The concept of the modern marathon was inspired by a Greek football fan that legged it from the site of Marathon to Athens to deliver a scoreline, the distance was 25 or so miles. The message was about an important game in which a Greek football team defeated a Persian one (they had good football back then). The messenger died, so to commemorate this heroic football nut, they have marathons around the world.
The point of my story is this… if Emery doesn’t achieve anything in his Arsenal career, but manages to shift on Elneny and Mustafi, I’ll name a special day after him. I’ll petition the club to give him a stand. I’ll get on the blower to the Pope and ask how you go about Sainthoods.
This is what Saint Unai said of the pair yesterday.
“They are very big players but for one circumstance or another they are going to have fewer chances to show their capacity or to be happy with us and the minutes they play in matches,” Emery said. “But they know the situation and really I am wishing the best for them. I think now the best for them is to be protagonists in another team and to get another challenge for themselves.”
“Last year with Mustafi and Mo, when they didn’t play they weren’t happy and I spoke with them a lot of times last year and this pre-season,”
“I think it is positive for them to leave and sign for another team where they can be protagonists and be happy and continue their careers.”
I firm up when I read vicious quotes like that. When did Wenger EVER talk that aggressively about his babies? Never.
I am also warmed to hear that the players like to play. Those two are too young to ride out a fat contract. By sitting on deals, they take themselves out of the shop window, their games get rusty and clubs around Europe frame them as a pair of Winston Bogarde’s. If you’re young, you should want to play football, even if that’s at a cost of a few grand a week.
To ride out a deal takes a special sort of person. Someone with a character big enough not to be impacted by the humiliation of being benched.
Both players have value. Mustafi has a lot of good going in his game. He’s played all around the world. He’s made of strong stuff. He just needs a really good defensive coach to beast him into not being so dim. Elneny is just at the wrong level of club. He needs to go to Italy or a middling club in Spain.
Both need to move off that wage bill.
In loan news, it was great to see Eddddddiiiiiieeeeeeee score his second goal at Leeds. I really think he could be a blistering talent if he’s given the chance. I love that he’s at Leeds learning under Bielsa. He’s going to learn to be more decisive, he’ll build confidence from the goals, he’ll get tougher under the brutal conditions of the Championship. It should be a very good year for him.
Hector Bellerin went OFF on the mighty Ceballos.
“I think Dani’s one of the best players I’ve seen in my career. I’ve played with him since we were like 18 or 19 years old. We’ve played in the under-21s, we get on really well off the pitch”
“He’s up for it & he’s a player who will go through thick & thin to do the best for his team. He’s got a great heart & he plays for everyone around him. I think he’s a great addition”
LOVE TO READ IT.
David Ornstein continues to drop beads of gold onto the newsfeed. Again, clarifying the authoritarian regime that Arsene Wenger ran.
Power really is a corrupting force. When you’re succeeding, the last thing you should do is build a team of yes men around you. That’s what Wenger did, then when things started to fail, he had no answers. He wanted to wear every hat. You do wonder what he could have achieved if he’d ripped out his back team and installed up and coming coaches. What would our trophy cabinet have looked like if he’d had a more powerful CEO next to him that insisted on owning the infrastructure?
Wenger could still be a player if he’d allowed other people to develop his ideas… but he didn’t, and now he’s watering the flowers in a very green garden in North London.
“The meetings used to be just between Kroenke and Wenger”@bbcsport_david on how changes in personnel at the top have made #Arsenal ‘more proactive in the transfer market’.
📲⚽️https://t.co/0kUniWPgQm pic.twitter.com/hYbAsfqO5M
— BBC 5 Live Sport (@5liveSport) August 20, 2019
Right, that’s me done. Listen to this podcast before the Liverpool game tomorrow.
They seem like that have 3 or 4 more players than us. Emery has a good squad now, I think he needs to settle a formation and a style of play. Early days yet as he hasn’t got all his best players fit yet. ANM, Natcho are playing as we have no choice on those positions due to injury. I think torriera is due a run, he should be ahead of Xhaka. Laca should be on the field he is the most composed striker we have. Willock continues to impress. Plenty of positives but also, quite a bit of work… Read more »
Raheem: “Didn’t expect to win this just wanted us to look half descent”
We did. First half was positive. On another day Pepe or Laca take their chances. Pool had worse chances than us in the first half.
Obviously, both Guen and Willock are tired.
