- The Champions league isn’t won in the qualifiers.
- Barcelona lost at home to a team I’ve never heard of
- Liverpool lost again
- Arsenal dropped 2 points away from home in a group that we’re smashing
Let’s put it all into perspective and take a big, deep breath.
I feel we’re always one result away from a revolution on the web… too many people have made their minds up about players and their careers, too many people seem to take glee in results like this and I don’t like that. We’re 8 games unbeaten and we just dropped two points. So a couple of things I’d like to point out…
1) Winning a few games against relatively easy opposition does not mean we’re dead certs for the EPL-ECL double this year. When the going is good, don’t let smugness get the better of you… I had a glance at the Premier table this time last year and I think the only difference bar the huge goal haul, was a draw… Rushing around telling everyone ‘Arsene knows’ in October leaves you with a high percentage chance of finishing the year with egg on your face.
2) If you don’t think we’re going to do anything this year, try and enjoy it when we’re on a good run… when we drop a couple of points away from home, don’t go overboard in the criticism or be too quick to bask in a player’s mistake. All players make mistakes and all teams will drop points this year. Arsenal fans from a neutral perspective have the most to be happy about this season… enjoy it, before the injuries pile up (I’d put an wink emoticon here if I could)!
Arsenal played in second gear most of the night, we created plenty of chances and we went 1-0 up after 36 minutes after Arshavin capitalised on an AZ mistake. He laid the ball off to Robin who cut a neat ball across the box for Cesc to slot into the empty net.
We were comfortable for the rest of the half and had the better of the chances.
Things changed in the second half… our tempo dropped, AZ sniffed out the fear and started to cause us problems aerially. You could sense our team was panicking at the back. I thought we’d sorted ourselves out after about 70 minutes when we started knocking the ball about and trusting our game… but then we reverted back to school boy football. AZ were causing alsorts of problems with set pieces and there best chance fell in the 93rd minute when a long ball was looped into the box, Diaby was easily beaten after losing out with a weak challenge, the ball fell to their sub… bang… 1-1.
It was a disappointing end to a pretty flat game, but I’m not about to start calling for heads and telling you why this team can’t challenge this year.
What today lacked was a bit of leadership during the second half. Someone needed to grab hold of the game and calm everyone down. We are one of the best passing teams in the world, why this attribute disappears when we’re under pressure is beyond me. We should have taken the ball up the other end and played keep ball like the invincible’s used to. Still, it’s a learning curve for everyone and hopefully we’ll learn our lesson for the next away day in Europe.
On the upside of things. Arshavin looked superb when he was moved centrally (He looked ok out wide as well). His quick feet and clever runs baffled the Dutch all night. He is one of the few in our team who isn’t shy to have a dig and he was unlucky not to get his name on the score sheet tonight (Did you see it when Eboue wanted the ball, Arshavin shot, Eboue complained and the Russian mouthed, ‘I just wanted to shoot’).
I thought Song had a super game tonight. He made a few very good interceptions and did a good job getting in the way. His passing was in the main, very good. It’s getting ridiculous when I read people pulling him up on any stray pass… I think people have short memories about how good Gilberto was at passing. Everyone misplaces passes, as Song is a bit more adventurous these days… he’ll misplace them to.
I thought Eboue was pretty anonymous today. I don’t understand why Wenger insists on playing him out wide instead of Rambo. It has nothing to do with tracking back, because Eboue did nothing of the sort last night and rarely does… another myth pushed by some sections of the fanbase through the web… If you’re going to put players like Vela and Wilshere in the squad, you should give them a game when a similar player picks up an injury. Sticking a right back in their position is a bit insulting regardless of the glimpses of form he’s shown on occasions this year.
Mannone has done well considering his age, but he worries me, he really does worry me. He is nervous and indecisive at the moment and I can’t help but think he is a ticking flap bomb. Is it time to recall the Spaniard, or are we waiting for Fab2?
So to conclude, a bit of a nothing performance from our boys but lets not lose our heads over a result that most teams would take. We played in second gear and still created 13 chances and in all likely hood, we’ll still qualify.
