It’s not often I make correct predictions, but this week, I nailed it. I said on The Arsenal Opinion podcast last Sunday that we were going to see two victories post-City and here we are.
We are better than Leicester City. They shit-housed us in the last game with a Vardy counter and some shocking VARing. It was different this weekend, that’s not to say the afternoon wasn’t a wave of emotions.
The starting 11, on first perusal, absolutely stunk. It looked like a death wish from a manager that really doesn’t give a fuck about fan sentiment. Willian, Elneny, Luiz, Xhaka, Mari, and Soares didn’t feel like a winning formula… most fans were grumbling in the group chats. Then, after 6 minutes, the I TOLD YOU SO chickens came home to roost. Willian and Xhaka lost the ball, Pablo Mari back-peddled against a surging Tielemans run, Mo Elneny failed to move across, the Leicester midfielder took full advantage and unleashed a brutal low shot past Bernd Leno.
Personally, I was furious. I am an emotional mess during most games, but this starting 11 felt personal. My group chat felt the same.
‘Arteta doesn’t get it’
‘This could be the end of him’
‘He’s addicted to shit players’
My word, was everyone wrong. Badly wrong.
The team didn’t drop their heads, players like Pepe and Willian led by example with excellent drive and efficiency. We controlled possession, we showed patience, and we chipped away at Leicester’s resolve.
Our first goal looked like an Andreas Georgeson inspired setpiece plan. David Luiz hung at the back post, he moved towards the penalty spot, Willian found his run perfectly, Luiz worked a perfect diving header across goal. Brilliant stuff.
Penalties haven’t been good to us of late. There’s always a reason for them to happen against us and always a reason for them to NOT be given our way. Pepe had a penalty rescinded early in the game after a VAR intervention… but he managed to even it out when the same tech piped up on an Ndidi handball in the box. Lacazette stepped up, sent Kasper the wrong way, and drilled home our second into the bottom left. He loved that. The relief was very clearly expressed with a clenched fist.
Our third goal would not have been possible 4 months ago. Nicolas Pepe ran at a retreating Leicester defence, he passed to Martin Odegaard, the Norwegian creator controlled the ball and passed in one silky movement, he found Willian who cut back for Pepe to finish off the goal with a tap-in. It was a very Arsenal goal. Odegaard made it with his speed of thought and his technique. Pepe was embraced by everyone, including the subs. He seems to be very popular. That’s a good thing considering the PR around his introverted character.
We saw the game out from there with minimal fuss. It wasn’t total control. There was a scare at the back post in the 96th minute, but overall, it was unfussy considering where Leicester are in the league.
So the hot takes?
We were ALL wrong about the stating 11 and I am very, very happy about that.
On reflection, with some of that 20/20 victory vision, the selection was defensible.
Cedric Soares has been excellent in 90% of his games, covering for Hector on the right was smart. I’ll say it quietly because vegan twitter is mean… but I think Cedric is better in that role. He’s faster, his defending is superb, and he’s more efficient in the final third.
Lacazette upfront totally made sense. Auba needs to be firing for the big crunch coming. The Frenchman has also been a star this year.
I might have given Dani C that game after his error, but if it needed to be Mo, that’s all we had. Thomas Partey should NOT have started out there.
Nicolas Pepe is in electric form. Willian is one of our top earners, he had an excellent run against Benfica, he was always going to start. There was no world in which Saka played. Both the above-mentioned players were absolutely excellent.
Arsenal rotated so hard it felt like a League Cup run out, yet we still absolutely dominated Leicester start to finish. The bet by the club is clear… they are laser-focused on winning the Europa League… and having the best possible 11 to down Jose Mourinho’s Spurs side.
Back to Leicester.
This is going to sound stupid, but goals change perception. That 90 was not new. We’ve done it in every game since Chelsea in December (bar City). The difference was we delivered a result to go with the performance. Again, the group chat is used as a reference for the madness of being an emotional fan… but the narrative in mine went from ‘BRENDAN HAS ARTETA’S NUMBER’ to ‘OH WOW ARTETA MASTERCLASS.’ What was the difference?
Goals.
No red cards.
No hideous reffing.
Players stepping the f*ck up.
