Last night was another situation where I had to step back after the final whistle and get away from this for a while. It allows me to calm down and put things in perspective. It is hugely disappointing to lose to United – again. For me, the worst aspect was our limp, toothless performance in what was clearly our biggest game of season to date. So much was riding on this. An opportunity to stay top and finally defeat one of the big two; yet again, we failed to rise to the occasion. Perhaps I should not be so surprised it turned out this way…
I was hoping for Djourou to return at the centre of defence, and was a little disappointed to see Koscielny pairing Squillaci again. To be fair, neither did too badly – although the more I see of Squillaci, the less I rate him. Then I remember that he was purchased as our fourth choice central defender. The buzz yesterday morning was that Szczesny would start in goal tonight, ahead of Fabianski – ostensibly due to the latter’s “groin strain”…Hmmm…
I thought our young second choice keeper had a good game, and certainly did not embarrass himself – he couldn’t do much about the goal, and made several good saves to keep us in the match. A few wayward kicks but overall he looked very good.
Shame his opposite number, the twice-his-age Van Der Sar, didn’t have to make saves to keep United in the match. He made two, one from a soft Chamakh header roughly ten minutes in, and another save which he spilled from a Nasri shot, that Chamakh should have tapped in. That was it. Nothing to make him work, nothing to unnerve him. Our complete and utter inability to even test VDS is a big reason why we returned South with nothing. The match itself started with a spiteful undercurrent.
Both sides committed fouls, Arsenal committing the heavier ones. We had the half chance in the 10th minute, and both sides pretty much cancelled each other out until roughly ten minutes later, when Koscielny sent a clearance straight to Nani, who immediately blasted the ball back where it originated, and inches past Szczesny’s post. Arsenal continued to dish it out – particularly to Evra – for someone who has plenty to say, he sure whines a lot when another player tackles him. Just like a couple of seasons ago, when he called Arsenal “babies” and then cried because he was singled out for some rough treatment. We did have a spell of pressure when we moved the ball and put some crosses in – either poor crosses, or decent ones with nobody to get on the end of.
Late in the half, Vidic went in late on Chamakh, but Webb kept his card in his pocket. A minute or two later, Webb did the same when Song obstructed Fletcher in the box – this time, however, the latter blew his top and actually shoved the referee. Weak as he is, Webb let him get off with a lecture – and he probably wonders why he is not respected. In the 41st minute, disaster struck. A Nani cross from the right deflected off Clichy towards Park, who had to lean back and contort his body, but still managed to loop a header between the diving Szczesny and the post. I called it a fluke goal at the time, but I have to give credit to Park for putting himself in the position to make the header and then twisting his body to get the necessary power and direction. He may this type of header difficult to repeat, but he was definitely trying to head the ball on goal and he put it where Szczesny couldn’t get to it.
As with the Fulham and Partizan matches, we lost composure and discipline – Chamakh and Arshavin were booked for late/high tackles in quick succession. Fortunately, United didn’t threaten again and we made it to the half just the goal down.
If ever there was a match where I thought Arsene needed to be proactive and make changes at the interval, it was this one. Rosicky was worse than useless, and Arshavin wasn’t much better. If he had brought Robin and Theo on at the start of the second half, perhaps we would have made a better fight of it. As usual, though, Arsene changed nothing between halves.
We did start the second half brighter, however. We moved the ball directly at United and put them under some pressure. They looked nervy for a spell, and I thought an equalizer may be coming. United looked to counter and sent Anderson through, but this time Szczesny made a fine save. A minute later, the chance we really needed to take came – Nasri shot, Van Der Sar fumbled the save to Chamakh, who had an open net for an instant. But – as we have seen before – he failed to react quickly and Vidic blocked his eventual shot for a corner – which we did nothing with. That was effectively it.
A couple of minutes later, Nani should have doubled the lead. Clichy robbed him in our area, then switched off to allow Nani to win the ball back – the latter shooting over the bar when he should have done better. On 64 minutes, Arsene finally woke up and made a double swap, with Cesc replacing Rosicky and Robin replacing Jack. Neither change did much – Robin, as with his other appearances, played too deep. Perhaps the ineffective Chamakh should have been the player to make way for him? Cesc slowed our play down and was very ineffective with the ball – probably quite rusty after another injury layoff.
No United player was booked this evening – certainly Ferdinand should have been for his dangerous play boot into Sagna’s chest, which laid the latter out and ripped his shirt. On 72 minutes, United were awarded an absurd penalty, when Clichy slipped while trying to clear from Nani, and the latter rolled the ball over his grounded hand. Fortunately Rooney over-elaborated his penalty and sent it way over the bar.
Theo came on for Arshavin, who had a useless game. Theo at least ran directly at United, but a poor touch and worse shooting negative his effectiveness. The game petered out from here. United were happy to let us have possession as we passed here, there, and everywhere, without shooting at goal. We had one last chance in the third minute of stoppage time, where Theo shot wastefully over the bar when the ball found him at the back post.
So another game against United or Chelsea, and another defeat. Despite what I said on the forum earlier there were a few positives: Szczesny had an assured debut and looked good in goal. Our players stood up for themselves and did not allow United to push them around. We played generally ok defensively – there were the usual bad clearances and lapses in concentration, but we kept Rooney pretty quiet. Nani had a good game, but Clichy also did well against him in spots. We looked more solid than recently, although United never put us under excessive pressure.
The negatives were too many players under performing. Our midfield – the one area we should have had a significant advantage over United – was largely outplayed because Wilshere and Rosicky were ineffective. Rosicky – who I like – was so bad that he should not have finished the first 45 minutes. Samir was wasted out wide – he struggled to get into the game, and in hindsight, should have been deployed centrally. Of course, our collective refusal to shoot on goal and really put the United defense under sustained pressure make these points somewhat irrelevant. We won’t score if we don’t shoot.
