Morning all.
A home win – 9/8. Draw – 27/10. Away win – 11/4. Those are current odds on offer at Oddschecker for our match against Everton on Sunday afternoon. I haven’t a clue what that means, or rather how the those how odds come about but I guess it’s no different to any of us guessing the outcome of the game.
Fabian Delph now plays for Everton, a player Mikel Arteta knows well from his days at Man City. Delph has been full of praise for his old coach, suggesting that it was him who gave him the support needed to remain a City player and had that not been the case, he’d have left long before he did. He said he always knew that Arteta would one day manage a club of his own.
I think Mikel Arteta is bringing out the best in one or two players who I least expected it from. Xhaka, Mustafi and Luiz. Not in my wildest of dreams did I think I’d ever write the words ‘we should keep Mustafi’ but I’m actually beginning to wonder if by the time the season ends, I might be writing those exact words. He’s seldom injured, good in the air and he’s possibly enjoying the best time in an Arsenal shirt. He could have another five good years in him yet at least. At the end of the season, he, Luiz and Sokratis go into the final year of their contract so this summer they either need to be sold or have their contracts extended.
Just a couple of months ago, Luiz and Mustafi were the Laurel and Hardy of the team. The ones who we could rely on to make a mistake, often a costly one too and yet now, paired together, they have looked pretty secure. We’re keeping clean sheets and they are playing a big part in that.
As is Xhaka. He’s never going to be everyone’s favourite but his days of being the pantomime villain seem a distant memory. The team/squad needs more strength and pace in midfield if Arsenal are to become a force again but like Mustafi, Xhaka is better than he was and he seems to be a player who Mikel Arteta relies on. Until the end of the season at least, he and Torreira appear to be our strongest midfield pairing. Both are under contract until the summer of 2023.
On Sunday against Newcastle Utd, Mesut Ozil showed that there is life in the old boy yet. His talent has never been an issue, his reluctance to show it has though. If things aren’t going his way, he seems to give up early in a game and the team suffer big time because of it. He has to be one of the most frustrating players ever to have played for Arsenal. Certainly during my lifetime. Once he and Ceballos got going last weekend, Arsenal ticked quite nicely and when Ceballos came on in Greece, Arsenal certainly looked better but it still took a young left winger, currently a left back to unlock the Olympiacos defence. Or even before then, a long ball from Mustafi and good control from Auba. But the ball into the box was inch perfect for Lacazette. It’s imperative that the Arsenal board tie this young player down to a long contract and much hunch is he wants to stay. Of course he wants to play on the wing, that’s his position but as he’s said himself, he’s learning a lot from playing in defence. His time on the wing will come, of that we can be sure.
Many of us have different views about Arsenal, about the players, the manager and certainly the owner but ultimately we all want the same thing and that’s improvement. We want our club to be challenging trophies again. We’ll differ to with how we think the club should go about achieving this but if we are to stick to the letter of the FFP laws, then there will be no quick fix as far as throwing big money at clubs for big named players. Personally, I wouldn’t want Arsenal to become that kind of club anyway because where’s the fun in that? I like to see a loaf of bread prove, or proof if you prefer, and rise twice before my eyes than to simply buy a loaf from the local bakery or supermarket.
Our most recent successful times which of course was under Arsene Wenger, wasn’t about buying all the best players. It was about finding players who had something in them but just needed the right coach to find it and bring it to the surface and onto the pitch. Vieira, Petit, Henry, Pires, Freddie, Anelka, Lauren, Wiltord, the list is endless. Wenger, for all his faults later on in his career, brought the best out of so many players who were under performing where they were. He may not have signed Dennis Bergkamp but what an extraordinary player he was during that time.
I’m not suggesting for one minute that this current squad has anywhere near the kind of ability that long list above had but if Mikel Arteta can continue to get the best there is in a player out of them and onto the pitch then we can’t really ask for more can?
I have my tin hat ready….
Morning Rico. It was always going to be a building process when Mikel arrived and that’s what we are seeing I think. There are going to be all sorts of issues with all sorts of players and performances haven’t been easy on the eye for a lot of the time. But, he’s certainly done impressive work on the defence and I get the feeling that the players understand that they could be on the verge of something if they just knuckle down. That seems to be happening and after the misery of the early season under Unai, this feels a lot better to me.
Morning Adam.
Same here and anyone who expected anything to suddenly be perfect in just a few weeks must seriously believe in miracles.
Xhaka, Luiz and Mustafi are like different players now. Especially the latter two.
