Daily Bits and Bobs

Arsenal in for Hull defender? Another draw on the cards?

Posted on by rico

Morning all.

There are things in life which motivate us humans, especially for those who need motivating. Sportspeople, businessmen and anyone who has the will to succeed needs this inner quality to reach the goals they set themselves. Striving to be the best in the business comes naturally to some, but not all, certainly as we get older.

As Kev said yesterday, PSG might be extra motivated tonight after Serge Aurier was refused entry to the UK so therefore misses tonight’s fixture, but I wonder if Arsene Wenger will be extra motivated after being told he’s not put a title winning squad together for years….? Sadly I doubt it, as said, the older we get, the less inner drive we have. Perhaps a sweeping statement but I doubt I’m far off because let’s face it, most 67 year olds are thinking about all the things they could be enjoying in retirement. Especially knowing the bank balance is quite healthy…

The season started badly but soon improved and hopes of a good season ahead were growing, yet just as in so many seasons gone by, the performance levels have dipped, fixtures we should be winning have been drawn and the fear of history repeating itself again, looms large.

A win with tonight together with a much better performance would be great. Great for morale and confidence if nothing else, because regardless of the result, Arsenal are already through to the knockout stage. The extra income has been secured and I strongly suspect that’s all what matters. To Stan Kroenke anyway.

But Arsene and his players need to be a lot better than of late if we are to beat a strong PSG side who like us, will be hoping to top the group. I’ve no idea who will start this game but I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see Xhaka back and Giroud leading our attack because not only does he give us something different in the box, his hold up play and defensive work on set-pieces is pretty good.

Ramsey and Walcott were slight doubts but Arsene has said both should be alright by tonight. Lucas Perez is back training ahead of schedule, albeit on his own and Debuchy is fit and healthy too but this game is considered too big to throw him in at the deep end after so long out injured. Santi Cazorla could be back in a couple of weeks which in Arsenal language, means February.

I bet Nacho Monreal will have slept better last night knowing Serge Aurier won’t be running him ragged for 90 minutes. But there’s still Cavani, Di Maria, Matuidi, Rabiot and a few more to worry about…..

Bit of transfer gossip to brighten your day:

Arsenal are after Hull defender Josh Tymon. The 17-year-old made his Premier League debut at the weekend but is yet to sign a professional contract at the club. He is currently on a scholarship deal at Hull and ESPN FC say Arsenal are keen on acquiring his services.

Enjoy the game tonight, I’m going for a draw….

rico

159 thoughts on “Arsenal in for Hull defender? Another draw on the cards?”

  3. Adam says:

    Looks like it. I imagine many Arsenal followers are just waiting to be outraged at everything from the team selection to the tactics tonight.

  7. Wavy says:

    I think Le Boss will send out his strongest available team. This is a game he/we really need to win if we are to top the group. Much good may it do us! One knock out game and we’ll be toast! C’est la vie!

    Morning all. Very grey here but it’s not raining………..yet!

  10. Le Coq Monster says:

    Thanks Rico.

    Our youngster`s are on BT Sport 1 @ 1pm……………………..I will watch it whilst I polish my Victoria Cross which I was awarded after my torturous sports massage !

    Normally it is awarded for gallantry “in the face of the enemy”…….so by my reckoning, any Gooner should be awarded it for having to look at the ugly mug of a Spud !.

  11. frednerk says:

    Morning All
    I know most are looking forward
    to the game to-nite no matter what team
    Arsene picks.
    We all have our strongest 12/13..Player’s
    Arsene can’t tell who will have a good game
    on either team……………….Can he.
    But what he can do is.
    Stop biting his finger tips off.
    Put his Bin’s on…and look at what’s going on..
    Because I have a feeling the gooners will let him
    know if the game starts drifting along and we are
    waiting for PSG to go infront.
    He has 7/8 Rhubarbs to pick from..
    we have a big squad now.
    Lets hope we can put this game to bed
    and give the stiff’s a run out in Basle.

  13. Bob John says:

    Hi all
    Surely the main reason Giroud should start tonight is that he”s the fittest and freshest player at the club. The rest are all carrying knocks or done lots of air miles. Aurier being missing might not be such a bonus. His replacement Meunier is no mug as his last minute volley against Basel proved.

