So it all began when Monsieur Wenger had a rant again about some other club tactics. He made reference to a rugby style of play rather than football. I don’t suppose I was alone when identifying the clubs he was referring to in my mind.
It possibly stems from that horror tackle from Ryan Shawcross on Aaron Ramsey, a tackle that could have easily ended his football career. Then when Stoke played the baddies up the road from us, a few of the Stoke players decided in their attempt to score a goal they would push Gomes over the goal-line, hoping he was holding onto the ball at the same time!!
I can’t stand the Spuds but Wenger was right, they bundled Gomes over the line like you would expect one of the All Blacks to do, it was wrong and it wasn’t football.
Pulis obviously took exception to this comment by Wenger and had a little moan to the FA, nothing came of it and I bet Pulis now feels like the school snitch… Twit!
Shawcross had this to say yesterday,
He’s obviously got something against me. It’s just weird. He brings my name into it. He always seems to have a problem with Stoke, our manager and certain players. Criticism doesn’t bother me, unless it’s a false accusation like this one.
What does Shawcross expect, flowers and roses on his birthday, every fan of Arsenal has something against Shawcross, why should our boss feel any different. Another Twit!
Talking of what people have had to say, finally, old three card Graham Poll has come out and talked some sense, he wants to see the FA follow the Australian example of how to deal with divers and thugs in the game of football. FIFA have told the Aussie Federation that they will not stop them from banning players who are caught diving to win penalties – Poll adds that he hopes this rule in Australia will not stop there, it should include other serious offences that are subsequently proved. So if were to have been in existence here, players like Roy Keane, Shawcross, Taylor would all have surely faced a ban after some of their horror tackles?
Poll says,
The FA have always maintained that they are powerless to replicate this rule here in the UK regardless of how blatant of circumstances. ‘That farcical situation could now be a thing of the past. Looking more recently there were two incidents in Euro 2012 qualifiers that should have resulted in red cards for violent conduct.
The first was in the England game when James Milner was flattened with a forearm smash by a Bulgarian opponent who was not even cautioned by Hungarian referee Viktor Kassai. Earlier on Friday, Aston Villa defender James Collins was smashed in the face by the elbow of Montenegro’s Miodrag Dzudovic.
Poll goes on to say that there is no place in football for violence and it must be wiped out in order to save serious injury.
Surely, if retrospective banning were to be brought in, maybe players will think twice about how high and hard they go into a tackle and maybe then we would see our physio room a little less full each season!
Pity someone didn’t have something like this to say after the injury suffered to both Eduardo and Ramsey, instead though the likes of Andy Gray, Alan Hanson and Chris Waddle come out with,
‘He’s a good lad, I don’t think he meant to harm the player’. Twits!!
They should try telling that to Eduardo and Ramsey….
Have a good day all, not long now until the real football returns!
Morning all, it was a struggle to mind my p’s and q’s while writing this one 😉
I disagree – OK?
hi dkgooner, for sure you can disagree, but which bit do you disagree on 😉
I agree (but not with DK)
Hi shedzy, i agree with it all too, but i wrote it 😉
well ive been harking on for ages now about how its up to the refs to do the part in cleaning up the game.
as long as teams are allowed to get away with it then there will be this element of anti football.
an FA directive is essential for refs to take a stand against bullyboy tactics, video trialing is a step in the right direction.
teams like stoke only moan because they know one of their limited strings to their preverbial bow is at risk from being taken away from them.
Morning rico read the post just 1 thing to add about Shawcross `if a wolf says he is a sheep` would any1 believe him.
Good 2 c u r on n about :D:):P
morning tommy
i think its time the FA realised that the game of football is faster that it ever has been, no-one can be expected to keep up with play and trust the naked eye to make split decisions and get them all right.
its the old arguement of using technical assitance, every other game does it, its now time for football to catch up and get into the 21st century…
Morning again Stef, Shawcross is a twit!
Should make for a very interesting game when they visit us in Decembsr…
point taken Tommy the main fault has to be the FA not the refs there r already doing what they can, that is giving them cards.
Graham was spot on about Aussies.
Twit or a twat I can’t make a decision 🙂
Either will do just fine Stef 😉
I hope Shawcross’s comments come back to bite him on the bum, but I wonder if he would be of the same mind if the roles were reversed and he was on the receiving end of a nasty tackle that could potentially end his career, would he and his manager still say he did nothing wrong in the tackle that left Ramsey with a broken leg?
I’ll take your word for it Rico 😀
BTW I was watching Arsenal old Highbury Stadium on last year vids and checked the site also on highburysquare.com and look really good, but the prize looks too salty.
What’s your take on it Rico?
hi Judith, good to see you here on HH
If the shoe was on the other foot Pulis would be up in arms no doubt, i don’t know how managers can defend such dreadful tackles, mind you i think our has been a tad guilty of ‘denial’ in the past…
Too salty?? I don’t understand Stef 🙁
salty as in saltier then any humble millionaire can chew 🙂 ahh… it means more expansive I thought everybody used that expression ohhh welll…
Pardon my manners welcome Judith (J as in Jadore I presume)
All looks very posh Stef but beyond my budget, the blue running through the middle looks like a lot of bus shelter 😉
Yeah I wonder what it is exactly looks pretty much weird to me, alien like sort of.
But I like the building itself 🙂
posh 😛 wonder if becks have an apartment there lol 😀
😆 Stef
well there were at Emirates cup 🙂
ahhh… he was on training session with so I put 2 and 2 and I got five LOL
ah looks I am bit of hungry I have eaten away `us` meant to `with us` instead of what I just said `with`.
off to kitchen again
All i know is I’m glad the internationals are out the way soon and we can start talking footie at arsenal again…
Shawcross reckons he would be reluctant to join us….. Do we even want him ? errr NO!!
“What does Shawcross expect, flowers and roses on his birthday, every fan of Arsenal has something against Shawcross, why should our boss feel any different.”
I agree with the sentiments of the article but…..
Wenger is the manager of the club he should be more responsible with his opinions than a fan.
