I didn’t want to have to write another depressing match report. I didn’t want to write about the same old problems again. I didn’t want to watch the same game plan repeated unsuccessfully.
We’d gone from competing for the league to competing for 3rd place. If tonight went sour, we could have found ourselves fighting it out for 4th. That wasn’t a scenario I wanted to consider.
Almunia
Eboue Gallas Vermaelen Clichy
Diaby Song Cesc
Nasri Bendtner Arshavin
Well, I liked the team. Eboue got his first start since returning from the ACN, the midfield looked good and finally we could boast a striker. I expected a big game from Arshavin. He is to Liverpool what Drogba is to us. I was expecting Nasri to show some steel and prove he wants a future at the club.
We wanted fight tonight… blood, guts and thunder! I wanted to see proof these players cared.
Well, it didn’t start well, the first Liverpool freekick bounced on the 6 yard line.
Liverpool set out to stifle like they always do. They are incredibly effective at that and so it proved during the first half.
Gallas went close with early header. He should have done better.
Nik B broke the offside trap and blazed over. A Good run regardless.
Reina weakly punched a corner away. Nasri snapped at the shot which was blocked.
The rest of the half played out in tepid fashion. It was good to see a striker gracing the pitch and despite him not playing amazingly, he was nodding on balls and putting himself about.
Cesc needed to pick up his game if we were going to win this.
Ngog broke through on goal, Gallas slid in and tackled, the ball travelled straight up the other end, Rosicky was slipped in by Arshavin and was so scared to shoot he pretty much ran it into Reinas hands!
Then came the penalty shout. Bendtner burst into the box, Agger clipped him, Howard booked Bendtner for diving. It was a penalty by the letter of the law, even though I’m not a fan of that type of gamesmanship.
Then came the moment we were waiting for. Fab played to Bends whose first cross failed, the ball came back out, he fed Rosicky who crossed to Diaby who buried the header! Get in! No more than we deserved.
Almuina spilled a freekick he should have caught. If newsnow allowed naughty words, I’d tell you what the whole country shouted in the direction of the Spaniard at that moment. Don’t worry, I noted who gave the freekick away.
Al made amends with a super save from a Babel shot.
Arsenal were holding on for dear life. We were giving away space in a most casual fashion…
Theo managed to pick the ball up in Liverpools half, instead of holding onto it, he played it back to Reina! What a muppet, that put us on the back foot almost immediately! Gerrard and Kuyt both dived one after the other, Howard Webb gave a freekick. After much kerfuffle, Gerrard smashed it at the wall, Cesc decided to clear it with his HAND! Superb, couldn’t have asked for a better finish!
Oh but wait, it could… Spurs lost, ManU drew and Chelsea lost! Was I dreaming? No! We’re back!
Do I think we’ll win the league? No. Will I enjoy the rest of this mad as Gazza season? Yes! We’re back from the ashes of defeat… AGAIN! Crazy… I’m elated… so elated in fact, I don’t care that I have to go to a gift wrapping factory in Bradford today… honestly, I’m pleased as can be!
Fantastic result, heart, guts, blood thunder, sloppy last gasp defending, dangerous play… who cares about the bad stuff, we won! That’s all that matters. Like Ballack said in the week, football is a results business, if you get them, the crappy stuff is ignored.
Great substitute by Wenger late in the game. Eboue was proving to be a liability and Wenger brought on Sagna who provided solid cover.The timing of the sub was strange…
The team ground out a win, having Bendtner back helped. We had a target man. He’ll grow with the season. Diaby was very good today, he made up for an off Cesc game. Arshavin also looked much more effective. I’ve heard he may have a thigh injury, lets hope that’s not the case.
Gallas was immense. He was a warrior tonight and easily my man of the match. The best way to ensure we keep a clean sheet is to make sure Almunia doesn’t have to deal with anything too tricky. Willy G recognised that and made sure he was largely untroubled.
