Morning all.
I just love a 94th minute goal when it’s against Man Utd to win the game. Eddie Nketiah’s winning goal earlier in the season against them was late but Brighton’s was later I think. The very fact the home team were awarded penalty was a miracle in itself regardless of how obvious it was. The result was good for us too because 3rd place at least is safe. Brighton, Liverpool or Utd could yet finish 4th although Utd are probably favourites.
There’s a lot being written about Arsenal right now as far as transfers and contracts go. Flo Balogun and Charlie Patino could be sold, Reiss Nelson has turned down the offer of a new contract and Real Sociedad star Martin Zubimendi is on the verge of a move to the red and white side of north London. All could be true, all could be a load of old tosh or maybe one or two has an element of truth to them.
What we can be certain of though is that there will be player movement in and out of the club this summer but who stays and goes is something we can only guess at and guess is exactly what the newspapers do at this time of the year. I don’t know about you but I’ve not heard or read a quote from Balogun, Nelson or Patino which suggests they are making any playing demands yet that’s what’s being written in the back pages, certainly about Balogun.
In an ideal world, all three would stay and be part of Arsenal’s future but football isn’t always like that. Regardless of what you and I thought of players like Martinez and even Joe Willock, the reality is, Mikel Arteta and the club were prepared to sell them in order to sign the players the manager believed were more suited to his footballing plans.
Willock will of course be part of a Newcastle team trying to put another dent in our season finish, just like last campaign when we lost out on a top four place because of our second half of the season jitters. One of which was a 2-0 loss at St James Park.
During his pre match press conference, Mikel Arteta was asked how much our players need to forget about last season’s game at Newcastle:
It is a very different game. It was a year ago with different players, a different game but we’ll have to play much better than we did last year, that’s for sure. We know that it is going to be a really tough game because especially at home they’ve been really good.
Arsenal: Ramsdale, Tomiyasu, White, Gabriel, Tavares, Elneny, Xhaka, Saka, Odegaard, Smith Rowe and Nketiah.
Subs: Cedric, Martinelli, Lacazette and Pepe.
Three out of the above team will definitely not feature and both Smith Rowe and Nketiah are likely to be on the bench at best and only Martinelli from the substitutes used is still at the club. This time around we do have Partey fit and the addition of Jorginho and Trossard as well as Kiwior who was really good against Chelsea in my opinion.
Earlier in the season, Arsenal and Newcastle played out a scoreless draw. Better finishing on the day would have secured Arsenal maximum points. Howe’s team seemed totally disinterested in doing anything other than waste time and break up our play by rotationally fouling our players.
Also, two big penalty decisions which didn’t go our way.
I know Arsenal have at times been their own worst enemy this season, certainly more recently but even so, if all was fair in footballing love and war, we’d still be in the driving seat as far as the league title goes.
Big Sam, who has apparently told Sky Sports that he could win the treble if he were the Man City manager, takes on Guardiola’s team later today. Perhaps for once, the big guy could do Arsenal a favour.
Catch up in the comments.
Morning all , and thanks for the post Rico anything to take our minds off of the ceremony taking place in London and it’s blanket coverage on all media.
Newcastle will not be easy and it’s something that we are all going to have to get used to. It seems that they have just signed a shirt sponsorship with a Qatari sponsor worth somewhere near £ 25.00 million some £20 million more than their current one . So on the back of their new owners the money is beginning to flood in . Just wait for the next few ancillary ones and they will have the money to inflate the transfer market even more.
However tomorrow we need to win simple as , they will have totally different tactics to the negative boring time wasting outfit we saw in London and we will probably be under the cosh for quite a few moments . We will have to take the chances where we can .
I predict a nervous couple of hours .
Morning Potter, that’s the trouble with such events, total takeover.
I agree, at home Newcastle will be different. Isaac is a real threat, but I still expect them to get stuck in, especially if we start well.
Mikel Arteta has been told he has over £150m to spend this summer as he attempts to refresh his Arsenal squad, say the Daily Mirror.
The newspaper also say Arsenal are confident of tying William Saliba down to a new deal despite growing concern over the defender’s future in North London.
Meanwhile, the Telegraph report Arsenal are ready to cash in on a number of their home grown talents this summer as they prepare to freshen up their squad for a tilt at the Champions League, with Folarin Balogun and Emile Smith Rowe among the players with an uncertain future.
Elsewhere, the Daily Mail write that West Ham will demand £100m for midfielder Declan Rice this summer as they attempt to ward off Premier League clubs such as Arsenal.
And they say Arsenal want Arsene Wenger to attend their final match at the Emirates this season against Wolves on May 28 if they remain in the hunt for the Premier League title.
