The undeserved point! I’m talking about Arsenal, not Sunderland.
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen such a one-sided game and we were on the receiving end! We were the ones making the dodgy tackles, not Sunderland. Thankfully they weren’t nasty tackles but stupid ones nevertheless!
The early stages of this game saw a couple of half chances for both sides. Arshavin with what looked like an easy chance for him, blasted his shot high and up the other end Henderson also blasted high his volley.
Then a moment of madness, possibly never to be seen again in football, but sure to be seen on a A Question of Sport as what happened next? Anton Ferdinand seemed to be in very little trouble but after hanging on to the ball a split second to long, his clearance hit Cesc Fabregas and rebounded towards the Sunderland goal, it looped up and over Simon Mignolet in the Sunderland goal. 1-0.
The downside to the goal, Cesc Fabregas pulled a hamstring and later had to be replaced by Tomas Rosicky.
We were then under the cosh big time but the defence held strong and Sunderland were helping us with some wayward finishing!
By then, Arsenal were defending for their lives.
Koscielny stood out at the back, winning most of the headers coming his way and clearing the ball with calmness! Steed Malbranque, Nedum Onuoha and Cristian Riveros all squandered chances for Sunderland!
It remained 1-0 going into the break, how, I don’t know!
Within minutes of the restart, Arshavin, who I thought was dreadful yesterday should have made it 2-0 but from five yards out he spooned his chance over the bar!! He had another chance soon after, this he sliced wide from twelve yards. Arshavin should have been replaced, we needed a second goal and with Carlos Vela on the bench and in form, the switch should have been made.
Then the moment you could see coming for ages came. Song was not having one of his better days. His tackling had been clumsy for most of the game. Already in the ref’s book, he received his second yellow card. The resulting red card meant his game was over. His second was very very harsh, however he should have had his second yellow a few moments before, so he got what he deserved in my opinion.
Sunderland sensed this was their chance and Darren Bent should have made the scores level. But for dreadful finishing, he would have. Arsenal settled, Denilson had come on in place of Arshavin and we pressed forward in search of a second goal. Nasri sent a free kick over the bar, but then with little over fifteen minutes left, the same player was bought down in the penalty area.
This was our chance to finish the game off and take all three points home. Wrong, Rosicky blasted his penalty over.
Manuel Almunia then denied Gyan his chance with a good save.
Then with 94 minutes on the clock, having played the four extra minutes Sunderland were allowed to break forward. Shocking defensive play by Koscienly, Squiliaci and Clichy allowed Darren Bent in to equalise with almost the last kick of the game.
After week of listening to Arsene Wenger go on about fair treatment, I am disgusted to see our own boss push the 4th official after the game!! I hope he gets the deserved red card for that offence and I mean that!! I’ve said it before, he is a bad loser and the only people he should be venting his frustration at is his own players, not a 4th official who has little bearing on the game!
Yesterday we were out played for most of the game, we missed our chances, which were few and far between. But for a ‘fluke’ goal Sunderland would have repeated the result from last season and that performance by us yesterday hurts but credit where it’s due, a lot of that was down to Sunderland.
Throughout the game, either our defence, Almunia or bad finishing by the Sunderland forwards saved our day.
Yes, Tomas Rosicky should have converted the stone wall penalty but maybe that was the way it was meant to be….
We can all moan about the extra 15 seconds played at the end but any team, especially Arsenal should know by now that you concentrate until the end and our defence didn’t. We got punished! In any case, we had our chances too but we fluffed our lines!
Yesterday we got a point, we are the ones who should feel the happier, not Sunderland! It reminded me so much of the 2005 FA Cup Final, except that day we robbed them on penalties…..
This time though, we missed our penalty chance to win the game!
Oh well, roll on Tuesday…..
Morning…..
morning rico..
it appears bruce won the battle of the mind games..wenger sent the boys there to get stuck in and instead of sunderland doing the same they played..
they caught us out and we didnt turn up
morning jj
think you are right, song was a pratt!!
Yesterday demonstrated just how much we needed that DCM,
Song was awful but he had no help. Wenger whould have sacrifced either bringing on Rocisicky or dradding the lazy russian far earlier.
I’ve never waverred from the opinion this squad will win nothing with this mix of players.
Corection: dragging the lazy Russian off far earlier.
Rico I think the defence was superb and honestly this Arsenal side is matured I know we will bounce back
Morning JJ
dont dont blame song really..
he was putting himself about and it was working..but u can only collect 2 yellows and he could have had 4 or 5
alot of them where silly tackles..its frusrating but if the midfield gets bullied we complain we lack heart
we cant have it both ways..song was our fletcher yesterday..
Morning Dg,
That was the worse i have seen Song play for a long while and he wasn’t as bad as some on the pitch, AA for me was dire, Jack was trying to be all flicks and tricks and it didn’t come off…
Flicks and tricks when the games won, not when you are playing at the Stadium of Light…
Morning Erick, I’m sure we will bounce back and for 94 mins, Kos and Squilli were very good, as was Almunia..
jj, I don’t blame Song for having an off day, I blame him for not being a bit more switched on, he was on a yellow and got away with a few after that. He should have known to be a bit more careful
Double gooner too harsh mate we will win we were unlucky even though we went a man down come on mate lets get behind the team please
why was song awful??
the rest of the team gave him no help…wave of wave of sunderland attack was coming and song put himself about..
if he wouldnt have made those tackles we’d have been moaning he s lazy and we need a new DM
perspective please
rosicky should have put that pen away… we didnt drop 2 points because of song..
Why is Wenger denying pushing the 4th official???
Morning Rico,I think we all should take it cool bcause I m sure I sunderland scored on the 75th min with us a men down,we all would have taken it.But of course we should have scored the pen and won the match but we cant criticise our team for showing the determination for 94 min(The goal was scored at 94.15 I think)
Anybody could have missed the penalty but Nasir should have been the one to take it
jj, i’m not suggesting we dropped the points because of Song, in fairness we seemed to up our game after he went off. Why the team couldn’t play like that with eleven i dont know. It kind of kicked them into gear…
We stopped a very strong sunderland side for 94 minutes, but then when it really mattered, our defence lost concentration for a split second. they thought the game was won, they were wrong… 🙁
Hi Bala,
I’m not too cross, honest, I’m probably more cross with Wenger…
Pushing the 4th offical is a disgrace, he should have taken off AA and bought on Vela…
Bala totally agree Koz was a beast and Al was bossing up we need RVP and Theo back for the cutting edge at the front
Erick, spot on, wenger has said the same too, wonder why nasri didnt take it?
denilson would have been a better option than rosicky…
4 main reasons why we drew
1..rosicky..never taken a pen for arsenal and hasnt scored for 20 years in an arsenal shirt yet he takes the pen?????????
2..play to the whistle
3..clichy flaps everytime when the ball is at his feet in the box…everytime..how many more games does it take before he gets dropped because his form has been dodgy for 2 years
4..almunia should have come for that ball..the ball was aloowed to bounce into the box..clichy hoofed it into kos practically in the 6 yard box..
manny should have come and claimed and never allowed clichy near it..
