Arsenal Vs. Everton predictions preview and that type of thing.

I feel that today is a very decisive day in this season for us. We will line up against Everton who is almost as inconsistent as we are but when they come to play they are dangerous with a strong midfield and defenders who have knack for scoring. Arsenal can and MUST win today. We are only 9 points off the top and the gap is closing the top teams WILL drop points we just have to make sure we are winning them.

The key fights today are going to be in the midfield with our makeshift four hopefully winning 50/50 balls and controlling possession, which is going to be key for us today we need to hold the ball and create chances through our build-up without rushing. We may see Gallas and Toure today which is always an adventure although I still want to see Djourou in the 11 we start today.


My choice for the 11 today

is

Almunia

Sagna Gallas Djourou Clichy

Bendtner Denilson Nasri Vela

RVP Adebayor

ALTHOUGH THE OFFICIAL LINE UP


1 Almunia
22 Clichy
20 Djourou
10 Gallas
3 Sagna
2 Diaby
8 Nasri
15 Denilson
17 Song
25 Adebayor
11 van Persie

so then
OFF WE GO!

full match report later!

Changes to the 11 from Hull

maybe the whole team needs a pair?

Nasri and Bendnter came through in the end and Bendt's boots are vicious to the eyes and to the back of the net.

We pulled out a win against Hull, and actually looked really strong at the end of the match after a game that was mostly mediocre.
Ade and RVP were both on form, and really had a go at the defense.

Defensively, besides Clichy's mistake marking too far off Mendy the back 4 were quality. You can't really put too much blame on Clichy, Mendy is QUICK, and he was trying to play smart and safe but, he got beat with a quick touch and the ball ended up in the back of the net. Gael just has to trust in his pace, he could have been closer to his man.

Our issue, was again... in the midfield.
Some moments we looked bright and had a wonderful passing displays while trying to break down their attack. Other times we gave away the pall and couldn't put any attack together, this hot, cold, on, off issue is really the main issue with our middle-men.

On a positive note, Denilson stood strong against Hull, he didn't have a spectacular game but he was sold and steady, which is what we need.

Diaby settled in a bit more to his central role but gave the ball away far too much to be effective at the middle. Which is costing us a big part of our possession in the final third.

Nasri was very frustrated at his position on the flank. He created well but kept slamming the ball into the first defender on all his crosses which again is something we need to stop doing... obviously

However, letting Nasri pull to the middle and leaving Diaby on the flank BOTH players look more comfortable. Nasri can pull the strings a bit more from the center, and he has better and more consistent passing while Diaby can have a bit more room and be a bit more free with what he is trying to create as tight passes are not his strong suit.

so our 4th midfielder?

Eboue... I am sorry to say, has to get back to the bench. I have been the biggest fan of his this season, but he is just so inconsistent and his flaws are too evident and there is a hole in the team... we look better with him off the pitch, enough blown crosses and wasted shots and dribbling to no where.

Bendtner deserves the spot. Always coming on strong and always coming through in the clutch. He has shown he can do more than just strike he can create and drive the right side which is normally our weaker side. If you don't think we look more dangerous with Nick on the pitch I suggest you WATCH THIS

So Nasri to the center Diaby on the flank and Bendtner in for Eboue... what else can he do to earn a starting spot? He may be out of his position but he is a dangerous player and we need that from him for 90 minutes instead of leaving it all to the end of the game.

Man Of The Match Vs. Hull

Our Man of the match, ROBIN VAN PERSIE he was involved in the creation of all three goals today against Hull City.

Include the fact that he had TWO spot kicks that were very nearly goals, he was brilliant in the attack all game and Hull ran cowering from his left foot... I would have to say he is not only the man of the match but the man of the season thus far...

RVP has now hit the crossbar 15 times this season... pair that with his 8 goals (11th most in the league) oh and dont forget he is tied for 1st in the league for most assists with 8.

Robin seems to have to fight hard to get ever goal he scores, what if the boy had a bit of luck on his side??? I do think we would be a bit higher in the table if he could find his LUCKY boots. (borrow Nicklas's pink pair?)

ALSO there have been reports of Milan buying up Ade and Clichy from the Money they receive from the KAKA deal with CITY. Along with Barca planning to scoop up RVP and Cesc this summer...

to all of this I say....

Horseshit. complete and udder horseshit

happy Monday

A Look Ahead On Arsenal's Title Hopes

Can Arsenal put together a run in the second half of the season which will take the league trophy away from Man U

...well that might be stretching it... even by my standards
HOWEVER, I do think this season may turn out alright...

We all know The Gunners have had quite the season riddled with highs and lows, and its been a rough frustrating path so far for us fans... but oddly enough on this Wednesday afternoon I am feeling rather optimistic. Yes, despite the headlines you can officially stamp me as a Gooner with hope.

