Ninety-eight - An Arsenal Blog

Visionary Wenger thinks ahead too much!

2010-04-18T08:11:00.000-07:00

I absolutely idolise Wenger. I think he is a visionary leader who has transformed our club and laid the foundations for a very exciting and successful future. The youth development system, the style of play, the stadium, the financial management. All bodes very well.

I didnt truly expect to win the league this season, yes I was hopeful and yes, if we had been more fortunate in the injury department, I really feel we could have won it.

Chelsea are past their peak, but the tactics, the physical presence, the experience and the financial clout means their extensive squad and resources will be enough to win it.

Man Utd are also not as good as they were and have been over-reliant on Rooney, who has mostly delivered and will push Chelsea right to the end. Unfortunately for England, I think this will take its toll on our challenge for that particular trophy.

The only consolation I can take from losing to Wigan today is that we only have ourselves to blame and Spurs cannot claim that they are responsible for our demise.

We should never have still been in the race, and it was not really realistic to expect to win, but it would have been fun for a few more weeks to go close. So what happened today?

Wenger seemed to have half an eye on next season. The website has been full of articles that are talking about next year. The team he put out today suggested as such. He had a rookie on the bench. He put in our reserve keeper - I guess as a message to him saying, "go on then, last chance to stake your claim" and once again 'Flappyhandski' made a crucial mistake in an important game.

Paul Merson was absolutely right when he said that all keepers make mistakes, but its how many mistakes you make. Fabianski seems to make one every time he plays. I am not interested in a keeper with good instincts when it comes to shot-stopping - we have that with Almunia. We need an experienced, commanding keeper. Lehmann was better, mental but at least he was commanding. So a keeper is vital and Wenger knows it.

There is no excuse for not only throwing the lead away, but losing it too. Yes it mattered more to Wigan, they were fighting for their lives, and now have all but secured their position in the best league in the world. But we should have been prepared for an onslaught in the last 10 mins, what did they have to lose?

We weren't ready for that, we took off Theo who was a threat and was growing in confidence and Rosicky who wasn't as threatening as he can be, but was a real handful and actually was putting lots of energy into tackling back so we could keep posession. We also should have brought on Van Persie with 30 mins to go. I was looking forward to this purely from an entertainment point of view as the game was a little stale and he makes things happen. It also would have kept us on the front foot and give Wigan even more to think about, rather than mount their own challenge. With those 2 gone and RVP not on the pitch, we gave Wigan a chance. We should still have been up to the challenge, but no one really took the game by the scruff of the neck and once again we showed defensive naivety. Clichy is good, but regularly leaves gaps behind, as does Sagna.

The series of corners etc that came in that last 10 minutes largely came after a poor refeeing decision that gave them a free kick near our corner flag, when it was only a 50/50 coming together of sagna and their player. But he had been making poor decisions for both teams all game. But does it matter. We should have been ready for an onslaught and our defense is makeshift and not fully up to it and we didnt have the attacking threat to take the pressure off our defense at a time when we could have been dominating and not even given them a sniff.

Perhaps Wenger thought the game was won, felt it was not necessary to risk RVP who is still recovering, and wanted to save Theo and Rosicky for next game by taking them off early. This could be a sign of him thinking ahead - but this time this thinking ahead went against the whole team. Perhaps he had already decided that we weren't going to win the league, so he was trying out Merida as a way of trying to persuade him of staying next year. Again long term this might be to our advantage, but in the short term our team was weaker than it could have been (which is significantly weaker than our first team when fully fit)

So I, like Wenger am looking ahead. Although mathmatically possible - the league is gone. There will be a few surprises yet and Man Utd could nick it, but I think Chelsea will just be strong enough.

So lets start thinking about what the AFC experience will be like next year.
A fully fit side with World Class players like Fabregas, RVP and Arshavin.
Players who are beginning to perform like top, top quality players - Song, Vermaelen.
Players who could and should continue a steep learning curve and perform even better - Bentner & Walcott
Perhaps Clichy and Sagna fit into that category too - but all have areas to improve.
There are other players too who have bags of potential but need to step up and stay there - Diaby & Eduardo, along with Rosicky and Nasri too.
I hope we keep Campbell and Gallas - who provide experience and passion. But we do need to strengthen the defense in the short term, but also thinking about the long term.
There are some other fringe players who might stay and might make a difference (don't forget how Song has surprised us all) - Merida, Denilson. Ramsey might recover from his injury and be a Cesc mark II.
Then there will be the reinforcements - A keeper, surely! Chamakh - more firepower and competition up front; Then there might be a high quality creative player - not sure who, but Wenger loves those and finds them. He has hinted that there is money to spend, could i be in cloud cookoo land to suggest David Villa?