We can shout and scream abuse against opposition players and then turn up again next week.
If every manager and player use the media to attack each other then football will go in to meltdown.
Is Lansbury (to bad he wasn’t around when we played on Highbury :)) being called up for the u-21 game against Lithuania. Cause I thought he did well the last game he played.
Anyway he is not on the list for this interlull.
Hi Mos
While I see what you are saying, no doubt Wenger would have been asked his view and he answered the question put to him..
All the unfair play needs to be highlighted as it causes injury, otherwise the world of football would bury their heads in the sand and accept the way some clubs try and ‘bully’ others..
Hard tackles yes, over the top tackles and cheating needs to be stopped..
Morning folks,
usual nice post Rico. Sry can’t stop, got to go out, but on the Shawcross story. If you want a smile have a look at the Metro NN post at 9.44.
Take a look at the first comment… it’s priceless.
Have a good day; maybe talk tomorrow.
morning mike
I read that one too, how he’d be reluctant to play for us… what a numpty he is 😉
Don’t think he is Stef
Rico,
not the words… the picture and the comment from the Stoke fan.
oops, sorry mike, i’ll go take another peep 🙂
They do look alike though mike 😉
Just made me smile… love to see that sort of thing.
Really have gotta go, have a great day.
You too mike, catch you soon i hope…
got to pop off for an hour, laters…
howdy folks what happening miss you guys got an internship that getting the best of me
nobody home nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Boo, anyone around?
hi rico. i am getting caught up after the weekend – i like yesterday’s post regarding the armband, and may add my comments there…
hi oliver, feel free to add them on this post, no-one will see them on the last now…
Good holiday oliver??
ok, we didn’t go anywhere. we just bought and moved into a new house a couple of weeks ago, so we spent the holiday weekend getting things sorted. my wife worked on making and hanging curtains, i installed shelving, organized the garage…both of us and the kids continued unpacking and putting things away. not much time for anything else…
hahahahaha – talksh*te now has something “quoting” an arsenal player (tv) saying cesc has “barca dna”. tommy couldn’t have actually said that – could he?
Busy weekend then then for you guys…
Tv has obviously been reading our comments 🙂
Hello, I think this Shawcross is a little bit backward in the old grey matter it would explain how well he fits into a club like Stoke.
as far as i know, he is away with the belgium side, so i think there is a reasonable chance these are older comments that have been re-hashed and doctored with inflammatory comment. the “barca dna” comment is the give-away here…
Ah it seems as if I’m being “vetted” maybe that should happen to these so called footballers that just hack quality players when ever faced with players of superior technical ability.
From Talks*ite
Thomas Vermaelen admits that Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas has Barcelona ‘in his DNA’ and says the Gunners skipper was ‘determined’ to move to the Spanish giants during the summer.
Fabregas, 23, who was born on the outskirts of Barcelona, left the Catalan club for Arsenal when he was 16.
But Barca manager Pep Guardiola has made it clear that he would love to recapture Fabregas, who he sees as the perfect apprentice to their current midfield lynchpin Xavi.
“
He was determined to go to Barça last summer, he more or less confessed it in the dressing room
”
Thomas Vermaelen
Arsenal rejected a formal offer for Fabregas in June and the player announced that he would stay at Arsenal – via a statement on the club’s website – when he returned from the World Cup in August.
But defender Vermaelen, who joined the Gunners last summer, revealed that Fabregas had made no secret of his desire to rejoin his boyhood club.
“Cesc carries Barcelona in the heart, in his DNA,” said Vermaelen. “Therefore it is impossible for him to forget about them.
“He was determined to go to Barça last summer, he more or less confessed it in the dressing room. But that is passed history.
“Now is 100 per cent ready to put his all in to a great season with Arsenal.”
hi sammynelsonsbum…..
sorry for the delay, first comments go into moderation, yours will go straight up now
sammy, he has come out with some trollop, and to think we would look at signing a player like him…
we wouldn’t, would we 😉
No problem Rico thank you for letting me on, I think this twerp is full of his own self importance as why would he be assuming or sensationalising a move to us when he has tried to ruin the career of one of our players? He is most definately delusional.
Hi all…
Why don’t our players just shut up!!!!!
Do Messi has Barca DNA but none the less he carries them in his hearth.
B4 Cesc joined us he was just an young Barca boy who wouldn’t had such chance of progress there and because of what Arsenal did 4 him I think he carries us in the hearth despite his DNA.
DNA talk is a bit nonsense, bullocks to say at least…
Of course he would like to come back to Barca but not because of DNA 4 sure it is because it is the city he was born and the club he had play as youngster.
So if he was an immigrant child he would still want to be there..
My hopes are he stays here at least 3 or 4 seasons…
apparently we wre linked to him last summer, not suggesting there was any truth in the link of course, the man is an idiot, he can only dream of playing for a side like ours…
Hi KTR7, don’t understand why TV had to come out and say all that, if he did of course
The Cesc conundrum………… I would like him to stay at least another year but that would depend entirely on what Barcelona decide to lay down on the table as an incentive for us to sell, my thoughts are that the money talks and if they offer enough money Arsenal would be only to happy to accept they know full well it was only a matter if time before he wanted to return home yet we have him on a long contract and we hold all the cards the balancing act is keeping him focussed on Arsenal before he actually decided to lets his standards drop and thats doesnt do us any favours at all.
i think tv said something – at some point, perhaps not today, as the circluar reporting suggests. i think the barca dna comment was added to annoy arsenal supporters, but i think that tv may have said something about this issue at some point.
i can laugh off the “barca dna” crap – we have heard it all before. however, it does bother me if the content regarding dressing room comments is accurate. if cesc was determined to transfer – and i think we now know he was – and told his team-mates such, then i think tv is irresponsible in talking about it openly. that stuff should stay among the players. cesc made his comment on the issue, there is no point in tv going further.
