Was it boys against men?

On Monday, the Arsenal lost a close one to Manchester United 1-0. For some reason, we can’t seem to stop Park Ji-Sung from scoring on us. His header goal was the only point and this was the third game in a row against us that he scored. However, after the game Arsene Wenger was complaining about the pitch being bad and that being the reason the Arsenal won.

He said, “On a very bad pitch, the technical quality of the game suffered and that’s why you have seen unusual technical mistakes. The pitch was so poor in my opinion and the game suffered a lot from it.” Really? Are you really trying to blame the loss on the pitch? That is like blaming online poker losses on your computer. Yes, the pitch can cause problems in one’s game, but the team should have adjusted to compensate. Did the pitch affect the ball coming off of Ji-Sung’s head?

Let’s take a look at the stats. The Arsenal had the edge in time of possession, holding the ball for 54% of the time. Next, they also had the same number of saves as the United with five. The one key stat is shots on goal. The Arsenal had 5 and the United had 6, and in the end, that extra shot was the difference. One glaring stat to me is the number of fouls. The Arsenal committed almost double the fouls of Manchester United and got four yellow cards in the process. Are we going to blame that on the pitch as well?

In the end, this was a hard fought game by two top-tier teams. Is it possible that poor pitch made a difference in the game? Yes. It is also possible for me to clear a poker deposit bonus playing crappy cards too, but not likely. However, it is much more likely that on this day, the bounce just went the United’s way. There is no reason to put the blame on the pitch when your team statistically held their own. Perhaps if you fouled a little less, you might have gotten a couple more shots on goal. The game was so close that another shot or two could have tied, or even won, the game.

We should be two points behind Chelski!

Our loss against The Toon army is rather difficult to take as we should have been sitting two points behind Chelsea and level on points with Man U. Yet again this season we have lost at home in front of our own fans and there was zero effort, zero urgency and zero desire to win the game. Take away nothing from Newcastle they were very well organised at the back and made us look very poor at times especially in the midfield.

I couldn’t watch the game from kick off I had to pick up my cousin from Luton Airport, his plane landed just before the game. At about 1:25pm we got back to the car and we headed for the M1 South towards M25, radio was tuned in to Talksport which was painful enough  but this was the best I could at the time. I have thought about this fixture and knew this was going to be a hard one as they would be looking for revenge after we knocked them out in Carling Cup a week ago. Judging from what was being said on Talksport we didn’t look like the Arsenal we all know. The only chance we had in the first half was the Cesc free kick which hit the bar however our passing, fluency and desire just wasn’t there and as soon as they scored I feared it could have been one of those days. The whistle blew, end of first half by that time I was approaching Reading on the M4 so had another 5 minutes on the road, I got to my local and we managed to quickly get a pint each and take a seat in front of the big screen. I didn’t even think for a second I would witness such a abysmal display from our lads it was even more painful to watch it on live TV.

Second half started and still we were pretty much shit to be honest with you, we found it really hard to pass the ball in the midfield, our passing was awful we usually move in triangles and pass the ball well what the hell happened to us I thought? Theo should have scored when he had a chance, Cesc had a decent header but it was straight at their keeper. The only good thing about the second half was when Van Persie came on, Jesus I thought how many lagers have I had already? Is it really him? It was him indeed and it was really good so see him getting back to his best. He’s definitely not match fit  and will need few more games to see the best come out of him. We never looked like scoring in the second half  we pushed forward but it wasn’t working. In dying minutes there was no leadership and Koscienly got a straight red for holding onto Nile Ranger but for me this wasn’t a sending off as it wasn’t a foul.

Fabianski was 100% to blame for the goal but he never really got any help from his defenders. We created bugger all in the second half, Theo should have scored, if he’s a better finisher this season why can’t he do the job when badly needed? Our midfield run out of ideas and as soon as I saw Cesc launching long balls I knew it was going to be one of those days. It’s a funny old game you know we have given away 6 points at home already this season to lesser teams and this is totally unacceptable.

A very HUGE, MASSIVE, GIAGANTIC response is required against Wolves and they seem to have improved as well so it won’t be an easy game now. We have lost our spark and I’m worried it has to be said.

Braga taught a lesson by Vintage Arsenal

ARSENAL 6 : 0 SPORTING BRAGA

I think it’s fair to say that before the game tonight I thought Braga was a decent side, ok I don’t want to sound too patronizing here, perhaps they are a good side but after the show tonight we know we can go all the way, well I know we will definitely try. The free flowing football, those passes, those runs, the link up play, chasing the ball, desire, determination and hunger I could go on here forever, it was just amazing to watch simply Vintage Arsenal!

I will focus on individual performances for a change perhaps if I have missed something you Gooners can fill in the gaps. We could have easily scored 10 tonight without a doubt as some chances went begging, never mind to watch us play like this just reminds me why I have fallen in Love with Arsenal!

