A rotten season for one… Arsene gets support from an unlikely source….

Morning all.

It’s Friday, the sun is shining but not so brightly for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. He’s had a rotten season really with injuries and it looks like he faces a few more weeks out yet.

It is taking a bit longer than I thought because he has a groin inflammation. It is related to everything before.

I hope it does not become a long-term problem, but he faces a hurdle this week in training. We will see if he has recovered well.

The end of this week and the start of next week are important to see if he got rid of that inflammation. It is not his hamstring any more. It is groin inflammation.

Suggestion is that should the problem persist, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will undergo surgery on his groin as soon as the season ends. At least his hamstring is fixed and I hope his groin injury does too and without surgery. Come on Shad, work your magic…

Tomorrow we travel to Burnley for a Saturday evening kick-off. The Manc sides battle it out on Sunday afternoon and before then, Chelsea face a tough test at Qpr. Liverpool don’t play until Monday.  A win would see us just four points off top spot.

Get the victory and really put pressure on Mourinho and his team. I’d so love to see them choke this campaign just as Liverpool did last season…

Talking of that under tall manager, he’s finally agreed with Arsene Wenger on something.  The Ballon d’Or.

I think Wenger said something that is interesting; he is against the Ballon d’Or, and I think he’s right, because in this moment football is losing a little bit the concept of the team to focus more on the individual.

We are always looking at the individual performance, the individual stat, the player that runs more. Because you run 11km in a game and I run nine you did a better job than I did? Maybe not! Maybe my 9km were more important than your 11.

For once, I agree with him. The Ballon d’Or award is a bit of a joke. It’s awarded at a time when the season is still in play and to be honest, we all know who will win it before it’s announced.

And I’d say it’s a lot easier for players like Messi and Ronaldo to shine in a ‘nice’ Spanish league, than it would be over here in a tough and physical English league….

Although I doubt everyone will agree with me……

Bit of gossip:

The red tops have latched onto the ‘Walcott/Sterling swap’ rumours. Didn’t see that one coming eh.

Liverpool are interested in signing Carl Jenkinson according to a few headlines on the back pages.

Enough of my ramblings, have a good one all….

194 thoughts on “A rotten season for one… Arsene gets support from an unlikely source….

  1. Joe says:

    Tsgh left this on last post I swear Rico does it on purpose puts up a new post just as I make an insightful comment. 😉
    South American football fans English refs there’s a horror film in there some where or an all action SAS rescue film with a twist.

  2. Hell Raising Devil says:

    Good Morning Lovelies and Hunkies.

    Good post boss.

    If the dippers want Theo and Jenks good luck to them. But give us Raheem and no cash.

    Or else sell them Theo plus 10 mill for Sterling.

    Then have the audacity to ask for £10,000,001 for Jenks.

    And then we will see who smokes what.

  3. Hell Raising Devil says:

    why not Rico??? Unless Theo moves to a higher level (which I doubt that he can) and since it seems that Jenks is surplus (very unfortunate as I like him) the only option is to sell them.

    If Theo was that good or better than what we have or can become better dont you think he would have played more since he came back??? not even when Danny had a knock did he beging the game. So it seems that AW knows something we do not although we suspect that since his operation Theo has not been the same as he was before.

    Jenks is surplus if AW gets another CB.

    So the chances are that they will leave.

    and if they want to go………send them to the dippers. why not. and get Raheem Stirling instead.

  4. tsgh says:

    Good read Rico…

    Lol.. Mauren-ho agreeing with specialist at losing Wenger.

    I read that Joe… I could get you and Syg to direct and produce that flick. 😛

    Starring Dev and Micko in their yellow speedos. 😉 we just need a leading lady… 😉

  5. Wavy says:

    Sell. Sell to the diers. Never, never in a million seasons! They. F**ked us over I see no reason why we should them any of our players, even if they are our second best athletes!
    I’m not that enamoured about Sterling anyway, not entirely what he would add to our already growing squad!
    Nice one Rico, sparked another debate!
    Sick bay filling up again! Think we may have tempted providence, with all our praise for the efficiency of the medics. I wonder if Diaby has called in to see his old mates today? You know, just for old time’s sake and of course, force of habit!
    Morning all.

  6. rico says:

    Thanks re the post Devil/Ts..

    I would rather Jenks stayed at West Ham and Theo to stay or go back to Southampton or another club who would not be a threat to us..

    The Dippers won’t let Sterling join us in any case.. imo..

  7. Canadian Gooner says:

    Good Morning to The Lady of the House and all fellow Gooners in residence.