Coronation? When you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all. 😉
😂
Well that’s our second and I am not sure that we won’t survive long enough to see another.
Well, Potter he’s younger than me so my chances are less than great. I watched my first coronation on our 12 inch black and white Phillips TV, bought the week before.. on the never never of course. ..😉
City struggling to get a hold of the game, only two nil up at half-time.
No worries got their traditional penalty
which they miss and Leeds go up the other end and score but not enough too late.
Classy Liverpool fans in action again I see. Idiots..
Auston Trusty has been named Birmingham City’s Player of the Season after impressing during his loan spell at St Andrew’s.
The American defender topped a vote of the club’s supporters to land the accolade, and cap off his time in the second city in style with his temporary switch ending following Monday’s game against Sheffield United.
Auston has featured in all but two of the Blues’ Championship matches, totalling 43 appearances and chipped in with four goals along the way. His form also saw him handed a first USA international cap back in March when he played the full 90 minutes in a 7-1 win against Grenada, alongside Gunners teammate Matt Turner.
Reflecting on his loan spell, he told the Birmingham Mail: “It’s my first year over here in Europe and first time on loan, but I didn’t come here thinking this is just for a season, I came here thinking I want to make my mark on an organisation. I’m thankful that I have been perceived this way by the fans. It’s been really, really awesome.
“Coming from the US I knew I would have to prove myself. I really was an unproven European player, I had to prove that I can hold my ground and do my job. Coming to the Championship and a team like Birmingham City that allowed me to show that was the best-case scenario.”
When asked about what next season might hold, he added: “A lot is to come in the future but as a footballer those are problems you want. It’s all a good thing.
“As a player you want to play with the best, wherever that is. Right now the Premier League is probably the best league in the world so that is obviously the goal for myself and my future.
Klopp supports Liverpool fans for booing national anthem, Maybe England should expel Klopp from the country.
It would be better to kick out the Liverpool fans Geoff, maybe they could be transported to Australia as we did with our undesirables in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. 😉
Cicero only on one condition, you have send them to Tasmania and they have to stay there.
What have the Tasmanians done to annoy you Geoff?
We have a saying (joke) on the mainland that people from Tassie are born with 2 heads so the Liverpool fans would fit in fine.
If they were incarcerated on Tasmania they would get their mates to get all the rubber dinghys in store on the south coast and they would invade the mainland by stealth.
In the case of Liverpool fans, they may have two heads but they would still be short of a brain.
The sharks will get them, before they reach the main land
Here’s the starting line-up :-
1Ramsdale
4White
15Kiwior
6Gabriel
35Zinchenko
8Ødegaard
20Jorginho
34Xhaka
7Saka
9Gabriel Jesus
11Martinelli
Substitutes
3Tierney
5Partey
10Smith Rowe
14Nketiah
16Holding
19Trossard
21Fábio Vieira
24Nelson
30Turner
yes, it’s the oficiasl line-up
Newcastle penalty claim rules out by VAR , Odegaard with a stunner from outside the box. 0 – 1.
What a bunch of butchers Newcastle are.
I wonder why Arteta doesnt switch Saka and Martinelli for Ten minutes . Give Burn someone to chase and Trippier turned round a bit.
Tierney coming on for Zinchenko.
2 nil now anyone feel safe ?
Evening house. We have grit, true grit. What a difference from a few seasons ago. Fantastic performance.
Great win. Scandalous ref.
Two goals, clean sheet, three points. J A D A T O. 🔔🔔
Howe must have been to a seminar with Fat Sam and Pulis . Physical doesnt cover it.
Is Newcastle the new version of Stoke?
The referee is a disgrace in terms of judging fouls.
I see Given has accused us of diving and time wasting. Brainless knob.
Biter , bit .
If you are watching the coronation concert I couldn’t help noticing the irony of the two opera singers singing the anthem of the very football team whose supporters booed the national anthem yesterday.
Good to see the VAR work in our Favour for once,
nice win, but I don’t know there was not more goals scored by both teams.
Xhaka needs to control his temper a bit more as I can see a red come his way under the wrong ref.
First of the losers spot confirmed I’d have taken that at the start of the season. Now I’m off to pray for a miracle.
Second time I’ve tried to comment the first one didn’t show up.
No doubt Sadiq Khan will point to the air pollution in London affecting the Newcastle players as they were falling down with cramp after an hour at the Emirates . However in the rarefied atmosphere of Tyneside not one of them was affected . Strange that.
I wonder if Arteta will revisit the idea of Leicester midfielder Youri Tielemans, if I am not mistaken, he is out of contract soon,
Morning Rico and all,
According to reports West Ham want 120 million for Rice, if it’s true I say look else wear for another player.