Ratings:
Mannone: Looking shaky and nervous. I hope we don’t have to witness a disaster before he’s dropped. 6
Clichy: Not a bad performance from him tonight. Relatively quiet for him with most of the play coming down the middle. 6
Vermaelen: Put his head on a few tough balls tonight but was part of the defence that was regularly panicked throughout the second half. Maybe with time he will start to take more control as Gallas isn’t the leader type. 7
Gallas: I was a bit nervous when he went down with an injury in the first half, thankfully he was ok. Did an adequate job in the main, but needs to do a little more with his experience in games like these. 6
Sagna: Fault free game really. 6
Cesc: Not his most dominant performance, but he came up with a goal. 6
Diaby: For the most part I thought he had a good game. He got the ball from out of his feet well, passed quickly and made some good runs. I don’t think it can be denied that he worked tirelessly tonight. He was guilty for losing out on the header at the end, which is worrying considering his height. He needs to cut out these mistakes and cut them out fast if he is going to help us make a dent on a trophy this year. 6
Song: Superb game from the man who dished out a slapperbayor last week. He was all over the park closing off angles, intercepting passes and distributing with deftness. I thought he had a storming game and if it wasn’t for Arshavin, I’d have given him man of the match. 7.5
Robin: Hit the target a number of times and looked dangerous. First time in four he’s missed out on the score sheet. 7
Eboue: Didn’t realise he was playing for large parts of the game. He’s a right back, how can I criticise a weak performance from him in midfield? 5.5
Arshavin: Looked lively all game and looked superb in the middle where he created opening for himself and others all night. Shame he couldn’t have been more clinical. 8
Great decision
80,000 Blondes gathered at Wembley Stadium for a “Blondes-Are-Not-So-Dumb” convention. The master of ceremonies says, “We are all here today to prove to the world that blondes are not so dumb. Can I have a volunteer?” One pretty little blonde steps up, so the master of ceremonies asks her, “What is 15 plus 15?” After 15 or 20 seconds, she replies, “18.” Obviously everyone is a little disappointed. Then 80,000 blondes start chanting, “Give her another chance, give her another chance.”
The master of ceremonies says, “Well, since we’ve gone to the trouble of getting 80,000 of you here along with media from all over the world, I guess we can give her another chance.” So, asks her, “What is 5 plus 5?” After 15 or 20 seconds, she replies, “90.”
The master of ceremonies sighs. Everyone is crestfallen and the blonde starts crying. Again, the 80,000 girls start chanting, “Give her another chance, give her another chance.” Unsure whether or not he is doing more harm than damage, the master of ceremonies finally says, “Okay! One more chance. What is 2 plus 2?” After 15 or 20 seconds, she replies, “4.”
The stadium of 80,000 blondes start chanting, “Give her another chance, give her another chance.”
It was off stu
Thats not the point Nish. Linesman should have ignored it and let the goal stand.
AMAZING SAVE!!!!!
great save by akinfeev there!
Hehehe..Would have stood had it been against us.
Great save
If i didnt know any better i could swear that its Rafael and not Fabio playing. He keeps using his right foot and being a left back you would expect Fabio to be left footed.
Sagna’s crossing seems to get worse and worse.I wish he had half of maicon’s crossing ability
Thats a bit random Nish.
Im actually very suprised at how well Maicon is doing considering he is playing for Mourinho. JM isnt exactly known for getting fullbacks to play well going forward.
At chelsea Ferreira and Cole rarely even crossed the half way line and here Maicon regularly gets goals and assists with 1-2s in and around the box.
Really boring match.Madrid vs milan should be exciting
Very good goalkeeping again from Akinfeev.
Stu-Maicon is like their most creative player.They usually have cambiasso muntari and zanetti.Hardly creative.Now sneijder is there.He creates half their chances.At chelsea they had robben,cole,lampard
Nani’s reaction was as if he hit the post.Woeful shot
akinfeev seems to be really casual
Thats kind of my point tho Nish. Im suprised that the right back is so influential for them because usually under Mourinho his dfullbacks arent allowed so much freedom/
Yeah.Cole looked like just an average Lb under mourinho.Chivu doesn’t get forward that much though.
Just imgagine if rubin kazan and kiev qualify from that group
Pinocchio talks to Gepetto:
- Daddy my dick is all jagged and crooked so I have no success with girls.
- You know, my son, I didn’t care too much about that detail, but that should not be a problem. Go to the shop, take a sandpaper and fix it.
After some time, Gepetto asks Pinocchio:
- Well, did you resolve the problem with the girls?
- Daddy, since I got the sandpaper who needs the girls anymore.
Thats miles onside..now its a bastard ref.
oooh that was too close for comfort.
Q. What’s worse than getting raped by Jack the Ripper?
A. Getting fingered by Captain Hook.
Fucking cunt!
God. United still putting pressure on while being one nil up. What a novel concept.