At the same time, credit must go to United for nullifying us. Carrick and Fletcher were good in the center and Nani caused us all sorts of problems out wide – as I knew he would. Park got his customary goal against us, and the United defense dealt comfortably with most of what we threw (or passed) at them. This United side does not look near the quality of the sides from the past few seasons – but they still have a winning mentality and tons of experience. They know just how to handle these matches – unlike us – and as long as they retain that trait, they will be difficult for anyone to beat.
Indeed, the big difference I see between us and United – besides the glittering recent success the latter has enjoyed – is that we are built to entertain, they are built to win. While certain Arsenal quarters “Tut-tut” over United’s financial situation, they keep on winning. While we spent seasons emphasizing youth development and using the domestic cups to give our young players a taste of first team experience, they emphasized winning and used these cups to give their young players a taste of winning silverware. That is what we still lack, and that is why the Carling Cup is now so important – as a group, we are not winners, and do not yet know how to win. Hopefully, we can win that and take our first step towards winning bigger things. This first step is, however, at least a couple of seasons overdue in my opinion.
No time to feel sorry for ourselves – what is done is done and we have a difficult game against Stoke on the weekend. Ordinarily, we would be expected to handle them rather easily, but considering our recent performances and this morale-sapping defeat, I am not sure what to expect. I do know that there is residual bitterness on both sides over the Shawcross tackle last season. Stoke have a decent away record and we have a mediocre home record, so I see this as another dangerous fixture, especially with Chelsea lurking around the corner.
We slipped only to second – level on points with City – yet I cannot help but feel that this was another massive opportunity lost. Instead of solidifying our grip on the league lead, we lost in a weak, lifeless fashion. Are we doomed to continue this cycle of losing to the top two teams, and getting close to the top, but never quite staying there? Many of us felt that this match – while not decisive in the title race – would tell us a lot about our team. It has told me a lot, and confirmed many of my worst fears…
At least the New York Giants won this evening – after losing their last four games against the Minnesota Vikings, they walked all over their opponents, beating them 21-3. Most impressive was both Jacobs and Bradshaw rushing for over 100 yards each against Minnesota’s vaunted run defense. Truth be told, I wanted the Giants to pile it on and rack up the score, as payback for the 44-7 whipping last season. They didn’t – but they handled Minnesota like children, brushing them aside with disdain and contempt.
I look forward to the day when our Arsenal side will once again handle United, Chelsea, and everyone else in a similar fashion. I just don’t know if we will ever get to that point with Arsene Wenger and this group of players…
Written by Oliver
Morning all, a nights sleep doesn’t make it any better does it…..
Good post oliver, i can’t give the mancs any credit, we gifted them by playing so poor, no passion, no urgency and no service to chamakh…
last night i tried to be be very objective, today i want wenger out and he can take a few players with him too….
New York Giants? WTF?
Some things we can hopefully agree on rico: Arshavin is pure class when he’s up for it, when he’s not: he’s worthless. Nasri is still class, our young pole will be a great keeper one day. and we still need to win against stoke, and if man. utd. lose against city, we are top. It’s not about the big teams, it’s the results against the small teams that win you titles.. i don’t think we played that bad last night, but united’s defence is just rock solid.. Too bad Wenger cannot see what a difference a good defence can make..
lose against Chelsea i mean lol
Morning guys…
Rico, who’s gonna take us to the next level?
Is this the time for him to retire? If we fail to win anything this year, i would say so…
stonroy, oliver’s post and he follows NFL in his nome country 🙂
Not wenger Rocastle, not all the time he has deep pockets and short arms….
aDK, i wish he hadn’t signed his new contract right now…
Wenger used to be a great manager, that’s who we need back, not some old scrooge who won’t spend on just 2/3 players to make us world beaters…
AW needs to stay for another year BUT someone On the board needs to grow some balls and insist on buying some experienced quality players. He needs to get a big sol/TA centreback with experience and he needs a flamini type to provide competition for song. Song can play the gilberto wall type well (when he doesn’t think he’s Dennis bergkamp and finds himself on the edge of the opposition box on a counter attack) but he needs a ball winner.
The big problem at the club is that NOBODY has the authority to question him. For all the good he has done and the changes he has made to AFC, he is still only the manager. This is wrong.
I gotta agree with you rico. I remember a couple of seasons ago, he had the chance to buy Ribery, and didn’t do it, i was furious.. The same with Villa who expressed his desire to play for us, the same with Van Der Vaart, Dzeko.. The list is pretty big.. It’s frustrating to be an Arsenal player now a days i guess..
Wenger will never get questioned by the board as long as he is doing what he’s best at.. Making money.. the board don’t care about trophys only profits…
Ouch ouch we played with fear and we paid dearly for it am sorry we are not good enough and changes are needed
Rocastle, that’s just it, no-one on the board is directing him, it seems we have become more interested in money than winning – its so wrong.
Personally I can’t see it changing until we are bought outright and hopefully by someone who loves the club and wants us back winning things…
Oliver as always nice post Morning all 🙂 on the contrary I think Jack had a great game as compared to the rest
aDK, that’s just it, a few seasons ago every great player hoped that wenger would sign him, now we have settle for too many average players and we no longer are an attractive club… if we would get a couple of great players signed, those days would come back and quickly….
Morning Erick, i thought Jack was one of very few who was up for last nights game, an 18 year old showed more heart than half of the others put together…
Perhaps it’s time the crowd voiced an opinion. It’s our money we put into the club. AW seems to think it’s HIS money just because he has access to the chequebook.