Why don’t we just play mozart more since this cesc saga seems like it will never end.
snb – barca are keeping the no4 shirt aside for cesc and we all know he’s off one day, i wanted barca to pay up mega bucks in the summer and let him go, he can say all he like he is committed to us but we all know that isn’t the case…
the next few game will show us…
spot-on oliver, everything talked about in relation to personal issues should be kept at the ground…
maybe cesc was sure he would be going and said his goodbyes, either way, wenger isn’t going to be a happy bunny…
K-TR7, we can play Beethoven or Strauss also 😀
KTR7, if Ramsey was fit, i think he would be playing alongside Song …
I think I agree with you there Rico, Aaron will more than fill Cesc’s departure as I feel he is very much in the Gerrard mold and an all round game player, still raw edged but what a player i think he will be for us, here’s with the wishful thinking in any case.
Let me confess i am not Fab4’s biggest fan.he is vital to our team but now i know i will never be a fan of his.
snb, i think wenger thought that when he bought him and we have wilshere behind him, i am not ‘too’ bothered about cesc going when he finally does as long as we hold out for 60M +….
hleb?
KTR7 i think Cesc is the oil that makes our engine perform to its maximum but he’s not the only cog in the mechanics!. As said I have high hopes for Aaron Ramsey and of course young Wilshire…!
KTR7, has that always been the case or since the summer…?
well, it’s all over the place now. the one talksh*te article has been snapped up by everyone else and it is now being circularly reported. does not really matter how true it is, many will see the nature of the comments and react to them. i expect to see plenty of comments calling for cesc’s relief as captain…
snb, you say that but against BB we weren’t bad and he wasn’t even in the game, if his performances don’t improve wenger has to think about his selection?
Sammy i agree with you.Wilshere though will have to follow theo not the likes of Gerrard since i can see Wilshere turning out into a nasty piece of work if not nurtured correctly.
smb, Well I think Lansbury will surpass them, thou maybe not this year.
Rico i have never liked cesc…
Mr Rico I can see why you would say that but we could of played the ladies team and no disresepct to those fine ladies of ours but Cesc wasn’t missed because again respectfully Bpool were very average but in their defence they did not resort to trying to park the bus as most do or try to hack us off the park. Better teams would need Cesc in there to give us that fluidity, just my thoughts of course.
K-TR7, because of his DNA isn’t it….
Stef, I also rate Lansbury but a very different type of player to Ramsey and Wilshire…. The boy has matured greatly over the last 12 months and another year on loan will only do him good to come back and be ready to push for a place in the first team.
Blackburn I was referring to sammy, last season we struggled at places like that 🙁
My apologies Rico, and yes we did indeed struggle to compete against those strong armed tactical teams last season but thats not where we need Cesc at his best we need him to dictate the tempo of the team once others have bossed the midfield and won the battle we need to stamp our authority on teams and then play but unfortunately that didnt happen much at all last season. I think maybe that could change this season as I see more fight from a few older heads.
I don’t know why but i have never liked him from the beginning
KTR7, i thought that was the case…
KTR7 I see Aaron in the Gerrard type player hopefully not the ego and attitude that he has, Your thoughts on Wilshire are worth noting as well but for me he is a little feisty maybe small man syndrome but also nothing wrong with feisty in a player as long as it’s channelled correctly.
no probs sammy, and oi, mrs rico if you please 😉 😉
Squilli could prove to be a quality signing, when you think last season if gallas or tv got injured we had silvestre!!! This year at least we have a current international player to fill in..
I have high hope for this season, if of course Almunia plays out of this world…
sammy, but wenger isn’t the best man manager in the world, i think ktr7 has a good point, he needs to keep both feet firmly on the ground and use Theo as role model…
snb, I think he picked it up while he was on spell at Bolton, can’t remember tackle him like that b4.
Aaron need first to recover then start full training it will take time b4 he fully recovers from it.
I am afraid it will be at end of this season or the next.
Stef, He is due back really soon…
rico, I hope that is true, I know he was pictured on training session, but don’t want to have my highs up until he is not fully recovered.
Its quite funny, TV is the player under the spotlight on AFC.com today ..
He should be fine Stef, he’s young and strong…
Mentally though he could take a while…
Ramsey can be better than cesc since he is more complete as you say like Gerrard and he is also a good dribbler of the ball.Wilshere can be in my books as good as iniesta and should use him as a benchmark.
“Wenger would have been asked his view and he answered the question put to him..”
Hi Rico
The reason why they asked Wenger about Stoke is because they knew he has a dislike for their club.
Wenger was clever enough to use the opportunity to influence the ref at the Blackburn.
Win Win – Press got their quote and Wenger got 3 points at Ewood park.
I said a few days ago how milan have a fearsome attack of ibra,robinho,Pato and dinho but i forgot to mention it is probably the laziest attack in Europe as their defensive midfielders will find out soon.Our attack seems to have gone under the radar according to most pundits but in it we have:Pace,power,technical ability,aerial ability and guile all in one.AA gets alot of criticism but he does pressurize defenders alot.It is also interesting to note that kozzer never lost a single tackle in one on one situations last season .
Mos, spot on, win win all round for us, especially as we had the same fer who did the yids game the week before when they played stoke..
wenger is clever…. sometimes 😉
KTR7, thats some praise for both ramsey and wilshere, but you do know your euro players better than most, hope you are right on both accounts..
Oh my……….. very sorry Mrs Rico pls accept my apologies just assumed veru ignorantly that you were a man…………. Hmmm best not assume Sammy…..! That’s me told…!
Stef, I think i heard Aaron runnign already and not long before he is back into full training.
HI Mos Red nose has done it for years,Mou does it,Rafa tried but it backfired on him.AW should do it often.
KTR7, when all fit, I think we now have a very strong attacking unit, AA has finally adjusted and realised its not always flash play that makes great play, he’s even been drooping back when the chips are down, something he didn’t do last season very often.
Theo has strated the season on fire but many will be waiting for him to make a mistake just to have a pop at him. Vela looked confident when he came off from the bench the other week and Chamakh will soon start scoring for fun.
