Here we are at it again. Turn on sky and all you’ll see is Drogba…Drogba…Drogba.
Why is this always the case?
First and foremost we all know that he has scored 12 goals in 12 matches against us. He has the unparalleled ability to bully most defenders to submission. To prevent this from happening again we need to cut out his supply line which mainly comes from the Chavs left flank in the form of Cole and Malouda. Essien is the heart of their midfield especially with Lampard out of todays clash. Chelsea are very effective on set pieces which we need to be wary of. They are also very effective on counter attacks.
How do we stop them?
Possession
This is our strongest point in our style of play. A cautious approach is needed especially as we will be away from home. We may try to tire them out but the problem is Chelsea are a very fit team. As we saw last season they didn’t bother harrying us in our own half after they had scored. They let us into their own half which gave them half the length of the entire pitch to counter which they did as you can all remember Drogba’s second goal at the bridge. So whatever happens we shouldn’t let them score first as we all know we will go gung-ho all out attack leaving us to be picked apart on the counter.
However we should be careful with how much possession we have. I’m frankly tired of watching us have 70% possession only to lose 3 nil. As it is said: A truly beautiful handwriting comes from talent, disciplined practice and application of specific skills. A beautiful handwriting is pointless if it mutates into a self-obsessed aesthetic display. This means that possession is only useful if it produces a result. There is a threshold to which if exceeded possession becomes tiring to the team with the ball, since you are devoid of any ideas. If we are ahead then fine since tiki taka is very effective as a defensive tactic.
Off the ball movement and pressing
Let’s admit it: Chelsea are more physical. We tried to match them in the FA cup semis by benching AA for Diaby which ended up in disaster. Denilson may not be a fan favorite but he is very useful when we are being aggressively pressed. His job is to keep possession and orchestrate possession. His job is to float in the gaps, playing little out-balls, moving into space, always offering a ‘get out of jail free card’. He has his faults but I wouldn’t put it past AW to start him today. Our movement when we have the ball and without it will determine the outcome of today’s match.
Chamakh will be crucial today. In past games the chavs would allow us space on the wings to cross the ball since they knew we had no one to head the ball in. With him in the side they will have to stretch their back line to cover the flanks which will give us space for our AMs to run into. That’s why it’s crucial that our movement be crisp to take advantage of this.
We will also need to be very aggressive in the way we press the ball. Here AW may decide to include Diaby and Song due to their physique. Essien, Ramieres and Mikel in midfield for them are very physical. Our pressing should be done very intelligently by not only pressing the ball carrier but also eliminating potential passing options which will result in them making mistakes. The left flank as I’ve highlighted is their most productive outlet. When Malouda/Cole is in possession we should overload that flank while also using the touch-line as an extra defender. However we should be wary of cross-field balls which may result in goals.
The above points according to my thinking will determine if we will win or lose the game. AW has to make the right selections. Across the blog world Song has received criticism for him bombing forward and rightly so. We should also consider that in absence of Diaby there has been no one to make those timely runs from deep that are very difficult to track. Today, Song must stay back to screen the defence, they are going to need all the help they can get.
Above all else we need our big game players to step up.
RvP delivered a special performance the last time we won there. He along with Cesc won’t be there this time. AA has created 3.33 chances a game so far in the league which is the highest. Will he be the one to step up?…We are the underdogs in this game. We have to do it the hard way for us to get anything at the Bridge. If we put the effort in no matter the result I will applaud our players off the pitch. Complacency will see us ripped apart. We however are the ARSENAL!!! Our away fans will rock the Bridge as they are the best in the league. The boys should give us a performance since they owe us after the West Brom debacle.
For those struggling to find motivation:
At Milan Arrigo Sacchi got fed up of players moaning about his obsession with team shape and proved its worth with a simple drill. “I convinced Gullit and Van Basten by telling them that five organized ones would beat ten disorganized ones,” he said. “And I proved it to them. I took five players: Giovanni Galli in goal, Tassotti, Maldini, Costacurta and Baresi. They had ten players: Gullit, Van Basten, Rijkaard, Virdis, Evani, Ancelloti, Colombo, Donadoni, Lantignotti and Mannari. They had 15 minutes to score against my 5 players; the only rule was that if we won possession or they lost the ball, they had to start over from 10 metres inside their own half. I did this all the time and they never scored. Not once.”