Well i must say thank for trying to console us with your article but the truth must be said we were clueless all through the match to make the situatiom worst is the inability have a plan B which is not good thing to posses as a team wanting to win the league. just take barca for instance when they observe that their opponent are playing too deep they shoot from long range but we will never do that which is very painful for me to see. I don’t know what else to say but i think Mr Wenger is loosing it and the ability of our striker is something to worry about they are just too soft to scare the defender, never gonna take on defenders, not strong enough and lack alot in their shooting abilities well i must say this team lack alot and the manager keeps deceiving himself that this is the strongest arsenal team he ever manage i bet a match between the invisibles and our present team will end up 5 nott in favour of the invisibles .lets hope for a favourable in our next game.
Aw been handling it like a personal business that has to stop
Rocastle, something has to happen, other club fans are quick to roar ‘you don’t know what your doing’ at their managers, maybe thats the next stage for us… its not nice but…
on the other hand, how many fans are there who just love wenger rather than the club, our club??
Even after Shrek missed the penalty we couldn’t be motivated enough to fight for our lives
fabgunner, olivers report is not trying to console us, its as usual a balanced view of the game…
he like all of us are at our wits end, hoping the old wenger will reappear and sort this mess out…
Watever happens at the end of the season Aw must change something or change will change him 🙁
Agree Erick, its the club money not his…. I honestly thought the penalty miss would spark us into life, sadly though…..
i’ll be glad to see Ramsey and Lansbury come back in January, i think its time for them to play their part…
I still believe he’s the best man for the job. I don’t think it’s any sort of ****ing ‘prophecy’ like some think, he’s 90% there but he now needs to change his approach and sprinkle this team with a bit of experience and backbone.
He is 2 or 3 players from having a top top side, but they need to be older wiser and stringer than what he usually looks for. Probably long shots I know but a lucio or samuel at the back and a Scott Parker in the middle. AW would never buy these players due to age and lack of technique.
Grrr
I still think that we are a club that can sign big players. get Dzeko, under the noses of city, we need a beast at the back, someone tall and strong.. song is OK as a def. mid. IMO, but someone needs to tell him to protect the back four! NOT go forward acting like ronaldinho.. So many problems to be solved, and after every game we hear about the same problems, I just wonder: how come we never actually do anything about them? Wenger is stubborn.. and that’s killing me!
Rocastle, in the main i agree with you about Wenger, but as i keep going on, it’s the old wenger we need, the one that bought players like Henry, Anelka, Paddy, Petit and Campbell…
Not Denilson, Diaby, Silvestre etc etc….
I think its time we had a big shake up and clear out…
aDK, but Wenger has told Song to ‘go free’, he’s too slow to do that, he’s like Gilberto, he needs to stay back a bit more, read the game and break down the attacks through the middle, look after the defence behind him and not go off in search of a goal…
if we buy a centre half in jan, i bet is that 28 year old french guy i think who’s name escapes me but he free in the summer, we all wanted him a few years ago….
Utterly f**king depressing! We still can’t beat a mediocre(at best)man utd team! Last nights performance was a f**king disgrace in my opinion, no hunger, no desire and no belief and no balls = no title for another year! sick as f**k
Morning all,
I have to say that I wasnt too disappointed with the result because we all knew certain departments were lacking (e.g, Defensive Midfield) and we were toothless in front of goal especially as there were too many passes right in the United box rather taking a shot. It was a frustrating game to watch from an Arsenal fan’s perspetive (which has become a common thing), Arshavin spent more time on his Arshe and dribbling into oblivion, Nasri couldnt find enough space to roam but for me, I think Clichy didnt do too badly especially against Nani. Sometimes I wished Jackieboy was much taller because he would have been a solid no nonsense defensive M/Fielder! 🙂
In general, it could have been worse especially as Shrek missed, Chessney did well(I dont think there was much he could have done as per the goal)and I dont feel as gutted as when we lost to Spurz a few weeks ago…. 🙄
it’s a shame that he’s asking all these things of Song, when we have so many good attacking players.. Has Wenger really lost it rico? or is he just so stubborn and wants to prove everybody wrong that he sticks to his tactics no matter how the results are..?
hmm i don’t reckon any 28 y.o. french centreback.. but if it was Sakho, i would be glad.. Should I watch the game on tv this saturday? if i’m over the united defeat by then…
Rico, aint gonna be no shake up as long as Wenger’s in charge
Rico, I think we’re missing the point here.. The Ol’ Wenger bought players like Henry, Anelka, Paddy, Petit, etc. who were not coveted by other big clubs.. Henry & Paddy were basically rejects from top clubs in SerieA which was financially the strongest at that time, and Anelka was simply an unknown kid in France… Things have changed now, any promising youngster in Europe is already being watched by many big clubs. By the time we can get our cheque books out & write out a paltry sum, Real or Inter have already secured their signature
T-Buzz your comment sums it all up… Wenger’s in charge… he ain’t just the manager he is indeed “IN CHARGE”…………..!.
.Fergie not for the first time outwitted Wenger in the formation he chose, and limited our chances to score to an absolute minimal.Not a great game but any stretch of the imagination and the worrying aspect for us was even with the introduction of Fabregas,RVP and Walcott,they made little or no impact.Webb was always going to be heavily scrutinised and generally he tried to let the game flow, yet the penalty awarded was harsh,though even if Rooney had scored doubt we would have got back into the game.our players need to take a good look at themselves and show the mentality and mental strength if we are to achieve anything this season.We are a good side but just lack that leadership and motivation on the pitch in the games that really matter.If Wenger addresses that is another thing.
