Morning all.
Aaron Ramsdale, Ben White, Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka have all been called up for the England squad by Gareth Southgate. Great for them and England, not so good for Arsenal. Still, it’s the last break of this season thank goodness. Most of the international matches are friendlies this time around and there are only two in the fortnight. For England, those fixtures are against Switzerland and the Ivory Coast.
Gabriel, Gabriel Martinelli, Kieran Tierney, Nicolas Pepe, Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka, Martin Odegaard, Sambi Lokonga, Nuno Tavares, Bernd Leno, Mo Elneny and Cedric Soares are all likely to feature for their respective countries over the next two weeks. Brazil are the only senior country involved in a World Cup qualifying fixture, with the fist match against Chile in Brazil, the second, against and in Bolivia in the early hours of Tuesday 29th March. Six days later, Arsenal take on Crystal Palace.
April is a busy and very tricky month. Five games in 19 days! Thanks Premier League! I dread to think where they’ll slot the Totts game in.
Comparing our numbers with the clubs around us, Totts have 5 fixtures in 27 days, Man Utd play 5 in 21 days, West Ham have 4 in a 21 day period and Chelsea have to play 5 in 22 days. However, I think I’m right in saying that West Ham will somehow have to cram two Europa League fixtures into April, three if they make the semi-final. Same goes for Chelsea, but in the Champions League.
Mikel Arteta on whether he stands by his comments about the Premier League schedule…
I do because I’m talking about the Premier League and I heard some comments about when you’re in Europe it’s nothing new, it’s nothing new to me, but I’m not comparing Europe, I’m comparing the Premier League and how we’re scheduling games in the Premier League. When you’re in Europe it’s a different story, what I’m comparing is the Premier League and it’s very different.
He has a point as the numbers show but in a season which has seen so many fixtures be postponed because of Covid, something like this was inevitable. Arsenal are at the end of a tough week but let’s not forget that we too have periods of time without playing so I suppose it’s swings and roundabouts to a degree.
Also, haven’t we often heard a manager say that after a defeat, it’s always good to play again soon after? Sometimes I think it’s better to just get on with things rather than moan about it.
This weekend is another key one as far as chasing down the last Champions League place goes because West Ham play Totts in north London tomorrow so one or both team will drop points, Arsenal go to Villa Park today at lunchtime for what will be a very difficult challenge in my opinion and Man Utd have the weekend off.
Going into the international break, we’ll still have a game in hand over Utd and Totts, two over West Ham.
Aston Villa’s form has been very up and down this season and despite changing their manager, that’s not changed. A couple of familiar faces will be on show in Calum Chambers and Emi Martinez. They’ll want to win I’m sure and that message will have been drummed into their team-mates all week. Steven Gerrard and Mikel Arteta go head to head for the first time, both young and both will want to stake their claim as being the best young manager in the Premier League this season.
Aston Villa have nothing to lose but pride, Arsenal have everything to gain. Mikel Arteta’s players will be keen to get back to winning ways but the Liverpool fixture will have sapped a lot of energy out of their bodies. The squad we have is small and not very deep as far as strength goes so unless Takehiro Tomiyasu is declared fit to start and ESR comes in to the first team, I can’t see Mikel Arteta changing a team which pre Liverpool was on a good run.
See you in the comments.
Surely the author can read between the lines. We have a game against Spurs to rearrange and Arteta is correctly putting pressure on the Premier League ro ensure it’s not a Wednesday-Saturday morning situation again, giving his team the best possible chance in what will be a crucial game.
Morning Rico and all
Rico I agree it’s good news for our players getting selected for England but let’s hope know one get injured we need as many fit players as possible for the final run home.
Should be a good match tonight and another win for us.
Line-up against Aston Villa confirmed
(not that it needed any any confirmation):
–––––––––Lacazette–––––––––
Martinelli––Odegaard–––Saka––
––––––Xhaka–––Partey–––––––
Tierney–Gabriel––White–Soares
–––––––––––Leno–––––––––––
Subs: Okonkwo, Holding, Tavares, Swanson, Lokonga, Elneny, Hutchinson, Pepe, Nketiah
Morning Rico and the House.
Ramsdale and martinelli out of todays game.
Leno and ESR both play
Update: it is Smith-Rowe instead of Martinelli. Gabi is ill, while Ramsdale is still out due to his minor hip injury sustained against Liverpool. According to Arteta it’s only a precaution.
It’s still not too likely that Hutchinson will step on the pitch as Pepe will be selected ahead of him if a RW is needed, and even in the case of ESR not playing 90 minutes it is almost sure that Pepe comes on as RW and Saka moves to LW, but in case of an AM substitution Omari might come to play, unless it’s early in the game and ESR moves to the middle, Saka will reposition himself to the left and Pepe comes on for Odegaard, but would play as a right winger.
A banana skin of a match.As usual we need to score first.Prob won’t & have a mountain to climb.But we’ll see.
Good day all.
I’m looking for a triple celebration today, an Arsenal win, an England victory in Paris and, jointly with my wife, our fifty-sixth wedding anniversary.