Which of the two sides are we?…Guess we’ll find out soon enough.
Written by K-TR7
New Post up…..
we can nit pick all we want from the game but the result is just too familiar. this team needed 2 prove it can win a big match against what used 2 b our rivals. now we have become drogba & chelsea’s punching bag 4 every1 to see.
I’m off for the day too guys and gals…
stay safe and catch up tomorrow,
enjoy your evening….
but KT, we can keep the ball all we like, if we can’t score…
chamakh spent too much time on the floor looking for a penalty ….
nighty night agag, don’t forget the moggies, i want to see them 🙂
no worries KT, i just wondered…
neither do i agag, especially after what he has been up to off field…. he’s a pig..
Night, rico and KT. I’m off. 🙂
Rico if we had drogba on our side we would’ve won easily.even when the scores were level we ran them ragged.with rvp and cesc today we would’ve battered them.i also want to heap praise on lil jack wilshere who dominated the game.denilson has officially gone below jack in the pecking order.
You know, rico, Cashley is the one player, who I don’t care we let go. 😉
Rico do the match report and in midweek i will analyse the game better.even my manc mates have said the scoreline was harsh.we held possession but we also showed intent and who knows what would’ve happened if Alex hadn’t scored that screamer.we have now lost our customary 2 games in a row now after the break we need all our players back.we must beat b’ham at home then go to mancity to prove a point.
Cashley wasn’t that good agag, not today… 😉
i think so too KT…
Would you like to do the match report KT??
Clichy had a good game defensively but in attack gibbs is much better.fabianski was faultless and i can’t see almunia regaining his spot if fabby continues to play this way.
Nothing did, rico. He just didn’t know what to do with the ball when he was in an advanced position. 🙂
Ramires clearly fouled Song just before Dogbreath’s goal… And I don’t know how Cashley was great, to be honest.
hi afrix…
we needed AA to play to his best today, did he??
diaby did ok, at least a couple of his crosses beat the defender…
so what about the essien tackle on him?? could have broken his ankle…!!
The difference between the chavs and us is only clinical finishing.
agag, did anything really get down the the side of clichy today? i didn’t think so, his crossing is woeful yet again but i thought he was ok….
hi jj,
not sure i agree re song, or fabianski to be fair, i thought he couldn’t have seen that shot, dont know who the defender was, but i think he was a little more a fault…
drogba took a dive for the free kick that led to the goal and, song should have had a free kick just prior to that…
afriX, it’s not as if Cesc has had a great game against the Chavs… ever. 😉 And for the record, I love Cesc, so that’s not to slate him. 🙂
Easy on Clichy, JJ… He was not nearly as disastrous as you make him sound. 😉 And Kozzer will not be Cygan, come on now. 🙂
We’re missing Robin, Cesc, TV5, Theo, Bendy, Rambo… The Totts do not have it worse, JJ.
And happy Sunday to you, sir. 🙂
Expected result 2b honest,until Wenger buys a couple of additional world class players who deliver when it matters arsenal will continue being also rans. Tippy tappy with no end result is normal now. I really feel sorry 4 Cesc,he doesn’t deserve this at all. He’s ambitious & Wenger is not. In Arsene We Rust indeed!
chelsea will drop points but that doesnt mean we will make those points count..
we will drop more like we always do
chelsea havent even got out of first gear yet
the league will be over in march ar this rate
The season has a long way yet to run… The Chavs will drop points; judging how they played earlier (or last week), they’re not nearly as unbeatable as the press make them out to be.
no suprise..
chelsea do what chelsea do and sit back and let us have 70% of negative possession..tippy tappy with no cutting edge..
catch us on the break an kill the game when they take the lead..
teams like chelsea are too good to piss about around the edge of the box
AA was the only player willing to shoot.. he had the shot of the match but cech was equal to it..the defence was average again
after a good start koz is turning into cygan and songs form is worrying as well as annoying
someone needs to tell him hes not fucking cesc thats what nasri and jack are in the team for song needs to give his head a shake and stay back and protect the defence..he cant do that in the opp box can he and his final ball is worse thanm clichys and eboues put together..those through balls are bollox and nasri is having to drop deep to get the ball off him
need gibbs to stay fit cos im sick of clichy being nothing but a waste of space in the final third..he slows the game down too much..cole showed him how to do it today..
fabianksi was at fault for drogbas goal too..drogba could have drove a bus through the gap he left at near post and god knows what he was diving for..the ball had been in the net for 5 mins before fabby decided to fall over..
ppl will see this as a good performance but it wasnt..same tactics as every year chelsea just let us have the ball and piss themselves laughing when the best we can do is let clichy shoot from 35yards..the man cant even find a player with a cross hows he supposed to hit the net..