    Rico – “Talking of that under tall manager…”? There is no need to pull your punches when it comes to the Petulant Portuguese Pygmy. That malevolent midget deserves little consideration or respect. He is worried about Arsenal quickly closing the distance on his team.

    Let us hope that Chelski fade in the last stretch much like Liverpool did last season.

    As for the Walcott/Sterling swap, I’ve seen Walcott plus £20 million, i think someone has doctored John Henry’s cigars. Is Sterling really worth that much or is this an Arsene/Arsenal negotiating tactic?

  8. Brian Price says:

    Hi Rico
    I think that if Nosferatu’s lot don’t drop points to QPR then any chance of us winning it will have gone. That means that if they win, I will be rooting for City to win and finish off U for second, if they drop points a draw would be best.
    I can’t see us wanting Sterling, his best position is in the centre and we have too many players there already. I think Theo should go – he has got a bit stale and a new club and a challenge would work wonders for him.
    Brian

  9. rico says:

    Morning Cg. You know me, I do try to remain polite… 😉

    Ts – no, not me but I think AW has. I hope he still has an Arsenal future….

  10. Dublingunner says:

    Morning all, I have to defend the ballon d,or as it the single best trophy to Identify the current deserved best player, although the award has been dominated by Ronaldo or Messi, they should be acknowledged. In what sense do Mourinho and Wenger think it has a negative impact on world football? Surely if they want team recognition they should put that idea forward as a viable option for a new award to the F.I.F.A awards committee, but I just feel the best players should be awarded, as it is them that along with others promote the modern game, and have the kids, mine included who idolise these great players of the game, and have the local parks full on Saturday mornings. As for Raheem/ Sterling. The vibes are Raheem has told Rogers he wants to leave for Footballing reasons, not for the money, If true, This deal can be done, if we go about it the right way, and Wenger doesn,t f**k it up.

  11. rico says:

    Hi Brian.

    If any of the Manc sides have to win, like you I hope City do. But a draw would suit us better I guess. Red cards ad injuries would be nice… 😉

    I can see Qpr getting something from their game, Chavs have a few injuries and don’t think history has served them well at Qpr…

  12. Canadian Gooner says:

    Ginge – “AW is only complaining about the Ballon d’Or award because the hologram King Abou has not won the award yet…” Should that day ever come the world will have gone mad and anything and everything will be possible.

    You haven’t been smoking John Henry’s cigars, have you?

  13. allezkev says:

    I can see your point Coach…
    But only if we got Stirling…

    Otherwise I wouldnt give them Scousers the time of day…

  14. goonster says:

    Shame aoc ll be missing for a while….bummer. oh well we ve still got dat guy welbz plus gnabs is back. we ll be fine. Morning HH.

  15. rico says:

    I liked that article Cg..

    Thanks Wavy – same here, I wouldn’t give the dippers the contents of my chicken dirt bin! Then again……. lol

  16. goonster says:

    Howdy kev….sterling won’t improve us. I ll rather akpom or iwobi than sterling. When are we going to give our own products a chance. Afobe is currently ripping the championship apart. I don’t want sterling. I ll take a new keeper and another defensive minded mid Fielder.

  17. rico says:

    Morning/afternoon Kev.. 😉

    Hi Dublin – until a footballer other than Messi or Ronaldo win the award, I think it’s a bit of a fix… 😉

  18. tsgh says:

    The sterling deal may be tied to how Juve play the pogba card…
    Shitty will be competing with RM for Pogba but Juve would like cash plus player… if Nastri is made available with Dzeko for Pogba then I guess the bin-dippers will have no choice but to sell Sterling in order to raise cash for a Sir Stevie replacement…

    I suspect Liverpool will sleep easier selling to Shitty than us…

    Also, if Val Gaal gets Yanited in the UCL then they would need to get a creative midfielder; Gundogan or Strootman have been touted.

  19. rico says:

    Hi Goonster..

    I don’t think AW would get involved in any player swap deals. I bet Gallas/Cole still haunts him and weren’t we ripped off….

  20. Canadian Gooner says:

    Rico – “Red cards ad injuries would be nice…” That’s more like it, stick the boot in.

    I agree with your sentiments, as long as none of the injuries are career threatening, $amir Nasti excepted. He deserves any bad karma that comes his way.

    A hard fought chippy game that degenerates into a mass punch-up would suit me. I’d like to see exactly what boxing skills Vain Wooney actually has. $amir Nasti and Judas van Pursestrings being the first players from each team to be ejected from the game.