Arteta is bringing careers back from the dead. Our squad now feels bigger because good players are being… you know, good.
The Europa League played a huge role in that. Bukayo Saka’s contribution to that game was the assist for the Leicester game. These players need a focus. Top 4 isn’t on the cards, but now the squad is playing for starting positions in a cup run that could end in a trophy. That has the whole squad sharp. We beat a team pushing for top 2 with a bunch of squad players. That’s special.
Nicolas Pepe was literally unplayable today. He floated inside, he ran at players, he used his body really well… he was decisive. This is a player that looked so meek in November you’d have struggled to give him away. Clearly, he’s been working very hard in training and he obviously has a desire to make it here. It was a top-class performance.
Willian can’t help that he’s a Chelsea legend. He can’t do anything about that deal. But if he wants to be good, that is going to work for all of us. He really was top drawer. 3 assists in 4 days, that’s the same as you-know-who managed in the whole of last season. I thought his movement was good, the speed of his passing was much better, and he worked really, really hard.
I wasn’t sure about Pablo Mari. He was a bit embarrassing for the first goal, backing off like he had a bear running at him… but he certainly grew with the game. There was a moment late on when he was running with Jamie Vardy, his timing on the intervention was utter perfection. I would like to see more boldness with his passing, a bit more presence, but most people seem to be raving to me about him, so I’ll back off.
Granit. Xhaka. Take. A. Bow. Honestly, I feel gross writing this… but damn, he was fucking excellent. He’s been so good in 2021. The error early on was erased by a superb performance. He was hacked down 4 times, made 2 tackles, 1 interception, 6 ball recoveries, and he dropped an 87% pass completion rate off 71 attempts. He was fantastic, there were a couple of saucy moments, a kind of Cruyff turn, and a wonderful flick under pressure. He was GOOD.
I was a bit worried about ESR. He was one of two players that left the pitch with an injury before 50 minutes had played out, Barnes being the other. The fixtures are brutal. The Premier League should not have teams that play Euro games rolling first thing on a Sunday. Fingers crossed both players are ok.
The replacement for ESR was Odegaard, I thought he was absolutely electric. He’d been fairly quiet the last two games, yesterday, he burst out the traps. He pressed, he moved the ball very efficiently, and he had that little bit of special sauce we’ve lacked. He dinked a chip to Soares that was simply stunning. He assisted the assistor for the Pepe goal. He’s just the full package. I like that Madrid are leaking ‘JUST KIDDING, WE LOVE HIM’ articles to drive up his price. For me, Odegaard is our priority signing this summer.
You know things are shaping up nicely, because the only negative the ghouls had after the game was focused on who didn’t play. Namely, Gabriel Martinelli. I really don’t think it’s necessary to whine on about young players. He will get minutes. The club loves him, but he has to wait his turn like the rest of them. Some fans seem to hold dual imperatives in their head 1) WE MUST WIN ALL THE POINTS 2) YOUNG KIDS MUST BE BLOODED. It’s hard to do both. Gabi is fragile, loose, and inconsistent right now. We know that kids make it when they are ready, ESR the case study for that. Gabriel will make it, but I think Arteta deserves the benefit of the doubt on this one because every decision he made worked yesterday.
So where are we on the ‘SINCE CHRISTMAS’ trophy?
We’re in the top 4, baby!
2nd best defence.
3rd most goals.
That my friends is progress.
A lot of people think the Premier League table is all that matters. Sure, in a normal season, at a normal club. Arsenal are not normal and we are not in a normal year. Our organisation has been neglected and abused for 10 years. We hired a rookie coach because we’re broke and the view was that he was one of the best talents for his age and we could tap his City standards and grow with him. Mistakes and bad runs were priced into the experience. The terrible run happened, it was shocking, but the club moved on from it because they believed in Arteta’s approach. That means we can’t just look at the league for green shoots. We have to isolate moments in time and search for clues in different places. Christmas is when things clicked. So that table above gives good context as to whether things are truly moving to a new level. The eye test will tell you the football is better. Match reports like this tell you we’re seeing improvement beyond just the starting 11.