Another quiet day it seems…
‘morning Rico, Adam.
I’m happy with what Arteta has done so far. Did I expect more? No not really. Did I hope for more? Well you can always hope. 😉
Morning Cicero. I actually didn’t expect as much improvement as we’ve seen in such a short period of time, not the way certain individuals had been performing for the last twelve months.
Spot on, Rico! Arteta has exceeded my expectations… I had my doubts for sure but I’ve been really impressed so far… and yes Scott & Le Coq paid me to say that hahaha!!
I can’t wait until tomorrow…going to be a cracker!
Are we gonna have to cheer Chelsea on?
Good Morning to The Lady of the House and all fellow Gooners in residence.
I agree with most of your article, although I may vary somewhat on the degree of your ratings for specific players. However, I certainly disagree with the caption under the team photo “Even the best squads need a Cygan, Shaaban or Aliadière….”. I don’t know if it is yours or if it came with the image. We have had far too many of those duds over the last two decades. Most were ‘bargains buys’ (i.e. cheap) but some were expensive failures. I think our scouting system has improved.
I’m looking forward to Sunday’s game against the Toffees, if only to see how our current crop of players, especially our Young Guns, compare to our former players Iwobi and Walcott. I’d like to see us keep another clean sheet and have multiple goal scorers.
Morning All, really nice post Rico.
I’ve had a nice lay in!!
I’m really pleased with how things are ticking along so far under Arteta.
As you say Luiz and Mustafi look like good players now, they were clowns a few weeks ago. Xhaka is an odd one for me, I’m not quite sure what he offers sometimes, but he did fill in brilliantly at centre half the other day. Still not convinced with Ozil yet, he can be great but when it gets tough, can we depend on him ? I think not.
With what he has , our new manager is doing ok in my book. When he can get his own players in , I think it’s looking promising.
Just a thought.
Arsenal are perennially poor cash wise.
We take kids as young as nine years old, we educate them, we nurture them, we train them, we coach them and we pay them exorbitant amounts in wages for years in the hope that some might eventually make it to the first team, Saka for instance, or get sold on for enough to at least cover the cost of their upbringing.
Would we be better off if we closed down the Hale End Academy, ditched the underage squads along with the coaches, medical staff and other ancillary personnel and sold off the infrastructure. We could then use the savings, on the players and other staff employment cost wages, on buying in quality first team squad players.
He has me too Sue because I wasn’t sure he was right for Arsenal at the time. He might not be longer term but the signs are certainly promising.
Morning Cg, it was my caption. Lol
I guess my point is that we can’t have a squad full of great players. We have to have a jack of all trades perhaps, or one or two who are prepared to play second fiddle, ie cup matches etc. I’m not suggesting paying £30m for an average/poor player but someone like Milner who arrived for free, Kolasinac for free, Elneny cheap and hopefully Soares. We can’t afford 25 players on £100k plus a week…
I’d say Arteta has far exceeded the expectations most had, as the majority didn’t think he was the man for the job so surely didn’t expect much.
He has a long way to go, and I reckon we will have a great idea of how things are shaping up in October/November this year.
Morning all.
Thanks Mike, I tried but the plasterer was due here first thing to give a quote. He’s still not arrived!
When Arteta gets his own players, I fully expect judgement time to begin. Lol
Xhaka is an odd one and I’d like to see him him sold in the summer. He’s not a bad player just not what/who we need imo. Sell him whilst the mistakes are few I reckon.
That’s a big no from me Cicero…
Cicero – You’re proposing taking us back to the George Graham era, Training at London College and changing at a nearby hotel – no showers. I think our players deserve and expect more than that.
It may save money to buy a few more players, but they wouldn’t be kept in top physical condition and would take longer to return to fitness after injury, Also, to buy a few young players of the quality of Saka and Willock, to meet the home player requirement, would cost as much as it takes to run the Academy. The cost of good players increases faster rate than the team revenues.
Morning all.
If memory serves me right Newcastle went down abolition ally and missed out on some rare north eastern talent as a consequence. Most memorable was Michael Carrick. (i think) but there were others for sure. It took them years to recover and several relegations too. These days they have a youth set up and, coupled with a parsimonious owner have been forced to look for local talent. The brothers Grimm at the moment but they are both good enough to make the grade and will do.
We, on the other hand after years of looking and titivating players like Wilshire and Gnarbry etc have lost more than we’ve gained. However, our current group of young shavers do have significant futures, if all goes well. Nelson, Saka, AMN etc and how much would we have to pay for them? A very lot I think.