They are really good closing down games.Like someone mentioned earlier united very very rarely concede late goals
they do concede…
gallas at the emirates stands out.
but they are a better defensive unit.
pretty poor keeping from akinfeev, shied away from the ball for their goal, not particularly brave!
I think it was more than he over compensated at his near post and couldnt adjust quick enough.
Evenin All..
well A everyone’s allowed an opinon ..so lets just say that Fabianski is a far better goalie than The New Lev Yashin(Akinfeev)in my mind you’re making a biiig mistake in thinking that….well well
tom
Evenin All..
well A everyone’s allowed an opinon ..so lets just say that Fabianski is a far better goalie than The New Lev Yashin(Akinfeev)in my mind you’re making a biiig mistake in thinking that….well well…
tom
cska are shite. how did they get in the champions league?
sorry Folk’s..double post..
tom
Its difficult to understand how Milan are so shit nowdays. On paper they put out a more than decent team.
any stream for the Madrid milan game guyss??
I dunno about that Stu, taking age away they look like a good side, but their average age is ridiculous. Take today
36, 33, 33, 25, 32, 32, 30, 33, 20, 36, 29
Marcelo is wearing a gumshield. Whats that about? Anyone know?
Age isnt the reason for their awful start to the season tho A, or why they havent won the league in years.
That is a stone wall pk. What is the ref thinking?
I dunno Stu, it’s certainly a significant contributing factor imo. You can afford to have 3-4 oldies giving you experience, but not an entire team who are past their best and physically lacking. Their oldies don’t have the engines they used to, and that’s a big reason why they’ve come up short imo.
Ridiculous non penalty there!
how could it be a gk too?! incredible decision
But their team hasnt always been this old. Its because Ancelotti never bought anyone good enough.
The team they have out tonight isnt the same team they have been playing all season. Kaladze, Boriello, Flamini and probably a few others. Its not that hard to buy decent young players.
I know, its either gotta be a penalty or corner. Ref must have bottled it…no other explanation.
WTF Dida!
lol imagine if one of our keepers did that
They would be crucified and booed out of the club.
The commentators are praising Raul for that goal….lol
That was big fuck up by Dida.
The Goon ..
either minideportes.com or myp2p.com will have working links…
tom
Milan could actually do with a whole new team. Just keep Pato basically and rebuild around him.
What a muppet…
i think that Italian football are inches away from a meltdown…very old and poor Arena’s..needs update..very little money…still with the new taxes in England they may be popular again..im actually thinking when the new taxes are set in place in England …the premier league will suffer greatly…and will make great players look elsewhere..
tom
Seedrof has been awesome till now
That was aimed at Dida, not Stu…
I thought it was funny when Gerry Armstrong said Madrid weren’t much of a threat without Ronaldo… pffft!
whenever i see Milan im always thinking of what a superb player flamoney is…
tom
then again flamoney didnt move for the money ..it was playing time he was looking for ..right ::???..
tom
i agree tom – he keeps that bench warm superbly
Anyone know where to find team news? I wanna find out why Higuain isnt playing.
injured stu, he isn’t on the bench
on the other hand it must be allowed to wonder about flamoney….why ??…well maybe he’s just abit slow in general…
god riddens…
tom
Bordeaux beating Bayern 2-1. Im somewhat happy that Lyon arent the only french team in europe anymore. Im not a fan of monolopies in any league. (unless its us in the premiership of course)
Im suprised Flamini didnt start this game actually. His energy would have been very welcome in midfield for Milan imo.
Stu Bayern really havent been playing well this year….could it be that the fecker Ribery situation is having an impact on them as a team ??
tom
Dolphin head wearing Lass on his shirt. About sums the fucka up.
Any1 with a proper link to the game…madrid vs milan?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWj_Q_NpR34&feature=related
flamoney isnt good enough Stu..and be honest he had one..1..good season..and then he thought he was Gods gift to football….what a feckin loser…
tom
Tom, i think its more to do with the weakened side they have started tonights game with.
HAHAHAHAHA MR.B thats fucking brilliant! Thud! straight on her head!
Any1 with a proper link to the game…madrid vs milan?
LMAO!!!!!!! She almost broke her neck…………oh thats not funny….
Leonardo is weird…..he plays 4-3-3 with Pirlo in front of the defense….with Seedorf as LM and Ambrosini as RM…
Why doesnt he take Ambrosini off….put Flamini in front of the defense and move Pirlo up to RM so he can create something…
Why do Milan persist with so many old players on the field at the same time?
tomstoned,
Song has had about 10 good games and people on here think he’s gods gift.