Even if you are #ArtetaOut, it’s a stretch to justify firing him because as it stands, he’s 7 points off Chelsea, with Liverpool, Everton, and Spurs even closer. Klopp, the 2nd best manager in the world, is 6 points off Arsenal in our worst ever season. Jose, £15m a year, with THAT Spurs squad everyone said suited him, 2 points off. Carlo 3 points. We’re in a year where David Moyes is besting them all!
Our next 5 games are Burnley, Olympiacos x2, Spurs and West Ham. 5 wins in those games and we’re cooking on gas. Arteta needs a run. Europa is absolutely key to the league. Rotation is too. Let’s see where it goes.
BUT… before all that, listen to my podcast. I’m chatting with the excellent Johnny and Matt. We discuss the smelly line-up, the big performances, and the expectations for the rest of the season.
ALSO, if you are a father, check out season two of Johnny’s How’s Your Father podcast. He’s hilarious, his guests are elite, and you should always support a fellow Gooner in a creative industry.
Pierre
100% spot on.
He is wasting away at Arsenal.
This is probably my one major gripe with Arteta. The way he deals with some of the younger players is, I feel, appalling.
It’s similar to a headmaster giving detention. Problem is the detention is never ending.
Seems that you also have an attachment to my local club.
Play great football but can’t score.
Eddie would have been a good fit.
Eddie should be getting minutes as should Martinelli and Nelson.
Martinez is a good keeper but he’s not a better shot stopper than leno, I can’t believe our strikers did not take low shots when we played aston villa. Arteta really can’t see the weaknesses of his players. If we had taken low shots at goal, we would have scored a few. It’s one of the main areas of weakness of martinez, he loves the high balls,
Leno on the other hand is the opposite, he has cat like reflexes but he is a terrible judge on high balls or crosses.
Though I will say, martinez was ambitious, it’s why he didn’t buy into artetas bs and bugged off. The likes of balogun, saliba, guen and martinelli may do the same when they realise that arteta is just lying to them.
Pierre, a style of keeping is totally irrelevant in this case.
No keeper in their right mind would come for a ball from lefty Mahrez who is as likely to shoot as he is to cross there.
I’m sure it’s a pure coincidence the only people claiming keeper error here are Arsenal fans butt hurt Arteta sold Emi.
Andy There no super fan anywhere. It’s just that some of us have a positive outlook about things. We don’t see issues on short but long term. Your toxicity is killing our hope and without hope manbis lost. I may not be as knowledgeable as many of you about football but I see Arsenal going only only one way under Arteta and that’s upward. For months now, I’ve been bothered about how Guendozi was sent away from the club but common sense tells me I am not part of the day to day running of the club and on that… Read more »
Tom
Um…..no, it’s because Leno is incredibly weak in these areas.
Anything that involves physical effort or commanding and communicating things, is not in Leno’s remit.
I’ll argue the case until I’m blue in the face. When we lost Martinez, we lost about 8/10 points on where we are now.
Rich “Each manager will have inherited an entirely different set of internal factors, and had to deal with an entirely different set of external factors” The question was what are expectations (UWOT). The simple answer is minimum expectation is to improve our league position. Of course every manager starts with different challenges. I’d say that both Graham and Rioch started in a worse position squad wise than Arteta, but still managed to climb the table. Arsene inherited that back four and DB10 so had better resources. Emery inherited a team on the slide with a number of bad eggs, but… Read more »
Tom
Is Leno a better keeper than Martinez?
If you’re having to think about it, then I’m afraid you are clueless.
Saw the comments earlier about AI in football and mathematical analysis and thought FFS who wants to watch a game based on mathematics and algorithms? There are already too many robotic players and teams following the latest scientific fad. Give me teams with mavericks and invention any day.
Graham, ‘keepers are judged on clean sheets in the same way strikers are judged on goals. What do the stats say?
Graham
Apples and oranges
Just because Emi is stronger in the air it doesn’t mean he comes out for every cross, or would’ve come for that one.
Legrove being agenda central is hardly surprising but letting Holding off the hook at Leno’s expense when its this obvious is just over the top.
I don’t have any agendas whatsoever.
Emi is top three and Leno is top five in the league is what I said months ago btw.