All that without a fit and proper van Persie..
sammy, its no problem, honest, most people assume that it must be a man who runs a blog – no probs 🙂
Rico its a fact especially in Ramsey’s case who am sure he will be a world class player if he continues his development the way he has.Wilshere is a carbon copy of Iniesta in the modern game.AW is playing him deeper for now so that he can understand movements of wingers,midfielders and forwards since he can see them all from deep.When he matures he will play as a trequarista/no.10 having a mental image of the machine aroud him.He will be able to make decisions quicker as he already knows all the player movements just like cesc does.Thats why Diaby will never play there for us since he doesn’t have this concept in his brain which is best if taught at a very young age.
Kawabonga!
Afternoon y’all, sorry for the late entry, been a busy day so far for moi!!
Er, Rico……Mr..? sammynelsonsbum, good thing you apologise because , “Hell hath no fury….!” 😉
Re: Post, I’m not surprised with the Shawcross comment or even Pulis defending him anyway. Pulis went to the same Bruiser college as Megson and Alladyke..er Alladyce, and their kindda mentality is to rough up the opposition. I really would not be surprised if either one of them look into signing Ben Thatcher!!http://www.break.com/index/ben_thatcher_vs_pedro_mendes.html
http://www.break.com/index/ben_thatcher_vs_pedro_mendes.html
I’m not doubting you KTR7, sometimes I just wish we could fast forward with this squad…..
Ramsey is an awesome player, picking up that kind of injury anytime is wrong but for him is was dreadful, just broken into the first team and wham bang!!
Cesc would have been sold this summer I am sure of it, IF Ramsey had not been injured…
Diaby, has he got any football brain?
As for wilshere, what you said earlier is so true, he has everything but so did Gazza and we know what happen to him. Jack needs to be kept on a very short lead…
Hi T-Buzz, bummer about the busy day, can’t you tell the boss its interfering with your blogging 🙂
I didn’t realise Pulis went to the same school of football thuggery in management, all falls into place now 😉
That link certainly highlights why Graham Poll is right though….
TBuzz………. I very much hope my apology has bee accepted by teh good lady as otherwise I think I will get moved back into that dark room called moderation again. I do think your jumping the gun a little on Cesc being sold if Aaron was fit Rico, a bit far fetched is that but I see where your coming from but as I said earlier next season would not surprise me at all as long as the finances are available for Barca to offer us what we are expecting and want.
Rico RVP is so vital to our attacks and thats why i have never understood why fans want him shafted to the wings.His technique is superb first and foremost.Heis not a natural finisher as RVN pointed out but he has very muchimproved in that aspect.He has the brain of a playmaker just like ibra.The reason ibra failed at Barca is because they expected him to poach goals while iniesta and xavi do the rest.He like rvp is more of a false nine who loves getting involved but at Barca when he dropped deep their midfield would become crowded.RVP at Arsenal has this freedom to pop allover the forward line just like Messi does for Barca making him very lethal in that role and thats where AW drew comparisons between Messi and RVP.If you watch Barca without Messi ala Spain you’ll see how much pointless possession they have without someone to make decisions in the final third.Thats also the case with us without rvp.we puff around but no cutting edge.We dominated possession against the chavs last season but without rvp we had no clue what to do with it.He is a vital cog and its important he stays fit.
anybody home
sammy, we will never know 😉 😉
Eric how are you doing?
Hi Erick, hows things??
Hi Mrs Rico, Mr Erick, Mr K-TR7 and everyone! 🙂
I have enjoyed reading the Post and catching up on all the comments. We are getting a really nice bunch of gooners, Rico, and they all have good points of view! Welcome guys, (and any Miss, Ms or Mrs out there, too, of course!) 😉
am good mate have been kinda busy with internship mate missi talking Arsenal am at the office still but got to talk Arsenal
Erick,
Is it all over yet? 🙂
The only bit of that i kind of disagree with KTR7 is that on his day, robin is a clinical finisher, its just left him for the last few seasons, but he can turn any defender inside out, as long as the ball is on his left foot 🙂
His corners are not bad either, unlike cesc’s who usually cant get passed the first defender 🙁
Rico…I hate it when the letter P is associated with the numbers 4 and 5 especially if the boss mutters it and I have a family to feed so I tend to do the job 1st and blog later!! LOL
Sammy, i think youve been forgiven cos you still have your blogging abilities intact. I know what it feels like being in the dungeon a.k.a Moderation, nasty experience that is… 🙂
I still think its a bit too early to start saying Ramsey will replace Cesc. Best to see him return and play about 10 games this season then we’ll know where we stand. I really hope and pray he doesnt end up like Eduard O’ Silva who wasnt the same after he was Shawcrossed by Taylor. 🙁
Hi RA, you enter with your usual breezy comment 🙂
Rico i have said he is not a natural but he sure is clinical.About turnind defenders just ask Blackburn especially Savage and Zanetti too.
Rico, do I detect a little distaste for our captain ?, I know he hasn’t heaped himself in glory the last few months but he does deserve us getting behind him until he lets us down on the pitch and that is of course a very big “if” he lets us down on the pitch as it seems the media clowns just enjoy trying to cause The Arsenal as many problems internally and externally as possible. Classless parasites
Hi K-TR7
Agree Fergie plays the press to his advantage but for me I like to see Wenger above the mind games.
When you start talking about other teams it has an air of defeatism.
I like Wenger quote when he predicted going unbeaten in a season the year before we did.
T-Buzz , P 4 and 5 – 😆
Spot on KTR7
sammy, i understand why cesc wants to go home, i really do. what narks me is he plays about 20 minutes in the WC, doesn’t do a lot pre-season then struggles to play for his club…
then, he goes off back with spain again… wth is that all about..
i want him to get back to his best and quickly, after that, no more doubting his commitment to us i promise 😉
TBuzz spot on with Aaron returning fully fit and not mentally scared ala Eduardo. Lets hope that doesnt happen but I just get teh feeling Aaron is made of sterner stuff and thats not being derogatory to Eduardo in anyway shape or form. Aaron for me just has that special something about him.