  21. goonster says:

    Damn Skippy rico….I don’t even want sterling. I think aoc is a better all round player. Plus I can’t still forgive them for not selling us suarez.

  22. rico says:

    That was just for you Cg.. 😉

    I wouldn’t wish a career threatening injury on any player, well, apart from…… the list is endless…. lol

  23. Dublingunner says:

    mmm, on the fence about that one, maybe so, but It is awarded based on the votes from national team coaches and captains, as well as journalists from around the world. my view is who could argue that Messi or Ronaldo havn,t been the 2 best players over the past 5 years, truly great players can play in any league in the world, who can forget Ronaldo,s last year in England, when he steamrolled defences with 42 goals in all competitions and has repeatedly along with Messi hit 40 goals plus a season.

  24. rico says:

    The funny thing is though, Sterling hasn’t said he won’t stay with the Dippers, he just wants to wait until the summer do discuss his contract…

    Don’t they all say that…..?

  25. Canadian Gooner says:

    Rico – A nice wet slurry of your feathered ladies’ droppings liberally applied across the entire field by a fire fighting air tanker on the stroke of 90 minutes would be a fitting finale to the Manchester derby.

  26. Dublingunner says:

    You can bet if Mourinho or Wenger had either of them, they,d have different views about the ballon d,or. Lol.

  27. goonster says:

    Hehehehehe suge knight is a prick ginge. Wish I can get the chance to skin him alive then melt him down for Adam’s glue pot 😀 :

  28. rico says:

    The big surprise for me was Costa last season when his goals in the league virtually won At Madrid the Spanish League and he scored 8 goals in the CL too..

    I can’t stand the player but if ever there was a time someone other than Messi/Ronaldo deserved the award, surely it was then…

  29. goonster says:

    Kev that iwobi kid is a something else. I din want to get caught up in the hype but man alive does he look good Or what?? The future is red and white. Come you gunners.

  30. goonster says:

    Rico if titi didnt win it back then what gave you the impression that sanchez could? ?? Never gonna happen. Let’s just enjoy out football. Win the league and fa cup. Leave the Ballon dosh for them tossers.

  31. tsgh says:

    Costa is shite… lol

    Schweinsteiger or Neuer maybe;

    Kobe and Gabi were more instrumental for Ath Madrid than Costa imho…

  32. rico says:

    Former QPR boss Harry Redknapp has said he was surprised that Loic Remy chose to join Chelsea ahead of Arsenal last summer.

    The French hitman sealed a £10 million move to Stamford Bridge in the closing days of the transfer window, with Redknapp revealing that the Gunners also wanted him.

    Remy returns to Loftus Road on Sunday, where he is expected to lead the Blues’ line in the absence of Diego Costa, who is set to miss a couple of weeks.

    The 28-year-old striker has played second fiddle to Costa for much of the season and, with Olivier Giroud his only rival at Arsenal, Redknapp feels that Remy made an error in judgement when joining Chelsea.

    “I got a phone call on the Saturday before the transfer window shut saying that he had done a deal with Chelsea,” he told The Telegraph. “Arsenal were in for him as well, we had Arsenal and Chelsea trying to sign him and he chose Chelsea.

    “I was surprised he went to Chelsea, I thought he’d go to Arsenal. I could see Arsenal, but I couldn’t really see Chelsea because I thought ‘he’s not going to play there’.

    “It’s a waste really, it’s a bit of a waste of a real Premier League goalscorer. I don’t know what persuaded him to be number two at Chelsea. I thought Arsenal, where he would have played more, would be his move at the time.”

  33. Dublingunner says:

    In that instance Rico , Costa should,ve been maybe at least in the final 3, but I remember they narrowed it down, I think Neuer made the top 3,” odd.”

  34. tsgh says:

    Interesting report Rico…
    Harry forgot to say Chavs offered more money….. 😉

    It goes to show Aw does not just sit there and not want to spend money as the Robsons’ and Durhams’ will like to lead us to believe… lol

  35. goonster says:

    Ginge did you see my boy kramer last weekend? ? What a player. Sign him up arsene. Him and coq for games against the top 4 and in europe. God we ll rule Europe.

  36. goonster says:

    Joshua I ll take but Gustavo us a tad too rash for my liking. Reminds me if flamini sometimes. Plus that ship has since sailed.

  37. goonster says:

    We need less south Americans on the team. the Copa is a biannual thingy right? Can’t have sanchez Gabriel and Gustavo travelling that distance. nope let’s get kramer 😀

  38. goonster says:

    Me too….Alaba Was The Better Player Then In Bayern Yet Folks Kept Raving About Gustavo. I couldn’t control my laughter when bayern shipped him off.