A word for Gerrard. You disgust me.
A word for Kuyt. You disgust me in a footballing sense and a visual sense.
I hope Liverpool finish 5th and lose out to Everton.
Speaking of the league. Chelsea and United both have a horrible fixture list compared to ours. We really are back in it. Are any of the top 3 capable of winning all their games? Not this year. This really could be one of the most exciting finishes in the history of the Premiership.
It’s not quite there for the taking, but 6 points is hardly insurmountable…
Ratings
Almunia: Still looks like he’s just been given the bad news after his X-factor audition. He looked shaky tonight but he did pull off a superb save late on after Babel escaped his marker and flew a shot at the goal. 6.5
Eboue: I have more love for Peter Sutcliffe than I do this man. He played well in patches but his constant feigning of injury and crazy decisions were driving me up the wall. 6.5
Gallas: His best appearance in the red and white. He was commanding, took responsibilty and dealt with everything thrown at him today. 10
Vermaelen: Wasn’t equal to his partner, but helped hold the defence together. 8
Clichy: Still gaffing like George Bush without an autocue. His positional sense was off tonight and his passing was patchy at best. He pulled it together late in the game though. 6.5
Diaby: He’s cut out the rubbish passing and he’s turning into quite a player. He held the midfield together in the absence of the normally immacculate Cesc. His header showed great persistence and hard work to get up the pitch. 8
Song: I felt he was back to his bumbling best today. He was giving away fouls all over the place and his passing was less than desirable. He fails to shut down people with urgency sometimes and that really does worry me. Give Song the tenacity of Flamini and you’ve got something very special on your hands. 7
Cesc: An off day for the main man. His passing was poor and he didn’t really orchestrate the game like he usually does. Great handball at the end… a fitting way to end the game! 6.5
Nasri: He wasn’t playing very well before he was subbed, lets hope his injury isn’t a serious one. 6
Bendtner: You couldn’t say his performance was vintage. His touch was off and he didn’t really impose himself like I know he can. Still, he offered something different and he can win a header! 6.5
Arshavin: I thought he was having a good game. He needs to cut out those selfish tendencies when he has better options available, but overall, good to see him out wide again. 6.5
Subs:
Theo: His pace caused problems like it always does and he worked hard. I’m still aghast at his pass back to Reina in the ninty second minute. That was embarrassing regardless of his age. He needs to be pulled to one side over that incident. 6
Rocky: I prefer him to start ahead of Nasri. I think he offers a lot more to the team. So it proved with his deft cross to Diaby for the goal. 7
Sagna: Strange to bring a right back on for the tallest player on the pitch when you’re defending a dangerous freekick… but hell, I’ve seen Nikki B turn the ball into his own net or gift the oppo a goal many times before in similar situations. Sagna strengthened the right side of defence and helped us see out the game.
So Grovers… then there were three…
See you in the comments! Actually, that’s a lie, you’ll see Geoff. I’m in wrapping paper land!
Mr B – You’re on fire tonight, some great points, you’ll go far.
Is Gallas off to Milan then?
A..
now this is just wrong, comparing cech and almunia.
Cech has not been the same since his accident but still he is miles better than Almunia.
Really David?? I don’t think it can be guaranteed as a mistake, the MOTD pundits were a bit harsh on Cech, but it wasn’t unsavable certainly.
Why do so many people support the corrupt team of Serie A?!
It wasn’t low at all either David – perfect height for a keeper….
Cech has just made SO many mistakes this season choy!
Think about how bad Almunia is in terms of being flappy, then think about the fact that Chelsea have one of the worst records at conceding from set pieces, much worse than us, despite being bigger and on paper much better outfield player wise at defending them!
I’m not saying it was a mistake necessarily by Cech, but it was MUCH more of a mistake than Drogba’s second against us! Not the sort of mistake Cech has been making and costing Chelsea this season though, he’s been a good shot stopper in general. The main mistake he’s guilty of is the sort of thing he did when he injured Terry against us.