City draw 1 – 1 in Madrid so they might have to rest a couple against Everton but then with their squad it wont much matter .
Good game, shame that there wasn’t a couple of turned ankles for City, you know like KdB and Haarland.
Good result for Arsenal Women away to Brighton, 0 – 4. Up to third in the league.
Just three games to go Everton and Chelsea away and then home to Aston Villa. The Chelsea game will be the big decider.
Arsenal are expected to announce a new deal for Saka, taking him up to 2028.
Ramsdale is also about to receive a new contract offer.
Be nice if they have the Ian Wright attitude.
I didn’t even ask the terms , It was Arsenal , I just signed.
After receiving her MBE from the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle yesterday, Beth Mead revealed that she was training outside, running and kicking a ball. Also she was hoping to get a place in the England World Cup squad in July. Good news on the Arsenal injury front for once.
Ethan Nwaneri has signed for City.
Bet his mum got more than a new washing machine
Where did you read that Potter?
It’s just speculation isn’t it?
Nothing on the Arsenal website, but Nwaneri doesn’t appear on the academy list of players.
I’ve felt he was leaving ever since he got his senior debut as he’s looked thoroughly miserable since, but if he goes, he goes, he won’t be the first to think that the grass is greener – I’m looking at you Omari….
Via David Ornstein:“Arsenal defenders William Saliba + Oleksandr Zinchenko out for rest of season. Saliba has not recovered sufficiently from back injury & Zinchenko picked up calf problem at Newcastle. Better news is neither expected to require surgery”
Having been lauded as the youngest player to get into a premier league match to go back into obscurity must have been totally demoralising for him .
I heard it from someone that is not often wrong , but if I have jumped the gun I am sorry , but it would not surprise me if it turns out to be fact.
Still we have seen so many youngsters coming through that we thought had it ,Qunicy , Jet , Lupoli ,Bendtner , Reid and Shaw , Lansbury, they all were pulling up trees as kids but faded away .
We can’t beat ourselves up over it until it happens and he goes on to be a world beater.
These are basically children we are talking about, they are growing up in the football equivalent of a hot house where there is only one goal, first team football and all the money that goes with it. They see players only a year or two/three older than themselves, such as Saka, who is now reportedly about to sign a contract worth £300,000 a week.
They need to take a reality check and learn little patience.
Hard to take a reality check when they see rubbish player earning 80 thousand a week just sitting on the bench or your parents or manager telling you to leave as another club is willing to pay you more.
world of sports has a story of teams / players from north and south America being investigated for match fixing.
One player being investigated if from Kroenke’s Colorada Rapids.
How slack is the security at premier league matches, when a fan can jump the fence and run up and touch Newcastle manager Eddie Howe
It’s not hard to know what to make of today’s game, it’s the next “must win” if we are to stand any chance of the Premiership title.
I’m pretty certain that the entire squad ill be “up for it”, Arteta will have made sure they have not missed the importance of three more points.
Brighton, having taken a pasting in the 5 – 1 defeat by lowly Everton , will wish to make amends and get their own chase for European football back on track. They’ve had some very good results against top six sides, but their away record is not brilliant. Whilst we will be without Saliba and Zinchenko, they too have a number of payers missing through injury. They play a good game of short passing combined with fast breaks to work through the opposing midfield and set up good scoring opportunities. They have two excellent midfielders in Argentinian Alexis Mac Allister and, the man we tried to buy for £70 million in January, Ecuador’s Moises Caicedo.
I expect to see Tierney in for Zinchenko and Kiwior for Saliba. I would like to see Jorginho start again in place of the accident prone Partey alongside Xhaka. With our normal front three Martinelli, Jesus and Saka.
Todays odds :- Arsenal to win 4/5. Draw 10/3. Brighton to win 17/5.
Fingers crossed for Everton to course an upset and beat Man City
Man city leading 2 nil at half time, I’m guessing the upset is off the cards
Scrappy, stop start game, Martinelli off injured.. 30 mins 0 – 0.
playing like a team that knows the game is up
It is now. 0 – 1.
Not sure if I’m annoyed at Kiwior lying down with a sore ankle to give a free header or VAR ignoring the stamp on back of his foot. Either way it’s a tepid performance, 2nd guaranteed so no real placings at stake after City’s win. Keene being his usual self, ‘needed a good teammate to get revenge on Martinelli’.
long high balls to jesus against Dunk aint goong to happen
Come on ESR, show us what you’ve got.