  14. allezkev says:

    Afternoon All…

    Afternoon Rico, that was another really good post, making that pasta has certainly got your post-writing energised…. ?

  15. allezkev says:

    Winning tonight’s game would be great, but let’s not lose eh?
    PSG are no mugs, they should have well beaten us in Paris, they’ll be motivated and if we think this is gonna be easy we’ll get well stuffed…

    Yeah Rico, I’d take a draw, finish the job in Basel…

  16. Le Coq Monster says:

    Only a goaless draw will help us to win group if we have to rely on winning in Basel to top group as we scored at PSG !…………anything above 1-1 will put them in the driving seat !…………………..win or loss is best as it will define the standings and we can then play a 2nd string team in Basel !.

  35. Wavy says:

    Best team?
    Seaman,
    Dixon, Adams, Campbell, Sansom
    Ozil, Pires, Ljunberg (sp), Alex James(by repute)
    Henry, Bergamp.

    I feel fairly sure if we put that team out tonight we would almost certainly do a number on PSG.

    I’ll leave it with you!

  37. Wavy says:

    Adam have you not got your Red Level gift on? Your snood! You could look just like Nasri, in his pomp!!
    A win tonight would be appreciated. Give them a shout from me/us.

  39. scottfromoz says:

    Morning all.
    I haven’t had a sick day this year until yesterday, but two in a row is on the cards, so the bonus is I can watch the game.
    Rico, on Ozil……I reckon he’s the best in the League, but when our players off the ball are not making runs, he looks very average.
    Maybe it could be said he needs to do more, but my belief is any attacking player seeing him on the ball should b in motion, because Ozil will find them.
    I agree that he can look very average, but it’s no coincidence that when he’s average, we are, as a unit.
    Let’s give PSG a touch up and get back to top form.

  40. rico says:

    Hi Scott, what time is it with you?

    Mesut frustrates me, he’s a great great player but just sometimes, he looks disinterested…. not often I know but just sometimes…

  52. Obi says:

    AW did his part so far….. good team selection. Now it’s up to the players to play and up to him to sub those who are not doing well.

  60. Bob John says:

    Motta is a Vagina of the highest order. Cheating bastard. And to think people felt sorry for him when Busquets got him sent off in the semi a few years back.

  65. scottfromoz says:

    No dive.
    Absolute penalty when I saw the different angle.
    Super call, to be honest because I was ready to condemn him after seeing a few replays.
    Great officiating.

  66. allezkev says:

    Seen a few snippets on Arsenalist….

    Good to see Arsenal players doing all the streetwise dark arts that PSG employ.
    About time we learned to work the referee like everyone else…

  67. allezkev says:

    Yeah, I thought it was a pen…

    Rico, our boys need to pull as many strokes as they can and be as cynical as everyone else is in Europe…

  89. allezkev says:

    Don’t agree, it wasn’t bad luck to me Scott…

    Iwobi either heads the bloody thing clear or he doesn’t…
    But don’t diver it past your goalkeeper…
    Amateurish by Iwobi imo…

  99. Bob John says:

    That was a complete shambles from start to finish. I was screaming for Iwobi to go off as he was all over the place all game. Yet another game where the opposition keeper could have brought a deck chair.

  100. Micko says:

    Yeah …..decent 2nd half and not a shot on target at home, you couldn’t make it up lol.

    Runners up again in the group, musn’t grumble, that’s life under Arsene and 18 games unbeaten now…..we’re on a roll Gooners, keep the faith.

    At least we can’t draw Bayern, Madrid must be bricking it !

  101. Le Coq Monster says:

    I said any draw over 1-1 would be the worst result !…………………PSG have Lud` at home last game and we have Basel away, any manager with an ounce of sense would play a weakened team in Basel, but we are talking Wenger…………expect a full team and an injury to a key player(s) or a fatigue excuse for the league match which follows ! ( Stoke Home )…………..I really am beginning to hate the CL, I believe it has hindered our title hopes for years and all for the greed of money in a competition we have no hope of winning !…………want proof ?………..look at the last 20 years !……history is the fact !.
    Only when we have an owner who spends like the owners of the usual clubs that win the CL will we have a chance !………………….Kroenke never sells a sports company, so none of us will ever see it in our lifetime and it will get harder once Spuds and Hammers settle into their new stadiums with owners who have money and are die hard fans aswell !…………………..FFP was our only hope under our current regime and that died a death !…………..sorry for the rant, but I just dont understand how anyone gets excited over this no hope cup, unless you are a lover of bank statements it is detrimental to our title aspirations !.