So major improvement this year - probably finishing 6 points adrift from the champions rather than 18.
Challenging for the title right up to mid April, rather than February.
More shots from outside the box than anyone else (at least last time I checked)
Generally the best football to watch in the league.
Can we be as good as Barcelona? Maybe.....

Bloke's prerogative to change his mind

2010-03-04T15:28:00.000-08:00

I've kind of changed my mind. The furore has died down and I've had time to reflect.

Shawcross appears not to be "whiter than white". There is plenty of evidence that he is an aggressive player and has done plenty to Arsenal players alone in the past.

I still think we suffer because we are a little flimsy as a side and sides think they can intimidate us and bully us off our game.

I love Wenger's purist ideology and it has resulted in a decade of (mostly) blissful enjoyment of watching our team, yes our team, play some of the best football in the world.

I hope he can find a balance, that keeps the quality, skill and pace, but adds a little bit of mettle too.

Ultimately though, the Shawcross tackle was over the top, he used excessive force and has to be accountable for his actions. The similarities that have been drawn by others to the speeding driver who mows down a child but "isn't that kind of driver" are absolutely right. Shawcross did it (and he's done similar things before) and he needs to face the consequences - and a few tears and 3 games is not enough. If it were Rooney lying there with his leg in 2 pieces, there would be a national day of mourning.

Nevertheless I have not changed my mind that we are the 3rd best team in the league, but we can win the league. I've never felt such a togetherness and positivity amongst Gooners. It's quiet and confident for the most part mixed in with a little disbelief that we are still in the position where we can challenge. But we can do it!

A shame I can't be at the Burnley game this weekend, but I suspect it is going to have a rather special feel to it. Emotional and incredibly positive. At last the Emirates is beginning to have a bit of history and something special about it - I think it starts this weekend and hopefully it will end with two new additions - the Clock returned to the "Clock End" and a new trophy stencilled on to the hoardings around the upper tier.

Here's to some real silverware!

'98

Stoke-ing the fire of debate - the injury mystery solved.

2010-02-28T15:48:00.000-08:00

After seeing the game and in particularly the Ramsey injury, I felt compelled to post - mostly as a bit of therapy for myself. I was very disturbed by seeing the incident. I felt sick, absolutely gutted for the young man and also angry that once again we have lost a very talented player with bags of potential at a crucial stage of the season.

I read Arse-blogger this morning and nearly didnt post today. He said everything I wanted to say. Since then I've reflected and changed my mind somewhat.

Yes the challenge was bad and deserving of a red card.
No he didnt mean to break his leg.
No he isnt "that type of player" - but very, very few players would want to deliberately break an opponent's leg and potentially end their playing career.
Yes, the manager sent them out to play hard and physical against Arsenal - and there is nothing wrong with this!

This is where the crux of the matter is - It is a physical league, and that is what we love about it. The pace and the passion and the physicality is what makes the Premier league the best in the World. The best Arsenal sides have been able to be physical yet be able to play technically better and faster than the rest.

Let's not forget that Dennis Bergkamp, perhaps the most technically gifted player we (and probably the League) have ever had - also played dirty. He needed to, to give himself the space to do the amazing things he did.

Football is not just about being better technically than your opponent. There is a psychological battle too. There are lots of mini-battles going on all over the pitch. If the player you are marking/facing is better than you, then another weapon in your armoury can be to physically intimidate them, or harass them in terms of not giving them space.

The reason this happens more to Arsenal, and results in more injuries than any other team is that most of our players are smaller and technically better and motivated by skill not force. Teams like Chelsea do have a high level of technical ability but also are physically stronger. Therefore opponents are less likely to try to use the overly physical approach because its not going to work. Equally if they do try it, Chelsea can give as good as they get. Perhaps the same can be said of United.

It is impossible to say but maybe their players do not receive the same treatment because they can withstand it, or because they themselves are using physical force against their opponets as part of their own strategy.

Are Ramsey and Eduardo just more flimsy than Ballack and Drogba?

Arsenal are a continental team plying their trade in England, but with a higher pace. It is this pace and technical ability that could potentially win us the league. But we have to accept that the nature of the players we have and the way we play does leave us open to more injuries in such a physical league.

Arsene Wenger is a purist. He believes that the team with the best technique should win and that teams should be allowed to play their football, protected by the referee. He is right - but fouls are part of our game and by definition are players breaking the rules. So we need to find a way of standing up to the physical and essentially illegal approach of most other teams.