Xhaka needs to be sold if we are to progress
Shoot !
“Obviously, both Guen and Willock are tired“
3 games. Lolz.
Torreira should have started. Guendouzi is so overrated.
Ohhhh nooo not Mkhshit
Marko thinks Laca should be our back up striker. The guy does more in 5 mins than PEA in 90 mins.
There’s nothing wrong with taking cheap shots at a brainless idiot like Xhaka.
The decision to not buy another defender will cost us badly. Luiz is not and never was any good. He’s a saucy lad but not a footballer.
Our midfield is so weak.
AMN needs to be put away from January. He’s not goin to make it if the technical team knows anything. We need a proper Right Back! Better than Bellerin cause even he is shit too.
Talk if 3rd place appears a little naive now. Spurs are comfortably ahead of us. We are in a dog fight for 4th.
Promising players are positives.
But our Spanish Waiter nullifies them all. Will never learn.
GoH: “David Luiz is a saucy lad”
roflmao
Torreira must start. Warrior spirit, neat and tidy. I’d rather die a hundred times with torr rather than granit
Xhaka is used to spam long balls to the pacy forwards upfront but with other defenders and midfielders covering him he’s quite okay for now although a bit shaky at the start
Spurs will be laughing.
We are very easy to beat. Liverpool have coasted.
@Goldinho
You are an idiot!!
Xhaka the Wanker is so bad that even a bang average performance with no fvck-ups is seen a positive.
Some knee jerk reactions here.
Most had us down for a loss including me: just hope we could do better.
Just learn from this and move on.
Season is still young
Slow movement
Sloppy passing
Shit Luiz
That’s how we lost this
I had us down to lose 3-1 in a predictor. Every cloud eh …
AMN is another one that will be sold off like Iwobi
He’s not good enough for the midfield and is not a good full back.
Hope we get a proper RB to challenge Bellerin next summer. .. and sell AMN.
I’m so pissed off at this result. Just when you thought the season and big game was going to be a little different.
Even bigger game next week.
Despite the loss we gave a good account of ourselves until the 60h minute. We can build on this.
Heroin consumption in Liverpool will go up tonight massively. Scousers will be celebrating long into the night.
easy they already followed the gameplan had both Auba and Pepe took their chances the match would’ve been different
also if not for those to gaff from Luiz it would have been 1-1 right now I know this is not an excuse as the hypothetical dynamics and scenario would have been different
See what laca offers but emery put him on the bench.
now now, I reckon we will beat pool at the Emirates.
The diamond with split strikers on the wings was an atrocious decision by emery and cost us this game. As soon as we go 3 up front with 3 ball winning midfielders we’ve looked like a proper threat. Emery takes this one 100%
I’m sure Emery, Raul and the other powers that be at arsenal tried to get rid of Xhaka mhiki and ozil this summer.
The problem is that they are all on huge wages.
I’d offer them for nothing. Who cares about the loss, just get rid.
Tbf it is Salah who teared a new one up Luiz’ crack. It’s not such a shame. Salah at times has that Messi nimble feet. He is a player.
The moped gangs will now target other Arsenal players. We’re merked.
I don’t think we should be downhearted about this game. There’s plenty of teams that will get a drubbing at anfield
AMN needs a hot slap
Karim
” We are in a dog fight for 4th”
It won’t be a dog fight if we win the games that we have to win.
United under OGS or Lampard’s Chelsea aren’t as good as us.
When you think that Wenger kept us in the top 4 with a negarive net spend so many years…
This team looks like half a team on personel
and on playing style, it looks clueless.
Lol Luiz and the shit free kick he did at Chelsea
Laca is central to our attack, nothing I’ve seen says otherwise. Guy loves a scrap
Well done Emery, real progress, from 5-1 to 3-1.
Fuckin’ fraud.
PieAFC – yep next week we need to be better. We are better at home so I don’t think we’ll lose but much better performances are needed from both the players and coach!
We’ll see how we fair when we can put out our best team that includes full backs.
I do actually agree with what seems to be a minority consensus in that Emery should be sacked. In fact I think anyone who goes to Liverpool and loses by two or more goals should sack their manager
Emery is in over his head.
We’re always trying something different though.
We don’t have any idea what formation from one game to the next.
Another pathetic performance at Anfield. I expect Emery to get sacked very soon.
Well done Emery, real progress, from 5-1 to 3-1.