I dont understand the anger towards Flamini, he was completely unwanted here, he’s italian so can you blame him for wanting to join the major italian team.
He wont take Ambrosini off because for some strange reason he is the club captain. They need to get rid of so many of their shite and past it players and get in some fresh blood and make themselves a force again.
LMAO. The sound effects are great.
The only players under 30 for Milan are Thiago Silva, Pato and Ronaldinho(29)
They should be playing :
Dida (noone else fit)
Zambrotta Nesta Onyewyu/Kaladze Jankulovski
Flamini Pirlo Antonini
Seedorf
Pato Boriello
At least then teir midfield would have some energy and their defence would have balance
Knew we shouldve bought kalou, much better right sided option than Walcott or Bendtner
I can only assume he scored and thats why you are making that insane comment Gambon.
i’d actually say much worse option gambon, all he would’ve given us is depth, sub for theo and something different to bendtner
A, i suppose Watt is better right?
Gambo mate…
there’s a big difference between flamoney and Song..Song digs down and shut up..does what he is payed for…giving his all…
flamoney had one good year after being rescued by Wenger..then suddenly he is a *great*player..no of course not…he didnt play well before his one good season and hasnt played well after that…so come on…nobody can argue that they are any good ..with one good season..thats plain stupid..
take Bergkamp did he have what 20 good seasons ?? did he think he was greater than Our Beloved Arsenal..no he didnt..he just kept on playing giving it all…
flamoney is in my eyes nothin but a flop and a slick fecker..and im happy to be proven right almost every time Milan plays..no flamoney…so far he has only played when other players have been injured..a benchwarmer…though a great one
tom
nope, watt’s a long way behind kalou, obviously
Tom, i disagree with everything in that last comment.
Flamini was known for his energy and giving his all and doing the dirty work without complaining about it.
How did Wenger rescue Flamini? Flam was a starter for Marseille when we got him on a free and whenever he was asked to play out of position (ie at left back for most of a season) he barely said a word and worked hard for the team. Wheres your appreciation for that?
Also, you say Flamini isnt good just because he had one amazing season but after a few months of good performances you claim Song is world class. Bullshit! Thats the worst doube standards i’ve ever seen.
MOTHERFUCKIN PIRLO!
Crack the fuck on Pirlo!
tomstoned,
Couple of points
- Yes, Flamini had one good season, but he was also exceptional in our CL run in 05/06
- Wenger never rescued him from anywhere
- He never said he was a “great” player
- He felt (probably rightly) unwanted by Wenger
- He is italian and to be frank probably dreamed of playing for Milan when he was young, not Arsenal.
That actually happens to Casillas far too often considering his reputation.
1-1
Callisas howler.
well well Stu,,..
lets just hope flamoney will be able to play for *any*team then, maybe he should come back and find a championship club that may need him…and if its for the money maybe Chester could offer him a deal..
to me he will never be anything else than a laughing matter
tom
From such a far way out should Casillas be blamed or did he have no chance?
And Flamini left us because he didnt feel that he was valued by Wenger. He had every right to leave on a free. We spent no money to get him and got none when he left. I have nothing against Flamini and i dont see how anyone could.
Gambon mate
you said it not me..dreamt of playing..well seems to me he doesnt play that much,,great choice..
tom
PATO 2-1
Stu to be fair he threw a tantrum the season before he moved into midfield and said he wasn’t prepared to play as a full back anymore.
I don’t dislike Flamini for what happened, he thought he was the bollocks and should’ve been playing central midfield, Wenger didn’t rate him as highly, then injuries forced him to play central midfield, and he did superbly there, therefore he said “i told you so” and buggered off because he didn’t feel wanted at the emirates.
However I never thought he’d be a long term solution there though everything clicked nicely that season, and although it was annoying to lose him I wasn’t particularly devastated, as I always rated Denilson higher, though his style of play didn’t and doesn’t suit us to an extent
GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL Casillas is shitttttttt!!!!
Lol Milan 2-1 up on Madrid!!!!!!!!
hahahahahahahahahahaha
Pirlo and pato
Casillas must have money on Milan.
lol
wow, maybe almunia does have a chance getting into the spanish squad after all.
is flamini on the bench or injured?
Thats true A, but you cant blame him for complain after 3 years without getting a run in the team.
I find it odd that you rate Denilson higher just because of ability to read the game (which is the only thing Denilson has over Flamini). But i guess we look for differnent things in a midfielder.