Also think of the many positives from the game.Kosh and Squilli were outstanding,Chamakh and Nasri were really good although i would like to see chamakh score a goal away from home.The good news for us is we can bounce back with a easy match(On paper) against WBA at emirates next week.Lets also hope Liverpool can atleast get a draw against Manu although its very unlikely
For 94 minutes, I thought our defence did bloomin well. Clichy still blows hot and cold but Al, Squilli and Kos dealt with everything pretty well. Almunia made one or two great saves…
15 seconds of madness…
and we can call AA lazy all we want but thats how he plays and hes the clubs second top scorer this season
if he would have still been on that pitch when we had the pen we’d have been talking about a totally different scoreline
teams always look tired after a CL game..especially away from home
a points not a bad thing in these circumstances but we had that game won and a couple of stupid moments cost the points
Clichy didn’t have a great game JJ but are sure Gibbs could have made an impact
Hola. Frustrating results, to be sure. But I don’t think we were outplayed for most of the game, rico. Certainly, in the first half; but we were the better team in the second half. Bent was a headless chicken until his goal. 🙂
Arshavin was all lazybones. Song wasn’t getting any help. Our Russian should have been taken off much earlier. TR7 missed his pen, yes and that it lamentable, but he or Chamakaka would’ve been my MoTm if we had won. Clichy’s goal-line clearance would have been his saving grace but that last rubbish clearance was his undoing– yet again. 😥 Koz and Squilli were great. Koz will only get better.
erick
gibbs is better than clcihy..he was better last season too..
defensively there is no splitting them..gibbs still has alot to learn but hes young even to learn quickly..
clichys 25 he should have learned his defensive game by now..
going forward gibbs is the man..clichys beginning to look like eboue when he sets off on those runs and has no final ball..
gibbs does..gibbs will take clichys place this season..
jj, for me it doesn’t matter how many goals he has scored, yesterday he was tired and it showed and thats when players get injuries. Vela should have come on, he’s joint second top gola scorer and all from the subs bench 😉
JJ, he may be the club’s second top scorer, but when you view that against the number of chances he’s spurned… it’s hardly impressive. If it were Nik playing that way; people would be crying for his head.
Chamaka Bala I will reserve my comment he holds up play well great with headers but zero directness and poor finisher but works so hard am confused
hola agag, theo also takes a bashing week in week out for his misses…..
rosicky was poor
nasri took the cesc role and kos was our man of the match..
Nothing got passed him..it wasnt almunia that they couldnt beat is was kos…
17 shots only 2 on target now thats defending at its best..
but clichy had his customery clanger and it ruined the good work
bu misses, i don’t mean Mel 😉
i thought rosicky did well jj, apart from the penalty…
in didnt see him get too many chances yesterday..
i didnt see us have many chances at all yesterday
i dont see where he spurned any chances
Morning all.Aw made a tactical error.bar rosicky that team was the same with all of them playing their 3rd game in a week and you could see how fatigued they were.the back five bar clichy were solid and don’t blame song since he did what viera used to.even the invincibles conceded in the last minutes so its about how well we respond.
Jj We need experience in this kind of games but have to agree with you Gibbs gives a great cross and look more relaxed in the box Hiiya Agag
rico, lol. Now I think I know how you feel when you have to defend Theo. 🙂 I love Clichy, but oh my. His tackling last night was appalling. To think, I skipped drinks to rush home for that performance. 😉 Ugh.
Erick-Chamakh was very good with his play but as I said I would like him to score goals away from home which RVP does easily.I thnik this could be the season Gibbs taking over from Clichy bcause although he is very determined,he still is error prone and after having sorted out our CB and RB Arsene now has to sort out the LB berth.
im struggling to see how TV can get back into the defence
i dont wanna see kos and squidgy broke up..
unless TV comes in at LB
About Arshavin, JJ, not yesterday. I agree we didn’t make too many. But you cited his goal stats, and I’m sure he missed much more than he made in the games he’s played in.
morning ktr7, song was silly to get himself sent off, but i don’t blame him for the defeat…
Also we were missing Cesc who could easily open up defences like this with is astonishing passing but at the same time we should have adequate replacement for cesc.Jack is there but he is not cesc(Not yet)
jj, is this the same two defenders you were slating a few weeks back 😉 😉
K-T Howdy Msee wangu Nasir and Rosicky were influential going forward and apart from his failed tricks Jack got stuck in
Hi, Erick. Howdy? You are very hard on Chamakh. 🙂
Jon JOn-TV will surely get back into the defence and we are going to have a great partnership with Verm and Kosh.Happy days are not far mates.Cheers
Sorry in my comment i didn’t include sagna and clichy with tomas .
Good morning, KT. 🙂
AA missed a sitter from six yards out then another twelve yards out yesterday. Other games he would have taken those chances. He himself admits his fitness is lacking.
Yesterday it showed for the first time and thats due to playing too many games. Just think that yesterday he should have been subbed a lot earlier and why not?
I keep banging on about Vela but he is on fire, he’s fit and certainly isnt tired
Jj at stamford bridge I would like to see TV on the left
bala Tv is needed in the defence but how do you split up a CB pairing that has looked strong..
unless u make TV part of it..
AGAG its not about chances missed…chances missed means nothing if the team still gets the points and hes still 2nd top scorer in the squad
we cant judge a player on chances missed when we are second in the table scored 2nd most goals and hes our second top scorer
its looking for a problem that isnt there..
we have much bigger problems than AA
Erick, against the chavs, i’d like to see TV alongside Song… 🙂
sag kos squidge TV would look a solid defence..
Agag I know he works so hard for the team but I like him and always support him
I don’t get it, I only judge each player by their performance for 90 minutes at a time. What has gone by is gone…
Wenger is the manger, he should have noticed AA was struggling yesterday, it was clear to see. Yesterday, and yesterday only my opinion is that AA should have come off and had a bit of a rest…
I don’t want him picking up an injury because he’s lethargic, we get far too many of them…
I agree missed chances is not a problem if we win, JJ; but we only managed a draw. Arshavin should have put at least one past Mignolet; and Rosicky, too.
If denilson played like jack did he’d get slaughtered.if song hadn’t done that we’d have lost in the first half.denilson had a very good game apart from when he took a shot in a 3 vs 1 sitiuation instead of running it to the corner.if he’d have scored we wouldve praised him but thats how fine the line between success and failure is…
Theo and Rvp would realy take us up to the Sky 🙂
they were all struggling rico..
anyway we didnt lose..thats the important thing..
And Denilson agag 😉
Erick, now I remember, you’re only hard on Higuain. 😉 🙂 Haha. I think Chamakh is great for us. 🙂
Spot on jj, we went to Sunderland and came home with a point, not many clubs will do that this season if Sunderland polish up their shooting boots…
Good to read balanced and honest assessments of the game.If Wenger could adopt the same mindset instead of his irrational bloody mindedness (defending the indefensible) then he could learn something from the game and take that next step upwards.
Hi TdW, thanks – I can’t work out if you are a sunderland fan or a gooner 😉
K-T spot on probably we expect much from certain player and wait for other to wrong so we can slate them
SAFC
I had that feeling TdW, good to see you hear, you pleased with your performance yesterday?
JJ its good to see you’ve warmed up to kozzer.he seems like an Italian defender with a very clean game.AA though needs to work on his finishing.its infuriating to see him miss very easy chances.