  102. Micko says:

    Calm down Le Coq, the way your carrying on you’d think we’d been knocked out of the Champions League for the past 6 years at the the last 16 stage, get a grip man !!!

    As for Basel, there’s a very good reason their ground is known as the “grave-yard of English football”……..fully expect Arsene to put out a 2nd string side on the nite.

    Nite Gooners

  103. Lee says:

    What’s the plural for “deja vu?”

    Same shit different season, only difference is we’ve spent £90m and yet same old Arsenal.

    Wenger’s record in Europe is embarrassing, he is what is holding Arsenal back or is it the syrup’s fault? I know where my money is…..

  105. rico says:

    ‘deja vues’ Lee… 😉

    Morning to you both and all…

    I’m with Lc, not sure why we bother with the CL, we are never going to win it under Wenger…

  108. Marshall says:

    Morning all. My biggest problem with Wenger is he can’t make a freaking change untill it’s late in the game.-75th min+. Had he made Iwobi change earlier am pretty sure their second goal coudn’t have gone in. And wtf was that from Iwobi? How can he switch off in defence only to get startled when the ball is inbound. Sometimes our players suck. Do they fill the box to defend a corner/set pieces or just to fill up bodies? Lucas was all alone unmarked.

  111. rico says:

    Doesn’t really look like we are concentrating on the winning the league either though…

    I don’t think Wenger even knows his best 11 at the moment…

    Agree re subs Marshall, always by the clock, seldom by what’s going on in a game…

  113. scottfromoz says:

    It seems to me that Santi is the single player we cannot replace.
    Everyone else we can have out and still be decent enough, but when he’s missing, we lose so much.

  116. rico says:

    Exactly. His injury last season should have been a warning to AW. Not because he’s older or getting injuries, but the fact that without him, we struggle…. Whatever happened to having two players for each position…

    I’m still baffled as to why Xhaka didn’t start… I won’t mention Ramsey… 😉

  117. Adam says:

    Morning Rico and all. What a strange team we are at the moment. For 20 minutes in the second half we looked together. If Cavani could finish we would have suffered significant defeats in both legs, yet here we are in the knockout stages. There’s a mental block in this team and watching them live it’s hard to believe that they really believe in themselves. So many problems all over the pitch, it seems churlish to point the finger at players that really shouldn’t be out there at all at the moment. The crowd doesn’t feel positive though they are still supportive. Our results are poor and Arsene looks like he’s floundering to me.

  118. rico says:

    Morning Adam. Perhaps the players don’t believe in themselves, perhaps that’s because they don’t believe in what they are being asked to do…

  123. Le Coq Monster says:

    I`ve calmed down………………………let`s destroy Bournemouth………nuke the bastards !

    Morning 🙂

  126. Le Coq Monster says:

    My love of the CL is well documented, Rico………………but if we dont get all 3 points against Bournemouth we may as well give up !……………it surely has to be a win……….cant see anything else……………100%……………………….guarenteed……………..no brainer………………….bet the house on it…………..hahaha

  132. allezkev says:

    Morning All…

    Rotation might help, but Ozil had a week off recently during the Interlull and he came back just as lacking in spark as the others.

    Yes, we miss Santi, but there seems to be a worrying lack of motivation in our team…

  133. allezkev says:

    November hasn’t been the disaster it was being portrayed in the media, 4 games, 1 win, 3 draws, 0 defeats, still unbeaten after 18 games.

  134. ScottfromOz says:

    Kev, I’m not down as most, but that first half was one of the worst performances I’ve seen us put on.
    It was just terrible.
    Still, we played poorly and yet again, ground out a result so you’re right, it hasn’t been as bad as it could have been.
    A few wins in a row in the League and we’re back in business.

  135. kelsey says:

    Wenger said: ‘We have not lost, but we have lost a winning momentum a little bit.

    ‘I have to be careful on the choice of my words. I say “stuttering” and it comes back at me. Look, we have a special strength in the squad, a consistency in results. We are unbeaten in 18 games.

