Morning all.
So Leicester are Thierry’s team to win the league. They have the mental strength, the ability and above all, they know how to deal with the pressure. Such qualities should see them crowned champions….
His old club however, well they lack bottle, they can’t score goals and they can’t win the tough matches like at Chelsea… Or something like that.
At the weekend, City got caught cold against the league leaders and with just two minutes on the clock, with their defence all over the place, Robert Huth was allowed acres of space to head home. That no doubt injected confidence into the away side and doubt in the minds of the City players. City had majority of the possession but as we know best, that matters little if you can’t score and thankfully, we are back in the goals after the weekend.
Yes Leicester are in great form and have a few players who are scoring for fun but on paper, are they really any better than ours? I’d say no, but confidence is high and they are all enjoying the moment.
Clearly though, the result against City was enough to convince Henry that they really are the team who look more like becoming champions come May and lets be honest, he’s hardly likely to throw much praise to the other team in North London is he?
Bearing in mind he’s training the youngsters at the club and has admitted to hanging onto every last word spoken by Arsene Wenger, his comments will have gone down like a lead balloon.
But is he simply trying to do Arsenal a favour by lumping even more pressure on the league leaders? Is he telling Arsenal that this is their time IF they want it? Is he saying ‘come on, give a bit more and prove you have what it takes to win the league’ to everyone at the club, a club he loves so dearly?
I’d say so as he’s a huge fan, just like we all are and he wants to see Arsenal win the league.
Just five points between us and Leicester, a gap which will be down to two if we beat them on Sunday lunchtime and why shouldn’t we? We beat them earlier in the season at The King Power Stadium so at home, it should be more of the same.
Sticking with Leicester, Arsenal have nicked their head of technical scouting Ben Wrigglesworth. Apparently, his position at the club will be as a first-team video scout.
Does that mean hours and hours of watching Youtube to find the ‘next Mahrez and Kante’?
Nice job… 😉
How the hell have Leicester shown they know how to handle pressure??
Let’s see in May how they handled it.
Morning all.
Exactly Scott.
Perhaps it’s because they survived relegation last season and have won the Championship… lol
Morning again…
Wes morgan, Huth, Schmeichel, Inler are unsung heros in my view.
when the foxes lost Cambiaso last summer I was wondering how they could replace him. Inler has exceeded my expectations.
Rico, I’m happy to see them doing well, but seriously, there is no expectation and therefore no pressure at all on them.
Thierry talks some drivel but I suspect his intentions are good.
Will the tinkerman be tempted to tinker going forward. They only have one competition to concentrate on as tehy are out of the FA cup and League cup…
”Thierry talks some drivel.” 😛 :P. that has made my day…
Ginge, I am absolutely positive we will bet Leicester and easily.
I doubt I’ll ever be so confident.
Can’t wait.
BELT…..not bet.
Agreed. AW has only lost to Ranieri once in 14 meetings and so with all things going our way re. no red cards we have a chance.
The far eastern bets have us going down to 10 men… food for thought for the conspiracy theorist. 😉
Rico. The home fans do try. You can hear certain sections of the crowd rousing the team and this ‘sort of’ spreads round the ground. But the crowd demographic itself has changed too. And is still changing as the seasons pass. Every year new people arrive, stay a season and then vanish. There are also far less drunks than there were at Highbury. 🙂 they used to arrive 5 minutes late, reeking of booze, scream like banshees for 15 minutes, then fall asleep. 🙂
Is our former hero applying a bit of revers psychology? For some it can act as a huge motivational tool although, for others it can act as a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy;I’ve, if you tell a chap he is crap his performance will be crap or vice versa!
Judge the team on Sunday. Sod May!
All will be revealed……….the truth is out there!
Morning all.
🙂 Scott. SS’s panel have got to him maybe…
Get your money on, guys.
2 or 3-0.
Adam, they need to try harder… 😉
On a serious note Adam, I bet there’s more sitting moaning about how the team are playing and what Wenger should be doing than getting behind the players…
I’ll be sure to mention it Rico.
No, not really Rico. People are entitled to opinions and they react to what they see.
Of course they are Adam, I wouldn’t ever suggest otherwise…
It’s easy for those outside the stadium to say what should be happening inside. Over the years you get to know the regulars around you. Midweek matches people come from work and getting lairy in a suit carrying a tablet or laptop in a case doesn’t help. Saturday matches which we hardly ever get are more relaxed and seem to have better atmosphere.