I take your point though from an economic point of view but I suspect we would lose more than we would gain, in the long run. Who knows??
Tomorrow’s game will be a good test for the Arteta road show. A win would be a sign of good progress. After all Everton were on a par with us at the beginning of the season and after a worse start than us have caught up rapidly under Anchelotti. I think man for man we’re the better squad but he’s got them playing much more progressive football he’s even made Theo look undroppable.!
Another too familiar draw would be a set back and a defeat would be disastrous.
I shall be watching with interest and enthusiasm for our ‘new’ Arsenal. Let’s hope for the best.
Rico – I get your point and agree with it. However, “someone like Milner who arrived for free, Kolasinac for free, Elneny cheap”; those three are a class or more above Cygan, Shaaban or Aliadière.
I don’t think you’ll a tin hat or a flak jacket. Your article is a good starting point for discussion.
Scott – The fires missed you. I hope you also avoided the flooding.
CG, I’m not proposing anything I’m merely asking a question. I was talking shutting down the Hale End Academy not our first team training complex at London Colney which has been the model for many other clubs training facilities for some time.
Giroud scored against the spuds… I bet he loved that… and imagine the look on their fan’s faces – sweet!!!
Afternoon Rico and all the gang, thanks for the post.
Limey is that true, £120k per week for a young kid whose done fcuk all?
Because if that’s what the agent of Saka is thinking then maybe we need to bite the bullet and sell him if he doesn’t sign?
That sort of money for an 18 year old whose just making his way is insane!
It would set a precedent at Arsenal, a dangerous precedent.
Surely we learnt our lesson with Ozil
Btw, what has Hudson Odoi done since he signed his inflated contract?
2-0 to Chelsea…. don’t know whether to laugh or cry 😂 Actually I’ve just seen the look on Maureen’s face – so I’m laughing!!
Shocked that wasn’t a red card….
Our medical team have given us an update on the status of our squad ahead of Sunday’s game against Everton.
Here’s the latest news:
Hector Bellerin
Back in full training and being assessed ahead of Everton (h) further to missing Olympiacos (a) as a precaution to tight left groin.
Calum Chambers
Left knee. Ruptured anterior cruciate ligament of his left knee during Chelsea (h) on 29 December. Successful surgery completed. Rehabilitation process expected to take between six to nine months.
Mesut Ozil
Available for selection.
Cedric Soares
Left knee. Progressing well with gym work. Aiming to be in full training by the end of February.
Sokratis Papastathopoulos
Right knee. Sustained during Olympiacos (a). Being assessed ahead of Everton (h).
Lucas Torreira
Available for selection.
Kieran Tierney
Right shoulder. Dislocated right shoulder during West Ham Utd (a) on 9 December. Good progress being made in rehabilitation process and has commenced participation in group training sessions. Aiming to be in back in full training by the end of February.
VAR has descended into total farce after today’s fiasco. After calling a foul by Lo Celso as not a red card they later in the game announce that in fact it should have been a red card, but no further action will be taken. Ridiculous!
Unbelievable! How incompetent are this lot?? And listening to Glenn Hoddle trying to defend it made me laugh!!
Maureen stropping off without shaking Lampard’s hand…. that game had it all!!
Imagine if all the young talent in north London ended up at Toots…
Cg, Cygan wasn’t that bad was he! Nor Aliadière but Shaaban, well, yes, he was not so good.
Afternoon Kev. I suggested on the old post, a pay cap on players under 21 years old. It’s ridiculous for them to be earning such vast amounts of money before they’ve even grown into men..
Everything that is wrong with VAR was on full show at the Chelsea v Spurs game today. Even that total dick Peter Walton agreed with the initial assessment that Lo cello did not deserve a yellow card only to change his mind after the game and with the knowledge that VAR admitted that they had got it wrong. How?
And to cap it all Frank Lampard moans about it not being good enough that a player doesn’t get sent off and could even come back to score. That’s rich after Jorghino’s 2nd yellow that never-was at the Emirates several weeks back.
Adam it just highlights the basic problem with VAR. It should be good for line calls, and with a bit of tweaking the offside situation, I’m sure it will be, but it’s where a judgement call is needed that things go awry.
In today’s example the guy in Stockley Park judged, wrongly, that the foul did not warrant even a yellow card let alone a red. Everyone else on the football planet could clearly see that it was a potential leg breaker of a tackle, but in reality the decision should not have been left to the VAR official. The on field ref should have looked at the pitch side monitor and only if he could still not make up his mind should he have referred it to the man in front of the telly.