IMO Flamini was made for us. If he had stayed i think his and Fabregas’s partnership would have developed into one of the best we have had in a while. I guess now we will never know.
Flamini is on the bench.
flamini’s an idiot for going there. His career is going nowhere now.
CHamakh won a penalty, but Gourcuff missed it
Flamini left for Family ties and a fat pay check, I liked him because he gave his all, as long as people realise he was playing pretty much flat out for us, I don’t think he would’ve developed much further and for him to get a move to Milan is as much as he could have hoped for.
Expecially for the price they payed for him, I’m not too bothered he left because he wasn’t willing to fight for us anymore, if I was to criticise anything it’s that once he got his chance instead of saying don’t worry I’ll sort everything at the end of the season, he just told Wenger that he wasn’t going to stay around, but that simply wasn’t in his best interests.
Stumbled across this. Can anyone name all of them?
http://footballfraternity.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/l_106c035baeaa1c90b06269ef585214171.jpg
Flamini and Fabregas on their own weren’t all that, it was Rosicky and Hleb that made it one of the best foursomes around alongside them, they all worked for each other and complimented each other in one way or another.
Well Denilson hasn’t developed as I thought he would, but intelligence and ability to read the game is something I value incredibly highly, especially in that position. Denilson also uses the ball more intelligently.
The way I looked at it we were always going to be defensively naive with Flamini, he didn’t read the game very well, and wasn’t good enough on the ball for me. I give him alot of credit for that one season, but he was always going to be a temporary player there for me, I always hoped for someone better. If he was big and dealt with long balls then perhaps I could’ve forgiven him his other weaknesses, but having someone in there who didn’t read the game well, and couldn’t deal with long balls would always have left us a bit weak imo
shit!!
Why did Madrid have to equalise?
rodgers? JET, simpson, wilshere, watt, eastmond, gibbs, randall, who are the other three?
Keyser, i dont get that part of your comment. Whats the one thing you would criticise?
I thought Flamini kept saying that he would sign. Not the other way around as you say…
Ronaldinho finally wakes up with 15minutes to go.
A..
Denilson will come back stronger than ever..and i agree ..Denilson has the eye for the game which is quite seldom…he needed a rest and got injured..a blessing in disquise…
tom
I mean he should’ve said that he was going to leave, instead he fucked us around, maybe a comma in there somewhere or another couple of words would have it clearer.
That was probably not in his best interests though, since he wanted to get as big a wage as possible at his next club.
ANother spill by Dida. Is he just back from injury?
Oh ok, never mind then.
This ref is a fucking nutcase….and so are the whole Milan team. Why cant players just fucking control themselves..bunch of crybabies.
Ref you fucking idiot….there was nothing wrong with that goal……
Why the fuck was the goal disallowed?
It should be 3-2 Milan
GGGGGGGOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLL PATO PATO PATO PATO PATO PATO PATO
He did keep saying he’d sign stu.
Callisas is a liability tonight, nothing wrong with that disallowed goal….or that one. ha ha.
Yes ….I hate Madrid.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
3-2 Milan…Pato again
Evening all,
Hope you don’t mind me butting in on the Flamini debate.
I actually believe that he and Cesc Fabregas could have evolved into a better partnership than the Vieira-Petit duo.
I think that Flamini wasn’t a first team regular during his time at Arsenal, in his favoured CM role, because of the quality Arsenal had there.
Vieira, Edu, Gilberto, Fabregas etc.
One thing I’ll give Flamini was he always gave his all and the way he was dropped for the Champions League Final was scandalous.
I also happen to think he was more than a grafter and is in fact a very good footballer.
Yeah i remember that Paul…that was very fucking annoying that he didnt sign in the end.
PATO again
Evenin’ Wrighty, completely agree with all of that. And Senderos being dropped was awful too..
We would have won the final with those 2 starting.
Speaking of Flamini…here he is, coming on for his 2minute cameo.
Bayern with anbother man sent off and Boadeaux missed ANOTHER PENALTY!!!haha
I always felt confident with flamini in the team. You always knew he’d give 100% and would never switch off. Needed that sort of player last night as it goes. Shame really.
91 minutes, Flamini gets on!
Chamakh won BOTH penalties by the way. Looks like they couldn’t handle him. Gourcuff missed the first one and Jussie’s second was saved.
From Left to right id say;
Rogers, JET, Simpson, Wilshere, Watt, Evina?, Eastmond, Dont know, Steer, Gibbs, Randall.