I really think Mozart needs to go, Arshavin though he has a number of assists this season needs to get involved more, we can’t have too many luxury players.
Clichy was always going to be targeted and so it was,and yet man for man we are just as good as united but just can’t stamp our authority in these games,now stretching back over 5 years.Wenger must take a proportion of the blame.
cesc is woefully unfit and is his head really at arsenal.RVP is another who is a shadow of the player he was yet both were on the bench.same old, same old.
DK, we didn’t look unstable in defense at all yesterday.. I mean the only plus pt was that the defensive naivety that we display in big games was curbed. Utd scored a lucky goal & U simply can’t deride the defense for it (although there were shaky moments throughout the game)
Sorry, forget to say good morning.
The centre backs played alright it was the attack that was non existent.Why play nasri on the wing ?
Kelsey, absolutely right there mate.. Wenger’s the one to blame, at least the biggest culprit of all! He had almost all of our attacking squad at his disposal (no injury excuse here) and yet he couldn’t overcome his adversary Fergie… When was the last time that we can honestly say that we won a game thanks to his tactical astuteness. He bring next to nothing from a tactical standpoint to the Arsenal game, he’s totally bereft of ideas… The only thing he does is takes out midfielders and replace them with strikers that too predictably at 60min, the game’s usually over by then
I HAVEN’T READ THE POST YET BUT THIS IS WHAT I HAVE TO SAY:
oops Wenger has done it again.
He keeps making formation changes when we play big games. That surely is responsible for the player’s mental state.
Unfortunate for Clichy , Fergie targeted him as our weak link but he was one of our best players yesterday and Sagna.
If only Bendtner had kept his mouth shot , i could see him having a good game yesterday but instead he was warming the bench.
Well i just hope Wenger is tired of being beaten by Fergie because i am .
Psychologically our players are not up for big games.
I have always backed Wenger saying he’s the man for the job… Last night I’ve been forced to admit we’re never going to win the Premiership again or the UCL ever with Monsieur. Arsene Wenger in charge
Morning DPT, T-buzz, SD, Rennie and kelsey…
I don’t feel as bad as after the scum defeat either, i’m kinda sad, seeing the club we love so lacklustre…
Rennie, re your earlier about times changing, you are right of course but what we have is a stubborn wenger who won’t change with the times…
he could once buy the players who were talent yet unknown, but because of him, he cannot do that any longer.
so instead he needs to change his approach and the only way is buy spending proper money on proper players…
T-buzz, I cannot agree wit U at all… This loss was worse than the reverse against the Spuds. On a bad day, U can lose to a lesser team due to the team’s complacency or lapses in concentration or bcoz of a few individual mistakes. That kind of a result thought bad can be termed as a one-off. However losing to your main title rival consecutively time after time is simply inexcusable…. especially since Wenger openly declares that we’re good enough to be compared to Utd or Che$ki as title contenders. By any scale of measurement this isn’t the case at all, we’re simply not as good! So either he’s lying through his teeeth or he’s wacko-delusional
Hi Rico, Guys,
Great Post Oliver, and thanks for the para on the Giants, at least something to smile about! 🙂
The game last night was tedious and poor quality from both sides. A nil nil result would have been fairer, although I think Webb would have engineered another penalty if Utd had needed it.
Chezzer was a bright light on a dreary night.
Do you know what really made my stomach turn? It was the predictable Wenger post match comment .. “we were unlucky .. bad pitch … take a lot of positives… blah de blah.”
Why can’t he just say “we were not good enough, I will buy in January to shake up those plonkers who are just not good enough to play for Arsenal”?
Sadly, it won’t happen! Manure, Chelsea, the Spuds are all intending to buy in January. They have all beaten us, but Wenger says his squad are so good he does not need to buy. We should all club together to buy him another pair of specs!
Rennie, nothing, just nothing compares to a loss v the arch rival down the road…..
We certainly lacked a leader yesterday , there was no one to encourage on the players after conceding .
The Manures had Ferdinand and Vidic yesterday and they worked tirelessly including questioning every of the referee’s decisions.
We had nobody to give the shout of come on guys it is only a goal we can get one back, or something like focus you ladies and kick some butt,
Or someone to shout at Arshavin to wake up and lie to him that they all depend on him or to Nasri to free himself or someone to talk to the referee that Wilshere is being unfairly targeted. No one , no one.
They were just playing as if hopping that someone will do a magic and something spectacular will happen.
Wenger made a mistake in selling Toure to keep Gallas now Gallas has gone he should have suspected he might leave after taking away his captainship.
We simply lack leadership, at the back , in the middle and in the front.
SD, I can’t sgree re the keeping Toure, he should have got rid of both and bought fresh blood, instead he lost Gallas on a free… we could have got 3/4 Million for Gallas, plus the 15M for Toure – that money together could have bought a big strong leader to play alongside TV….