To be sure of sustaining a challenge on the league title every year, we need to have a squad made up of players who can withstand the fouls - players who are technically gifted, fast and strong. Or as it is very difficult (impossible) to have a team made up of Bergkamps, we need to have an even larger squad - because injuries are going to be a regular and inevitable part of the season for us.

I don't want us to change the way we play but we do need to be more savvy when it comes to protecting our players against the physical sides. Is it possible to study what players like Pires and Bergkamp did?

I think the momentum is with us now - last time the players said that they were going on to win the league for Eduardo, but they were too distracted by the Birmingham game and the whole injustice of Eduardo receiving such an horrendous injury. They were knocked off their stride and never truly regained focus. This time that negative energy is being channelled positively. It's brought the whole group of players together and I think it has united all the fans (who have been debating and criticising Arsene's strategy ever since it became apparent that we would be trophyless for a while). We all want it, so bad, and this time we think, no we believe we can do it.

Let's bring the trophy to the Emirate - the home of pure football.

'98

Schoolboy error or Referee "assist"

2010-02-17T14:04:00.000-08:00

I've changed my mind.

When I saw the 2nd goal I thought that we only had ourselves to blame. Fabianski should never have picked up the ball. Once he did, he should never have let go of it until we had all our defenders back.

However...... He didnt give the ball to the Porto player, he gave it to the ref. The ref then stepped in front of Campbell and dropped the ball for the Porto player, who promptly passed it to Falcao who scored.

I don't blame Porto, Fabregas himself said that he would have done the same. But why should the ref make it so easy? And impede our player. If he is taking the ball of our keeper, then he should not just give it to the opposition in that way. There's playing the advantage and there's playing the advantage. For me its an 'assist' from the Referee.

It seems disproportionately unfair. The referee gave them something more likely to result in a goal than a penalty, yet all we did to deserve it was a back-pass, and a mistaken one at that.

It was definitely a schoolboy error for the first goal. It has been said many times that we cannot blame lack of experience for our flaws any more - as our team is young but very experienced. However the one area where we are wet behind the ears is the keeper. Fabianski is talented and can pull off excellent reaction saves but he revealed how raw he is with his decision making and some terrible errors, that I hope won't be too costly.

Dare I say that I "called" the Campbell headed goal? I never put money on my own team, just seems to tempt fate. However, I do think we have enough to finish them off at home in 3 weeks time. We got the away goal and the last 2 home games against Porto have been 2-0 and 4-0 so if I were a betting man, I'd put money on us progressing.

I'm looking forward to it, I think it might be quite a "spicey" affair. Shame it's 3 weeks (damn those money grabbing advertisers).

Until next time, '98

Old timers

2010-02-16T14:27:00.000-08:00

Just finished watching the Milan v Utd game.

Maybe Rooney really is that good. He had loads of space again, especially for his second goal when Fletcher floated over his short range cross. When we played them, United and Rooney in particular seemed to have so much space. Maybe Rooney is just that good at getting himself in killer positions. However it did feel like Milan, like us when we played them, just weren't closing them down quick enough. And they were punished like we were a couple of weeks ago.

Rooney is looking truly world class. This might be an Arsenal blog, but credit where it is due. He is on fire and this kind of form could take England quite some distance in the World Cup this Summer. He was definitely the best player on the pitch until an old-timer arrived.....

Seedorf was absolute class. He was only on for the last 20 minutes, but his touch, vision, passing and his cheeky flicked goal reminded us all of what a great player he was (and obviously still is). The player he replaced flattered to deceive. Beckham couldn't even offer a decent free kick, just a half decent cross that enabled Ronaldinho to score via a lucky deflection.

Arsenal don't have any old-timers to bring on tomorrow night. The nearest we've got is Eduardo who is nearing his 27th birthday. About the age that players begin to peak. He's had a year out, so he's probably going to peak a little later in his career, but we really need him to get back to his best. I really miss seeing him truly play. He has such skill and seemed to be that clinical finisher that we were missing.

Our only genuine old-timer is Campbell. But he won't be a 20 minute sub. He's going to be an integral part of our defence for the whole 20 minutes. Wouldn't mind him popping up with a headed goal, like his last appearance for us in the Champions League.

We should beat Porto, especially over the 2 legs. Porto will score against us, I just hope that Arsenal take the approach we've had for most of the season, that we'll score more than you. In Europe, lots of goals will suit us, especially tomorrow night. A couple of away goals, even if they score one or two will be great. Hopefully then we'll bring them back to the Emirates and finish them off. Unfortunately I have a feeling it will be a tight and cagey affair and there won't be many goals. I hope I am wrong.

Enjoy

'98

3rd Best but we can still win the league!

