You dont rate Bendy then? Interesting.
Ah Mayank
Welldone mate. So what would you categories as a season failure.
Its good to see you too ManG
Where you been hiding “fella”
Injuries is something i don’t like to discuss as i have no clue as to why we get so many. Also i don’t think it’s economical to keep 2 players of equal calibre/wage for the same position ’cause we have injury trouble.
categorize*
Last season was a right off, almost from the start. The semi’s aint worth a piss. The attitude sucked for some reason and maybe that has been sorted, I freakin hope so.
This season will have a shit load more twists and turns IMO, we aint lost nuffin yet.
Stu;
I do think this is Wenger’s last season, but dont tell anyone.
Last season i guess.
But hey we beat the Mancs and Chavs didn’t we so it had it’s moments but overall yes failed season ’cause we didn’t pose a serious challenge to any of the major trophies.
David;
Ive been dead busy mate. I was devoed (gutted) after the City game, not least coz the atmosphere before and during the game was the best Ive seen and heard for some time ad the team just didnt deliver. Hopefully it was simply a case of a typical shite post International break performance.
Time will tell…
But come on!
How many thought they’d be seeing Rosicky play for us? And effin start!
Thats a bonus if you ask me! What a player he is.
We just need Nasri to hurry back and see a bit of vela too!
Fuck its late i have to sleep, night all!
Yea David I know everyone hates Silvest..I dont rate him either but Wenger bought him…so he will play him at some point…..
I mean he had him on the bench ahead of Senderos….so he will be used…..so I think its best to use him in the CC….
I am not sure who should play striker….I put Bendy in there because I figure scoring some CC goals will build his confidence…
I dont really know if the other younger strikers are ready…..but Watt should definitely play as the left forward…he is very quick…Sunu could come in for him in the second half…..their right back by that time should be totally destroyed….
Wilshere on the right….
and as I said Bendy/Murphy up top?….no one else is available really cuz Vela is still out…
what do you guys think?
Yea Rosicky playing and starting is fantastic for us…but i have concerns over his movement/fitness/ and even when he is fit his work rate.
What concerns me is that weve gone back to playing crab football.
Oh yes and I did forget about Szezny
My team for Carling cup…
……………………..Szcenzny…………………
Eboue/youngster……..Senderos……Silvest……….Gibbs
………………………..Coquelin………………
………Ramsey………………………..Merida(if available)……..
..Wilshere……..…Bendy/Murphy?????………..Watt…..
i like your lineup JA…but there are some people who id rather not see in the line up…Silveste ofcoarse…
Eboue should play at RB and Gibbs at left back…maybe even Traore in midfield? Did you think about those 2?
Bendy im not so sure. u kno….
Yea ManG
it was a hard loss…did you go to the game? You mean you didnt toss your shoe at Ade?
I think we should give this new formation time, especially given most of the players it suits the best are injured!
And we are scoring goals. If we can get some kinda defensive solidity, we might just do something!
Come on! Lets be positive! Just for a little bit, go on, you know you wanna!!!
Seeya guys, take care, all the very best and here’s to 3 points on saturday and the chavs and mancs coming down with Scurvy or sumfin…
Rosicky wen fully fit has a great work rate. No worries with that aspect from me. He works very hard to win the ball back and his movement is great too.
The only concern for me is any re-occurrence of an injury. He probably will rotate his spot with Nasri (when he comes back) and Ramsey to a lesser extent.
Hahaha! David, if I wasnt right at the back of the lower tier, id have thrown something at the twat, not that I condone that kinda thing!
Laters!
nasri i have found to be extremly versitle can play deep dm,can play either wing or can central higher i would not limit to any position you play were team needs you as injuries will uccur is passing range is as good as fab and dribbling is very good too alot tassisity high work unlike diaby although has alot ability going passed players does have work rate from what i have seen and disapears to much at times were as plyers like risicky and nasri should be ahead of diaby because they will put alot more consistant performaces,its not matter of being played out of positions its effort you put in for the team,i hope to see nasri,risicky and aa all fit as they would have huge impact
We should drop everyone and get Usmanov to buy us an entire new team, because clearly our team is not good enough, even thought we won tonight.
England 185/10 (41.0 ov)
Nasri cant play DM. With another DM maybe but certinaly not as the main one. Tracking back as one tho is entirely possible.
Drew, thats a tad hasty don’t you think. To suggest everyone at the club is not good enough to play for us. I would say its more like a handful who dont deserve to play for us and the others is mostly down to a lack of application, desire, fight and on the managers behalf a lack of tactical nous, balls and willingness to spend.
Anyone just see that cheating cunt Juanfran get Saha sent off? That is the sort of thing they need to stamp out, not witch hunting Eduardo!
No Zorr0, what happened?
If thats the ex Madrid and Zaragoza(sp) fullback then im not suprised that he is a dirty cheating cunt anyway.
Basically I think there was a free cick to Everton and it fizzled out but Juanfran bumped Saha and Saha turned and swung an arm, slowly and lazily and caught him top of chest.
He went straight down, holding his face, ref had a good view and marched straight over and carded him. What a joke!