  39. tsgh says:

    Gustavo looked very good in the confed. cup and so they fell for it…

    I think Gustavo was better as a CB than as a DM in a purely possession team.

  40. rico says:

    Juanfran says he rejected a move last summer too, and before then as he’s happy in Spain…

    Think it was Wath who rated Juanfran quite highly….

  41. goonster says:

    Ts everyone looks good in a confed cup. Even gereni njitap of Cameroun bossed the mid field at the 2002 confed cup where Marc Vivien foe died.

  42. goonster says:

    Rico that was just goal.com being mischievous I checked it out and juanfran didn’t even give any interviews.

  43. tsgh says:

    Yes Rico… AW is always active.

    I always say lets blame those who are meant to conclude the deals…

    How we messed up Morgan S., Kramer etc is beyond me too…

  44. tsgh says:

    Rico- Juanfran was 2 seasons ago. We also bid for Uchida; S04 wanted Poldi as part of deal but Poldi rejected move…

    Last season was young Manquillo, before we bidded for Debuchy

  45. Dublingunner says:

    Interesting to see Arsenal have exactly the same record after 31 games as they did last season (W19 D6 L6). Does that mean we have not improved? Mesut Ozil has scored or assisted seven goals in his last eight PL games (three goals, four assists). He has improved.

  46. tsgh says:

    Dg- You missed that stats I posted 2 days ago…

    It blows the water to this whole Coquelin revelation… imho

    Our defensive record is even worst this season btw…

  47. tsgh says:

    Lol… Rico…

    No one…

    You asked me about who confirmed us bidding for Remy last summer too… 😉

    It all gets confirmed in time…

  48. rico says:

    Dublin – I saw those too, amazing really but when we consider who was missing during the first part of the season and how poor we were it’s amazing we have come back so well.

    This year we have caught up and that must be the players returning and imo, the addition of Coquelin…

  49. goonster says:

    Ts you forgot the best stopilla sunzu….Lmao. Gosh this media trolls. They ll be the death of me.

  50. tsgh says:

    agreed Rico…
    I think AW persisting with JW, Ox or Ramsey (when fit) and Flamini in central midfield in 4-1-4-1 was wrong.
    In my view what has changed for us is the set-up and SC19 who I use to criticize for being lazy being moved to CM away from no.10 or the wings.

  51. Dublingunner says:

    I wasn,t aware of that report till now tsgh, But I certainly think we have improved against the top teams, compared to last season. apart from a few awful defensive errors,we could of been a lot closer to Chelsea.

  52. goonster says:

    I swear I could picture SYG’s face when we were linked to stopilla sunzu. Hahahahaha priceless. Oh lord God I love it here.

  53. tsgh says:

    Goonie- Benteke is Syg’s nemesis… lol

    he he he Rico. 😉

    Dg- we have scored more goals since our last game against the spurds no doubt but you have to note we had conceded 43% of our goals against City, Chelsea, Everon, Liverpool and Yanited by match day 31.

  54. goonster says:

    Ts stats are what they are stats. We re a better team than last year. Come on man. Don’t forget that we ve played with an unsettled back 4. One time it was callum nacho per and flamini that finished a game can’t remember right now. Plus we blooded our youths so there’s bound to be gaping holes in the defense. Give a it a full season and watch us rip it.

  55. tsgh says:

    Dg- last season if we had won instead of drawn against Swansea, Everton (Draw and loss) and Yanited we would have won the league.
    What killed our chances last season was the 2-2 at Swansea and the 0-0 against Moyes’s Yanited; not forgetting the 1-1 against Everton at home…

    This season is more to do with how the likes of city and chavs have been poor than us improving imho…

  56. joe says:

    We may have the same points total won the same number of games won…..
    But we have had better results a draw at Liverpool and a win at city also no hammerings.(yet) 😉
    Also we beat manu for the first time since Brian Boru was high king.

  57. tsgh says:

    goonie- I hope we push on next season; we do not want a repeat of 2008 season where AW failed to bolster the squad after we came close the season before..

    Since AW has been with us we have struggled before Christmas after a tournament season…

  58. potter says:

    Sorry that I am late to the party but if Theo wants to go so be it but not for Sterling . The only difference is that Theo is a one trick pony and Sterling possibly has two. Just watch the defenders work him out next time around. We really don’t need him , apart from being English he doesn’t bring anything to the table that Gnabry doesn’t already. He wants to leave the banks of the Mersey ( who wouldn’t ) and return to his mates in London with a packet of cash to enjoy the good life. He’s ideally suited to the other end of Seven sisters all hype with little end product. Could easily go the same way as Zaha at Palace collecting the trolleys at Sainsbury’s next door.