2010-02-07T16:21:00.000-08:00

We are the third best team in the country.

The strange thing is, we could still win the league, but if we do, we don't really deserve it.

I imagine everyone else is doom and gloom, if you follow Arsenal. If you are in the media, or you support anyone else then its a case of licking your lips and saying I told you so.

Arsene has done amazingly well with the resources he has at his disposal. And we can't really moan because our resources are amazing compared to most teams. He is a brilliant manager. We are (and have been for years) punching above our weight.

At our peak. When we won the league or at least challenged every year, in the late 90s and early 2000s. We deserved to be there or thereabout. Often our first 11 was the best "team", we just didnt have the resources to have the best "squad". You could look at Man United and make direct player comparisons. Giggs and Pires. Henry & Van Nistelroy, Viera & Keane etc etc. We had quality players all over the pitch.

Now we have... Cesc - amazing. Arshavin - quality. And there;s Vermalen too. Those three would probably fit in Chelsea or Utd's side. But the rest, well they're very good, and then we have a lot of good players, and then we have Denilson.

So I don;t feel we have the best team, we definitely don't have the best squad, yet we still have a chance to win the League. I don't think we will, but the teams above us will drop more points, they have to play eachother and they have to play more of the top 7 sides. So if we focus and go for it, we could go on a long unbeaten run and still be in the race come May.

BUT we don't actually have a striker, and haven't had one since Van Persie got maimed ages ago. We do need a physical presence. I do blame Wenger for not going out and buying someone. Its unlikely they would be world class, but there are 17 other teams below us, and a million other clubs throughout Europe and the world. There must have been a player amongst them who could have done a job for us short term. Think about what United did when they got in Larsson.

So I don't think we'll win the league and it is very unlikely (but not impossible that we'll win the Champions League)

But I am not giving up yet. If we cling on to the spirit that saw us come back from 2-0 down v Bolton and Leige and the other times we have never given up. If we follow our Captain, who is desperate to win something wearing Red and White. Then who knows. We have to stay behind the team and support them. Vilification will achieve nothing. Let's not do a "Gallas" at Birmingham. Capitulate and give up before its time and it will be over.

I will continue to support and think positive and look forward to giving Liverpool a good tonking on Wednesday night.

If we don't think positive and get fully behind our team that night, then we only have our selves to blame.

Come on you reds!!

Cup half-Fuller

2010-01-24T07:51:00.000-08:00

Seeing the line up worried me, but it worried me less when I saw Fabregas there. It was a sign that we wanted to win this game and I never really doubted that, but we looked lightweight. Leightweight in defence in particular. We are leaking goals with our first choice of defenders so it was asking for trouble by putting in such an inexperienced and unknown back four.

Campbell did well and doesn't look like he'll be out of place in any game we play, if we need him.
Silvestre showed that he's experienced and is fighting for our cause, but he's not as pacey as we need sometimes.
Coqueline looked nervy for much of his time on the pitch. He improved, but we needed solidity and confidence from our players to show Stoke that we won't be bullied into defeat.
Traore is quick, and the best at whipping in a cross out of all our possible leftbacks - but he is also not good enough yet - lacking nouse when it comes to positioning.

We looked heavyweight in terms of JET, but he's still learning his trade. In three year's time, I'm sure he'd be an excellent choice to stick in there, hold it up and cause some difficulties for Stoke. He did well but there was no-one around him for the first 2/3 of the game to cause Stoke any major cause for concern.

It was nice to see a mix of experience of youth - but the experienced players lacked quality and the young players lacked physical presence. I wanted to believe that we'd win the game, as we have never given up all season and turned some remarkable scorelines around. But away, against a well organised, physical side with such a weakened side, it was a big order.

I don't blame Wenger, I'm sure he thought we could win the game. It was very close and much closer than the final score suggests. If I'm going to blame anyone, it's Denilson who let Sidebe run down the wing unchallenged and completely gave up the ghost, allowing him to knock the ball in that led to their goal. But this is the consequence of having the type of squad we have. But with players returning and a full strength side capable of beating anyone, we have to prioritise the other 2 competitions we are in. If we win the league then this defeat is a price more than worth paying. Even coming second is a major step forward. This team is staying together, growing together and only going to get even better.

Just think back to when we used to win the league or challenge on a regular basis last decade. We always lacked strength in depth, but had the best first choice side. If our best players kept fit, then we had the chance of winning the title. Well we're kind of back to that scenario - but this time we are not reliant on our best players anymore. We have a system and players who play the "Arsenal Way" and that's why we are more resiliant. That's why we can challenge against the suped up teams of Chelsea and Man City.