Rico, are U saying that U simply can’t accept a season in which we go on to win the title after doing a double over both Utd & CHe$ki, with the worst reverse being a home loss against the Spuds?
cant be too hard on wenger..
utd are shit fergie played 5 men in midfeild, parked the fucking bus at OT and hoofed it to rooney!!!!!!! it worked like we lost but the point is theres not much wenger can do when his players dont get a touch of the ball until the 5th minute and cant cut through a midfield containing shit players like anderson, park, carrick and feltcher.. we had rosicky, nasri, jack and AA so theres no excuses we should have opened em up..
clichy had another stinker, my heart sinks everytime i see gibbs go off injured now..
chesser needs to stay number one, hes more of a presence and hes the only keeper that takes his time..almunia and fabianski are quick distributors, fab plays like hes on speed and i dont really like that..i like calm and composure and chess has those…
Rennie, if we win the EPL, maybe but be honest, with the side we have, i’ll be a millionaire before we win the league. The CC is our best shot right now…
Dont forget, the Chavs, Mancs and Citeh are all going to spend in Jan but i bet we dont….
oh and the reason for so many bookings??
attacking players cant defend..so when they get stuck in they foul cos they cant tackle..
how to fix that..??? add some players who can defend and not 11 attackers, so when we go to places like manutd we have BALANCE and can grind out results and dont lose to headed goals from sun ji fucking park
hi jj, i blame wenger, rosicky and AA were getting nothing, why not try something different instead of plodding away in hope…
whats wrong with us hoofing the ball up front every now and again, if it gets a goal, it works…
That’s what I meant.. In an open season like this, U can afford to lose a game to non-contenders like WestBrom or Spuds who are in form bcoz it’s highly probable that they will shave points off the other actual contenders too. What we can’t afford to do is repeatedly lose to these contenders coz this will directly determine where the title goes come May!
oh and we need some wingers cos clichys garbage and if gibbs is going to be always injured we need someone who can set fire to the wings..
utd played 5 men in mid…our lack of width killed us but we know all this from last year and the year before and the year before
Rennie, they were there for the taking last night, we didn’t turn up ….
JJ, i thought we had one coming in Wellington Silva but that’s not happening now…
theres no point in us hoofing it rico..
other teams hoof cos they train to get good at winning the second phase ball…(flick ons 50-50’s and stuff)
our players dont know what that means everything goes on the ground through the centre
even if someone did hoof it the players would no how to use it
Off for a bit, catch up later….
JJ, Wingers are ruled out under Wenger… To him they are unwanted luxuries (but with whom Fergie wins title after title) I think Overmars was the last proper Winger to play under Wenger, that’s how long it has been since one played in Arsenal colors (No U can’t count Eboue)…. Btw do U in all honesty believe that last night’s loss was all due to the inefficiency of the ones on the pitch?
forget wellington.
he wouldnt have made a jot of difference anyway..17 years old? nah come off it he would of only ended up like vela..
we need a robben..someone like that..
Wengers passed his sell by date move the accountant out to pasture I say enough is enough…!. He’s gone stale !.
Rico, we lacked leadership and passion.
Of course they all wanted to win but are they passionate enough to want more than ever ?
Toure was passionate about Arsenal i am sure he never thought he would leave Arsenal so soon .
There was no determination except walcott when he came in but Fergie immediately dispacthed two people to mark him.
4-5-1 with Charmarkh on his own against Ferdinard and Vidic?
rennie..
basically yes
we went to man utd and got beat by a flukey goal..some of wengers decisions were weird but the players didnt show up..manu were just as shit
and we do have a winger..hes called gibbs..
wenger dont do wingers no, but wenger ball mean we use our fb’s
i can put up with sagna shit crossing cos hes a defensive god but clichys shit at both..gibbs is a natural winger who plays lb..perfect..he needs to stay fit..
Right on SD, Vidic & Funnnylips were immense… Anyone who believes that Utd won 3 titles on the trot (while we huff n puff to remain in top4) only bcoz they had Ronaldo is completely out-of-their Fing minds
Many negatives, but some positives too. We could easily have left with a draw, but we didn;t deserve to win. Too many players had off-nights or cowered and hid. We battled for 90 minutes, but appeared to lack collective belief. Playing with the handbrake on, as Arsene would say.
It’s easy to talk about talent or formations or tactics or Wenger not being proactive enough – but the biggest difference between the two sides it is the fact that United know they can win close big games, whereas we only think it.
Some of that is down to Wenger, but a lot of it is down to individual players’ attitudes. At the end of the day they have to stand and deliver.
The reality is we are oh so close to being the dominant team in the PL – but it is that final step which is the hardest.
http://thearmchairsportsfan.com/2010/12/13/united-stroll-in-the-park-as-arsenal-surrender-top-spot/
toure was shit..
a weak link in the invincibles and got found out when campbell left..
toure was supposed to be our top defender, one of the invincibles and as soon as all his mates left he became a pub player..
wasnt a leader cos our defence was just as shit with him organising it and if he loved arsenal that much why demand to leave and go citeh..
JJ, first off U are rating Gibbs based on a few performances that he gave 2 seasons ago (which were very impressive from a teenager), & he’s been injured ever since. So don’t get your hopes up too high imagining that Gibbs is the next Roberto Carlos, let him play atleast one whole season before judging him (don’t forget Clichy also had that one awesome season in ’07)
And 2nd, the very reason that our FBs have to push up all the time to provide any width in ‘Wengerball’… is why we lack defensive stability & end up losing to teams like WestBrom
rennie..
1st nah mate im basing gibbs on all those times i seen him play winger in the reserves..hes been around years mate just breaking in now..
he wont be carlos..he’ll be the next cole..
2nd..lol weve always used our fbs as wingers..cole and lauren???
the reason we conceed silly goals is cos the whole midfield push up as well..the gap between the defence and attack is to big..and we dont play with sweepers so we play a high line easy exposed..nothing to do with fb’s..
JJ, so U’re not even basing your opinion on players’ performance at the highest level.. U watch a few reserve games & think them are gonna cut it in the top flight… No wonder! Next up U’d watch Vela playing in the reserves & hype him up as Arsenal’s answer to Messi… very nice.
2nd.. U’ve a very valid pt here.. Agree that Cole & Lauren were marauding FBs in their time here.. But in the Arsenal team of the here & now, not the prehistoric times, our FBs aren’t provided the protection by the midfield (as U’ve rightly pointed out). So in effect we’re playing one tactic with our FBs and counteracting that with our midfield strategy. Players can only do what they’re told to, there again ‘Wengerball’ fails in totality!