Fuckin’ fraud.
LOL
On the plus side , pepe will bring a lot of enjoyment to the Arsenal fans ..
Not all games will be as difficult as this .
Wenger for the comeback.
I’d love that. Just for the season then Arteta.
Wenger wouldn’t have lost today.
NGL
Expected to lose , were some flashes and moments that were good.
If Luiz wasn’t so brain dead at times maybe the score line wouldn’t be so bad
Do feel there is only so far Emery can take us.
Not watching the sky commentary, but that smug bastard Gary Neville mocking us again. Fucking can’t stand him.
Apparently Lebron James is a cunt. Looks like he’s a scouser then
Monreal was ball watching for that third goal too.
He had to know that David Luiz couldn’t take one for the team because he was on yellow card already. He should have been ready to drag down Salah.
We need to get better with rotational fouling.
I’m sorry but I’m going to say the scoreline really flattered Liverpool. Ok the Salah goal was good but otherwise we conceded two soft goals.
Emery out of his depth at this level.
Absolutely shit coach. Even Chelsea with a ban was not this dominated in the super. Spuds went to City and played a game of football. A shit coach who can’t get a game out of his team. He doesn’t even know his first eleven. Shit coach. Continues to play from the back when it’s obviously not working as if that’s the only way to play football. This one can’t tie Wenger’s bootlaces even a 2019 Wenger that can’t find a job. If this guy is here next season, then Raul, Vinai and Edu are a waste of time. 5-1, then… Read more »
Gary Nerville better tend to the joke at Old Trafford
AH.
Agreed. We saw that they have spotted the weak footballers as Elneny, Mustafi, Ospina, Jenkinson, Asano, Welbeck. I trust they have their eyes on Ozil and Mikki for next summer. Not entirely sure if Xhaka is on that list yet. I hope he is.
We’ll beat them at our gaff, paid them too much respect today.
Expected a defeat against Pool but Emery gets his tactics wrong yet again. I called Torrera and Laca to be brought on as soon as 2nd half started but Emery too slow in responding to danger posed by Pool.
We accept mistakes meakly. Surprised open to get shafted ?
Ambition, is not a fault
Thanks for that and to all those cunts with their Dani Ceballos wank socks…..I have some bad news, he’s Fran Merida mark deux Zidane does not let winners go, game 3 And yea we are as Shiraz we we’re er were.
Great effort from the players, you can’t fault that…I mean aside from Luiz’s stupid shirt pull and getting turned far too easily. As Neville said, just an enormous gulf in class present there, too fast, too strong for us. Better teams than us will lose there. That said, plenty of positives to take away from that as well. As Neville said the 4-3-3 system at the end looked much better than the 4-1-2-1-2, some of that is down to Liverpool substitutes and them dropping off as well, but still. Pepe looked good. What a fucking game to get your first… Read more »
Thanks Pierre. It used to be like that in the eightees
Having watched both halves I must agree that Emery over tinkered. Just play your best team and believe in your players. That’s not what I saw in the first half. The first half set up is disappointing to say the least
CC
“Laca is central to our attack, nothing I’ve seen says otherwise. Guy loves a scrap”
Is there a way we can get him to play the central role Firminho plays for ‘pool?
Emery’s tactic cost us the game. You can’t concede the midfield to Liverpool and expect to get away with it. Leaving our fullbacks exposed by their attackers and their overlapping fullback is just asking to be beaten.
The personnel was wrong.
Xhaka stay on the pitch for 90 minutes. Outside of blackmail on Emery I can’t fathom why.
Aubameyang did his usual disappearing act against top 6 opposition.
Mhkitaryan was given a few minutes to do what exactly.
Jose in.
GOH
Fuck off with that Wenger/Arteta shit
Learn the basics, like pass a ball.
A strong midfield wins that game.
Need to jettison the usual suspects and replace with quality.
We need two Pepe’s upfront.
“EMERY BRUTALLY ENDS TWO PLAYERS”
someone brutally (or however) end Emery out of Arsenal. This is an unnecessary pain we are going through. This Arsenal team does not play for Emery. Its not making sense. Let him go. Get a young German manager from BL.
Absolutely putrid football from us, no urgency, too many touches, pointlessly playing out from the back everytime soooo slooooowly, just doesn’t work with these players and certainly not against pool, just vile stuff to watch.
RR
It’s gathering pace. Can’t you feel it?