Sounds like a right old mix up in the lunchtime game.
Cicero. I agree and can only conclude that the refs are under instruction from the ghastly man who runs the PGMOL not to consult the pitch side camera.
What makes it even more irritating is that Hoddle seems to think that every card should be based on intent. If you don’t go in to hurt your opponent than you are blameless anyway. This means that Auba’s mistimed horror tackle shouldn’t even have been a yellow. Lo Celso richly deserved a red and actually was lucky to get away with a kick out early in the game.
Mourinho’ s ill-judged interview after the game was priceless in its self-importance though.
The use of the pitch side monitors is set to change next season isn’t it? And the offside rule.
Wenger has suggested changes to the offside rule but IFAB have said they will not discuss any items not already on the agenda for their next meeting which I think is in April. Given the speed at which these organisations work there’s little chance of any significant changes being made either this or next season.
As far as the pitch side monitor is concerned, as I understand it, the referee can already ask to view it whenever he wants.
We are at the mercy of Riley’s team of incompetents sitting in Stockley Park until the referees on the pitch take back control of the game.
Only for red card offences, and when it’s deemed that the onfield referee should have the final say. In other words, when VAR feel like it..
Nice one Rico.
I think Mikel is doing a fine job with the tools and non existance budget he has.
Arsenal is being rebuilt and we all know rebuilding is not done over night, just a people have said about Klopp where his philosophy took a few years to take hold, Mikel will need just as long if not longer as we have not had the luxury of selling a player for £142M to fund the purchase of a world class defender and goalie.
Given the money of the big boys, we would rule the world under Mikel the Marverlous, but seeing as we are paupers in a wealthy league I`ll settle for becoming competitive for top 4 and the chance of any cup……………..realistic expectations for a realistic situation.
A bit of a coincidence that we are playing Everton tomorrow when Speedo Mick has been finishing his charity walk from John O Groats to Lands End here in Cornwall. Speedo Mick is an Evertonian and I have seen him walking along the A30 a few times this week in nothing but his Everton fronted Budgie Smugglers, a Everton hat and a rucksack!.
Yesterday I caught him by a layby and had to confront him in my Arsenal Parrott Smugglers and Arsenal hat . He maybe an Evertonian but I think his Budgie is a Bindipper and immediatley took a dislike to “Rushie” the Budgie as he started to eye up my wheel hubs and advertise them on Ebay on his i phone!
Enraged I threw both of them in the back of my van and snatched the i phone to phone Ancolotti and tell him if he diden`t play Adrian “Inchy”Heath and Bob “Beardy” Latchford of the `80`s up front tomorrow for the toffees then Speedo Mick would not make it past Redruth!…………………….Ancolotti said he could not do that as “Inchy” had been missing since December 6th and “Beardy” had joined the Taliban!…………”Chow baby !”………………………At this point I was startled by what sounded like a plea for help from Speedo Micks rucksack and upon opening it a gasping for air “Inchy” emerged with relief and thanked me for saving him from a life of sexual torture from Rushie the Budgie and with utter disgust my Parrott then proceeded to mock Rushie as being inadequate as he could only fill Mick`s Speedos!
I let Speedo Mick leave the van and said no charges would be brought upon him for the attempted theft of my wheel hubs and Speedo Mick finished his last leg of the walk today and I like to think I helped him on this experience by letting him have a few minutes of warmth in the back of my refridgerated van!
Rico, from the protocols as shown on the official Premiership website, “The on-field referee always has the option of using the Referee Review Area and can review VAR incidents at their discretion”.
😂😂😂👌 what an imagination you have, Le Coq! Brilliant, just brilliant!!
Did you see a tumbleweed anytime during the budgie stand-off??!! Hahaha!!
I read the “rules” on the BBC Cicero. No wonder no one knows what’s meant to go on.
Love City’s away kit…
The Hudson – Odoi contract is barely believable Kev, but appears to be true. I seem to remember a saga like with our boy. I assume he is injured, but no doubt we have the better player. I like Ricos idea about a salary cap for younger players. Makes sense.
Looking forward to tomorrow’s game, we could be as high as 8th with a win.
CG, fire and flood free here mate-thanks for asking 🙂
Morning all.
Massive game ahead, but aren’t they all atm?
Let’s hope the win comes our way
Yeah Limey,
re: salary cap for young players, Rico does makes a lot sense, I almost said ‘for a change’ but then thought better of it… 😉
As it is I’d better make myself scarce… 😆
You’d have been right though Kev. 😜
New post up now