Who does Martinelli play instead of when he plays ?What are his strengths and how do they relate to the way we want to play and those around him ? Do we have players with different strengths or players who are better than him doing what he does ?? Do we play him just so that he can have a run out ?
Interested to know opinions
I really think Martinelli would currently do better than both Lacazette and Auba at ST. Before his injury he was great at heading the ball, long shots, dribbling, tap ins…You name it.
Just watch this as a reminder of what he can do as a centre forward:
https://youtu.be/z6IPoqXq5Gc
It was a good performance, day before, some intelligent football with players actually getting into the box. Arteta took a gamble with the rotation and it worked very very well. Pepe seems to be finally clicking his last 3/4 performances have been pretty good and that can only be a good thing for us. Cedric needs to be given a run of 3/4 games as well on the right, he seems to be willing to stay wide and that is important when pepe is in the team. Bellerin comes infield far too much leaving pepe isolated on the right. Bringing… Read more »
Tunnygriffboy good questions. You won’t get a serious response on here. The bottom line is there is a lot of support for him because he isnt in the team thats the sum if it. Same with Eddie. Conspiracy theories abound but my take is he is still recovering from his injury and isn’t as sharp as he needs to be to displace Laca and Auba.
The Bard
Sorry, but that makes no sense at all. If he is still ‘recovering from his injury’ and incapable of coming on for 10 minutes in a game already won, why is he on the bench?
It’s a completely fair question for people to ask. There really doesn’t have to be an agenda behind everything.
As per artetas press conference on gabby, everyone in the team has to perform at a high level to be in the team expect if you name is willian. You can keep dropping shit performance after shit performance and you’ll be the 1st sub on the pitch regardless. Given a run of half a dozen games, gabby would be twice the players willian currently is.
And this for a players who desperately wanted to stay at Chelsea and the only reason he moved to us was to get 1 extra year on the contract.
The bard Not fit and yet on the bench? In the last game, when auba came on for laca for the last 13 odd minutes, did auba ‘need’ the game time? We have seen what the lad can do, and more importantly we have also seen arteta shafting him before his long injury when he was dumped on the bench, just before the lock down. So i dont quite buy artetas version of the story, especially when William can be shit and get game time, willian can go out of the country flouting the club rules and still get game… Read more »
“Graham, ‘keepers are judged on clean sheets in the same way strikers are judged on goals. What do the stats say?” Andy, Villa have conceded 26 goals in 24 games with the keeper who commands his area, eats crosses for breakfast and organizes his defense. Arsenal have conceded 27 in 26 with the keeper who is weak in the air, a mute, can’t kick straight to save his life, and apparently has two broken wrists. On top of that Mings is considered by most on here a monster of a CB and his partnership with Konsa as regular as can… Read more »
Tom gets it.
Winthorpe We are going in circles here. I gave you a detailed analysis of where the ball came from, from what player and what angle, how long the ball travelled in the air, Holdings position vis a vis Sterling and Leno, and all you guys can say is Leno has to come for that because Martinez eats these for breakfast . I can bet you real money you won’t find any keeper anywhere coming for a lefty curler from the corner of the penalty area that landed on someone’s head six yards out. A $100 says you can’t and you… Read more »
I have to add that as Pedro keeps reminding us we are far more defensively solid recently too so Leno should be better protected (unless he’s just saving more shots which the stats do not bear out).
‘Some commentators in China, where gender identity is much less blurred than in Western culture, suggest it could lead to social problems and even imperil the country’s national security.
A new school textbook that aims to teach boys how to be “masculine” men has been released. Called “Little Men,” ‘
Bellerin should be taken to China.
Im telling you for free!
Interesting thread from a University of Cambridge Astronomy graduate on Martinez vs Leno on crosses.
https://twitter.com/jhdharrison1/status/1298312321278730240
Highest save percentage in the PL? Guess who…
So you’re posting stats that show Martinez has conceded few goals in a higher number of games…….
———-
Are you sure you read that correctly mate?
“So you’re posting stats that show Martinez has conceded few goals in a higher number of games…….”
We established yesterday that Don couldn’t count to 4, so it’s no surprise he’s struggling with the numbers.