Mos, trouble is wenger says things that end up so very wrong, he shouldn’t tell everyone how good we are until we have won something again 😉
I think the problem Rico is the Spanish team calling him up in which case Cesc can do nothing, we as a club can’t say he’s injured or we suffer the wrath of eufa so he has to go off to spain.
Hola! Catching up on the comments… 🙂
sammy, but look how the chavs withdrew terry and lampard? red nose does it all the time yet wenger always let’s our players go, he needs to start feigning a few injuries 😉
oops, missed your bit about we cant say he’s injured, sorry ..
but surely he is not fit enough, that’s a good enough excuse isn’t it??
Howdy agag, hows tricks 🙂
Just got to pop and feed the neighbours animals, back in 15 mins….
Sammy,
I am sure you have noticed, over the years, how many Manure, and more recently, Chavs’ players withdraw injured, before International games.
Giggs was particularly prone to this syndrome. More recently, Carrick was too injured to play for England, but was fine to play for the Mancs. Can’t see why Cesc or Vela shouldn’t do likewise. 🙂
Rico, have you checked your emails?
Holy Hola Batman, it’s Agag! 😉
Oops, sorry Rico, I’m the one not reading his emails. 😳
Still, as you have gone to eat the dogs or something, I might get away with it! 🙂
Hola to you too agag.That Ryo Miyaichi fella has a similar playing style to cr9.i hope he turns out to be a gem and maybe we can finally sell loads of shirts in Asia.i am however am wary of how we may coach him.Nasri and AA used to dribble past opponents for fun before they came to us but they now seem to only pass sideways.i don’t know if that bit of individualism is discouraged by our coaching staff because it seems to me that they don’t do it as often as they should.it may again be the league but we saw how cr9 was able to do it here.i hope in any case they nurture that bit of individualism too as in tight matches it may turn out to be decisive.All in all it bodes well for the future as it seems we are finally recruiting wingers.
Sammy,
I am sure you have noticed, over the years, how many Manure, and more recently, Chavs’ players withdraw injured, before International games.
Giggs was particularly prone to this syndrome. More recently, Carrick was too injured to play for England, but was fine to play for the Mancs. Can’t see why Cesc or Vela shouldn’t do likewise.
——————————————
Well said R.A and dont forget R.V.Persie who gets injured everytime he puts on the orange jersey and plays in a friendly!
K-TR7,
CR9, is that a Croydon post code? lol
You didn’t get awa y with it RA 😉 😉
KTR7,
I see what you mean about the dribbling, as the main thrust is on quick one touch passing, but other than Theo, who cannot dribble to save his life, most of our midfield/forwards are technically v. skilled.
The criticism is that they ofter dribble across the face of goal and then turn around and dribble back again, like the Good Old duke of York! 🙂
Apologies to any one not versed in the English nursery rhyme about the Duke of York’s war efforts! 🙂
rico, I am well, I hope you are too. 🙂 If Rambo does not return as he was pre-Stoke; I’ll shawcross Shawcross a bone-breaking one…
RA, you sound inebriated… 😉
KT’s feelingly-felts are very enlightening, as always. 🙂 Miyaichi sounds promising. I hope he’s not just one of those new This, next That…
Oi Mrs Agag,
I am in clover, not sure about ebriated.
Wassat then? 🙂
All’s just tip top thanks 🙂
I have just seen that robben was misdiagnosed by the dutch medical staff.the same thing happened to kuyt now he is out for 4 weeks,rvp has been misdiagnosed plenty of times too.their medical staff is a sham especially with so many glassmen to take care of.the should get rid of the medics and train outside hospitals from now on.
Why are you mistering and missusing everyone, RA? Pickled, are we? 😉
rico, if players were punished retroactively (ha, RA!) as well they should be; maybe the Stokes and Blackburns and Boltons would be less about thuggery and more about proper football. 🙂
KT, maybe the Dutch NT’s physios are former Arsenal employees. 🙂 🙂 Don’t we misdiagnose a lot, too? Oh and Arsenal tend to come out top on two things: fair play honors and injury count.
Agag,
My dear old fruit. Not for the first time our rico’s gender was miss understood earlier. (nice little pun, eh).
I thought you had read the comments, but I freely admit it is dangerous to make assumptions and I apologise oh Perfect One! 🙂
Heavens above, the next thing you will accuse me of being pixilated!
KTR7, the dutch are hopeless – they did the same with Robin last season…
agag, and they get us nothing at the end of the season 🙁
Fair play, well its about time we got stuck into a few sides and ruff them up a bit I say 😉
RA, variations on the theme of “Hic!”. Same, same.
I know, rico. I hope Squidward channels some of Paddy’s or Keown’s spirit. TV looks seriously scary though. 🙂
rico, i enjoyed reading yesterday’s post about the armband. my thoughts are that arsene views it differently than most of us, as shown by his (infamous) “eleven captains” comment. we told tony up as the example of what we want in our captains – and how we can use the “good tony” right now! arsene inherited him as captain. arsene appointed three captains (vieira, henry, and cesc) that were the most important (irreplacable) players in the sides at the time, and another (gallas) that he hoped to bring the best out of. additionally, the first three were “made” at arsenal – either homegrown (cesc and vieira) or achieved superstar status (henry) at this club.
i recognize that gallas is the proverbial joker in this pack, but i think that arsene hoped the armband would help him achieve similar status to henry. the difference is that henry was appointed after he became the player he was; gallas was appointed in hopes that he would become such a player.
many have pointed out – as rico has – that arsene gives the armband to players he wants to remain at the club. certainly the appointments of henry and fab support this theory. i think real madrid had already started sniffing around vieira when tony retired, so even that appointment can be argued as such. but gallas had only been at the club for a single season, and to my knowledge, he was not linked with a move away when he was appointed.
the above may have played a factor in some of the appointments, but i think there is more to it than just that. i belive that arsene sees the captaincy as a natural bestowing upon the side’s best and/or most important player, who has achieved his greatest success at this club. the traditional leadership qualities may be considered, but it seems evident that they are given less emphasis than who is most important to the side, and have they been “made” at arsenal. perhaps he arsene views this as a status reward for achivement, and as an example for other players to aspire to.
all speculation there. i have no first-hand knowledge of how arsene really sees it. but i do not think i am wrong in stating that his views about the role and qualities of a captain differ from ours.