I still feel very positive and can't wait to see how we shape up against the biggest and the best over the next month or so.

'98

Deni

They say never go back...

2010-01-08T10:02:00.000-08:00

They say never go back and Arsene usually never wants players that he let go back at the club. Normally he is right. Generally players that leave never go on to replicate the success or even the quality that they had whilst playing for Arsenal. He was brilliantly described (as part of a brilliant post here) recently as the best used car saleman in the land for exactly that reason - as their legs have a knack of giving way on another manager's pitch.

But equally Wenger has had his regets and openly spoke of his desire to keep Anelka and that he would have had him back. So would I.

Wenger has been equally canny in letting Sol Campbell "train" with us. It's try before you buy. It helps the player, and we owe that to him, but it also allows the manager to evaluate him. I don't usually get drawn in to speculation, but I think Wenger will sign him on a short term basis as back-up in case Vermaelen or Gallas get injured. Silvestre was fine for cover in the Carling Cup or against lowly opposition, he just does not have the pace. Campbell may have lost some of his pace, but I still think he'll be quick enough and his physical prescence could be useful.

Wenger didn't go back for Viera and I'm pleased that Patrick has found himself at an ambitious club playing in the Premier League. I hate City, actually probably more that Spurs just because of their £ootballing philosphy, but I wish Viera all the best, just not against us.

As I type this news is filtering through of the attack on the Togo team bus in Angola. This is horrendous, but does not surprise me. Terrorist organisations were bound to see the the African Cup of Nations as an ideal opportunity for an attack. Anything they do on this smaller scale competition will have a ten-fold impact on the World Cup. The security is on a smaller scale that it will be for the Finals in June and I'm probably being a bit patronising but I can't see the organisation of either of the competitions in Africa being as slick as anything in Europe or the US. This attack, has already been a major success and the repercussions will be huge.

I hear Adebayor is safe. I hate him as much as the next man, but would never wish this upon him. Yes his celebration against us was stupid - but footballers have never been known for their intelligence, it's their football brains that we love.

The poor driver has been killed, let's hope that it isn't any more serious on a personal level for Togo's players and staff.

Event like this put our own health and safety concerns in perspective. So we have to call some games off due to the snow, big deal.

If the game at the Emirates goes ahead tomorrow (which I think it will), have a safe journey.

'98

Goal of the decade

2010-01-05T16:55:00.000-08:00

Goodplaya.com is running an excellent survey on the best goals of the decade here.

Rightly so, he has waited until the decade is over, as it happens no favourite will come from anything in December, but there have been some crackers.

I reckon Bergkamp v Newcastle will win out, and it awesome, but my choice is one that probably won't even be in the top 10.

Any favourite goal has to stand out. It has to be one that you can visualise, and describe without having to see a youtube clip (although I had great fun watching them all again - as I write the snow is falling and I reckon I'll not be able to get to work tomorrow. So might as well stay up watching those beauties)

So there are a handful in the list that do that.

- The mazy run of Henry against Spurs in November 2002 showed him at his absolute peak. And any goal against Spurs is a delight (Cesc providing a couple of corkers), but that was the best of the decade.
Henry also did something similar against Inter, and then Liverpool in the 03/04 season and against Madrid in 05/06. All of these were incredible and against such good opposition, but the one against Spurs was the best.
- Henry's backheel against Charlton, was something different - and although this is about Arsenal goals, Zola's FA Cup goal from a corner in 2002 was cheekier and more ingenious backheel- our best goal needs to be better than that.
- Henry's goal against Prague, hit with the outside of his foot was a peach, but if you want to see a ball curl watch Roberto Carlos' free-kick in Le Tournoi - Yes I know if was not Arsenal, nor was it last decade (1997) but that strike will stay with me forever.
- I don't want to give Adebayor any recognition in this survey, so I didn't. But to be fair the goal against Liverpool at Anfield in 07/08 is one of those memorable goals - because of the run by Theo. His chest'n'volley against Spurs was also quality.

- You also won't see a better team goal than the move finished off by Nasri, against Man United, at home in the 08/09 season. A gazillion precision passes, movement, pace and a crisp finish. If Wenger was taking this survey, that's the goal he would choose.

- My Second favourite is RVP's volley against Charlton. It was hit with such venon, and was so technically difficult and so brilliant - I'll never forget it. I think he struck it so hard that he broke his foot and was out of action for months. But I can see it right now and anytime I want in my mind- it was that memorable.