Tom “. I can bet you real money you won’t find any keeper anywhere coming for a lefty curler from the corner of the penalty area that landed on someone’s head six yards out.” You are becoming renown for digging a hole for yourself and then having to backtrack, the keeper shouting “away ” was a prime example.. If the cross from Mahrez had pace on it , then i agree , Leno no chance , but it was a floated cross that Sterling headed in FIVE YARDS from goal. You’re on a loser here Tom , so my advice… Read more »
Donthorpe
“So you’re posting stats that show Martinez has conceded few goals in a higher number of games…….”
Emi appearances: 24
Leno appearances: 25
24 < 25. Try understanding numbers before you go on a rant about them. No big deal when you've been caught in another lie though because you're 'always right and that's the honest truth'.
Graham
“:Seems that you also have an attachment to my local club.”
Not an attatchment , i just like the way they play the game.
They have an excellent manager with a well balanced team but are lacking someone to do the hardest job in football , and that’s put the ball on the back of the net.
Just about everytime I’ve seen them play , Brighton have never been outplayed, and i have to say , they have been really unfortunate.
Brighton and fulham deserve to stay up on my opinion and i hope they do.
Tom and Jamie ,
You really need do to look at this link from Windthorpe
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=N962zLkvyBk
Don –
Yeah, quick pivot away from the validity of one of your talking points when you’ve been shown up as per.
Stick the the line that you’re always right about everything else and hope that there are a few folk here who lack the ability to read what’s written..
“but I’ve watched you chat shit about Martinez for the last few weeks ”
He plays for a rival, you cuck. He also all but handed in a transfer request.
81% martinez ……1st in the league.
77% Leno ……………3rd in the league
Excellent save percentage from both keepers
Yes you a cuck. You and the 3 or so others who rub themselves raw after every save a keeper playing for a club above us in the table makes.
You jokers would rather be right about Emi’s alleged world class credentials than watch him tank the rest of the season for Villa with a string of blunders like the ones he made vs West Ham and allow Arsenal to climb above them in the table.
Fucking weird fandom.
The Barca’s presidential election will be held this weekend. Tony, I am quite sure that you can keep the money for the TAXI.
Tom Do you live on planet Zog? You do realise that when Martinez arrived at Villa he had to adapt to a new system, as well as new players around him. I don’t look at statistics as being the benchmark for being a good keeper, I see things for what they are. Tell me, when our opponents have a corner, a free kick or lump one into the box, do you sit there thinking, thank goodness we have Leno? When Leno has the ball in his hands or at his feet, are you thankful we have him in goal? You… Read more »
Who cares what an Aston Villa keeper is doing? Yes, if it was up to me I would have tried to keep him but he didn’t want to stay… so hasn’t that ship sailed? Dean Smith has been given excellent as Villa manager though it has to be said. They were on the brink of relegation last season but this season they are a club transformed. Not only have they managed to keep their best player and convince him to stay, he and his staff have been excellent in their transfer dealings this season. Possible Arsenal manager if the Arteta… Read more »
Here, cucks. Get the lotion out. World class display from 47 seconds onwards. Watch to the end.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snpM0wOhe6A
“Jamie, woooo, you little wiener. Don’t get pissy because the facts back me up”
Alternate facts. Like that time Emi had fewer conceded goals in more appearances than Leno.
I’m finding it harder and harder to motivate myself for these little exchanges, Don. It stopped being sport for me several years ago after your 4th ban. Give it a rest for a few days, yeah?
Arsenal could have been 2-0 down on Sunday because of Leno.
Jamie I can create a montage of dozens of Leno cock ups this season, especially when he has to use his head and think about things.
He is a C+/B- rated keeper imo, whereas Leno is an A grade.
Let’s just leave it at that shall we.
Graham
“Let’s just leave it at that shall we.”
Please! Don’t tease me though.
Not sure about gender identity being less blurred here
Male pop stars usually look like women with short hair (including makeup) and girls here tend like men who are very skinny
Some of the most listed after men in China are proper head scratchers for a westerner
If Carlo Ancelotti delivers Champions League football to Everton, it would be a bitter pill to swallow.
It’s actually quite cute here how people have no gaydar. It’s like 1980s Britain where everyone thought the village people were straight
I shit you not people here have no idea when it’s right under their nose 😂😂
Why don’t we ask Aston Villa fans if they’d rather have Emi or Leno?