Oliver i have read your post now and i think we are only doomed if Wenger does not look inward and take responsibility for our trophy less season which are decided by lossing mathes like this.
JonJon; Toure is playing well for Man city and he is always shouting at anybody slacking in their responsibilities.
Toure was injured and was not match fit and Gallas and he were not in good terms so Wenger favoured Gallas over him .If you dont play games you get rusty and that was what happened to Toure, he became rusty.
He gets games in Man City now and he is their best defender and best player a times and he has even lost the weight that he gained in his last season at Arsenal.
Toure never gives up he keeps chasing and when he decides to surge forward he doesn’t lose the ball.He communicates very well that was what caused the rift between him and Gallas because Gallas was too proud to take Toure telling to sharp up.
When we have Squillaci and Koscielny as part of our back four and you are saying Toure was shit in comparison, then i reserve my comment 😐
SD, I agree wit U there… Toure was a great player for us but due to certain unfortunate circumstances, he had to leave. That’s all in the past now, let’s leave it at that! Though I hate to say this, Squillaci and Koscielny did have a decent game. THey didn’t give much to complain about last night, did they?
Toure was great until he went to the last African Nations Cup and I think he got injured? He never recovered after that and the issues he had with Gallas didnt help
morning all, thanks for the comments. i agree with sd and others who maintain that we are at the point now where something has to change. once again, we froze against one of the big two – this happens again and again, surely there is a discernible pattern here? what does this say about our so-called “mental strength”?
and then arsene virtually gives the underperforming players a pass with his pitch comments. i heard the entire interview and he gave united credit for nullifying us, but both teams had to play on the pitch – was the pitch responsible for our utter refusal to shoot on goal? why even mention it??
its not the end of the world, but it is difficult to see just where we are making progress in the aftermath of another weak, spineless performance against united/chelsea…
T-buzz, the malaria too, that didn’t help Toure but I do think it was the right time to go for him, also, I think he wanted to play in the same side as his brother, Wenger didn’t want Yaya and no doubt Kolo knew he was off to City so it all worked out well…
Hi oliver, how you doing today?
‘its not the end of the world, but it is difficult to see just where we are making progress in the aftermath of another weak, spineless performance against united/chelsea…’
Spot on and I am not sure that we will all the time wenger is stubborn….
Stoke up next, what will that bring….
morning rico…sick but coping – i knew i would feel bad this morning, for a couple of reasons.
all i can do now is shrug and say this is what it looks like when winning is not so important. it is to the fans, but i defy anyone to tell me winning is the top priority for arsene and the club.
i am still not calling for arsene to go, but i am steadily losing faith that he has either the interest or will to do what is necessary to make our players winners. and if that is the case, what exactly is the point of arsenal fc?
ra, if you pop back on here, giants have lots of injuries from last night, particularly at wr – smith did his hammy, and manningham has a hip flexor. lb sintum may be lost for the season (acl), and tuck and nicks are a bit dinged up. it’s a short week with last night’s game, and the biggest game of the season versus philadelphia is up next – looks like we are going to be short-handed. i expect that smith and manningham will definitely miss out, hopefully at least nicks can play.
speaking of philly, cliff lee has agreed to a $100 million deal to return to the phillies. this was unexpected – he took much less from them than the yanks had offered. he spent part of the 2009 season – traded from cleveland to philadelphia with them – losing to the yanks in six games in that season’s world series. now the phils have a starting rotation of halladay, lee, oswalt and hamels for the first four spots – far and away the best starting rotation in baseball…
Hope you feel better real soon oliver…
I am steadily losing faith in the management team but we are stuck with it – just wish they would wake up and sort this mess out…
have to pop off again, back in a short while…
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1338526/Arsenal-star-Samir-Nasri-beats-Chelseas-Florent-Malouda-French-footballer-year-award.html
Well deserved
Thanks T-buzz;
We lost against Man Utd but Nasri wins an award, that should make my afternoon 😐
morning t…i saw that earlier, good for him. how ironic is it that this year’s winner of that award is someone who domenech could not be bothered to bring to the world cup?
that said, individual plaudits are nice, but these players need to win as a team. on the evidence of last night, we are still no closer than we were a few years ago…the common thread in this apparent lack of progress is clear to see (arsene)…
Good for Nasri T-buzz, totally deserved too …
Boo! Hello, SD, T-buzz. Good one, oliver. A rather damning assessment of our team, but unfortunately, only too true. 🙁 Kick-off was 4 am my time, which means I hardly had any sleep… and all to see somnambulists in our kit. Fudge.
SD, its good he’s won that award, don’t shoot the messenger … 🙁
Hi agag, was beginning to think you had gone off jet setting again 😉
Haha, rico. Not this time. Sadly. 😉
Story of my day: I lose precious sleep; Arsenal drop precious points; I’m late for work; store manager flirts mercilessly the new barista at my office building’s Starbucks; they mess up my order; I am made to wait; I spill coffee on myself; and by 9:30 I had 30 unread emails. Crappy day, I tell you. 😥
Oliver,
You have just ruined my delight at the giants comprehensive win last night. But the cost in injuries is really bad news.