- But my favourite. Eduardo scoring that volley against Burnley in the FA Cup in February 2009. Almost a year to the day with the same ankle he broke in that horrific incident at Birmingham. But this is not an emotional, sympathetic choice. It was technically amazing and truly memorable in its own right. I was the ground that day and when he first struck it it looked like he'd mishit it and skied it. But watching the replay, I realised it was truly amazing.

I can't believe that there is no Bergkamp goal in my top 3, but perhaps he was at his peak at the end of the previous decade. Nothing will beat the goal he scored against Sunderland in January 1997. The drag-back, the bedazzling of the defence, the trademark curled shot - truly memorable, truly beautiful.

I hope not to leave it too long until the next post - might have some readers by then!

Nearly led them a Merida-nce

2009-12-09T14:06:00.000-08:00

Been on my own international break.

Arsenal haven't really been the same team since theirs.

Was hoping to use my "merry dance" pun tonight but a defeat was what I expected. To be fair, for the first 5 minutes it would be an accurate description. We were moving the ball round well, lots of intricate passing and the possession stats were near-on 100%. It genuinely seemed to unerve the Greeks on the pitch and especially in the stands. Did you notice there weren't any women in the whole ground, including the hairy "cheerleaders"?

Arsene said before the game that fielding this young team would be true to the competition by providing a more motivated side, rather than a more experienced team who had nothing to play for. He was right (again). They genuinely had something to prove and places to fight for. Ramsey responded well and at times looked real quality. By no means the finished article, but some of his passing was sublime. He's got that physical edge too. In a team of full teenagers, he looked experienced and composed. Merida increasingly showed us why Wenger wants to keep him in and around the first team.

A lot of the talk had been of the rising young star Wilshere. I wonder whether he's beginning to believe his own hype. I've seen him play Carling Cup games and even in the Emirates Cup pre-season where he played the rest out the park. But he's trying too hard at the moment, taking people on and running into trouble rather than picking the right pass. Maturity will play a big part here.

Interestingly, rather than showing his experience, Vela seemed to be dragged down by playing in a team full of youngsters. He lacked composure, seems to be brushed off the ball to easily and missed one very good chance at least to score. Again, I've see him play brilliantly and finish with such confidence. That seems to be missing and a Vela firing on all cylinders would really help our first team. All I could think was if there was anyone that I would have wanted on the end of the Ramsey pass that Vela missed, it would have been Arshavin.

Walcott showed that his pace and intelligent running comes naturally and doesn't diminish everytime he has a lay-off due to injury. Let's hope he finds his feet (literally) quickly because Aaron Lennon has begun to show that he can pass and cross and is currently looking more likely to go to South Africa this Summer.

I was very impressed with what I saw and quite enjoyed the game. A luxury to be able to watch a champions league game, knowing you've qualified top and have nothing to worry about - including to a large degree, any of your players getting injured.

We've had a very disjointed few weeks and I hope the first team can get back on track against Liverpool at the weekend.

I've noticed a strange psychological thing going on. Arsene must have said to them early this season that it is not results against the big teams that win you the title, its how you do against the rest - citing United as an example. I've seen quotes from various squad members referring to this idea too.

In essence he is right, but it seems to have been taken too literally by the team and almost given them an excuse for not winning these games. So far it has been taken literally as we've lost to United, City and Chelsea. Spurs are obviously not classed as a big team, because we beat them.

Fortunately Liverpool are not looking like a real challenge for the title this year, which leads me to feel we might just get something out of this game, but with some key players missing it is asking for some of our other players to step up and be counted.

Very grateful that its on sky, so I don't have to struggle with poor illegal streams. Is there a market for providing a quality stream to paying customers? Would it really damage crowd numbers?

Anyway, I'm looking forward to it.

'til next time

Damn you international break!

2009-11-21T16:46:00.000-08:00

We lost our momentum. We lost our in form striker. The players looked a little sluggish. I hate international breaks, especially for meaningless friendlies or games that don't really mean anything to us.

Sunderland had no real momentum to lose. They last won against a big 4 team when they beat Liverpool. I guess they felt they didnt need to raise their game when they lost to Spurs in their last game.
Perhaps Sunderland benefitted from not having any major players out due to internationals. Why it should make such a difference baffles me a little. We can easily win 2 premier league games with a Champions League game sandwiched in the middle. So why not an international victory sandwich?

From the highlights I have seen, Song looked our best player. I love the fact I was so wrong about him. He's beginning to be one of my favourite players and a consistent performer.

Still, win next weekend and we'll have an almost identical record to Man Utd, reclaim 2nd and have a superior goal difference to them. We'll have made up some ground on Chelsea too, by virtue of beating them.

The downside is, I'm not sure we'll do it. I want to stay positive. Its very simple this year. The team that finishes above Chelsea will win the title. Here is our chance to stake our claim.