Cesc was just everywhere tonight and I mean everywhere, defence, in the middle and attack, he showed yet again what a great magician he can be, his form is definitely on the up and scoring two goals will hopefully send him flying even further. I was hoping he was going to get his Hat-Trick but hey I’m sure he’ll have plenty of opportunities to do so. Absolutelly  brilliant performance by our skipper! Nasri was introduced from the first whistle tonight and straight away he was pulling strings on the right wing, he switched sides with Arshavin at some point and did the same on the other side.

Jack  had a fantastic game too, this young lad worked his socks off and played some great football, his cross to Cesc with the outside of his boot was pure class. Chamakh was outstanding, he really adds another dimension to our attack doesn’t he? He’s fast, he can pass and dribble and hold the ball well for a free transfer we got ourselves hell of a striker, Chamakh who? He scored yet again and  boy I can see him scoring many more and Arsene definitely knows.

Song was solid as aways, I have noticed he likes to go forward himself you know, he was poking the ball all night chasing and it looked like no one was going to stop him tonight. Arshavin had few misplaced passes to start with but he worked his arse off on that left wing, he chased back as well. I’m sure we are yet to see the best of him soon. Clichy I think had one incident where he didn’t clear the ball too well but overall he was solid and very quick to the ball, he was up and down on that left flank in the second half. Sagna well what can you say about Sagna solid as a brick wall.

Braga did try to upset our back four at times, however Koscielny and Sqilliaci formed a very good understanding at the back they were really commanding in that area, they didn’t allow anything past them. We can’t forget that they only have been with us few months so there is definitely still room for improvement.

Eboue was as good as the others and Vela scored an absolute gem of a goal, how cheeky was that? I honestly think we have the best attacking side in the Premier League. Vela needs more playing time but I’m sure his time will come. Yet another clean sheet for Almunia that can’t be bad for his confidence buidling, he wasn’t too busy we know but he had a good ball catching practice either way.

I know it’s early days and Braga are not real test yet, however I will enjoy this moment for now and enjoy those goals all over again. I did expect more from Braga I have to admit my money is lost but hey that doesn’t really matter any more.

We deserved this one and we responded well

Weekends come and go, we all look forward to the game at the weekend and before you know it it’s Monday morningand you have to be at work, witha hangover for some of us. It was a good weekend for me, it all started with Everton taking on Man U at midday, I watched the game and thought it would nice for Everton to beat Man U but then the score line looked 1:3 and I changed the channel. Without knowing the final outcome of the game I prepared my self to watch us take on dirty Bolton and dirty they were don’t you think?

First half was a bit nervous I would say, we scored first with a bit of a mix-up in the box Jack crossed the ball in and Koscielny made it 1:0 with a simple tap in but only for him to make a mistake at the other end with some sloppy passing, by that time we should have been at least 4:0 up where Arshavin had a chance after chance unfortunately it wasn’t his day, as much as he tried there was no end product there. I do have to say he worked his socks off so I will let him off here. Fisrt half ended in 1:1 and I felt we needed to improve after the break.

Second half saw a much improved and goal hungry Arsenal side, the game became more physical at that moment and Bolton reverted to some nasty challenges and in the 64th minute Gary Cahill was sent off for a tackle from behind on the man who scored moments later. Chamakh’s header put us in front again after Cesccrossed the ball into the  six yard box, Alex Song withsome clever ball control and a brilliant flick got the third few minutes later. I did go for a 3:1 correct score line withthe bookies but Cesc with a brilliant through ball found Carlos Vela who smashed a low shot and made it 4:1 ultimately making my profit go down the drain. Never mind as I enjoyed this ride very much and three points are more important than anything else.

Bolton should have had another red card or even two, Kevin Davies on purpose clashed heads with Koscielny but referee Stuart Atwell waved it off, that would of been his second yellow and he should have joined Cahill in the dressing room. What happened later was a complete disgrace, Paul Robinson should have seen a straight red after his malicious leg braking tackle on Abou Diaby, for me the linesman had a clear view of the incident and should have done something about it. How on earth the FA allow a Phantom Goal referee in the Priemier League is just beyond a joke. Diaby replaced Jack and only lasted few minutes and was replaced by Denilson, after the tackle Diaby wasn’t happy one bit and I fully stand by him on that one, I would definitely do the same thing. This tackle could have ended his footballing career and Atwell should be dropped to Sunday league games, his atrocious mistakes should be punished and should never be allowed in top league games. I only hope and wish Diaby a speedy recovery to his best!

Diaby is one lucky man

We saw some good individual performances on Saturday no doubt and it looks like our Captain is on his way back, he got three assists and should have probably scored himself. It’s nice to see him coming back to his best. Everyone had a really good game, hopefully Arshavinwill start scoring soon and with Chamakh up front we have definitely an aerial threat we haven’t had in ages. After checking the results after the games it was a nice suprise to see that Everton came back to 3:3 and made my Saturday afternoon even better.