I would rather have Cech though, but both are sub standard and cost goals with mistakes currently
Mr B, don’t wind people up.
A, Cech is not substandard…
Pedro Says:
February 11, 2010 at 19:47
A, Cech is not substandard…
——————————-
there is only 1 sub standard keeper in the EPL
currently and yours truly owns him !
Not even a person on weeds,would compare Clownmoonia and Cech.
A nice to see you change your stance re Almunia I remmeber you saying earlier in the season that you wouldnt swap him for any of the other keepers in the league if we had to pay for them
EL TEL / Pedro
Wenger must address big al in the off season , and i think the reason he is not turning too fabianski is he already knows he needs someone with more experience in between the sticks ..
and ‘must’ buy !
i hope logic prevails ,….
but with some fans here and there blind faith in wenger it will justifiably allow him to continue to make these unruly decisions and continue to get away scott-free .
Hand of Cesc. Brilliant.
hey pedro !
do a poll tomorrow !
WOULD YOU PREFER ANOTHER KEEPER IN GOAL OTHER THAN BIG AL ! …
A Says:
February 11, 2010 at 14:36
I’d absolutely have Denilson over Keita, better on the ball imo, and more intelligent, all Keita has over his is pace, power, and size.
————————————————
What a joke mate?You used to make sense,before with your incredibly biased arguments.This is outrageously stupid.
Jaguar I was in shock when he said that and he used the word ‘absolutely’
Cech is better than almunia easy.
i didnt see MOTD highlights but did anyone mention almunia standing sooo close to his right post for the free kick at the end? just like he did on sunday against the chavs and drogba hit the cross bar.
whats scary is that arshavin reckons he is our best trainer.
Big shout out to the bloke that broke Ashley C*nts ankle!
Now anyone do us a favor and do Rooney.
great result, classic blog……….loved the mad as gazza reference.
come on you toffees the mancs are ripe for the picking.
A, you’ve been almost Mike Parry-esque on the blog today!
Are you trying to get the comments up?
Ethan, logic said we needed a striker!
It was his ankle David? Oh dear! haha!
Cheers Vinny!
*Mike Parry is a talk sport presenter whose main skill is saying the outrageous to get people to phone in.
Franchise,I fink,we should better get used with those terminologies
Afterall,we are used to our manager’s weekly nonsense of ‘dezire,hunger and character’.Aint we?
Franchise Says:
February 11, 2010 at 19:57
A nice to see you change your stance re Almunia I remmeber you saying earlier in the season that you wouldnt swap him for any of the other keepers in the league if we had to pay for them
—————–
not only that he said almunia was better than VDS.totally outrageous statement ..
even when VDS was poor he was never this poor .
thing is we remember all this shit you say and
within 6 months you say the 100% opposite !
like giving me shit all pre season about we dont need a striker !
…
try and make me look like a dunce for saying it ..
A knows best(bullshit)-AKB
thanks for the clarification re: Mike Parry
Well Song is out…So lets hope Denilson turns into Keita…or better…Yaya Toure!
Denilson is better than Keita/Toure.
Jag, we’ve just won! I think we can lay off Wenger for a night!
David, lets hope Rambo is fit!
Does anybody know of we have a song for diaby??
May be Pedro,Too drunk to bash him now.
pedro
Ethan, logic said we needed a striker!
———————————–
pre – season i was a lone soldier on here wanting a striker .. everyone else was talking CD and CDM.
i was the only 1 banging on about a keeper (given)
and a striker (villa)
now look what we are missing ..
most where not even upset when wenger didnt replace ade the whore !
Diaby,I fink I can help you Dutchman
I reckon Wenger will go with Denilson Pedro
Its inevitable. You have to be borderline mediocre to almost crossing the line to becoming good for Wenger to play you.
