That Old Familiar Arsenal Feeling

The start of the new season is drawing ever closer, and still Arsenal have far too many players they need to offload. The only player they have managed to sell so far is Carlos Vela, and they have to sell more to make room in their first team squad.

They faced a similar situation last summer, and ended up loaning out some of the players they couldn't offload. The big obstacle in their attempts to sell these players seems to be the wages paid to them by Arsenal. Unfortunately Arsenal have had to pay very high wages to promising players to ensure they stayed at the club, and these players don't always make the grade.

As a result Arsenal have had real difficulty in selling players like Nicklas Bentner, Denilson, Marouane Chamakh, Sebastien Squillaci, Andrey Arshavin, and Ju Young Park. Their combined wages and transfer fees would probably be enough to bring in the two players Arsene Wenger is still keen to sign. It does look like he will make those two signings anyway with Santi Cazorla and Nuri Sahin looking to be the most likely players to arrive.

Those who are supposedly "in the know" have being telling Arsenal fans for weeks that these two players signings are imminent. The chances are they will eventually be right, but nobody is truly in the know in my opinion. The only people who actually know what is happening are those involved in the negotiations in both clubs, and I would imagine the players too.

I think Cazorla would be a fantastic signing for Arsenal, and he could be the creative spark their midfield has being missing for quite a while now. With Jack Wilshere out of action until October I think the midfield needs some genuine quality added, and he certainly fits the bill. I just hope all of the rumours are right, and he dons the red Arsenal shirt very soon.

Of course the saga of Robin van Persie's expected departure continues, and it's effect on the other players and the fans is hard to judge. The players are continuing their preparation for the new season, but it cannot be easy for them to work with a player every day who would rather be elsewhere. I don't care what has been said about his supposed professionalism, as his statement from last month showed exactly how little of that he has.

For a club captain to undermine his own club in such a manner was quite incredible, and he will never be the same player again for me. Even if he stays for next season and sees out his contract I will find it hard to cheer him when he plays. The best solution for Arsenal is to be rid of him s soon as possible, and get on with the business of building a team with players who want to play for them.

As an Arsenal fan I have become used to players looking to leave the club, and the club have survived when better players than RVP have left. The most frustrating thing about the saga is how it is hanging over Arsenal's start to the new season. They have only one pre season game left before they face Sunderland in just over two weeks, and it's time for some action to be taken.

I know there is very little the club can do to get other clubs to increase their offers, but they have to think of what is best for the club as a whole. A disruptive influence cannot be allowed to fester at the club, and they need to cash in as soon as possible.

My ideal scenario would be for Arsenal to start the new season with all the above players I mentioned at new clubs, and a few new arrivals to bolster the squad. I can't see all of that happening in the next two weeks, but I hope it doesn't all come down to deadline day yet again. Last summer was a disastrous one for the club, and the transfer mayhem directly affected the team's start to the season.

It cannot be allowed to happen again, and I cannot imagine that it will. All the signs are that RVP will be sold, as new boy Lukasz Podolski has not been issued with a shirt number yet. I'm sure he would love to have RVP's number 10 shirt, but there is also the possibility of Park's number 9 being available very soon.

Finally for today I have to mention that my blog is four years old today. On this very day in 2008 I posted my first Arsenal blog on Oleole, and I have continued it on a very regular basis ever since. It's not always easy, but it certainly helps me to deal with my feelings for Arsenal by sharing them with others.

Hopefully I'll still be writing about Arsenal in another four years, and I'll have a few trophies to write about too.

Finally, finally for today don't forget to join my Fantasy Premier league for the new season with prizes for the top three teams. To join up just go to the site and use the code 17031-6252 to join my league when your team is set up. If you were in my league last season you should automatically be given a choice to rejoin it once your team is set up. There are over 400 teams in my league at the moment, and I'm hoping to match last season's total of over 1,000 teams.

That's it for today.

See you tomorrow.   

Can Gervinho Help Arsenal To Deliver A Premier League Title?

Arsenal finally announced yesterday that Gervinho had completed his move to the club from French double winners Lille. The player himself has said he is delighted to join Arsenal, and Arsene Wenger is very happy to have signed him too. Arsenal's perceived needs may be in their defence, but Gervinho should be a welcome addition to their forward line in my opinion.

Gervinho has a lot of qualities which will be beneficial to Arsenal, and he should get plenty of chances to display them in the coming season. With Nicklas Bendtner actively looking for a move and Marouane Chamakh and Carlos Vela not living up to expectations Arsenal needed to add some quality to their striking options. Gervinho can play in any of the three advanced roles in the Arsenal attack, and his signature will put some pressure on plenty of other players at the club.

Robin Van Persie cannot be expected to lead the line in every single game Arsenal play, and if Gervinho can take some off the weight off his shoulders it would be a great asset to Arsenal. Van Persie has had an injury ravaged career so far with Arsenal, but if he can stay fit there is no doubt that he is the man to score the goals for Arsenal. It would be great if Gervinho can fill in for him when he needs to be rested, and still keep the overall strength in the team.

Arsenal's current choices in their two wide positions are Theo Walcott, Samir Nasri and Andrei Arshavin, but Gervinho has the added benefit of being able to play on either side of the central striker. He managed 18 goals in all competitions for Lille last season, and he weighed in with quite a few assists as well. His inclusion in the Arsenal squad could see both Walcott's and Arshavin's places under severe pressure, and hopefully that will bring the best out of them.

Gervinho has the ability to take players on and beat them and in my opinion Arsenal need to add that quality to their team. There are other players in the team capable of doing so, but all too often they play square passes rather than attempt to beat their opponent. Arsenal's play has become far too predictable at times, and hopefully he can help to change that. 

He should have no problem whatsoever with Arsenal's style of play, as he has shown he has the technical ability required to fit in with the rest of the team. His ability to pick a pass and make chances for his teammates should take some of the pressure off Cesc Fabregas in that department. Cesc is still the best creator of chances in the top five leagues in Europe, but a little bit of help would not go astray.

When Arsenal fell apart at the end of last season they became very predictable for their opponents, as there was a lack of movement and penetration in the team. They had a few very costly home games in the Premier League when they failed to score against mediocre opposition. In those games a player with Gervinho's movement might just have made the difference to enable Arsenal to score the vital breakthrough goal.

He looks to be a very promising signing, but unless the defence can also be bolstered Arsenal will still find it very hard to win the trophies their players and fans crave. The lack of strength in depth of their defence was cruelly exposed last season, and it has to be addressed. The ideal scenario would be for the players needed to arrive as soon as possible, so that they can learn to play with the rest of the team before the season starts.

However, if that isn't possible Wenger still has to strive to bring them in right up until the last minute before the transfer window closes. If he doesn't manage to do so I fear the signing of Gervinho will have been in vain as Arsenal will again concede too many goals to claim their first trophy in what will be seven years when this season ends. 

That's it for today.

Here's a little bit of Gervinho at his best.

See You Tomorrow.

Arsenal Season Review 2010/11: The Attack.

It seems like an age since I started my season review, and I finally get to finish it today with my judgement on Arsenal's attack for last season. Arsenal managed to score 119 goals in all competitions last season, and that was a fairly impressive return in 58 games. I'll attempt to run through the contribution of each of their attacking players, and see if they are good enough to play at the level Arsenal aspire to.

Robin Van Persie is Arsenal's first choice striker and when he returned from the World Cup he sat out the first couple of games of the season. He made his first start away to Blackburn Rovers, but he lasted just over half an hour before his injury jinx struck again. When he returned from injury he was eased back into the team for a while, but once he returned to full fitness he showed exactly how good he is.

He only started 19 league games last season, but he managed to score 18 goals in those games. He was only three goals away from being the outright top scorer in the Premier League despite missing half of the season, and if he can somehow play a full season the sky is the limit for him. He managed 22 goals in all competitions and it was his best total in any season for Arsenal.

I love to watch RVP play as he wears his love for Arsenal on his sleeve, and Arsenal need more players with his desire and commitment. If only he wasn't so injury prone he would be the best striker in the Premier League, and one of the very best in the world. He seems to have found the ability to find space in the box to score goals from almost any position, and he has developed a great understanding with Cesc Fabregas.

On the down side RVP's free kicks were a long way from his best last season, and I think he needs to practice them a lot more. He used to be deadly from free kicks on the right hand side, but this season they have tended to go straight into the wall. It's a very minor complaint, and I'm sure it's one he will put right next season.

When Arsenal's season fell apart towards the end of the season RVP kept playing well and scoring goals. He could do no more as he carried the team all on his own at times, as he scored in Arsenal's last nine away games in a row. Hopefully he can start next season off in the form that he finished last season.

Marouane Chamakh joined Arsenal on a free transfer last summer after he saw out his contract at Bordeaux, and it was thought he would be used sparingly at first, as he eased his way into the English style of football. However, the early injury to RVP saw him take over the role as Arsenal's main striker with Nicklas Bendtner injured as well. He played very well in those games, as his goals and link up play helped to keep Arsenal in the title race.

Around the time RVP came back from injury there was a story that Chamakh was feeling fatigued from the tough half season he had. When he did get chances for the rest of the season that fatigue looked evident, as he failed to reproduce his early season form. The goals dried up for him, and he was a pale shadow of the player on display for the first half of the season.