Lets get back to winning ways against Liege. No excuses, no sluggishness. A solid, confidence building win is required.

Luck o'the French

2009-11-19T08:04:00.000-08:00

Malouda said they were lucky....because the referee didn't see it. He is right. The hand of le God well and truly helped France to the World Cup finals in South Africa.

Henry has cheated, it was wrong, but I would have done the same and I think any other footballer in that position would have done the same. Handball, not get caught (by the referee) and play in the world cup. Yes please.

The media has gone wild again. As they always do when Johnny Foreigner cheats. Would the reaction have been the same if it was Rooney? I think not.

Is his reputation in tatters. Of course not. He has had the grace to admit it was a handball. Something Maradona never did. But it wasn't the Argentine's handball against us that tarnished his reputation, it was his continued drug abuse, of cocaine in particular and his use of ephedrine that caused his expulsion from the 1994 World Cup. I think the referee in last night's game has more to worry about in terms of reputation.

It means we have France in the finals. It would be a lesser tournament without them, and even worse if the Irish were there. They are not a good team and I hate Robbie Keane. He bitches and moans his way through every match. At least this time he has something genuine to moan about.

Now we get to see some of our own play on the biggest stage - Sagna, Clichy, Gallas, maybe Diaby and ofcourse Henry - who will always be Arsenal. And he'll be back at the club one day, in some capacity. And I can't wait.

Even more gutted that Arshavin won't be there. He really would have lit up the tournament. Instead we have Slovenia. Know any of their star players??? I think not. However I am pleased that UEFAs blatant attempt to get all the best teams in by deciding to introduce seeding at the last minute failed. Cheaters don't always prosper.

Nearly back to proper football. The team is damaged but not destroyed by the international break. Bring on Sunderland.

Arsenal's number 9 and Kiwis

2009-11-17T14:35:00.000-08:00

Apologies (to the zero readers!) for not blogging recently.
My world has been overtaken by an issue (read "incompetent fool") at work. This has coincided with a break from domestic football. So there haven't even been any decent matches to take my mind of it.

I promised myself I would never watch an England friendly again, after Sven took over and used them as an exercise in motonony and tedium. Nothing has really improved. I care when its competitive, because the players do - a bit. And I cannot wait for the World Cup. I love it, for the festival of football that it is. Regardless of whether England are there or not.

Until a few years ago, I really struggled to decide what I would prefer - England win the World Cup or Arsenal win the Champions League. Now there is absolutely no contest. Its the UCL every time. I'd love to see England win the biggest tournament in the World, but I still enjoy the tournament as much without them.

Not overly happy about New Zealand qualifying for it though. How can they be there when Ireland or France won't? They were beaten at home by Fiji! And I don't care that this "home" game was actually away, as my Kiwi mate tells me. It's still a disgrace and it devalues the tournament. Still if you want it to be a "world" cup, then its the price we pay.

Apart from the disruption to the domestic game, especially when Arsenal were in such a rich vein of form, I hate the fact that we always seem to pick a heap of injuries.

I am a little worried about Gibbs' niggle picked up with the U21s. My biggest concern is RVP. Just when he was beginning to change my mind about who was the best striker in the premier league (I've always gone for Torres) he gets injured again!! Lets hope the placenta-massage or whatever it is works because we need him back.

Nevertheless. If you told the Arsenal faithfull (and especially the not-so-faithful who are too quick to criticise) that we had just bought Croatia's star player, a Brazillian who scored something like 83 goals in 111 appearances for his previous club and 18 in 28 for his national team, they'd go mental!

Now its time for Eduardo to step up and truly prove his worth.

I think he is outstanding and has the talent to do it. I'll never forget the goal he scored against Burnly in the FA Cup, nearly a year to the day after he broke his ankle. He used the same ankle to slice the ball (on purpose) in such a way that it improbably hit the top corner. I love poetic justice.

Sunderland away looms this weekend.

You broke your leg and now you're back And Darren Bent... is still crap. Eduardo Silva Arsenal's number 9. na na na na na na na na ........................

Kids vs School boys

2009-11-01T06:06:00.000-08:00

School boy errors led to all three goals yesterday. The first thing they teach you is 'play to the whistle' - to be fair Sagna seemed to forget this too for the third goal. However he remembered before any of the Spurs players. Giving him enough time to whip in a cross that somehow rebounded off both Gomez and the nearby defender to allow Van Persie a simple tap in.