Wenger and Arteta in as the dream team.
Emery out
Mourinho in
6th at best… Pepe is useless, so one footed it’s unture… Donkey… No better then iwobi
Tactics were spot on if they were for a powerhouse team.
Dissenter
It wasn’t me buddy
Emery is such a p*ssy, 80 mins before he subs lacazette in.
Lolz
Meltdown city. Things that are certain:
Death
Le Grove exploding after a defeat.
Look
Drop xhara play torr we will be ok..
Weren’t disgraced .
Put up a show. Let’s hope tomorrow s results go our way
Aubameyang is a lazy fucker.
TR7
If you’re expecting Liverpool to beat us then what’s the fuss.
They would have beaten us because they did somethings better that us
They didn’t buy new players in the summer while we had to rebuild. You of all people [i.e. a good poster] ought to know it takes time to out the pieces together.
Careful not to over-react. The diamond [which I detested too] worked until Matip got to a dead ball first..then it. became the David Luiz show.
With a bit of luck it could have been better. The team never leyed down and have up . I fire one will take a lot of positives from this game.
Aubameyang is not worldclass.
This team will look really different with a 433 and the right personnel leno bel sok luiz tier amn torreira willock pep laca auba. amn and willock have the pace to cover the fullbacks. same formation minus willock if we want to kill a team leno bel sok luiz tier amn torreira ozil pepe laca auba People need to realise how good amn is. As a midfielder he can cover a full back position. is any of our midfielders defensively capable to do that? xhaka hell no, torreira doesnt have the legs or stam, cabellos doesnt have the engine etc… Read more »
Can’t believe but Pierre is actually the voice of reason.
Agreed with CA as well.
Rest of the plonkers should get a grip.
Dissenter
That’s how he plays already if you ask me, he’s not the threat in behind he’s the link man with the cuteness about him.
Pepe instead of Iwobi will make this more apparent this season I reckon.
95% of the time our best forward line is Laca central with Pepe and Auba wide of him imo. No reason that can’t be as potent as Liverpool’s attack at full tilt.
Agree
Red.
Getting there…
This Auba and Pepe were playing with half their cylinders today. There wasn’t any urgency visible in them. The forward line was not playing to win. I will blame all that on current manager. Let him go.
*put the pieces together
Anyway football done and dusted time to how Yarde gets on with Kovalev
Yup. First half strat wasn’t bad. We had more clear chances than Pool. Pool had 0, we had 2 at least.
Why will spurs be ‘laughing ‘ exactly? We beat them at home last season no ? With a worse starting 11 … they are not in the same league as pool so let’s get a little perspective here , don’t let their draw with city fool you – that was daylight robbery. We will be well up for the NLD ….
Raptora
What are you disagreeing with exactly?
Expected a defeat against Pool but Emery gets his tactics wrong yet again. I called Torrera and Laca to be brought on as soon as 2nd half started but Emery too slow in responding to danger posed by Pool.
@TR7 I was so surprised he didn’t make half time double sub, more like he sold this game. What was he waiting for to make the subs? Not only did he get the tactics wrong, he got everything wrong. He’s not the coach to take us to the promise land I reiterate
How we set up that midfield is going to be interesting going forward. Aubameyang, Lacazette, Pepe has to be attempted up front but what happens behind them? Liverpool essentially have two sets of 5 in their team. Alexander Arnold, Robertson, Mane, Firmino, Salah who are mainly attacking threats and then Van Djik, Matip and the midfield 3 as a more solid high tempo defensive set up that keeps the ball moving. We need to attempt the same, Bellerin, Tierney, Aubameyang, Lacazette, Pepe at least on paper looks like it could be a good attacking threat. It’s our other 5 that… Read more »
CC
Then we need better quality midfielders to make that Laca in the middle plan work.
Ceballos will get another acid test [😊😊😊] next week in the NLD.
I like what I’m reading now.
Perspective for a change.
Well done le grove ! ( hi bam )
‘Despite the loss we gave a good account of ourselves until the 60h minute. We can build on this.’
Build on what exactly?
Being outrageously pinned back when we try to play from the back?
Having no flow in the midfield?
Or not knowing our first eleven?
Binning our best front guy on a day like this?
We can’t build on anything Emery, he’s a waste of time.
Give him his money and tell him to fuck off. Give Arteta the gig and let’s see where we stand going forward.