7 games in and weve got the same points as spurs who for the record have worse injuries than us..
🙁 Sniff. I don’t doubt though that we played the better football earlier… Now, if only we managed to find the goals. Nightynight.
Erick, KT – this Chav side will drop points. I agree Erick, we are chasing them at the moment but its going to be a photo finish for the end….
Gutted, great Alex strike for the free kick, same old though, all possession and no end product…..
if only chamakh’s and Kos’s headers had gone in in the first five mins…..
The players came with heart and we played some great stuff so unlucky we need to put the chances away Its official we are chasing the pack and the team infront of us are good
2 nil is very harsh.we were the better team.i said if we put in effort i’ll applaud the players.we are so bloody close.
bloody Drogba..
Song is having a very solid game.
Bollox, that was a foul on Song, a dive by Dogbreath befor the goal…
Essien should be off, that ball was miles away from Diaby when he near on broke his bloody ankle… How diaby has walked after that i will never know!!
We are playing well despite drogba’s goal.
Great start, chamakh is up for this, unlucky Kosser…
Come on you gunners 🙂
see you at H/T
Get in
😆 😆 KTR7
Dippers are going down 🙂
C’mon!!!pool are 2 nil down at Anfield vs blackpool at HT.
C’mon!!!
Boo, Diaby it is then, I hope he has a great game 🙂
Erick, I don’t mind Nasri in for Rosicky, gives us a great sub to bring on – both are playing very well…
Diaby in for Denilson and Nasir in for Rosicky confirmed starting line up
Anyone home?…much has been said about drogba but we shouldn’t forget Anelka.he has a decent record against us.
Oh no agag, keep looking please 😉
I hate leaving for an hour, let alone a holiday, glad you like the photo 🙂
Sid, do come back. 😉 We can both talk ’til we’re blue in the face, but I suspect that the other’s opinion on Diaby will remain unchanged.
Erick, you’re right! I’m looking at my luggage and haven’t a clue where I stuff them back again. 😉 Pffft. WATH should be on his nth drink now. I hope he remains sober long enough to watch us stuff the Chavs. 🙂 Ha. WATH, I’m kidding. 🙂
rico, soooo pretty. Now, I can see why they’d be hard to leave. Can’t find my cat photos. 🙁
I’m off for an hour guys and gals, stuff to do before KO 🙁
Hi RA,
There is nothing wrong with you being an out and out Diaby fan, I wasn’t suggesting to Sid that is was either… The sentence under HH says it all…
‘its ok to disagree’ – it would be such a boring old world if we all agreed on everything 🙂
Not sure where the Sailor is Erick, sometimes I think work gets in the way 🙁
Afternoon Peeps,
We are going to win this afternoon! 🙂
Sid may have gone but I am an out and out Diaby fan. I want him to be brilliant all the time, but he is human and sometimes loses concentration. That’s life. 🙂
Great analytical write up KT, as usual. 🙂
I hate games when its raining player slide often thus disrupting the rythm Agag must be unpacking and where has the Sailor been playing at 🙂
I’ll be eyes glued on the Ryder Cup KT 😉
Good Erick, not a game to be missed i think, at the rain has lessened for a bit…
KT how is Mariga doing Oliech scored the fastest goal in ligue 1
After our game rico i’ll watch inter vs juve game later.
Yeah Rico wouldn’t miss it this are the kind of games we are born to watch especially a win
Should be a cracker Erick, you able to watch today??
Fabianski going to have a corker today??
I honestly don’t know Rico but with players giving everything we are good to go an entertaining game it will be
So, are we going to win today….
Sid Diaby is a great talent and skillful but he has to put it in games and that he does but not consistently enough we may be hash on him but there are some truth but we are all in the same team here
We are all calm KT, well, I am…. 🙂
Calm down…
There is nothing to defend Sid….. anyway, if you have gone, it was good to see you here and maybe one day you’ll pop back….
Sid, rose tinted, me….. I think not….