Agag he scored twice in the CL and I still don’t rate him 🙂 🙂 🙂
clichy was a disaster he was the one to blame for bent’s goal he panicked through out the match losing the ball in dangerous areas as far as am consigned he is the flop of the match squillaci & korc were magnificent i will want verma to take over clichy’s position while squillachi and korc remains as CB wht a fcuk!!!!! is wrong with arshavin
KTR7, you are right as are you Erick, we seem to have a few players who can’t shake off their own label. Like i said earlier, I only judge them on the 90 minutes they have just played. yesterday song was silly and you all know he is one of my fav’s…
Hi Rico,
re TdW… Some might say the same about you this morning. 😆
It wasn’yt the best performance, but a tough away game after a mid-week CL game…? it wasn’t a disaster either.
I know who was the most relieved manager when Down finally blew… and it wasn’t Wenger.
How rude of me.morning to agag and erick…rosicky didn’t look confident at all when he stepped up to take the peno.he really needs a goal.from what i’ve seen he needs to learn how to place the ball instead of blasting it the whole time.
K-T I told you AA I won’t talk about because he is a gooner and I won’t slate any gooners
Morning mike 🙂
Erick, even when Higuain scored a hat-trick at the WC, you still thought he was poor. 🙂 🙂 Haha. That made me laugh.
Allo Sunderland Supporter here…just a quick line to say enjoyed the blog and felt that your observations were fair valid,constructive and spot on.Its nice to read fair balanced journalism for a change.Thanks again
dont worry about AA’s finishing..the way hes going he’ll get 15 this season and if they all get 15 i’ll be happy
kossers defending is impressive..he heads better than TV and he reads the pass and gets the ball before the striker..hes very good..
hes like what adams used to be like and squidgy reminds me of keown the way he goes for everything..
but theres no point in strengthening the defence if weve still got the same dodgy LB and GK
the goal was their fault..between the pair of them they fucked up
yes the ball should have never been allowed to bounce but almunia should have come for it..
as for clichy, that ball needed to go over the stands not back into the crowded box..
clichy can be a donut sometimes
Rico madrid played like us last night but the difference is that they hang on to win 2-1 which was as poor as Madrid has played this season.Milan drew 1-1.
up in the air..out of the stadium..
its the last kick of the game so kick it into the stands.. dont kick it into an area where theres 100 players waiting for it
agree ktr
rosicky still looks composed on the ball plenty of neat touches but he puts his foot through it and blasts everything and if anyone needs to work on his finishing its him..
sometimes a neat placement is better than a clout
So we need to go and get VdW and play Gibbs?? I’m not sure the latter is ready just yet…
TDW credit to Safc.we had 35% possession in the first half.the last time i saw that was vs barca
Jose always has worked on his defence KTR7, where as Wenger works on his attack 🙁
Howdy Mike how is work Mate 🙂
id play gibbs or TV at left back..
we dont need any players in midfeild or attack by the looks of things we are strong enough even with injuries
ive just seen the goal again..fuck me..it looks worse everytime
why didnt manny come???
Good thing, I like dramas and sweets as Clichy is now a “disaster” (@10:00) and a “donut” (@10:05). 😥
TDW, I think, barring injury, we’ll do better on the reverse fixture though.
Boo, mikeB.
Rico to be fair thats as solid a defense we have had in years.Its going to be very harsh to kos/squilli to get dropped when Tv returns despite them looking so good together especially kozzer who is very good both in the air and on the ground.
I mean the LB and RB KTR7… 🙁
Hi Gooners,
Yeah really pleased that Bruce has assembled a team capable of taking on the Big Boys football-wise rather than purely setting up stall to combat their their attributes (it’s not really a good long term strategy!)
I know Arsenal were missing several key players as were we (Turner and Mensah first choice defenders) but we seemed to cope peretty well.
Very disappointed with Song who I was looking forward to seeing.
Overall,good game to watch, Titus could prove to be PL bargain of the decade.
Hi Bill, good to see you here 🙂
jj, is TV a ‘natural’ LB??
That ball should never have got where it did jj, had Clichy cleared it properly… if only…
Morning Folks,
too much negativity on here this morning…
Yeah we dropped two points st one of the toughest venues we play, but…
We have now solved the cb problem and seem to almost have an embarrassment of riches with TV to come back.
We lost our talisman and captain early on and still made most of the significant chances.
We went down to ten men and still came away with a point that could be so easily have been three.
We missed a penalty, and still looked like taking all three points.
We just played a mid-week CL game and then travelled to a seriously tough away game and came away with a point.
Ask yourselves honestly if you wouldn’t have taken a point before the game… I know I would
Last of all…… Be Happy 😆
I remember clichy giving away the penalty in cl semis vs villareal but we were fortunate lehmann was equal to it.when cole left i feared what would happen but clichy was so good he was in the PL team of the year but since that B’ham game he has lost it.he like kolo panics in high pressure sitiuations unlike gibbs who is always very calm.if gibbs has a blinder vs Tiny totts he should get his chance.i love clichy since he gives 110% but he is quickly becoming the lb version of glen johnson except being even poorer in attack.sort him out Aw or give gibbs his chance.
mike,
i would have taken a point before the game, but losing it the way we did hurts…..
to be fair though, sunderland played the right way and desrved their point…
sunderland played better and deserved something from the game..
the only people we have to blame is ourselves..
we went to battle but sunderland came to play and we got caught with our pants down..
the CB’s were immence and although we should have had the three points we didnt deserve to..
we can blame the ref all we want but we didnt kill them off when we had chance and and individual defensive laspe (again) gifted them a goal after 159 minutes of pure defensive brilliance..
such a shame..
agag, we will indeed 🙂
159 mins jj, no wonder AA was tired 😉 😉
ktr
clichy has become the left footed eboue..
cant defend..never has been able to but now his attacking play has gone to pot too..sets off on runs and doesnt know what do do then stops and comes back on himself
rico TV played LB at ajax. id rahter someone who can tackle at LB than someone who just attacks all the time..
like sagna on the right..shit going forward but the best defensive RB in the league and we are solid on that side..
TDW song did what pundits say we don’t do-playing dirty.our midfield was non-existent which meant song had alot to do.its also worthy to note how much we miss walcott.his pace on the counter prevents teams from coming onto us the way sunderland did.Chamakh may be playing well but rvp is still superior and i wouldn’t have been surprised if he had played to see him score a goal out of nowhere.remember mancity away last season?fulham away?everton and stamford bridge in 08-09?he is the ‘messi’ of our attack and i for one want him back ASAP.
I think we all agree that Sunderland deserved their point, but if you make that case for them you, ipso facto, make the same case for us. 😆
we need balance
no point having a solid defnce if the LB cant defend is it..
play gibbs or play tv..
clichys game has gone and i think ktr said hes starting to look kolo-ish in the way he flaps all the time
composure is needed..
I didn’t realise that jj, in that case he would be perfect, until one of them picks up an injury…
song played well..
no probs with the red card he deserved it but i dont have a prob with him getting one either
its nice to see our players putting themself about..
mike – we are 😉
Time to sell Clichy then? Or are we just having a knee-jerk reaction?