43 percent possession, 1 shot on target.
stupid flick
That’s it, out played, out thought, out muscled.
stand up lick your wounds wipe your mouth and recruit the midfield we need and come back next year
The first goal should have been disallowed due to Var’s intervention. It is not understood.
As I do not understand the tactic adopted. Brighton returned to play the way they had eliminated Arsenal in the League Cup. All you had to do was watch last week’s Brighton-Everton game. Brighton feels comfortable playing when a team presses ahead and uncomfortable when the team is behind.
Trossard played little. We almost played with 10.
Partney was out of rhythm.
It’s a shame the fans didn’t stay until the end of the game.
Can we nick Brighton’s midfield?
Maybe that’s good timing for a reality check. Lose a good defender, a few other good players lose form or get tired, and that’s where we are.
Caicedo for one and if we are looking for a winger Mitoma would fill the bill.
JM, I confess that I switched the television off when the third goal went in. 😕
I don’t know where you are Rico, but if you haven’t seen the game don’t bother with the highlights, there weren’t any as far as Arsenal are concerned.
i sent her a email asking if she is ok but had no reply
Hope rico on holiday then?
Me too Potter, same result.
A concerned houser. Was becoming concerned a few days ago. Just hope all is well and nothing untoward has occurred.
Adam, Kev have you been in touch and is there anything you can share with us?
Wherever you are and whatever has happened we wish you all the best. I think it would be fair to say we’re all missing you.
And there is an important detail: Arteta did not understand Brighton’s tactical change, changing the wingers there in the 20th minute. When Mitoma moved to the left, it was Arsenal’s debacle.
Once they took Martinelli out the defensive recoveey went.
Bad weekend for Arteta and boys but finishing second to Man City is no disgrace.
Agree with others, hopefully Rico is just on holidays.
Heard from her this morning , she is ok but has had some bad news and has taken a break.
Thanks for that Potter, a big relief.
So we will have to hold the fort for a bit then . Will try to come up with something later today.
Thanks Potter, hopefully Rico will be back onboard soon
All the ugly questions about the squad reared their ugly heads again yesterday.
The seasons gone , we finished second and the boys done good.!
However :- Why did we collapse in a similar fashion to the way we did before as the end of the season approached.. ? Certainly injuries to key players took their toll but not just at the end .
Gabriel Jesus played 24 games out of 50
Saliba played 32.
Partey played 31
That’s the spine of the team missing for about a third of the season
on the other hand
Saka , White , Martinelli all played 44 times Odegaard 43
At Christmas to plug gaps we bought in Jorginho , Trossard and Kiwior . If we hadn’t where would we be today ?
That our squad is not really strong enough to go up against the oil barons of this world is a given as
Yesterday City blew away Everton and heaped the pressure on us They had Bernardo Silva, Stones , young Rico Lewis, Grealish and Be Bruyne on the bench , We do need more players but we won’t get substitutes of that calibre without spending a fortune.
As the season started we were the whipping boys according to the media but we surprised them and the tirade of bottler criticisms comes as a reprisal for making them look silly .
But we ran out of steam .Our first eleven can compete with the best but when the fact that our major source of goals came from Saka , Martinelli and Odegaard who towards the end are completely knackered we needed more than Nketiah and Jesus to step up and lead and hold the ball .
We were completely run off our feet yesterday , we looked tired and the players knew that their season was over . We probably will struggle against Forest and try to put on a champagne performance on the 28th. but the real test for the club will come in the close season .
We have out on loan a number of players that we don’t want to see come back . Cedric , Pepe , Maitland Niles , Runnarson , Tavares, John Jules , Lokonga. None of whom will give us much in the money market and Trusty who had a good season at Birmingham , Patino did well at Blackpool and Marquinos who spent most of the season injured and kicking his heels in Norwich. who probably needs another loan.
So lots to do , We can take a rest and air our thoughts but the club’s work should have already started . Let’s hope it has.
Stay safe Rico
Disappointing result yesterday. Some poor errors and outfought in midfield. Zinchenko was missed badly. Mitoma looks a great prospect.
We came up a bit short in the end, but a fantastic season in hindsight. I thought we would grab 3rd spot and we’ve swept way past there.
A number of the players are running on fumes and the loss of Saliba proved crucial. We need to pin him down before Madrid get to his agent.
A few solid purchases and this team can go toe to toe with City and the best in Europe.
We bought Jesus with the intention of making him our main striker in imitation of Gardiola’s, at that time, style of play. Then City moved the goal posts by buying a beast of an old fashioned number nine and the rest, as they say, is history.
Will Arteta stick with his present plan, or will he seek to copy his old mentor’s example and buy a proper goal scorer?