Champions League here we come, till next time everyone.

Blackburn, Transfers and Goalkeepers

I have missed my match review completely, so I’m going to keep this short and sweet as I want to embark on other subjects as we all know the transfer windows was firmly shut at 18:00 UK time yesterday. The Blackburn game on Saturday was a very tough away fixture especially when we play any of Fat Sam’s teams we always seem to struggle and loose vital points. The lads did me proud in every way, yes we seemed very nervous in the first half, we knew what happened there last season so perhaps we were too cautious to begin with.

Blackburn did put the pressure on with their towel throw-ins and keeper directed corners but we defended well and to me Almunia had a very decent game, let’s hope he can use it to boost his confidence even further. In the 20^thminute Arshavin found Van Persie in the middle who with a lovely through ball fed running Theo on the right wing who slotted the ball past Robinson into the far post. Few minutes later Koscielny got caught cold, Diouf took advantage of our new CB and muscled him out the way brought the ball to the by-line and with a nice pass found his team mate Mame Diouf who slotted into an empty net. He will need to make sure this doesn’t happen again, it was a rather cheap goal to give away. Another blow came few minutes later as Robin Van Persie got injured yet again, received his first treatment but with his second there was no way back for him into this game, he was replaced with Chamakh.

It looked apparent that Arsene had a good team talk at half time as Arsenal came back to life and searched for the winning goal. It certainly didn’t take too long, in the 6^thminute Bacary Sanga galloped down the right flank crossed the ball into the box. The ball found Fabreags who fired a shot straight at Theo in the six yard box, luckily Arshavin got on a rebound picked his spot and buried the ball through a rather congested area. The rest is history now, there were some nervy moments towards the end but we stood our ground and made sure three points were secure in the bag. It was good revenge for what we suffered there last season and a well deserved win.

With the transfer window now shut there is a great deal of negativity amongst us Gooners at least in the blog sphere, most blogs have expressed disappointment that Le Boss did not stregthen the squad with a world class goalkeeper and a cover for Alex Song in the DM position. To me this comes as no suprise, we have now four goalkeepers on the books, bringing one in would mean letting someone go. Perhaps all the hype about Schwarzer was just a mind game to give Almunia a kick in the bollocks and show him he needs to fight for that number one place, everyone is scared at the thought of Fabianski in goal but this guy is still very young for a keeper and will learn going forward. This brings me to a point raised by many that none of our keepers have had the support they really deserved and felt like the fans are behind them all the way, we have what we have and we need to get behind them I say.

In my eyes Schwarzer is no better than Almunia, we all saw his blunder at the Emirates against Fulham last season, also I do however remember the game against Barca at home and if it wasn’t for Almunia we would have nothing to play for in the second leg. Either way I will sing his name, cheer him on and get behind him all the way, the same goes for Fabianski, perhaps that will give them the confidence they need.

COME ON YOU REDS….

Slow start but ended in a feast

Before the kick off I never expected for the score line to be so high, Blackpool give them a lot of credit because they came to The Emirates to play football and football they played until the sending off of Evatt. I don’t think we can argue here but he deserved a red as he was the last defender. We can argue the fact that it was outside the penalty area but sometimes these are given and this was certainly the case yesterday. Wenger did say after the game it was harsh but I believe a red card was a correct decision after all these are the rules.

Even after going down to 10 man  Ian Holloway’s men tried to play real football they passed the ball well and if it wasn’t for the sending off we would have witnessed a different outcome, I’m sure. They never hoofed the ball forward expecting a good fortune bounce to get on the score sheet, this is the first team I have seen that tried to play football the correct way and because of that I have tons of respect for  Ian Holloway and Blackpool. It goes without saying as the man himself said that Le Boss is a magician and just goes to show that we are lucky enough to have him for years to come. I wouldn’t have any other way, would you?

We started of slow you have to admit, we needed a goal to get going and we did just that. I’m not going to go through the goals scored we all seen them hundred times I did anyway, they quite simply awesome. Theo at last got his first hat-trick, Arshavin got one so did Diaby and Chamakh to finish off the afternoon. It was a job well done and I hope this is just a beginning for Walcott and by no means it’s a just a one game display, God only knows how much I want him to succeed, he never really showed any progress last season so it’s important for him to grow into the team and score more of those hat-tricks.

The transfer market is still open and Wenger promised at least one more signing if not two, I’m sure it’s damn hard to find some decent enough for our club without spending millions on top. Let’s hope we will get them soon enough or more like on the deadline which is usually the case. I think another CB and DM would be welcome by every Arsenal fan, come on Arsene don’t make us wait too long. That’s it from me fellow Gooners, till next time.

Theo…Theo…Theo…

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