Rico,
not according to your headline 😆
Dermot Gallagher has defended Arsene’s actions at the end of the game, i am surprised…
Ah, the title 😉 If Sunderland had their shooting boots on mike, i think we would have lost…
But if, ifs and buts were pots and pans…. 🙂
Just seen the Bramble tackle on Sagna, another ref would have got his red card out, same as the one on Jack??
Song is well capable of breaking things up without adopting cynical means.The pundits will always invent a negative about teams like Arsenal otherwise they would have fuck all to talk about,they were saying they didn’t like the way Barca played football on Talk Radio ferchrissakes!
they are all defnding wenger..
not sell rico
drop
why let a player keep making the same mistakes when we have two other players in the squad who have shown they are better??
we have a massive squad for a reason..so use it
Rico,
I prefer: if wishes were horses, beggars would ride, but if we had our shooting boots on, they would have lost… works both ways 😆
Anyway I seem to be in a minority here this morning and so I’ll go and dig the garden 😆
Have a good one everybody; catch you next week.
TdW – spot on, and they love being negative about Arsenal in particular…
jj – Clichy won’t like that 😉
All players have bad games. Clichy had a torrid one yesterday. Hardly a reason to get rid of him. Gibbsy is ready to deputize at LB, but not to take over said position completely. 🙂 I am biased, I freely admit it.
mike, i dont think you are, we all said earlier that we did well to take a point from a strong Sunderland side, but when three points are lost in 15 seconds… 😥
agag, i don’t think Clichy has been so bad this season, yesterday yes, but then a few had an off day yesterday and i think ktr7 is right, we should have rested a few….
i guess wenger thinks that most won’t play in the week so they will get a rest….
clichy has not had a good game in 2 years
he was rubbish all last year
it was easier to count the good games than it was to keep track of the bad..
ouch jj, thats harsh, i thought mid way last season he was getting back to his old self…
the team will totally change for the NLD
wenger thought he could get away with two games on the trot and to be honest so did i
cant accept that players will be tired in september..
we just went with the wrong gameplan..we went for a battle..they switched the script and caught us out
he had a couple of decent games rico but for the majority of the season he would have been dropped if gibbs was fit
most of our goals last year came from clichys side..
wingers beat him..get there crosses in..hes always out of position and if he touches the ball in his own box it normally results in a goal..
that winger yest was unheard of..they bought him from egypt..and clichy got skinned..he must have let about 15 crosses in..
it was the same last season
I’m still not sure Gibbs is ready though…
JJ, haha. Easy, now. You’ll give Clichy a complex.
Gibbs is great, but he is not yet ready to be first choice LB. I guarantee you, if Gibbs has a bad game, people would be screaming “experience” and wanting Clichy back. Ah, but such is a fan’s variability. 🙂
But just becuase that winger was unheard of it doesn’t mean he’s a bad player jj, you said the same about Kos and now look at him 😉 😉
Also, Arshavin’s side, JJ. Don’t forget. 🙂 🙂
agag 😆 😆
Hi Rico, thanks for the nice review. It seems the Beeb and all the other rags were watching a different game.
Well done to the 3000 Gunners that travelled up (even if you only have 1 song ;] ), it must of been a long journey home. Good luck for the rest of the season.
agag, i watched Gibbs in the England game too, he was was so often out of position, you are right, throw him in and he has an off day, the fans will jump on his back, could destroy his confidence…
Big Comedy of the day.Read this
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_6386615,00.html
Just how many chances did Sunderland have yesterday? 1? 2? 3? We had 4 clear chances and didn’t score. We defended brilliantly and were hardly threatened all game
Hope this fat guy just shuts his fcuking mouth
Bala, Fat Sam is in cuckoo land, what an idiot he is….
I seem to be flying the Clichy kite solo. 🙂 But luv is such…
rico, after this morning, I promise to be kinder to Theo. 😀 I am not his biggest fan but I do have the highest hopes for him. (See, I’m off to a good start…) Apart from eggs, he can beat defenders and keepers. 🙂 🙂
Bala, I just read that too. 😯
Eeeek.
I have one hand of the kite string agag 😉 😉
I am pleased to hear that you willbe kind to Theo agag, I bet he can make great omelettes 🙂
lol arshavins not a left back
its clichys job top stop the wingers not AAs
gibbs will take clichys place this year you watch
gibbs is already 2nd choice to cole in the english squad
clichy isnt even 3rd choice in france
evra and abidal are both above him….clichys loved but hes a passenger..no room for sentiment in football..
like kolo
gibbs is ready..he cant be no worse..
Aw is back.i love it when he gets on managers’ minds.Allardyce is a deluded man…
jj, we are a team, i bet if Diaby was down that
left-hand side yesterday, you’d be blaming him 😉 😉
theres only one winger… why does AA have to stop him..its AA’s job to keep their fb busy not worry about what their winger is doing
hes scored 3 goals so far so hes doing more than his bit
i never used to see bergkamp or merse or overmars or pires come running back marking wingers
thats why we have defenders
KTR7, if it wasn’t written in black and white, I would have said that no way would anyone right such utter garbage….
You can tell he is desperate for the England job – all he’s heading for though is the Championship 🙂
Au nom de Gael Clichy, “cutie”, je voudrais vous remercier pour votre support, Mlle. rico. 🙂 🙂
(I can do press work for Clichy. 🙂 )
Bala ha ha ha day dreaming 🙂 🙂
we are a team..
attackers attack and defenders defend.
Hi Mackem, sorry for the delay, first comments go into moderation – good to see you here and all the best to Sunderland for the season too…
jj 🙂
agag, what does that mean 😉
Its such a shame that when things are looking up a weak link appears.clichy has been poor and he is no longer a youngster.i have always defended him but he seems to never learn.did you see squilli’s face after we conceded?the back 5 bar clichy deserved a clean sheet.we also missed diaby last night.his axis with song is pivotal especially in away games.
Squilli was not a happy bunny KT, I like his attitude…
On behalf of Gael Clichy, “cutie”, I thank you for your Support Ms. rico.
“Cutie” was a perfectly gratuitous insertion. Haha. But the sentiment holds.
A pretty fair assessment of the game. I’m a sunderland fan and thought you got most things spot on. A draw was probably a fair result as both teams had similar half chances, though the penalty was your chance to kill the game it maybe equalled out the good fortune of Ferdy’s crazy moment. Was very impressed with your 2 centre backs and thought Chamahk looked like the ‘strong’ forward you’ve lacked for a while. I fancy you to get 2nd place this year behind Chelski.
JJ has a point rico.AA has 3 goals and 5 assists in 6 games.he may be lazy but he’s dynamite in the opposition 18 yard box.he has done his job well so far but clichy panics alot.gibbs may have poor positional discipline but he seems unfazed by the occasion.
in 59 games for arsenal AA has scored 21 goals with 22 assists..
thats impressive so i dont know where all this lazyness comes from..
ppl just dont like his style and hold it against him but he does his job and he does it well..
it took pires 96 games to reach the same goal tally
just something to think about
Aw is a genius Koz and Squillaci are great
agag 😆
I still wish he had got one more like those two Erick, but yes, he has found two gems….