  59. rico says:

    goonie – i agree with you again. We are much better this season, especially since the turn of the year..

    It’s all too easy to say it’s down to others playing rubbish so that’s why we are doing so well, well I disagree – that’s football, thats results and when teams in the bottom are fighting for survival, they cause shocks..

    And, do we say that others win the PL because we are rubbish?

    This season it’s all been about poor results up to Christmas, injuries, World Cup took their toll too.

    I think we are much better now and hopefully the results for the remainder of the season confirm that..

    Then 3 summer signings, a few out and go again next season… But from the start!

  60. tsgh says:

    joe- AW has beaten Van gaal only once…

    when we beat them again in May then I will conceded…

    As rico implied in her post 2 days ago, AW got lucky… if liverpool still had Suareez or Balo’ had not flopped we wont be sitting 2nd imho..

    Imagine if City was not under achieving….

  61. Dublingunner says:

    I have said that too, ts, Thats how Chelsea found it so easy to Win it this season, “granted that they will win it”. is due to the inconsistencies of the chasing pack, including ourselves.They were just the most consistant team without having to play well. Maybe it can be said our performances have improved, but our results havn,t. Either way I hope valuable lessons will have been learned from this season to carry forward to next.

  62. goonster says:

    Ts I stopped reading when you said if liverpool had suarez and balo….Hahahahahah since when is the bin dippers a better team. We beat dem twice last season no one remembers that apart from the mauling. We ve always ripped those coont apart anytime we meet. Only beaten us twice in 7 seasons at stinkfield. Yet you think they are a better team??? Come on bro give me a break. Hahahahahahahahah

  63. rico says:

    Have to agree Potter. I thought it sounded good when I first heard about Sterling might be coming to us, but have had second thoughts since..

    Ts – the post you are referring to, didn’t imply AW got lucky – I said he’d been doing the right things yet continues to be labelled lucky…

  64. rico says:

    I thought that quite funny too Goonster, especially considering we just ripped them apart with ease…..

    If’s and but’s are handy when trying to talk about other clubs performances going off the ball but what abut our own?

    If only Ozil, Walcott, AOC, Giroud, Kos…. the list goes on hadn’t been injured?

    Well the answer to that imo, has playing out in front of our eyes recently…..

  65. tsgh says:

    oh my bad Rico…

    I defend AW a lot but I admit he has been very lucky this season. imho of course

    lol goonie… I never said the dippers were better. You make a relevant point in regards to us beating them last season…

    Last season I always said there was no difference between who you got your 3 points from…

    I cited how Jose didn’t mind losing against crystal palace but would sell his soul to beat AW;

    what I was trying to say as Dg has also said is that if our rivals have also been consistent it would be a very different discussion now..

    Even Everton have struggled this season due to coping with UEFA cup…

  66. goonster says:

    You said rico…I hate it when folks big up other teams chances just to belittle ours when we do the same. oh the league has been poor that’s why arsenal is in 2nd place. Give me a fucking break. We re in second because we deserve to be there. We’re the most inform team in the whole of Europe right now. Only lazio has done better and that’s on goal difference.

  67. Dublingunner says:

    Ye I have to say i wouldn,t pay 30,40 million for Sterling, but my argument was if we could get im in part exchange for Walcott, It could be worth looking into. Personally, I think Sterling is a real talent, and under Wenger,s tutelage, Who knows.

  68. tsgh says:

    no point in ridiculing my point of view…

    I am consistent in my views… I don’t change my views depending on how results go…

    I have said we have improved upon our performances as compared to before sperds lose but in my opinion we haven’t agreed upon last season even with AS17…

  69. rico says:

    Me too Goonster.

    I just don’t understand picking things apart right now to prove a negative aspect of the team/performances/results we are having. Prior to Christmas, we had a lot to be disappointed about but now we are on a good run so why not enjoy it.

    So what if other clubs are losing a few games, and I certainly never understand how their results or performances are used to justify our position in the league…

    Still, each to their own I guess…

  70. goonster says:

    Ts I never ridiculed it….just stating the obvious. We got better others didn’t get worse. End of.