That = because
Thats the worst thing about football imo. Players feighing injury to get someone sent off and then they just get up afterwards not a scratch on them.
stu,yes he thats what position he plays for france he is very good there but i think you mean beacuse his small stucture but he very strong player but in 433 formation playing along side is what i mean i feel he would alot better than both diaby and delinson
No i mean he isnt a DM, not a defensive players. He could maybe do a job there if we have no defending to do but otherwise i wouldnt pick him as a DM. He is an attacking player and should be played in an attacking position.
I dont want anyone else playing out of position unless injuries force our hand.
Song – Cesc
Rosicky/Nasri
Nasri should be the furthest midfielder forward when he plays. Its that simple.
Celtic lost in Tel Aviv, what a shame!
stu,nasri is very versitile player he plays dm for france ,played central and wide in previous,as i said nasri is more capeble of playing dm position he can play both higher up and deep and just because you saw bought as a winger,and he can play were is needed for the team
Leon, im not like that. He was played left wing last season, so fucking what. I dont care where he plays for France. Im saying he shouldnt play DM for us. He might play there if injuries force him to but no way he should start there with everyone fit. He is too skillful to play that far away from the goal. He needs to be in and around the box.
And he can play where he is needed for the team is the wrong attitude to take with him.
Put players in a position where they are best, not where they can fill in. Utility players are what you are probably thinking of.
O Shea plays where he is needed. Belletti to a lesser degree. Nasri is too good to play different positions. Pick one that suits him best (which is the iniesta role imo) and play him there. Nowhere else.
Will arshavin make it for wigan?
10% chance.. wtf!
In fairness Wenger did say that he would be out for 3 games. It was Arshavin who said otherwise. But then again i suppose a player would know his body better than the nedical staff….wouldnt he?
bah.. that means we’ll see him only against fulham!
stu,in ideal world i prefer play higher up but as is stands i prefer to delinson or diaby,nasri player of pure class and much prefer with his bag tricks further up the pitch but problem i just delinson or diaby,song i feel will just sit infront of defence and protect them and he does that very well but is a rookie,wenger realy shot himself in foot letting gilberto,flamani and dirra all one season and he had major problem getting top class player
nasri is gonna be one hell of a player…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIzqOJdk7Jo
So you think Song needs help there because he is a rookie and you want to play Nasri (someone who has never played Dm for us) there to help him out.
We all may think Denilson is shit but he is much better at DM than Nasri simply because Nasri is an attacking player and therefore thinks like an attacker.
I did not watch the game. Most of you thought clichy was poor, but the newspaper ratings for him are decent ..
Go figure ..
See Leon, you really want to take that goal threat and put it at DM? Crazy!
I still cant believe we beat the mighty Manc United with Silvestre and Diaby in the team. Amazing!
stu,i would rather nasri because of pace and he in free role he would link up well cesc and can track when needed and you full well he would keep posession alot better than delinson or diaby. but would play song nasri and cesc in 433 thats what i mean but would player nasri cesc in 442
I would also play Song Cesc and Nasri in a 4-3-3 but you ave Cesc and Nasri mixed up.
Cesc is the quarter-back type player. He sees all the movement ahead of him and picks the best pass (usually) and Nasri plays in front of him and links the midfield and forward line with dribbling and shorter passes.
And Cesc – Nasri CMs in a 4-4-2 would be suicide because both are attackers. They are fine when they are just tracking back but to have a short attacker playing the DM role against any team that can hold the ball and attack is just insane. I dont know why you cant see that.
Yep..
Song Fab and Nasri in a 433 is pretty good..
nasri can play ahead too in arshavin or nikkib’s position.
Song – Fabregas
Rosicky/Nasri
RVP – Eduardo/NB – Arshavin
Thats what we should always play when possible. Thats our best imo and anything less should never be played (unless of course when we inevitably get injuries)
arsenals starting line up should be:(when evry1 is fit)
almunia
sagna gallas vermaelen clichy
song
fabregas nasri
rosicky arshavin RVP/eduardo
I would personally play arshavin down the middle. has no one else noticed that he is our most dangerous player in the box and can turn a match around single handedly with a few moments of brilliance
stu
the way i see it would jhave song just infont of defence nasri higher up with cesc and can track back beggers cant be choosers we dont have top class dm playerat moment we have delinson,diaby,ramsey and song and maybe nasri.from what i have seen delinson and diaby have good games but give the ball away far to much and a central role is suiside,song well is just defender protecting the defence and does an extremly solid job , so to support song the only other option is ramsey and nasri
play arshavin down the middle. he is by far our most dangerous player when he is in the box. he can score from pretty much anywhere
1) Denilson is becoming the obvious partner of Song in midfield. If they can consistently reproduce what they showed at OT they will be our first-choice midfield for the long haul.
2) If not Denilson, whoever partners Song has to shoulder him in defense.
As long as Rosicky/Cesc/Diaby persist in not doing their share of defending/tracking back, Denilson will get the nod every time and rightly so.
Song – Nasri – Cesc is an interesting possibility but if you compare them to Yaya – Xavi – Iniesta, they have to improve defensively big time before they can pretend to compete. Since Cesc decided last year that he was above defending he’s been contributing much less to the team. I hope Cesc is not pulling an Adebayor on us this season.
Fabregas is a centre midfielder. Nasri is an attacking midfielder. It doesnt make any sense to play them im each others positions.
Song sitting in front of the defence, Cesc controlling the middle covering lots of ground etc and Nasri concentrating on the area between the oppo midfield and defence. Easy as pie.
Song
Fabregas
Nasri