And if they would have their current place on the table if Leno
was their goalie …. I already know their answer
Yes Don, that’s what’s happening here.
5 years, a dozen accounts banned, and you’ve never laid a glove. Yikes.
I’ve never once said Leno is the superior keeper, you donkey. I back him over Emi by virtue of Leno actually being under contract at Arsenal. Local supporters understand.
I’ll stop interfering with your deep emotions for a Villa player. Promise.
Leedsgunner. Your post sums it up. What’s the point of arguing about a keeper who has been sold last season. I would rather he stayed but he wanted to move. We don’t know all the details but its over and done with, move on.
We probably made the wrong call on goalkeepers but having said that they are both good there is not a great deal between them and it would not have been an easy decision.
Good that Willian has at last contributed something, but no going overboard just because he has done what he should have been doing for the last four months for his £200k per week.
Odegaard will now have his chance with ESR injured to play as a number 10. Both of them in the same side does not work.
“So you prefer Arteta by virtue of him being under contract also?”
Prefer him to OGS for example? Yes, Bamford. I prefer Arteta over all other managers in the league right now and hope he outperforms everyone else.
Bet you’d really struggle if Wenger replaced Mourinho at Spurs.
Jamie
You’re definitely getting stressed.
Mr Winthorpe is not Bamford.
No wonder your perceptions on Leno/Martinez are so warped.
Have a stiff drink.
Sometimes I have to remember the level of some people here. My bad.
If Wenger replaced Mourinho at Spuds, I’d have a good old laugh.
Wenger Mark 3 at Spuds!!
We had Mark 1 (great times) and Mark 2 (not so great).
Lol!!!
Jamie
I agree.
Graham 62
I’m with Jamie on Arteta, and I’m not a bit stressed. It’s those that hate to be proven wrong who are getting stressed.
englandsbest
Really?
I’ll take your word for it.
Don
You’re typically the one wanting Arteta out during games
Now you’re claiming to be ‘largely pro-Arteta”
A bit two-faced don’t you think.
Dissenter
Who is Don?
Graham 62
Winthorpe is Don
Who isn’t Don?
Winthorpe. Interesting thoughts about Auba. There’s no doubt he can be a lethal finisher but his first touch is often poor, he can’t hold the ball up and he doesn’t bring others into play. So if he isnt scoring he’s a passenger.
It’s a difficult one.
Un nai is winthorpe?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vk6FIuXxK1M
Guns of SF is Tony?
Only way to not start Auba is if we have wingers and midfielders who score a lot. Lacazette has proven in the EPL that is not going to score enough goals, similar to Firmino. Pool have Salah, Mane, their full backs all scoring a lot. Up until lately we only really had Aubameyang. Maybe if Saka and Pepe add consistent goal threat, like they’ve done of late, we might think about not starting Auba in some games. But as of today, we’ve scored 34 goals in 26 games, which is 11th best attack in the league. Eleventh! Even vs Leicester… Read more »
Don is this guy who had a bleeding anus, his granny is Irish, he also has mild mental disorder.
Lately he has been on his best behaviour but its only a matter of time, till his jewish wife sends to the couch
<—- Holds hand up..
I'm not Don…. I prefer Auba to Lacazette. That's the Don Litmus test. 😀
Say something bad about Wilshere and the real ‘Don’ comes out.
I still think we can and should sometimes start ESR with Ode. But it depends on whether Partey is fully fit or not and who we are playing.. but at times a 4-1-4-1 would, imo be worth trying. _____Auba Pepe, Ode, ESR, Saka _____ Partey Tierney, CB, CB, Soares Give it a whirl see what happens. Also, Tunny to answer your earlier question I think Martinelli should be ahead of Willian in the substitutional/ rotation pattern. I think he is more of like for like replacement for Auba/ Pepe/ or Saka then Willian as he is direct and can score… Read more »
The way I see it… If we could somehow combine Laca and Auba into one player it would be ideal. But we can’t so… I always prefer the guy who scores more. That plus we already signed Auba up.. so we need him to be in form.
