Morning all.
Well that didn’t take long did it? News of Arsenal’s appeal came out yesterday lunchtime and by dinner time, the red card shown to MLS at the weekend, was rescinded. Rightly so too.
Sky Sports News chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol:
I think it just proves that the systems we’ve already got in place work. If you feel that you’ve been hard done by, there is a process by which you can appeal and it’s heard very, very quickly and the right decision has been reached. Arsenal ended up winning the game and Wolves had a player sent off as well, so everything has worked out.
He’s missing the point entirely. It’s not a case of feeling hard done by is it? The bigger picture is another huge gaff made by Oliver involving Arsenal. Another obvious error which VAR failed to correct at the time. All of this could have been avoided if employees of the PGMOL did their job properly. I don’t think this topic of conversation is going away anytime soon.
Anyway, Arsenal are in Spain tonight to play the final Champions League fixture of this stage of the competition which is against Girona. Of course we want to win but a draw would be enough to progress through to the knockout stages. The higher up the table we finish, the better it is.
Should we finish in third, we would face the winners of the play-off between the teams who finished in 13th or 14th and 19th or 20th. The teams currently in those positions are Brest (13th), Borussia Dortmund (14th), PSV Eindhoven (19th) and Club Brugge (20th). As well as increased prize money of 275,000 euros per place, another benefit of finishing in the top four would see us effectively be seeded, avoiding any team finishing above us in the table until at least the semi-final. (AFC.COM)
So much can change tonight as far as final league placements go as there are many clubs currently outside the automatic qualifying places who could push into the top eight just as there are many who like Man City, who desperately need a win just to have a hope of making through to the playoffs.
Here’s the table ahead of tonight’s fixtures:
I guess this is exactly why this new Champions League format was introduced, to make nights like this a bit more exciting. lol
Arsenal have not played Girona before because until the City Football Group, along with Pierre Guardiola took ownership of the club in 2017, they were drifting. They were relegated in 2019 but soon bounced back and I think it’s fair to say, they’ve not looked back since. Last season, they finished 3rd in La Liga behind Real Madrid and Barcelona.
Girona cannot go any further in the competition regardless of tonight’s result so it might tempting for manager Michel to rest a few of his players, especially as their league campaign hasn’t gone anywhere near as well as last season. Playing European football can do that to a club.
Michel’s side produce a nice blend of technical, possession-based football that is designed to help them play through the lines – and when it comes off, they are a great side to watch. In flashes against Liverpool they showed their quality in a 4-2-3-1, bypassing the Reds on several occasions to create opportunities. So, if our pressing game is not at its best, the Catalonians are good enough to play around us. Out of possession they drop into a mid-block, but in that congested engine room Girona are not afraid to put their foot in. As it stands, they have committed the joint-highest number of fouls in this year’s competition, averaging 14.7 per game.
They can get caught playing out from the back, and their pressing has exposed them during a challenging Champions League campaign. Scoring just four times, goalscoring has also been a constant issue in this competition and a lack of punch in attack has made it a real uphill battle. We should also be more athletic than the La Liga side, as against AC Milan they used five players over 30, including 35-year-old David Lopez in their backline. Considering this, pace could be a weapon for us. While Girona are tactically strong and have good technical players, if we play this match at a high tempo they might find us hard to live with.
It’s worth remembering though, Liverpool needed a Salah penalty to beat Girona 1-0.
Salah-Eddine trained with the Arsenal first team squad yesterday along with Nathan Butler-Oyedeji, Tommy Setford and Jack Porter. Mikel Merino and Martin Odegaard, who missed the 1-0 win over Wolves at the weekend, were training too.
In his pre-match press conference, Mikel Arteta was asked whether he’ll select a strong team or rotate against Girona:
We’re here to win the game and in order to do that we’re going to have to be better than them. They’re a really good side, if you look at the games they’ve played in the Champions League against top opposition, they’ve made life very difficult for them. So tomorrow (today) it will be a very strong team in order to achieve what we want to do because mathematically the qualifying at the moment is uncertain.
As always, an early goal or five would be ideal, try and put the result to bed and then make the changes. Of course, football doesn’t always work that way but if this team shows the kind of grit, determination and passion it did at Wolves, then we stand in good stead to get the job done.
As Adrian Clarke suggested, pace and our press could be our weapon so use it. What worries me slightly though is his comments about Girona not being afraid to stick the boot in as the last thing we need is more injuries.
Catch up in the comments…
Good morning Rico, great post thanks. Off for a swim now, back later. 🏊 j
Morning Cicero, thanks. Enjoy your day swim…
Morning rico, very informative post 👏. Great news re MLS, PGMOL or Oliver should have to make a statement as to how he and VAR got it so wrong. Annoyed seeing Ornstein on Sky last night saying every team thinks they are treated unfairly. Why did the presenter not show the table of Oliver’s 50 games each for Arsenal, Man City and Liverpool? Pool 1 sending off, City 0 sending off, Arsenal….. 8
On a bright note, Odergaard and Merino being out only short term is good news. Want to see Benny back now!
Morning Andrew, thanks.
Yep, Tomi too, all will be a boost..
Off to hospital now to have a steroid injection for a torn hip labrum.. ☹️
Morning Rico, I did warn you against joining that limbo dancing club, take care…
Man City need to go strong tonight so no advantage this Sunday.