Having won big against teams like Chelsea, and United to show that we have the quality, we dropped the ball against teams like Hull and Tottenham showing that we have note a remote sense of consistency.

Until... now?
undefeated in our last 7 games

now one would think we are in a bit of a rough spot at the moment... Cesc, Theo, Rosicky, Gallas, Silvestre, are all out on injury and eduardo is still getting fit.

so how could I possibly be hopeful you say?
Well the form of Djourou and Sagna has been impressive lately, though we are still weak in the air defensively those boys on their game means good things for us.

With Wenger finally deciding to push Nasri into the center of the pitch we should be feeling the effects of some great delivery from the young french mid-fielder.

Also, Van Persie's cannon feet paired with the confidence of our super-subs of Bendtner and Vela we may have a great few games coming up.
I really hope Vela has earned himself a starting spot after the energy he gave us against Bolton. He has earned and. I am also excited to see Nicklas perform as well as he knows he should, now that he has some confidence in those rainbow colored boots.

and hey, it looks like we finally learned how to win UGLY... chew on that you cynics.


The Schedule for the rest of the season looks like this:



January

17 Hull (a)

28 Everton (a)

31 West Ham (h)

February

7 Tottenham (a)

21 Sunderland (h)

28 Fulham (h)

March

3 West Brom (a)

14 Blackburn (h)

21 Newcastle (a)

April

4 Man City (h)

11 Wigan (a)

18 Liverpool (a)

25 Middlesbrough (h)



I don't think we can count ANY of these games as easy wins... BUT with the confidence the squad hold now we may have a shot at something here... even in the league. Especially with Chelsea's dismal excuse of a football game this past weekend, and we have the likes of Cesc, Theo, Gallas, and Eduardo are all coming back into the team eventually we may be in a position to actually fight for something this season... we WILL be in the top 4 the question is just where in it we will sit? and WHO will be number 4?

but let's keep the belief!

Wegner Has Seen The Light!

Sammy Nasri looks like he will be lining up in the middle of the park against Hull City this weekend after finally getting his chance in the middle of the park against Bolton.

The young French Winger always seems to attempt to sneak in to the middle of the pitch and has pulled off a number of great passes when he ends up there. He works very well with RVP from there getting a few of his assists from this position.

"He gave us a little bit more creativity in the centre, especially in a tight game like that," said Wegner after the Bolton game.

He will hopefully pull all the right strings and start the attacks deeper and get some good delivery to Ade and Van Persie.

So my thoughts for now are resting upon our 11 for this Saturday against Hull. I know its a bit early to start the speculation... but I'm doing it anyway.
I think Vela will get a starting spot after giving us a huge spark as a sub against Bolton well at least I HOPE he will get the start.
I would also like to see Eboue remain in the team this weekend as he has been solid every since he was booed off the pitch by some harsh fans.

SO WITH ANY LUCK
this weekend we will line up like so...



BUT, I think Denilson will push up a bit going level with Nasri as he is not nearly as wall like as we all wish he was. I wouldnt mind seeing Bendtner in for Ade the latter has been in a bit of poor form Bendtner's confidence is riding high after his victorious strike against Bolton last weekend.

Lets hope, I think we are due some revenge.

Kevin Davies is a Loud Mouth Cheater

As I am sure you have all read, the vicious tackle with a mouth (Kevin Davies) has made some comments in which he insinuated Arsenal are a bunch of cheaters, for trying to get him booked during the last match.

Davies had some comments after Bolton fell to Big Nicks well timed strike...
He stated:

"Sometimes it feels like they are trying to earn you a booking, which is bit disappointing and in some of the challenges, I felt that I won the ball,"

and then...

"A few of them let out a big scream, which is a bit embarrassing really because it is a man's game."

Oh, and finally...

"(Kolo) Toure did one, and he is a big, strong man. He was screaming 'my leg' which is a bit unnecessary - but they get the free-kicks."

Now everyone knows Davies has a reputation for being a dirty player and being a bit malicious and quite free with his elbows.
Now Mr. Davies you do realize that you rank second in most fouls this season with 57?
And that your teammates Gavin McCain and Kevin Nolan rank numbers 12 and 13 respectively, each with 35 fouls.

Also, please refer to the picture at the top of this article to see Bolton's #14 tossing an elbow into Petr Cech's stomach.

If that isn't proof enough that your team are a bunch of fucking vicious hooligans I say lets have a history lesson...
Do you know who how many fouls you had in the 07-08 season?
you were 2nd most in the league with 86
how about 06-07? 1st with 88 fouls
oh and maybe I should mention 05-06? 1st with 108 fouls
04-05 you ask? ah, 1st again with 95 fouls

So maybe you did win the ball a few times, do you think players see you coming and simply shriek in horror out of habit? Quite a possibility I think. I mean you don't think you might just maybe possibly DESERVE a booking? I mean this is me just thinking out loud here.