I like Chamakh but I am not sure exactly how good he is. He lacks pace which means he tends to cut back on the ball too often, even when he is played through with only the opposing keeper to beat. His heading ability is second to none, but Arsenal are not known for their ability to put good crosses into the box.

I think Arsenal will buy another striker this summer, and Chamakh might find his chances even more limited. If that is the case he will have to take those chances when they come his way. At least he won't be complaining of fatigue if he spends a lot of time on the bench.

Nicklas Bendtner played for Denmark in the World Cup last summer despite the fact he was carrying an injury. It meant he missed out on the start of the season for Arsenal, and he also probably missed his last real chance to stake a claim for a place in the Arsenal team. If he had been fit for those early games I think he would have got his chance in his favoured position ahead of Chamakh.

When he eventually recovered from injury he spent a lot of his time playing in a wide role, and he wasn't happy with it. He has stated his desire to leave Arsenal this summer, as he wants to play first team football. I can't blame him for wanting to leave, as I can't see the point of playing him in a wide role.

He looked very ordinary at times last season, but every so often he does something which makes him look like a very good player. I was at the game against Burnley in March 2010 when he missed five or six absolute sitters, but only four days later he scored a Champions League hat trick against Porto. If he could reproduce that form on a consistent basis he might just become the player he seems to believe he is already.

Samir Nasri was absolutely fantastic for the first half of the season, as he looked to show France they were wrong not to bring him to the World Cup. With other players missing through injury or not playing at their best he was by far Arsenal's best player up until the turn of the year. If he had continued that form for the rest of the season he might well have been voted the best player in the Premier League, but his performances dipped.

It's hard to know why he didn't maintain his excellent start to the season, but there were a few possible reasons. Arsene Wenger continually played him in a wide role, but I think Nasri wanted to play Cesc's role when Cesc wasn't playing at least. However, he was played on the left of the Arsenal attacking three even when Cesc didn't play, and it may have affected his performances.

He put in some of his very best displays filling in for Cesc, and it's hard to understand why he didn't take that role every time Cesc was out. He looks like he will become the player Arsenal hoped he would be, but unfortunately he might fulfill his potential at another club. As it stands he has only one year left on his contract, and he is holding out for a huge wage rise.

If Nasri and his agent don't get the money they want the chances are Arsenal will have to sell him, or he will be able to leave on a free transfer next summer. Arsenal cannot afford to let him go on a free transfer which only leaves them with the option of selling him this summer if the issue cannot be resolved. As the days go by Arsenal fans are losing patience with Nasri, and he will soon reach the point where his apparent greed will turn them against them.

I would love to see Nasri sign a new contract and continue his progress at Arsenal, but he cannot be allowed to hold the club to ransom. He wants to be paid as much as Cesc, and he is nowhere near as good as Cesc at the moment. If he stays I'm sure he will earn even more money if he continues to improve and show more consistency, but if he goes he can be replaced.

Theo Walcott reckons he has had his bet season ever for Arsenal, and he only missed 10 of their 38 Premier League games. Only RVP and Nasri managed to score more goals that Walcott, but despite all of that he still fails to convince far too often. At times he looks world class as he streaked through on goal and finished with ease past the advancing keeper.

However, on other occasions he looked like he simply didn't know what he was doing, as he ran past defenders without the ball or just ran straight into them. He does an awful lot to help Bacary Sagna out when he plays on the right, and that part of his game cannot be overlooked. He has made it known that he would like to play as a central striker, and Wenger has said he sees that as his ideal role in the team in the long term.

Walcott would probably do even better if Arsenal had more opportunities to play on the break, but opponents tend to sit deep and invite Arsenal on to them. A lot of his impact is lost when he can't get to run in behind advancing defenders, and he did well to score the 13 goals he got last season. If he can continue to progress he can possibly become the player his potential suggested he might become, but it is by no means certain.

I hope Walcott can progress to the next level, and he is still very young. He can have a better impact against some of the better sides t times, as they are more prepared to come out and play against Arsenal. I think he has made the right side of the front three his own, and next season might just be the season for him.

Andrey Arshavin is a difficult player to figure out sometimes. He can be fantastic one minute, but he can look totally disinterested the next minute. If he was more consistent he would be one of the very best players in the Premier League in my opinion.

It can be very frustrating to see him lying on the ground after he has lost the ball, as others attempt to win it back or cover for him. He looks like he doesn't want to be on the pitch at times, as he strolls around and does very little, but suddenly he comes alive and the opposition pay the price. Like so many other Arsenal players he would prefer to play in the role just behind the striker, but it's a role he rarely gets to play.

He turned 30 last month, and the chances are he won't be at Arsenal for more than another year or two at the most. He needs to get his head down and apply himself to each and every minute he plays, but the chances are he won't always be a first choice selection. When Wenger had all of his attacking options available to him last season Arshavin spent a lot of time on the bench, and I suspect next season will be no different for him.


Carlos Vela had to spend a few seasons out on loan after Arsenal had signed him before he was able to play in England. He is a player who had massive potential when he signed, but he has rarely got the chance to show what he can do in the Arsenal team. The only games he started last season were in the Carling Cup, and he only made four substitute appearances in the Premier League for Arsenal.

He was loaned out to West Bromwich Albion in the new year, but he rarely got to start there either, and he needs to get some first team action. When he does play he is usually deployed on the left side of the front three, but his best position is a central one. He has an uncanny ability to chip the keeper when he gets the slightest chance to do so, but he appears to be sliding down the order at Arsenal.

If Bendtner leaves and another striker is signed the chances are Vela will be the fourth choice striker again, and he could even be fifth choice if Walcott is given a chance in a central role. I can't see him staying at the club too much longer if he doesn't get to play, and that would seem to be his fate. I hope he does get a chance and he takes it, but I sincerely doubt that will happen.

That's it for my summary of Arsenal's forwards for last season, and my season review is almost over too. If each player is judged individually they performed well enough last season, but as a unit Arsenal just didn't perform well enough for the whole season.

Arsenal look to finally have a goalkeeper who is good enough for a team challenging for honours, and hopefully both Szczesny and Fabianski can continue to improve. Changes have to be made to Arsenal's defence and how they defend set pieces, and I hope Wenger has the ability to bring in the players needed to make that happen.

Arsenal need to find more urgency in midfield at times, and they need to play each game as if it is their most important game of the season. There can be no more games where Arsenal simply fail to perform until the last 2o minutes, and hope to undo any damage in the later stages of the game. If Cesc stays at the club and manages to stay fit for the whole season I think the midfield will find the drive it needs.

I'm not so worried about the strikers once RVP is available, as I have a feeling next season will be his season. A suitable backup for him might need to be found in case of injury, but if he stays injury free I think Arsenal will score even more goals next season.

The season just passed can only be judged as a failure, as Arsenal failed to win a trophy, and they slipped back to fourth in the league too. There was a Carling Cup final appearance, but unfortunately a last minute mishap cost Arsenal a chance of winning that trophy.

There's a long summer ahead with plenty of transfer activity expected, but it will probably be September 1st before Arsenal's chances for next season can be assessed properly.

That's it for today.

Here's a look at RVP at his best.

See You Tomorrow.

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Which Arsenal Players Will Be On The Move This Summer? - Part Two.

I started this feature yesterday by running through some of the more important members of the Arsenal team, and the chances of them being sold this summer. Personally I would like Arsenal to keep all of their best players, but I also know players can move to other clubs for various reasons. Money is always a big factor, and the desire to win trophies can be important to some players too. I know Arsenal pay their players very well, but they cannot compete with the money on offer from teams who make no attempt to balance their books, and instead depend upon donations from the mega-wealthy.

If Arsenal are going to be competitive at the very top of the game, then they need to have better players than Denilson as back up to their first team regulars. He's in a very difficult situation at the club, as the feelings of the fans become more obvious with each game he plays. I'm sure he should be able to find a club where he can become a regular, and thrive on the chance to play every week. Every team has to have players who don't get to play regularly, but those players need to show what they are capable of when the chance arrives, and Denilson just cannot do that in my opinion. With Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere now making themselves far more important for Arsenal I think his first team chances will be very limited if he stays. If I had my way Arsenal would sell Denilson, and I think Henri Lansbury would be more than capable of stepping up, and doing a better job than him when called upon.

Abu Diaby is another player who divides opinion among Arsenal players, and many of them would be happy to see him sold this summer. It's now been five years since he had his leg horribly broken against Sunderland, and although he has managed to come back, he is clearly still suffering from the effects of that injury in my opinion. I can't remember Diaby ever being available for more than four or five games in a row, before succumbing to another niggling injury associated with the leg break. I'm sure he rues the day he had his leg shattered by Dan Smith, and who knows where his career would have gone if it hadn't happened.

The reality for Arsenal is Diaby is only available to play roughly half of their games in a season, and he gets very well paid for that. It's tough to know what his best position is, but it would probably be as an attacking midfielder. Arsenal have an awful lot of attacking midfielders at the moment, and Diaby's appearances are usually limited to filling in for Alex Song in a defensive role. His habit of holding on to the ball for too long can be very infuriating, and at his stage in his career he needs to be playing more regularly. He will be 25 years old in a few weeks, and it seems as if he will never fully recover from the leg break. It's hard to know what clubs would be interested in signing him if Arsenal decided to sell him, but I suppose there are bound to be some.