    ‘Sometimes you go through spells when you win a bit less. But we have to continue without losing and transform draws into wins. But there’s no reason to panic.’
    ——————————————————————————-

    Well that’s tosh to me.He doesn’t know his best team and then sends out a team without wingers.Second best yet again and I have to say it is pretty obvious he can’t motivate his players anymore and more importantly he is set in his ways.He is an intelligent respectful man but I really believe that as we have been for the last few years, top or thereabouts in the second tier of the PL.This pattern will continue time and time gain.

    I will just go on for the ride,I don’t enjoy what I am seeing.Nothing surprises me but if we win it’s a bonus.

  136. Bob John says:

    Hi all
    Not sure what is more worrying. The defensive lapses, the massive midfield holes or the fact that the opposition keeper hasn’t had a save to make in the last three games!

  137. Le Coq Monster says:

    Just read an interesting stat !………………….we have had 4 shots on target in our last 3 games !………………..that`s 1.3333333333333333333 shots per game on target, how impressive is that ! ………………………..I dont mean the shots, I mean my stat ! 🙂

    No wingers, Kelsey !!!…………………………..obviously, my revolusionary idea of 4 wingers is not being heard by Arsene and may coincide with our shots per game ratio ! (read above)

    Thank fcuk we have Ollie, how even better would he be if we had 4 wingers ? ( read below)

    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2016/11/24/arsenal-may-suffering-olivier-giroud-have-europes-statistically/

  138. Le Coq Monster says:

    Due to our lack of 4 wingers………especially on the left hand side…………….I have been out all day sprinting against the sheep in the field and dribbling against them with my left foot whilst whipping in some decent crosses !…………………….. was also pressing for 90 mins, but now have some fine looking trousers and shirts, bit knackered now so me and the sheep are having a lay down in the hay shed.

  139. Wavy says:

    How are your wellingtons, after all that sheep action Lc?
    Love the idea of 8 wingers! Do we have a place for 3 French hens or two turtle doves as well? It’s nearly Christmas after all. Hohohoho.

  141. potter says:

    Wenger believes that player performance starts to decline after 70 minutes , hence his regulation substitute time. What it doesn’t do though is give the man coming on time to settle into the rhythm of the game and although occasionally you get a super sub most of the time the game passes them by and they don’t get into the action.He readily admits that there is a problem, perhaps he should try looking to himself as well as others.

  143. Adam says:

    Evening Rico, Potter and all. We’ve been here before though many times over many seasons. It’s hardly new is it? That’s the worry for me and though our problems are perhaps both numerous and endlessly nuanced, I can only see the bigger picture these days. And that line of thought always brings me to the same conclusion.

  152. allezkev says:

    Scott; 10.26

    I guess only seeing the briefest of highlights saves me from the worst of it, we’re not playing well, but still getting results so it’s steady as she goes…
    TBH whether we won our group or not we’re gonna get a Real Madrid, Barcelona or Bayern, so I’m not gonna wind-myself up over that…
    It’s not as good as portrayed on Untold and it’s not as bad as Le Grove would have it. Therefore Scott I’ll just take it as it comes.
    I’m going to the next two home games so I’ll be in a better position to judge I suppose.

  153. allezkev says:

    English clubs have been cack in Europe pretty much since Chelsea won the thing under Di Matteo, so nothing is really surprising about that.
    The Scum are out and all the media bleat on about is Arsenal. Funny that…
    I smell the smell of an agenda, but that’s nothing new is it…

  155. potter says:

    Deflection Kev, if they talk about Arsenal they don’t have to be too critical of their favoured North London team.. United stayed in , so more games for them. Nice push from Rooney for their first goal. Had it been a forward who went down like that a penalty or even a card might have been produced. However that’s the difference with the bias towards goals making the game interesting.Different rules for forwards and defenders.

  156. rico says:

    Morning all..

    Utd still need a point from their last game apparently, sure hope they get it. Southampton too need to win their last match… Could do with the Totts winning their last match would be handy too, need them in Europa.

    Could help our league campaign once we lose the first knockout fixture…

  158. kelsey says:

    Morning all

    Martinez has signed a new long term deal and don’t laugh but from what I have seen from him I see him taking over sooner rather than later.Cech is still very good but has peaked and i think Ospina won’t hang around that long.Of course I maybe completely wrong

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