Cant believe the amount of defenders we had on the bench last night.
ethan i also wanted a striker esp after they sold ade my love
Ethan, I remember debating the point with you.
I don’t think we needed a striker at the start of the year. Injuries have made that happen.
I think it’s clear we need a striker now we know Eduardo isn’t up to it, Theo is damaged goods and Nik has been unfit…
However, I still stand by my original needs… a CDM and a centre back.
… and now a keeper!
fran
even i would have preferred him stay if it mean’t getting no one in !
(you heard it hear 1st
)
Yeah David, I agree… someone has to take that love child position now Phil is a toffee!
ok i might be stretching the truth on that last post a bit
haha! That is very good of you to admit that Ethan.
I watched the City game the other day… he was typical Ade, but he popped up with an important goal.
Power, pace, the odd finish and an aerial threat. I wouldn’t say no!
i fell out of love with big Al ever since pool knocked us out of the C.L …
he put the ball out into touch at RB when he could of easily booted it up field .
it ended up being a perfect set piece from a throw in and gave them the lead and the game ..
people blamed the defense or some such but if it wasnt for big al’s poor intelligence setting up the goal , there would have never had been a throw in to begin with !
I knew his deficiencies… but lost interest in him after that summer of bull shit.
Whats this… Ade getting some le-grove love
We couldve at least waited till Nikki B started scoring…the competition was good for both of them!
Yeah, I’d agree… but Wenger isn’t a big fan of competition…
pedro
neither would i really .. (ade)
desperate times = desperate measures .
nik B isnt ready , i know how you feel about him , and i do too !( i said he would last longer than ade ! i was right there too ! ) but we are kidding ourselves really !
he isnt ready for 90 minutes yet ..
he can fill the role of impact sub , when everyone is fucked at 70 minutes he can come in and make a difference …
when he starts he is ineffective however ..
Yeah, I have similar views on Nik.
He’s been injured… true, he’s been played out of postions… also true… however, I expected more.
His finishing has been poor and his touch and all round game has been off.
I still think he’ll come good. He gets in good postions and his interlinking looks like it has a lot of potential.
Pedro Says:
February 11, 2010 at 20:32
I knew his deficiencies… but lost interest in him after that summer of bull shit.
)
————————————-
playing aside, ade carry’s too much baggage ,
(or not enough as he only has arsenal shirts left
our play is better for it ..
the build up , the cohesion .
everything . knew it would .. and thats why we need a certain type of striker to excel here .
villa would be perfect and im talking about his mix of talent and finishing .. he would have put a clinical end product to our game ..
saha would be good here too i think ..
he could of filled the 18 month gap needed for theo – vela and nik b ..
maybe dudu will move on in the summer ..
My thing is this all-round game bullshite and better than what we have cock is juss balls…
Someone who can beat the offsides trap, hold the ball up with his back to goal and put the ball in the back of the net is all we’re asking for.
For All the Stick Ade got its the offsides thing that finally did it for me…the whole Beyonce fiasco didnt bother me much…it turns out that he never wanted to leave Arsenal. So he underperformed in the big games….we thought that was just plain Ade…now we know its Wenger.
I still think he’ll come good. He gets in good postions and his interlinking looks like it has a lot of potential.
——————————-
agreed , its a special thing when a striker clicks.
but the problem is , we are still waiting to a greater extent ..
for it too happen …
wenger needs to address the down time of this project youth scheme if we are ever to win anything ..
but then i dont think thats a priority anyhoo !
WINNING , i mean …
Interesting that Arsene said Valencia wouldn’t sell!
I’m not sure we’d ever fund a signing like that… but he’d be worth it. 5 years of 20+ goals a season would pay for itself.
David, Ade is a wage slave… he goes wherever the money is. His ego was too big for the club, it turned into a chavier version of the Beckham circus!
I’m glad he’s gone… just a shame we haven’t replaced him.
A fit Saha would definitly have done the job!