It goes without saying that Manuel Almunia needs to leave Arsenal for his good, and the good of the club as well. I have never thought he was a good enough player to play for a club which wants to compete at the very highest level, and it seems Arsene Wenger eventually agrees with that opinion. He would have been sold last summer, but no replacement could be found. He was going to be sold in the January transfer window, but Arsenal suddenly developed an injury crisis among their goalkeepers. I will be absolutely amazed if he is still an Arsenal player next season.

Unfortunately due to the injury crisis among Arsenal's goalkeepers, he is now first choice for at least the next four weeks, and it puts fear in the heart of almost every single Arsenal fan. On the Arsenal bench there is only Jens Lehmann, and at 41 years of age it's probably too much of a risk to play him. It means Arsenal have to put their faith in Almunia for the next few weeks, and there will be a lot of fingernail biting among their fans every time the ball enters their penalty area. I don't blame Almunia for the current state of affairs, and he must be feeling like he is living through a nightmare. He wanted to leave in January, the fans have no faith in him, but he still finds himself as Arsenal's first choice.


If you were to believe what Nicklas Bendtner says, he is one of the best players at the club, and maybe in the world too. When he gets his chance to play for Arsenal he doesn't always show that ability he claims to have. He has managed to score some very important goals at times when Robin Van Persie has been injured, but he is one of the players who really divides Arsenal's fans opinions. He has hinted in the past that he would consider moving elsewhere if he could not command a regular first team place, but as long as RVP is fit he will more than likely warm the bench.

When he does play, his first touch can be a long way short of the rest of the Arsenal team, and he can look slow and awkward at times too. He gets played on the right wing at times as well, and it clearly does not suit him, but at least he tries his best. I think he has an awful lot to learn about how to play the role of a centre forward, and he doesn't seem to be learning it quickly enough for me. Ideally I would like Arsenal to sign a top class centre forward to challenge RVP for a first team place, and take the role when RVP is inevitably injured again. If that means Bendtner decides to move on, I could live with that, but otherwise I think he will stay for at least one more season.

The last player to look at today is Carlos Vela, and again he's a player who divides opinion among Arsenal fans. When he was bought by Arsenal he was seen as a bright young star of the future, but he had to be loaned out to various Spanish clubs, as he wasn't eligible to play in England. When he eventually arrived at Arsenal he hadn't quite lived up to his potential in Spain, but he still looked like he was a great prospect. At the moment he is on loan at West Brom, and he has scored a couple of important goals for them recently, but he still can't command a regular place in their team.

He is a very skillful player, and his ability to chip the keeper when faced with a one-on-one is unrivalled, but he has had very few opportunities at Arsenal in reality. When he has played, it has usually been on the left side of the front three, despite the fact Wenger says he's one of the best finishers he has ever seen. It's very hard to see how he will get more opportunities at Arsenal, but I have a feeling he will be kept for at least one more season.


If all of those players were to be sold in the summer it would leave a hole in the Arsenal squad, but I think the purchase of two top class players would make up for that. The savings in wages could be used to pay for those two players, and a few of the reserves are capable of stepping up to the first team squad as well. With Ramsey hopefully back to his best next season, and Lansbury looking capable of stepping up too, I would be happy enough to see them both play a bigger role for Arsenal next season.

That's it for today.

Here's a look at some of Patrick Vieira's best goals for Arsenal.

See You Tomorrow.

Arsenal's FA Cup Game With huddersfield Previewed.

I haven't written anything about Arsenal in a few days as I decided to take a bit of a break between the Ipswich Town game and tomorrow's game against Huddersfield. Sometimes it can be very difficult to come up with something that you feel is worth writing about, and it can really ruin your night's sleep. I have spent many night's up until the small hours doing my best to finish off what I had started, and ended up going to work after four or five hours sleep. However, the few days rest have done me the world of good, and I'm raring to go.

To be honest there wasn't an awful lot to report during those few days, but there is a match for Arsenal tomorrow. It's back to FA Cup action as Huddersfield come calling to the Emirates for a fourth round clash. In the last round Arsenal had a home game against Championship promotional hopefuls Leeds United, but they made hard work of it, and ended up going through after a replay. That was an extra game that Arsenal could have done without, and there can be no room for any such slip in this game.

Huddersfield are in third place in League One, and they're only outside the automatic promotion places on goal difference. Their priority this season is obviously their attempt to gain promotion to the Championship, and the FA Cup is nothing more than a good chance to earn a little bit of extra money for their club, and possibly show up one of the big boys. They can approach the game with no fear, as there are no expectations for them to succeed, and that's the one thing that they have in their favour.

Arsenal are overwhelming favourites to win of course, and quite rightly so, as they are in second place in the Premier League, and through to the last 16 of the Champions League, as well as the Carling Cup final. Huddersfield can only dream of achievements like that, but if they could manage any sort of result tomorrow it would be their taste of the big time.

There was a time when Huddersfield were the best team in England, after the won the league title three years in a row from 1924 to 1926 under the management of Herbert Chapman for most of that time. When he left Huddersfield in 1925 he moved to Arsenal, and it was under his guidance that Arsenal became the major force in English football in the 1930s. During that decade Arsenal won five league titles, as well as two FA Cups, and they managed three of those league titles in a row. Sadly Chapman didn't live to see all of those trophies in the Arsenal cabinet, as he died in 1934, but there is no doubt that he laid the groundwork for Arsenal becoming one of England's major football clubs.

There is a current connection between the clubs, as Arsenal youth player Benik Afobe is on loan at Huddersfield until the end of the season, but due to FA regulations he won't be available to play for them against Arsenal. He's one of a host of Arsenal players out on loan at the moment, and the latest player to join that group is Carlos Vela. He has joined West Brom on loan until May, and hopefully he will get a good deal of first team action, as he seems to have slipped very far down the pecking order at Arsenal.

There are a few players returning to the Arsenal squad after injury for this game, and the chances are that some of them will play. Manuel Almunia, Sebastien Squillaci, Abu Diaby and Tomas Rosicky are all available again after various spells out through injury or illness, and I would imagine that at least two of them will play. I can't see Almunia starting, after four months out of the team, and Diaby is a player who gets injured very often, so I think he will be eased back into the team. That will probably mean that both Squillaci and Rosicky will play, along with a lot of other players who wouldn't be considered first choice at the moment.

Arsene Wenger said yesterday that Wojciech Szczesny is Arsenal's first choice keeper, and he has done nothing to be taken out of the team. With Lukasz Fabianski injured, and Almunia just back from injury I think that Szczesny looks set to keep the keeper's shirt for the rest of the season. He looks like he has the makings of a really top class goalkeeper, and hopefully he will be one of the best goalkeepers in the world for years to come. The real tests for him will come when Arsenal play Barcelona, "Manure" and some of the other top teams, but I think he is up to the task, and he will prove it. Of course he's bound to have the odd setback, but the fundamentals of his game are first class, and he has the confidence that goalkeepers need.

For a change I'm not going to go too deeply into what I think the starting 11 will be for Arsenal, but with a Premier League game against Everton on Tuesday night there are bound to be plenty of fringe players on show. I think Kieran Gibbs, Emmanuel Eboue, Laurent Koscielny, Denilson, Samir Nasri, Marouane Chamakh, Nicklas Bendtner and Andrei Arshavin  will all play as well the three others players I mentioned. The reason I think Nasri will play is because Arsenal need a player to pull the strings in midfield, and he sat out the midweek victory over Ipswich.

Arsenal's biggest enemy is complacency, but hopefully they have put that problem behind them, after the poor shows in the first games against both Leeds and Ipswich. Despite the fact that it's a second string Arsenal team there will be enough talent on show to cause Huddersfield more trouble than they can cope with. The players need to use every inch of the pitch, and move the ball at a tempo that the top Premier League clubs find it difficult to cope with. It's usually very easy to tell from an early stage whether Arsenal have turned up or not, as the tempo for the match is usually set in the first 10 minutes by them.

Earlier in the season Chamakh was Arsenal's only fit striker, and he played very well as they stayed in contention at the top of the league. Since the return of Robin Van Persie he has slipped from the first team to the substitutes bench, and when he has played he hasn't looked particularly good. He was originally bought to act as cover for RVP, but the injury that RVP picked up against Blackburn early in the season meant that he had to play in every game. As Bendtner was injured too, it meant that there was no rest at all for him, and I think that the pace of the game in the Premier League took it's toll on him. I hope that he has managed to revive himself enough to come back stronger for the remainder of the season, as I think he still has an important part to play for Arsenal.

Ideally he will get the chance against Huddersfield to score a goal or two, and it's amazing what a goal can do for a striker's confidence. His heading ability is next to none, and he has very good feet too. He can bring other players into the game, and he leads the line excellently. It would seem that the only thing missing from his game is pace, but from what I have seen that has hampered his game quite a bit at times. When he is played through on the keeper he quite often tries to cut back, or looks to play a pass, rather than going for goal. If he could just find that killer instinct in that position, I think he would find himself getting a lot more opportunities.