You filthy cheater, the fact you don't get booked on a per tackle basis amazes me. Every player that you tackle has the absolute right to cry bloody murder as you probably belong behind bars.

thats all for now...
oh and Cheers to Bendtner for putting you and the bunch of cowardly cheaters of Bolton in your place.

The Arshavin Dilemma

The footballing news sources are up in arms today saying that Zenit St. Greedyfuckersburg have rejected £10mil bid for Arshavin from Arsenal. This to me, seems absolutely absurd.

First of all is that really how Zenit are going to handle transfer business? Arsene has already shown his frustration that they have not kept the dealings quiet in the first place. And I am sure Arsenal were and still are ready to continue dealings in trying to get Andrei, its just ridiculous the way everything is unfolding. Zenit spokesman Alexei Petrov came out to say

"I can confirm that Zenit did get an official offer from Arsenal about Andrei Arshavin. It was rejected as insufficient. They offered about £10 million. No new offers have arrived from them since.

At the moment, Arsenal are the only club to have approached us about the player."

With Arsenal not willing to pay ridiculous demands for a highly untested player the club has come out and aired all the transfer business to just try to put the highest price tag on Arshavin's head. Instead of working on a deal that has been in progress for some time they are willing to just say hey this isnt enough who is willing to lose their ass on a player that might not even be able to play in the league?? anyone, anyone? I think this was an obvious ploy to try to get someone along the lines of Man City to pay a ridiculous amount for him. Oh, and this is all on top of Andrei's ridiculous wage demands, which are in the range of our beloved Cesc... and if he really thinks that he is in the same league as Cesc or that we value him that much... he should down and do some re evaluation of his life.

Now don't get me wrong, I like the way Arshavin plays, but can he keep that up against the best defenders in the world week in and week out? Is he that good? I would hope so... but to find out the price should be no higher than £12-£15mil. I do think we should still make the effort to get him because he could add some great creativity to the team.

Although if the deal fails, I wont be crying about it.

Andrei is an ATTACKING player and we have quite the plethora of strong creative attackers.

Robin Van Persie- Probably the most underrated striker in the world, he has an angels touch and a cannon for his left foot, and he has won games for us this season by himself. Watching him yesterday against Bolton, he showed his absolute natural gift for creating attacks out of nothing (even when those slimey fucks have 11 people in the box)

Adebayor- Yes, he has been a bit out of form since his two yellows against Villa. But on his day he will run at defenders and send them cowering. We obviously know his goal scoring ability.

Bendtner- Yes I am listing Nicky B, I think he is a great striker and tougher and more physical than anyone on our team. He also seems to pull through in the clutch, scoring the important goals when we need them. I would like to see more of him this season.

Samir Nasri- My favorite signing of the summer, it seems like he has been with us for much longer but he has already got 5 goals and 4 assists this season and once he finds his consistency (put him in the middle) he will be able to drive the attack because his passing is absolutely lethal.

and that is who we have available right now.

lets not forget about the boys out on injury.

Cesc- Our golden boy, pulls attacks out of thin air and holds the game in his feet.

Eduardo- probably our most natural striker he was absolutely lethal in the way he finished last season, I can't wait to see him back in the first team.

Theo- Obviously his pace is what sets him apart and he can change the game immediately by running at defenders which will inevitably end up chasing him. (Theeeeoooo Theeeeeooo Theeeeeeooo) that is my favorite chant

Rosicky- We miss our solid wing player very much, scoring 7 goals in 24 apperances last season before we lost him to the longest injury ever... He can strike from a distance which is something we miss in a lot our build up (although Kolo would disagree)

so with all these attack players... do we really need Andrei? I mean he is a class player and if we can get him for a reasonable deal, then great, it can't hurt to have another weapon. But, he is not worth all the money in our piggy bank.

Arsene has said he is not after another defender... I hope to god his is just Arsene being Arsene... I have a heart attack on every set piece so I implore you Arsenal please for the good of my health at least CONSIDER bolstering our back.

Also, we all know by now how clever Mr. Wenger is. I am sure he has some tricks up his sleeve... he always does. He has been saying we need one more maybe two... Andrei being the one... but who is the two?

Hopefully we will find out soon.

Bolton You Cowards

I was unable to watch today's match VS. Bolton, but I have a very good understanding of what happened in the game through watching every highlight reel and reading every match description I could find.
So... I would just like to say.

Bolton you bunch of fucking cowards you deserve to be relegated for this style of play. How can you possibly respect yourselves coming in to a game defending for a point, that is absurd. I understand heavy defending against a team that is OBVIOUSLY much more talented than yours... but to not even attempt to create opportunities its disgusting.