And of course, when you are discussing things at the ground you are doing so in the light of a shared experience so it has a resonance that an Arsenal website could never have.
And, of course, we are all plugged into mates watching game on the TV so we know, for instance that Mert’s contact with Costa was minimal and whether a goal was offside or not or if a penalty should or should not have been awarded within seconds via the wonders of text. We even get sent snap vids of incidents.
Whenever I go to away games, I go on a coach and often go on the Arsenal Supporters Club coach…
I’ve met quite a few foreign fans who source tickets through the supporters club, these fans tend to be as crazy as Scott, so I don’t blame them for a lack of atmosphere…
Tbh, there are a lot of British fans who are reluctant to show their emotions at games. The whole scene surrounding football supple is changing, and that, imo, is down to the cost…
Football is morphing into a middle class sport.
How that will effect the atmosphere long-term and the saleability of the EPL, remains to be seen…
In 20 years time the Chinese League could be top of the pile. It’s filling up fast with Brazillian players as we blog…
Whose next to move out there?
Ronaldo?
Messi?
Bale?
Sanogo?
Morning All
Morning Rico
Morning Adam, hope you are feeling better mate…
I didn’t realise the technology at The Emirates was so good…
Morning Kev, has to be the Postie…. lol
The info flows in from the outside Rico. The tech at the Emirates is very average.
This will get everybody wriggling in their seats!
Smokin’ Wo Chezchump is being returned to his Arsenal roots AS Roma can’t afford his tobacco habit!
Welcome home Czes!
Pancakes, God I love pancakes, lashings of lemon juice and sugar…
All round to Rico’s for pancakes… ?
Why doesn’t that surprise me Adam.
Scott, I’m going for a high scoring game with us nicking it.. lol
Deep joy Wavy.
Just made my batter ready for lunch Kev so not sure you’d get here in time… 😉
I’m on my way ?
Good Afternoon Lovelies and Hunkies.
Nice post Rico….it has set me thinking……if AFC win the league this season it might be that its the push and shove AFC players need to go on bigger things. With the retirement of MA08, TR07 and MF it might force AW to get players like Isco etc to cover up and also improve on this year. Improvement will be on players’ minds as well as they will no longer be called the nearly men.
if they fail this year it will increase doubts in their minds.
Henry’s comments can be like a two edged knife. It depends to whom you tell certain comments. If you tell me for example that I cannot do something then you can be certain I will not rest till i prove you wrong. But if someone else is told that his head might drop. one cannot treat everyone with the same measure.
Finally….can you imagine the Emirates like this…….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNrUnYRDHkg
Too late Kev, all gone… 😉
I’m a bit like you Devil, but I know many people who as Wavy said earlier, if told they are useless, they’ll believe it….
The first few seasons at the new place we’re heavily stewarded and they drove many away. Now it’s more relaxed but the disenfranchised won’t come back.
Hi all
Bearing in mind the stick we get for our ticket prices, anyone see the close up on sky sports of a Leicester fan’s ticket for this Sunday? £26!!!!
Interesting you say that Potter.
The last few years on the Clock End, we were continually being told to sit down…
You were like a jack-in-the-box…
No, at the Emirates, in the cheap seats, we stand for the entire game…
Safe standing has to be a consideration in the future. It could encourage old fans to come back with the added attraction of cheaper tickets…
With safe standing you could take the Emirates up to 75,000 + …
Afternoon all..
Safe standing would improve the atmosphere too wouldn’t it Kev?
Potter, I didn’t realise the heavy stewarding resulted in fans leaving…
Bob, that’s cheap, even I could afford that… Lol
Did anyone else see OC talk behind his hand to Afobe after the match on Sunday. I wonder what he said – he clearly didn’t want the cameras to pick up on him, as he probably knew the lip readers would be called into action…
Answers on a postcard eh… Lol
AOC might have said ‘Hey Benik, I’m off to China’.,,
AOC might have said, ‘Hey Benni, how’s it hanging brother, guess what, I’m moving house to Coggleshill’…
AOC might have said, ‘Hiya Ben, guess what Bruv, someone’s eaten the last pancake’…
AOC might have said, ‘ I say, Benik old chap, how the devil are you?