  71. tsgh says:

    2 seasons ago after beating FC muchen we had the best defence and best points tally but still finished empty handed- goonie

    All I am saying is until we have finished 3rd or 2nd and won fa cup there is no conclusive evidence we have improved.

  72. goonster says:

    Ts we ve beaten manure at old toilet for the first time since God knows when. We also went over to the wasteland and whupped shitty. Coincidence? ?? I dint think so. Go watch them games again. You ll see the pragmatic wenger strutting his stuff. We won both games because we were better not because they were inconsistent. Come on man.

  73. tsgh says:

    no worries…

    I contest we have gotten better unless you are referring to where we sit on table…

    Chelsea have 1 point less as compared to last season;
    the dippers have 14 points less
    city have 4 points less whilst we have the same point tally at week 31…

    my point is that our rivals have not improved… I
    I am not trying to convince anyone who believes otherwise but I am trying to understand the logic or factor influencing the believe that we have improved since Coquelin came back..

    note we beat city comprehensively in the charity shield

  74. tsgh says:

    fergie won the title losing to Chelsea and us in 2005 and 2006…

    Fergie always use to say if you beat all the teams you are meant to beat you stand a strong chance of winning the title…

    For the fans it might means something but 3 points are 3 points.

    FC Muchen lost to BVB 2 times last season and still won the title and German cup…

  75. Dublingunner says:

    I think I made a valid point in saying, Chelsea won or will win the league, not because they have been brilliant, but because of the inconsistencies of the chasing pack( including ourselves, all be it early season inconsistency). we,ve all made it easier than it should,ve been for chelsea. on Arsenals current form i have no complaints, as ive stated i am thoroughly enjoying our form at the the moment, L.M.I.C.

  76. goonster says:

    My God ts are you serious?? Points tally?? Who cares about points tally. That was for last season this is for this swason. Stats is stats like i said. Ok here’s a different stat for you. Last year we lost 6.3 5.1 6.0 3.0 this season we ve only lost just one of those games. Last season we beat the scummers 3 times and didn’t even concede this season they took 4 points off us. this season It appears like we ll finish 2nd or 3rd last season we were scrapping for 4th with the scummers manure and everton and if I can remember clearly finished a few points above them. Ts points tally for a previous season is not relevant to the next. The invisibles won the league with less than 90 points if I am right the chavs team of 2008 won it with more than 90. Is that chav team a better team than the invicibles? ? I think not. Come on man

  77. rico says:

    Chavs are top of the league, where were they this time last season?

    Same with Utd, they are 3rd, where are they now?

    The Dippers were the second best performers of 2015 until they lost to Utd and Arsenal…

    Not sure they have all regressed that much, if at all if points are to go by….

    City, well perhaps other sides as well as us have performed well against them and have simply worked harder for their win…

  78. joe says:

    Tagh I believe we are a better team than last season and surely that’s the important thing.
    I don’t mean I believe it so it must be true 🙂 or do I.

  79. goonster says:

    All is fanstatic Adam arsenal is doing fabulous. my father in law finally moved out and my little girl is walking on her own. Life is good 😀

  80. tsgh says:

    Goonie… AW always says he wants to improve on points tally gained to see if we have progressed.

    last summer AW said we finished 7 points behind the eventual winners with loads of injuries and so if we got everyone fit we wouldn’t need major reinforcement…

    if we finished 4th but only 3 points behind Chelsea you would say we have improve! on the other hand if we finished 2nd but 11 points behind Chelsea a different argument will be made imo…

    the season we finished 3rd you argued that we finished 16 points behind city and so we were no where near city if you remember. 😉

    points matter mate…

    you have appoint Rico.

  81. tsgh says:

    lol Goonie. so truwe I should do…

    Lets hope we win the cup because If the unthinkable happened and we did not win the fa cup… none of youwould say we have improved? lol

    Its all irrelevant; there is a feel good factor around so it is hard argue otherwise… I believe if we finish 2nd and win FA cup then we have progressed.

  82. HenryB says:

    An interesting Post, as always, Rico. 🙂

    To imagine that the transfer window does not even open for another 3 months or so and yet the rumours are heating up. And 99% of it is bollix.

    I seem to have been saying the same thing to you, on and off, for years. 🙂

  83. HenryB says:

    The idea that Mourinho might think that AW gives a monkeys what he does or does not agree with shows the megalomaniac delusion of the man.

    Arsene is trying to show there are no favourites at Arsenal and all the team are expected to play for each other — the Ballon D’Or is simply there for the aggrandisement of UEFA and to flatter the petty egos of certain players. A load of Ballons, methinks. — Unless they played for Arsenal.