Overall, I’m disappointed that we did not get closer to the prize but delighted to be runner way runners up.
I’m still not 100% sure about Ramsdale as our main goalkeeper, he can make some great saves then next minute make a simple mistake that leads to a goal.
In Ramsdale’s defence ,A Keeper is only as good as the players in front of him and since Saliba got injured we have looked a lot more shaky. he has played 32 games and we have let in 22 goals but when he has been out we have played 14 matches and let in 16.
Arteta wants to play out from the back and often if a team presses high if the midfield is not showing for the ball and the recipient has a proper outball it looks like the keeper has made a mistake.
I am not saying that he is not culpable but I do believe that he has stopped more than he has caused to go against us.
For playing out to be successful the movement of midfield players needs to be 3 or 4 passes ahead , it takes training . I remember that when Seaman was bought into the team , Graham spotted that he was a bit shaky coming for the ball and the defence spent weeks training to stop crosses .
I am sure that Arteta is doing that but we still find that the second or third pass gets cut out as we are sometimes too predictable .
but we still find that the second or third pass gets cut out
Or it goes back to Ramsdale who lumps it long to a 5 f.oot 9 centre forward being marked by a 6 foot 2 centre back and it comes straight back again
Potter, I agree Ramsdale has to do what Arteta asks. but at times he gets overconfident and tries silly things like when he tries to take a player on instead of just clearing it from the danger zone or passing it to a player who has 2 opposition players right next to them. Hopefully next season our back up keeper will have a better run.
Good morning all,
There’s some good news this morning, but only semi-official, the Arsenal doctor was asked about Gabriel Martinelli’s injury by fans after “that” game, he answered that “he was sore but not seriously injured and could well be available for the Forest game”.
There seems to be a growing body of opinion that Xhaka will be sold this summer and that as Veira is deemed to be Odegaard’s back-up then Emile Smith Rowe will also be sold.
I would not be surprised to see Xhaka and ESR leave, and I would also throw in Kieran Tierney, while reports going around are that Pablo Mari has activated a permanent move to Monza.
I sincerely hope that the Vieira/ Esr rumours are wrong although I fear that they may not be . To my mind Smith Rowe is a far better player more suited to English football stronger on the ball and just a better bet for the future . However I believe that Emery has already got the deal in place he will be an Asset to Villa
Good morning all, today is the 80th anniversary of the Dam Busters raid. About the time the surviving Lancasters of 617 Squadron were landing at their base Scampton Lincolnshire, I was being born at St Mary’s Hospital in London. Probably my only claim to fame. 😉
Cicero happy birthday,
Potter any news how Rico is going.
No . I haven’t been back in touch as I feel that I should not intrude , I am sure that she will return when she feels ready
In the meantime , if we want the house to continue then it’s up to the rest of us to keep posting and keep it going.
Pep Guardiola is a clever man
Ask your selves why did he sell us Jesus and Zinchenko ?
Was it to give his mate a step up , or was it because he was already planning to change tack and improve with another style of football ?
For how long has he been casting around looking for a new Aguero and having found one to balance the euphemistic books at City they were surplus to his plans..
He had Akanji in the wings to strengthen his defence and knew that Laporte and Gundoghan were coming back from injury..
He realised that the system was getting stale and that other teams had worked it out , things were getting tighter at the top so like Doctor Who he regenerated.
He knew that by strengthening Arsenal United , Liverpool and other close rivals would drop points , I don’t think that he thought that we would get so close to him but I do believe that he had compared squads and felt confident that his would win out in the end.
Where do we go from here ?
Answers on a post card .
Thanks Potter.
Cicero :- A bouncing baby to go with a bouncing bomb. Happy birthday
I recon Pep sold Jesus and Zinchenko to Arteta for 3 reasons, (1) he did not need them, (2) to stop them going to Liverpool, Man united or Tottenham. (3) to help Arteta improve Arsenal so we can take points off the teams I just mentioned.
Potter at 10:50 am fair point Thanks Geoff
Just seems to us two and we couldn’t be further apart
More about Xhaka, apparently Arsenal are in advanced talks with Bayer Leverkusen about a £13million deal for our Marmite Man.
Toney gets 8 months starting immediately so misses Spurs and Man City this season and then out until after Christmas .
A good 4 – 1 win against Everton for Arsenal Women up to third in the table. 🔔🔔🔔🔔
Unfortunately, Lia Walti had to be stretchered off with a serious ankle injury after a “horrendous” tackle that resulted in the Everton player receiving a red card. Lia’s participation in this summer’s World Cup is now seen as very unlikely.
Hi guys, you’re a kind and thoughtful bunch. Thank you.
New post up.