A lack of concentration allowed a more clinical Arsenal to take the lead after some solid play by the visitors and I'd love to say the second goal was down to the genius of Fabregas but a significant proportion of blame must go to the Spurs team for switching off, being in shock and terrible tackling. Nevertheless it was pure joy watching Cesc slalem his way through their team from the centre circle and he showed maturity and composure in his finish.

Nevertheless in all three cases - it was the skill and class of the Arsenal players that made the goals. Van Persie reacted quickly like the fox in the box we always hoped to have. Cesc still had plenty to do once the Spurs midfield conspired to give him the ball so soon after the first goal. Harry was a poor sport in saying that "there wasn't a good goal amongst them" but I did enjoy him looking seriously pissed off in the post-match interview.

I loved the way the team shoved Robbie Keane's comments back down his throat. Better squad! Well lets start with the first team and there is no comparision. Factor in that Defoe, Lennon and Modric were missing and the inadequacies of the Tottenham squad were fully exposed.

I also loved the fact that Arsene got so frustrated with his team that he threw his jacket. The reason - he couldn't get them to hear him due to the noise in the stadium. The legend of the "Highbury library" is well and truly buried, especially if we can keep that kind of noisy support up every week. That he couldn't hear might also be down to Wenger being bunged up due to a cold, but I'd rather go with the reason being the vociferous home support.

Let's hope we can despatch AZ in the same way on Wednesday.

Why ninety-eight?

2009-10-29T04:53:00.000-07:00

You can change your wife you can even divorce your family but you'll never leave your club.
I am Arsenal through and through. So much so that if you cut me I'd bleed red and white, well red for sure.

Every day I read several Arsenal blogs, I check the official website throughout the day. I'm addicted, I need my fix. I love going to the ground to see the games but I need something to keep me going in-between. And when I'm not watching or reading about Arsenal, I daydream about them. They say men think about sex every 7 seconds - that's probably true, but I think its Arsenal for the other 6 in my case.

Why ninety-eight?
Well it's the block I sit in for starters - until they eventually get round to giving areas of the ground more human and historic names as part of the inspired Arsenalisation programme. It's also the year Arsenal won their second cup and league double, the first under this inspirational leadership of Arsene Wenger. I'm also 98% sure we are going to win the league but you do know 98% of statistics are made up.

If figured if I am going to spend so much time reading and thinking about Arsenal, then why not write a blog. It doesn't matter if no-one reads it, it's therapeutic in the same way that many people write a diary - and lets face it everyone writes a diary in the hope that someone else will read it and then publish it. So here I am, cutting out the middle man and publishing it myself.

Beliefs
I believe Arsene Wenger is a visionary leader. An inspiration and a footballing genius. He's revolutionised the club (and English football) and has built the foundations for Arsenal to be successful, to dominate consistently for years - and make a profit - oh and play the most attractive, skillful, pacey football on the planet.

I believe Dennis Bergkamp is the best player we've ever had but we've had (and have) some awesome players - who are obvious so I'm not starting that debate!

I also believe that we have an outstanding squad. I went to the Carling Cup game vs Liverpool last night and saw a glimpse of the not to distant future. Eastmond looked Gilbertoesque in his 'don't notice him but what a good job he's done' way. Ramsey is going to be one of the best British players of his generation. Gibbs will be England's and Arsenal's left back before long. I also think Senderos and Bentner have both had a bit of a raw deal from many fans and think both will deliver the goods. Wishere by all accounts will be a real world-beater and what I've seen of him so far suggests nothing else - but he wasn't there last night and where would you play him?
There are a few players I'm not sure about - Diaby still reminds me of a baby giraffe when he plays - but hey, look at how Song has come on!

Arsene is absolutely right about buying "big players" and how it can "kill" his up and coming youngsters. If you properly study the whole squad it is hard to disagree. But let's also not forget that he has bought a large proportion of that team - and the players he has bought recently who do have experience are looking unbelievable - Arshavin and Vermaelen are cases in point. Robbie Keane was in the papers today boasting of how Sp*rs have the better squad compared to us. Robbie you really need to look again, we've got one of the strongest squads we've had for years. Better than the 07-08 season where we came so close but capitulated at/after the infamous Birmingham game. Remember how close we came.

The future....

....of this blog is unknown. I'll keep writing it and see how it goes - I quite enjoyed it so far. I'll do it when I feel there is something interesting to say - Top marks to Arseblog who says something everday - so I know I'll get my regular fix.

....of the club. Well none of us know but I believe in Wenger's long term vision. I'm well and truly prepared for the frustrations and disappointments that we have in store - its the price we'll have to pay for investing in youth - and I will gripe and moan a little like we all do but if you want a bit of optimism too, you'll most likely find it here.

It's been a pleasure

'98