We have put ourselves in a very interesting position.if the chavs win their next two games and we beat w.brom we’ll be 4 points adrift.if we lose at the Bridge we’ll be 7 adrift which means that a win might be necessary or the chavs will be out of sight.
jj, he’s a great player – i personally am only talking about yesterdays game re AA, and yesterdays game he looked tired and wasn’t at his best, he should have be subbed just after the restart…
We are yet to see what Djourou can do may be in the CC
AA is labelled lazy cos he dont defend but thats why clichy is a LB..thats his job
cant blame AA for clichy not being able to hold his own..not when AA has contributed to 8 goals already this season..
Cesc might miss the Chavs game anybody seen that?
Hi Lockey, welcome to HH,
For the last few days we have had quite a number of Sunderland fans on here – nearly all have joined in with a great debate, and without abuse… Very refreshing.
I truly wish your team all the best for the season, well, other than your trip to the emirates and if we meet you in one of the cups of course 😉
Omelette au Gruyère/aux fines herbes, rico. Yum.
JJ, for our most expensive signing, that is an expectation. 🙂
Erick, I really like the look of Koz. He will only get better… And the fact that Squilli is hardly mentioned as commentators drone on shows he has been doing his bit properly.
I beliee we should attack from the back and defend from the front…. 🙂
@Erick-I have noticed it and I m really worried but hoping to get some good news from Arsenal
KTR7, you make it sound really bad…. They have had an easy start, they will lose a few yet…
Dodgy tackles, rough stuff, sendings off and a manager abusing the fourth official……typical of teams that are frightened of Arsenal and try to kick them off the pitch. Only that on this occasion all those items apply to the Arse and not the opposition. What is that I can hear – a loud apology for the article of the other day…… I thought not. Time for Mike to get real I think.
Erick, I bet JD doesn’t get through the whole game without picking up an injury 🙁
Wenger should buy one more CH in Jan, he’s going to have £50M to spend 🙂
agag, now i know what that meant, yummie indeed 🙂
hi CM, you got away with a couple of naughty tackles yesterday, one on Sagna and the other on Wilshere, you weren’t entirely saints…. 😉
hello gooners, sunderland fan here, was at the match yesterday and what a game it was. just wanted to comment to tell you how refreshing it is to see a big four club giving sunderland some credit for a good performance against them! last season we beat you at home liverpool at home and drew at old trafford and all fan sites focused on how bad there own teams were and not give sunderland any credit for battling to a draw. also was it clichy playing yesterday???????? i was under the impression it was gibbs until i read this article, one last thing, il never see i luckier goal than fabregas’s, ever!!!
JJ if AA was on the pitch during the penalty he would’ve scored most probably.its all down to a certain mentality in the country.when rooney loses the ball he will chase it back to concede a throw.you’ll hear the fans chant ‘rooney! rooney!’ but in reality he has taken his team from an attacking position to a defensive position.SKY then come in and say he’s better than messi because he does that masking all his other flaws but you have to ask,isn’t he a world class attacker?berbatov will rarely lose the ball and will stick to his job but will get slaughtered for not running like a headless chicken.thats why flamini was loved but in reality he cost us quite a few times by being caught out of position.AA is decisive at what he does,Aw says he plays for 20 minutes a game and he is always grateful he signed him.he like theo are unlike Arsenal players and i’m glad thats the case.call him selfish all you want but he is decisive at what he does.he was poor last night,his finishing needs to improve but he is dynamite on form and almost unplayable on occasions.
Hi Sam
Good to see you here, i thought you guys played very well, i certainly hope you play against the other ‘top sides’ like you played yesterday and take three points off of all of them….
All the very best
Rico – I didn’t say we were… both teams were committed and both teams made the odd dodgy tackle…. and that’s the point… both teams …..both teams.
Anyway – I do hope you guys have a good season – I like Arsenal…. but don’t tar everyone with the same brush..a lot of teams, Sunderland included, try to play football as it should be. We are not as good as you, but we play the game properly…..lets see that reflected in a balanced way in your posts and in your managers comments. That way you win friends. At the moment your manager is in danger of losing them. That would be a shame.
Spot on KTR7, Great players can have off days and its down to Wenger to change the player when he’s having an off day, not leave him there to suffer…
I think Wenger bottles it sometimes when using his subs, i would have loved to have see Vela come on, his pace and skill may just have been enough to put sunderland a little on the back foot…
The sooner Wenger stops your players falling down polaxed after a normal challenge, (regular diving in the case of Chamak) the more respect you’ll get from other supporters instead of him whinging…The sending off of Song was warrented , three previous heavy challenges for his first booking and then the challenge before he was sent off.
You would’nt have scored all day if it had not been for the fluke and i just loved those long passes from Almunia and your defenders to the forwards . Did i say long passes, shucks I meant those long ball tactics that Arsenal dont play..
Always followed the Arsenal for good football and a pleasure to watch but your losing respect my southern friends if you continue being hard done by…
CM, fair comment re the tackling, i wish you guys all the best to for the season, no doubt we will be chatting during the emirates fixture…
Wenger doesn’t have a pop at Sunderland and Bruce, they are good friends and respect eachother…
cheers rico, you might hear this alot but arsenal are my second team and lets hope they end that 5 year drought this season! think one of the domestic cup competitions would be your best chance, chelsea look very strong, but would love to see you get ahead of man united, hate them.
mal, i noticed that, arsenal seemed to be playing it more in the air than what im used to watching
thanks sam, chavs have had a kind start, they’ll fade a bit soon.. i hope we win something too, its been too long, thanks agian for your good wishes for Arsenal, wish you guys well too, Europa Cup place do you?? 🙂
Hi mal, well its about time we had a plan b, if the long ball gets used and gets us a goal, i for one don’t care. sometimes i wish we would cut out some of the fancy stuff – don’t get me wrong its great to watch but plan b is needed when it doesn’t work…
Sunderland has become a bogey ground to us.credit to them and i hope they do well against our rivals too.
interesting healthy debate today rico and AGAG re AA and clichy
i think me and ktr agree so thats 2 each and we’ll call it a draw 😉 xx
we were playing it in the air because sunderland didnt water the pitch..it was dry so we couldnt slick it around as we normally do..
the weaker teams use everything to their advantage..even their pitch..
we had to adapt our game and we got a point.. we might have lost that game last season..
Rico am usually abit pessimistic but we can only hope mancity do us a favour next week.
That’s just how it should be jj, would be boring if we all agreed all of the time 😉 😉
i forgot about the watering jj, heard them say that before the game started, thats obviously why we were a bit slow out the traps – at least we have started to use a plan B, Chamakh gives us that option..
read an article from him saying he wished he’d joined us ages ago… i wish he had too…
We haven’t kept an away clean sheet since the nil nil draw at villa park in january…that needs to change.
Citeh will know they have to raise their game against the so called big sides, they have spent so much money, my hopes are the same as yours, only of course against the chavs and mancs…
jj, any joy re avanshee, aka rose please??
KTR7, maybe its time to get Winterburn in to teach our LB’s a thing or two ….
sorry rico i havent had a look i totally forgot.. 🙁
like i said before weve got 3 players all capable of playing LB if ones showing dodgy form one of the others have to play instead..
with kos and squidgy being rocks yesterday my vote goes to TV especially for the away games..
gibbs for the emirates and tv away with squidge in the middle..