Sorry had to make out as if I was working for a while, I understand re all the injuries but I relate that back to the Arsenal hating establishment thats always been there, a rule for us rule for the rest it’s always been that way and will never change.
Sammy,
Don’t get yourself in trouble with the boss. 🙂
Rico, I have been watching the U21’s and cannot believe that twit, Pierce, has little Jack on the bench. Not only that, he has ignored the Arsenal kids like Bartley, Afobe and Anneke, for example. O.K. I know that Lansbury is injured, but there was no guarantee he would have played, even if fit.
He does not seem to recognise our kids have been the best in the country for the past 3 seasons, at least.
Still Pierce has been a consistent failure as a manager in Club football so I suppose I should not be surprised! 🙁
TV is very scary RA, jsut what we need at the back, Squlli isn’t far behind him either…
Hello Rico, hello others.
Hello, STV,
signed …….. Others 😉
Oliver having read yesterdays post you make a very valid point but its not relevent to what Rico is saying regarding the rights and wrongs of Cesc as a Captain. I think your correct in your thoughts on why Mr Wenger has made these decisions but i think the post questions is he right or wrong and does it work and for me i think it’s wrong and quite clearly it does not work as all. A Captain is the soul and leader of teh team the one you turn to and the best players do not make the best Captains thats been proved time and time again. Your comment is a quality piece just I think not on the same tangent that Rico posted the thread. My apologies as a newbie if thats sounds argumentative as not meant in that way at all.
oliver, i am sure you are right about how wenger’s view of a captain differs to ours…
gallas was a strange appointment, he hadn’t been with us five minutes and there were better captains available, Gilberto stick out for me…
Paddy would have gone to Madrid, but I have it from very good authority that he failed a medical that year, his knee. Hence he ended up at Juve…
when we consider how soon Gallas was given the armband by wenger, i wonder why he didn’t consider the captain of Belgium?
oliver, I completely agree with the fourth paragraph. The Gallas appointment was ill- conceived though.
STV, if I had a complex, I’d feel slayed by the “Others” lump-a-greeting. 🙂
That pulis have a bad tongue..
hello RA, how things going 😉
RA, thats what is sickening, we have so many great under 21’s and that knob Pierce ignores them, are those chosen any better?? No!
Wilshere is being punished no doubt for his off field little antics..
Hello STV, how you doing??
I may have got my comment wrong, TV wasnt with us when Gallas got appointed, but he was when Gallas got sacked, that for me is when TV should have got the armband – not a player who had no experience in leadership and who had already made it clear that he would not stay at Arsenal forever…
In fact, not for long…. 😉
oh Agag!!
sammy, none of us like the come-hither tactics employed by Barca on Cesc; and all of us have been disappointed by Cesc’s I’m coming thiter response; but if none of that had transpired, I suspect a lot of us won’t think Cesc such a bad deal. 🙂 I’m probably biased. He’s a favorite.
Hi Suhail,
I am fine, thank you.
Haven’t seen much of you lately, are you keeping well?
Rico, I am sure Pierce is a token England manager in waiting. Can’t understand why.
Sammy, all views on this site are welcome and valid. We take all comments in good faith, so don’t worry that oliver or any of us will think you argumentative. It would be boring if we all agreed all the time! 🙂
Thank you Red Arse, i think Rico’s post and Olivers thoughts are both excellently put but I think both very different in what they portray and reflect bot would indeed be great posts in their own right.
on the contrary, i think arsene’s thought process is entirely relevant to whether cesc is the right man for the job or not. after all, arsene appointed him. and he is our captain, for better or for worse. regarless, these are my thoughts on the matter and are what i have to offer regarding this issue.
for the record regarding cesc, i thought he did a good job last year – two noteworthy performances were stoke away (league) and first leg against barcelona. but that was a season ago. much like gallas, i think he has been compromised by wanting his move to barcelona. in many ways, if barca had offered fair value for cesc, we could have completed the transfer and avoided some current and future headaches.
while i applaud the club for standing firm on this matter, we are in a difficult spot with cesc and the armband – relieve him and his position at arsenal immediately becomes untenable, the chorus from catalunya that “they (arsenal) don’t love you like we do” and he effectively becomes ostracized. but if a tangible lack of effort and committment is shown on the pitch, then arsene will probably have to change captains.
i am of the opinion that cesc should remain captain until such time as he demonstrates a lack of committment to arsenal on the pitch. some will say he has already done that with wanting a transfer to barcelona, but i still think it is possible for him to hope for the transfer, yet still be professional enough to do his best for us while he is here. many will not see it that way and i understand where they are coming from. one substitute appearance and one sixty-minute start are not enough to go by. if he is anonymous at old trafford, or shows no appetite for a winter mid-week fixture up at newcastle or wigan, those are more compelling reasons for making a change.
who would be the obvious candidate to replace cesc as captain? robin is first vice – and already injured. can we have a captain with an injury history such as robin or rosicky? al is second vice – do i even need to say anything? how about tv? if the quotes from today are indeed accurate, how would you feel about a captain who openly discusses dressing-room conversations with the media?
this is a complicated issue, with negative repercussions associated with each course of action. that is why i counsel patience. do not make a change just yet. if cesc’ heart really isn’t into this, we will know soon enough. then we can make a change. that will also make the possiblity he moves for a lower fee more likely, but i will not get too wound up about that. the actual fee received is not so important to me (other than making a stand over the summer not to sell him for what barca offered at the time), and we will have taken a chance that didn’t come off. real life is like that sometimes.
rico, i had heard in the summer of 2004, paddy’s transfer to madrid was done, but broke down over personal terms. mind you, those two words have been used in many ways – often disingenuous – to disguise what really transpired…
May I bid you all a good evening I am off home it has been nice exchanging views and thoughts on all things red and white.
thanks sammy and don’t worry about being ‘the newbie’, everyone who posts here is equal 🙂
Except me of course 😉 😉
sammy, just make sure the bum in your name comes back soon 🙂 enjoy the rest of your day…
My apologies again Lady Rico I hope next time I am not stuck in a corner called moderation for to long for being abusive to the ring master. Good evening to you.