Paddy’s bad games were totally out numbered by his good games, there is no comparison between him and diaby, they are gulfs apart as it stands…
The only thing they have in common is long legs and being french….
Would it not just be best to move on from diaby, you rate him as does KT, i don’t at this stage of his career.
So back to chelsea….
I think its a bit odd that I am having to defend an Arsenal player on an Arsenal blog? So I am done with this.
rico
Lookin back at Paddy with rose tinted specs there. He held onto the ball too long, had bad games, but our overall memories are of him being a collosus, where Diabys game gets nit picked and pevery small error blown out of all proportion.
But this has happened to many Arsenal players recently.
I mean, I saw some slating vermealen, saying he was shit!
At our club:dribbling skill-diaby;natural skill-cesc;technical skill-rvp;close control-nasri.AA has all those making him unplayable when in the mood.
Erick, this is when Jj would appear and say….. 🙂
Mines sent agag, looking forward to your reply… Love em 🙂
Sid, I’m a glass half full girl, i look to see the best in a player not the worst just to slate them…
Paddy was a whole different ball game, yes he did hang on to the ball too long sometimes, but when/if he did he made sure he went and got it back again, not just watch the oppo….
Maybe its not me who needs to look closely at him Sid 😉 😉
agag
I think he HAS been consistent though!
Perhaps it is because Diaby has been asked to play a more defensive, disciplined role lately that you just dont get it? (I am seriously not trying to sound patronising by that last sentence!)
He was playing the Song role vs Lpool and has added steel and cover to the back 4.
I think that he is playing a role that means he doesnt get to bomb forward as much as he has done and perhaps thats why you think he isnt doing anything?
Oh and Nasri is our most skillful player! 😉
Please do, rico. 🙂 I’ll look for my cat photos too. 🙂
KT, I think Cesc and Robin are our most skillful players. 🙂 And Dudu when he was ours. (sniff) AA is possibly our one unplayable player when in blinding form.
Sid, surely, even you would concede that Abou has not exactly been consistent?? We don’t doubt the talent, but I personally question the mentality. 😉 Oh, and HH isn’t a platform for knocking players just because. 🙂 Criticism is levelled at certain players who do not deliver or do so on a reguar basis.
Erick
You are free to believe what you want. Its not my fault you havent got a clue!!! 😀
Vieira used to hold onto the ball too long as well, however, that was OK coz we all loved Paddy!
Diaby maybe holdsonto the ball too long, but no where like he used to…. he has IMPROVED and that is what some people refuse to see.
Im not saying that you do this rico! But i have seen others going on about Diaby and using mistakes he made ages ago as proof of his shitness, while completely overlooking recent positives.
For me, he is a top drawer midfielder.
Sid JJ would disagree with that me too he has all you say that he has but fails to be consistent thats what makes a great player
Sid and KT, you are ganging up on me 😉 😉
I am going to watch him more today and trust me, i can eat humble pie if needed 🙂
Sid, firstly i need to make it very clear, i don’t hate diaby or any other arsenal player. diaby frustrates me, he’s big, strong and very athletic. he frustrates because he never knows when to release the ball. he does all the hard work, goes on one of his long legged runs and then trips over the ball or his pass goes astray, and this happens often.
He has a footballing brain and he has the ability, the day the two work together he will be a great player….
But hate him just becuase its Diaby, No, you got me totally wrong Sid….
I actually believe diaby is our most skillful player.he is also very clinical infront of goal.
K-TR7
He was clearly unfit vs WBA and shouldnt have started, IMO.
Diaby and Song will start today, hopefully. Diaby and Nasri started vs Liverpool and dominated Masherano and Gerard at Anfield too.
😳 sorry, thanks agag
Stop it agag, or I’ll be on the next flight 😉 😉
I’ll email you a picture of them both… I am so proud of them 🙂
Sid when diaby plays back to back games without injury he is superb as he showed on many occasions last season.he was crucial in the win vs blackburn as he and song held well as a double pivot allowing us to dominate.if he is fit(maybe thats why he wasn’t played in belgrade and was poor vs west brom) he will start.
rico
If you cant see what a good player he is, then I am obviously goin to assume you are hating on him. He is a quality player, with power pace and an eye for a pass and a goal.
He has been consistently good for over a year now, he tired somewhat towards the end of last season, but given his injury record and the fact the squad was down to the bare bones and he was being over played, that wasnt surprising to me.