How about joining me for lunch at the Reform this evening?’
🙂 🙂 Kev
I thought ‘ you are better off out of here Benik’ 😉
I hate Cancer. Today it’s taken an old neighbour and school mate. Saw him just a couple of years ago for a school reunion looking fit, healthy and having fun. Now he’s gone!!!
53 years old!
RIP old friend….
You’re probably right Rico ?
That’s sad Rico, 53 is no age these days…
Jelavic, the old Everton striker…
Is the next one off to China…
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3438529/Barcelona-star-Dani-Alves-offered-27m-deal-Chinese-Super-League-club.html
It’s crap Kev, such a lovely guy…
This China stuff is odd. Is the league even competitive?
Night guys….
Chinese football? It reminds me a great deal of the first soccer incarnation of our invented national game when the USof A started their I
L fated league in the sixties/seventies, importing such notable as Pele and Phil Woosnam et al! I can’t remember how long it lasted but it wasn’t many years, 5? 10? Then nothing….not strictly true they developed a pretty competitive women’s league. Them men’s game withered and died until relatively recently. Currently they don’t have too many foreigner playing soccer but rely on home produce almost exclusively. Tried to import a game that was built on sand now it has a slightly greater following.
The Chinese league will last just as long as Xiang? The footballing promoting Mao successor, remains alive and in supreme power……not long then!
Unless, of course China conquers the world!!?
One last question about the Chienese football phenomena.
Will it PING?
Or
Will it PONG?
I’ll get me coat………
Evening Rico and the House.
1 Down 2 to go.
The U19’s lost 2-0 to Anderlecht and are out of the Champions league.
The defending was a shambles and the defeat could have been 5 or 6 nill
I cannot understand how with Moore, Sheaf and Hynds all injured Iwobi the U19 capt was left at home. Do the powers that run the club think he is so good he is now above academy level.
I think this game exposed Bielick Crowley and Jeff as being very overrated and a long way from being close to the first team.
It is my honest opinion that Reiss Nelson showed that he has the potential to play at a very much higher level.
By the way Kev I understand that now the loan window is open Arsene is hoping to send Gnarby on another loan, why not let him stay at home work on his fitness and get playing time with the U21’s where he would be certain of games.
Just my opinion.
Reports are saying Kroenki has just spent £501m on a new ranch,
Is that where Arsens £200m went?
Happy Jif Lemon Day rico !
Morning all.
Aussie A League sides are competitive v Chinese clubs in the Asian Cup, so I dare suggest it’s a level or two below the PL.
Still, they’re obviously hellbent on raising the standard.
Chinese is the sleeping giant in a lot of aspects.
They’re also buying up massive amounts of Aussie real estate while our politicians bend over and cop it.
Our farms are being sold at cut prices while our farmers go broke.
No Jif in my house Micko, bit of Cif though… lol
Morning Scott and all…
Hiya Rico.
Shame the big guns of West Ham knocked the little guys out of the Cup 🙂
Rather funny I thought too Scott…
My Scousers mates are just crying at the moment.
Klopp hasn’t turned into the saviour they all thought 🙂
But they are going through a transition – give him a summer transfer window and then see….
Their transition has been happening for a LOOOONG time now, though.
They’re the absolute example of spending being only part of the answer.
Judge him in May,chats what I say! Of Klopp that is!
Morning all.
Chats???…..should be that’s !
🙂 Scott,but not under Klopp. Rogers was like a kid in a sweet shop in a transfer window but I’d imagine Klopp will sign who he needs rather than just spend for fun.
Would be nice if Arsenal did that eh…
Wavy, next May? lol
Good morning all,
Rick you are spot in imho; ”I think this game exposed Bielick Crowley and Jeff as being very overrated and a long way from being close to the first team.”
An opinion I share and have hinted at a few times-
New post up now.
Scott- couldn’t disagree with your 10:09am comment at all.
Again goes to show that watching a team play a few times on Tuesday or Wednesday does not give a clear picture of managers ingenius…
Unless Klopp can clone Lewandowski or get Sturridge doing an Ian Rush, he will win an odd cup and finish 4th at best…
His tactics are as suspect as ever. He struggled against 3 or 4 teams beside FC Munchen; reminds me of the french geezer we have… 🙂