Oliver,
If you think by writing a long screed, I won’t mention the Mets disaster, you are wrong! 🙂
Trouble is the Yankees lost too. 🙁 darn it! 🙂
night sammy, and thanks for your feedback on my post. i had failed to state that earlier – as ra and others have said, it’s fine to disagree.
STV!
Good night and do come back, sammy. 🙂
oliver, i have a ‘get out’ from yesterdays post, it was before TV’s alleged comments 😉
I am never doubting Cesc’s ability, or his ability to change a game, my own view is we need to get back to having a captain who puts the fear in other sides while in the tunnel, cecs is too nice…
agag made a great comment yesterday about cesc being a boy trying to be a grown up…. i think agag is spot on, one day he could be the best captain in the world but right now, for me personally, i don’t think he is the best in our current side to lead the team…
BUT, I am not for one minute suggesting the armband be taken from him, TV will no doubt get it the day Cesc gets his move away….
ugh, ra – you mentioned our lost weekend. this is why we cannot build any momentum. one day after we score 18 runs in chicago – our biggest offensive output in some five years – we roll over and allow 13 here in dc. pelf was just dreadful yesterday – no other way to put it. given a 3-0 lead, he could not make it out of the fourth innning – too many pitches up in strike zone and the nats hitters teed off on him. will the real mike pelfrey please stand up.
even more appalling is that the mets did not get a single hit after the fourth inning. i won’t say they have quit, but there are too many instances where the other team has gotten a big inning and the mets have thought “here we go again” and were mentally beaten. now four games under .500, but more importantly only seven games ahead of the last place nats. they are heading straight to the cellar.
tonight rookie dillon gee starts and then your namesake goes on getaway day tomorrow.
oliver and all, have a peep at the header, just underneath the words
Highbury House 🙂
oliver – and where its ok to talk anything sport, gardening, animals, cooking…. just anything and thats why you lot are the mutts nutts 🙂
rico, i do not think we can afford to just yet. the lack of an obvious candidate is clear right now, and until cesc shows us – on the pitch – that he is not committed to arsenal, changing captains would be tantamount to cutting our nose off in spite of our face.
i have said a couple of times that i would like to see song groomed for the role – it is too soon now, but i think he has good potential for it.
agree with agag’s take – perhaps too much too soon.
our problem is it is easy to bestow, but hugely difficult to remove.
rico, as long as i make sure the arsenal comments are the longest.
wait until the nfl season starts on sunday!!
sammy, no need for the sorry, hope to see you soon and your comments should be straight on so no moderation i hope..
Oliver,
I did not see any of the games, but i hope to catch one tonight.
Your final sentence is very apposite, captaincy is easy to bestow but difficult to remove.
We have to let Cesc keep the armband. Look what happened to Gallas after he was relieved of it. Male pride is easily hurt! 🙂
Some months before Cesc was made El Capitan, I distinctly remember him saying in an interview that if one day he were appointed captain, he would welcome it. He was a self-fulfilling prohecy! But I get the feeling that even to him the appointment came too soon.
It’s not that he has poor leadership; but maybe he was too young for something to which is annexed a veritable trolley of emotional baggage!
oliver, i am not for taking the band away from him, totally the opposite, it would give him an ‘excuse’ to go…
Thats just it agag, oneday he could be one of the best captains, just giving it to him when wenger did was a few years too soon..
for me it was a panic appointment and just to try and keep him, like wenger did with henry….
Rico,
That is a nifty little add on, but I spotted the deliberate mistake. 🙂
You missed out “except with RA”. 😉
Oliver, I was hornswaggled when the Saints won the Super Bowl last year and I am looking forward to seeing their game against the Vikings this weekend. What a “re-match”! 🙂
I have always had a soft spot for the Giants, but it is not quite as deep rooted as the yankees or the Gunners! 🙂 Did you tell me who you support?
RA, if you are still around, have you checked your emails 😉
ra and agag, many may point out how professionally gallas handled his relief. but i find it difficult to feel he did not still harbor a grudge – comments about other arsenal players continued, he played out his contract to (i think) ensure that arsenal got no transfer fee and may possibly have even strung arsene along about entertaining the idea of a new contract, and signed with the spuddies in the end. i think a lot of what he did was motivated by spite, so i do not buy that he was the model professional after arsene took the armband away.
i think cesc tries to lead through example – and i thought he used his example to tremendous effect in the two aforementioned fixtures. but he is not the finished article as a player, so it is unreasonable to expect him to be such as a leader.
that is not to say that players cannot grow into this role – many have – just that i think our side has been crying out for a fully mature, more demonstrative and established leader.
that is in no way meant to impugn the leadership and qualities of our captain, rather to hightlight the different type of leadership this side has needed since before cesc was appointed. this entire issue constitutes a minus sign in arsene’s balance sheet.