I'm on a pretty good run of predictions at the moment, as I have got the scoreline right in Arsenal's last three games. Runs like that don't tend to last too long, and the only sure way to get is wrong is for me to place a bet on the result. I won't be doing that though, but I will predict another victory for Arsenal, as I think that they will run out 3-0 victors on the day. I hope that Chamakh plays, as I said above, and if he does I think he will get himself a goal.

This is Arsenal's last game in a very busy month, when they had to play nine games, but they won't be quite so busy in February when they will only play six or seven games. Hopefully they will get a win today, as a draw would mean a replay on the Saturday of the fifth round, and they would possibly be playing catch up on the other teams after that. With a Champions League game at home to Barcelona, and a Carling Cup final against Birmingham Arsenal are going to have some very big games in February, and an FA Cup replay is something that is not needed. The drawn game with Leeds made January that much harder, and hopefully the manager can impress upon the players the importance of winning at the first attempt against Huddersfield.

Arsenal's appearance in that Carling Cup final against Birmingham means that their Premier League game away to the Spuds has been postponed, and as yet it has not been rescheduled. It means that the game will be played later in the season, and that could be very late depending on how far Arsenal go in the Champions League and the FA Cup. It would of course be nice to win the league at their ground, or even to celebrate St. Totteringham's Day, and doing the two of them at the one time would be ideal.


Tomorrow's game starts at mid-day, and even if I wanted to I couldn't watch it in the supporters club, as the pubs in Ireland don't open until 12.30pm on a Sunday. I can only imagine what sort of time Arsenal fans in the USA have to get up at to watch the game, and I don't envy them at all. I'll hopefully be back tomorrow afternoon with a review of the game against Huddersfield, and then on Monday I'll preview the upcoming midweek Premier League fixtures. That's the lot for today.

Here's a look at how good Chamakh was earlier in the season.

See You Tomorrow.

Arsenal Just About Get A Draw Against Leeds In The FA Cup.

First things first, I have to apologise for the extreme lateness of my match report, but events have again transpired against me. With two laptops and a PC in the house you would think that I would have permanent access to the internet, but alas it was not so today. My son's laptop charger died a few days ago, and the replacement is currently in transit, and then my laptop charger died this morning. My PC is currently being overused by my eldest son on his latest college project, so I have had to give him priority today, and I'm only getting to use it now. I'll do my best to try to get things back to normal as soon as possible.

On to the important matters and as expected Arsene Wenger made wholesale changes to the Arsenal team for the FA Cup third round game at home to Leeds United. The team was more or less as I had expected with the exception of Johan Djourou and Marouane Chamakh starting. I didn't think that Djourou would be up to playing for the third time in a week, but as he did I can only imagine that he has managed to fully recover from the injury that kept him out for all of last season. I thought that Chamakh might sit this game out on the bench, as I thought Carlos Vela playing on the left would give the team a little more balance.

It meant that Alex Song and Denilson played in midfield with Tomas Rosicky in front of them playing the creative role. I had a feeling that Cesc Fabregas would have filled that role, as I think his inclusion from the start would have ensured an Arsenal win. With Nicklas Bendtner asked to play in a wide right role the team looked a little unbalanced to me. I'm of the opinion that it's better to start a couple of the star performers, and take them off when the game has been secured rather than asking them to save the game late on.

From the start Arsenal were sloppy in possession, and I thought that Alex Song was the worst culprit of all. He looked like he was strolling through the game to me, and maybe he thought that he shouldn't be playing in what was basically a second string side. There were other players on the day who didn't perform too well, and as the game progressed the crowd's frustration with Andrey Arshavin grew louder and louder. I know Arshavin can be a frustrating player, but if the crowd get on his back any more than they are at the moment, I don't think that he will be at the club next season. Surely Arsenal are a better team with him in the squad than not in it.

During the course of the game he missed one very good chance in the first half when Rosicky played him in for a one on one with the keeper. He also had a very good snap shot well saved by Kasper Schmeichel, and he played Theo Walcott in for a one on one towards the end, but Walcott wasted it. I think the frustrations with him are partly because he has so much ability, but the application that is needed to go with that ability seems to be missing at times. If he could cut out the silly flicks that never seem to work I think the fans might be a little more forgiving. It is so annoying to see him needlessly waste possession, and then fall to the ground, as others chase back to try to regain it.

Getting back to the game it was always possible that Leeds would score a goal on one of their rare ventures forward, and the longer Arsenal went without scoring the more nervous the fans became. After their sloppy start Arsenal did manage to pick things up a little, and besides the great chance for Arshavin there were a few other chances in the first half, but they failed to take any of them. Half time arrived with the scoreboard still blank, and Arsenal needing to up the pace to make sure they didn't have to face a replay or even an exit. Despite the relatively poor display at that stage I still felt that the victory would come, as Leeds were having to work very hard to keep Arsenal out.

When the first goal came it was from a penalty after nine minutes of the second half, but it wasn't Arsenal who got it. Denilson was very sloppy when tackling a Leeds player who had been allowed into the Arsenal box in possession far too easily. The Leeds player quite rightly went down under the challenge, and Robert Snodgrass just about beat Wojciech Szczesny with his penalty.

Surely that was the catalyst that Arsenal needed to wake them from their slumber, but still the pressure was coming to nothing. Cesc was introduced after an hour for the ineffective Song, and then Theo Walcott came on for the equally ineffective Chamakh after 68 minutes. Arsenal upped the pace gradually, but as time ran out it looked like Arsene Wenger's proud record of never losing in the third round of the FA Cup was coming to an end. He had also never lost an FA Cup tie to lower league opposition, and that record was another one under severe threat.

With 79 minutes gone Carlos Vela came on for Tomas Rosicky who was on a yellow card, and was probably one more foul away from a second one. He may not have had too long to make an impression, but Vela didn't take his chance anyway, as I can't remember seeing him do anything of note in the 15 minutes he got. Others were trying harder though, and the other two substitutes were the most notable. Cesc did all he could to create chances for others, and Walcott was continually trying to get in behind the Leeds defence.

Things looked bleak as the game entered it's last minute of normal time, and when Arsenal rightfully had a penalty appeal turned down I thought that their last chance was gone. However, within a minute of that appeal Arsenal did earn themselves a penalty, and it was that man Walcott who was fouled. Bendtner played him in behind the Leeds full back, who pulled at his arm enough to put him off balance, but Walcott continued and got his shot in. When Schmeichel again saved the shot the referee blew for the penalty, and Cesc stepped up to try to earn Arsenal a replay. He waited for Schmeichel to dive, and then calmly stroked the ball down the middle and into the net.

Cesc did his best to get the ball back, and get the game going again, as Arsenal wanted another goal to save themselves from having to travel for the replay. In the four added minutes Arsenal could have had another three goals, but Bendtner and Walcott missed chances, and Schmeichel made a great save from a Denilson shot. To be fair to Leeds they deserved the draw after a very good display, and they will be no pushovers in that replay. When they were 1-0 up Szczesny made a great save from a Luciano Becchio penalty, and that probably kept Arsenal in the game. The final whistle came, and the Leeds players were delighted and a little disappointed too, as they had come so close to a great victory.

Arsenal had hoped to have a week off between their Premier League games against West Ham and Wigan, but instead they will have an FA Cup replay against Leeds. It's not the end of the world, but with the Carling Cup semi finals to come as well it all makes for a very busy schedule. If things continue as they are at the moment Arsenal are going to have a very busy schedule as the season draws to an end. I'm sure the boss would rate the FA Cup as a better trophy to win than the Carling Cup, but I'm also sure that he is not happy at adding another game to the ones Arsenal have to play. The reason for having a replay falls on his shoulders though, as the team he picked again was not up to the task required of them, which was also the case in the draw with Wigan last week.

After the game Walcott said that he had dived in the first penalty incident, and he apologised to the managers of both teams for that. He said he's not the sort of player to dive, as it's something he doesn't want to see in the game. He's received a fair deal of criticism for admitting to it, and also for diving. I hope it was a one off, and that we won't see it again, but it did seem to be a spur of the moment thing, and you never know what you might do in the spur of the moment. I do know that he won't find it quite so easy to get penalties in future after his admission. It's not as bad as a player winning a penalty by diving, and denying it afterwards, but it will only add to the cheating chants directed at Arsenal by opposing fans.

The draw was made for the fourth round of the FA Cup, and if Arsenal can overcome Leeds in the replay they will have a home tie against Huddersfield Town in three weeks time. The route to the last 16 of the FA Cup is there for all to see, and the boss has to consider that in his team selections. I think that he cannot make so many changes and expect the team to perform well. At least two or three of the best players will have to play to ensure that events don't go like they did yesterday, and we will if he decides that against Ipswich on Wednesday night in the first leg of the Carling Cup semi final away from home.

Ipswich were thrashed 7-0 by Chelsea in the FA Cup today, and they sacked their manager last Friday. Arsenal need to make sure that they don't get the chance for a moral boosting victory on Wednesday night, by putting out a team that will beat them, and beat them in style. I'll preview that game on Wednesday morning, and between now and then I'll do my best to keep up to date with all that is happening in the world of Arsenal.

That's it for today.