I would also like to point out, I think many of us gooners are a bit cynical of our abilities some days (myself included). Diaby, (who I am not a huge fan of{leggy bitch}) had good stats today (61 passes with 92% complete) gets a bad rap and sometimes rightly so, but keep in mind he has shown time and time again he is not a central midfielder. He does better in link up position with the fowards or wing position where he can be a bit more creative without having to worry about giving the ball away in his own half (for evidence that he has good field vision please see his bit of magic at the start of the second half against Villa here
I know that does not make up for the numerous balls he gives away but, anyone who can pull off that bit of skill deserves a spot in our team he just needs to gain consistency and get the hell away from the central midfield because he fails miserably there.

Denilson had a good one today as well. 108 passes with 89% accuracy I think he is stronger than he often gets credit for and he may turn out to be a good partner for Cesc after all... if he gets steps out of his girls boots and learns how to stay tough for 90 mins defensively by winning 50/50 balls.
So speaking of girls boots... On to Nikki B! I have a soft spot for the gigantic Dane, he has been a bit out of form lately, but I like the way he plays. He came through in a big way for us today and finished out the creative works of Nasri, Clichy and RVP. We don't have a big tough forward who can punish the back four (adebayor is not nearly as physical as Nick) we need him for games like this. Bad attitude or not, we don't have anyone that will be so rough and tumble getting on the end of the ball for a strike. Also don't forget he turns 20 on the 16th of January, the boys got time to grow and be a real force of ours and I would like to see him in Theo's role from last season coming on to change the nature of game just be that lurking danger.

So in Closing Bolton fuck you... we pulled it out 1-0 no matter how many legs your try to break and how many people you put in the box. The fact that we kept at it and were able to create at all against a side that was only willing to defend is actually quite impressive.

Oh and kudos to Vela for giving us much needed life today

next match I'd like so see our 11



Almunia
Sagna Toure Djourou Clichy
Denilson Nasri
Vela----------------Eboue
RVP Adebayor


Thoughts?

thats all for now
Still quiet on the transfer front.
Think that will change in the coming days?

Filling Flamini's Boots... solve our midfield suffering

A little over a year ago, Gunners fans were enjoying the boys sitting top of the table and games that were dominated by beautiful football from a young squad... Well, we all know how last season ended. Our already young squad got even younger as we lost the likes of Hleb, Flamini, Gilberto, Lehmann, as well as sending out Senderos on loan.
Is losing that experience what has brought us to where we are now? 5th in the Prem, struggling to have any sort of consistency, and pulling players out of position to cover a squad that was thin BEFORE our injury crisis? I think not. Hleb was great on the ball and worked our quick touch system like a master, but he had no driving attack force, scoring just 11 times in his Arsenal career in all competitions(mostly in his final season when he learned how to take a shot). I would take Sammy Nasri over Hleb any day, Sammy already has 5 goals this season and 4 assists he is a fantastic creative attacker and could just use a bit more consistency that will hopefully come the more he plays in the Arsenal system. As for Gilberto, and Lehmann both Arsenal to the core, but their time had come Gilberto's injury problems and Lehmann's temper and loss of form showed their prime had past and I was not too sad to see them go. Oh, and Big Phil was sent out on loan to gain some much needed confidence, the big Swiss goon can play he just needs to know that.
So we lost some experience with our older players but what we really lost was one Mathieu Flamini. He was one of the best impact subs we had really giving life to the squad during the 06-07 season and his last season with us we really saw what he could do and was a strong part of our system. Flamini was Cesc's defensive partner allowing Fab to play up and let his creativity shine. No one on the current squad challenges attacking play like he did full force on every ball and just a constant workhorse, the boy was everywhere on the field really challenged for the ball in midfield. He knew the Arsenal system and was wheel in. Now no one seems to fit, Song is the most inconsistent mess I have ever seen either gets beat on ever challenge or makes absurd unnecessary fouls. Diaby is too leggy and while brilliant at times with the attck when he can hold on to the ball he doesn't hold his on defensively. Denilson is fantastic and I think he is going to be a very important part of the team in years to come but when he can't handle rough play, he goes down and loses tough 50/50 balls that we need to be winning our midfield is weak. Someone needs to find Mathieu's old boots to bring some balance back to our midfield as his type of play is what we are missing at the moment. When cesc DOES come back he needs to be able to go up field creating the attack and creating vulnerability in the defense.
The other internal solution is possibly Djourou... but do we dare take him out of our unstable back four while he has been in such good form this season? So who else? A transfer possibly? Noble? Upson? I am sort of at a loss. With all the rumors floating around Im really starting to believe Arshavin is coming, but from what I have seen he is no defensive midfielder. So what to do and who needs to come in or step up? The questions I am sure we are all waiting to have answered. _TGD