Rico,
Sorry I hadn’t refreshed it. 🙂 have now replied.
ra, rematch is when two teams that played each other meet up again. the saints and vikes should be a good one. i support big blue of course – we open the new stadium in a rematch against the same team (carolina) we played our last home game at giants stadium. obviously, i am hoping for a better result this time around.
yanks were still able to take 2 of 3 versus toronto. losing at home to baltimore yesterday was not good, but i expect they will win today and tomorrow.
mets are playing all the kids now. much of the lineup is coming from aaa buffalo (top minor league team). my concern is that many of these young players are not ready, and they are coming up to a team where a losing atmosphere pervades – i don’t want to see them get infected with the pessimism currently around the team.
progress is ollie perez actually getting two mop-up innings of work in yesterday’s blow-out loss and only allowing one run. that is better than the few recent performances he has had. that said, i expect he will be on the spring training roster – i do not think the mets will release he and castillo as they should.
the only thing i am certain of is that jerry is done. he will finish the season and his contract. the mets won’t have to pay him off, they just won’t give him a new contract. most of his coaches will probably leave as well. omar should be fired, but he has a year left, so i will not be shocked if he is our general manager for next year. other than that, who knows…
spot on re gallas oliver, the only good thing is he ended up with a lesser salary and a one year contract, the man is petulant and i still believe he was a lot to do with the rot in our camp…
everyone seems to be so much happier now, you can see it in on the pitch…
right now would look back and think, if only toure stayed and gallas left…. i know my answer…
I agree, rico. These panic appointments have not done us any favors.:(
agag, i guess i am still struggling to understand why the captain of Brazil was over looked to be captain of Arsenal… just doesn’t add up, and as i said yesterday I really wish Gilberto was with us today….
part of it was probably that he lost his first-team place to flamini just prior to the start of the season. i still think arsene would have appointed gallas as the skipper, but gilberto losing his place would have made it that much more difficult to give him the armband.
gilberto was a difficult call, as there was evidence his skills and form had started to decline. the way things turned out, i personally wish that he had been appointed captain, flamini had spent the season in the reserves (ultimate outcome for arsenal was the same as if he had never emerged) and gallas never saw the captaincy. of course, this is all hindsight, but…i still many of our players could benefit from having gilberto around the squad today.
but gilberto had just played in the con cup (or similar) he needed a break, just as cesc and robin do today, arsenal treated gilberto badly imho… a gracious and loyal man too….
Oliver,
Thanks. I put “re-match” in parenthesis, because I really enjoyed the Super Bowl when the Saints had an overtime win before going on to beat the Colts in the final.
To start the new season playing the Vikings is something I am really looking forward to. What happened to Brett Favre? Retire; no retire? 🙂
I haven’t checked out all the fixtures on TV yet because the NFL is on a different channel to the MLB games. I am easily confused! 🙂 But the season starts with the Vikings at the Saints on Thursday at Midnight here, then on Sunday we kick off at 5:30 UK time with Carolina at the Giants. Good game; good time! 🙂
I have read that the Giants have struggled in pre-season, but let’s hope that is where they leave their troubles. 🙂
RA – email 😉 🙂
Rico,
Hooray, something to disagree over.
I loved Gilberto but he had lost what little pace he had by the time arsene let him go. Experience and postioning would not have been enough and he would have been murdered in todays PL. Sorry.
Just seen Rip Van Perse will be out at least until mid October. Re-run of last year. Oh Dear! 🙁
farve is back with the vikes – as i knew he would be. we go through this “will he, won’t he” every single year. i think many will root for the vikes to do lousy so farve can just go away…
giants had a normal preseason for them 2-2, some injuries. i think they will be ok this season.
rico, i would argue that the confederations cup actually was a break(!), the nature being less competitive and slower-paced than the prem. regardless, i agree with your comments about the apparentely shoddy treatment of gilberto – and i say apparently shoddy because g claims that he only learned of arsene’s captaincy decision via the media, not from the manager himself. arsene, to my knowledge, has never disputed this claim (not that he always does), so i have every reason to think g told us what happened. and he deserved better than that…
BTW, Little Jack was brilliant when he came on and England won 3:0 and have gone through to the next round.
Pierce does not deserve our Jack!
RA,
Gilberto didn’t need pace, he had a footballing brain, he read the game so well he just used to be in the right place at the right time to make that interception, Song is very similar..
Adams didn’t have pace, he read the game and that’s what made him the great defender he was…
If Gilberto was/is so bad, how come he is still the big man of the brazil side…
Where is KTR7 when I need him 😉 😉
oliver – i just miss gilberto, a woman is allowed too 😉
seriously, we pooped on him yet he was one of the few players who never touted a move, never spoke in the press, he was very similar to bergkamp, two gentlemen….
just think if we had kept him – he would be the man who came in when song was out, i would rather him than denilson….
and just think what the likes of Pingpong and Eastmond could have learned….
Boo Rico, granny frames are not allowed on the pitch! 😉
RA, that’s harsh 😉 😉
RA, what was the score when LJ came on??
Rico,
Remember, you heard it here first; Eastmond will never make it. Sorry, again! 🙁
Rico,
England were wallowing at 0:0, and could have lost. Jack transformed the game.
Good night, kids! Granny frames, RA? (rico, in psycholgy, that’s what’s called “projection”. 🙂 )
oliver, lovely to read your views as always. When’s the housewarming? I’d send you a bottle of GG but I remember you don’t drink. 🙂
Rico, Oliver,
No more Footie, NFL, MLB, I am off. Can’t have my undeserved reputation ruined. Must have a Duff beer!!! Ahh, no, that’s Homer! 🙂
Going up to London, hope to see you tomorrow, but work pressures are mounting. Still it’s making me rich! 😉
Nighty night agag, enjoy the rest of your day…
RA, I think you are right about Eastmond, PingPong however…..
agag, i don’t get all that psycholgy stuff… 🙁
RA, if you are not around tomorrow, I’ll keep your post until you are… Please let me know which is a good day for you?
agag, thanks for the offer. i am a big coffee drinker, so we will settle for that. housewarming done, but appreciate the thought.
I meant, rico that RA is projecting his old age on you, i.e.; he’s the one wearing gramps’ glasses. Haha. Kidding, RA!
Ahh, oliver. I know just the thing. Alamid (civet cat) coffee beans… rico, have you tried? Lovely.
agag, i’m glad you clarified that, i thought RA was referring to me 😉
I don’t drink coffee, it make’s the migranes appear
🙁 🙁
I love the smell of ‘proper’ coffee though 🙁
everyone gone for the day???
Rico,
Got one leg in my trousers and hopping around, but have emailed your email! 😉
I have replied RA…
Nighty Night all
Another good day, thanks all
Stay safe
theo just stretchered off in Basle
morning all…
new post up