Here's the highlights from yesterday's game.

See You Tomorrow.

Arsenal's FA Cup Game With Leeds Utd Previewed.

Arsenal get a welcome break from the Premier League this weekend, as it's time for the FA Cup third round. After four Premier League games in 10 days I'm sure that the players will be delighted to great a break, as the boss gives some of the less regular members of the squad a chance to show what they can do.

The FA Cup is a trophy that Arsenal have won four times under Arsene Wenger, and it was the last trophy that he won back in 2005. For a few years now Arsenal have been accused of not taking the FA Cup seriously enough, as they have fielded weakened teams with the pursuit of other trophies being the priority.
Since they last won the FA Cup in 2005 they have only played in one semi final, and that ended in a 2-1 defeat to Chelsea in 2009. On that day the boss chose to omit Andrey Arshavin who was clearly Arsenal's best player at the time. After taking an early lead Arsenal were pegged back, and Arshavin only came on when it was too late. Hopefully the team that is chosen against Leeds will be strong enough to ensure qualification for the fourth round.

The latest squad news is that Laurent Koscielny, Jack Wilshere, Samir Nasri and Robin Van Persie will all be rested, and Bakary Sagna is of course serving the first game of his three game ban. The players added to the squad are Kieran Gibbs, Aaron Ramsey and Carlos Vela, and they will all hope to play all or some of the game. The return of Ramsey will be a welcome sight, and I'm sure he will get a fantastic reception from the fans. His loan spell at Nottingham Forest went very well, and it's been almost a year since he played for Arsenal after Ryan Shawcross decided to snap his leg in two.


I would be fairly sure that Wojceich Szczesny will take over in goals from Lukasz Fabianski for the FA Cup, and I'm looking forward to seeing how he performs. He looks like he is an outstanding prospect for the future, and I fully expect him to make the goalkeeper's shirt his own when he gets the chance to do so. I'm not saying that Fabianski hasn't done well since he has been in the team, but I just think that Szczesny is the future for Arsenal.

I think that Gibbs will probably play at left back, as Gael Clichy has had a back problem for quite a while now, and the rest will do him a lot of good. Emmanuel Eboue is sure to play at right back as Sagna is suspended, and Sebastien Squillaci should be one of the centre backs. I think that Alex Song will probably play alongside him in the centre of defence, as I doubt Johan Djourou will be risked. The boss has said that he doesn't like to play him twice in a week, as he still hasn't fully recovered from the injury that kept him out for a year, and he played against both Birmingham and Man City already in the last week.

In midfield Denilson and Tomas Rosicky should both start, and I wouldn't be too surprised to see Cesc Fabregas in front of them, as long as he is up to the task. Arsenal will need somebody to create the chances for them, and who better than Cesc to fill that role. It's a game I would like to have seen Henri Lansbury play in, but I think he's still out on loan at Norwich City.

The biggest problem for the boss will probably be which three players get the nod in the attacking positions. I think Andrey Arshavin is sure to play, and I think that Nicklas Bendtner will probably play too. That leaves one place between Marouane Chamakh and Carlos Vela, and I have a feeling that Vela will be chosen on the left hand side. That will probably mean that Chamakh will start on Wednesday night against Ipswich Town in the Carling Cup semi final first leg.

That's a team that is more than capable of beating a team in fifth place in the Championship with only 11 wins in 26 league games. Leeds like to score goals, but they have also conceded quite a few goals this season, and their defence will have it's work cut out in this game. I think that there will be quite a few goals in this game, and I think Arsenal will get most of them. I'm predicting a 4-2 win for Arsenal, and I wonder what odds I would get on a result like that.

Arsenal have never lost to lower league opposition in the FA Cup under Arsene Wenger, and I don't think that statistic will change in this game. Leeds' fall from grace was very quick, and it was a lesson in what can happen to teams that spend more than they can afford. It took them a while to get out of League One, but they have a decent chance of getting promoted to the Premier League this season. It has to be remembered that they managed a great win away to "Manure" at this stage in the FA Cup last season, and Arsenal have to be aware of the threat they pose.

Arsenal need to approach this game with the same attitude that they did against Chelsea, Birmingham and Man City, and not the one that a lot of the players on view today showed against Wigan. With a Carling Cup semi final to come on Wednesday some of these players will be hoping to play in that match as well. The best way to ensure a place in the team against Ipswich is for those players to put on a performance against Leeds that will make the boss pick them again. Let's hope that plenty of Arsenal players put in those performances, and prove the boss's faith in his squad to be right.

The boss said that Bacary Sagna has apologised for his sending off against Man City. He added that Sagna has not received the protection he deserves from referees in recent games, and when Zabaleta insulted him he overreacted. Thankfully two of the three games he will be suspended for are cup games, and Eboue should be able to cover for him in those games, and the Premier League game against West Ham as well.

The boss also said that he expects Samir Nasri to extend his contract in the summer. He has met Nasri's agent already, and he said that the job should be finished in the summer. Nasri will only have one year left on his contract in the summer, and that can be a dangerous thing, but I hope that the boss is right and Nasri stays. He has been arguably Arsenal's best player this season, and I think there is a lot more to come from him.

The boss said that Eden Hazard will not be joining Arsenal in the current transfer window. He said that Arsenal have enough options in the offensive department, and that Carlos Vela and Jay Emmanuel Thomas will both probably go out on loan. He also added that Arsenal will have a look at the situation at the end of the season.

That's it for today.

Here's Thierry Henry showing us how to score against Leeds.

That's it for today.

See You Tomorrow.

Arsenal's Trip To Birmingham Previewed.

After the disappointment of dropping two points to Wigan on Wednesday night Arsenal are straight back into Premier League action today with a tough trip to play Birmingham City. The game kicks off at 5.30pm which means that it's live on TV and Arsenal fans won't have to spend hours trawling through rubbish to find a good stream like a lot of them had to do on Wednesday night.

Of course the TV companies have this game on as Arsenal have had trouble winning away to Birmingham, and there's nothing they like more than to broadcast Arsenal losing to a lesser team, so that they can tell Arsenal fans where their team's problems lie. 

On Wednesday night it was obvious to me at least that the problem was that too many changes were made from the team that beat Chelsea on Monday. If Arsene Wenger had made four or even five changes I think that Arsenal would still have had enough to come through the game with the three points they wanted. Unfortunately it wasn't to be and there is no point crying over spilled milk, as the saying goes. Arsenal have to try to ensure that they get the three points against Birmingham, and then follow that up with another three points against Man City on Wednesday night.

I am fairly sure that the boss will play the same team against Birmingham as he did against Chelsea. There is no point in resting players for the City game if it costs Arsenal points against Birmingham. With the extra couple of days rest I hope that Cesc Fabregas, Robin Van Persie and Alex Song will be at their best again, after the boss said that they are all to rejoin the squad.

Birmingham play a very pragmatic game that isn't exactly pretty on the eye, but it can be quite effective at times. They did very well to finish in the top 10 of the Premier League last season in their first season back after promotion. However their failure to win enough games has them in a position just outside the relegation zone. They have only lost at home once this season, and that record stretches back for more than a year. It means that all of the top club have gone to St. Andrew's and left without three points. So far this season they have beaten Chelsea and drawn at home to "Manure", and it will be a very difficult game for Arsenal.

The Arsenal players can expect tackles to come flying in at each and every opportunity, and the likes of Lee Bowyer just loves to get the boot in on his opponents. Added to that they have the gigantic Nikola Zigic up front, and he is sure to cause Arsenal problems from set pieces. I hope that Johan Djourou plays because he is the only player Arsenal have who has any chance of challenging Zigic in the air. I'm not fond of the central defensive pairing of Laurent Koscielny and Sebastien Squillaci, and a recent poll I ran found them to be the least favourable pairing in that role among all of Arsenal's centre backs.

Arsenal need to play the game at their pace, and push Birmingham players when they are in possession. That tactic worked very well against Chelsea, and led to Arsenal's second and third goals, and Chelsea are a far better team than Birmingham. That's of course supposing that Birmingham are actually in possession of the ball, as the chances are they will play it lonf as quick and as often as possible.

I thought Cesc looked like he is finally on his way back to his best as he scored one goal, and made the other two against Chelsea. When he's on form he's a dream to watch, and his ability to see a pass and execute it are second to none. RVP still has a way to go as he looks to regain his best form,   but I saw enough against Chelsea to suggest that it's a battle he is winning.

I also think that Samir Nasri has the ability to make Stephen Carr look very ordinary in the right back role for Birmingham. I hope that he sees enough of the ball to put Carr under real pressure, as I feel it's an area Arsenal can exploit. He should also swap sides occasionally with Theo Walcott, as the young Englishman is far too fast for Carr, and he is well able to capitalise when he cuts in from the left on his right foot. I have been very impressed by his finishing this season, and I hope to see plenty more goals from him.

To be honest any team that Arsenal put out should have the ability to win, but football games aren't won on ability only. If Arsenal play with the drive and enthusiasm that they showed against Chelsea I think that they will win, but it won't be easy. I'm predicting a 2-1 win with RVP hopefully getting on the scoresheet. With "Manure", Chelsea, Man City and The Spuds all having what look like much easier tasks this weekend it's vital that Arsenal get the three points to stay right in the middle of the title race.