Totally agree Stu. We would have won that game with just those two playing to be fair!
Wrighty I agree that Flamini was one hell of a grafter, and had a ridiculous engine, but I’d never class him as a very good footballer, because his lack of intelligence, and limited ability on the ball will always prevent him having an all round game. Both Vieira and Petit were top top quality players in their own right, and even better as a partnership. With Cesc and Flamini Cesc was top quality, and Flamini wasn’t and never will be, but complimented Cesc very well in the system we played that season.
I dunno about that Paul, I didn’t feel that way anyways. Although he’s never switch off, he always had the potential to sprint out going for a ball and miss it, leaving us exposed behind him, he isn’t a very intelligent footballer. It was just that we dominated possession so much it rarely cost us!
Seedorf was just brilliant.Pato was okay as well
I’ve got a copy of a huge interview with flamini in the club magazine it was just before he left. He spoke about wanting to stay, how he loved england etc. I was really unsure if he’d sign but after reading that i was convinced he would…then he left a month later.
A but flamini made up for his lack of intelligence with his work rate and tough tackling approach.Denilson is a better footballer but won’t be as effective as flamini
A,
Although Flamini wasn’t as technically gifted as Fabregas, Rosicky and Hleb (and I doubt many players are) I never felt he was out of place in that midfield.
As a unit they were immense. Especially Cesc and Flamini.
Anyone have a feeling Bordoux could be dark horses in this year CL?
it depends on the system as to effectiveness nisanth, but i do agree to an extent. I don’t believe either of them have a good enough all round game though to the extent that they’d warrant being the future as our dm alongside cesc
Do You think, that we still need a quality cd? I think, Bruno Alves would be great.
A
Song definately has more skill but I find myself seeing things before he does. I always felt assured with flamini. You need a few grafters in the team and he was definately one of them. I admit that he doesn’t had the quality of vieira or petit, but having said that very few do.
Yeah Wrighty I’d agree to an extent, when we were playing well he was absolutely superb, his energy really complimented the others superbly, but when we weren’t dominating and under the kosh a bit he wasn’t good enough defensively for me, nor on the ball when it was tight.
Fuck,
I missed the dida goal, what a clown.
Though as we dominated so much because of Cesc, Hleb, Rosicky most of the time he did superbly, it was only in the games when we were on the back foot, such as against Chelsea, that the things he was lacking as a footballer were exposed
Wotchya Wrighty…
Hell of a statement about Flamini! And of course impossible to back up!
For me, Petit and Vieira were the best midfield partnership I’ve seen in an Arsenal shirt and I’d struggle to name many better in any other shirt too!
I don’t think Flamini would have been better than either of Petit or Vieira and Fabregas is a completely different player to either…and he’s getting better and better every year. We’ll never know how good they could have been together, but I think it would have been just short of P&V.
I always liked Flamini – I thought he was the consummate professional and was old-school in the way he did things. I always point to his performances and behaviour in the away leg of the CC semi against Wigan as the game that epitomised who he was as a player.
A, i think you really underrate Flaminis ability as a footballer. He didnt have bad technique or panic in possession or look clueless when we had the ball.
He knew he wasnt as good as the other midfielders so kept it simple for the most part. He didnt try dribble with the ball (like Diaby does), he just got the ball and gave it to the closest playmaker. What more could anyone possible want from their defensive midfielder?
He got quite a few assists and goals aswell (mostly in his last season but the point still stands)
In my opinion Fabregas plays better with a grafter alongside him (in a 4-4-2) thats why he and Flamini worked so well.
I think that Cesc struggles to shine as much alongside a ‘powerhouse’ in 4-4-2. Song? Vieira? etc
In this new 4-2-3-1 formation he can play further up-field and is alongside ‘cleverer’ players, ie Arshavin, Rosicky
Wrighty..
im sorry to say ..well let flamoney prove his worth so far he has proven only one thing..he is not a very good player..and im afraid he never will be…time will tell..and so far ????
and in my view Arsenal was perfect for him…other players made him stand out…on his own he is truly a poor player…
tom
Which game against chelsea are you talking about?
If it was the one at stamford bridge i thought he did well in that one.Drogba took adavantage of soom poor defending from our CB’s
Flamini is a better footballer than diaby anyway.
Cesc probably struggles when paired with a powerhouse because they are generally slow. Cesc was better next to Flamini because he was reasonably fast so Cescs lack of pace wasnt noticed as much.