No worries jj, just don’t forget this time 😉 😆
Cruise plays LB too doesn’t he? Wonder if he will play against the spuddies or Gibbs…
Lardy has had a big bust up with the City boss, loeve it 🙂
Seems things are not all rosy in the Citeh camp 🙂
Off for a hour, catch up in a bit …..
never will be rico
too many dickheads 😉
it will be interesting to see who wenger picks for the nld
It won’t be worth blogging if we all agreed. Might as well set up a knitting circle and take turns serving finger sandwiches and pouring fancy tea. 🙂
Don’t forget about avashnee, JJ. 🙂 It would be nice to hear from her again.
rico, Salut Sunderland has kind words for you. 🙂 🙂 Go check.
you ruin a decent article with some mind boggling stupid comments.
wtf do you mean shocking defensive play and not concentrating for the whole game.!! but for clichy clearance brushing chamacks clf it would have sailed out of the danger zone. that was bad luck. BTW it is the defenses and almunias job “to save the day” not bemoan the fact they did. we were away, to sunderland, they are not some second raters, they are a hard to beat, well organised side. but for another woeful day by arshavin and a stupid pen miss we would have walked it despite some players having off days, notably song,, We dominated the 2nd half.
Sunderland fan here, and I have not posted on another teams forum before but felt the need today. I have read this thread (and others on Arsenal forums) and the way you aer honest and magnanimous in what is a dissapointing draw (given the last minute element) is a credit to you all. The other big clubs (or many others) would not have the dignity to do this. I liked Arsenal a bit before (more so than any other big club) but your attitude is honest and brilliant tbh. Others just expect to beat the minions Sunderland but you have given us some respect and for that I thank you and wish you all the best for the season. I genuinely hope that you win the title now with your excellent attitude and support whereas before I wasnt bothered.
Boo, I’m back, anyone around, sorry for the delay in getting on SS and Fulwell, first comments go into moderation…
agag, i did see, 😳 eh …..
rico, correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m sure RA had a few choice words for silent stan on AR, before? The gist being that SS should take his nom de plume seriously. Haha.
Mancs up Dippers just not the same team
Weeds, Torres is struggling forward, and he could have prevented that goal from coming in if he’d used his head (literally). 🙁
The Scousers are looking toothless. I normally wouldn’t care but I don’t want the Mancs to gain ground on us. 🙂
Oh dear agag 😉
must get the footie on …
I hope for a draw agag, Erick
What a load of tosh! Wonder what you guys really expect form this team? They played a hard game yesterday, backs gainst the wall and did enough to win! That they didn’t was down more to Sunderland’s persistennce and a some bad luck.
Of course Wenger is a bad loser-most winners are. It’s becasue he is passionate about the job he does and he cares. I am not here to defend him but it sickens me how quick so many Gooners (?) who write on these blogs are to salg off our team, our players and our manager when things don’t go according to their “higher’ plan!
All games are tough in the EPL, Sunderland played well and believe it or not so did we!
Fair assessment. Didn’t care for the article a few days ago which painted Sunderland in a less than flattering light but as Saturday shows we do try to play football even if not to Arsenal’s outstanding standards.
Good luck for the rest of the season.
RandD, we are not slating the team, just being honest! Also, I accept a bad loser, but what about being a gracious in defeat, thats the sign of a true winner…
Can you condone Wenger pushing the official?? i cannot!
McMak, Brucie is changing the way you play, shmae Fat Sam and a few others cant do the same 😉
Mancs 2-0, bugger…
Thats the way to take a penalty…. 2-1
wait till you see us away from home…..woeful!!
Liverpool scored 🙂
Seen a few post on here slagging Arshavin…. we would give anything to have a player like that
2 -2 mint
2-2 🙂
Only for his display yesterday Fulwell, he was tired, he is a great player usually 🙂
You don’t like the Mancs either then 😉
Great stuff at OT. But I’m glad we didn’t sign Joe Cole.
We weren’t slagging of AA, Fulwell. But we do watch him week in week out; and are as aware of his brilliance as his attitude, work rate, and defensive nous. 🙂
just loathe their arrogance. The only person in their set up with any dignity or credit is Giggs imo. Hate them second only to the dirty black and white scum up the road 😉
Dirty black and white Fulwell, I’m sure there is a team near the Arsenal who play in similar colours who we all hate 😉
We have so much in common us fans 🙂
agag, me too, jack is so much better and with another fifteen years in him 🙂
Fair cop re AA. We often had a go at Kenwyne Jones for his attitude and he was one of the best players we had, and he could not polish the boots of AA.
Crap…
Reina could’ve done better… rico, I’m glad he’s not our keeper.
Bummer… Come on stevie me me me
Me too agag, since his naughtiness with Cesc, he is rubbish, its Karma 🙂
Nani could very well win an Olympic gold in diving, imho.
I liked Jones Fulwell, i wanted us to sign him once, he’s at stoke now isnt he?
nice post rico my thought exactly
In response to Nani, I think Stevie me me me should dive just about now… Might earn his team a pen.
Shame about Jones in Stoke. Now those are thugs. For sure.
Yeah Rico, at Stoke and doing well. we liked him too, but could go for games on end not being arsed and not doing much. Very frustrating at times. I reckon he would be better than Bentner, but hoping this Gyan bloke will be better and more committed.
Hi rsd, thanks re the post, great minds eh 🙂
Stoke I am dreading playing, they really are ‘in yer face’ and every other part of your body!!
Fulwell, I am not a huge fan of Bendtner, I get ribbed for it though 😉
Saying that, Nikki hasn’t missed so many chances this season 😉 😉
agag, as much as i hoped for a draw, you know how much i hate the dippers…. the mancs don’t look as strong as last season, theres a good chance a few teams will take a point from them….
i really wish Hodgson had stayed at Fulham… 🙁
I would say that Bendtner is the only player in your squad I would not really want. In a team like ours your dont get many chances up front as our midfield does creat enough, and he would be too profigate.
Now haway Blackpool!!
We get loads of chances, he still misses them Fulwell 😉
Talking of lazy players, Berbytoff did well today….
New avatar, rsd!
Nik saved our Arses a few times last season, rico. I like him. If his self-belief matched his end product, we’d win all there is to be won. 🙂
I dislike the Mancs more than the Dippers. The Pensioners and the Spuddies, I absolutely loathe. 🙂
I dont really know why if I am honest, but Sunderland fans hate The Spuds and saggy face too.
In the match v. Burnley, Fulwell, Nik displayed his profound understanding of the How To Not Score Manual.
agag, only becuase he has blonde hair and blue eyes 😉 😉
agag, i like that 🙂
Rico what rooney was doing in the end was what denilson ought to have done instead of shooting.i have praised berba today then he goes on and bags a hatrick…good for him.
Haha about Nik. Not at all, rico. 🙂
KTR7, no arguement from me there, in fact why on 93 minutes we just dont run the ball down into the corner always baffles me…..
agag, you seen newsnow on the sunderland page 😉 😉
anyone fancy a blackpool win today???
oops…. maybe not then, i feel for the tangerines toady…
Sweet, rico. 🙂 🙂 I hope there weren’t too many whose comments were binned. Some can get pretty abusive…
Fulwell i love AA because he is magic.if i were to hear that an arsenal player bagged a hatrick in a game i missed,AA would be my first pick.he has turned it on at old trafford and Anfield.now its time he did the same at stamford B.id also love your opinion on clichy and diaby if you’re still around.
none today agag so thats good – sunderland fans have been good sports, don’t suppose we will encounter the same during this coming week….