Like I said, it is not a question of me having to prove his worth as I think its blatantly clear what he brings to the team. hence why I find it odd that some Gooners STILL cant see it?
Erick, yes. Next month again. 😉
Sid, if Diaby scored a a hattrick every week, we’d be over the moon… As it is… 😉
There are pet passports, right, rico? My relatives from NY bring their dogs along when they come over to visit. Oh, and that Billie is pretty. 🙂 🙂
it will agag, me and planes don’t go together either, my last long haul was to St Lucia a few years ago, I vowed the, never again…. Loved the holiday, but the flight… arggggg 😉
Sid, we are fairr here on HH, we don’t just slate players for fun, honest.
What is it about his game that makes you believe he puts in good performances almost every time he plays??
Lol, rico. I reckon from your side of the planet, it will feel like a hundred hours, indeed.
agag, i just hope its today 🙂
Erick, they would love to run on the beaches thats for sure 🙂
Diaby puts in good performacnes almost every time he plays, unfortunately spme people just have him down as bein g crap and simply refuse to see how he has come on.
Even if he scored a hatrick every week, that wouldnt be enough for some! ;D
Oh, the pets… 🙁
Agag if diaby has one of those games where he is slaloming all over we will win the midfield contest.clichy is due a good game and i can see him having one today.
Agag Hiyaa am good thank you sad to hear your Holz is over but their is always a next time Rico you can take the Animals with you 🙂
That’s fine, KT. Heck, I disagree with everyone re: Clichy. 🙂
rico, Diaby really is due a great game, isn’t he? I hope his ego is smarting from that West Brom disaster, and has revenge on his mind. I’d be only too happy to say I was wrong about my assessment that he’s frequently mediocre and occasionally brill. 🙂
KT, i honestly hope that those who believe in diaby are proved right, and soon too – i want every player who wears our shirt to do well…
diaby obviously has it in him as we have seen it but what saddens me is that he can do it week in week out, then the odd blip in his game could be forgiven …
We won at the bridge with a midfield of denilson on the right,cesc and song in the middle and nasri on the right.we have a better team now.
agag, i would love to make the trip, if i could sleep for the hundreds of hours flight time 😉 but i would miss our animals too much 🙁
Agag We’ll have to agree to disagree on diaby.
so that means diaby must be fit KT, lets hope agag is right and that due date is today 🙂
Hola, KT. Good things never last, unfortunately. Haha.
For all that I’m hard on Denilson, I have greater hopes for him than Abou. Time and again, I want the latter to prove me wrong, and time and again, I’m disappointed. What is most frustrating is how teammates always make special mention of his great skills. I feel so often that I’m short-shrifted watching him… 🙁
No, rico. Just got back to my polluted city air and overcast skies, today. 🙁 Sigh. It was lovely, you should go. It will be worth the long-haul flight, I promise. 🙂
Boo to you too lovely agag.hope you are enjoying the sun.rico apparently denilson has revealed he will be starting as a sub today…
Howdy agag, still enjoying the fine sunshine and calm waters? 🙂
Boo!! Great write KT. I”m –>thisclose<– to believing Denilson is all that. 😉
Hola, rico. I don't want Song up front either… He's no good there. 🙁 You know, Diaby is on schedule for one of those (very few) "great" games…
Weeds, howdy? I hope you're well. I hope tonight, we play noma sana. 🙂
Chelsea are very good but i’ve seen suggestions that they can stroke the ball as well as we can.it is laughable since when we meet they never try to play us at our own game since we will batter them.some pundits really don’t know what they’re talking about.only barça can beat us at our own game.
KT, I don’t want to see Song anywhere up front unless we are home and dry – i would rather the creative midfielders and forwards do the attacking, leaving Denilso and Song helping the defence…
Rocastle, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if cesc plays, wengers said he will leave his decision til late…
Rico if diaby is fully fit he will start.as i’ve mentioned chelsea will clog the midfield and in such sitiuations we will have lots of pointless possession.to break their defensive structure a dynamic dribbler will be needed.one of denilson’s main criticisms is that he only passes sideways making him one dimensional.unless you want to see song bomb forward,diaby is the man to do it.goals against villa and newcastle away in 08-09 precisely prove my point.
Or could AW be playing a little trick…?
Cesc anyone?