I am absolutely gutted by the news about Cliff Lee. I had convinced myself that he would sign for us! Oh well! 🙂
Bloomin heck agag, not a good day at all for you 🙁
oliver, i’m glad nasri didn’t go to the world cup, we are benefiting now from that…
hi agag…sorry you had to stay up to watch that tripe. same story, same problems – we are truly on arsene’s treadmill here…
ra, sorry to break the bad news. i’ll catch coughlin’s presser tonight and he will no doubt have updates on the injuries. i think nicks and tuck will play sunday. but it is smith and manningham are both big losses. btw, eli had two more bad interceptions last night – as well as he has played with a patch-work offensive line and group of receivers, he continues to make bad decisions with the football. turnovers are way down from four weeks ago, but eli is still making way too many. that will kill our season if he is not more careful with the ball.
last night, it was reported that bradshaw sprained his wrist – i don’t think it will keep him out sunday. with fresh injuries to the receivers, we must have both jacobs and bradshaw available.
minnesota’s run defense is one of the best in the league, so for our backs to run all over them like that was hugely impressive. jacobs broke a 73 yarder to set up our first score, and bradshaw ran 48 for the clincher in the third. we should have scored more than 21, but we instead concentrated on hitting them hard and often. sacked jackson four times, forced him to fumble three times (we didn’t recover any), and knocked him out of the game twice, including right at the end with 16 seconds to go. i wish it were favre we were giving that to – he ran the score (44 points) up on us during the last game of last season, and i would love have seen us hit him…again, and again, and again…
sorry about cliff lee – it was open knowledge that he wanted to stay with philly prior to the just concluded season. they moved him to seattle because the thinking was they couldn’t afford both him and halladay. now it seems they can and they will be quite formidable. very, very depressing news for this mets fan.
the flip side of this is that the phils aces are all in their 30’s (hamels may be just shy of that mark) and signed to long term deals. if we can suffer a few more years of this, the bill will come due and the phils will be stuck with some old, broken down pitchers they won’t be able to move because of salary – and they won’t be able to spend to replenish the team. they had to pay 1b ryan howard a huge amount to keep him. the phils are built to win right now, so they had better due it – in four to five years, they will be looking at nuclear winter.
speculation is that the yanks will now turn their attention to kc’s zack greinke (who would be a terrible fit for ny) or tampa bay’s matt garza. good pitchers, but neither is the ace they need.
Giving it some more thought
I think it is a combination of things.Arshavin is completely out of form, same thing can be said for Rosicky.Fabregas and RVP and Walcott are nowhere near fit.Chamakh is easy to play against when the ball is on the ground.Clichy is frustratingly never consistent and i would go as far to say is often a liability.The understanding between Wilshere and Song is work in progress, yet on the day the newish centre back pairing did OK and for the first time in many moons i never questioned the ability of our keeper,which in itself is a rarity.
If you add all these things up, plus no one on the day to really stamp their authority on the field be it by leadership or by play, it wasn’t to be.
In the media eyes we are never going to be good enough,and our frailities are well publicised,yet if we beat Stoke technically we are back in the mix,but then can we produce a run of results.
I never thought i would say it,but our inability to score is becoming a real concern.If you look at recent matches our possession and shots on target in the final third is diminishing
agag, are you in the UK.
oliver, sorrry not to acknowledge your post.
my headline would be (for those old enough to remember)
Wide eyed and legless.
kelsey, i think a lot of our problems are our formation. we are overloaded with midfielders who are too similar. we played nasri out wide where he was wasted. i think theo is being wasted on the wing. arsene is trying to force too many square pegs into round holes – don’t always play to our players individual strenght’s, and we certainly do not try to effectively nullify the other team’s strengths.
we continually come up short in these spots, again and again. i think this is one of the main reasons i am now so down on arsene…
Hi kelsey,
Possession v goals scored has always been an issue with us, well, ever since Henry, Pires and Freddie left – all summer we cried out for a big lump up front but even if we had him, we can’t cross for toffee….
I like Chamakh but he can’t do it on his own, has he even had a break this season?
I think Fabregas has left us mentally, Robin is hit and miss and AA is totally off….
Theo, well i say play him, get him playing as he did at the start of the season….
i had originally though of naming the post “round and round we go”…then settled on “our never-ending transition period”…
oliver we haven’t blogged together that muh but I am of the opinion that as there is only one way under AW i.e. wengerball that we finish up with a multitude of players especially in midfield that become clones of each other and some of their natural ability that we originally saw is taken away from them.
rosicky is a prime example.35 games without a goal and this season hardly one on target.chamakh may have been bought for his ariel ability but then if he lays the ball down who is there to shoot.tipy tappy drives me mad.
diaby, love him or hate him, is another,on his day scored some memorable goals, now just when you think he is going to pull the trigger he passes.
yes rico, i agree with your comments.it’s time to stop being polite and making excuses.
oliver, forgive me, i didn’t realise that that was your heading, i’ll use them in future, sorry 🙁
i think wengerball is dead and buried, time for changes …. and fast..
no problem rico – if you think of a better header, i have no problem with you changing it to what you feel fits the situation better.
while i would not necessarily call wengerball dead, i do think it needs to be modified. start with playing our players to their strengths. then make sure everyone on the pitch understands what their roles and responsibilities are – what players do when they have the ball, when the opposition is attacking, when we are trying to win the ball back. recognize when we run into dead ends playing through the middle and try and adapt to stretching the opposition defence or widening play…there are many simple things that can be done to make our style and players more effective.
at present, we don’t react to anything. if it is obvious our formation and tactics do not work, we stick with them in hope. the clock dictates changes more than the match situation. certain players are first on regardless of opposition or situation – no awareness that bendtner – or even robin in a direct swap – for chamakh might have given us something better last night.
a strong, tactically astute number two would do so much to help us. i know it is like a broken record from me – but everything seems to be done through arsene’s eyes, and there is so much he either does not see or wilfully ignores…
look at our success since david dein parted company with the club.i know many think he sold out but he brought arsene to arsenal and did most of the dealings in player transfers.wenger has too much on his shoulders that though he is 24/7 arsenal he is so wrapped up in his one way of thinking that he often misses the obvious.