  84. potter says:

    I suggest that if you want to rate Sterling , Try a comparison with David Rocastle and then tell me he’s worth £ 30 million.

  85. allezkev says:

    Didn’t George Graham sell Rocky for £2 million…

    I think that Ruud Gullet was the most expensive player in the world around that time at £5.5 million…?

    It was a very different game in those pre-EPL days…

  86. allezkev says:

    In around 1993, you could get a Terrace match ticket, on the Clock End for £3.00.

    That’s how much a poxy programme costs now!

  87. Bob John says:

    Hi all. This will make you think!
    Was in a shop earlier talking to the proprietor who is a West Ham fan who went to Leicester last week and said West Ham should have won. Another bloke who looked like a salesman was standing there and said “Liverpool should have beaten Arsenal but they didn’t”!!! Not sure if he was genuinely stupid or just really blinkered.
    I was quite proud of that fact that I kept quiet!

  88. Hell Raising Devil says:

    Good Evening Lovelies and Hunkies.

    Some stats Ginge………

    This year we have played 31 games and conceded 32. In the last 12 games that Coquelin has began we have conceded 10 goals. So that means that BC we had played 19 games and conceded 22. While AC began to play games from the beginning we have conceded 10 in 12 games.

    You like stats dont you Ginge?????

    😛

  89. rico says:

    Ha ha Bob, I think that fan was both…

    Evening Devil.. So would you say Francis Coquelin has made a difference?

    Evening guys….

  90. Hell Raising Devil says:

    In my opinion yes. but I dont go by stats. I just look at how the team performs and what has changed.

    yes…his stats regarding fitness beyond the 65th minute are an issue atm. but let us see how next season pans out.

    the simple stat I posted above shows that after Coq we have conceded less than a goal a game. Simple really.

  91. Judge me in May says:

    Evening Rico and all..
    Interesting debate about arsenal improvement from last season..
    I am with the yes we have party..
    We can look at it in different angles and prospective, the important one is that we are 2nd on the table and last season we are way below..
    As rico said yesterday that attributed to many factors.. Most significant is the performance of le coq..
    If only wenger addressed the problem earlier enough..
    May be if we had him in the first half of the season instead of the old and the injured we would be sitting comfortably at the top..
    He might become a shite next season and some would brag I told you so., however that wouldn’t and shouldn’t take away his contribution to the team so far..
    Just like fabregas and Costa, they did all the damage in the first half of the season, and now chelsea sitting potentially 10 points a head, yet we still hear that they not worth the trouble because their form dropped..
    Crazy way of analysis imo.
    Stats can be misleading..
    You can interpret it whatever way it suits your argument.

  92. Hell Raising Devil says:

    Judge….my stat is simple. whatever way one interprets it mate. I think that had Coquelin been there instead of Flamini in the first part of the season then we would have a few more points to our name.

  93. potter says:

    Tend to agree with that Devil . Coquelin has proved the point that Wenger has been remiss in not putting in a player to do that job,. In all probability he was hoping to play Diaby but even he must have realised the risk involved in that.

  94. Hell Raising Devil says:

    my feeling is that Coquelin has not performed differently to how he has done at ohter clubs. its just that he has knitted the team and for once AW has adapted the team to the way Coquelin plays not the other way round.

    I have always believed in adapting the playing style to a player and not the player to a style. imo, since Coquelin came back AW has simply done that. And Coquelin has released players like Bellerin, Ozil, Cazorla etc. Because they know that there is Big Brother watching their back.

  95. rico says:

    As Judge and we all have said, why has AW left the Coquelin position unaddressed for so long. That’s hard to understand….

  96. tsgh says:

    Evening all…

    Judge/Dev- i like to debate.. and as you have said it is all a matter of perspective.
    Dev also note Arteta was involved only in 1 game which we lost.. the small print is he has only played 12 times this season; He was also involved when we played an inform Man city team in the community shield…

    Most importantly we all agree we have improved this part of the season as compared to the first part of the season; not sure what the other confusion is about..

    My point has always been that :

    1. I am not convinced we have improved from last season as we came out from the UCL at the same stats albeit having been eliminated by a non- traditional European power house unlike in the last 4 or so seasons that it was either Barca, BM or AC Milan…
    2. we have the same points tally as last season as we have now; just becuse we have beaten a Man city beaten by CP and other mid table teams does not fill me with confidence that we have really improved…

    If points were not important why is it that Jose’s team of 2004 was voted best EPL team due to finishing with the highest points tally ever whilst Arsenal fans will say the invincibles but some neutrals/haters will say we drew too often?