Liverpool’s Trent Alexander Arnold is out for a couple of weeks with an injury sustained in the game against Arsenal. They are calling it a hamstring injury, but in fact they are still trying to untangle his legs after he was bamboozled by Martinelli. 😉
Morning all!
Portugal is also a senior country involved in a World Cup qualifying fixture,
I must watch the game later. hope we win.
Good afternoon Rico and all
Yep…we should get on with it. After all its useless moaning about anything because moaning always brings out the negativity.
So we should focus on the next game….everyday irrelevant when the next game is.
But I agree…..were we are concerned we are always dealt a difficult task
Onto today…..No Ramsdale and no Martinelli.
The only problem which I can see there occurs if Arteta sort of forces Leno to play from the back…and we all know his level with regards that tactic.
Were Martinelli is concerned I have no problem since ESR10 brings a different dimension for the team and his eye for a goal will help the team immensely. And his inclusion means that he tucks in while Tierney hugs the touchline to deliver crosses. So we might see a different ball game today.
Fingers crossed that we take all the chances that come our way.
If Ramsdale is not fit enough to make the bench today, there is no way he should be going off to play for England.
💞💞Happy Anniversary Cicero💞💞
May the rest of your days be blessed and full of joy. You have the same anniversary as my parents as well…..and they have been married 56 years as well.
With regards Trent AA….I can assure you that conveniently he will rest during the international break and will be fresh and ready immediately after for the final tilt of the league title
Mikel Arteta has confirmed Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale will be out of action for the next few weeks with a muscle injury, meaning the 23-year-old has also be forced to withdraw from the England squad.
“Aaron Ramsdale had a muscle injury and will be out for a few weeks,” Arteta said ahead of his side’s Premier League clash at Aston Villa on Saturday.
As a result, Ramsdale will sit out England’s upcoming friendlies against Switzerland on March 26 and Ivory Coast on March 29 respectively.
1-0 to the good lads
Saka makes it 1-0 with a good shot after a good team move.
Xhaka’s luck of no cards has run out. good first half but would like to see more from Tierney
Xhaka has got his customary yellow….following in the footsteps of 3 villa players.
We are outplaying them on all fronts and in all areas. We should be further ahead by now. We have had 58% possession, 2 shots on target, 2 off target and have had a whopping 68 attacks to their 27. We need to score another and keep a clean sheet.
It will be good for Leno’s confidence and also good for the defence.
But we need to score more.
A very good first half, Arsenal in complete control, only downside it’s only one nil….so far. 😉
Cicero congratulation 56 years hope you both have a wonderful day
https://arsenalist.com/f/goal-saka-0-1-2022-03-19.html
If this is yellow than there should be at least around 10 yellows per game as shirt tugging and a bit of physicality goes on in all games.
https://arsenalist.com/f/xhaka-yellow-2022-03-19.html
Need a quick 2nd goal to kill any Villa revival.
Happy anniversary to you both Cicero.
Afternoon all.
It’s painful not being able to watch, how are we playing?
Hi Devil.
Hi Rico
we are outplaying them in all areas. Just take a look at my comments and statistics. We should have been at least 2-0 up in the first half alone…..and I feel we were capable of scoring a lot more.
Thanks Devil, 2nd half commentary suggests Villa are now the better team
We need to get that 2nd goal before fatigue becomes a factor
Hi Rick, Geoff.
Joy, moaning is more likely to make the PL slot the Totts game into a three game week. Same as in life, keep your powder dry imo.
Afternoon rico, all
Happy Anniversary Cicero, great amount of years, we only 44!
Don’t like way the game is changing. And Xhaka, don’t dive in anywhere.
Afternoon Andrew, me neither. Sounds like it’s just a matter of time….
Massive three points won.. 👏👏
One goal, clean sheet, three points, Xhaka booked, just another day at the office. 🔔
Nice win, but second half something missing, Too many soft yellow cards for both teams,
Yayyyyy
we can punch the air.
1st clean sheet for Leno this season in the EPL
I am happy for him that he kept his goal intact….though tbh villa got their first shot on target in the 94th minute.
Its 54 points now…..4 points ahead of Man Utd and still with a game in hand.
And Chelsea, Man Utd, Toots and WHU all have to play against Liverpool so that will even up our loss to them midweek. We need to win the next three games for sure before the double header against Man Utd and Chelsea.
That’s a respectable duration, Cicero. Well done.
Important win, albeit I’m less satisfied with the second half.
Villa made 4 key passes, we made 8 so it was a bad game for an independent spectator, but that 3 points will come in handy at the end of the season.
I know I sound like a broken record when complaining after a win, but we had the ball possession and the creativity, but the decision making is not yet on par with the top teams: we too often try to dribble or shoot when a simple pass could have led to a better goal scoring opportunity.
International break has come at a good time.
There was nothing missing in the 2nd half Geoff. That was to be expected, that Villa would come out and we would release the hold we had on the game.
What was missing in the first half was that the team did not find the 2nd and maybe even the third goal. That is what is missing from our team…..someone who can make runs so that more shooting opportunities can be created and also taken.