With the news that young Havard Nordtveit is set to join Borussia Munchengladbach, as he looks for first team football, the boss said that he has not ruled out signing a player in January. He also said that Arsenal are not close to signing anyone, but I think that he will possibly pursue a target if Thomas Vermaelen doesn't recover from his injury very soon. He also said that Carlos Vela may be allowed to go out on loan, as he deserves to play some football, and he isn't getting the chance at Arsenal at the moment.

With Aaron Ramsey's loan deal with Nottingham Forest not being extended due to Abu Diaby's injury, the boss is hoping that Ramsey will be fit to play for Arsenal in February. He rued the fact that the poor weather meant that Ramsey didn't play as often as was hoped with Forest, but there was nothing that could be done about it.

Here's Samir Nasri's brief cameo away to Birmingham last season in which he almost won the game.

See You Tomorrow.

Arsenal 2-0 Wigan. Carling Cup Semi Final Here We Come.

Arsenal played at home to Wigan Athletic last night in the quarter finals of the Carling Cup, and advanced to the semi finals with a comfortable 2-0 victory. It may not have been a classic game, but at least that got the job done with relative ease. After their recent problems at home in the Premier League it was an important victory for Arsenal, and hopefully one that they can now build on.

The team that manager Arsene Wenger selected was more or less as I had predicted yesterday, except that he picked both Robin Van Persie and Nicklas Bendtner. It meant that Arsenal lined up in what looked more like a 4-4-2 formation, rather than their usual 4-3-3. With RVP playing off Bendtner, it was in fact slightly different from that again, but once the players do their jobs the formation isn't overly important.

After a fairly slow start Arsenal eventually created a great chance in the 27th minute, when a fantastic back heel from RVP sent Carlos Vela through with only the keeper to beat. He partook of his usual chip, and nobody seemed more surprised than he was when it went wide. It was the type of chance that he usually puts away for fun, but not on this occasion. Other chances came and went, but none of them were quite as good as the one Vela missed, until Arsenal eventually took the lead in the 42nd minute.

Kieran Gibbs got forward and put in a good cross, which was headed out for a corner by a Wigan defender. Theo Walcott took the corner from Arsenal's left hand side, and as it came into the goalmouth it ended up in the back of the net. With no Arsenal player claiming the goal, it looked like it was an own goal, and it turned out that Antolin Alcaraz had put the ball into his own net. That goal seemed to spark the game into life, and Wigan almost scored themselves within a minute. A corner from their  right hand side was headed goalwards by Alcaraz, and Wojceich Szczesny just about managed to keep the ball out.

Arsenal had a shout for a penalty soon after that, but to be honest I thought there was nothing the Wigan defender could do about Walcott's cross hitting his hand. When half time arrived Arsenal had a 1-0 lead, and the almost full stadium hoped that they could build on that. With the news that "Manure" were 2-0 down away to West Ham in the night's other quarter final, the chances of Arsenal winning the trophy were  increasing by the minute.

The second half progressed in a similar fashion, as Arsenal continued to dominate, but they couldn't add to their lead. That changed in the 65th minute when Vela was set from by a pass from RVP. He put the ball across the six-yard box, and Bendtner was on hand to stab it home. The ball hit the keeper on the way, but it ended up in the net, and Arsenal had doubled their lead.

Wigan didn't have too much to offer after that, and Arsenal missed a few chances of their own. Vela had a shot narrowly over the bar, and Walcott had another shot well saved by the Wigan keeper, after being set up by Vela. In injury time Vela put Samir Nasri through, and he went around the keeper on the left. It meant that he had to shoot with his left foot, and a defender managed to clear the shot off the line. It was similar to the goal he scored against The Spuds, and also the chance he missed against Aston Villa last week.

Nasri had come on in the 73rd minute along with Craig Eastmond in place of RVP and Jack Wilshere. Unfortunately Jay Emmanuel Thomas only got five minutes in place of Bendtner, and it was hardly enough time to see what he can do. At least the 73 minutes that RVP played showed that he is ready to play from the start, and it increases the options for the game against Fulham. It will be interesting to see if he can play alongside Marouane Chamakh, but that's a good headache for the boss to have.

A two legged semi-final now beckons in January, and at the moment Arsenal will be joined by West Ham in those semi-finals, after they ended up thrashing "Manure" 4-0. Tonight sees the other two quarter finals with Birmingham City taking on Aston Villa and Ipswich Town taking on West Brom. Arsenal are the favourites to lift the trophy in February, but it still won't be easy, and nothing can be taken for granted.

That's it for today.


Here's the highlights from last night's game.

See You Tomorrow.

Arsenal Pay The Price For Defensive Mistakes Against Braga.

Arsenal went into last night's Campions League group game away to Braga knowing that a draw would qualify them for the knockout stages. After the dreadful result at the weekend it would have been a perfect way to get things back on track, but it didn't work out that way.

The team showed seven changes from the one that started against The Spuds, but crucially two of the players who should have been replaced started. I thought that both Denilson and Sebastien Squillaci didn't exactly cover themselves in glory on Saturday, but they both played last night anyway.

At the back Kieran Gibbs, Johan Djourou and Emmanuel Eboue came into the team. The only change in midfield was Jack Wilshere for Alex Song, which meant that Denilson filled the defensive role. Personally I don't think that it's a role that he's capable of filling. The front three was all change as it consisted of Nicklas Bendtner, Theo Walcott and Tomas Rosicky.

There was very little to report from the first half, as Braga seemed afraid to open up in case Arsenal punished them on the break. For their part Arsenal created very little in that first half, and quite a few players seemed to be having a poor game or generally disinterested. It was hard to tell that Bendtner was on the pitch at times, as he was so ineffectual. Wilshere was trying hard in midfield, but his passing was nowhere near it's usual level and Cesc Fabregas did very little to impress.

The second half started off in a similar fashion, but then the news that Shakhtar Donetsk were winning away to Partizan Belgrade came through. That meant that Braga were going out, and they needed a win to save themselves. They picked up the pace, and Arsenal struggled a little for a while. However, they soon got back on top again, and when Marouane Chamakh and Samir Nasri came on I thought they looked the more likely to score.

Nasri came on for Cesc, who had again injured himself stretching for a ball over the top. It looked like a recurrance of his hamstring injury, and he immediately looked to be substituted. Hopefully he realised early enough to mean that he won't be out for too long, but until he sorts the injury out once and for all this will keep happening.

Carlos Vela then came on for Walcott, and almost immediately he was in the thick of the action. He ran on to a knockdown from Chamakh in the box, and pushed the ball past the Braga defender. The Braga player was committed to the challenge, and he took Vela down for what looked like a certain penalty. The referee was perfectly positioned to give the penalty, but amazingly he gave Vela a yellow card for diving. The extra official behind the goal didn't say anything at all, but you will rarely see such a certain penalty not given.


The referee had an absolute stinker of a game, as he constantly ignored fouls on Arsenal players throughout the game. The yellow cards continued to build up throughout the game for Arsenal, but he allowed Braga away with challenges that should have got yellow cards. With less than 10 minutes left Eboue was taken from behind, and the perpatrator didn't receive a yellow card. Eboue was stretchered off, and played no further part in the game, which left Arsenal with only 10 men on the pitch, as all the substitutions had been made.


Both Arsenal centre backs pushed up for a free kick in the 83rd minute, and the ball was cleared for what looked likely to be an Arsenal throw in. However a Braga player kept the ball in, and a quick ball was played over the top. Denilson was the Arsenal player trusted with minding the fort, and he was found wanting. Instead of sticking with his man he looked to me like he tried to play him offside. Gibbs was five yards behind him, but out near the touchline, so that didn't work, and the Braga player was left with only Lukasz Fabianski to beat. He went through and finished with ease, as Fabianski came out very quickly, and went down very early.

Suddenly Arsenal found themselves 1-0 down with very little time left, and only 10 players on the pitch. They created virtually nothing in the remaining minutes, and with only three minutes added it didn't look good. Quite how the referee came up with that figure I'm not sure, as there were six substitutions, as well as Eboue being stretchered off.

In the very last minute of that injury time Arsenal were undone on the break yet again. A ball down the middle was taken on by a Braga player, who shook off a foul on him by an Arsenal player. He raced towards the Arsenal goal, but three Arsenal players got back around him. Unfortunately they somehow managed not to tackle him, and he finished off the bar into the top corner. I don't think the game even restarted after the Braga celebrations, as it finished 2-0 to them.

On Saturday Arsenal were caught on the break at 2-0 up, and again last night they were caught on the break at 0-0 when a draw was good enough to ensure qualification. That is simply not good enough, and it has to be addressed by the manager. Denilson is clearly not the player to be left in the defensive role when Arsenal have an attacking set piece, as he is clueless at best. He failed to track Bale's run on Saturday for The Spuds first goal, and he was caught in no man's land for the first Braga goal last night. The boss continues to show confidence and faith in him that are unjustified in my opinion. He is a good player, but he's simply not good enough to play for a top club at the level Arsenal play at.