Ethan, that’s right… it’s about having senior players in the team while the kids develop.
We go for the sink or swim approach… when it turns out they can’t swim, we chuck them arm bands and watch them flounder for a couple of season and get ripped for it.
That ain’t right…
Pedro Says:
February 11, 2010 at 20:35
Yeah, I’d agree… but Wenger isn’t a big fan of competition…
——————————–
yes cant afford to pay big money for 2 in every position ..
ARSENAL SETUP = 1 senior – 1 apprentice
or even better 2 – apprentices
Clichy didnt get the Arm Band
its such a shame the team is going to water before my eyes , ok that is an over exaggeration
i know were are not facing relegation
but to see the heights we were at , i actually believed we could win the C.L back in the early 2000′s .and too see my great club become this warped gimpish money making setup , really does shit me ..
how can management disconnect themselves so much from the fanbase? …
….and their needs !
if you want long term sustainability , dont fucking piss off the fans
RULE NUMBER 1 !
What a signing David Villa would have been. He may still come….
Villa would be the replacement for Eduardo (shame) and inspire Vela and NB. I see little point in signing Chamakh, we already have tidy players who cannot find the net.
It’s very strange, but it’s all wenger, ethan.
He doesn’t wnat to spend, he said it by himself:)
Is eduardo going away??
Big Raddy Says:
February 11, 2010 at 21:01
What a signing David Villa would have been. He may still come….
——–
TOTALLY AGREE BR !
——–
Villa would be the replacement for Eduardo (shame) and inspire Vela and NB. I see little point in signing Chamakh, we already have tidy players who cannot find the net.
—————–
HE’S FREE , THATS WHY
No Dutchman. At least not yet …
But if AW signs a striker someone is going
why big raddy?? We need back up for RvP!
Dutchman Says:
February 11, 2010 at 21:01
It’s very strange, but it’s all wenger, ethan.
————————
its not his money dutchy .
i think its a collaboration of the board and wenger .. wengers idea , prompted by management,
due to stadium repayments . .
wenger is itching to buy some class players .
but has made a rod for his own back !
who doesnt like spending money ??
WHO
David Villa would be a brilliant Signing.
It also means Cesc will not be going anywhere to Barca soon.
When Mascherano lost Alonso in that midfield and has been playing with a man with a wounded Soul Benitez quietly got Maxi Rodrigues (Sp?) And while he is no Alonoso…he is a fellow Argentine.
Walcott Vela Eduardo RvP Bendtner + a new striker. How much back up do we need?
And Villa is another short-arse, what a forward line. Villa, AA and Walcott. All midgets !
NIght All
ethan, Arsenal set up is this>>>
19year old= apprentice
Look at who Fabregas was learning from…
Henry, bergkamp, viera, pires… the list goes on.
Now our youngsters are learning from someone who has 2 years experience, and never won anything.
Now i know we have campbell, gallas. But Campbell isn’t as good as he was, and we need those kids to learn from experienced players who are still playing and at the top of their game
Does anyone else think we’ve turned into how Chelsea used to be before the all the money arrived?
we’re all short in height like they were.
we have the occasional great game.
We can’t beat the big boys.
and just like them our only chance of winning any silverware is the F.A cup. Except they used to win it, we don’t even try.
Cashleys gone
chamoneeeeeeeeeee.
No AKB, we are much better!! And ethan, you mean we have no money??? We do have money, wenger said that he can spend 30 million on a player but he sign when he thinks it is the right player for the right price. He is stubborn, surely we have money. I’am sure!
Doubt we’ll get another striker when we have chamakh coming in!
i kicked ass last night
Is Tom Stones still alive or did he have a heart attack when he heard that Cesc Sr had sealded the deal with Barca???
Pedro, this match report is pants. Did you watch it while looking over the shoulder of your new girlfriend?
chozzer show some respect to pedro or you will have to answer to me.
whats going on people
60 minutes?