    Note 10 team have gone unbeaten in a season including Celtic, Juve, Ajax, Milan etc

  97. tsgh says:

    I agree Potter, if Aw dropped Coq and the results did not go well; fans will lynch him..

    It ws the same with Flamini last season even though Flamini’s form was more to do with those around him being in form that actually Flamini being on form…

  98. tsgh says:

    Dev- I think AW stated that Coquelin changed his style after several unsuccessful lonas..

    Coquelin has always preferred to be a box to box midfielder instead of being a sitting midfielder…

  99. Joe says:

    Rico the DM position was not left unadressed Arteta was our DM he may not have been the DM some people want but he was Arsenal’s DM.
    Look I used DM 4 times in a sentence. 🙂

  100. tsgh says:

    ha ha ha Joe…

    Imo lots of Arsenal fans always want to hang the teams performance/fortunes on an individual;

    The scary thing is I have seen loads on sats highlighting how Coq is teh best DM in the league since January but all the players he has been compared to were attacking midfielders or forwards like Hazard, Ash barnes etc…

    It wa sthe same with flamini last season and JW before…

    psyops in prominence. 🙂

  101. rico says:

    Totally disagree Ts. From what I’ve read, Arsenal fans just see how certain players help the others and the team overall….

    And being quite harsh, you lay all our good stuff on Ramseys lap….

  102. Judge me in May says:

    Hi tsgh, I see your point,
    I think we started strong last season, we were top for long time, we needed couple of inforcement to push us further, we only got broke back kallastrum, the rest is history..
    We continued our bad defensive form at the start of the season, because wenger failed yet again to address the issues.
    We were still playing the gung Ho style, and the desperate kamikaze tactics.. Manure game, chavs and others..
    As devil, rico and potter said, I think since the introduction of coqualin and also Monreal and bellerin form, as well as ospina, the team has looked more balanced and assured.
    Sanchez and welbz work ethic affected the whole team spirit as well
    If we can get rambo to perform like last season, I would say we have the perfect first 11..
    It’s all ifs and buts,
    Still we will find out where we stand in May I guess..
    Night gooners

  103. tsgh says:

    Agreed Judge…

    Its quite simple really if we finsih 2nd and win the Fa cup we have improved…

    If we don’t win the cup we have not improved…

    No point in us getting all emotional about things imho…

    Night Rico

  104. goonster says:

    Ts are you still on this?? Come on man. Le coq has been immense. Look no further than the manure game and tell me he isn’t the reason we are doing so well. Even the shitty game he positioned himself between the ball and silva and neutralized him. Like I stated previously stats are stats it means nothing. Jozy Altidore runs around and is built like an ox but I ll rather have chamakh! 😀

  105. goonster says:

    Hahahahahahahaah I feel you bro some nut might just decide to play Russian roulette with the plane. Lol

  106. goonster says:

    Hmmmm kramer to come out tops…I want bvb to win so bad but moenchenglabach ll win this by a slim margin. 2.1 sorry ginge 😀

  107. tsgh says:

    cruel badger. lol

    well Klopp has been found out s I use to say…

    His selection and tactics is worrying now without the level of fitness of his players to back his set-up

  108. goonster says:

    Am a huge bvb fan too…always have always will. Stefan chapuisat’s shirt is still on the wall in my room back in Arnhem. I adored him moeller sammer and Dino zorg. What a team. When tr7 joined in the early 2000s and we won the league I went crazy. My love for bvb has but weaned for a while now. Hmmmm arsenal took over I guessed.

  109. goonster says:

    I think he ll be back stronger next season ginge. He just needs to clear out the garbage and rebuild. Kloop is one of those coaches who can go toe to toe with the best out there even with limited resources. He ll be bacl.

  110. tsgh says:

    Lets hope so Goonie…

    I use to say Bartlett the fitness coach was instrumental in the way they played… Bartlett made Dfb strong too…

    Klopp needs to change things…

    Immobile and Ramos ahve been poor. mI think BVB should have sold lewndowski and taken the cash instead of allowing him to leave.

    My worry is they will lose Gundogan, grosskreutz next summer…

  111. goonster says:

    Sadly yes ts I don’t see gundogan staying another season but grosskreuts could stay. He has said repeatedly he wants to stay at bvb.

  112. rico says:

    I would have done usually Adam, but decided to go back to bed after letting the chooks out…

    Lazy devils aren’t laying eggs these days… I’ll post you some when they do… 😉

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