November started off very badly for Arsenal with defeats against Shakhtar Donetsk and Newcastle before it picked up with the away wins over Wolves and Everton. It seemed that Arsenal may have exorcised the ghost of November's past when they had suffered very badly, but it has come back to gain it's own vengeance. There are now two games left in November, and they have both got to be won. First of all there is the early kick off away to Aston Villa in the league on Saturday morning, followed by a Carling Cup quarter final at home to Wigan on Tuesday night.

The early injury news is that Cesc has actually injured his other hamstring, and will miss Saturday's game for sure. After that it's not known when exactly he will return, but Arsenal have to make sure he is fully fit before he does. Eboue will be out for a few weeks after being stretchered off, and how the player who committed the foul wasn't booked is still a mystery to me.

It means that Arsenal will have to play their strongest team possible at home to Partizan Belgrade on December 8th, as they will need a win to guarantee qualification for the last 16. First place in the group looks almost impossible now, as they will need Braga to win away to Shakhtar Donetsk to help them achieve that aim. It could leave Arsenal with a very tough last 16 draw, but you have to beat them all to win the trophy I suppose.

I though Walcott tried last night, but he got little or no help from Bendtner who was hapless at best. As a centre forward his job should have been to give Arsenal a presence in the Braga box at times, but he continually dropped off to take up the ball, and lose it all too often. After his recent statement about wanting to play more often last night was a chance for Bendtner to show what he can do, and he failed miserably.
For me Rosicky tried his best as well, even though things didn't always work out for him, which was similar to how things worked out for Wilshere. I thought Cesc should not have played with his hamstring problem, and as it turned out it was a big risk and a wrong decision to play him. I didn't think he looked overly interested in the proceedings, but then again he wasn't the only one.

As a unit the defence are still not working well, and the inability to assess situations as they happen is absolutely killing Arsenal at the moment. There has to be a way the boss can instill the basics of good defending as a unit into them, before it's too late, and the season collapses. I don't want to be overly negative, as Arsenal are still very much in the title hunt, and the Champions League is still not beyond them either. However, if they play like they did last night they will win absolutely nothing.

In other news Aaron Ramsey managed 45 minutes for the reserves at home to Wolves yesterday in his comeback game. Manuel Almunia also returned in that game, and Arsenal won 2-1 with goals from Roarie Deacon and Gilles Sunu. It's great to see Ramsey back, but I'm sure it will be a long hard road for him before he can contemplate playing for the first team again.

Henri Lansbury has joined Norwich City on loan for 28 days, and he's a player who has had a few loan moves previously. He has only played for the first team once this season, but I thought that he was very impressive in the 4-1 Carling Cup victory away to The Spuds. I hope he gets plenty of game time for Norwich, and comes back ready to fight for a first team place.

Here's the highlights from last night's game.

That's the lot for today.

See You Tomorrow.

The Goals Keep Flowing For Arsenal.

Thankfully Arsenal will be playing on a Saturday afternoon for a change this week and it means that we won't be playing catch up on the other title challengers for a once. While we are at home to bottom of the table West Ham most of our rivals have much trickier games. Chelsea make the difficult trip to Blackburn, Man City travel to Wolves and "Manure" and The Spuds play each other at Old Trafford.
When you're challenging for the league I suppose every game is a must win game but we just cannot afford to slip up against also rans like West Ham if we are to be taken seriously. I know we lost at home to West Brom a few weeks ago in a game where they were given no chance but at least West Brom are in a good position in the table and seem to be playing with plenty of spirit, commitment and skill. Until Wednesday night's victory over Stoke RFC in the Carling Cup the same could not be said about West Ham and there are rumblings in east London about the possible removal of their manager.
We need to go out on Saturday and lay down a marker for the rest of the league by showing them exactly what we can do from first minute to last. As it stands we have scored 43 goals in 14 games in all competitions so far this season and which is an average of just over three goals per game. We started last season in a similar fashion in the goal scoring stakes but the difference then was that our scoring rate dropped off significantly when Robin Van Persie got injured. This season we are banging all of those goals in without the injury prone Dutchman and it augers very well in my opinion.
I read a statistic yesterday that Theo Walcott has one goal every 52 minutes so far this season and I know it's only early days yet but he looks far more composed in front of goal to me this season than he has done in the past. He seems to come in from his role on the right hand side at just the right time to get on to through balls from our midfield and his blistering pace is very difficult for defences to handle. When he first arrived at the club he was seen as the long term replacement for Thierry Henry and right now it looks as if he might have a chance of living up to that tag.
Arsenal may have had a bit of a blip a few weeks ago with only one point in three games but they seem to have put it behind them now and they will be looking to make up some of the five point gap to Chelsea who are the only team above them in the table. With back to back home games against West Ham and Newcastle to come and Chelsea traveling to Blackburn and Liverpool at the same time there is a possibility that the gap may not be quite so much by the time Arsenal travel to Wolves for a midweek league game on November 10th.
In injury news the boss has confirmed that Kieran Gibbs will be out for a few weeks with the knee injury he sustained against Newcastle. He said that the injury is relatively short term, although with Gibbs luck he won't be back too long before the next injury strikes him down. The boss also said that RVP and Aaron Ramsey will be returning to full training at the end of next week. Ramsey will still need plenty of time before he's ready to play again but hopefully we will see RVP available for first team duty by the middle of November. 
With all the talk of RVP being injury prone and rarely available to play it shouldn't be forgotten that he has a genuine love for Arsenal and an enormous desire to win trophies with Arsenal. I'm sure he must be even more frustrated than the Arsenal fans with his seemingly endless run of injury problems and I really hope that the extra time being allowed to him to recover this time will make all the difference. He will also be acutely aware that other players have taken advantage of his continued absence to become an intrical part of the team and he won't just walk back into the side.
The latest on the other absentees is that Tomas Vermaelen and Manuel Almunia are still not ready to return and by the sound of what the boss said we won't see them for a while yet. Abu Diaby has another ankle injury but I got the impression that he might just be ready to make the trip to face Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday night. That just leaves Jack Wilshere who serves the final game of his ban tomorrow and will cause the boss a real headache by being available again. Just who will get the nod in midfield with Cesc Fabregas and Alex Song is anybody's guess but it's all good for Arsenal which is the most important thing as far as I'm concerned. 
I'll be playing football myself tonight if I can manage to strap my knee up enough to stop the puss oozing from my skinned right knee. It's a self inflicted injury so there's no sympathy from anybody and to be honest it would take a little more than a bit of pain to stop me playing football. Just before my football starts I'll be posting my Premier League predictions for this weekend and they're always worth reading as you can usually win a few bob by betting against whatever my forecasts are. There have been an awful lot of surprise scorelines so far this season and I'm hoping for that to continue at Blackburn tomorrow.
See You Tomorrow.

Preview Of Arsenal's Carling Cup Trip To Newcastle Tonight.