Just one question… We all know what ails us, but how do we cure it? Whats the solution?
Reading Kesleys comment in kelsey says:
December 14, 2010 at 3:42 pm
IT just makes everything sad really;
His analysis is so true and sad because what it shows is that Arsenal has become a team of trainees, incomplete, fragile, weak , scared but skillfull players.
IS THIS WHAT ARSENAL HAS BECOME? THIS IS SAD .
But really how does Wenger sleep at night? Chelsea was never our problem, Man city? Tutts ? (they dont win against us ), only Liverpool and Manure Utd use to give us problems.
Now even Bolton is having a go and we had to dig in to beat Wolves, THIS IS SAD REALLY SAD.
oliver, playing players in their correct positions would be a good start, if wenger wants players on the wings, buy wingers – if he buys a CF ie Bendy, play him as a centre forward, not out on the right…. so many players are asked to play in positions which are allien to them, it just doesn’t make sense…
square pegs fit square holes, not round ones….
Oliver,
I have to go out, but I’ve popped on to say thank you for your last comment. What with your write ups on Arsenal and your reports on the Giants, the Yankees and even the Mets I think you could have a new career as a sportscaster! 🙂
Your enthusiasm sometimes makes me cross the line and have a soft spot for the Mets. Now that takes some doing! 🙂
See you tomorrow.
Bye Rico, everyone will be more cheerful tomorrow and then we will mash Stoke! Go Gunners!! 🙂
.
oliver, your comment should be tomorrows post…
in fact i am going to steal it….
And kelsey, i have stolen your comment to for the mornings post comments, hope you don’t mind? 🙂
See you RA, I won’t be any happier tomorrow, i doubt if many fans will be either….
kelsey, agree – we cannot compete with the likes of city, nor should we. i do not think to many of us would argue they get value for money, considering the obscene fees and wages (yaya) they pay. nevertheless, the stadium move was promoted as giving us the ability to compete financially with the biggest clubs. if the money is still not there – say so. if the club has money but wants to service the debt first and foremost – say so. just be more open then you are now.
i don’t know what is going on with the club and finances. the club is, however, so opaque that they encourage speculation and frustration. their lack of transparancy suggests they have something to hide – so it is quite natural that many will feel that they are not interested in investing in the squad and want hide behind arsene over it.
the money and squad quality are only a part of our problems. accountability and player usage – as you point out – are two others. carlos vela is, by all accounts, fit – so why is he rotting on the bench, taking up a squad number? same with bendtner? surely we can find playing time for both of them? unless you no longer trust them – if that is the case, why not move them on?
not at all rico. anything i contribute that you feel you can use, i am fine with.
I won’t remember what i said now rico 😉
A blank kelsey comment looks weird.
rico, i have to credit rennie, who asked original question…
Thanks oliver, i will mention rennie
😆 kelsey, i never remember mine anyway 😉
kelsey, are you happy with your comment being part of the post tomorrow please?
OK,
good night everyone.
No problem rico.
Thanks kelsey, you enjoy the rest of your evening, catch up soon…
Can we sack the manager now then….?
wath, i would have laughed at that after the end of last season…now i am not.
i don’t think it is necessarily the right way ahead, but i am starting to view arsene as much an obstructor to progress, as i am a facilitator of success.
i think it is evident that there are some structural problems both with our squad and the club. problems that have existed for more than just this season. many will disagree, say everything is fine and we are overreacting. that is there right, but what i see tells me otherwise.
WATH, Tomorrow will be the day we sack Wenger 😉
I’m off for the day all, catch up tomorrow….
kolo was/is no better than what we have now..
if he was that good why was our defence leaking just as many sloppy goals when he was organising it???senderos was a better defender..in the air and as a leader just not physically..remember kolo isnt a natural defender anyway he was a utility player playing wide right CM and RB as well as CB..his physical attributes made him an able partner for sol but it was sol who did all the defending, kolo just used his pace and swept up..
kolo was sols sidekick..kolos game went to shit when sol left… fact… that why nobody gave a shit when he was sold for 16mil..he was a headless chicken..a recovery defender who did as sol told him and he couldnt organise a piss up in a brewery… if you think he was such a god then i reserve my comment on your knowledge of football and ive got better things to do than watch mancity to see how hes perfroming now..fuck him..
as for gibbs lol…where have you been ??? whos the young man weve been watching linking up well with his teammates on the left flank and launching in some shit hot crosses for the last 18months in every level of top flight football from CC to CL??? even at national level??
he was tearing the under 18s and the reserves up for years as an attacker playing the arshavin role, before he broke into the first team and hes already better than clichy..again opinions based on fact not what ive seen in two or three games..cole was a striker remember in the reserves before he made the switch to LB..another fact…
bottom line is wenger prefers his fb’s to be more attacking and if you have one lb that hits th roof every time he crosses and one lb who whizz’s it in the 6 yard box then who you gunna pick?? does it really matter if hes younger or is it cos hes english you dont like him..??
if gibbs is fit clichy dont play cos gibbs is better already and getting better..
end of
next you’ll be telling me adebayor was the greatest striker in the universe…
i tell u what, we miss flamini more than what we do kolo
u wanna know why wengerball dont work against big teams???
cos weve got no midfieders that can do what parlour, edu, vieira and flamini did..and thats get box to box..
fuck all to do with fb’s and cb’s we need two midfield generals who can run around like silly sods all game and protect the defence
but wenger likes all of his midfielders to attack..said so himself he tells song to get forward..
then scratches his head as to why we get caught on the counter all the time..
go figure..
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