Being City’s sister club and with us playing them Sunday coupled with Pep’s brother being in charge of Girona ,I fully expect some rough housing tonight. It seems that football’s little coincidences just keep cropping up and following us around.
On paper we should win but La Liga is well known for simulation and dark arts so it all depends on who we get as referee . Every match tonight kicks off at the same time and there are 18 games so who gets the elite refs and which unlucky clubs get a PGMOL one could have a lot of bearing on who goes through.
All we can do is concentrate on the game in hand and win it . I want to see us get more than 1 ahead and then slow it down and bore the pants off of them.
BTW good luck with the injection. My wife and I have just got back from the NHS dentist in GT Yarmouth . 2 cleans with 1 filling £100.50 . at 77 years old we sat in a crowded waiting room and were the only people paying.
You think that Michael Oliver pisses me off.
Boring the pants off the opposition sounds good. Having gained a lead in the match how would this tactic go down? 1) Gain possession of the ball in your own half. 2) Surround the ball with as many teammates as possible. 3) Form into tight bunch, thus preventing any contact with the ball by opposing players. 4) Maintain the position until the final whistle blows. So long as the bunch stay in their own half they cannot be ruled offside. I commend the tactic to the house!
An N H S dentist? Such luxury!
Cicero that sounds like a scrum.
Our NHS dentist that we’d been with since the 60’s decided to go private, we failed to find another placing and end up paying £28 a month, I can’t retire.
Tonight’s game is difficult to prepare for because we could lose and still be in the top 8. I’m sure we will go strong and play to win,I hope we make use of substitutions with one eye on Sunday.
Quite a few dead games tonight which is surely not what UEFA want,I suppose there always were meaningless games under the old system.
It’s important for Arsenal to get in that top 8 and avoid an extra game. However the winners could still come from the play off teams.
Still all to play for.
Boring everyone to death was how Liverpool won all their European cups . I don’t know about expected goals , in those days it was how many back passes to the keeper
An N H S dentist? Such luxury!
Yes me and the wife , plus the Portuguese , the Rumanians , the Latvians, Ukrainians , and tio Tomas Cobley et al.
The joys of a multicultural society Potter.
The way the team reacted to the M L S red card was incredible, not the surrounding of Oliver, but the determination to put things right on the pitch and go on to win the game.
It was an example of the togetherness of the squad, the willingness to fight for each other, not a single head dropped, not single shoulder was shrugged just a sense that three vital points were there for the taking.
That togetherness and determination bodes well for the rest of the season.
Michael Oliver referee tonight for Barcelona v Atalanta
Good ebening guys.
Villa have rejected a bid from Arsenal for Ollie Watkins.
Arsenal: Neto, Partey, Kiwior, Gabriel, Calafiori, Jorginho, Merino, Odegaard, Nwaneri, Sterling, Trossard
Subs: Setford, Porter, Timber, Zinchenko, Lewis-Skelly, Tierney, Saliba, Rice, Salah, Martinelli, Butler-Oyedeji, Havertz.
Looks like Partey at right back which is weird..
Weird? Bloody idiotic!
I didn’t like to express my true feelings. 😜
I doubt if any of us would disagree with that sentiment
Doesn’t make sense does it…
What the heck was Neto doing, and why in earth did he try saving it when a fingertip would have got him sent off.
Not ideal. Neto?
Jorghino wahay
Phew! 1-1
Selection problems all round tonight,
Pen to Arsenal…. Jorginho makes it 1 – 1.
As I was saying, my selection problems, whether to have a Birra Morati, Banks Amber Ale or a Budweiser. I settled for the Bud. 😉
Nwaneri.with a stunner. 2 – 1.
What a goal! Nwaneri
Nwaneri scored that goal playing the right sided role normally filled by Odegaard. And took the chance with aplomb.
He exudes so much confidence you knew he’d score.
His left foot is so like Saka’s in the way he strikes the ball.
Villa’s Duran set for medical ahead of ‘£64.5m’ Saudi move
Aston Villa’s Jhon Duran is closing on a move to Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr, according to The Athletic.
The report understands that Duran is set for a medical in London on Thursday before the proposed move, believed to be worth €77m (£64.5m) plus add-ons.
A move for Duran is set to end Al Nassr’s pursuit of Bayer Leverkusen striker Victor Boniface.
The Duran news comes after Aston Villa rejected a bid for striker Ollie Watkins from Arsenal.
To be fair Sterling looked better in the left.
Partey subbed for Timber.
I hope Raya’s issue is minor. Partey off.
Commentary annoying. If it was Manc c or ure they’d be anti Girona
Arsenal pen. Sterling to take it and its saved. Poor penalty.
That’ll do nicely. 1 – 2 🔔🔔
He did Berg. Shame he couldn’t convert his penalty.
Job done though, just hope their rough stuff hasn’t caused injuries.
Neto doesn’t fill me with confidence, he was a finger tip away from a red card when he threw an arm at the ball outside of the penalty area prior to the Girona goal. A couple of routine saves made up for his early errors, I hope Raya is fit for the City game at the weekend.
Me too re Raya..
I’ve been saying for months that Stirling adds nothing, quite the opposite. He’s trying to prove it.
Vlahovic doesn’t convince me. I don’t understand the interest.
I continue to look at Kluivert and say that he was the best solution for Arsenal and the most economical.
Didn’t get to see the match, but the end result was what we wanted.
Haven’t we all Jm, haven’t we all….. lol
New post up.