It's the Carling Cup tonight with Arsenal making the trip north to face Newcastle United in a game that's live on TV. With the winners going through to the quarter finals there is the distinct feeling of a possible trip to Wembley for the winners of tonight's games. Five teams are through to those quarter finals after last night's games and for clubs like Birmingham, Wigan, West Brom and Ipswich the chances of playing in a cup semi final or final don't come around too often.
Of course the other team to win through last night were "Manure" and they have won the trophy for the last two years in a row. I'm sure they would be delighted to make it a hat trick of victories in this competition, no matter how insignificant it might seem at times. It would appear that Arsenal are a little more interested in winning it too as they seem to be treating it a little more seriously this season.
With that in mind I'm sure we'll see a fairly strong team tonight although the vast majority of the players who started in the victory over Man City will not start. It will also be interesting to see what team Newcastle go with after their 4-3 win at Stamford Bridge over Chelsea in the last round with a very much weakened team. I'm not going to attempt to forecast who will play for Newcastle but I'll give my opinion on Arsenal's possible team.
The obvious choice in goal is Wojciech Szczesny but I'm not sure exactly who the reserve keeper will be. In defence I expect to see Emmanuel Eboue, Kirean Gibbs and Laurent Koscielny all play as they were on the bench on Sunday. The big decision for the boss is who will accompany Koscielny at the centre of our defence and it's probably a straight choice between Johann Djourou and Sebastien Squillaci.
From what I saw on Sunday Djourou needs a lot more game time to get some form after missing a year through injury but Squillaci would probably be the safer bet. Squillaci will probably be the favourite to play as he has already captained the team and he will be seen as the leader of the defence on the pitch. I have a funny feeling that the boss will opt for Djourou though as he is only too aware that he needs some game time and this is an ideal opportunity for him to do just that.
In midfield we should see Tomas Rosicky play as he has been excellent when he has played this season and if Squillaci doesn't play he will probably get the captain's armband. Alongside him in the middle of the park I expect to see Abu Diaby play if he is fit but if not Denilson should get the nod as well as Henri Lansbury. If Diaby does play it will be a straight decision between Denilson and Lansbury for the other player and I expect that Denilson will win out as like Djourou, he needs some game time after recovering from injury. He looked good against City on Sunday and another game under his belt would do him no harm at all.
I would be more than surprised if Nicklas Bendtner didn't lead the line with Theo Walcott on the right and Carlos Vela on the left. All three of them need some game time as they have either been injured or out of favour recently and this is a good opportunity for them to show exactly what they can do. Walcott was in great form before getting injured on international duty and after a couple of brief substitute appearances he will hopefully be up to making a full return.
Bendtner has not started a game for Arsenal since last season as his choice to play on with his injury at the World Cup meant that he needed a lot longer than expected to recover. When he came on against City on Sunday he took his goal very well and I'm sure that will have been a boost to his confidence, if he needed such a thing.
Vela has been in trouble with his country after some late night partying on international duty and he got a six month ban from them as a result. Since then he hasn't really got a look in at Arsenal, although he did start in the last round of this competition in Arsenal's away victory over The Spuds. To be honest he wasn't great in that game and we only pushed home our advantage when he was replaced by Marouane Chamakh. He even played in a reserve game last week when the star of the show was Jay Emmanuel Thomas, who scored a hat trick.
It will also be interesting to see who is on the bench as we had some big guns waiting to come on in that victory over The Spuds. Both Chamakh and Andrei Arshavin came on in that game and made a real difference to the eventual result. I expect to see them on the bench again tonight and possibly Samir Nasri too but I would be surprised if Cesc Fabregas was on the bench at all.
JET should be on the bench too and I am eagerly anticipating seeing him get more than the few first team minutes he has managed so far this season. With eight goals in five reserve games so far this season he can't do much more to get the attention of the manager. There are rumours that he's on his way to QPR on loan but nothing has been confirmed yet.
Every player in that Arsenal team knows how to play football the Arsenal way and I expect the team that is picked to do just that tonight. From what I have seen of Newcastle so far this season they have played pretty well but struggled to get the results that their efforts have deserved at times. Their home form has been poor and Arsenal can certainly cause them a lot of problems by playing their usual game with speed and poise.
There will be quite a few players in the Arsenal team who will feel they have a point to prove tonight and hopefully they can do just that. I would be perfectly happy if the boss has some serious problems with team selection on Saturday against West Ham after some fine performances by the likes of Gibbs, Walcott or Rosicky tonight who might all feel they have a chance of staking a claim for a regular first team place.
Of course Bendtner will already believe that he is the man to lead our attack as we all know exactly how good he thinks he is. With Chamakh making such an impression during his and Robin Van Persie's injuries the young Dane knows that his chances will be limited unless he forces his way into the team in games like tonight's. Chamakh has a much better all round game in my opinion and RVP is going to have his work cut out getting into the team if and when he makes a full recovery.
I can see a few goals going in tonight but as always I'm predicting an Arsenal. I'm going for 3-1 with Bendtner and Walcott both getting on the score sheet. I'll be very interested in the performances of Szczesny and Gibbs as they are two very talented young players who will feel there is a real prospect of forcing their way into the first team very soon. I'm off to the supporters club in The Strand in Bray tonight to watch the second half of the match after I've played football myself and having not been able to make it there for Sunday's game I'm looking forward to seeing a few familiar faces and cheering on an Arsenal win.
See You Tomorrow

Never Let Me Down Again.

Tuesday, 27 October 09

The massive sense of disappointment that I felt after Sunday's draw with West Ham has faded enough for me to start to feel a little bit optimistic about our chances for this season. The majority of the players will not be playing against Liverpool in the Carling Cup tomorrow night and it means that they will have had almost a full week to sort themselves out before The Spuds visit us on Saturday. A win against West Ham would have been great as a win against The Spuds would have put us on top of the table even if it was only for a few hours next Saturday. That's not going to happen now but if we have actually learned our lesson from Sunday's game it could well happen later in the season. The point has been made that instead of trying to defend our 2-0 lead that we should have scored more to completely finish them off and the way we defend that seems to make sense to me.

As a result of our draw with West Ham the so called experts have written us off yet again and that suits us just fine. Our captain believes we have the desire and the ability to win the league but he thinks that there is a lot more pressure on other teams who have invested an awful lot of money in new players in the transfer market. We should have Nasri, Bendtner & Eduardo back to full fitness by Saturday and that will put a bit of pressure on the players in the team which will hopefully make them up their game just enough to help us bring St. Totteringham's day a little bit closer. I have said many times before that I would love to see Vela get a run in the first team but he wasn't even on the bench on Sunday. It must be very frustrating for him to see Eboue play as 1 of our front 3 as he can't get into the side. Along with Ramsey and Wilshere I would like to see how Vela does in the first team when he has all our other top players playing with him. I'm sure they will all play against Liverpool in the Carling Cup but it will be as part of a second string side and even though I'm sure they will play well but it's hard to judge in a match like that.

The majority of the first team will have had almost a week without a game for the first time this season and that will surley help in the build up to Saturday's local derby. I'm sure The Spuds will play a lot of their first team in the Carling Cup tonight and that will hopefully tire them a little with our players getting that much needed break. Realistically for them it's their only real chance of a trophy and it offers Europa league qualification too which is a good thing for a smaller club like them. I'll deal with that game later in the week after our match against Liverpool is out of the way.

In the fantasy football the Football Guy's friend Amer still leads the way but IAWWT has cut his lead to 7 points and I'm a further 23 points back in 3rd place. In the head to head league my team continues to sweep all before them with 10 wins out of 10 but I'm playing IAWWT this week and if he can beat me it will tighten things up at the top again. For anybody with a fantasy team don't forget that both West Ham and Aston Villa have 2 games each this week and their players are a good choice to transfer into your team if you can get the right ones. I seem to have given the kiss of death to Blackburn's David Dunn after tipping him as a good fantasy buy last week he has contracted swine flu and who knows when he will be back to his best when he does return. That's it for today.

Here's a little bit of Ramsey and Wilshere.

LINK

And to finish today's title track from Deprche Mode. It's a plea from me to the team but I'm sure it's one that can't be lived up to.

LINK

See You Tomorrow.

Fitter, Happier.

Tuesday, 28 July 09,

Our pre season friendlies continued last night with a 5-0 win against Szombathelyi and things seem to be progressing nicely. Eduardo made his first start and helped himself to a brace of goals and Bendtner scored 2 as well with the other goal coming from RVP from a spot kick. It was good to see Eduardo playing again and his goal scoring ability could be a real bonus for us this season. As I've said before I really hope his horrific injury is behind him and we can get the best out of him this season.

The team played well enough for a pre season friendly and we still have Cesc, Theo, Clichy, Gibbs & Vela to make an appearence yet. It was a little strange that Rosicky didn't get another run out yesterday but I'm sure the boss knows exactly what he's doing. If we can add the couple of signings we all think we need our squad will look very strong. It was also a little strange to see Senderos playing the holding midfield role again and the rumour is that he is keeping the seat warm for a new signing. I hope that is the case as no matter how well he might look there in pre season as soon as we play a top side he would be lost in that position.

An awful lot has been made about our lack of spending this summer but it is being forgotten how much we spent on Arshavin in Jauary/February. As Lady Arse pointed out yesterday none of the other so called big 4 have spent as much as us so far in 2009. It's easy for the press to say that we don't have any money and it's also easy for Sir Shits His Pants A Lot to say we have no money to spend but they are only speculating. It's not to be forgotten that he took in £80 million for the diver and he has only spent a maximum of a quarter of that. If our squad has been supposedly weakened then theirs is severly depleted. In the long run I think the sale of Adebayor will only serve to strengthen the squad as a unit witha big mouthed trouble making lazy player gone. It was interesting to see Clichy denying that he mentioned Adebayor's name when he said some players only join teams for the money. Whether Clichy denies it or not we all knew who he was talking about.

Henri Lansbury played a starring role for England's under 19s as they progressed from their group with a 7-1 thumping of Slovenia and Rhys Murphy also played with Gavin Hoyte coming on as a sub. Anyone who has read this blog on a consistent basis will know how highly I rate Lansbury and in my opinion he would be a lot closer to the first team by now if he didn't lose the best part of a year to glandular fever. Appearently he played a central midfield role and his performance was compared to Gerrard. He scored the first goal and made 3 others I think but he also came in for a lot of heavy tackles from the opposition.

There are still rumours linking us with Huntelaar and Cattermole but I don't think we'll be signing either of them and Bendtner has rubbished the rumours linking him with a move to Milan. We have the Emirates cup coming up this weekend and both games will be live on Sky. We play Atletico Madrid on Saturday and Rangers on Sunday with both games kicking off at 4.15pm. It will be the fans first and last chance to see the team at home before the season starts and for many fans who won't be there it will be their first chance to see the team on T.V. Before that we have another match tomorrow night against Hannover 96 and they should offer us a sterner test than we have had so far. That's almost it for today and all that's left is for me to mention the Fantasy Football again. Here's the link to set up a team and the codes to join the leagues.

Oleole league code 4383-1847

Oleole Arsenal league code 4383-1835

Oleole Head To Head league code 4383-1828

There's also a score prediction league at I Know The Score which can be accessed from the games title at the top of the Fantasy Premier League page but here's the actual link. The code to join the Oleole league is FC85F-XSC and it's also well worth joining. If you're looking for any tips on who to pick and who not to pick try reading The Football Guy's blog as he's the expert. That's the lot for now.

Here's a clip of the goals from yesterday's win.

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And to finish today's title track from Radiohead. The team are getting fitter by the day and I'm sure they're happier with Adebayor gone.

LINK

See You Tomorrow.