Rico i want us to beat tiny totts in the CC.there are rumours szeczeny will start which i hope are true.
K-TR7 – AA has been awesome in every game I have seen (most on the telly obviously) just an off day yesterday as you have said. Clichy has been great on the occassions I have seen him, but recently dont think he has the class to be in your team. I feel you should have better than that. Diaby I am unsure about – dont know enough to make a reasonable assessment.
I do however think you should get a new keeper – if you could get him Given would be an excellent addition – how he is second choice anywhere is beyond me.
Cricket score for Chelsea??
just thought – maybe the fact I dont have an opinion on Diaby may indicate him as a player. Nothing special but nothing terrible – solid performer?? or am I wrong?
I think so Fulwell, Not too keen on the Chavs 😉
Fulwell, we are all a bit mixed on Diaby here, could be a great footballer but, he takes on one too many player going forward and for the big man that he is, his defence side is not the best…
Fulwell what about denilson?he also divides many here.its just a shame that rvp is always injured as i rate him highly and on days like yesterday he usually delivers something special.
Fulwell, is Diaby capable of brilliance? Definitely. Of consistency? On the evidence of his years and years wearing our kit, not really.
Thats just it agag, if he played at his best every week, the divide here would soon lift, but he can’t and doesn’t 🙁
RvP is what special is made of, KT. I think we all agree he gives our team a better dimension. A fit Robin; and a firing Cesc is always a thing of beauty.
Denilson is not in the same class as RVP, who when fit the best striker in the Prem imo. He couild have ripped Ferdinand to shreds yesterday. Denilson is good dont get me wrong, but given the class you have had up front over the years with Henry, Bergkamp, RVP etc not in the same class. Do do know how spoilt you are dont you with what you have to put up with….. you could have been watching Daryl Murphy for 3 seasons as have had too!!!
Fulwell your team dominated us especially in the first half similar to what barca did to us at the Emirates.if chavs/mancs/totts had done that im sure theyd have had more column inches in today’s papers.i like Bruce and i know for a fact that he is on good terms with Aw since we recommend players to him.he is doing a fantastic job.i remember last season you almost beat the mancs at trafford and i truly felt for you.if cattermole improves his disciplinary record he’ll be a massive player for you.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Blackpool are hit for a dozen– at least. 🙁
If Cattermole sorts himself out, he can come and play for us 🙂
I fear that too agag 🙁
Inter are losing to Palermo.its good to see Rafa in control…inter don’t look like European champs.
Cheers K-TR7….. I dont think we have evr been compared to Barca before 🙂 Im surprised you like Bruce due to his Manc roots to good on you. Cattermole is a good player but totally brainless, and has already cost us 4 points because of it!! We have a lad Jordan Henderson who played yesteray who is a better footballer, and will be at a top 3/4 club soon…. we cant hang on to class like he has. In 2 years time he could be with you and you will love him (apart from his set pieces but you have enough people to do that already!)
Be back in 20 minutes, got to fix a fence panel… Yes, women can do that you know 😉
I must admit bent annoys me.he is a self-proclaimed arsenal fan but he can’t stop scoring against us.i hope you don’t run out of steam like you did last season.fulwell we had 35% possession in the first half which was the lowest we’ve had since barca games.even when we were battered by chavs/mancs we had almost 60% in those games.it also seems you rate rvp highly…a fully fit forward line of rvp,AA and theo would’ve left ferdinand with much more than headaches.cheers!
That went easier than i thought 🙂
Spot on KTR7, RvP, Theo, Chamakh with AA tucked just behind would be something else…
Rico i hope that forward line is available vs tiny totts and the mancs in the league.gallas wouldn’t want to face that while the mancs are conceding more goals than usual.Eto’o has just rescued inter with a brace…
And the Chavs KTR7, will be interesting to see who plays Tuesday against the Totts too…. Hope he picks a side that can win, I want revenge for last season, big time….
Good night, kids. 🙂 It was fun defending my not particularly defensible favorite defenseur.
Night Night agag, its been a good day, take care and enjoy the rest of your day 🙂
It would have been nice to have heard from oliver, RA, and WATH too. 🙂 Yawn. Really sleepy.
Night agag.rico i want revenge for the 5-1 demolition a few years ago.that really hurt my ego and im sure fabianski is still mentally scarred by it.
Yes, it’s a shame they weren’t around 🙁
Go to sleep 😉 Night agag
that was last season wasn’t it ktr7, thats the one i want revenge for too, wenger needs to play a stronger side this season, we want the CC, its a good start….
Rico i can see city troubling the chavs next week.they play with 3 dms so if city score first…i can’t wait for october 3rd.i hope AA has another anfield moment.hope cesc will be available.
Winning is a habit as they say.we need to get the monkey off our backs and if the CC is the trophy to do it,so be it!i also heard twichy say he’ll play fringe players.
Trouble is though KTR7, the Citeh camp is full of unrest…. I reckon the boss is soon to be no more the boss…
all twitchy’s players are fringe KTR7 😉
Having ade,balotelli…in the same team isn’t the best way to build a team but on this occasion i think they’ll put alot of effort in the game just to prove a point.
but balotelli isn’t even playing KTR7, hes out injured i think, Lardy is angry as he’s been dropped so often…. Won’t be long until he tells the world he should have stayed at Arsenal 😉
I want to see nordveit,afobe,chuks,JET,landsbury and sceczeny as the only inexperienced players.the rest should include denilson,djourou,gibbs,eboue,vela and maybe rosicky/nasri/wilshere.
good shout KTR7, I worry about JD though 🙁 I really hope Flapianski isn’t the cup keeper this season, chesney has to have his chance. He would have gone on loan by now if he wasnt going to play on tuesday, same with lansbury and a couple of others i think…
Rico im not saying balotelli is involved but if he was fit he’d be in the same sitiuation as ade.
Ade had the nerve to say city are bigger than us.i actually think he and allardyce are very similar.
I forgot to mention Eastmond rico.its also almost given djourou will start but who do you think will partner him?miquel?squillaci?kozzer?it may also give us an insight on who will be first choice along with Tv.now we have 3 solid cbs,can djourou join them?
I got what you were saying KTR7, they are both veryu disruptive and even though Balotelli is injured, he’d still be around the squad to do damage…
Eastmond, he’s playing really well in the reserves by all accounts, had a great game against City reserves… I would like to see Sqilli in with JD – bit of good old CH experience…
I wish frimpong was available for this one rico but shit happens.Eastmond for me have very good positional sense more of a makelele role but i hope he has bulked up.he can be a top player no doubt.
Imagine if bellamy was still at city?mancini would’ve already walked out.
Same old though KTR7, just as our ‘young’ players get their chance, an injury wipes them out, i rate Pingpong big time…. but yes, poop happens and usually to us….
😆 KTR7, i think he would. Respect to Bellamy though, look what he did just to play football. Must be the only decent thing he has done in years….