Sid 😆
Speaking of cesc he started struggling against the chavs when he started playing higher up the pitch as a trequarista.we all know his best attribute is passing and against them they clog the middle making him ineffective.as we all know when cesc plays our play goes through him which makes us struggle.on the other hand rosicky/nasri/jack can dribble the ball in the tightest of spaces and their ability to swap positions with AA makes us abit unpredictable unlike when cesc is playing.
Fab
Sagna squill koz clichy
Song
Pele jack(slurp) nasri AA
chamack
There’s more chance of RvP playing today than Eboue.
Eboue has Wilshere, Rosicky, Nasri, Denilson and Diaby inront of him…. No chance EE starts.
rico
OK, you just get Diaby then! He is a big player, trust me!!! 😀
Sadly, I think wenger will start with Eboue, I wouldn’t though… He will have a torrid time if he plays…
We played well at the bridge last season, but we gifted them 2 soft arse goals. If we can be error free, work hard without the ball and take our chances, then of clourse we can win.
Sid, a pint in the pins next time I’m at a match!!!
He will start him.
No can do Sid, I don’t wear them 😉
On the physicality issue i remember us dominating them with cesc and flamini in midfield against ballack,essien and lampard.its a matter of how clinical we are and how many errors we make at the back.
KTR7
Exactly, we are missing the spine of our team, as well as Theo, who was in top form. The chavs without Cech, Terry, Essien, Drogba and Malouda would struggle for sure, yet no one is even mentioning how decimated we are.
I still think with the players we have fit, we can get a result today.
Rocastle; I will take your money re Eboue starting mate!
Rico
I know! I think Diaby is a top player and I would play him, but then again, I want to play Song, nasri, Denilson and Jack too!
No no no, it’s butter free rico, starched and pressed and ready to absorb!!!
I’d put money on Emmanuel ‘pele’ eboue starting today, he does a job when he wants to. I’d also be surprised if diaby doesn’t start… If they do I hope the pair of them realise it’s Stamford bridge and not clacton effing beach like last weekend!!!
Eboues a starter. Diaby is possible…
I also think the physicality issue is overrated.we are not beaten by chavs because we are small it because we were outdone tactically.in fact chelsea’s technical ability is very underrated.if we lose today it will be ‘softies’ ‘chavs are the best’ but if we win we will be branded ‘lucky’ ‘they didn’t have lampard’ forgetting the spine of our team:cesc,Al,vermy and rvp are out.
Sid tough call for Wenger re the Double D boys but he knows best Rico 🙂 🙂 Eboue is superman
Morning Sid,
Spot on re WBA, how often does he do that too…
I think we are pretty split about Diaby on here, good job we haven’t got to pick the side today, we’d be going out with 12 players on the pitch…
Now there’s a thought….
rico
Diaby isnt struggling, take your blinkers off!
I cant see Eboue playing, unless its at RB. But seeing as how Sagna is a far better defender, that isnt going to happen today!
We have been rattled against Sunderland and Westbrom we need to play the way the game goes not having one particular way to do it
KT, but that was diaby then, right now he’s struggling…
Mornin
Nice call to arms there Rocastle!
I dont think Diaby has been disapointing, apart from last week, when to me atleast he looked unfit, he has been excellent.
I think Wenger took WBA too lightly and that was shown in his team selection. Picking Eboue in midfielod and an unfit Diaby helped WBAs cause that day.
If Diaby is fully fit, I would play him for sure.
4-0 up Erick, with a minute to go, then I wouldn’t mind Eboooie coming on 😉
Rico diaby was a monster in that CC final.drogba always makes the difference for them and i hope AA will make the difference for us.
There is this developing trend whereby teams control the game without the ball.Inter in the CL semis may have had 18% possession at the nou camp but they were in control.they clogged the middle allowing barca to go to the wings to cross the ball in the knowledge that samuel and lucio would clear everything.if you watched closely cezar’s goal kicks were all aimed out of the pitch since inter knew barca will pass the ball to each other,find the middle clogged which will send them to the flanks and this was repeated throughout.Barca may have dominated possession but inter controlled the game.
Rocastle Eboue starting will be suicide may be after scoring two goals 🙂
Morning Rocastle, no butter on your bib today after breakfast I hope 🙂
Ebooooooie… no please, not on the RW 🙁 🙁
Erick, I’m trying 😉
Carling cup final….the kids totally outplayed them. The midfield made lampard and ballack look like lampost and bollard!!!