As Kev pointed out….we need to find a 2nd before fatigue sets in. What we saw today was not physical fatigue but mental fatigue. That occurs because of inexperience, old heads with a different mentality and players who can only play in a certain way. That is why we need fresh faces in the summer. As much as I like Laca and always preferred him over Auba yes he needs to go. A faster striker who can stretch the opposition is needed. For the remaining games this year Laca and Nketiah will do…..but in the summer we need a different type of striker as a CF. Even Xhaka needs to go…..we need to find a Cazorla type deep playmaker instead of him.
Listening to the comments on AFC.com, fatigue played a big part in the second half.
So naive from Pepe a couple of times, but great push away from Leno to complete the win. Thought we actually looked like a real top team in the first half, the way we controlled the game. And although we faded and conceded possession, still defensively very sound. You just don’t give Courtino a free kick just outside the area with 10 seconds left! Pleased to see Leno looking so delighted and part of the winning team. Great to have him as a back up for this season, I thought he would go in January.
The best part was we showed certain people in the media that we did not crumble after the Liverpool match.
As you said Rico this break has come at a good time.
credit to Leno for that save in the dying seconds and his clean sheet will keep Ramsdale on his feet
The good thing about the Leno situation is if he hopes a big club will come in for him, then he’ll want/need to be playing well.
Certainly for Lacazette Geoff. Lol
Leno has a problem when he kicks long, on several occasions he put the ball out of play around the halfway line, kicking either to the left or right made no difference. Going straight down the middle was not really an option as neither Lacazette or Nketiah are the sort of forwards who can compete for high balls.
And tomorrow its the Spuddies against WHU. And if they end up drawing the game the better although a WHU win would be most welcome
Having to remind myself that in January, we were hoping for a Europa spot!
In August we were hoping to avoid relegation 😅
Andrew, rearrange these words to make a well known phrase or saying. Count, don’t, chickens, your, hatched, they, before, are. 😉
These games keep you nervously on the edge of your seat . We have all seen the complete domination come undone with a last minute sucker punch .
I thought that the ref was poor but with Atkinson as 4th and Mason on VAR I didn’t expect much. Our bookings were to even up the numbers and I believe given the chance would have evened the score as well.
THe need for speed through the middle was highlighted with our dear friend Xhaka slowing momentum and Saka and later Pepe cutting in from wide as Lacazette was often deep and then Eddie on too late to get too involved.
On the whole we were in control for the greater part but could have pressured Villa a bit more.
Interesting that Matty Cash made numerous fouls and Xhaka made one foul, guess who got a yellow card and who didn’t…
One game at a time DG, that’s my mantra, it’s difficult to enjoy these games I find that I just endure them. Until we solve our finishing issues we’re going to have more of these types of games, for me Nketiah and Pepe add very little except fresh legs.
Laca, Xhaka, Pepe and Nketiah need to go Kev. I dont know why didnt Arteta put on Tavares instead of Pepe for Saka. He is stronger and can play with both feet on both wings. Pepe is effective only on the right (whenever he is in the mood to play. We needed someone who can stay out wide, is fast and can stretch defences. As Potter pointed out both Saka and later on Pepe were cutting in because Laca was too deep and he ccannot run fast nowadays. so he cannot recover quickly and we cannot counter attack with effectiveness.
Five I heard for Cash, the ref was a joke.
Imo, it’s easy to say player x, y and z need to go but it’s looking likely that we’ll finish the season in a European spot, regardless of which tournament it is. We’ll need a bigger, deeper and stronger squad so unless Arsenal have a few hundred million to spend, I can’t see too many departures. Lacazette, Eddie and Elneny are out of contract and Leno is being replaced so already the club will need to spend a few pounds on replacing them.
Rico….as you said, Laca, Nketiah and Elneny are out of contract, Guendouzi and Torreira will be kept by their clubs (against a fee….10M each I think) while Xhaka, Bellerin, MAvropanos, Leno, Maitland Niles and Nelson will all fetch money and free wages.
How many of the above will be kept I dont know, maybe only Xhaka. however, the rest will surely go.
We have Saliba coming back, and already have Turner as back up keeper. so the defence is settled. We need a DM (2?), a CF and a winger (if one comes in Pepe will leave). Otherwise I feel that the rest of the squad will be filled with players from the academy.
I only saw the 1st fifteen minutes of the game. I’ll see the rest later and more relaxed :-).
Cedric is also able to leave.
I forgot Cedric JM. However it might turn out that Arteta might want to keep him until Norton-Cuffy might be available. I have read that he is getting good reviews and turning in a good level of perfomances. I have never seen him play but what I have read have said that he is a good player. We have to wait and see on this one.
Torreira scored again versus Inter , 5 minutes ago
BDW…..the goal Saka scored today was Arsenal’s 2000 goal in the EPL history. We are the third team to reach such lofty heights.
No idea Devil and I’m not even going to try and guess but who from the academy is certain to step up? We’ve seen glimpses of one or two but I’d have thought many of those will go out on loan.
Arsenal won, happy to celebrate my anniversary, England lost to France, but in Meatloaf’s words two outta three ain’t bad. 🔔🔔
New post up.