Afternoon all I see Barcagate has all kicked off today. Bartomeu and three former senior executives were arrested at their homes this morning following a complaint against Bartomeu and others for ‘unfair administration and corruption’. Bartomeu is not a popular man with the players or fans. It was going back on his word and the disgraceful way Messi’s mate Suarez left for Atleti that forced Messi’s transfer request. Bartomeu spent millions employing a Social media Company to spread false claims against players, Guardiola and anyone who had challenged him – one of the worst being the lie that the players… Read more »
Good summary there AFC.. yep it’s a real Clusterfock to be sure. There are plenty of people worldwide that would love to see them suffer and hit the gutter as well after they rubbed everyone’s nose in it…and dominated for ages. I don’t think they will garner much sympathy.
Emi comes for a very similar cross to the one sterling converted but from the other side and much more pace on it
2:17
Left footed out swinger identical to Mahrez’
No problems
Whinthorpe,
Actually a huge problem because none of the two are remotely like the Mahrez play.
The first one is about twice the distance and the second at least ten yards deeper.
This actually explains a lot.
Winthorpe
The two examples you highlighted in your link aren’t even remotely alike to the Mahrez play.
The first one is a set piece cross from 40yards away with Arsenal backline set up on top of the penalty area and Emi five yards out.
The second is also ten yards out of the penalty box so about 12 yards further away than the ball from Mahrez.
The fact you give these two examples is mind boggling really.
Middy
Best XI for attacking right there, Pepe or Martinelli could take the left side.
I wanna see just that vs Spurs.
Pierre
I’m not backtracking on anything.
Keepers dont shout “Away” at corners for defenders to clear the ball.
“Renown “for something must have a different meaning where you’re from.
Along with “obsessive “I suppose.
Thanks, Midwest. Yes, I don’t think people realise how much trouble Barca are actually in.
Any word if the Spanish cops found the Massimo Busacca payment stubs when they raided Barca offices?
AFCF: I sense a fire sale… If we had any money. Shame its not at RM, as we could get Ode and Dani on the cheap!. However, as is normally the case with the Spanish clubs, the local government will bail them out.
AFCF Thanks for that piece on footy corruption I enjoyed reading that. I know his star had waned rather by the time of the Jensen and Lydersen affair, but I recall being a little shaken by the GG scandal. It was a betrayal of that feeling of superiority that I’d allowed myself to seek refuge in when we were compared to other clubs. I also worshipped the bloke although helder and kiwomya dampened my ardour slightly. Twiching Harry – wot a fackin warscal he was eh? How he avoided HM Pentonville one will never know. Completely bent, seriously fick and… Read more »
Cheney/Kroenkephobe Yes, fire sale maybe. We know Real Madrid always get bailed out, the local authority always ready and willing but Barca is slightly different story. But this pandemic has left everyone struggling so this could get interesting. No doubt in recent years they have had bonkers management, whoever thought letting Suarez and Neymar go would be good. As for the money spent on some of those players, Coutinho and Griezzmann in particular. The Braithwaite deal was bananas, left field. Going to very interesting because in the past they had valuable player assets but not so now. They could be… Read more »
Barcelona has very bad problems no doubt, horrible reading at the very least That said Messi’s contract runs out in the summer. They could be in a better place if they avoid signing players like Dembele and Coutinho for extravagant fees for the next two years. Leo Messi is a generational talent and undoubtedly one of the GOAT footballers but those type of wages will sink any club. His last contract was reportedly A weekly €555,237,619 [POST TAX] four-year deal, It featured a €78m loyalty bonus and also includes a clause that saw him paid an extra €115m just to… Read more »
AFCF – Wouldn’t surprise me to see Raul dragged into this if they look far enough back. I was very much opposed to his joining us from day one given his involvement in the Neymar deal and the corruption with that one.
On corruption you probably recal that Clough was investigated around the same time as GG and was almost certainly guilty but the case was dropped due to his ill health. As usual the Arsenal man was made an example of while others likely equally guilty were allowed to get away with it.
C10,
I’m not sure the local government will be allowed to bail them out because when Germany had to bail Spain out, the Germans specifically mentioned that they are not to use the money lending to football clubs. I really really hope that’s the case.