Hey Ktr7, you up for the next CL pre match post please??
Of course rico.i’ll cover this season’s action.leave all those posts to me.
Barça are leading A.madrid right now.
Evening all seems I’ve missed a busy day on here, well done Rico, great post and very honest, we didnt deserve a point BUT having taken the lead very very annoyed we could not hold on for the last 30seconds to scratch a win when we played so poorly…. Clichy in panic mode yet again…….!
You star KTR7, thank you 🙂
Hi WATH, thanks me old mucker 😉
That’s what hurts, we get the lead in a very difficult game then blow it…. Sunderland played to the whistle, we didn’t 🙁
I have the game on tonight KTR7, for a change, AM keeper just made a cracking save… I forsee a draw….
W.A.T.H Evening to you.we have covered alot hope you catch up to speed.rico i promised a post on denilson which may be ready this week.i’ll also analyse our defensive strategy for the season in another post.don’t worry rico i’m glad to be of importance.
Is Merida playing KTR7?
Good to see rico that i’m rubbing off on you…
that’s great news KTR7, just great and certainly is a massive help as well as well as having a great post or two to read…
Have read everything KT 😉
Clichy is a tit…………… Shame AGAG has gone her loverboy needs a rockets up his bum…!
😆 KTR7
So how do we solve the LB situation WATH, I don’t think throwing Gibbs in is the solution, he needs another season yet imho…
You wait til agag sees your comment 😉
Rico merida isn’t an athletico regular yet.W.A.T.H agag tried to defend clichy but she couldn’t do i in the end.clichy needs to cut out his mistakes.gibbs i don’t think is ready yet.
So why the heck did he leave KTR7, he sasi it was for regular football, he may was well stayed with us, what a twurp he is….
Rico i’ve got to say kudos to you.this blog has just made it to NN and now we’re clocking over 300 responses.you can’t make this stuff up.this blog is quality,hope it continues.
Rico i felt merida was impatient.he was technically excellent as Aw put it.
Gibbs is ready………… Good enough and he needs to play, Clichy is struggling with the simple things, a number of times yesterday he only had to play the way he was facing tried to be clever and got caught out he does it far 2 often. I’d play Gibbs, nothing to lose
Me too KTR7, I was real upset when he left, especially after he raved about staying after we knocked the dippers out of the CC last season…
I watched him play for England WATH, he is so often out of position, i’m yet to be convinced…. but yes, nowt to lose i guess…. Wenger won’t do it though, Clichy is French 😉
Night all…
Messi out for the season then??? or just a chipped toe nail….
Night KTR7, good day’s blogging 🙂
Nite KT……….. Whats all this about you rubbing Rico………. lol 😀
WATH, trust you, you bad man 😉 😉
I think it’s my time to say goodnight too, off for a cup of tea or maybe Horlicks 😉 😉
You all be good, stay safe and catch up tommorrow…
Nighty night
Nite Rico sleep tite and chat 2moro. . . .
Same to you WATH….
U guys played superb on Wednesday btw, and I was impressed how well that team created chances and flowed. Imagine my initial thoughts when Wenger announced exactly the same team on Saturday against us!……. It almost makes me cry with joy that lady luck went our way for a change, however it also probably illustrates just how poor the Romanian opposition was last week!! Just make sure u stay above Harry Fishfaces bunch of misfits cos we also hate em up here in Sunderland!!!
Sorry I didn’t manage to get a reply in yesterday, damn works computer blocked your site!
Well I said on friday I’d settle for a draw and after witnessing the first half I thought we’d get all three. We were pretty wasteful up front with abit of a toothless finish, but the approach play was incredible (for us)and I couldn’t believe we were poinning the Arsenal back in their half for about 40 of the first 45 mins. As a footballing spectacle I thought it had it all, with skill, flair, commitment, determination and teamwork. To be fair though neither keeper was particularly troubled throughout the game. Great support from you lot as always and a great atmosphere. Couldn’t fault the ref for the red card, he had it coming for persistence if not the dissent especially for the first, a decent bodycheck guaranteed his second. Otherwise there wasn’t a bad tackle on either side really. If you are to win the title you need to learn how to be as physically strong as you were but still maintain the footballing flair you so clearly possess. We saw flashes of it on saturday and each time it looked as though it was coming to the fore the crowd got instantly nervous that another typical Arsenal goal was coming. Thankfully we got at them and snubbed out the danger.
Again a very fair and balanced blog which has been recognised up here thanks to a site called Salut Sunderland, another fair minded site.
Seriously good luck for the rest of the season, I hope Wenger grows up, we don’t need another ferguson!
Man-of-the-match? El Mohameddy, won EVERY header and had the right back in his pocket.
Morning all, new post up
Hi Harry, just caught you before going on todays blog, thanks for your reasoned comments. I also believe we need to toughen up a bit, we need another big strong defensive midfielder – an Essien kind of player is what we lack, i thought wenger might get one but frimpong did relly well in pre-season so i think he was going to use him. now though he’s out for near on the whole season!!
Good luck to you guys too, was good to have some sensible debate over the last few days and not a ‘war of words’…
No doubt catch up with you all when the return fixture comes around…
I’m off to todays post….
At last, a sensible Gooner. Far to many of your lot just repeat Wenger’s predictable tirade, and it gets very boring. A very good article that sums up the match completely. Thanks for giving Sunderland credit where it’s due.
As a Sunderland fan, I have been very surprised and impressed by the reaction of most Arsenal fans to the game. Reading website reports and, more particularly talking to fans on the way out of the stadium when they couldn’t have been anything other than gutted, almost to a man they have been reasonable and accurate in their assessment of the game (This article is typical of this), far more than I think I would have been if we had conceded in the 95th minute.
Arsenal were not unlucky, Song deserved to be sent off for a clear 2nd yellow after a first given for persistent fouling rather than the 1 offence shown on Match of the Day. Sunderland deserved at least a point and dominated the game until Arsenal went down to 10 men. I have to say that, with 10 men, Arsenal were absolutely brilliant and gave a lesson in passing and movement, which was so good that they deserved a point just for this, so I think a draw was fair. Had they played like that with 11 they would have won easily.
I was very interested to see Wilshere due to the clamour in the press (and from that clown Adrian Durham on Talksport) for England to build the side around him now, whereas I haven’t heard anyone praising Jordan Henderson in the media, despite playing the whole of last season in the premier league. I have to say that I am really pleased that no-one in the ‘national’ (i.e. London) press seems to have noticed Henderson before Saturday as it means he has developed quietly without any chance of having his head turned. Both Henderson and Wilshere are excellent prospects, but with a lot to learn. Saturday was my first chance to compare the 2 and, purely on that game, I am pleased to have Henderson.
Finally, anyone who watched the whole game and then watched Match of the Day must surely be wondering if they were dreaming during the game. I have never seen such a biased edit of a game. They showed every attack Arsenal had and failed to show (off the top of my head), Riveros missing a free header inside the 6 yard box, Ferdinand having a header cleared off the line and Gyan heading straight at Almunia. Having said that, showing Sunderland actually creating chances wouldn’t have backed up the ridiculous analysis from Alan Shearer, who, having been remarkably fair to Sunderland when we were first promoted has reverted to type now that we are turning into a competitive Premier League side.