The difference that day was drogba, very true that we need to stop the supply as well as show squill videos if Martin keown in a ‘clockwork orange brain washing’ way!!!
If eboue starts, which I think he will to add steel to the right flank. I’d like to see him put Ashley cole into the stands….of craven cottage!!!
Victoria Concordia crescit.
We all know what that means…
Come on you gunners!!!
Both Diaby and Denilson have weakenesses, just think that right now denilson gets the nod, Diaby has been really dissapointing…
But, if Diabys fit, Wenger will select him I’m sure and leave Denilson on the bench.
HA HA HA Rico you like the swahili swag 🙂 🙂 it means ‘hot stuff’ or good stuff I hate playing the in the rain
Jeremy that was precisely my point.we simply have to score first since if chavs do they will sit deep inviting us onto them only for them to launch a devastating counter attack.
Hi Jeremy, you a chelsea fan?? not that it matters, we don’t bite on here 😉
Thats just it erick.if diaby turns up we will have a real chance.Denilson struggles in physical games especially chelsea where he will go head to head with essien.he also struggles against pacy players.also when low balls are sent from the wings he is exploited since he loses concentration at times failing to track midfield runners.
Depends which AA turns up KT…
Erick, noma sana – does it mean to gain more information? 🙂
That CC Final still cheeses me off too KT, in fact any defeat to the money bags of footie narks me…
The weather will play a big part, it hasn’t stopped raining in the UK since yesterday evening, i think London have had it since the very early hours…
Chamakh and AA need to be ruthless with their chances, we can’t afford chances to go begging. Wilshere will love this game, he gave Terry a torrid time when he was on loan at Bolton…
Great analysis. The blues used to target Clichy and this is one area of concern. You are right about possession. Wenger has been harping on possession but if it doesn’t result in goals,it is useless..The point is I would rather have 30% or even 5% if we score from them and win.
One more thing is the amount of passing the gunners do in front of goal.I don’t know if it’s to tire defenders, but it gives the former more time to regroup and stifle the gunners.
I have been watching games from all the euro leagues and frankly the gunners seem to be the only team trying to thread their way to goal instead of shooting from outside the box.
This plays into the counter attacking teams and there are many of them happy to let the gunners have 99.9% possession before scoring from a quick breakaway. It aint going to surprise if it happens today.
Rico AA will have licence to do whatever he wants today.he showed signs of exploding against Partizan in midweek.he has left his mark at Old Trafford and Anfield.now he has to do it at the Bridge.speaking of Trafford if the mancs even sniff the title this season the rest of the league should be ashamed of themselves.
Rico I don’t understand 9:44? Kt Denilson or Diaby is vital in a game like this but Diaby has been very average 🙁
Rico that game when we lost 4-1 still irks me.we were excellent in the first half.we need to be clinical especially AA.
interesting, my only difference would be denilson instead of diaby, the rest is the same though… AA having a licence to go where the heck he wants…
Asante erick.
Erick… ‘for more information’ 🙂
Fabby,sagna,kozzer,squillaci,clichy;song,diaby(if 100% fit),jack;nasri,AA,chamakh.rosicky to come on for jack to add a calming presence and den for diaby if we are ahead and need to keep the ball.
Too trues Erick, if they win we will be 7 points behind, that’s too many… but they aren’t going to win….
KT always a pleasure to read your stuff noma sana
Its do or die for us Rico I feel we can’t go into another season chasing the pack we need to be in there Come on Arsenal
Morning KT, another great peice, thank you 🙂
If you were selecting the starting eleven, who would pick??
Morning all.i remember the game where the chavs beat us 4-1 at home despite us running them ragged at times.we need to score first to force chelsea out of their shells.
Morning Erick, Howdy 🙂
Its been a long time since I have hoped Denilson start but i do today. However, there is no room for Diaby, Song and Denilso to start together, when they do it just doesn’t seem to work..
Morning Rico 🙂 🙂
Kt nice piece and I would want Denilson to start today he has improved greatly and I know he can protect our defence
Morning peoples…
Great pre match report KT, I hope Malouda falls over in the rain, twists his ankle and misses the game, all of course while grabbing Drobga to try and stay on his feet only to drag him down to and causing slight injury 🙂 🙂
Regardless, we are going to take at least one point from this game, we have to to stay in touch at the top….