10 minutes
dunno about U, Pac, but I’m hitting the sheets
nite!
Dutchman Says:
February 11, 2010 at 21:29
No AKB, we are much better!! And ethan, you mean we have no money???
—————————————
im not about to get into that debate .
BEEN THERE DONE THAT …
but i will say if anyone thinks wenger is just stock piling money whilst we have a debt of 310 mil to pay back , your not thinking very business like ..
i know Geoff could jump on me and say of course we have money .. WE DO !
WE JUST DONT SPEND IT ON PLAYERS !
we spent SPENT it on the loan ,.
4 fucking sure !
knowing how tight these cunts are on the board you cant tell me, the surplus isnt put back into the re-payment system .. to knock off capital interest … to reduce the over all debt ..
this was their long term goal ..
the board … and they obviously asked wenger how to achieve spending FUCK ALL whilst remaining competitive …
what other reason can this club be stock piling money for whilst refusing to spend all the while ?!
it avails them nothing to stock pile money and have it sitting there not working for them !
all the ade money, toure , and if you think we have a transfer kitty that too ! all going into the repayment system ..
maybe this floating capital can be withdrawn at any time .. but i can tell you now all money must be going into some club long term goal !
i cant imagine men so ruthless , not being pro active with the money .
the truth is we will never really know, until this passage of Arsenal history is over ..
what is happening behind the scenes , even then
it will only be rumors ..
the club is tight lipped ..
some have boasted war chests ,
wenger has boasted getting in a DM – Striker and now keeper as a priority .
(over the past 8 months)
& ……….NOTHING …
so where is the money if we aren’t spending it on bettering the team ?
we are bettering the club’s coffers .
OBVIOUSLY
and making a few select assholes rich who dont really have the passion anymore to better the clubs footballing aspirations .
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1250236/Steven-Gerrard-Liverpool-captain-England-international–serial-diver.html
Finally someone has come out and called him a diver
Now that was a Mutha Fucka of a blog fart!!
nish, you’ve stunk the place out good ‘n proper fella
Geewhiz dood, you’ve done a better job of clearing the place out than any AKB could ever wish to do……
I’m so lonely
nishanth
there is comment below from a pool fan saying he dives to get free kick and penalty but it is not OUT AND OUT CHEATING….
i thought cheating is cheating like robery 1000 rupees or 100000000 rupees
Darren Bent has admitted it is “crunch time” for Sunderland.
The England striker has appealed for Wearside fans to “keep the faith“” and conceded that Steve Bruce’s men have to cut out the mistakes and defend better as a team.
Sunderland have been sucked into the relegation fight because they have not won for 12 games, and Bent says it is time for Sunderland to “push on” and “roll their sleeves up”.
He said: “We have to address certain issues on the pitch. We are far too open at the moment and not defending well as a team. If we want to push on up the league we have to defend well as a team. It is not just defenders, it is midfielders and attackers communicating together.
“It is crunch time. We have to eradicate mistakes. We have to roll our sleeves up ,dig in and push on. We have Kieran Richardson out, Anton Ferdinand out. Andy Reid is out and Jordan Henderson, who has been one of our best players, is also out.
“It is hard. We have to dig in and grind out results. We have enough players to get something from the next game.
“Everyone has to stay positive and keep the faith.”
Bent was relieved to get his first goal for three games with a penalty at Portsmouth in midweek and added: “It was nice to get the goal – my first for three games. It is agony to go that long without one.”
– my first for three games. It is agony to go that long without one.”
—————————
luxury !
you should try being an arsenal striker !
& score 1 every 10 games
—————-
DDM im back no need to be lonely !
Morning!
hi de ho !
G’morning Pedroooo!!
I’m all upbeat today..have this feeling we’re going to go on a winning run for the last 12 games. How epic would that be?
Morning Pedro et al.
NEW POST! Morning Ethan, Raddy and Rohan!