**That should be weekly wages of about £500k net [post tax]
No sympathy for Barca here. Hope they get everything that they deserve.
Andy, yes that is true. My Grandfather when he was with us, always used to say Arsenal are treated differently. He said it was because we had always been known as the Bank of England Club – jealousy. As you say with Clough, so much of it was brushed under the carpet so I was surprised when Allardyce got caught red-handed; and he’s still treated like a media darling. Mind you, Harry Redknapp getting away with his serial swerves and those dog shenanigans is quite unbelievable. Imagine a football manager turning up and the judge believing he can’t read and… Read more »
Winthorpe.
If people are still arguing in the face of such overwhelming facts then you just wonder. I don’t even fucking need the stats. We were all over the place in defence last year till Leno got injured. Then Martinez came back and were cooking with gas. If that doesn’t prove anything then you need to give up on some people.
The Messi situation isn’t as clear cut as getting his wages off the book though. He is 33 but Barca never factored in the declining value of their asset in search of glory. Messi is huge in Barcelona, a large chunk of his salary is offset by huge amounts of money earned through shirts sales, merchandising and the value of sponsorship (Messi adds £££ to sponsorship). They need a bailout of some kind or a huge fire sale or else they are toast. It got so bad they lied about the players refusing to take a salary cut and then… Read more »
Andy and AFCF
I remember a documentary about Clough which suggested that he ran Forest like a private fiefdom. He was known to stroll into the Forest ticket office and just pick up a huge wedge of match tickets which he arranged to sell on, presumably via touts.
Forest played an LC final against Manure and there was serious crowd trouble at Wembley in the Forest end. It was proven that there were hundreds of Manure fans in the Forest end who, you guessed it, had bought the tickets that Clough had purloined from his ticket office.
Win
“Dembele and Griezmann could be going for decent decent money but Pedri Puig Fati and De Jong could be up for grabs”
If Barcelona put their entire first-team squad up for sale, who would you make a priority? I have to admit to always being a Coutinho fan, wouldn’t mind getting a Brazilain on the cheap.
* not ‘A’ Brazilian on the cheap, ‘The” Brazilian on the cheap. Some slips have to be corrected!
It would be something pretty special to see Barca asset stripped in that way. It could happen at Chelsea too if/when Abramovich’s ennui gets the better of him.
In that respect, I think we’d fare slightly better. Kroenke will eventually sell, I hope to someone who recognises Arsenal’s value.
An ideal scenario would be Barca sells off the family silver but then finds 50 mil down the back of a sofa to spunk on Bellerin. You can but dream…
Everyone says (yawn) that the table doesn’t lie and you can’t have a post Christmas table, and I know what the fuck I’m talking about.
Well, IF the table doesnt lie:
Martinez P 24 GA 26
Leno P 25 GA 26
Nothing in it, just saying…
And Aston Villa are above us in the table that doesn’t lie with game in hand, so they are better
Winthorpe
“I’m doing bikini waxing from my shed if you’re interested?”
Thanks for the very kind offer but you’ll only blunt your blades mate.
Kroenke, yes Fordstam were owed just short of a billion quid by the time Chelsea had bought all their trophies.
Tom
“Pierre
I’m not backtracking on anything.
Keepers dont shout “Away” at corners for defenders to clear the ball.”
Sorry, but they do.
Tom
Here is another link to educate you …
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.soccercoachweekly.net/soccer-drills-and-skills/goalkeeping/4-top-tips-goalkeepers/&ved=2ahUKEwia1NnWqpLvAhWlqHEKHYirCnMQFjAXegQIHhAC&usg=AOvVaw3QScIFmiubMIgm-fLu5M58&cshid=1614713108542
Tom.
“Communication
A goalkeeper’s “job description” includes organising the defence at set pieces and coming off her line to claim possession of the ball wherever possible.
To do that, your goalkeeper has to be vocal. A quiet call of “keeper’s” is no good. As soon as the decision is made to come for the ball, you should hear a loud shout of “KEEPER’S”.
When defenders hear this, they know the goalkeeper is coming and they should get out of the way. Conversely, a loud shout of “AWAY” means the goalkeeper is not coming and defenders should deal with the situation.”